Research, research and more research. That’s what you must do when purchasing a new car. Hopefully you’ll look at things like price, fuel economy, features and overall livability. It’s no easy task, but rest assured that if you do your due diligence you’ll wind up with the perfect car. Now, if for some reason you don’t feel like doing any research then you can turn to guys like us – the motor-journalists who do the research for you. Recently Motor Trend Magazine put together a group of SUV’s for their annual SUV of the Year competition. They judge just about every category and in the end, pick the best overall performer. The video is about 15-minutes long, but if you’re in the hunt for an SUV, then it may be exactly what you’re looking for.

Source: Motor Trend

The 2013 Camaro ZL1, in topless flavor. Image: GM Corp.

If you thought that the announcement of the 650-horsepower 2013 Shelby GT 500 meant the end of the pony car wars, you’d be wrong. Al Oppenheiser, the chief engineer on the Camaro ZL 1 program, was his normal outspoken self in a a letter to the faithful on the Camaro5 website.

As quoted on Left Lane News, Oppenheiser wrote, “For Mustang fans. you’re welcome. Clearly the Camaro has encouraged Ford to throw everything they can at us. The days of ‘no replacement for displacement’ are over, and it’s not enough to be fast in a straight line. With the Camaro ZL1, we set out to deliver integrated performance, and be equally good at acceleration, braking, grip and turning. As you will soon see, that’s why the Camaro ZL1 will set the performance benchmark for the segment.”

That’s a line in the sand if we’ve ever seen one…

A few weeks ago I was walking around the SEMA show in Las Vegas, NV oogling the thousands of amazing show cars. The entire show is one gigantic aftermarket spectacle that must be seen to be believed, as it showcases just about every trend the automotive spectrum has to offer. One such trend that caught my eye was the crossbreeding of parts (power plants in particular) from one manufacturer to another. For instance, it seemed as though every hot-rod, rat-rod and pro-touring car out there had some type of GM LS motor under the bonnet. Now granted it makes sense, because in the scheme of things, who wouldn’t want a stout 600 hp, aluminum small block under the hood.

*Image Credit: Inside Line

However seeing them in cars like old Ford trucks and AMX’s was a little strange. It used to be that mixing and matching like this was a big no-no amongst the brand loyal, but nowadays it’s totally commonplace. So, anyone have a problem with this, or do you think it is the right way to go.

For some, the idea of building, driving and racing old cars from the 1960′s and 1970′s seems somewhat archaic. However there are those who go against the grain, push the envelope and retrofit these old cars with some of the latest and greatest technology available. In fact its not uncommon nowadays to see brand new state-of-the-art engines and suspension systems in these rides. Hell, for some it’s the best of both worlds. Because there are so many enthusiasts who go down this road, small race series have begun to pop-up that give owners a chance to not only showcase their automobiles, but their talent behind the wheel as well. The Midwest Muscle Car Challenge was held this past September on Labor Day weekend and showcased some of the coolest muscle cars in the Country. These are not just some retrofitted show cars, but hardcore rides that can be driven daily and then raced on the weekends. Click play for the video and see how the event went down.

Source: MidwestMuscleCarChallenge.com

That's a cop car? Damn... Image: Ford Motor Company

With the recent death of the Crown Victoria, Ford is looking to remind police agencies from coast to coast that it still builds police cars. Coincidentally, the Michigan State Police have just certified both the Sedan and Utility versions of the Ford Police Interceptor as “pursuit certified.” We don’t know exactly what that means, other than both vehicles have passed tests for acceleration, handling and braking, but we’re sure of this: we’re not going to try and outrun either version.

Ford’s taking a novel approach to building police cars since the demise of the Crown Vic; to minimize departmental expenses, both the Utility (based on the new Ford Explorer) and Sedan (based on the new Ford Taurus) versions share a significant number of common parts. Both come in AWD as their standard configuration, and both are powered by V-6, not V-8 engines. The Utility gets a 3.7-liter V-6, good for 300 horsepower, while the Sedan gets either a normally aspirated 3.5-liter V-6 (good for 280 horsepower) or the EcoBoost 3.5-liter V-6 (good for 365 horsepower).

As you’d expect, components like brakes are beefed up, and Ford’s police interceptors get speed rated, performance-oriented tires. Both are designed to withstand a 75 mile per hour rear impact, and both can be ordered with bullet-resistant Kevlar sheeting in the doors. Most important of all, both look downright sinister.

I’ve never had the cop-car jones before, since most are lumbering beasts that could only be considered fast in a straight line, and only when compared to average family sedans. I know the Interceptor Sedan pictured above is Ford’s rendering of what one could look like, if a department was willing to purchase aftermarket wheels and drop the ride height, but I’d still like to see this hit production for us civilians. If the Taurus SHO looked this good, Ford would sell every one they built.

Chrysler’s original “Imported From Detroit” TV ad was pretty bleak. Filmed in the gritty urban heart of Detroit, the commercial was more about surviving that it was about succeeding, and I seriously doubt it inspired anyone to pick up stakes and move to Detroit. Their latest ad, for the 2012 Chrysler 300, shows a kinder and gentler side to the Motor City. The commercial may start out in the city, complete with gray, overcast skies, but it soon wanders into the upscale suburbs of Detroit.

