Martin Padgett, Editorial Director

Articles

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  2013 Lincoln MKZ: Walkaround Video Martin Padgett April 9, 2012

  Ford has a big challenge ahead with Lincoln--somehow, it has to find a way to reboot a brand that's been dulled by a decade or so of neglect. While Ford lavished attention--and cash--on its former...

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  2013 Mercedes-Benz SL 550: First Drive

  The thing you have to remember, above all, is that the Mercedes-Benz SL isn't a sportscar. It may be a sporty car--even the "S-Class of sporty cars," as one of its creators calls it, but the SL's always been sort of the ultimate German counterpart to the Thunderbird. In the highest, best sense...

  Martin Padgett March 21, 2012
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  2013 Bentley Continental GT V8: First Drive

  Whenever I land in a strange place for one of these first drives of a new car, the first task at hand is to keep moving. Get off the plane, off the shuttle, and get out of the hotel room before jet lag lures me for "a short nap" and proceeds to take the rest of the day--the rest of the...

  Martin Padgett March 11, 2012
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  2013 Acura RDX: 2012 Detroit Show Video

  The 2013 Acura RDX made its worldwide debut at the 2012 Detroit auto show, but it's not long for the show-car circuit. With an on-sale date of late spring, this crossover emerged at Cobo Center in almost fully production-ready form. There's more to distinguish the RDX this time around from the...

  Martin Padgett January 13, 2012
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  2013 Acura ILX Preview: 2012 Detroit Auto Show

  With a hat trick of new cars at this year's Detroit auto show--including the hybrid NSX concept--the Acura brand is taking fresh aim at luxury-car buyers that have moved onward and upward to other brands. With the ILX concept, Acura's looking for fresh talent. The new four-door makes it clear that...

  Martin Padgett January 9, 2012
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  Indy 500 Winner Dan Wheldon Dies In Vegas 300

  Indy 500 winner Dan Wheldon has died after a 15-car wreck at the Las Vegas Indy 300. Wheldon, a native of England, won the Indy 500 twice, earlier this year and in 2005. He hadn't won a race in two years when he took over the lead in the last lap of this year's Indy 500, winning for Bryan Herta...

  Martin Padgett October 16, 2011
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  Lamborghini: We'll Confirm Third Model Within Weeks Martin Padgett October 4, 2011

  Lamborghini will decide by the "beginning of next year" on what form its third model will take--whether it's a sedan, an SUV or something entirely unexpected.

  The resulting vehicle will not be on...

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  2012 Bentley Continental GTC: First Drive

  Croatia doesn't sound like anything familiar to Americans, but Europeans have been calling it the "new Tuscany" since they turned their timeshare-building, economy-hyperinflating attentions away from the last "new Tuscany" in southern Spain. We're still puzzled about what was wrong with the old...

  Martin Padgett September 30, 2011
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  2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster: First Drive

  It's been nearly two years since we took you along for a first drive of the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG gullwing, live from Laguna Seca. We were the first to call it Mercedes' Viper, summing it up thusly: "It's partly American in its tendency to speak out, part Italian in its cool-first aesthetic, and...

  Martin Padgett September 19, 2011
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  2012 Porsche 911 Live Photos: 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show

  The 2012 Porsche 911 is one of the most important new cars on the show stands at Frankfurt 2011, and it's clear from the space devoted to it at the massive VW pavilion, the company is devoted to playing up the new "991" sportscar. There's much new technology in the new 911, not the least of which...

  Martin Padgett September 14, 2011
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  2013 Fisker Surf Live Photos: 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show

  Earlier this week, start-up automaker Fisker released the first preview details on its 2013 Surf hatchback. Now, thanks to the wonders of German organizational excellence and the crafty use of Canon equipment, we've got live photos to show you, and a few details on Fisker's here and now. The Surf...

  Martin Padgett September 14, 2011
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  Kia GT concept debuts at 2011 Frankfurt auto show

  We've shown you Kia's official photos of its lovely new GT concept, and now we're giving you the firsthand look we grabbed earlier today, in between mobs of photographers eager to capture the handsome new hatchback for themselves. Patterned after the rear-drive luxury grand tourers of the 1970s...

