(All photos except interior: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

The Taurus poses in Litchfield, Conn. on a recent autumn weekend.

What a rump on this one. And, I can't deny, I like how big it is on Ford's new Taurus.

Rear-end sizes don't come up often in car reviews, and when they do, they're usually not complimentary. BMW, which deflected rant after scathing rant of its "Bangle Butt" design on the previous-generation 7 Series, knows that pretty well. Critics, of course, make a living by complaining, and their ideal car doesn't exist.

In hip-hop music, rear-end references are as frequent as boasts of self-wealth (and maybe even more popular than breasts, but that's another debate). Ever since Sir Mix-A-Lot, rappers have made healthy livings by paying tribute to equally healthy behinds in song. Drake, in a line from the modern love ballad "Every Girl," brags about how his ideal lady "took her half an hour just to get that belt to fasten."

The 2010 Taurus has an abnormally huge rear for a full-size sedan, so big it took me several fearsome minutes to squeeze into my parents' garage, which swallows my mom's Volvo S80 without a hitch. I swore the garage door would bend and swell from the Ford's bulbous back end. With some disbelief, it closed.

The trunk lid — covering 20 cubic feet of storage with a four-inch wide blue oval stamped in the center — towers nearly 4 feet off the ground and cuts a sharp angle toward the oversize bumper, giving the impression of a thick beef slab. The raked rear glass is farther away still as it flows to slim side glass openings, expansive B-pillars, and a chest-high shoulder line. The 19-inch wheels — could they be anything less? — complete the car's heavy, substantial stature.

While looking like it may burst a few inseams and buttons, the Taurus is physically impressive and thoroughly imposing, just what a flagship sedan should be.

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(All photos: Gerry Miles/Boston.com)

By Gerry Miles, Boston.com Correspondent

If it's true that the more things change, the more they stay the same, then one might proffer the Mazda Miata as evidence that supports the cliché.

At first blush, they might be right. And then, again, they'd be wrong.

It's still a snappy, true two-seat drop-top decompression machine that often leaves as much of a grin on the faces of those admiring the ride as those behind the wheel.

It still has a trunk, tall-backed bucket seats, surprisingly good leg room, a spunky little 2.0-liter 167 horsepower I-4 mated to a slick, short-throw stick shift and a rewarding exhaust note that reminds us that having fun behind the wheel can be found at the posted limit, even with nowhere in particular to go.

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(All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

Like its parent Hyundai, Kia just gets more and more proud of itself. Its budget lineup undercuts nearly every segment by a few hundred to a few grand, offers lots of equipment, and stands by an industry-leading warranty. Kia's August sales of 40,198 — a whopping year-over-year increase of 60 percent — would have any manufacturer feeling cocky in a recession.

The company's confidence, months after hip, rollicking hamsters debuted the Korean challenge to Scion, the Soul, is obvious in commercials for its new Forte sedan. "The first of its kind," the company proclaims, in reference to the car's lengthy list of standard features. If that's true, then the four-speed automatic on our Forte 2.0 EX tester is most certainly the last.

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

We come to praise a Pontiac today, not to write its obituary.

The car in question is the 2009 Pontiac Solstice GXP, one of the most unique vehicles we've driven. It's a two-seat, rear-wheel drive coupe version (with removable roof) of the Solstice roadster. To say it has style is an understatement.

Add in a few facts of automotive life in 2009 and the GXP acquires more of a mystique:

1. It's been discontinued, a victim of the worldwide auto crisis that claimed General Motors' Pontiac Division.
2. Before production was stopped, only about 1,200 were built. That number, combined with the quality of the car and desirability of the coupe version, guarantees that this vehicle will become a collector's item.
3. That's reaffirmed by the driving experience. The Solstice GXP rates a place on the list of certified "head-turners" we've driven. In addition, its 2.0 liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine has all the pop needed to make it a fun ride. Once, dual exhausts were a sign there was a V-8 under the hood. Now we have a set of polished exhaust tips on a four-banger. Have to say they sound nice, too.

We had the opportunity to drive the GXP both with a five-speed manual and five-speed automatic. Normally, I automatically opt for the manual (sorry about the bad pun). But the Solstice just works better with the automatic.

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(All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

Even with a backup camera and bumper sensors, would we really want to park the Equinox in Beacon Hill? No, thanks.

One look is all it takes to explain the weak sales of the first-generation Chevrolet Equinox. It's essentially a scaled-down version of Chevy's other tired workhorse, the Trailblazer, a larger truck that was popular when Circuit City sold CRT monitors. Circuit City subsequently went bankrupt and closed all its stores, but not because sleeker, widescreen LCD monitors became the industry standard. General Motors, it's fair to say, went bankrupt in a huge part by hanging on to outdated products like the Trailblazer and Equinox.

Even in futuristic hydrogen-powered fuel cell trim, the old Equinox was a weak competitor in the compact SUV segment, which had long adopted fresher faces, greater fuel efficiency, and higher-quality interiors.

Buyers have instead gravitated toward the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, and Ford Escape. Last year's Equinox sales of 67,447 were about 130,000 below the CR-V. The Escape, an 8-year-old model kept afloat with steady upgrades and a sophisticated hybrid, outsold the Chevy by more than double. If you'd like to be positive, Chevy was only 4,000 cars short of Toyota's SUV in 2008, as long you ignore RAV4 sales for the last six months of the year.

The 2010 Equinox has finally caught up, and in some areas, passed its competitors.

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(All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

Sometimes, it takes a more expensive car to really know how good a less expensive one is.

The pricey car was the BMW 128i. Stretching only 172 inches, nearly 9 inches shorter than a 3 series coupe, the 128i by its stature looked bound to be tossable and lively. The near 50-50 weight distribution, rear-wheel drive, a grunting inline-six and creamy six-speed automatic confirmed that thought. BMW's obsession with fine-tuning its steering, suspension, and brakes really gave it the driver-centric polish that few other cars can match, and that's the real reason journalists rave about these cars. Few other companies really care to go that far.

But BMW is also concerned with positioning its cars above reach of average earners. And $41,000 for a teeny two-door, no matter how great it drives, is as comical as the 1's stubby exterior. Which explains why the 128i, as Bill Griffith noted in his April review, is a rare car on the road, even with around 6,500 cars sold in the US through July.

