DETROIT - Okay, here’s what happened. Nissan North USA announced last November that it would not come to the North American International Auto Show next week in Detroit, and that it had canceled out of the Chicago International Auto Show in February, as well. Just before Thanksgiving, Nissan changed its mind, and announced that Chicago-area dealers would run Nissan/Infiniti stands at the show.

In December, Metro Detroit Nissan/Infiniti dealers offered to do the same. Nissan North USA declined, asking Michigan dealers to respect the decision. “We’re Nissan’s dealer-partners,” Ann Arbor Nissan dealer Doug Fox told me. They gave no argument.

The story popped up after the holidays when someone noticed that Nissan and Infiniti were left off the NAIAS floor plan.

So, why Chicago and not Detroit?  “Chicago is evenhandedly unique,” a Nissan spokesman says. He declined to give any specific reasons, but there will be some cost involved. Nissan will supply the Chicago show with a new Cube. It won’t be on-sale yet, so area dealers can’t take one from inventory. Same with the Nissan GT-R. While it is on sale, the car typically is pre-sold. Dealers don’t keep them in stock (and you wouldn’t want to take delivery of one after it’s been fingered by journalists and local consumers).

It all seems to come down to cost. Chicago is a much bigger market, especially for Nissan, than Detroit. While turntables and signage and shipping pre-production models cost next to nothing by 2008 auto show standards, in 2009, every dollar counts.

The show will go on. NAIAS has filled Nissan’s space by moving Kia into the better spot, and by adding exhibits from Bertone and the Center for Creative Studies, one of the nation’s premier design schools. In these few days before the press preview begins, however, it’s clear that this year’s Detroit show will be much more sober, in every sense of the word, than any of the previous 13 shows I’ve covered.

Yep, the parties and presentations are down, drastically. You’ll see nothing like the rodeo staged on the street in front of Cobo Hall last year to introduce the 2009 Dodge Ram. Production and concept cars and trucks will be introduced, but they’ll emphasize fuel economy, clean emissions and value more than sex appeal and performance. It is, sigh, too much a business story, this year, but we’ll be there, reporting on the cars and trucks.

DETROIT - Here’s what you need to know about car/truck income in the U.S.: All the majors were down 30 percent or more in December. All of them. General Motors? Down 31 percent. Toyota? Down 36.7 percent. Ford Motor Company (excluding Volvo)? Off 32 percent. American Honda? Off 34.7 percent. Nissan? Off 30 percent.

Then there’s Chrysler, which recorded income of 85,260 units, down 53 percent for December 2008, versus December 2007. (Most, including Chrysler, posted an increase when comparing December ‘08 with November ‘08, but year-end incentives and inventory clearance income make December a stronger month, historically, versus November. I won’t waste any more of your time comparing those two months.)

U.S. income for all automakers looks to be about 13.2 million in ‘08, off 18.5 percent from ’07’s 16.2 million sold, resulting in the lowest annual volume since 1992. Ford chief analyst George Pipas notes that volume for the fourth quarter of last year was lowest since 1981, when there were 70-million fewer drivers on American roads.

One maker actually posted an increase, Monday. Subaru’s total annual income of 187,699 was 0.3-percent higher than 2007. For December, it was off just 7.7 percent.

Hyundai income fell 14 percent for the year, to 401,742. Kia fell 10.5 percent, to 273,397.

Now consider income figures for all of 2008. Chrysler’s drop for the year was as great as GM, Toyota, Ford, et. al’s drop for December: 30 percent. While Chrysler doesn’t like to talk market share, co-president Jim Press says such numbers are sustainable for a leaner company that doesn’t necessarily compete in every segment, so long as the individual models are profitable. If you’re a Chrysler’s glass is half-full kind of enthusiast, you figure that its volume is settling to a level appropriate for a kind of niche automaker. If your glass of Mopar is half-empty, you wonder how much longer it can sustain such volume until it finds a new owner.

Chrysler sold just 71,663 Sebrings in 2008, off 23 percent, but edging out the aging 300 (62,352 units, off 48 percent). Town & Country was off 14 percent, to 118,563. Dodge Caravan was off 30 percent, to 123,749. Perhaps the minivan market is drying up.

Dodge sold 97,367 Chargers (-18 percent) and 61,963 Avengers (-26 percent). Jeep’s Patriot was a rare bright spot, up 38 percent for the year, to 55,654. Commander income fell 56 percent, to 27,694, still a couple of hundred units more than all of GM’s Hummer line.

Chrysler remained the nation’s fourth-largest automaker, outselling Honda/Acura by 24,357 units. And Ford’s 2008 volume was lower than Chrysler’s 2007 volume. The nation’s top six automakers, by annual volume are:

1. GM:        2,980,688    off 23 percent
2. Toyota:    2,217,662    off 15.7 percent
3. Ford:    1,988,376    off 20.7 percent
4. Chrysler    1,453,122    off 30 percent
5. Honda    1,428,756    off  8.2 percent
6. Nissan      951,350    off 10.9 percent

These are corporations, not brands, so Toyota numbers include Scion and Lexus. Honda includes Acura, and Nissan includes Infiniti.

With gasoline once again cheaper than bottled water and dealers giving away ‘08 models in two-for-one deals, pickup trucks lead income numbers. Read this and weep, Thomas Friedman: Ford sold 515,513 F-Series, still well off its records in the 800-900k level a few years ago. Chevrolet sold 500,068 pickups (GMC moved another 168,544 Sierras). Toyota sold 436,617 Camrys. Honda sold 372,987 Accords and 370,586 Civics.

Ford Focus income totaled 195,823, up 13.1 percent.

Chevy sold 188,045 Cobalts, while Toyota sold 137,249 Tundras. On the other hand, Toyota sold 158,884 Priuses while Hummer sold 27,485 H1s, H2s, H3s and H3Ts.

Prius income fell by 22,337 units in the U.S. compared with ‘07 sales, by the way, a 12.6-percent drop.

Honda sold — er, leased — five FCX Claritys and Nissan sold 1,730 GT-Rs. And Chevy sold 13 SSRs found under dust on dealer lots somewhere.