  Martin Padgett September 14, 2011
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  2011 Jaguar C-X16 Concept: 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show Martin Padgett September 13, 2011

  We've gone from teasers to previews to mega-galleries, and we're still not tired of showing you the stunning Jaguar C-X16 concept, on the floor this week at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show and...

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  Land Rover DC100 Concept Goes Sport: 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show

  With so much of the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show revealed online in the week before the gates actually opened at the city's Messe, the Land Rover DC100 concept could have been one of that pre-seen crowd. Land Rover had shown the hardtop Defender replacement on the Web as well--but it saved a cut-down...

  Martin Padgett September 13, 2011
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  Mercedes-Benz F125! Concept: Fuel Cells Still Waiting On Tomorrow

  While the rest of the auto world dives deeply hybrids and electric cars at this year's Frankfurt Auto Show, Mercedes-Benz is still convinced the hydrogen fuel cell is the powertrain of the future--absolutely by the year 2050, and likely much sooner than that if new hydrogen-storage technology can...

  Martin Padgett September 12, 2011
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  Toyota FT-86 II Tease Drags On; New Video For Frankfurt Auto Show

  Toyota's dropped a new YouTube video of its FT-86 II concept. We've talked about the admittedly gorgeous concept so much--as recently as this year's 2011 Geneva Motor Show--we're not sure what else to say about the FT, which embarked a few years ago on a gestation cycle longer than that endured by...

  Martin Padgett September 7, 2011
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  Land Rover DC100 Concept debuts at 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show

  Land Rover says its new DC100 concept, set for the upcoming 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show, is a precursor to a new Defender. The SUV maker indicates a new Defender is on the way--but in the release accompanying these photos, says there's been no plan to market a version of the new off-roader in North...

  Martin Padgett August 30, 2011
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  2011 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance: Marty's Favorites

  How do you get to Pebble Beach? It's not as simple as finding your way past the 101, to Asilomar and 68, then over to 17 Mile Drive. For collectors of extraordinary cars, the road to Pebble Beach can take years to find, let alone conquer. First, you have to seek out a car that makes you want to...

  Martin Padgett August 22, 2011
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  2012 Hyundai Equus 5.0 First Drive Martin Padgett August 21, 2011

  It may be the weekend when all of the classic-car world preoccupies itself with Pebble, Laguna and Quail, but on a slightly less rarified level, the Monterey classics celebration also serves as a...

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  Pre-1940 Sports, Racing, and Touring Cars: 2011 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

  The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion always draws a fascinating group of competitors--men and women willing to turn their painstakingly restored classic race car into a brand-new restoration project. Of all the vehicles, it's the oldest, rarest ones that continue to amaze us. The very survival of...

  Martin Padgett August 21, 2011
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  1961-1970 Jaguar E-Type: 2011 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

  The Jaguar E-Type is celebrating 50 years on the planet this weekend at the orgy of classic cars and always-classic cash in Monterey, California. We told you as much yesterday -- along with news that the E-Type's spiritual replacement is on the way as a concept car dubbed C-X16. At today's Rolex...

  Martin Padgett August 21, 2011
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  1966-1971 Trans-Am Cars: 2011 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

  We're at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion today as part of our coverage of the Pebble Beach Concours weekend, and today's classic races have already brought out braces of Can-Am cars, Jaguars new and old, and these Trans-Am cars from the heyday of the muscle car, from 1966 to 1971. Created by...

  Martin Padgett August 20, 2011
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  Jaguar C-X16 A Two-Seater; What's The Name Mean?

  The 2011 Frankfurt auto show opens to the media on Sept. 12, and one of the most anticipated concept cars making its debut on the show floor will be the Jaguar C-X16 concept, a promise-keeper for the brand's future entry-level sports car. Chief designer Ian Callum says it's one of the most exciting...

  Martin Padgett August 20, 2011
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  Jaguar E-Type Celebrates 50 Years: The Quail 2011

  After fifty years on the road, a decade off duty and with a permanent place secured in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, what's left for the venerable Jaguar E-Type? Jaguar's resident cougar had a belated birthday party at The Quail 2011, as the annual Monterey classics weekend and Pebble Beach...

  Martin Padgett August 20, 2011