Meanwhile, for half that price, Mazda has sold roughly 24,000 of its newly redesigned 3 sedans and hatchbacks in the same time. Is it silly to compare a $21,000 Mazda to a BMW, especially when the Mazda isn't the racy RX-8 or Mazdaspeed 3? No, because the BMW's 10 percent higher fun factor — addictive as it is — isn't worth 100 percent more.

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A version of this story appears in the Sunday Globe's Business section. See the story and car-by-car comparisons here.

Queue the rolling green hills, fresh air, and people in flower costumes blooming on command. Enter a Toyota Prius, towing a cartoonish sun through rural farmland, again played by people pretending to be corn stalks. For 30 precious television seconds, it's a friendly Wizard of Oz reminder from the feel-good marketing folks of America's best-selling hybrid: gas prices may be down, but we're still saving the world.

Since its 2000 debut outside Japan, Toyota has sold more than one million Priuses in the US. But whether or not you believe their hybrid hype, the Prius is no longer the only efficient gas-electric car. The term "hybrid," for better or worse, is now under every new car buyer's skin, and prompts lots of questions. Should I pay more for better mileage? Do I want to be labeled as "green"? Is this car boring and slow?

Today's hybrids span a wide range of prices, engines, and body styles, many of which look exactly the same as their gas-only brethren. The Globe tested six of the latest hybrids, priced between $23,810 and $117,330, and pitted them all head-to-head: the 2010 Toyota Prius, 2010 Honda Insight, 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, 2009 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid, 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid, and the 2008 Lexus LS600 hL (the 2009 model is the same).

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

The plan was to make a legal U-turn in front of my house.

The street is so wide that I'm almost able to make the swing without backing up; unfortunately there's not quite enough room.

At this pivotal point - in both the turn and in getting used to today's test car, the 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe - I discover that it's not so easy finding reverse in the six-speed manual transmission. Oh, I know where reverse is but moving the gearshift lever through the spring-loaded gate, especially on this maiden trip, isn't so easy.

The Hyundai engineers must have had the same trouble because once reverse is found, the car reacts audibly, not with a crunch of gears but with a beep. The sound is much like the reverse alarm on a school bus or big dump truck.

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

Ford's Focus is one car I'm always happy to drive. It's also a model that seems to evolve nicely instead of being reinvented every few years. That said, it remains a competitive player in the small-car category with good things still to come.

Today's test car is the 2009 Ford Focus SES coupe. This is the second year for the coupe version and this one had a nice combination of power, drivability and fuel economy.

An all-electric Focus is scheduled to join the lineup next year. To a generation attuned to plugging in iPhones and iPods to recharge each night, plugging in a zero emissions vehicle with a 100-mile range could be attractive.

Meanwhile, our current SES configuration is spiffed up with nicely styled 17-inch alloy wheels, upgraded tires, a firmer suspension, sports exhaust system, fog lights and cruise control to go with Ford's SYNC communications system.

All told, it's a nice package that fits a niche between econobox and all-out sports sedan. The car is nimble, handles well and there's enough oomph to justify the satisfying exhaust tone, and best of all still can deliver 30 miles per gallon in overall driving and 35-plus on the highway.

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

Colleague Cliff Atiyeh did a great job in catching the spirit of last Friday's convertible convention – a rare gathering of most all of the automotive industry's convertibles, their publicists, and the automotive media.

One of the most welcome vehicles in attendance was a 2009 Dodge Viper, shepherded by Lisa Barrow, Chrysler's East Region Communications manager.

"I thought I was bringing it to Boston for its swan song,'' she said, "Then we got word last week that we [Chrysler] were keeping it in production so this became a celebration."

Late in the afternoon I was asked, "Do you mind taking the Viper and driving Geno [Geno Effler, Volvo vice president of public affairs] to Peabody?"

Er, no. Actually, it would be my pleasure.

The Viper, to me, is the quintessential American muscle car – brute power, great looks and about as much tact as a grunge band crashing a cotillion. Driving it, I came to envy those with the wherewithal – money and necessary exhibitionist streak – needed to own one.

Meanwhile, we reveled in the envious looks the Viper got on the road, either parked or moving, and compiled 10 memories of a weekend in the driver's seat. FULL ENTRY

An Aston Martin DB9 Volante, Mercedes SL63 AMG, and Bentley Azure T take in the sun in front of the Lars Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline. (All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

The scene was straight out of a little boy's dream: 20 convertibles perched on a dew-covered lawn, paint and chrome glistening, and keys to all of them in a crumpled, mildly greasy Dunkin' Donuts bag.

With strawberry frosted doughnut in hand, I headed to the far left side of the Lars Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline last Friday, where several dozen auto writers and PR heads gathered for a drive of exotic proportions: a romp to Kennebunkport and back to test 2009's latest convertibles.

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LED taillamps and adjustable-level xenon headlamps spice up Mazda's new 6. (All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

It was one of those temporarily embarrassing moments at the wheel. I'd driven today's test car, the Mazda 6, across New Hampshire's Rte. 101 from Manchester Airport to the Hampton tollbooth. Cruising up to the tollbooth, the car lurched twice and stalled.

The toll-taker, after collecting the state's tribute, asked, "Is everything OK?"

"Oh yes, I just forgot this car has a clutch."

Oops.

The Mazda 6, redesigned for 2009, is a player in the crowded mid-sized sedan segment. And our tested version, the i Grand Touring edition, certainly qualifies as a near-luxury vehicle. On the highway, it ran as though it had a six-cylinder engine.

However, it was a 2.5 liter four-cylinder, six-speed manual transmission powertrain. It's a configuration I prefer with the caveat that most days I'm not committed to spending time in rush-hour traffic.

This Mazda was designed and built for the United States market. The company added 4.5 inches of wheelbase from the previous model (to 109.8 inches) and put that space to great use. There's more-than-ample legroom in the rear seat and a huge trunk. In addition, the rear seats fold down to allow for even more temporary carrying capacity.

One of the nicest things you can say about any car is that "It's a lot of value for the dollar or bang for the buck." The Mazda 6 delivers.

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Hyundai's badge-less Genesis poses in downtown Newburyport. (All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

We were out taking some photos of the Hyundai Genesis early one morning. A woman passing by asked, “What kind of car is that? I don’t see a name badge on the front?”

