Coming this fall to an overly-smug, overly-paid rich dork near you, it's the Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid, and for a measly $67,700. Such a deal, huh? Sure, in a few ways of looking at it, having a hybrid version of this Carmela Soprano-mobile is a good thing, but did they really have to do this? The all-new Cayenne S Hybrid, which is Porsche's first production hybrid, sets the standard in its class in efficiency and performance. And compared to the previous Cayenne models, fuel consumption has dropped by up to 23 percent in the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC). Official EPA numbers are not yet available. The North American Cayenne model range has four models: The Cayenne, Cayenne S, Cayenne Turbo and the Cayenne S Hybrid.

How cool is this: The upcoming in 2011 Hyundai Equus will do away with the traditional paper owner's manual, and they'll give you a "multimedia tablet" instead. This falls into the totally bitchin' category of ancillary car stuff, but it also points out how Korean companies can make these leapfrog moves over their competitors. No, there's no word yet on which company will get the nod to supply the owner's "manual" for the 2011 Hyundai Equus, looking at the pictures of the Hyundai Equus' presentation pretty clearly shows a Apple iPad. Oh really? There hasn't been any official announcement form Apple on this. So what gives? At today's New York Auto Show Hyundai USA president John Krafcik didn't unambiguously say that the device in question

The new Mercedes E-Class Coupe just hit the dealerships, yet BRABUS already presents an extensive tuning makeover for the middle range of the vaunted three-pointers. The new two-door is stuffed with a BRABUS 6.1 liter engine cranking out 462 hp and propels the E 500 to an imposing top speed of 315 km/h (196 mph). Naturally there's an aerodynamic-enhancement program that was developed in the wind tunnel, because at those speeds, this bastard will probably fly like a kite. There are custom-tailored wheels up to 20 inches in diameter that you can spring for, a sporty yet "comfortable" suspension and exclusive interior options. Actually, there's a whole bunch of interesting engine options, so let's just concentrate on those, and leave the fashion gee-gaws to someone

Anything you can do, I can do better, I can do anything better than you ... or so says Lamborghini, again. So, it seems that Lambo will not be offering any manual transmissions in the future. Is this a case of simply following good engineering, or simply following Ferrari? Again. As was mentioned here recently, Ferrari will stop making manual gear boxes when they are done putting them into Spyder Californias. And now comes word that Lamborghini will essentially do the same thing. Now, since it's inception, Lambo has had a chip on its shoulder about Ferrari. Ever since Ferruccio was made to wait "too long" at il Commendatore's factory, he stomped by to tractor plant, and the sparks have been flying ever

The fluttering of the death angels have been heard around the halls of Maybach headquarters these past few days - and I'm sure that the days have been stretching out and seeming like weeks. What with the world economic mess, and the sales dropping off, what's an uber-luxo-barge maker to do? The rumor has been that Daimler, parent company of Maybach, has been considering selling off the brand. And that seems like a reasonable thing to assume, and it gives the rumors credence, but who would Daimler sell the brand to? Who's got that kind of cash, and who would be interested? Turns out that things just heated up with news that Chinese firm BYD might be an interested suitor. The website auto.sina.com (one of China's

Sure, the "styling" of the current generation Mercedes SLK leaves more than a little bit to be desired, but 565 ponies can make up for a lot of styling issues. Especially in a car this small (if not all that light). So leave it to a German tuning house to give Mercedes' small sports car the horsepower working over it deserves. In this instance, we're talking about Vath, and they have just taken the wraps off a car they've dubbed the V58. It's based on the SLK 55 AMG, which is a good place to start. The stock slick already comes with a 5.5-liter V8 engine putting out a rather respectable 360HP and 510Nm of torque. But Vath went all over the top, and punched out

Here's an interesting report: The next generation of Mercedes top of the line S-Class will be all hybrid. At least they will be in the United States. Hm. I could see that making sense on a bunch of levels. First off, it will most definitely help with Merc's CAFE numbers. Plus, it still also plays into the hands of the rich, show off greenies out there. According to sources Mercedes-Benz will go all-hybrid with its next-generation S-Class lineup in America. That will be rolling out in 2012 (model year or calendar year was not specified), and the German automaker is not talking about offering both regular and hybrid variants for sale in the States, just hybrids. So what about AMG, you ask? No worries. The enthusiast-oriented

You've got to give Mercedes credit for knowing, respecting and using their company's history. Shoot, if I had that long and illustrious racing history behind me, I'd be leveraging it like Archimedes. So, you got the new Gullwing, what do you do with it to get one hell of a photo op? Personally, I would have done up the Mille Miglia; the Futa and Raticosta passes are wonderful this time of year. Le Mans is always a go-to location. And of course there's the old pit/grandstand complex at Reims. And the Targa Florio ... but no, Merc decided to get esoteric and they took the new Gullwing and the first Gullwing back to Mexico for the Carrera Panamericana revival. sa-WEET! The Carrera Panamericana was one of

Now we're talkin'! As interesting a ride as the Mercedes new "Gullwing" is (OK, officially the Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS) it sort of strikes me as being more of a GT than an outright sportscar. Look at its all up weight, for one thing. Ah, but making a racing version of it, as Mercedes has done with the Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS GT3? Very interesting. Yes, I know what some of you are saying. The Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS isn't even on the road yet. But pay that detail no mind. Mercedes-Benz is already thinking about racing the SLS AMG. And in this case we have here, Merc has adapted their gull-winged sportscar for the task of running in the FIA's GT3 class. Bitchin'! The exterior styling re-do seems

It's a sad day for purists – and yes, on some days. I am accused of being one myself. Likewise, on both counts, it is a sad day for the Ferraristi out there – and again, I am most definitely one of those. The currently available Ferrari California Spyder will be the last car produced from Maranello that has an available stick shift. I have long been a proponent of manual transmission cars over automatics for all of the reasons obvious to gearheads. Of course, technology marches forward, and over time, and automatics, or at least semi-automatics, have more than caught up to what manuals ca deliver, performance and efficiency-wise. Ask anyone who has driven a modern Ferrari with a semi-auto box, and they can tell