From the Passenger's Seat

This is the normal Doge Dart, not the high-mileage Aero trim this article is about. Like many other compact sedans, the new Dodge Dart will require you to select a special trim level in order to get to the magical "40 miles per gallon on the highway" EPA fuel economy rating. This overachieving sedan has a special package called the "Aero" (reminds you of the now-dead Saab, doesn't it. Sigh.) that will use the 1.4 liter MultiAir turbocharged four cylinder engine, low rolling resistance tires and unique aerodynamic wheel covers. Interestingly enough, this package will be manual transmission only, which will sure woo car enthusiasts, but will obviously rebuke many other shoppers. Otherwise, equipment will be comparable to the SXT trim level (see my previous Dodge Dart trim level breakdown). Production of the normal Dart will commence May 3rd, or this Wednesday. The Aero will be on sale later this fall.

In the past, Lamborghini's names for their vehicles have always been associated with some well- known  fighting bull. With the cow Urus name, that has changed. Now, Lamborghini has moved even further away from bull names with the trademark application "Huracan." If sounds like "hurricane" to you, it is. The name is completely unrelated to cows and bulls, but is still a nice name for a Lamborghini nonetheless. The origin of the word is Spanish, and  the English actually stole it from Spanish. Well, the Spanish stole it from the Mayans, too.  Another recent trademark filing from Lamborghini is Deimos, the Greek god of terror and dread. I'm not sure I want to own a car with that name... One of the names will likely be used for the production version of the Urus concept (the styling has grown on me). The other will probably used for the upcoming Gallardo substitute.  In any case, both of these names will used, in either concept or production...

Excepting the hot Beijing Auto Show, there isn't much car news today. That's why I'm covering something that I wouldn't otherwise cover: the Mercedes Benz Viano Vision Diamond Concept.  For those of you that don't know, the cargo and passenger van market is a profitable on for Mercedes overseas. The Viano is a heavy duty passenger van, like a a Ford E-Series but only more refined.  In the past, there has been many conversions of the Mercedes Benz Sprinter and Viano vans into opulent limousine vans. This time, Mercedes Benz did it on their own. This is a follow-up to the Viano Vision Pearl concept from the Frankfurt Auto Show.  It is superbly luxurious inside. There are only two seats, but those two passengers will be pampered in the utmost comfort and luxurious ambiance. White-gray Nappa leather covers huge expanses of the passenger compartment, with a ring of dark wood accenting it. The two thrones are highly adjustable and climate controll...

The Jaguar engine lineup right now in the United States includes only eight cylinder gasoline motors that, while sweet, are gas gulpers. Jaguar is going to change that and try to entice more shoppers by putting two new engines in their U.S. engine portfolio. The first engine they're going to implement is the Ecoboost 2 liter four cylinder engine producing 240 horsepower. This engine also powers the new Ford Escape, 2013 Ford Fusion, Ford Edge, and Range Rover Evoque, among others. Helping give the Ecoboost an extra boost in gas mileage is a new 8-speed automatic transmission. To make a V-6, Jaguar will simply chop two cylinders off its existing V-8. To make it have V-8 thrust, Jaguar will add a supercharger on top of it. It should make 340 to 380 horsepower, depending on the vehicle it is stuffed in. The V-6 will have the latest goodies in engine technology, including an all aluminum design, direct injection, variable valve timing, and engine start/stop. It will be conne...

In all of China and its glory, there are many luxury vehicles debuting there. Here are some highlights.  The Rolls Royce Ghost Six Senses Concept is just a gussied up Ghost. It is supposed to appeal to all five senses and the sixth sense of a luxury atmosphere. No power increases are involved. Although this is a concept, it can be easily copied for production. Bentley, not to be left out, also debuted a special edition, only without the word "concept" in its name. It is the Mulsanne Diamond Jubilee Edition, named after the British queen. Chrysler has two cars up its sleeve as well. The Chrysler 300 Ruyi Design Concept is inspired by ruyi scepters. The Jeep Wrangler Dragon Design Concept joins many other dragon themed vehicles. The gold accenting is too much for me.  The disgusting Lamborghini Urus is there, too. It showcases the next Lamborghini SUV after the LM002.  One not-so-luxury vehicle is the new Nissan Sylphy, a common sight in Chi...

I know I don't post on Fridays or the weekend, but this is important. Lamborghini has released photos of its new SUV, the Urus. It looks disgusting. It's not terrible, just plain out disgusting. Even the name is gross. It looks like a cross breed between a Porsche Cayenne, an Aventador, a Range Rover Evoque and a Acura ZDX. Not a pretty result. Take a look.  Here's the poopoo interior.

Ever since the ENVI electric car program was terminated back in 2009 when Chrysler became bankrupt, there wasn't much activity on electric or alternative fuel vehicles. They were having a hard time just selling gasoline powered vehicles (Hahaha!!!). Anyways, now the plug-in hybrid Town & Countries are undergoing testing by Duke Energy in Charlotte.  Right now, there are merely eight vehicles of this type. Chrysler plans to build 25 for fleet use. In the next two years, Chrysler engineers will receive data from the white rat vehicles for further use on perhaps a production electric/plug in hybrid car in the far future. These special minivans use the regular 3.6 liter Pentastar V-6 found in many other Chrysler products. However, a electric motor fuel by a 12.1 kilowatt-hour Li-ion helps propel the car forward. Total range is said to be over 700 miles, and charging time using a 220-volt outlet is 2 to 4 hours while using a household outlet triples those numbers.  Wh...