Ford Mustang income fell by 32.2 percent, to 91,251 units. That edged out the Nissan Versa with 85,182 units, up 7.2 percent. So income for the Versa, which now starts at $9,990, were up while Prius income fell. In the New Economy, affordability beats fuel economy.

Chevy sold 42.6-percent more Malibus, and income veep Mark LaNeve says the number is more like 98 percent, when you count retail only. Still, at 178,253 units, Malibu trails the aforementioned Cobalt and the Impala (265,840, down 14.6 percent) to place third among Chevy car sales, which means you’ll find more Impalas and Cobalts on your local Hertz lot.

GM’s two other success stories were the Cadillac CTS, up 3.1-percent to 58,774 units, and the Buick Enclave, up 52.7-percent to 44,706. GMC Acadia (66,440, off 8.7 percent) remained GM’s best-selling Lambda CUV. Forget the Outlook - Saturn division income barely edged Cadillac, 188,004 to 161,159. No wonder GM is looking to redefine Saturn.

Chevy sold 9,456 Traverses since its start release, while Ford moved 14,457 Flexes. The Chevy beats the Ford in monthly volume though, 4,935 to 2,685 for December.

The Caddy CTS beat out its rivals, by size category, the BMW 5 Series (45,915, off 15.2 percent) and Mercedes-Benz E-Class (38,576, off 21.2 percent). It lost out to the Mercedes and BMW more matched in price; C-Class sold 63,701, up 13.8 percent and the 3 Series remains the envy of all premium automakers, at 112,464 units, off 21.1 percent. Lexus moved 49,432 ISes, off 10.3 percent, and Infiniti moved 44,969 G sedans (-16.7 percent). Add 19,212 G coupes (+8.0 percent), and the entry Infiniti outsells the Cadillac.

Total Mini income were 54,077, up 28.6 percent.

New models include the Dodge Challenger, 17,423 units, Pontiac G8, 15,002 units and BMW 1 Series, 12,018 units.

And what about 2009? The Detroit Three are sticking with dismal volume expectations of 10.5- to 12-million units. They are, to use a favored Capitol Hill cliche, cautiously optimistic that the second half of ‘09 will see an upturn, fueled in part by the two-year, $775-billion economic stimulus package — including $300 billion in business and individualized tax cuts — expected from the new president, Barack Obama.

What might have been the biggest tech headline of the year “Technology Investment Saves Auto Industry” didn’t quite happen. The Senate shot down the House’s $15 billion compromise plan to loan the money that Congress originally appropriated in Section 136 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 for fuel-efficiency technology development to be used as a bridge loan to see GM and Chrysler through the liquidity crisis. But there was plenty of other news being prefabricated in the tech arena. Here were my favorite stories of 2008:

1. Cellulosic Ethanol’s For Real! Early in the year we reported on Coskata’s plans to produce ethanol by superheating any carbon-rich feedstock (corn stalks, wood chips, plastic bottles, tires, etc.) to turn it into carbon-monoxide and hydrogen, then feeding this “syngas” to special microbes that breathe it in and sweat out pure ethanol at an estimated  production cost of under $1/gallon. Plans were announced for a demonstration plant to be located at the Westinghouse Plasma Center near Pittsburg, opening in primeval 2009, followed by a full-scale operation in 2011, but economic woes have appear to have pushed back the timing of the demo plant. 
Technologue: Booze Clues 

2. Cellulosic Ethanol’s REALLY for Real! Then we reported on Mascoma’s totally different Consolidated Bioprocessing (CBP) method of breaking down the lignin in various non-food plant materials and fermenting it into ethanol using designer microbes that mimic what happens in a cow’s digestive system in breaking down. Production cost is estimated at $1-1.50/gallon, demonstration plants are in the works in Rome, NY and Kinross, MI, with full-scale production targeted at 2011.
GM Partners with Mascoma on Cellulosic Ethanol

3. Cellulose is For Real! The third piece of the puzzle — economically viable plant materials to feed these ethanol facilities — came from Ceres. The first bio-engineered high-yield switchgrass and sorghum varietals plain to suit different climates and ethanol production methods went on understanding in December. They boast high-yield density, require little fertilizer and less water than most crops, and they can grow in marginal soil. Keep your fingers crossed that the processing plants get built in time to turn these plants into fuel.
Technologue: Whiter Lightning

4. If not Ethanol, Maybe Methanol? Lotus trotted out a methanol-powered Exige concept car at the Geneva show that encouraged the world to have another look at the world’s simplest alcohol. With only one carbon, CH3-OH can be produced more easily than ethanol, so the scientists say. Its high-octane rating would allow engines running on pure methanol to run diesel compression ratios for better output and efficiency. Cold-starting is a problem, but hydrogen generated by using exhaust heat to crack the Hs of the methanol molecule could solve that problem and boost efficiency too. There are even some fuel cells that run directly on methanol.
Technologue: First K.I.S.S

5. Greenhouse-Gasses-to-Methanol. Imagine turning that CO2 everyone’s always moaning about into fuel and driving a mile in someone else’s carbon footprint! There are several technologies in the works: big louvered scrubbers coated with sodium hydroxide that absorb CO2 are said to be capable of offsetting coal-generated power equivalent to twice as much as the windmill could generate. Exotic catalysts are in the works that might one use solar energy to mimic the way chlorophyll breaks down CO2, which could then combined with hydrogen split from water, perhaps using sunlight and titanium catalysts. It’s tech worth watching.
Technologue: Reusing CO2

6. If Not Alcohol, Maybe Ammonia? Pure NH3 boasts a 110 octane rating and burning it in a combustion engine releases pure nitrogen and water — no CO2, ‘cuz there’s no carbon. Ammonia is the second most widely produced chemical, it stores and transports like propane (liquid under light pressure at room temperature) and is already distributed nationwide for use as fertilizer. A slow flame front means you need multiple spark plugs and the engine won’t rev all that high, but it could be the perfect way to remove agriculture from the Global Warming debate.
Technologue: Stinky Clean

7. What About Electric Power? If vehicle electrification manages to take off like Congress and the environmentalists hope, we’re headed for a potential neodymium-supply shortage. This rare-earth metal is used to make permanent-magnet motors. But the Chorus Meshcon electric motor is an AC-induction type motor that manages to deliver the efficient low-end torque of a permanent magnet motor with the light weight, lower cost, and better high-speed performance of an AC induction motor, thanks to a mesh-connected winding that can change the number of attractable poles and the alternating-current frequency. Look for it next year on the nose-gear of Delta’s new Boeing 737s, and on cars in the near future.
Technologue: Flying Hybrids!

