pow

The '07s do exist and were available for sale (albeit in limited numbers)... it's the production of '08s that was stopped, when they discovered there were problems with the BAS '07s.

If you want a 2008 Malibu Hybrid (or AURA Green Line, for that matter), forget about it. Production will be limited to the hundreds, and most will be dealer "visual display units" in select cities. There will be zero inventory until June. Wait for model year 2009, when actual "planned production volume" begins. In software terms, think of the '08s as vaporware.

Get a similar vintage A4 instead. That A6 dates back to the '80s.

For sure, the US will have a 50-state legal Jetta TDI, Touareg TDI, X5 3.0d, BMW 335d, and E320 BlueTec within a year, and likely an Accord diesel variant (TSX?).

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drive...photopanel..1.* The problem with most Japanese cars here is that they're dull, soulless, and generic. But after seeing tons of truly weird and different cars in Asia this past winter, I actually wish they would import some of this lost-in-translation, automotive-anime, Japanese subculture madness here. Modern cars in the US are all pretty much the same, dictated by certain car norms, shapes, and functions... to begin with, why do all cars have to be symmetrical? Why must luxury car interiors be covered in leather and wood? Anyway, I really like the Cube, especially in that color, even though I'm not sure I could drive one. Its two most amusing features - the built-in emergency flares and fake-AWD - are all so ironic (and amusing) considering its intended use in the city, appealing to the same sensibilities that seriously consider a vending machine dress crime-preventing camouflage.

2009 Volvo XC60 STORY TOOLS Print thisPrint this Save thisSave this Digg this storyDigg this Email thisEmail this Most PopularMost popular del.icio.usdel.icio.us What is it? 2009 Volvo XC60 What's special about it? According to Fredrik Arp, president and CEO of Volvo Cars, the 2009 Volvo XC60 is not only the safest Volvo ever, "It's also the most stunning." Of course, he's paid big bucks to say stuff like that, but the fact that he's mentioning design at all shows just how important the look of the XC60 is to its success. Mr. Arp isn't blowing smoke, though. The XC60 is certainly more stylish than the homely XC90. Instead of big and boxy, the XC60 is compact and athletic-looking. The swept-back headlights and rising beltline go a long way toward making this Volvo look like it belongs in the same league as the BMW X3 and Mercedes GLK, two of its chief competitors in the small premium utility segment. Volvo's Design Director Steve Mattin goes even further. "This car is charged with more emotive form and more energy than any other Volvo," he said. "If you say that you'd recognize a Volvo from 300 feet away today, I dare say the XC60 radiates a clear Volvo presence from at least twice that distance." Volvo presence from two football fields away? We'll have to take Steve's word on that one. We're actually a little surprised that Volvo's engineers didn't come up with some equally optimistic quotes for the XC60's performance. In the U.S., the standard engine will be the T6 inline-6 used in the S80 sedan. Rated at 281 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, the T6 makes the XC60 one of the more powerful sport-utilities in its class. A six-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive will be standard, too. There's some trick new safety equipment as well. Dubbed City Safety, the XC60's new system incorporates a low-speed collision avoidance computer that will stop the car if it senses an impending fender bender. Some high-end luxury cars already feature similar systems that are tied in with their cruise control, but the XC60 will come with the City Safety system as standard. More details are expected when the 2009 Volvo XC60 gets closer to its early 2009 on-sale date in the U.S. What's Edmunds' take? Good-looking never hurts when it comes to selling premium SUVs. Throw in Volvo's reputation for family friendliness and the XC60 could do better than the current XC90. — Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor, Inside Line Pics: http://www.autoblog.com/photos/volvo-xc60-leakage/648535/ I have a feeling it won't be any cheaper than the big XC90, which starts at an already low $37K. In fact, the XC70, with its gutless N/A V-6, is more expensive than the XC90.

The A4 is one of those Goldilocks cars... everything is "just right." It manages to look classy and distinctive without being pretentious, and it's competent at everything it does. I drove a 3.2 quattro auto a few months ago, and came away impressed by the attention to detail; everything from the sharp gauges to the well-sorted driving position makes the car feel more expensive (and the driver more talented) than it really is.

I could imagine CR-V and RAV4 types looking at the four-cylinder versions. Like the Equinox, it offers more room than the typical, comparably-priced small cute-ute.

The MKT's seems iPhone-esque... http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog...ncept_42_hr.jpg As here's the Volkswagen up! interface... very Mac OS X-like... http://www.autoblog.com/2007/11/19/evidenc...-up-dashboards/ And while we're at it, here's Audi's Mobile Device. Source: MotorTrend

The interface on the R32 has been replaced with VW's RNS-510, which is now touch-screen. Here it is retrofitted onto an '05 Jetta TDI: Of all the displays shown on CNET's slideshow, I like Infiniti's, Audi's, BMW's, MB's (C- and S-class), and Caddy's. The graphics on the Toyotas, Hondas, Mitsu, and Subaru are too karaoke for my tastes, while Ford and Chrysler's look rudimentary. I wish Apple started doing car interfaces... here's a bad Photoshop from Autospies:

Ooops, I mean carnitas-like consistency, not pastor. Speaking of tacos al pastor, it's too bad there aren't doner kebab places here like there are in Germany. I seriously miss them... gyros are nowhere as good.

The ones on the VW are mounted on the underside of the hood, also in the cowl area. The spray seems less powerful than visible hood-mounted ones. Challenger looks nice, btw. I like the gas filler cap.

The Journey is $10 cheaper in the US - starts at $19,895 - and that means for the first time, the Canadians will pay less than Americans for cars.

