Motor Trend defends its selection of Chevy Volt as COTY

The Chevrolet Volt is only a short time away from having a home at dealerships across the country, but like many media outlets, Motor Trend has been thoroughly testing GM’s halo car for some time. In fact, MT has been so impressed with the Volt that it just recently name the extended range EV its Car of the Year. 

That’s a big deal for General Motors and its newest darling, but not everyone is happy with the magazine’s choice. In fact, outspoken radio show host Rush Limbaugh recently weighed in with not only a bit of criticism for this decision.

This isn’t the first time Limbaugh has been less than favorable in his opinion of the Volt. As you may recall,he first lashed out on the electrified sedan back in July. This time, however, Limbaugh questioned Motor Trend‘s credibility, and in order to make sure both sides of the argument are well-represented, MT‘s Todd Lassa has issued a rebuttal. 

Here, Lassa’s main point was to reinforce why the Volt won this award, though a few shots are Limbaugh were made, as well. Lassa called the Volt “the biggest automotive technological breakthrough since… I don’t know, maybe the self-starter,” and then went on to hammer Limbaugh and fellow political pundit George Will for not understanding what makes the Volt so significant. The sleeves are rolled and the claws are out, folks. Head over to MT to read the response for yourself.

2011 Chrysler 300 photos hit the web

Our friends at Kicking Tires stumbled upon a series of teaser images from Chrysler showing off the revised-for-2011 Chrysler 300 sedan. Yes, our intrepid spy shooters have already offered up some pretty darn good photos of the car as it was being shot for marketing purposes, but it’s always good to focus in on details like the new corporate-style grille, headlamps, taillamps and the sleek new winged Chrysler logo.

From what we can see, the next Chrysler 300 will continue the brand’s march to the top of the upscale American sedan ladder that it first ascended way back in 2004 as a 2005 model. Yes, it’s been that long since the boxy, gangsta-style machine hit the market – “due for an update” would be a serious understatement.

Expect the 2011 300 to come equipped with both the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 and 5.7-liter Hemi V8 and be available with either standard rear-wheel drive or optional all-wheel drive. We’re counting on a full debut at the2011 Detroit Auto Show in January, but in the meantime, feel free to peruse the image gallery below.

Ford makes version of Transit Connect for the people

 

Rejoice, America! The Ford Transit Connect is no longer just for plumbers and electricians. The Blue Oval has announced it will produce a civilian version of its hardcore work van. 

Called the Transit Connect XLT Premium Wagon, the vehicle will boast roomy seating for five and massive amounts of cargo area. Out back, those hefty panes of glass actually pop open for easy-breathing ventilation, and tricks like blind-spot awareness and a rear-view camera make piloting this machine a cinch. 

Other visual changes like larger alloy wheels, a painted grille and front foglamps give this Transit Connect a bit more personality, as well. 

Ford showed off the Transit Connect XLT Premium Wagon at this year’s LA Auto Show, but so far, we don’t know exactly how much the van will cost when it shows up next year. 

We do know that buyers will be able to expect the same 26 mpg highway as the bare bones models on sale right now. Follow the jump to have a look at the full press release.

Ford makes version of Transit Connect for the people

 

Rejoice, America! The Ford Transit Connect is no longer just for plumbers and electricians. The Blue Oval has announced it will produce a civilian version of its hardcore work van. 

Called the Transit Connect XLT Premium Wagon, the vehicle will boast roomy seating for five and massive amounts of cargo area. Out back, those hefty panes of glass actually pop open for easy-breathing ventilation, and tricks like blind-spot awareness and a rear-view camera make piloting this machine a cinch. 

Other visual changes like larger alloy wheels, a painted grille and front foglamps give this Transit Connect a bit more personality, as well. 

Ford showed off the Transit Connect XLT Premium Wagon at this year’s LA Auto Show, but so far, we don’t know exactly how much the van will cost when it shows up next year. 

We do know that buyers will be able to expect the same 26 mpg highway as the bare bones models on sale right now. Follow the jump to have a look at the full press release.

2011 Bentley Continental GT

When tasked with creating the 2011 Continental GT, Bentley officials sought the assistance of those who knew the outgoing car best – its owners. Upon querying current and past Continental GT buyers about what they’d like to see in the new model, a surprisingly unified voice came back loud and clear: “Don’t screw up my car, but fix the sat-nav.” 

As far as owner surveys go, this type of response speaks volumes. Most apparent is that it speaks to the universal inadequacy of the outgoing car’s wayfinding electronics, but more importantly, it serves to underscore just how much of a bull’s-eye Bentley hit with the original model back in 2003. After all, who among us can’t think of a laundry list of improvements for our daily driver? This also goes some way toward explaining how the GT has been on the market for eight years while still selling in respectable numbers.

Of course, given ever-toughening emissions and crash standards to contend with, Bentley couldn’t simply shove a new infotainment system in the Conti’s dashboard and amble off to the pub job-done, so they set about improving the car in a million little ways so that it’s at once clearly new and fresh to the faithful, yet endearingly familiar. Surprisingly, much the same can be said for the Sultanate of Oman where Bentley hosted our first drive…

2012 Buick Regal GS mildy impresses, majorly disappoints

Alright, so the 2012 Buick Regal GS isn’t the Americanized version of the 325-horsepower, all-wheel-driveOpel Insignia OPC we were once promised. Still, this sports sedan has a turbocharged and direct injected 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission and has enough visual flare to certainly give the impression of fast. It even sports Buick’s trick HiPerStrut front suspension to reduce torque steer through the front wheels.

It might not be exactly the car we were hoping for, but it should still prove to be a welcome addition to theBuick lineup when it goes on sale next year. Pricing has yet to be announced, but considering the Regal itself is priced as an entry-level luxury sedan, we expect the GS model to cost closer to $40,000 than $30,000.

The Regal GS made its official debut today at the LA Auto Show, and we’ve got a full gallery of high-res shots live from the show floor for you. Curb your disappointment and click through the gallery below.

Fiat 500 Abarth coming to U.S., all-electric 500 BEV to launch first

The other day we told you to bone up on your Italian because the Fiat 500 configurator came online. Now you should seriously start saving your Lira because the high-performance 500 Abarth model has been confirmed for the U.S. market. No date has been confirmed, but we’ve been told that the launch of all 500 models will be staggered and the Abarth is last in the queue.

Those other variations include the standard 500 that you can start ordering now, the 500C drop-top and a 500 that runs on all-electric battery power. Still, the one we’re breaking out the driving gloves for is the Fiat 500 Abarth… and rumor has it that we might see the tiny terror running Stateside within the next three years because the 500 BEV hits the market in 2012.