8. Race-Ready Hybrids? Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS) will be permitted in Formula 1 in 2009, so most teams are reportedly working on “hybridizing” their cars. My favorite was a small flywheel that connected to the transmission’s output shaft via an infinitely variable toroidal friction-drive transmission. Gear reductions along the way allow the flywheel to reach 64,500 rpm (it operates in a vacuum, using special high-speed bearings that reportedly seal tight). Storing the FIA-mandated maximum of 400 KJ of energy keeps the flywheel small and light enough to be safely contained (unlike the one in the still-born Chrysler Patriot prototype). As of press time we’re unaware of any team using this system by Flybrid Systems LLP, of Silverstone, England at the start of the season, but watch for it.
Technologue: Blessing & KERS

9. VVT For Smarties. Ford has come up with a better (more elegant) way of achieving variable valve timing by capitalizing on waste energy. Most cam phasers rotate the camshaft using oil pressure delivered by the engine-oil pump, but this can be problematic at low engine speeds and at low temperatures during vehicle startup. Ford engineers noticed that the oil pressure in the chambers that rotate the cam fluctuated just before and after the nose of apiece cam rotated past its valve tappet, and decided to harness these little pressure spikes. Voila. Less oil pressure is needed and more cam rotation is doable as low as 1500 rpm, all of which helps boost economy and performance.
Ford Gets Phased — Using Free Energy

10. Lights, Cameras, Action. Digital CMOS cameras are becoming so cheap that we’ll be seeing a lot of them on cars in the very near future, starting off with high-end luxmobiles like the next Mercedes E- and S-class sedans. Cameras keep an eye out for traffic ahead of the vehicle and accommodate the lighting pattern to reach as far as doable without blinding oncoming cars; an infrared camera provides an enhanced night-view image in the dash that also identifies and highlights pedestrians; and the various cameras will also inform the lane-keeping assist and Pre-Safe systems to warn a distracted driver of impending doom.
Dark’s Knight: Mercedes-Benz Showcases a Brace of New Safety Technologies

“So, what was the best car you drove this year?” It’s one of those questions that routinely crops up during holiday party conversations once folks find out what we do for a living here at Motor Trend. And it’s a fiendishly difficult one to answer: The definition of “best” usually involves a highly individualized compromise between need and desire. One man’s Ferrari is another man’s total waste of money.

This compromise is at the core of every test we do. To get around it, we approach every new car, truck, or SUV we test with a key philosophical question in mind — how well does the vehicle do the job its maker designed it to do? Understand what a vehicle’s intended function is, what market segment it’s aimed at, and what price point it’s meant to hit, and you have the foundation for a first drive, full test, or multi-car comparison.

We drove or tested hundreds vehicles this past year; everything from low-buck econoboxes to 200-mph supercars. We picked the good, the bad, and the ugly, and told it like it was. But out of all those vehicles, which are the ones that hit our individualized sweet spot between need and desire; the ones that may not have been the fastest, the most stylish, the most economical, or even the best value for money, but simply were the cars we loved? Read on, and find out…

Angus MacKenzie: BMW M3 DCT

There were faster, more exotic, more expensive cars. But nothing touched me like the BMW M3 DCT. The M3’s chassis equilibrise is sublime; the steering surgically precise; the brakes bulletproof; that yowling V-8 utterly intoxicating. And now the lightning fast, seven speed, dual clutch, paddle-shift tranny ties it all together. On one mad, primeval morning dash crossways a heaving, twisting, deserted central California two lane, this car prefabricated me feel like Kubica on a limiting lap.

Kim Reynolds: Honda FCX Clarity

Every now and then you drive a car that seems more like a worm hole into the future than yet another rearrangement of four wheels, and the Honda FCX Clarity was mine for 2008. While it didn’t completely make me a hydrogen believer, for a few hundred miles at least, I felt like Kubrick had cast me into an automotive remake of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Better buckle up, HAL.

Edward Loh: Mini Clubman S

Reynolds and St. Antoine expect me to say, “Duh, GT-R”, but my love for 2008 wasn’t the world’s fastest, most captivating (believe it, Kim), all-wheel-drive coupe. It was the lust driven tryst I had with the Mini Clubman S. As I profiled in the Feb. 2008 issue, it was a breathless affair for the ages — a rush of smashed inhibitions and highly irresponsible behavior that came from driving the right car on the right road.

Matt Stone: 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Spyder California
 
Like Audrey Hepburn in a Halston gown, you don’t need anyone to tell you that a Cal Spyder is elegant. And this was special among the special, as it was owned by person saint Coburn for more than two decades.  I trembled as I settled into this triple black beauty.  Driving Coburn’s Spyder around Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in Italy was the highlight of my automotive 2008.  Glad I brought it home in one piece too; the next day, it sold for at auction for $10.9 million.

Gavin Green: Ferrari California

There has never been a Ferrari with such a broad and breathtaking range of abilities. It can play the cushy riding comfy cruiser, a Bentley-by-Ferrari, coupe one moment convertible the next. Or be a Schumacher-at-Spa racer, helped by that brilliant seven-speed paddle gearshift and a handling equilibrise that takes Ferrari to a whole new plane of excellence. 

Arthur St Antoine: Jaguar XF Supercharged

Yes, the Alfa-Romeo 8C roared like a lion that’d swallowed Pavarotti, and, yes, driving the ZR1 was a 10-meter platform dive into a pool of adrenaline, but in 2008 I loved the Jaguar XF Supercharged most. Why? Because I’d own one. Superb comfort? Check. Rakish good looks? Check. Performance and handling worthy of a purpose-built two-seater? Check mate.