After checking Google Maps, it turns out the place you're describing isn't Jitlada, which is actually on the corner of Harvard and Sunset (one block south of Hollywood). I'm hopeless at remembering street names or finding north/south/east/west. No, I haven't tried Lucy's, for the same reason you only go to your Thai place. :-p I definitely need to try Roscoe's because, one, everybody talks about it, and two, my school cafeteria's rendition of it sucks. I go to Oxy, which is in Eagle Rock.

Exciting stuff... electric is becoming reality. "With its long-awaited Roadster now heading into production, Tesla is lifting its gaze to the horizon, which may not be all that distant. In a recent interview with CNET, Tesla co-founder Elon Musk revealed that the company will have the design for the anticipated Whitestar electric sedan finalized within this year's second quarter, and have a functional prototype ready before the end of the year. Musk also confirmed that the electric sedan, whose name could very well change (probably to something that sounds less like a Ford minivan) before it hits the market, will be priced in the $50-60k range, and be produced – likely in Albuquerque, New Mexico – in annual runs of 10,000-20,000 units." Source: AutoBlog

That red-with-green cap hot sauce is Sriracha, which is teh r0x0rz!~ Screw Hoisin or soy sauce... you don't need that with pho.

I don't have much of a disposable income to spend $100 on a dinner, but I like good sushi whenever I get the chance. A few years ago there was this place called Sushi Factory in Gardena tucked behind some warehouses and homes. You walk inside, ring a bell from a window, make your transaction, and in exchange for a reasonable amount of money you get the freshest and creamiest toro tuna I've ever tasted. There's nowhere to sit - it's more warehouse than restaurant, though it did have a legit-looking "A" hanging on the window - but even eating in the car, it was incredible. I went back a few weeks later and it was closed. I suspect it was a fish butchery (?) that sold to restaurants, and "Sushi Factory" was a way to get it without a middleman (restaurant).

You mean... JITLADA! I went there once with Jonathan Gold and some people in our class, and it was an incredible lunch. I loved the mussels (slurp up all the sweet juices and broth), I'm dying to go there again. If you don't mind venturing into Highland Park, about 15 minutes away from Jitlada is My Taco, another unassuming restaurant in a strip mall. It looks like a generic, overly-colorful taqueria, but I'm in love with their borrego de barbacoa (lamb in a pastor-like stew consistency, cooked to a char). You can get a large plate full of borrego, served with consomme and some tortillas, but I prefer to get individual tacos with the borrego meat. Somehow it just seems juicier and more Malliardy in smaller quantities already wrapped up in a tortilla for you. While you're getting tacos, you might as well try their other selections of "meat" - buche, chile rojo, chorizo, lengua... mmm.

" At the Chicago Auto Show today Volkswagen spokesman Keith Price confirms that the first new CleanTDI models will be arriving at Volkswagen dealerships in June 2008. Each dealer in United States and Canada will get one example from the initial batch of 1,000 cars. These first cars will be used to introduce potential customers to the new CleanTDI technology with test drives available throughout the summer. In late August to early September regular volumes of diesel Jettas will go on sale at Volkswagen dealers throughout North America. The new CleanTDI Jetta will be Volkswagen's first 50-state legal Tier 2 Bin 5 emissions compliant diesel model. In 2006, the last year that a 45-state legal diesel Jetta was available, the diesel comprised 30 percent of Jetta sales nationally even though it was not available in California and four north eastern states. In November 2008 Volkswagen will begin production of the new Touareg CleanTDI SUV with sales to follow around the end of the year."

I'd call pho the "staple" of Viet food, akin to burgers in McDonalds or, I don't know, pizza at Domino's. Sure you can get the breadsticks and apple pies, but I think the majority of people, including me, always order pho each time they go. Perhaps it's because most of the restaurants I go to are quickish pho places that specialize primarily in pho... I'm not sure. Do most of the people eating around you have large bowls of steamy broth with noodles and beef?

What you want to try is "pho" (pronounced fuh). It's rice noodles in a beefy broth, and the flavors should be "familiar", as long as you don't add the mint leaves. Usually you get to pick what meat you want - if you don't like or haven't tried braised tendon, oxtails, or tripe, stick with flank steak or brisket. Personally I don't like pho without lots of Sriracha (chili sauce in a rooster-logoed squirt bottle). Also with pho, I usually get eggrolls (fried) on the side. It should be served with romaine lettuce; wrap the eggrolls with that, and you'll get a nice combination of cool and hot. The watery, slightly sweet dipping sauce should taste pretty familiar. Spring rolls (the cold ones, non-fried) may taste weirder.

What isn't ethnic food? Looking back at the meals I ate this past week, all I've had was "ethnic" food.

Eh, the methane emissions from humans are negligible. What scientists are concerned about are cows, but there have been several developments around the problem. Fish oil additives can cut belching by almost half, and high-grade alfalfa grass helps in the other direction. Researchers in Australia have isolated the bacteria in kangaroos that allow them to eat the same grasses as cows but with a fraction of the methane. The Aussies also have created a vaccine that inhibits gas-producing microbes in sheep. And the Welsh are working on organic acids that prevent methane buildup in cow tummies..

The GTI, C30, and Clubman S are as close as you can get. Well-equipped, safe, comfortable, fuel-efficient, and usable everyday, yet they go like stink, handle well, and look great. If only Ford could send the Focus ST over here, then I think you'll find the perfect car that meets your criteria. It's a working class hero against the pricey Generation Golf Euros. Escort RS Cosworth, FTW!

Yeah, I got the same GMS price but less $3500 instead of $2500. According to the Saturn site, you can get $1000 off in lieu of 1.9% APR, in addition to the $1500 cash allowance and $1000 bonus cash.