By RICHARD WILLIAMSON, Scripps Howard News Service
Autosside: 2010 GMC Terrain
2010 GMC TERRAIN SLT1
TYPE: Front-drive, five-passenger, mid-size crossover utility vehicle.
PRICE: $28,195 base.
WHERE BUILT: Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada.
KEY RIVALS: Ford Edge, Hyundai Santa Fe, Honda CR-V, Nissan Murano.
POWER: 3-liter, DOHC, 264-horsepower V6; six-speed auto transmission.
FUEL ECONOMY: 17 city, 25 highway mpg.
Autos: Terrain exhibits a luxurious personality
"SUV" is not a four-letter word.
So say the marketing experts at GMC, which is pitching its latest passenger vehicle as an SUV instead of what it really is, a "crossover" -- an SUV body on a car chassis.
Autosside: Stats on the 2010 KIA Forte SX
2010 KIA FORTE SX
TYPE: Front-drive, five-passenger, compact sedan.
PRICE: $17,195 base, $19,490 as tested.
WHERE BUILT: Hwasung, South Korea.
KEY RIVALS: Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, Chevrolet Cobalt, Ford Focus.
POWER: 2.4-liter, DOHC, 16-valve, 173-horsepower, 4-cylinder engine; six-speed manual transmission.
Autos: KIA fortifies the fleet with an affordable Forte
In these harsh economic times, Kia continues to exceed expectations in the affordable end of the automotive market.
The latest entry in the economical fleet is the 2010 Forte, a sedan that will also be offered as a coupe, with prices beginning at $13,695 for the base LX model.
Autos: Have some fun in the new Frontier
At the height of their powers, pickup trucks were instruments of intimidation, casting enormous shadows on the neighbors' lawns and dwarfing lesser forms of transportation.
To help crush the competition, Ford hired the mountainous musician Toby Keith to promote its full-size F-Series and terrify anyone who might be driving around in a subcompact listening to the Dixie Chicks.
Autosside: 2010 Nissan Frontier
2010 NISSAN FRONTIER PRO-4X
TYPE: Four-wheel-drive, four-door, five-passenger, mid-size pickup.
PRICE: $28,980 base, $31,115 as tested.
WHERE BUILT: Smyrna, Tenn.
KEY RIVALS: Toyota Tacoma, Honda Ridgeline, Ford Ranger, Chevrolet Colorado, Dodge Dakota.
POWER: 4-liter, 261-horsepower, DOHC V6 engine; five-speed auto transmission.
Autosside: 2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster
2010 NISSAN 370Z ROADSTER
TYPE: Rear-drive, two-passenger roadster.
PRICE: $36,970 base.
WHERE BUILT: Tochigi, Japan.
KEY RIVALS: Porsche 987, Chevrolet Corvette, Audi TT.
POWER: 3.7-liter, 332 horsepower, double overhead camV6 with Variable Valve Event and Lift Control, seven-speed automatic transmission.
FUEL ECONOMY: 18 city, 25 highway mpg.
Autos: High performing Nissan 370Z Roadster
Cruising through a California redwood forest on a roller-coaster, two-lane roadway gains a new dimension when the car is a drop-top, high-performance roadster like the Nissan 370Z.
Towering evergreens and eucalyptus scent the air while casting the driver in deep shadow on the state highways that roam the hills from San Jose, Calif., to the Pacific Ocean.
Autosside: 2011 Hyundai Equus
2011 HYUNDAI EQUUS
TYPE: Rear-drive, five-passenger, full-size sedan.
PRICE: TBA, estimated at under $60,000.
WHERE BUILT: Ulsan, South Korea.
KEY RIVALS: BMW 7-Series, Audi A8, Lexus LX 460.
POWER: 3.8-liter, 290-horsepower Lambda V6 or a 4.6-liter, 375-horsepower Tau V8; six-speed auto transmission.
FUEL ECONOMY: TBA.
Autos: Equus the next best thing for Hyundai
With the U.S. introduction of the luxurious 2009 Genesis, Hyundai began moving up-market with a vengeance.
That trajectory will continue in 2010 as the Korean carmaker launches an even more ambitious flagship currently known as the Equus.