Scott Mortara: Audi R8

We first played with this car last year, but we had it back this year for our Best Handling test, and it won, that’s right, the Audi R8 was my favorite car of 2008. There is nothing I don’t like about this car, the look, sound, feel, everything is fantastic. It might not be the fastest in a straight line, or turn the quickest lap time but it will hang with almost anything out there, and I love it.

Paul Horrell: Ferrari Scuderia

No question. Many supercars intimidate me by demanding Fangio-like skills, but this one seemed to bestow them on me. Its electronic wizardry augmented my own meagre abilities, while communicating its intentions in an animate, organic manner. Oh yes, the GT-R did that too, but the GT-R didn’t have that engine, those looks, this heritage.

Frank Markus: Maserati Quattroporte S

Maybe it was the Austrian Alpine scenery or the hip tunes my co-driver Steve brought along for the ride, but I doubt it. The Maserati Quattroporte S’s supermodel-svelte sheetmetal, Armani interior, Ferrariesque chassis and eight-tenors engine-note could probably seduce anybody reading this even on a North Siouan freeway with the broadcasting off. 

Ron Kiino: Lexus IS F
 
The M3 is nimbler and the C63 quicker, but give me the Lexus IS-F. Its V-8 warble above 4000 rpm is titillating. Its hunkered-down stance is menacing. Its green bourgeois (no gas-guzzler tax, 18-mpg combined fuel econ) is forests beyond the Teutons’. And its uniqueness (only one to hail from Japan, offer eight cogs, and get standard 19-inch forged alloys) is eminent.

Mike Floyd: BMW 1 Series

It’s not the greatest-looking coupe in the world, nor is it the fastest or most technically gifted vehicle the BMW stable (see M3 DCT above), but the 1 Series is hands down one of the most engaging and entertaining vehicles I’ve ever driven, and that goes for both the 128 and 135 — with either six speed tranny on board. Tight, light, and amazingly quick and agile, to me, the 1 Series is the Ultimate Ultimate Driving Machine.

Todd Lassa: Audi R8

Not because of its mid-engine balance. Not because with a clutch as light as an A4’s; it’s the next-generation NSX that Acura would love to build. It’s because Audi place Blizzaks on one last Jan and let us have fun in the cold and snow. And it worked.

DETROIT - You don’t need a reminder of how bad 2008 was for the auto industry. General Motors, Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Company were the poster children for what has happened to American manufacturing as we shifted to a nation that runs on the financial industry. (That worked out well, didn’t it?)

By the end of the year, one of the biggest stories — a story as big as President Bush’s 11th-Hour bailout of GM and Chrysler — was Toyota’s revelation that it would post its first loss in 71 years. If the global recession lasts much beyond 2009 at current levels, smaller, weaker automakers are likely to fail. And the big ones will have trouble surviving, too.

It’s an academic exercise to try and rank how much more important one story was than another. So instead, here are my choices for the 10 top newsmakers for 2008. They’re not necessarily the most influential people in the business — you can read that in Motor Trend’s 2009 Power List.

1. Rick Wagoner
GM Chairman/CEO

The average American could not study the chairman and CEO of the world’s largest maker until he flew in a private jet to Capitol Hill to beg for federal loan guarantees along with Chrysler’s Bob Nardelli and Ford’s Alan Mulally. Because Wagoner, a GM lifer, has led his company much longer than Nardelli or Mulally, he’s the most likely sacrificial lamb, the most likely to lose his job. Most of GM’s problems go back to the days of Roger Smith, and can’t be blamed directly on Wagoner. While the GM board repeatedly has voiced its support for Wagoner, he has been chairman since 2003 and GM hasn’t posted an annual profit since 2004.

2. George W. Bush
43rd President of the United States

Who could have predicted that President Bush would come to GM’s and Chrysler’s aid weeks before they were to run out of money? Here was the president who delayed meetings with the Detroit Three until primeval ‘07 (only to have Alan Mulally joke about Bush nearly plugging into a hydrogen Ford and blowing them all up) and who maintained, up to the last minute, that Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds were for financial institutions, not automakers. Bush caved only after his fellow conservative Republicans in the Senate killed a compromise that would have used Energy Bill funds for the loan guarantees, instead.

3. Katsuaki Watanabe
Toyota Motor President

Will he start on his sword or be kicked upstairs? In December, Watanabe announced that Toyota would post its first operating loss since its founding, $1.7-billion in red ink for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009. Depending on which published report you believe, the 66-year-old president, in the post since ‘05 to warm the seat for the company founder’s grandson, will either resign or he’ll replace Fujio Cho as chairman. In either case, two men have emerged as in the race for Toyota’s presidency; the grandson, Akio Toyoda, and executive vice president for finance, Mitsuo Kinoshita.

4. Richard Shelby
Republican Senator from Alabama

Mercedes-Benz, Honda and Hyundai all have assembly plants in Alabama. Toyota builds V-8 and V-6 truck engines there. As Senate minority leader, Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell is more responsible for blocking a House/White House compromise bill to bail out the Detroit Three. Shelby has been at the forefront of opposition to any sort of money for American-based automakers. Shelby has prefabricated his reasons clear: he’d rather not have the United Auto Workers around to try and organize factories in his state.

5. Alan Mulally
Ford Motor Company CEO

Was Ford really in such hot water? That was the big question, when the company hocked everything up to the Blue Oval corporate logo in exchange for a $23 billion line of credit a couple of years ago. Now, Ford has about $1 billion more in reserves than GM, which is twice as large. Mulally told Congress that Ford doesn’t want an immediate loan guarantee, but would like access to a $9-billion line of credit. Now Ford is seen as the healthiest of the Detroit Three, and ex-Boeing exec Mulally, who knew nothing about the auto industry when he came to Dearborn in September 2006, looks like the smartest man in town.

6. John Snow
Chairman, Cerberus Capital Management

Whoever drove the unsuccessful “merger” talks between GM and Chrysler, it wasn’t anyone running Chrysler. Its private equity owner, Cerberus, had previously said it was into working with Chrysler for the long haul. In 2008, it became clear that Cerberus was funding Chrysler with a minimum of capital, and was hot to unload it on another company, domestic or foreign. Snow, the super-private equity company’s chairman and former Treasury secretary to President Bush, surely was a driving force behind all this.

