Car Throttle

FINALLY.  The friggin' Buick Encore is here.  All my dreams and prayers have been answered, I'm so excited I can hardly...

...oh, sorry, got caught up in Auto Show mode there.  I'm just glad we don't have to deal with teaser images of a small SUV any more.  Look, I love auto show season.  Even after years of this, it still gets my blood going - who doesn't like seeing new stuff for the first time?  But not everything that comes out at the auto shows are worth an entire article.  Thus, Car Throttle News Bites: Detroit Auto Show Edition.  If you missed the earlier coverage, you can find it under the Detroit 2012 Category.

Speaking of that

Volkwagen's been one busy company lately. They're revamping their entire Golf lineup to improve refinement and reduce overall build cost as they transition to the MKVI, and the latest update is to the Golf Estate - known in the US as the Jetta Wagon. The updates are pretty minimal, to be honest.  The front end has been swapped for the new, narrow-eyed MKVI front end already seen on the regular Golf.  Around back, the taillights have been tweaked for added newness, and the lower body panels are painted body-color.  Err, and that's about it. Of course, the interior has been completely redone with the new MKVI dash layout and gauges, which I think is a nice look.  And the Jetta Wagon's still got 1,495L of maximum storage

As great as it is to bolt a shiny new mail-order part onto your ride, there is something about modifying a car with your own ingenuity and elbow grease that you just don't get with pre-fabricated parts.  Plus, doing some things yourself can leave a LOT more cash in your pocket -which you can spend on expensive modifications that are worth it! My car is littered with DIY modifications, all small things that I either wanted to change, or update.  Here are a few details about the two lastest DIY (Do-It-Yourself, if you didn't know) modifications I've subjected my poor VW to.  Nothing's blown up yet, so here are a few tips 'n tricks to help you with your own little weekend projects. Black Grille Total Budget: $11