My response was that, “It’s a Hyundai Genesis. They didn’t put a badge on front intentionally. They want you to see the car and do what you just did; that is, ask ‘What is it?’ “

Some of Hyundai’s earlier large-sedans bore resemblances to Jaguars (the XG 350), but the Genesis definitely causes you to pause a moment and notice resemblances to Lexus and Mercedes-Benz.

Hyundai designed the Genesis sedan to be in the image of BMW’s 5-Series, the Lexus GS, Infiniti M cars and Mercedes E-Class. However, it’s priced and sized to compete with Chrysler’s 300C, the Lexus ES, Cadillac CTS, and Mercedes C-Class.

There’s no question that today’s test car, the 2009 Hyundai Genesis 4.6, is an intriguing vehicle.

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A Lexus RX passes Volvo's distinctive new crossover on Beacon Street. (All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

If you’re a mainstream automaker and still don’t have at least two car-based crossovers in your lineup, you’re either sick with bankruptcy or making out like a bandit on just one. The progenitor of the luxury crossover segment, Lexus, is in the latter with its RX 350, now in its tenth year. Toyota didn’t need a Venza alongside its hot-selling RAV4 and Highlander models, but thought Camry buyers needed an alternative.

While Ford is axing the Taurus X, leaving us with the Edge and underappreciated Flex, BMW is so pumped it added a third, the unclassifiable X6, and is due for a fourth (X1) in 2010 or 2011. Chrysler, which once sold Pacificas by the barrel, is down to the Jeep Compass (and if you’re really stretching it, the Dodge Nitro and maybe the Jeep Patriot).

Saab has none at all, and its sad, tattered divorce with GM has made rival Volvo even happier to introduce the 2010 XC60, the compliment to its beefier car-based XC90. As a Volvo, even a 2010 Volvo, the XC60 isn’t tailored for Joe Mercedes. Even under a decade of Ford management, Volvo’s quirky and unconventional behavior hasn't rubbed off entirely, and that's exactly what the marque's rabid New England fan base desires.

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(All photos: Zane Merva/Autoinsane.com)

By Silvio Calabi, Boston.com Correspondent

This never would have occurred to me if I hadn’t wound up idling next to one in traffic over the weekend: The X6 is BMW’s replacement for the late Pontiac Aztek! Same humpbacked silhouette, same tiptoes stance, same identity crisis — what is it? Only, guess what, BMW got it right. Or at least BMW made a vehicle that, whatever its mission may be, offers up terrific entertainment en route to defining that mission.

In the city, the mission was clear: Intimidate other traffic, fire off neck-snapping hole shots, and then hand it off to valet parking.

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

Read our March reviews of the Jetta TDI here.

Sometimes life’s tosses coincidences your way.

These involve Volkswagen, diesels and Theresa Condict, a young race driver who is competing in this year’s nationwide Jetta TDI Cup series. She was the subject of a Globe story that ran Thursday, just before the June 19-21 TDI Cup races at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Coincidence No. 1: Condict, of Lexington, Mass., will be competing in those races located in Lexington … Ohio, that is.

Coincidence No. 2: This week’s test car is a 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI, the same model car Condict will be driving in the races.

Coincidence No. 3: Over the winter, the Jetta TDI was at the top of my want-to-buy list. I’d been waiting for years for it to be legal to buy new diesel-powered passenger cars in Massachusetts. Unfortunately, it was impossible to find the model Jetta I wanted – the TDI Sportwagen – over the winter.

So, for a lot of reasons, I was eager to get out on the road in this test Jetta.

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Fans of fast cars, muscle cars, exotic cars, and inexpensive-but-exciting cars, don't get too worried that "the new CAFE laws are killing all the fun cars," as one reader wrote yesterday on this blog. When there's government, there are loopholes and exceptions, and where there are loopholes and exceptions — alongside the battle cry of millions of enthusiasts — there will be cars like the 2010 Jaguar XKR Convertible.

Mysterious forces brought this supercharged, 510 horsepower aluminum hot-rod to our parking lot this week, the latest update to Jaguar's brilliant XK range. As if 420 horsepower wasn't enough on last year's XKR, Jaguar bored the 4.2 liter V-8 to a full 5.0 liters, which more than makes up for the muted exhaust tone in the "standard" 2009 XK Coupe we had in March.

Around town, the XKR acts just as gentlemanly as the XK, but full throttle brings forth a brutal, deafening roar with a sprinkling of backfire pops when flicking the downshift paddle. It's everything that was missing from the normally-aspirated V-8, and is probably the best example of bipolarity there is in the automotive world. The XKR tricks passersby into believing it's a polite and quiet luxury car, and then it just rips a nasty one, with all the subtlety of a NASCAR stocker.

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(Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

One of the most-anticipated rides I’ve taken was in Mini’s electric model, one of 500 prototypes being leased to select customers.

However, when it comes to driving an all-electric vehicle, Boston’s 1950s-era trolley cars were smoother.

Hit the gas and there was a lag before acceleration began. That’s disconcerting to anyone used to the always-perky Mini performance.

Hit the (regenerative) brakes and brace yourself. The computerized system is way off. The car stops so powerfully that you’re thrown against your seatbelt. Even just taking one’s foot off the accelerator winds up initiating a major braking event.

The suspicion here is that Mini tossed out some trial balloons and the revised versions will be fine.

And we’ll still be ready to line up for a test ride.

(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

This winter, the New England Motor Press Association (NEMPA) chose the Kia Borrego as its “Best-in-Class SUV ($25,000-$35,000)” as part of its annual Winter Vehicle Awards voting.

That Borrego was the six-cylinder version. It also appears to be the “combination of choice” in this model. We recently drove the V-8 version. It’s doubtful the voters would have treated this configuration so favorably in their balloting.

Yes, the V-8 had power aplenty, with 337 horsepower and 323 lb.-ft of torque. And the mileage (we averaged 18.7 miles per gallon) was good for a vehicle of this size and weight (4,621 pounds).

But there were trade-offs. For starters, the six-speed automatic transmission seemed to be “thinking” before downshifting. The gearing is set up for power off the line and economy in the top gears. It didn’t seem to fit our needs for more middle-range coasting, turning, and pickup. Handling was OK but a bit vague in the feel-of-the-road department.

But perhaps most jolting – literally – is the ride.

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(All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

In the cheap muck that defines many Chrysler interiors – the dull, flimsy plastics, the '80s-inspired rectangular cutouts and build quality – Jeep has kept its head above the goo.