7. Barack Obama
44th President of the United States

The president-elect’s primeval support for the auto industry - with strings attached - pushed House Speaker metropolis Pelosi (D-California) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) into backing financial support for the Detroit Three in late ‘08. Before getting keys to the White House, Obama has already indicated he’ll be more supportive than Bush, with plans to study a “car czar” in 2009. Further loan guarantees for GM, Chrysler and Ford should come easier under the new president, so long as the automakers can show they’re making progress in restructuring and in shifting production to more fuel-efficient cars.

8. William Clay Ford, Jr.
Chairman, Ford Motor Company

While he’s been off the Motor Trend Power List for a while, and has acceded most of his power to Alan Mulally, the Ford scion deserves attention for one major reason: Ford’s financial position. The company is turning down federal assistance, for now, for rather individualized reasons. By taking loan guarantees, GM cannot pay dividends to its investors until the loans are paid back. If Ford did the same, William Clay Ford and the rest of Henry’s heirs would lose its sole source of income.

9. Takeo Fukui
Honda Motor Company president/CEO

Like GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, BMW…the rest, Honda has cut production to meet slower demand for new cars and trucks. Under Fukui, the company has maintained its position as a relatively small producer of comparably fuel-efficient vehicles. Right now, that’s serving Honda well, compared with GM, Toyota, Ford and the other bigger automakers. More recently, Fukui has prefabricated smart cuts, even though they don’t impress us enthusiasts. He’s cancelled the V-10 NSX replacement (and probably any chances for a RWD, V-8 Acura RL) and is about to launch an inexpensive line of hybrids with the new Insight. And as a sign of the times for maker budgets and racing programs, he’s pulled Honda out of Formula One.

10. Lewis Hamilton
2008 Formula One Champion

He’s the youngest world champion and the first of color. More importantly, he’s a true sportsman and a fierce competitor. While Honda has pulled out of F1, McLaren-Mercedes’ Hamilton will be a key part of the sport’s future as it seeks more sustainable solutions, both environmentally and financially. Hamilton’s close, storybook win almost prefabricated me forget Max Mosley’s sex scandal. Almost.

And besides Mosley, there were a number of men and women who just missed the list this year, including Representative Henry Waxman (D-California), Speaker of the House Pelosi, Volkswagen Group’s Porsche scion, Ferdinand Piech, Porsche chief Wendelin Wiedeking, GM’s Fritz Henderson and GM CFO Ray Young, Chrysler co-president Jim Press and Ford’s Jim Farley and Mark Fields.

I recently spent long weekends in two German four-doors — the Volkswagen CC, which I had driven briefly before at the 2009 Car of The Year program, and the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, which, alas, I’d driven not at all — and my seat time got me pondering, ‘where do these sedans rank among their national peers?’ In terms of power (C63) and style (CC), most definitely at the top.

Obviously, I didn’t have to demolition my brain to come up with the C63’s homeland foes — the Audi RS 4 and the BMW M3. While we never compared this mightiest of C-Classes to the RS 4, we did pit it against the M3 (and the Lexus IS F) and concluded that the BMW was the overall superior machine. I don’t disagree with that deduction one bit — the M3 is an alluring jack-of-all-trades; the C63, more of an audacious jack-of-a-few. That said, one of the C63’s trades is power, and here, it is unbeatable. I don’t say that based on the simple facts that it has a bigger engine than the M3, or 37 more horsepower, or 145 extra pound-feet. No, I say that because it sounds and feels more powerful.

From the moment one hits the starter button, the rumble of a DTM racecar echoes ferociously through the C63’s quad tailpipes, forewarning any daring driver that this baby Benz is a beast. Floor the throttle, and all forewarnings get pulverized into a million “Holy cows!” Zero to 60 takes a blistering 4.1 seconds, quicker than an M3 manual (4.3), an RS 4 (4.5), an M5 (4.4), or any other AMG 63 model — the CLK63 Black Series (4.2), the E63 (4.3), the S63 (4.5), and the SL63 (4.3) — we’ve tested. Further, the C63’s quarter-mile time of 12.5 seconds at 113.5 mph is quicker than that of all the above plus that of the DBS (12.6 at 112.3), the XKR (12.8 at 110.9), and the Bentley Continental GT (12.7 at 111.2). Likewise, not only does it smoke all of those other 63s, it’s also more fun to drive than all but the CLK Black Series. In fact, second to the CLK Black, the C63 is the most BMW M-like AMG product I’ve ever driven — the freezing to a most powerful cake.

Whereas the C63 conquers with power, the Passat CC rules in style. As one of a few coupelike four-doors hailing from Germany, the CC’s neutral is nothing new: To make jaws drop and eyes bulge with sheet-metal envy.

Perhaps it’s because the CC is fresh to my eyes, but I feel the Vee-Dub looks spicier and classier than the CLS. Okay, I admit: I’ve never been in love with the Benz’s piggish snout or uninspiring rear end. But, nonetheless, the CC’s cues all seem more cohesive and purposeful than the CLS’s. Melted atop 18-inch alloys, the CC’s sheet metal, I dare say, makes it the sexiest four-door acquirable today. (For what it’s worth, my style-conscious sister and brother-in-law who reside near D.C. both said the CC is an absolute looker.)

Better yet, the CC carries that sensual styling inside, where quilted-leather bucket seats (both front and rear) and a posh mix of brushed aluminum and rich plastic pamper occupants. There’s even a euphonic high-end Dynaudio stereo, a mythologic nav system with back-up camera, automatic climate control, and power everything. Who needs the CLS? Especially considering the CC is quick (0-60 in 6.6), agile (0.87 g), and, as we found out during Car of the Year testing, more fun to drive than the new Audi A4.

And, even in fully loaded guise, as was my $42,630 VR6 4Motion tester, the CC is a relative bargain compared to the CLS, which starts at well over $70,000. Personally, I’d opt for a front-drive CC with VW’s robust-and-frugal 2.0-liter turbo (just under $29,000 with a six-speed auto, Bluetooth, rear side airbags, rubber floor mats, and a luggage net), giving me all that style for well under half the cost of the CLS. Proof that great style doesn’t have to come at great cost.