Car magazines have long predicted a miniature CLS-Class from Mercedes based on the platform of the new A-Class, which Mercedes is going to use a lot more. The concept car here that will make its debut at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show is what the production model will roughly look like, excepting the side mirrors, wheels and other details.  As the name doesn't suggest, this car is not a coupe. It is a four door sedan with a fast roof-line that makes it appear like a coupe, kind of like the CLS. Overall, it is about a foot shorter than the 194-ish inch CLS. The height and width about mirrors that of the CLS. Augmenting the sexy look are ridiculously big (for a car this size) 20-inch wheels, a prominent power dome and a low stance. You might notice the "diamond grille" that was used on the A-Class concept and production cars. It is an element that Mercedes plans on using more on sporty models in the future. This piece is also another case of a misleading name, as it is ju...

The famed magazine Car and  Driver  recently interrogated Mazda's senior vice president of United States Operations. Here is what they got out from him. First off, the rotary will live on. It will be developed with Skyactiv principles in mind, such as reduced mass, less friction and slicker transmissions. It will be used for propelling the wheels, but it also will be in the position of a range extender for an extended range electric vehicle. The rotary is perfectly suited to this job , with low vibrations, compact design and prodigious horsepower for its size.    There will be no replacement for the now dead CX-7 midsize/compact crossover. It will continue to sell in other parts of the world, but there will not be a replacement for the CX-7 here.  Another dead thing is the V-6. Mazda is dropping the V-6 in lieu of forced induction four cylinders, an exploding trend. It won't make much of an impact since there are only two Mazdas in the ...

The new, highly anticipated Dodge Dart has now been fully priced and configured. There is going to be 5 trim levels: SE, SXT, Rallye, Limited and R/T. The SE is the bottom trim, and it is tagged at $16790. Standard features include a 2 liter, 160 horsepower, 4 cylinder engine, LED tail lamps, power windows, a 6-way manually adjustable driver's seat and a AM/FM/CD stereo system, with an auxiliary input. Jumping for the SXT costs $2000 over the SE. That additional $2000 gets you a sliding armrest, air conditioning, a split folding rear bench seat, power mirrors and door locks, 17 inch aluminum wheels and keyless entry. Another $1000 on top of that will buy you the Rallye, which has a dressed-up sport themed exterior, fog lights, twin exhaust tips and a leather wrapped steering wheel with audio controls. Opting for the Rallye also opens up more interior themes that consists of different combinations of black, grey, red and orange. The next rung up the ladder is the Limited...

In the next two years, Maserati will introduce three new products. It should be the new Quattroporte (the current generation has been selling since 8 years ago), a new, smaller version of the Quattroporte possibly called the Levante that is the size of a Mercedes Benz E-Class or Honda Accord, and the new crossover that will be built in Detroit alongside the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango called the Kubang (sounds like an explosion, huh?).  Maserati will be building a new Alfa Romeo model alongside its GranTurismo as well, beginning in May 2013. Don't expect that car to reach America any time soon, or even later.

In the coming weeks, the used car sale prices of compact and midsize sedans will reach its highest point in quite a while, according to the National Automobile Dealer Association, or NADA. The combination of high gas prices and relatively low inventory if pushing the used car prices way up since last year.

In celebration of the marque's twentieth year selling cars in the People's Republic, Ferrari has molded a special edition 458 Italia that it will produce only 20 copies of.  The car is dragon themed for the Chinese zodiac year, following dragon editions from Rolls Royce, Dartz, Chrysler and Jeep. This particular car also features prodigious amounts of gold accents, with gold stitching, gold stripes, gold lettering and more. The paint color is an one of a kind Marco Polo Red, in reference to the early explorer that traded in China. How much money it will cost and whether it is still for sale is a big question mark. 

Once the new GS450h hybrid sedan becomes available for consumers next month, it will sell for $59825, including a destination charge of $875.  The price is the same number as the 2011 GS hybrid's price.  The new RX, which debuted at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, starts at $40185 including a $875 destination fee, which is a $235 increase over the 2012 model year's price. All wheel drive adds $1400. The hybrid RX450h will start at $46785 including destination charge, an increase of $675 over the current model's. There will be a new addition to the RX lineup: the RX F Sport. It will provide better handling and more driver involvement, along with a paddle shifted 8-speed automatic transmission.

The new full-size sedan flagship from Cadillac, called the XTS, will begin at $44995 when it populates dealer lots this May. The standard version is a front wheel drive model, with all wheel drive available on higher trims. There will be three option packages, Luxury, Premium and Platinum in ascending order.  At this price point, the front wheel drive Cadillac competes with many very good competitors in the midsize luxury car segment. Whether it can take the heat is unknown.

This auto show is certainly a busy one, with cars debuting left and right. Here are some vehicles that have been refreshed or  redesigned  that I thought are worth giving my opinion on. Let's start with the new Toyota Avalon. The car is overall contemporary and stylish, but the front looks like it's wearing a mouth guard. For me, something with more dimension would work better. I'm also a detractor of the capacitive buttons, which are frustrating to use.  Next up are the Subaru Legacy and Outback. They have been refreshed and bring a new CVT, four cylinder, as well as safety systems previously unheard of in this class. I've grown used to their styling. The ES from Lexus has also been redesigned. This generation brings a hybrid version, fresh multimedia systems, and better dynamics. I think the car looks way to fat on the outside, while the the steering wheel looks to minuscule for such a large and luxurious car. Chevrolet's Impala, a rental c...