Climb into a Commander, a Grand Cherokee platform with an identical wheelbase but lengthened 1.8 inches and widened 0.6 inches in track, and you’re treated to Land Rover luxury without the Land Rover brittle plastics.

Burl wood trim surrounds the attractive center stack on our top-level $48,210 Overland, which also includes two-tone leather and microfiber seats (also known as Alcantara). Allen-head screws are at all corners, and the squarish, upright presentation matches the Commander’s instantly recognizable brick exterior.

You can tell on the outside – from the chrome 18-inch wheels, xenon headlamps, and D-pillar grab handles – that this is a luxury Jeep. You can’t tell it's from the same people who make the Dodge Durango.

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

One of the big stories coming out of April’s New York Auto Show was the unveiling of Chrysler’s 2011 Grand Cherokee, scheduled to go on sale next spring.

The date may be pushed back now that Chrysler has filed for Chapter 11 protection as it reorganizes. But it’s an important coming event.

That Grand Cherokee launch is the biggest product event on the Chrysler horizon before it starts to introduce vehicles produced as part of its alliance with Fiat. Ironically, the new vehicle is built on a chassis shared with the Mercedes M-Class vehicles, a project that began in the Daimler-Chrysler days and will overlap the continuing ownership changes.

But, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. For the present, the 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee remains an interesting vehicle, one that carries the DNA of Jeep’s true off-road capabilities.
Of course there are negatives. Chief among them is that the Grand Cherokee is a gas guzzler (get 15 around town and you’re doing well; figure 19 at best on a trip).

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(All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

As we were leaving the Newport Concours D’Elegance last Sunday, Mrs. G asked, “If you could have any car here, which would you choose?”

Hmmm. The question doesn’t really work because I’d need to have a garage first, and then get something worth garaging. Certainly a Ferrari, any of the many on display in Newport, would be nice. So would one of the museum-quality Duesenbergs or the Bugatti. But those deserve even better accommodations, something along the lines of climate-controlled secure storage.

These vehicles are worth more than my house – thus they don’t belong with me.

No. These concours cars were to be ogled but not owned. However, there was that better-than-new 1970 Datsun 240Z parked next to the 1965 Lincoln Presidential limo brought by John Lawlor of NPR’s “Car Talk.”

The ‘70 240Z still looks contemporary, and we’d have loved to be able to pull today’s test car – a 2009 Nissan 370Z Touring edition – alongside to show how the direct descendant takes its styling cues from the original, including its overall shape, its big rear window and hatchback and the vertical door handles.

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Aston Martin exotic style comes a whole lot cheaper on the Jaguar XK. (Photo illustration/All photos: Clifford Atiyeh)

All right, I admit it – I like looking at myself driving in the reflections of buildings, and get absolutely giddy when I’m behind the wheel of something flashy. It’s the sort of vanity guys at the gym indulge in, watching themselves do arm curls in T-shirts two sizes too small. “Yeah, that’s right, this is all mine,” they’re thinking. “You, babe, are gonna have to work for this.”

When I met my girlfriend four years ago, she didn’t exert much effort claiming what little upper body tone I had – and still have. She also didn’t meet me in a Jaguar XK, the graceful, debonair English coupe thoroughly laced with male pheromones. It’s the $81,000 automotive equivalent of that refreshed, endorphin-packed feeling body builders get after dropping a pair of dumbbells. They like how they feel. They know other people are watching them.

You’ll feel compelled, then, to trace the chrome trim outlining the pillarless side glass all the way to the coupe’s bulging rear fenders. Hot looks prompt stares and touches, even if most of the XK’s devoted audience – like the UPS driver opening his truck door to flash a thumbs-up, or the 8-year-old boy in the back of a Volkswagen craning his neck to get a glimpse – aren’t women.

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The Lincoln MKX looks svelte by any measure — and like a sports car next to Globe delivery trucks. (All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

Two weeks ago I took the helm of an early 1990s Lincoln Town Car, the generation that sported a digital instrument panel atop a dashboard as wide as a trailer home. At only $500, the car had some 200,000 miles on it, reeked of mothballs, and the rear was almost dragging on the gravel lot at Helping Hands in Wrentham, a dealer that sells donated jalopies to low-income customers.

Even with those shortcomings, the neglected Town Car was undeniably a Lincoln. The V-8 still purred, the seats were La-Z-Boy cushy, the interior was massive and well-finished, and the ride — even while bottoming out — ate up ruts and bumps. The finger-touch steering required something like a dozen turns lock to lock. A Lincoln indeed.

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Oversize 22-inch wheels stuff the wells on the Edge Sport. (All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

Everyone, it seems, is looking for an edge in this life.

Ford, on the other hand, wants everyone to have an Edge – the company’s well-designed crossover vehicle. The Ford Edge is a five-passenger family hauler available in four trim levels (SE, SEL, Limited, Sport) and as either a front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive vehicle. Prices start at $26,635.

Our test car was a top-of-the-line Sport version with an MSRP of $35,605 and a final sticker number of $41,755. It was optioned with a Premium package ($1,995) that included a welcome automatic liftgate and auto temperature control along with memory seat presets, power heated mirrors, and a garage door opener. It also had a navigation system (another $1,995) and 22-inch polished aluminum wheels.

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The 2009 Forester is bigger and higher than ever. (All photos: Bill Griffith/Boston.com)

My friend Ralph used to be the ice cream maker at a famous North Shore candy house and ice cream parlor.

Every time I’d tell him about a new favorite dairy bar – for example, the one on the UConn campus in Storrs, Conn. – he’d ignore my ravings about the Jonathan Supreme and Husky Tracks.

“Tell me about the vanilla,” he’d say.

“The vanilla? They’ve got all these great flavors.”

“I always try the vanilla first,” was his answer. “That’s the most important and the hardest to get right.”

Those words often come back to me.

We were looking at this week’s test car – a 2009 Subaru Forester. It’s the base X model equipped with the premium and all-weather packages. Those bumped the $19,995 base price to $24,590.

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The Soul takes a break along the Charles River "beach" at Boston University. (All photos: Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

It’s quite hard these days for any automaker to elicit long, head-cocked stares at a boxy compact. Honda started the kooky look with the 2003 Element, an SUV-like square with suicide doors and an interior floor that could literally be hosed down. A year later, Toyota brought over one of its Japanese-market subcompacts and labeled it the Scion xB, a supposedly youth-oriented toaster with gobs of headroom. Not to be outdone, Ford stretched the idea into a seven-passenger crossover last year, replete with a glass-topped white-painted roof, huge wheels, and enough ruler-straight lines to make a geometry teacher proud.