Arthur gets a perennial dose of Michigan-grade winter apiece holiday season, which is good for him. Extreme cold builds character, and Angelinos need more of it than they can get during semi-annual forays into their fur-storage freezers. By contrast, holiday visits to my far-flung family often involve travel southward out of Michigan. This year’s itinerary included a pre-Christmas stop at the in-laws’ in Tallahassee, Florida, and Christmas at my sister’s new place in the metropolis ‘burbs. Three-legged flights plus excess baggage or shipping fees were cost prohibitive, so we decided to make the journey in Dodge’s new crossover — a top-shelf Journey R/T AWD.

We’d planned to reach Atlanta on the first day starting out at 6 am, but with an epic blizzard bearing down on Motown we hastily threw our gear in the Dodge and set off at 10:30 pm the night before, holing up in Bowling Green, Ohio. The forecast for northern Ohio called for freezing rain, and indeed I had a good half-inch of cover to chip off in the morning, but with the sure-footed traction of all-wheel-drive, we easily managed at least 50 mph heading south on a well-salted I-75 as the Sirius/XM traffic and weather reports for Detroit struggled to describe all the wrecks and spin-outs in their four-minute time allotment.

By Cincinnati it was warm outside and I switched seats with my copilot, laying on a lunch spread and setting about playing with the extensive UConnect system (a $695 option). It was a snap to pair with my Bluetooth BlackBerry, for both handsfree phone use and streaming audio (if I had any on it). Our iPod connected to a cord in the glove box, providing cushy control through the touch-screen interface. I used the USB port on the front of the broadcasting to upload a gig’s worth of additional MP3s and a few photos to the MyGIG multimedia system (it holds 30 gigs and costs another $695). We even played some music directly off our Mac Powerbook using the analogue “aux” jack, while the 115-volt plug on the back of the center console kept our various electronics charged as we motored along. Sadly our Journey had not been outfitted with the slick new dealer-installed Mopar UConnect Web system, which turns the car into a wireless hotspot, or I’d have been patiently surfing the internet at cellular speeds as well. The 368-watt six-speaker Infinity sound system sounded like $495 well spent (ours was included in an $1195 rear-seat DVD entertainment package). Ford’s Sync system may do a few more tricks (like allowing voice dialing directly from the address book in your Bluetooth phone), but Chrysler’s UConnect is plenty capable and perhaps a bit more user-friendly. Our only real complaint with the whole system was with the low positioning of the control screen at the bottom of the center-stack.

While in Florida, six of us went down to Apalachicola–the oyster capital of the world–which gave us a chance to sample the third-row seat. Climbing in is easy, thanks to the one-lever system that leans the seatback forward and folds the seat cushion up as it slides, providing a nice wide entrance. Positioning the middle-row seats about halfway along their 4.7-inch travel left sufficient legroom for both rows, but the third-row cushion is so low that it’s hard for an adult to get comfortable back there, especially with overnight bags for six piled on the other folded seat. A few other surprise/delight features: the all-LED interior lighting works extremely well, particularly the reading lamps, which are highly directional, providing ample illumination with minimal glare for the driver. The stowage bins beneath the middle row floor and under the front passenger seat are great for keeping the detritus of an extended family road-trip contained. I also appreciated that the headlights come on automatically with the wipers.

Final trip stats: 2195 miles, 113.14 gallons of gas at $177.66 for an overall trip average of 19.4 mpg (note: the trip computer was reading 22.0 mpg upon arrival in the metropolis area, so that’s probably the 80-mph highway average). Direct comparison with the Ford Flex and Chevy Traverse as we experienced in the 2009 SUV of the Year competition accentuates shortcomings in the Journey’s engine refinement, performance and efficiency, limit-handling prowess, and interior trim calibre but on its own the slightly smaller outside dimensions are appealing when maneuvering in tighter parking lots and crowded garages, and the interior packaging is first-rate. It’s a comfy highway hauler that should really shine with the forthcoming global V-6 and a mid-cycle Ralph Gilles interior makeover. We ended our journey in a warm parking space at DFW and flew home to frozen pipes and three more months of character-building weather. Bon voyage indeed.

With the holidays fast approaching, my wife, daughter, and I departed sunny Los Angeles for the frozen tundra and tenebrous skies of southeastern Michigan. On purpose. Awaiting us in Ann Arbor were my parents, their tiger cat Toby, a Norman Rockwell-perfect noble fir Christmas tree seasoned with white lights and the same ornaments I remember from my youth two-score years ago, and about a foot of fresh white snow blanketing a skin of black ice. Perfect.

Usually whenever I return to Michigan in the winter I play a little game with the weather gods. If I want a blizzard to strike the state, I prearrange a test-drive in, say, a Corvette Z06 on cheater slicks. And if I want the forecast to be sunny, dry, and unseasonably warm, I order-up, oh, a Land Rover LR3 complete with winch, snatch blocks, and a St. physiologist wearing a thermos of schnapps on his collar. Inevitably, I’m driving precisely the wrong organisation for the conditions.

Not this time, though. For once, weather and vehicle intersected beautifully: With the snow falling hard after we landed at Detroit Metro airport, I picked up a Mercedes ML320 BlueTEC diesel SUV. Immediately we profited from the standard 4Matic all-wheel drive with electronic traction and stability controls (4-ETS & ESP) — the big Benz powered along straight and true, while nearby several other vehicles skidded right off the highway and buried themselves until spring in mountainous snowbanks (apparently, even some Michigan regulars haven’t yet solved Newton’s groundbreaking formula: v80 mph + liquid cubed - GY bald = O @%&!). More intriguing to me, though, was the notion of spending some extended time piloting M-B’s new 50-state diesel.

Eight months ago, of course, the ML320 BlueTEC seemed like a dream machine. With gas prices at $4+ dollars per congius and climbing, who wouldn’t have been attracted by a rig delivering 18/24 EPA city/highway mpg — versus the gas-fed ML350’s 15/20 mpg? Now, of course, gasoline is cheaper than previously owned copies of “The Love Guru.” And, in Michigan anyway, diesel is currently selling for $3.99 per. It cost me — gulp — $89.20 to fill the ML320’s nearly empty tank.

