2007 Acura RL

The Acura RL is sporty and fun to drive, combining a free-revving, 290-horsepower V6 engine with all-wheel drive, and a nicely balanced suspension for great grip, responsive handling and superior stability. Yet it rides smoothly. The throttle and brakes are smooth and easy to modulate, making the RL a comfortable car in stop-and-go traffic.

Acura's innovative all-wheel-drive system makes the RL easy to drive and helps keep its driver out of trouble. Called Super-Handling All-Wheel Drive, the system overdrives the outside rear wheel when motoring around corners, improving the handling balance and enhancing stability. Indeed, the RL is very stable in corners. We found it smoothes over minor driver errors, making us look and feel skillful. With this setup, the RL handles adverse weather exceptionally well, making it an excellent choice in Seattle, Denver, Chicago, Boston, or anywhere else that gets rain and snow. And while the 24-valve VTEC V6 provides plenty of punch, it's relatively efficient, netting an EPA-estimated 26 mpg Highway.

The RL offers the latest in navigation, communications, and collision-avoidance technology. Acura's navigation system is the best in the business. But the RL also offers AcuraLink traffic information in real time for 44 major cities: Clogged freeways are highlighted in red, flying freeways in green. This system works impressively well. We've put it to good use in avoiding traffic jams in Los Angeles.

The Acura RL can help drivers avoid pile-ups. The optional Collision Mitigation Braking System works with the Adaptive Cruise Control. Using radar, the system will alert the driver, pretension the seatbelts, and slam on the brakes when it senses an imminent impact. We tested this system in a controlled exercise and were very impressed with its ability to warn the driver and help avoid an accident or, in the worst case, reduce the severity of the impact.

For 2007, some of the features that used to be standard have been made optional to reduce the base price. Acura's satellite navigation system and Active Front Lighting, which aims the headlights into turns, are no longer standard.

2007 Volvo C70

The Volvo C70 is a four-seat coupe that turns into a convertible with the press of a button. Its retractable hardtop help started a trend of coupe/convertibles. The sleek steel top retracts into the trunk in 30 seconds.

The C70 is based on the S40 sedan, but has a wider track and more luscious lines. The engine, suspension and transmission are proven Volvo components, while the chassis has been fortified and re-figured to increase rigidity over the previous generation C70, and meet Volvo's industry-leading safety standards.

We found the C70 to be an excellent highway cruiser, smooth and steady at high speeds, quiet with the steel top up. Its stereo sounds superb. The C70 feels like a sports car. It has a solid feel and strikes an appropriate balance of responsive handling with a smooth, well-controlled ride quality and fade-resistant brakes. We liked it best with the six-speed manual, but the five-speed automatic is crisp and responsive.

The styling is brilliant, with elegant coupe lines, and the retractable hardtop is an engineering masterpiece. The cabin features comfortable seats, the latest in Volvo interior styling and fabrics, and a clever cubby behind the center dash.

Everything operates as it should, and it's a beautiful piece of work. Nothing else on the market offers what the C70 does, priced under $40,000.

Volvo completely redesigned its C70 in 2006, and it remains relatively unchanged for 2007 save for a few audio additions.

New for the 2007 C70 are a few key audio features, including a standard auxiliary audio input plus MP3 playback capability from the in-dash CD changer, and optional Sirius satellite radio.

2007 Lincoln Town Car

The Lincoln Town Car is a big American luxury car. The Town Car is appealing for its spacious six-person seating and cavernous trunk, with plenty of storage for luggage and golf clubs. This is a traditional American luxury sedan. It's roomy and comfortable. It's smooth and stable. Its V8 engine and rear-wheel-drive layout give it a traditional feel. And it's luxurious.

People who buy Town Cars like them; The Town Car is the highest-rated American car in the mid-luxury segment, according to a J.D. Power and Associates customer-satisfaction study; 60 percent of all Town Car customers are repeat buyers. Some 75 percent of limousine and livery fleets are made up of this large American luxury sedan. Yet individuals still account for more than 65 percent of all Town Car sales.

After significant re-engineering for 2003, the Town Car has changed very little. Last year each trim level got a new set of wheels. Changes for 2007 are limited to new paint colors.

The Town Car boasts a record Five-Star federal safety rating in five categories for four years in a row (2003-06).

2007 Dodge Magnum

The Dodge Magnum is a full-size American station wagon with spacious cargo capacity. It's engineered for safety. And all-wheel drive is available for all-weather capability. But what makes the Magnum special is its hot rod styling and rumbling engines. There's nothing else quite like it.

The headliner is the SRT8 with a 6.1-liter V8 Hemi that puts out 425 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque to propel the Magnum to 60 mph in about five seconds. That's quick. It's especially quick for a big American station wagon. The Magnum SRT8 can reportedly accelerate from 0 to 100 and back to 0 in less than 17 seconds.

However, it's not necessary to go to the SRT8 to enjoy the Magnum experience. The Magnum experience begins with the 3.5-liter V6, about 10 grand cheaper than the SRT8. Or kick up a notch with the R/T and its Hemi, a rumbling 340-hp 5.7-liter V8. The least-expensive Magnum is the SE with a 2.7-liter V6 that gets 21/28 miles per gallon and retails for less than $24,000.

While these cars are not miserly, there is some attention given to fuel economy. The R/T boasts technology that shuts down four of the Hemi's eight cylinders when the car is just cruising, delivering up to 30 miles per gallon during those moments. Put in everyday terms, if you used it to commute on the freeway at a steady 60 mph, you could average 25 miles per gallon. Or you could stand on the gas and take off.

The all-wheel-drive models are designed to offer excellent cornering balance under all driving conditions and improved traction in snow and wet-weather conditions.

The Dodge Magnum was launched as an all-new product line for the 2005 model year and expanded for 2006 with the SRT8. For 2007, the Magnum is largely carryover, but with changes to option packages. All models benefit from the addition of a palette of new exterior colors, standard privacy glass, an automatic oil change alert, and low-risk deployment air bags. DVD-based navigation with GPS is widely available. A new Road/Track Performance Group is available for rear-wheel drive R/Ts that includes 20-inch wheels, improved intake and exhaust for an additional 10 horsepower, a performance suspension, and comfort and convenience items

Spycam: 2009 Cadillac CTS-V

Spycam: 2009 Cadillac CTS-V

This lightly camouflaged 2009 CTS-V test mule that was spotted somewhere in Colorado gives a good look at what the production model will look like when it goes on sale sometime within the next year. Deviation from the formula that made the first CTS-V a hit is minimal -- mesh upper and lower grille, larger front fascia with bigger fog lamps, side skirts, and a pair of large exhaust pipes sticking out from the restyled rear fascia.

The front camo does a reasonable job of concealing the hood bulge that accommodates the Corvette ZR1's 600-some horsepower supercharged 6.2-liter V-8's blower (for the CTS-V, the engine may be detuned to somewhere around 580 horsepower), making it look like it's placed too far forward due to an optical illusion. In reality, it is placed just over the engine as it should be, as can be seen in the photo at right. Additionally, a six-speed auto is expected to be offered in the CTS-V for the first time alonside a six-speed manual.

The aggressive black ten-spoke wheels are unlike any Cadillac has used on past production models, but these go together well with the blacked-out grille and underscore Cadillac's aim offering M5-beating performance at an M3 price.

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