2009

The North American Car and Truck of the Year (NACTOY) awards are among the most prestigious in the industry, recognizing the vehicles that capture the votes of 50 top automotive journalists. This year's finalists, announced today at the Cobo Center in Detroit, are split about like the U.S. car...

Vizualtech, a Swedish design firm that specializes in constructing virtual 3D models of cars and boats, has just released this set of nine images on its blog, depicting a Dodge Challenger decked out in GT racing livery and aerodynamic modifications. Side-mounted exhaust pipes, a chunky rear...

The U.S. and Japan have had the Nissan GT-R on the street for the better part of a year already, but Europe continues to wait - the first cars won't be delivered until Q1 2009. But that hasn't stopped the tuners from moving forward with tuning kits for the Japanese supercar killer. With AWD, an...

We've all heard the argument for why someone drives that big SUV instead of a fuel-sipping mini-car on their epic two-hour commute: crash safety. And while there's a good bit of sense to that point, at least from the SUV driver's perspective, small cars are improving their safety marks according to...

It's a truism that big power requires lots of fuel. There's simply no way around it. So it's not surprising that a newly compiled top 10 list of the world's most polluting passenger cars is composed primarily of supercars. Leading the way is the Bugatti Veyron, rated at a whopping 571g/km CO2...

General Motors' Pontiac brand has been the subject of some very close scrutiny as a result of the dire financial straits of the automotive industry, and its future is still uncertain. There's even speculation that the brand could be axed altogether, but until then, it's business as usual, and today...

Volvo has released details and images for a new concept vehicle previewing its next-generation S60 saloon due in 2010. The concept car will make its world debut next month at the Detroit Auto Show and reveals the latest evolution of Volvo’s current design theme. "The concept car's exterior...

Nissan will be rewarding its commercial vehicle dealers with a number of vehicles that will not be available to dealers specializing solely in passenger vehicles. Apart from Nissan's new range of light commercial vehicles, such as the NV2500-inspired truck that we reported on earlier, Automotive...

Pontiac will see half of its models dropped from its current lineup in the next few years, with speculation that the brand could end up with less than three unique middles by the middle of the next decade. Susan Docherty, vice-president of Buick-Pontiac-GMC (BPG) explained that General Motors is...

American tuning workshop Hennessey Performance is renowned for its work with the Dodge Viper, but now the firm has reworked the formidable Nissan GT-R - taking it beyond supercar performance and up into the hypercar arena. Starting with the 2009 model-year GT-R, the Texas-based company upgrades...

With all that's going on in Washington lately, the slow economy and a general apathy or even hostility toward the automotive industry, it's nice to see a technological bright spot on the horizon. While it's not a ground-breaking or earth-shattering development, General Motors' fuel cell test fleet...

Following the launch of the updated Aston Martin 4.7L V8 Vantage earlier this year, owners of the original 4.3L model are now afforded the choice of a retro-fitted power upgrade plus a special ‘Sports Pack’ option previously limited to the updated model. With the addition of the power...

Detroit's major auto manufacturers could soon find that three certainly is a crowd when it comes to the world automotive market. CSM Worldwide is predicting 2009 to be the worst year in U.S. automotive sales in over a quarter of a century, and that Chrysler will not make it through the storm...

The Dodge Challenger SRT8 has been a welcome arrival for many muscle-car fans. Willing to overlook its hefty weight for the old-school looks and meaty Hemi power, they've already purchased just about every car scheduled to be made for the next year. But Hurst wasn't content to leave the Challenger...

Mercedes Benz today announced the availability of a new display technology that allows driver and passenger to see two totally separate programs from the same screen, at the same time. The equipment will debut on the facelifted S-Class, Mercedes' perennial platform for innovation, in the first half...

Shifting demand for smaller and more fuel-efficient vehicles around the globe, but especially in North America, has hit carmakers hard. Even industry leader Toyota is feeling the pain, announcing shocking profit results for the past quarter on the back of flagging sales for its SUV and pickup...

The war for the title of the best new muscle car is about to get underway in earnest now that all three contenders have been revealed. The 2010 Ford Mustang, which debuted at last month's Los Angeles Auto Show, is already off to a head start with the lowest price of the trio, though it only slides...

Jaguar has revised its XJ lineup for the 2009 model year, offering customers more value and increased comfort. Building upon last year’s mid-cycle facelift, Jaguar designers have focused on the interior elements of the luxury saloon and refined the vehicle’s diesel offerings for...

The 2008 SEMA show featured no shortage of customized Dodge Challengers, and for good reason - the has been a rather solid success in the U.S., at least in SRT8 form, especially considering Chrysler's other woes. It appears that Europeans are at least open to the car as well, if this...

Last month we showed you a leaked image of the upcoming Nismo enhanced 2009 Nissan 370Z, and now we have official details for the tuner’s ‘S-Tune’ package. While the teaser image we showed you earlier featured the rear of the car with a sizeable fixed rear wing, full bodykit and a...