Reviews are starting to pop up everywhere for the new Porsche 09 911 Turbo and everyone is beaming with excitement over the all new automatic transmission.  According to professional car experts it's the first automatic EVER to be considerd for a replacement for those that love manual shift fast cars.  Apparently it's worth the $5,560 option to get the, 5 years in the making, auto transmission.

Cosmetic wise the 09 911 has seen a few updates, like LED running day time lights and signals.  Also there are more wheel choices to match your personal taste when buying a new 911 Turbo.

Other than the above points it's more of the same, which is a winning combination.  If I were to hit the lottery and purchase one new car, this would be it.  The 09 911 smells like sex, looks like sex, and loves being put in the garage still dripping wet.

09 Porsche 911

Check out 1st Hand Reviews of the 09 Porsche 911:

Driving.CA

Kicking Tires

09 Venza

Toyota has announced final pricing on the upcoming release of their 09 Venza.  The 09 Venza crossover was supposed to make waves with advancements to make people want an ugly mini-van, but with todays announced pricing it looks like it will be a challenge.  As of this posting Toyota says the base model will have an MSRP of $25,975 and the all wheel drive v6 version will list at $29,250.

Huge price for not a lot of vehicle, especially for the base price as a front wheel drive 4 cylinder.  Below are a list of standard features for the 09 Venza.

• Electronic Power Steering
• Rear spoiler
• Cruise control
• Integrated fog lamps
• Privacy glass
• HomeLink(R)
• Six-disc CD changer with roof-mounted Dual-zone automatic climate
• XM(R) satellite radio antennacontrol with air filter and
• second row seat vents
• A tilt/telescopic adjustable steeringSix-speed transmission with wheel with integrated audio controls sequential shift
• Vanity mirrorRear windshield wiper
• 20-inch wheels on V6; 19-inch wheels on Electrochromic rearview mirror
• four-cylinder with compass
• Power windows with auto up/down function Cargo area one-touch forward-fold
• jam protection on all four doors seat levers
• Tonneau cover
• Seven airbags
• Rear personal overhead lamps
• Hill-Start Assist Control (HAC)
• Dual exhaust on V6
• Front active headrests
• 14-degree rear seat recline

For me, the Fit does not mean Go, but for a tiny hatch car I guess the 09 Honda Fit ranks higher than others.  The Honda Fit becomes even more appealing when you look at the lateset numbers showing that Honda and Toyota are now the rulers of the US market, taking over 30% of the business with GM only at 20%.

As for the second generation 09 Honda Fit, it's got a few upgrades that would intice those sick of high gas prices.  For example, the new 4 cylinder 1.5 litre engine now is capable of 117 horsepower, which hauls the shrunk mini-van to 60 in 9 seconds.  Not something I'd want to pull out onto the interestate with, but hey anything to save gas money right now...right?  The 09 Fit gets a reportedly 33 miles per gallon highway driving.

But let's not forget that the pice of larger SUVs and Trucks are dropping in price right now as well.  The Sport model 09 Honda Fit comes in at $17,580 and that amount will buy you a lot more car and/or truck if you are willing to sacrifice a little gas mileage.  So that's the main reason the Fit does not mean Go for me, but it looks like the perfect car for a girl getting ready to go to college.

09 Honda Fit

We've been speculating since May what the successor to the Nissan 350Z would offically be called and today we finally find out.  The 2009 Nissan 370Z is the offical name form Nissan and standard edition will be bearing the 3.7l V6 engine.  So no more speculation on names, it's done, and those that wanted 350Z^2 lose the bet.

Nissan is still working on a convertible version, but expect the coupe to be displayed at the Los Angeles Auto Show later this year.  Check out the official Nissan pictures of the 09 370Z below.

The results are in and the 09 Subaru Forester is named Motor Trends SUV of the year.  However, Motor Trend is quick to point out that they did not make the choice for the Forester based on pump prices alone.  Although it would be hard to ignore a 4 wheel drive SUV that gets consistent 16 miles per gallon, make that 19 on the non-turbo versions.

09 Subaru Forester

Instead Motor Trend sites the 09 Forester ability to be fast, with only a 4 cylinder and 4 speed transmission, and it's massive interior storage capacity.  In addition, they were quick to mention how fun the Forester actually was to drive, especially for those who venture off road.  The 09 Forester ride height is enough to take it almost anywhere, at least compared with other similar models that it was pitted against.

Last but not least Motor Trend discussed starting prices with the 09 Subaru Forester in comparison to other SUV's in it's class.  For a standard Forester the starting price is only $20,660 and if you want the super optioned out 09 Forester 2.5XT it's $31,523.  In a contest where being compared to $80,000 Lexus SUV's the 09 Forester shined and won the hearts of those at Motor Trend.