While the Flex is still gushing from its 2008 debut, the Element and xB have become so mainstream they hardly get second glances any more. But the 2010 Nissan Cube and Kia Soul are adding more punch to the Asian storage bin category, and while we can’t vouch yet for the Cube, the Soul! (the exclamation is a trim level) was different enough to have Bostonians pointing and shouting at it.

Standing on the Kia’s door sills as I snapped photos through the sunroof of the glowing red interior – and the dozens of bright LEDs in the door speakers – I heard a kid yell “gay car!” Think about that, Mr. Boston College student. If the Soul were gay, wouldn’t Gaywheels.com stop lambasting Kia for denying domestic partner benefits to its gay employees? (Kia's PR head confirmed the company offers them, but Gaywheels.com is adamant that they're only for California). That's a tough call, but stepping further into this delusional, hormonal undergrad psyche reveals this: Girls are very curious about cars with big feet, and the Soul’s attractive 18-inchers couldn’t be more obvious.

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(Bill Griffith/Globe Photo)

BMW has referred to its vehicles as the "ultimate driving machines" for so long the phrase has become as much a part of the company's identity as Mazda's "Zoom Zoom." We'll leave the "ultimate" claim as a debate for another day. It suffices to say that a BMW is almost always enjoyable to drive.

Today's featured vehicle – the BMW 128i – is all of that. The 128i is the smaller, engine-wise, of BMW's two 1 Series coupes. It produces "only" 230 horsepower and 200 lb-ft. of torque from the 3.0-liter inline six. The turbocharged 135i bumps both those figures to 300.

Our test car had a 6-speed Steptronic automatic with paddle shifters. It was fun to use the paddle shifters for a short bit, but just popping it in drive and listening to the exhaust tone quickly changing its tune with the crisp shifts was almost as satisfying. My preference would have been the 6-speed manual, but then I don't have to sit in commuter traffic on a daily basis, either.

So, the 128i has plenty of power. It looks great, hardly like the baby, entry-level BMW that it is. It handles great, with true near 50/50 front-engine, rear-wheel drive balance. Unlike the 3 Series, you don't see as many 1s on the road.

So what's not to like?

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(Clifford Atiyeh/Globe Photo)

Part 1

Eight years. That’s how long it’s been since I enjoyed staring at a 7 Series. Two generations ago, the squarish 740i Sport looked like the genuine flagship sedan it was in 2001: wide, hunkered-down, and imposing, what with that model’s 18-inch wheels and piercing xenon headlamps. It still looked fantastic four years earlier, when Pierce Brosnan manhandled the 12-cylinder 750iL with his cell phone – from the backseat – in the 1997 Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies.

The 2002 7 Series brought the movie theatrics to life with iDrive, the computer system that controlled radio, climate, navigation, and vehicle settings via a multi-directional console dial. Among automotive electronics, it was unprecedented in its technical sophistication. In the press, iDrive was hated for its needless complexity. Simple tasks, such as switching a radio station, became multi-step processes with steep learning curves. BMW didn’t care, and apparently, neither did its customers.

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(Bill Griffith/Globe Photo)

What's an "Openometer" gauge?

Answer: About the most useless item on a Mini Cooper convertible.

It's a gauge right in front of the driver that gives a truly useless bit of automotive driving feedback: The time you've been driving with the convertible top down. Sorry, we're not making this up.

We learned to love a convertible the old-fashioned way. If the sun's too hot, put the top up and turn on the A/C. (Hmmm. My '54 Ford Sunliner didn't have A/C, either). If it's too cold, put the top up and turn on the heat. If you're too windblown for your evening out, put up the top and use the visor mirror to brush your hair.

An Openometer? C'mon.

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The Nissan Frontier rests on a flooded road in Newbury after an early April storm. (Bill Griffith/Globe Photo)

Nissan’s Frontier compact pickup truck has been around a while now.

Nissan put the first-generation Frontier on the market in 1998, upgrading it to the present model in 2004. It would be fair to think that this truck’s cycle has run its course, but to drive one is to learn otherwise.

The Frontier is rugged, from its fully boxed frame to the optional bedliners. Our test vehicle was a four-wheel-drive 2009 King Cab SE V6 equipped with the Value Truck Package, which adds power windows, mirrors, locks, and other basic necessities totaling $26,500. It had plenty of power for routine hauling or towing with a 4.0 liter V-6 mated to a 5-speed automatic transmission. That combination gave us 17.1 miles per gallon on a five-day “weekend” trip.

It was comfortable and stable on the highway trip, and equally happy doing a weekend of local lugging for spring yardwork. We didn’t quite get it off-road, but did have to ford a flooded street in Newbury during an early-April storm and high tide.

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When is a truck not a truck?

When it's a loaner that you can't use the way a truck should be used.

That was the case with this week's test vehicle, a Ford F-150 regular cab RWD pickup. It's the smallest cab size available and medium trim level among the almost limitless configurations for the company's signature vehicle. Sticker price, depending on options, would range from $25,000 to $30,000. Ours was $26,905.

There was plenty of yard debris to haul to the compost dump. There were several sections of old wooden fencing to cut up and dispose of and a trip to the fencing company for replacement posts and fencing.

However, the test truck didn't have a bed liner, and the decision was made to instead deliver a used child's train table to my grandson.

On the road, the F-150 offers car-like handling and a stable, comfortable ride. The on-board computer delivers trip mpg. We started out at 19.2 miles per gallon and by feathering the gas where possible got it up to 19.9 by the end of the 250-mile trip; however, we couldn't nudge it to 20.0.

The 4.6-liter V-8 (248 horsepower), mated to a 4-speed automatic transmission, was fine for our purposes, but those who do more hauling or towing likely would opt for the higher-output version (292 horsepower) or the available 5.4-liter (310 horsepower).

After a winter of driving by dealerships that seemed overstocked with trucks and SUVs, it was a pleasure to have a truck to drive. The only regret is that we were too polite to really put it through its hauling paces and scratch up the bed.