There’s tree-lined streets and traditional neighborhoods, complete with kids playing outside without concern of a drive-by shooting. There’s a shop-filled downtown, even though shopping malls killed off most of the mom-and-pop retail establishments on America’s main streets. By the end of the video, there’s even sunny skies, right before the driver parks his eight-speed-automatic-transmission-equipped Chrysler 300 in front of a suspiciously-Frank-Lloyd-Wright-looking house.

What does it all mean? Are better days on the horizon for all of us, just like Chrysler? Is a trip out of the run-down city, into the suburbs of home on the horizon for all of us? Let me be the first to say, “Christ, I hope so.”

Source: You Tube

Cadillac's Ciel Concept. Image: © GM Corp.

When you think of big, ultra-luxury four-seat convertibles, two cars come to mind: the Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe and the Bentley Azure Convertible. The Bentley is the cheaper of the two, with a starting price of just $365,000 or so, which is $85,000 less than the Phantom’s price of admission. Back in the day, Cadillac used to build grand convertibles as well, although not in the same price league as Rolls-Royce or Bentley (in the modern era, at least). Enter the Cadillac Ciel (pronounced C-L) concept, which harkens back to the Caddys of old with a nod to the future as well.

Image: © GM Corp.

First, there’s the styling. Front end and rear-end are both pure Cadillac, which means they’re polarizing in design. The side view is more conservative, and it’s clear that the Ciel was heavily influenced by the Rolls-Royce Phantom. That’s not to say that the Caddy concept is a rip-off or even a derivative of the Phantom, but it’s clear which market the Ciel would be targeted to. If it were built, of course, and Cadillac is clear that the Ciel is a design exercise in “historical grandeur” at this time.

The styling may be pseudo-retro, or at least influenced by the past, but the technology is cutting edge. There’s LED lighting in front and rear, “connectivity portals” for all passengers and a twin-turbo V6 engine supplemented by a hybrid drivetrain powering all four wheels. Over-the-top luxury abounds, including a retractible cashmere blanket for rear-seat passengers, Italian Olive wood trim, a rear-seat cigar humidor and a chronograph-inspired instrument panel.

Image: © GM Corp.

It’s neither the right time nor the right global economy to build a car like the Ciel, and history has not been kind to luxury automakers who launch high-end models in weak economies. That’s a shame, because the Ciel really does evoke memories of what Cadillac used to be about, long before badge-engineered disasters like the Cimarron and the Catera. Let’s hope that Cadillac doesn’t bin the Ciel after the 2011 and 2012 show circuit, because the Ciel represents not only what used-to-be in America, but what could someday be again. For that reason alone, I’d like to see it built.

Source: Cadillac

When you’ve got 100 years of history to choose from, it’s hard to pick just six cars as the “most significant” performance cars you’ve ever built. GM’s Dr. Jamie Meyer gives it a shot in this video tour of the GM Heritage Center, picking just six cars as “most significant,” although not necessarily the fastest or best-handling. I’d take any of the six cars highlighted in the video below, but if I had my choice of any one, It’d be the 1963 Corvette.

If you’ve driven a Corvette from that era, you know just how crude and punishing the cars were. They went like hell in a straight line, assuming you could get the skinny rear tires to bite, but handling and braking were nowhere near as good as we’ve come to expect today (and yes, I learned that lesson the hard way in a 1965 Corvette Roadster).

In honor of this week’s Woodward Dream Cruise, enjoy the video below.

If you ask a dozen bowtie fans what the most significant cars in Chevy’s history have been, you’re likely to get a dozen different answers. With 100 years worth of product to choose from, narrowing down the list to just five cars would be a daunting task. In my opinion, you could narrow the list quickly by just crossing off anything made between 1974 and 2001, with the possible exception of the 1984 Corvette and the 1990 ZR-1 Corvette.

I’m not a die-hard Chevy fan, and I’m certainly no Chevy historian. That’s the very reason why questions like this are best left to guys like Greg Wallace, manager of GM’s Heritage Center. If anyone can name the top five Chevies, it’s Wallace, and he explains his reasoning in the video below.

In 2006 Chrysler’s 6.1L HEMI made 425hp / 420 lb-ft of torque. In 2011 that number jumped to 470 hp / 470 lb-ft of torque thanks to a bump in displacement to 6.4L. Now for 2012 Chrysler is saying that they’ll be slapping a supercharger on their SRT8 Charger and 300 sedan’s and bumping power to a stump pulling 570 hp. We all figured that it wouldn’t be long before SRT CEO Ralf Gilles jumped on the horsepower bandwagon. You see this guy is a horsepower junkie and I have a feeling that he got a little peeved when he found out that the new 2012 Camaro ZL1 was going to have 570 hp. Chrysler’s SRT8 cars are brilliant automobiles, and I’m not just saying that because I own one. They ride and handle beautifully, have gobs of power and stop on a dime thanks to their fabulous Brembo brakes. If there is one caveat though, it would be their weight, as they’re a bit on the chubby side.

The fix? Bolt on a big-ass supercharger and go for broke. The Eaton based twin-screw supercharger kit will also be accompanied by an eight speed automatic transmission which will not only help the big sedans get better fuel economy, but make them some of the best open road cars on the planet.

Source: MotorAuthority.com