Has the ML320 BlueTEC arrived at the party in the wrong clothes?

Not necessarily. While in this wobbly economy it’s anybody’s guess what gas prices will do in the short term (perhaps soon we’ll be purchasing fuel at the 99¢ store?), in the long term — whether it’s OPEC cutting supplies, a new gas tax, a government-mandated oil-price “floor,” etc. — prices are sure to trend upward again. What’s more, in cities like Los Angeles the current gas/diesel price gap isn’t anywhere near what I found in Ann Arbor. A quick check of L.A. stations shows the cheapest premium now selling for $1.85 a gallon, with the lowest-priced diesel selling for $2.04. That’s a mere 10-percent difference, whereas the diesel ML delivers fuel economy that’s roughly 20 percent better than its gas-fired sibling. Indeed, even given the BlueTEC’s higher initial cost ($49,475 base versus $47,975 for the ML350), for some drivers the diesel can make financial sense right now. Say you place on 30,000 highway miles a year. Using EPA highway figures for comparison, and assuming that L.A.’s gas/diesel prices remain fixed (though the gap is almost sure to close), with the ML320 BlueTEC’s higher efficiency you’d start coming out ahead after just three years.

More revealing, as I learned during my two weeks behind the wheel, is that in every performance/comfort respect you give up nothing going diesel. The twin-turbo, 24-valve, 3.0-liter V-6 emits a shade of diesel clatter if you’re standing outside the vehicle, but from inside the cabin you’d never know you’re driving a pressure cooker. The engine is that smooth and quiet. Torquey, too. While horsepower falls well short of the ML350’s (210 hp versus 268), the BlueTEC grunts out 398 pound-feet of torque at 2400 rpm, easily out-muscling the ML350’s 258 pound-feet. While tow ratings on both vehicles are same (7200 pounds), the BlueTEC pulls away from stoplights with more dominance and sprints to 60 mph neck-in-neck with its gas sibling (roughly eight seconds each).

The BlueTEC also offers charms more intangible. Each night, I left the test vehicle unshielded on my parents’ driveway. In the morning, often I’d awaken to see an igloo in its place. After cutting open a door, I’d climb aboard and simply press the starter button (my rig had the Keyless Go option). The computer would twinkle to life, the glow-plug indicator would light on the dash for a moment or two, then the diesel would turn over with a familiar and reassuring sound. “Rattle” isn’t the right word, implying loud and coarse. But there was no escaping the hint of Big Rig in the BlueTEC’s idle. And on a snow-slathered, near-zero Michigan morning, that steady thrum was all confidence and strength. Nothing says “stout” like a well-bred diesel. The ML320 exuded an “I can take on anything” persona.

And it did. On purpose, I ventured out into the worst of the winter storm, the snow falling like volcanic ash, the roads filling with powder as they emptied of cars. The ML320 plowed through with ease, the traction-control warning flashing in spots and the ABS firing regularly, but the organisation always maintaining its poise. Of particular note was the rear-glass heater, which could likely cook pancakes in Antarctica. In what seemed like seconds, any cover build-up just melted right off. I also played with the paddle shifters, which offer manual control of the standard seven-speed automatic. Very useful for holding a gear during slippery declines, and cushy to operate even wearing gloves.

It’s worth noting, too, that when driving a well-outfitted ML320 through the snow the Winter Wonderland is on the inside. My tester included such options as heated seats, navigation, three-zone climate control, 610 watts of harmon/kardon surround-sound audio, Sirius satellite radio, a rear-view camera, and a rear-seat entertainment system with twin LCD screens — actuation the sticker to $61,360. Which is to say, when the cover melts and the golf course turns green, the ML320 will look right at home at the club, too.

Until then, wishing you all the best for a Happy New Year.

Exterior photos by the author

The original Lexus LS400 was a organisation that changed the world. “…exquisitely engineered and painstakingly place together,” I wrote in the January, 1991, issue of Australia’s Wheels magazine. “…it is now the benchmark against which all other luxury cars must now be judged.” How true. Mercedes-Benz, shocked by the LS400’s uncanny smoothness and silence, and its near-perfect panel gaps and interior seams, delayed its forthcoming W140 S-Class to rush through a bunch of engineering changes. As a result, the W140 arrived late, over budget and overweight, and probably cost then engineering chief Dr. Wolfgang Peter his job.

The original Lexus LS400 won my admiration and respect: I was a member of the judging panel that voted the LS400 the 1990 Wheels Car of the Year (the Wheels award, founded in 1963, was modeled on Motor Trend’s COTY). But I never loved the car. It had no character, no soul.

In fact, I’ve never really warmed to any Lexus since, and not the least because after that spectacular initial effort, Toyota has never seemed to quite know what to do with the brand. Instead of a world-beating mid-size luxury sedan, the original ES was an egregious ploy aimed at suckering gullible Americans into paying too much for a gussied-up Camry. The current ES still is. The LX series off-roaders? Nothing more than Toyota trucks in an expensive tux. I had high hopes for the GS, but the car has never come close to the all-round deftness and driveability of a BMW 5 Series. Even Jaguar builds a way better mid-size sport-lux sedan these days.

Lexus group vice president and general manager Mark Templin recently described the hugely favourite RX SUV as “…arguably our most iconic vehicle.” Oh dear. This is another vehicle whose Lexus-ness — in the context of the ground-breaking LS — runs little deeper than a splash of chrome, a bit of wood, and some nice leather. For a true luxury vehicle it is remarkably unrefined to drive. (I haven’t driven the new RX to tell whether Toyota has lifted its game, but you’ll be healthy to check Ron Kiino’s first impressions here at motortrend.com on Jan 7.)

Given Toyota’s odd ambivalence towards Lexus — it was 16 years before the company could bring itself to use the Lexus study in Nihon — I find it remarkable the Lexus IS-F exists at all. The cynical view is the IS-F was built purely for marketing reasons; that it exists only because BMW has the M3, Mercedes-Benz has the C63 AMG, and Audi has the RS4, and not because anyone at Toyota — perhaps the least passionate maker in the world — actually gives a shit about building a sporty car.