HOLDERNESS, N.H. - Picture an empty stretch of twisty, two-lane blacktop weaving through the New Hampshire woods and you'll immediately fantasize a hot-blooded sports car cutting through the crisp air at full song.

Route 113, which runs along Squam Lake, the second largest after Winnepesaukee, was that road on an early Sunday morning, neat and clear after a recent snowstorm. The 2009 Honda Fit Sport was that car - or at least an impression of a sports car. No Nissan GT-R, Lotus Exige, or Boxster S was in sight. That made the Fit, sitting low in Storm Silver Metallic, the unassuming supercar of Grafton County for a good, solid hour.

The Fit's stretched, bug-like face (Honda compares it so in commercials) and skinny body looked out of place next to the Subaru Outbacks, SUVs, and pickup trucks strolling through town. Inside, the trappings are much easier on the eye. Supportive seats, huge headroom, and a sporty trio of silver-painted gauges with orange needles and blue backlighting make a fine place to command the road. Hugging tight in every turn, the Fit Sport grips and goes, its 5-speed automatic hitting the rev-limiter at 6,800 r.p.m. as the engine winds up fast without harsh vibration.

When I sailed the Fit into a dip mid-corner, the outside tires hit the bump stops - normally a moment for sweating and cursing - and the car kept going as if nothing had happened. The steering wheel stayed tight in my palms, composed, and didn't jerk back. A second later, I flicked the right-hand paddle for a smooth upshift, the whine of the 1.5 liter four-cylinder engine strangely intoxicating. No drama, just a registered 28 miles per gallon in madman mode.

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The Yaris would be a natural fit for a hybrid trim, but this model isn't as Fit as it could be. (Honda)

The spicy red 2009 Yaris S five-door I tested last week, with its wide, roof spoiler and snappy 1.5 liter four-cylinder, is every bit the competent economy car. It's typical Toyota-quiet, has a smooth suspension, excellent lateral seat support, and returned about 26 miles per gallon in my 195-mile test of mixed driving. But when compared to the sportier Honda Fit and the all-wheel-drive capable Suzuki SX4 Crossover, our top-level $17,515 Yaris is pricey for what it lacks.

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(Clifford Atiyeh/Globe Photo)

After my surprise drive of the BG C100 - a Chinese subcompact retrofitted with an electric powertrain that will be sold by a Philadelphia company - I wrote that the "very firm pedal felt as if the brakes were disconnected." Well, turns out they were, according to BG Automotive president Barry Bernsten.

"I called my engineers and they advised on where we can check for problems, and sure enough, I noticed a wire was disconnected that triggers the pump that controls the disc brakes," Bernsten wrote in an e-mail this morning. "I reconnected the wire, and the brakes worked like butter. The brakes worked perfectly and stopped dead when we slammed them on, unlike the slower stop when you test drove."

I asked the company about the issue after a reader posted a comment yesterday claiming the brakes were at fault, and that Bernsten had fixed them. This would make the C100 a lot safer than during my test, when the car had difficulty stopping from 10 miles per hour. Better for Bernsten to scare a writer in a parking lot, I'd say, than a customer who just wrote a $16,000 check.

Read the original review here.

The Fusion Hybrid in front of the Larz Anderson Auto Museum, a former family estate that contains some of the rarest antique cars still in original condition. (Bill Griffith/Globe Photo)

Ford brought one of its 2010 Fusion Hybrids to the Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline Wednesday, giving its marketing people a chance to show off the vehicle to the area's automotive media and fleet managers.

The vehicle, rated at 41 m.p.g. city and 36 m.p.g. highway, goes on sale later this spring. The price, for a well-equipped Fusion, will be $27,200, about $3,000 more than for a four-cylinder gasoline-powered version that, in its own right, delivers 23 city and 34 highway.

Many in attendance had the chance to drive the Fusion around a short loop through Brookline and Boston, trying to break the 50 mile-per-gallon mark on the vehicle's dashboard readout.

This driver – the first to head out on the circuit – didn't fare well, averaging about 37 m.p.g. The engine was cold when we started out, and I didn't have the right touch for feathering the throttle – even though the smart gauge on the dashboard would grow vines and leaves when I did.

Rick DeMeis of Automotive DesignLine.com, the second to drive the Fusion, managed 51.2 on the loop, topping the standard of 51.1 set by Ford's John Viera, director of sustainability business strategies. Viera and Praveen Cherian, project manager for the Fusion Hybrid, had lots to say about both the Fusion and Ford's plans for coming fuel-efficient vehicles.

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(Clifford Atiyeh/Globe Photo)

UPDATE, 3/18: Thanks to an astute blogger at China Car Times, the BG C100's real identity has been revealed as the Chang'an Ben Ben, also known as the Chana Benni. That explains the logo on the steering wheel that I couldn't quite pin down.

Automaker CEOs don't make a habit of pulling up to The Boston Globe in a rental truck, dumping a prototype in the parking lot, and handing the keys to a writer. But that's exactly what happened Monday as BG Automotive president Barry Bernsten and a lime green hatchback made an impromptu visit as I returned with lunch. Usually food has a much higher priority than thoughts of obscure manufacturers and strange-looking concept cars, but this time, my chicken burrito lost.

Bernsten, a Philadelphia steel entrepreneur turned environmentalist, formed "Be Green" Automotive in 2005 to make low-cost electric cars "unlike Tesla or Fisker," the high-performance electric and plug-in hybrid models that sell for more than $80,000. Earlier in the day, Bernsten showed his C100 prototype to Massachusetts officials - including energy resources commissioner Philip Giudice - and is now in other New England states trying to drum up support for loans, including a proposed $150 million from the Department of Energy, according to a report from the Boston Herald.

"It's a very capital-intensive business," he said to the Globe. "If I finance it personally, we could put a hundred cars a month on the road. If we could get some public assistance and loan guarantees or low-interest loans ... then we could put 15,000."

Bernsten says he's on target for a May or June launch, but he hasn't figured out where he's going to build the car, which will sell from $16,000 to $18,000. The goal is to construct six $25 million plants, each with a capacity for 15,000 cars per month and a workforce of 400 to 500 people. The Globe reported last month that BG Automotive was looking to open its first plant in Massachusetts, but the company will likely go to whichever state opens its coffers first.

"We're looking to hire auto workers, while auto workers are going out of business in Ohio, in Michigan, in Illinois," he said. "We're trying to bring auto jobs."