09 Forester on eBay

Another tall wagon making it's debut by a domestic manufacturer, not my cup of tea, but surely someone wants the 09 Dodge Journey.  For me it's got everything but the wooden panels on the side and reminds me of what my grandparents probably drove in the 70's.  I mean, SUV's were created for a reason, people were tired of either having to buy a station wagon or a mini-van, why are we regressing back to that?

The 09 Dodge Journey is 4 doors with a back hatch, long wheel base, and comes with either a 4 or 6 cylinder power plant.  I guess I understand the concept, get the fuel economy of a car and the versatility of an SUV, but it just doesn't work for me.  And I'm not just speaking of looks, I'm also thinking function, where an SUV comes in handy going you know, off road.  Buyers sacrifice a lot in the name of a few miles per gallon, like ride height, stronger suspension, and a little thing called torque.

Below are pictures of the 09 Dodge Journey, so you can judge for yourself.

Looking for something slightly larger than a golf cart to tool around in?  Well you are the target buyer for Toyota's latest creation, the 09 iQ.  This teeny tiny 4 seater will be available this fall in Japan and European markets, so the US will have to wait for this glorified go-cart.

Although small in size the 09 Toyota iQ is big on safety features.  First it's all steel frame makes this baby weigh in at almost 1900lbs and sports a whopping 12 airbags, including the worlds first rear window air bag.

The 09 iQ is of course a hybrid, which will help Toyota meet it's goals of building 1 million hybrid vehicles a year by 2010.

Over 30 miles per gallon and a fairly potent 4 cylinder engine paired with a 6-speed transmission makes the 09 Aura a winner as far as I'm concerned.  Although it still kind of looks bland, as much of the Saturn car line up does, it fits the bill in terms of economy and luxury.

Reviews are pouring in that love the great buy that is the 09 Saturn Aura at less than $25,000.  The 09 Aura is getting extra marks in it's interior department due to it's mix of elegance and 'just enough' functionality.  Furthermore the double stitched and supportive seats fit perfectly for the reviewers who took it for a spin.

But where the 09 Aura gets the most praise is where the 6-speed transmission meets the 4 cylinder engine.  Instead of being clunky and jumping through only 4 gears under heavy acceleration, the Aura is smooth and precise.  The extra automatic gears gives the illusion that you are driving a much more sophisticated and expensive car.

The four-cylinder XR delivers. It hits 33 mpg on the highway -- outperforming the Camry and Honda Accord. It manages 22 mpg in the city, which seems a little low, but acceptable when you consider average mileage is in the high 20s.

09 Saturn Aura

Could it be true, will Chevrolet introduce the first hybrid light duty pick up truck in it's 2009 Silverado?  It looks like it will come to fruitition, with a 2-mode hybrid power plant the future of this truck looks promising.  A much more promising effort than was tried a few years ago with their 'mild' hybrid engine.

According to Chevrolet the 09 Silverado hybrid will be capable of going 30mph and tow up to 6,100 lbs without even starting up it's gasoline engine.  The half-ton pickup will feature a 6.0 litre V8 pumping out 330+ horsepower via a 2-Wheel drive or 4-Wheel drive transmission.

I'm stoked about the possibility of having access to hybrid technology that's actually usable, instead of a little casket on wheels.  Unfortunately, like all technology I'm sure it's going to be the early adopters that will pay the price.  Perhaps in another 10 years purchasing a hybrid pickup truck will be the norm and you can remember back to the first, the Chevy 09 Silverado hybrid.

Ford has decided to make the best even better by overhauling the fuel consumption standards of all F Series pickup trucks.  The 2009 F-150 will arrive and be the best in fuel economy and capability through extensive engineering enhancements.  New buyers of an 09 F-150 will expect an increase of 8% fuel economy over previous years in the same model type and up to 12% on V8 versions.

"Ford has committed to have the best or equal to the best fuel economy with every new product we introduce, and we are delivering with the new F-150," said Matt O'Leary, Ford F-150 chief engineer. "Fuel economy has moved from 10th to third place among pickup buyers' top purchase considerations -- right behind durability and value. The new F-150 delivers on all three as the industry leader."

The increased fuel economy of the 09 F-150 comes at a time none too soon, considering hurricane Ike has crippled the cost of gasoline.  Ford is modifying their upcoming vehicles to match consumer demand in safer, more reliable, more capable, and more fuel efficient categories.  Although not limited to these improvements, the 09 F series trucks will also be receiving aero dynamic changes as well, which will serve function and looks.

One of the more interesting engineering changes to the 09 F-150 is it's aggressive fuel shut-off during deccleration.  It's an automatic function within the fuel system that shuts off fuel when a drivers foot is removed from the gas pedal.  Fuel will then resume once a slow enough speed is reached at idle or the pedal is depressed again.  Exciting new technology that I'm assuming will find it's way across a broad line of vehicles and not just within Ford.