2011

LOS ANGELES--The 2013 model gets an updated front end and new navigation systems.

The notion of a four-door coupe may seem like the product of a fevered marketer's imagination, but Volkswagen's CC is still one good-looking car. The CC stands for Comfort Coupe, a designation derived from the frameless doors and the low roof that curves gracefully back over the trunk.

Volkswagen showed off the 2013 version of the CC here at the Los Angeles Auto Show, the car's first redesign since its launch. Notably, it gets a new front end patterned after those of the new … Read more

LOS ANGELES--CNET takes Rolls-Royce's experimental electric car for a cruise here at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

Earlier this year in Geneva I got to look at the Rolls-Royce 102EX, an experimental electric car based on the Phantom. At the Los Angeles Auto Show, I actually got to drive it.

When Rolls-Royce first mentioned it had built this electric car those many months ago, I believe I said something like, "Wha?" The Phantom is a massive vehicle devoted to excessive luxury. It weighs 5,800 pounds and is powered by a 6.7-liter V-12. It seemed like it would take all the batteries in the world to move one with an electric power train.

But in Geneva, Rolls-Royce showed off the 102EX, and insisted it could drive under its own power. As it was confined to the show floor, I had to take Rolls-Royce's word for it.

Now I have proof.… Read more

LOS ANGELES--This may be the strangest unveiling of the LA Auto Show's history...

In celebration of the first title in the Mario Kart franchise to feature 3D graphics, Nintendo commissioned West Coast Customs to truly bring the game into the third dimension by building working examples of two of the cars from Mario Kart 7.

Mario's personal race car and Luigi's Bumble V car were constructed and can be driven under their own power. However, the hang glider and underwater propeller on Mario and Luigi's rides, respectively, are not functional. Visitors will be able to view … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Lincoln hits the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show with a one-two punch, unveiling the 2013 MKS sedan and MKT crossover simultaneously.

The most prominent change to these two 2013 Lincolns is the new design language. Lincoln has simplified and restyled the waterfall grille into something that can only really be described as a windswept mustache. Twin grilles with vertical bars sweep back into integrated headlamps. Meanwhile, the front fenders and hood have been simplified with fewer creases and kinks. I think the MKS wears the look better, partially due to its more compact size. In either case, the result … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Bentley looks to provide the modern customer with connected information and entertainment.

It says something about the typical Bentley customer that the company's connected car concept would focus on rear-seat passengers. With the cost of the large Mulsanne sedan being about $350,000, most buyers can leave the driving to a chauffeur.

And at this level of luxury, there is nothing wrong with sitting in the back seat. But where past Bentley customers may have been content to listen to opera over the stereo system, the modern owner will have the smartphone and tablet out, buying low and selling high.

To oblige this type of customer, Bentley created its connected concept, fitting a Mac Mini and 4G-connected router in the trunk, and iPads in the rear-seat tray tables. The various computers in this system are integrated, so the iPads can control and call up media and files from the Mac Mini.… Read more

LOS ANGELES--Honda says it will begin leasing the electric version of its Fit small car at a price of $399 per month.

Honda joins the ranks of automakers offering electric cars with the new Fit EV, showing off a production version of the car at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show. The standard Fit uses an economical 1.5-liter gasoline engine. Honda removed the gasoline power train, replacing it with lithium ion batteries and an electric motor.

The 20 kilowatt-hour lithium ion battery is packaged under the floor, and impinges on interior space slightly, reducing cargo space. The battery gives … Read more

LOS ANGELES--The 2012 Green Car of the Year was announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show today. It's a 2012 Honda Civic, but it's not the hybrid model.

When the curtain dropped on the stage where the 2012 Green Car of the Year was announced this morning, it was the oft-overlooked 2012 Honda Civic Natural Gas that stood before the room full of journalists.

Green Car Journal cites natural gases abundance in the United States, low tailpipe emissions, and lower fuel cost (by about 30 percent) than gasoline among its reasons for selecting the Civic Natural Gas as … Read more

LOS ANGELES--The JX crossover that took a bow here at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show is a platform for a few firsts for the Infiniti brand.

It's the first model with a continuously variable transmission (CVT), the first implementation of the automaker's Backup Collision Intervention system, and the first model to incorporate the styling cues that debuted on the Infiniti Essence concept.

The JX35 will be the first model in the JX series and will be powered by a 265-horsepower version of Infiniti 3.5-liter workhorse V-6. That engine will send 248 pound-feet of torque through a … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Despite changed proportions, the new 911 retains its iconic look.

By now the 2012 Porsche 911 has been unveiled more times than we can keep track of, but the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show marked the seventh-generation 911's large-stage debut in North America (it had been shown at October's Rennsport Reunion at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, but to a much smaller crowd). It was displayed alongside the latest variant of the Panamera, the GTS, which will be available as a 2013 model.

Perhaps the most intriguing single feature of the latest version of Porsche's most familiar … Read more