But Bernsten, after investing more than $3 million of his money and churning out three prototypes, hasn't made a fully road-worthy car. His C100, which has a maximum speed of 45 miles per hour, is certified in 47 states as a "neighborhood electric vehicle," or NEV. That puts it in the same class as the high-end golf carts from Global Electric Motorcars, which are restricted to roads with posted speed limits of 25 to 45 miles per hour, depending on the state.

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(Clifford Atiyeh/Globe Photo)

Part 2

Read part 1 of our drive here.

After a full week of daily driving in our 2009 Jetta TDI, I began to forgive the DSG transmission for some of its jerky behavior. I learned to anticipate gear changes ahead of time, which made it much more tolerable (but still not acceptable, in my opinion).

Volkswagen fashioned the rest of the driving experience very well. You won't notice the diminished horsepower from the turbocharged 2.0 liter four-cylinder (at 140, it's down 30 from the base Jetta S, and another 60 from the SEL wagon). Normally this would be cause for complaint, but since the TDI sips diesel, there's a big grunt of torque (236 pound-feet, 29 more than the SEL wagon). In every situation short of passing acceleration, there's never a need to dip into the throttle as peak torque arrives at 1,750 r.p.m. Sport mode, with its higher-rev shifts, doesn't add any more excitement, just noise. Never has there been so much joy below the two-grand mark in a compact sedan.

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(Clifford Atiyeh/Globe Photo)

Part 1

Right when I heard the solid ca-chunk of the driver door clamping shut and felt my bony rear wrapped in a firm, bolstered seat, I wasn't sure where all the negative talk of Volkswagen quality control was coming from. Issues with vibrations, rattles, and electrical problems – especially on VW's highest-selling models, the Rabbit and Jetta – have been well-documented in the industry. It's no secret Volkswagen hasn't been near the top of J.D. Power, but then again, part of those surveys involve people complaining about window switch locations, rather than answering if those switches actually work.

I like where the switches are on this white 2009 Jetta TDI, but more importantly, I like how this compact sedan drives like a much more expensive car. I’ve made a helpful seat-of-the-pants rule for all road tests: if a car can handle Boston’s potholes, crudely-filled patches, bumps, dips, and expansion joints without scraping the wheel wells and unsettling the occupants, then the suspension is truly well-sorted. Should the automakers need to cut back more of their R&D budgets, they can just drive here, where the wretched road conditions are far more abusive than any manufacturer proving ground.

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For most people in this economy, reviews on $60,000 Jaguars and new car sales pitches aren't as appetizing as they once were. But if you're like Globe reporter Geoff Edgers, a down economy hasn't changed any of your auto habits. Geoff drives a 1997 Buick Skylark Custom, cousin to the Pontiac Grand Am and long-forgotten Oldsmobile Achieva, which Canadian YouTube user ProjectAchieva will gladly show you.

Buick is down to only three models now, and it's all thanks to cars like the Skylark.

Read the full article, twelfth in the Globe's "Spending Smart" series, or go to boston.com/spendingsmart for more of Geoff's adventures on the cheap.

(Zane Merva/AutoInsane.com)

If you've ever wondered how car awards get decided, allow me to explain with a time-honored New England recipe:

1. Throw two dozen journalists into a garage filled with chili, doughnuts, and fried chicken.
2. Allow for lively banter and mild indigestion.
3. Add 30 gleaming new cars, turn up the gas, and stir vigorously for six hours.
4. Relax and inhale the vapors.

That's what actually happened last Saturday when members of the New England Motor Press Association gathered for their annual winter vehicle test. Besides reverting to little boys with Matchbox toys, the goal was to rank the best in-class winter cars and name an overall winner that fits the needs of the average New England motorist. The above photo, shot by fellow blogger Zane Merva of AutoInsane, only shows one-third of the parking lot.

Car Talk technical advisor John Lawlor, the man behind this escapade, owns Lyndon B. Johnson's presidential limousine and built an exact replica of a 1950s general store in his garage, replete with ice cream freezers. Oh, there's also a diner on cement blocks out front.

Your scribe, along with local celebrity "car doctor" John Paul and Globe auto writer Bill Griffith, whipped through back roads in a multitude of fine machinery, from a $17,000 Suzuki SX4 to the $80,000 Range Rover. Ford, General Motors, Nissan, Volkswagen, and Toyota each sent at least three models, including the new Venza, Passat CC, Lincoln MKS, and Infiniti FX45. Two samplings each from Subaru, Suzuki, Land Rover, Chrysler, Kia, and Mercedes were also on hand.

Noticeably absent: Honda, Mitsubishi, Volvo, and Porsche. Next year, perhaps?

Some highlights, in no particular order:

• The ML320 BlueTec doesn't feel, sound, or smell like a diesel. Hats off to Mercedes for building a luxury SUV around a more fuel-efficient and torque-laden engine.
• BMW's X6, equipped with very wide 20-inch tires and a 400 horsepower V-8, still is very fast despite its hefty weight.
• Cheap dash plastic mars an otherwise well-crafted interior of the Audi A5.
• Ditto for the Dodge Durango Hybrid, which was canceled after less than a year. It's a shame that the penny-pinchers at Cerberus are throwing away hybrid technology that's just as capable as GM's two-mode system on the Escalade and Tahoe.
• The spring-wound Subaru WRX is a car I'd never like to have in traffic or on a bumpy road (OK, I flubbed the clutch a few times).
• Sitting in the back of the four-seater Passat CC feels just like a Mercedes CLS - for half the price. The brakes are fantastic as well.
• Never failing to raise eyebrows was Automobile Magazine columnist Ezra Dyer, who did something rather devilish to the Mercedes G500. Keep guessing.

Read more about the group's winter testing at Automotive DesignLine and AutoInsane. Awards will be announced next month.

When Boston.com named the Jaguar XF one of 2008's best new cars, we hadn't even driven it. But last week we got to sample the sexy Brit's quality, high performance and trick features when a $58,850 Premium Luxury model arrived - and no, the play of rotating vents and a rising gear selector didn't get old by the third act.

The 2009 Nissan Maxima looks refined and stylish on an Allston corner. (Clifford Atiyeh/Boston.com)

(For a short overview on the 2009 Maxima, click here to read our earlier post.)

Like Volkswagen, Nissan has crossed the double-yellow line into premium territory, the path where the company’s luxury Infiniti brand has, until now, held its own.