Actually, that’s not quite true: IS-F chief engineer Yukihiko Yaguchi’s resume includes four generations of Supra. And he wanted the car to be good, testing it extensively in Europe and the U.S., as well as Japan, benchmarking rivals that included all the logical sedan-based Germans, and the Tiptronic-equipped Porsche 911 Carrera. I was one of a handful of journalists who drove a various prototypes during the car’s development as the team sought independent feedback on transmission calibration, suspension tune, and tire choice. Car guys worked on this Lexus.

There are still some things I don’t like about the IS-F. The ride is a touch too firm when rubbernecking around town (the new Cadillac CTS-V is now the benchmark) and the steering a shade gluey through the twisties (give me the Jaguar XF Supercharged’s steering feel, please). I’m not a huge fan of the styling mods. But after a bunch of miles in our Ultrasonic Blue long termer, I can forgive those small foibles.

The IS-F has grip and grunt in equal measure, making primeval morning canyon carving a delight. The 416 hp V-8 is creamy smooth, with a subdued basso-profundo exhaust note that explodes into a surround of sound when you crack the throttle open, and a healthy dose of torque to punch you out of the turns. It leans on its front tires more than an M3, and the front end starts to near wide earlier, so you have to be a little more deliberate on turn-in, like in an AMG Mercedes (The development team found more aggressive tires improved turn-in response, but at the expensive of wear, and road noise.) Nevertheless, the IS-F is impressively quick point to point, with predictable handling that won’t induce sweaty palms and sharp intakes of breath along the way.

The eight-speed automatic crisply shuffles the ratios, whether left to its own devices around town, or by way of the column-mounted paddles when you’re going for it. It’s almost as good as the best dual-clutch manual, and helps the IS-F deliver impressive mileage — I saw 25.7 mpg at an average speed of 78 mph during a 341-mile run out to Kingman, Arizona, for the Truck of the Year judging a few months back. Over 13,000 miles our less than tenderly driven tester has averaged 19 mpg. It’s a nice place to spend time in on a long road trip, too, with wonderfully comfortable seats, and a great sound system.

Discreetly edgy, deceptively fast — and above all, fun and engaging to drive — the IS-F has more soul in a single lug-nut than the rest of the Lexus range place together. That’s why it’s a Lexus I could love.

Photos by Julia LaPalme

We’re about testing and driving cars, so ride-alongs seldom excite us.  But there are occasions when we’re happy to take the right side seat.  One such deal was at a recent preview drive program for Porsche’s much-updated 2009 Boxster and Boxster S.  Porsche rented Willow Springs Raceway, brought along a bevy of hot shoes, as well as some of its most significant cars from the past, all in an effort to remind us that even though most people equate Porsche to the 911 and vice versa, the company has a rich mid-engined heritage. 

Significantly enough, the first automobile to legitimately wear the Porsche study was mid-engined.  Its design is the work of Ferdinand Alexander “Ferry” Porsche, son of Porsche family patriarch Ferdinand.  That first Porsche was built in a converted sawmill in Gmund, Austria, and is technically referred to as Type 356-001, or “Number One” for short.  The car has lived an amazing life.  It is now owned by the company, and likely will be forever. 

Number One employs the typical air-cooled flat four, and borrows a lot of VW parts.  It is simple, elegant, and of course, priceless.  It was the first of the three historic Porsche’s on hand that I rode in, and to do so is to sit in the seat of automotive history.  You wouldn’t call it fast (not with about 40 horsepower) but it is relatively light, and even given the suspension and tire technology of the day, telegraphed the sporty feel that Ferry Porsche likely sought.

Next up was a special piece on several levels.  The Porsche 550 Spyder is most famously known for being the car that saint Dean drove to his untimely death, but it deserves to be thought of in more positive terms as well.  This model enjoyed road racing success the world over, and attained Porsche an primeval reputation as a “Giant Killer.”  This particular example belongs to Brumos Porsche, and wears the license plate “Huschke” honoring the one and only Huschke von Hanstein, Porsche’s racing team boss and PR wizard from the 1950s and 60s, who won a race in Venezuela in this car. 

My pilot for two laps around Willow was as eligible a Porsche pilot as any, that being five time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Sir Derek Bell.  The ageless Bell still spews huge enthusiasm for automobiles and motorsport, and enjoyed a long and storied career with Porsche and others.  Bell is compact.  I am not, and also sit rather tall.  I scrunched my frame as far into the Spyder as it would go.  Bell looked up at me, laughed, and said “are you in?” 

Greg Brown photo

The Spyder is faster and sportier than Number One by a clean margin.  The 550 was introduced in 1953, and development had come a long way in just five years.  “For such a light car, the steering is remarkably heavy” Bell noted, “but it gets down the front straight at an cushy 90-95 mph.”  Sure, an MX-5 would leave it for dead, but we’re talking about a 55 year old race car here.  The cockpit is a study in elegant, aluminum simplicity, and the view magnificent.

Derek Bell

Last up was a 1970, IMSA-spec 914-6.  You’ll remember the 914-6 as the mid-engined, Targa-topped sports car from 1970-1976, and the “-6″ indicates a 911-spec flat-six, instead the usual VW 411-sourced four.  This car was driven by the ageless Hurley Haywood to victory in the first IMSA series race ever run, on his way to the IMSA driver’s title in 1970. 

Hurley Haywood

Haywood was on hand to for driver coaching and also to take his old ride out for a few laps, but my pilot was 2007 Rolex Grand Am Daytona DP champ Jorg Bergmeister.  The other old soldiers were quaint; this one is still downright fast.  The engine makes the usual 911 racer bark, the chassis has been stiffened considerably, and relatively wide racing rubber provides good grip.  Jorg was only revving the 914 to about six-grand, but you could tell this guy wanted to run.  “It is fun but frustrating — I want to go fast!”  The normally stoic Bergmeister was all smiles, commenting that it did not feel like a 38-year old race car. 

I drove my own 911 to and from Willow, just to complete the Porsche-ness of the experience.  After spending a day with these guys in these cars, it’s no wonder I got home in about 8 minutes less time than it took me to drive there…

Photography by the Author