Let’s start with the areas the Maxima doesn’t cross. For one, it’s no “four-door sports car,” as the “4DSC” rear window stickers have indicated on Maximas since the 1990s. That moniker is for super sedans like the Maserati Quattroporte or the upcoming Porsche Panamera. Granted, there’s generous injections of curvy rooflines, 18-inch wheels, and styling cues straight from the 370Z and GT-R, but like the Doobie Brothers sang, “front-wheel drive don’t make no sports car.” At 15 miles per gallon in the city, it does suck fuel like one, but I’ll bet a base Corvette or 911 would both burn less gas than the Maxima after my initial 180 miles.

The Maxima is also no longer under $30,000. Our 3.5 SV tester, with cold weather package (heated front seats, mirrors and steering wheel), xenon headlamps, Bluetooth, and technology package (navigation, XM radio/traffic, voice recognition, iPod dock) rang in at just over $37,000. The smaller Infiniti G37 with similar equipment costs just under $40,000.

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If there's one brand General Motors has to ax in order to keep the lights on, it certainly isn't Hummer, one of the last automotive brands solely devoted to the truck-based SUV.

Under normal circumstances, this is a weak argument. For an automaker that bet so heavily on large SUVs instead of creating a competitive, diverse lineup, for a company that oversold to rental fleets and destroyed resale values with incentives, and (circle all that apply) the problems with the unions/economy/gas prices/environment, Hummer is the obvious red ink on GM's balance sheets.

Never mind Hummer's Congressional-level approval rating. Most people can't tolerate looking at this testosterone-fueled beast, let alone park next to it in a cramped lot. The drivers are often labeled idiotic, wasteful, and mean to mother earth. Anti-SUV zealots dump gas and throw matches. Regular drivers and pedestrians pray these absurd vehicles don't crush, chomp, and spit them out. None of this looks good for Hummer.

But when all hell rains and everyone else slips and gets stuck, the world gets a little kinder to the 2009 H3T Alpha. Envy replaces hate. Admiration drowns out contempt. People stop staring at the extraterrestrial pulling into a space (now covered with a foot of snow). The driver is suddenly practical, benevolent even, as he pushes a friend's Mazda with a light feathering of the gas. Such is the grace and power of a 9.5-inch ground clearance, 32-inch tires, and front and rear locking differentials. Such is GM's near-perfection in building heavy-duty trucks, a superiority that isn't worth selling.

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Like Volkswagen did with the Passat, Nissan has morphed its Maxima from an Altima lookalike into a budding flagship - and that means more power, luxury, and a price that approaches $40,000 on our 3.5 SV. Check back for a full review.

In response to the overwhelming number of Prius owners who burned my last post at the stake, here's a few clarifications.

1. The car had about 9,000 miles, so it was well past the break-in point.

2. I don't consider myself a maniac, and with ample room to accelerate, the Prius works fine. But when faced with a short on-ramp or a quick lane change, the Prius runs out of juice. (Exiting to Storrow Drive from the left lane entrance of the I-93 North tunnel at Seaport Boulevard is just one example.)

3. The Prius excels as a city car, where high-speed acceleration isn't a factor.

4. Acceleration is relative. For drivers who are used to slower cars, or who don't live in areas like Boston where traffic runs too fast and there's little room to maneuver, the Prius will drive fine. I'm just not one of those people.

In the interest of fair comparisons, here are 0-60 m.p.h. times for several popular economy cars. (The Camry, as a few people mentioned, is too big for this classification, and I've included the Volvo S40 because its base price is about the same as the $26,000 Prius Touring I drove.)

2009 Toyota Corolla XRS	7.8
2008 Scion xB	7.8
2008 Ford Focus SES	8.3
2008 Volvo S40	8.4
2009 Honda Fit	8.5
2008 Mazda 3s Grand Touring	8.5
2008 Nissan Versa 1.8 S Sedan	9.0
2008 Honda Civic EX	9.4
2010 Toyota Prius	9.5 (est.)
2008 Toyota Prius	10.1 (mfr.)
2007 Hyundai Elantra SE	10.2
2007 Toyota Yaris	10.4
2007 Honda Fit Sport	11.9

(Sources: Motor Trend, Car and Driver, Road & Track)

UPDATE: Reader Paul Bowen suggested this editorial on "cradle-to-grave" energy usage for the Prius versus - of all cars - a Hummer.

Jumping into traffic in a Prius makes any regular car seem like a slingshot. Big, grateful tears stream down your cheek, the white-knuckle fear of 110 horsepower on a freeway entrance ramp gone. The Prius saves fuel like it's 2020, but drives like it came from 1987.

Acceleration numbers may seem like the quibbles of car enthusiasts, and for the most part they are. Without a stopwatch, no one can tell the difference between bombing to 60 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds versus 4.1, and everyday situations don't require a Bugatti Veyron to merge on the turnpike.

Prius drivers are too busy bragging about mileage and keeping up with the latest Barack Obama bumper stickers to be concerned about speed. But I'll bet their hearts pump faster when they're about to enter I-93 North during rush hour - as I did - with the pedal floored, the engine groaning like a lawnmower, and a train of cars rushing past as the lane ends right about NOW. That's not adrenaline kicking in - it's instinct telling you that zero to 60 in 10 seconds can be flat-out dangerous.

Now I know how my mother used to feel when she roared her 1987 Volvo 240 DL at full song, her body leaning forward as if she was coaxing a horse. That car boasted 114 horsepower and a 3,000-pound curb weight (about the same as a Prius), and couldn't keep up with traffic 10 years ago. (Read Car Lust's fantastic take on a 350,000-mile 240).

Today's economy cars get to sixty in around eight seconds, family sedans average in the sixes and sevens, and today's 65 m.p.h. speed limits require reaching highway speeds of 70 and 75 m.p.h. just to enter safely.

Indeed, the Prius is admirable as a city car. Even with my eager foot, I still averaged 40 miles per gallon around Boston, where its whisper-quiet operation helped it feel light on its feet. But there's no getting around a 1.5 liter gas engine in a car this size, even with electric assist. Toyota has promised more power for the next Prius, due late 2009. Surely buyers could sacrifice a few miles for greater driving confidence.

(For more Prius envy, check out this Globe video of the state's modified plug-in Prius that claims 100 miles per gallon).