First impressions can be problematic, even more so when reviewing a vehicle. When the media gets its first shot at a new offering, the automaker typically invites journalists to a location of its choosing to drive under conditions that show the car in its best light. Such was the case with the 2010 Honda Insight. After our First Drive, we came away with the impression that Honda's hot new hybrid was an engaging alternative to the Toyota Prius, but we quickly came to realize the Insight's limitations and flaws after a week behind the wheel on our home turf.

Get our real-world impressions after the jump.

In 1982, Audi introduced its redesigned 5000 to the world and unwittingly influenced the shape of sedans to come. The 5000's smooth flanks, disk wheels and flush-mounted side glass were replicated by a generation of cars over the next two-and-a-half decades, and when its successor debuted in 1994, the A6 grew some curves while retaining Audi's patented blend of staid Germanic modernity.

The 2009 Audi A6 isn't nearly as revolutionary. It sits atop the same C6 platform we've known since 2005, and last year, the automaker gave its upper mid-sizer a mild makeover consisting of new front and rear fascias, light clusters and a few interior tweaks. Maybe that's why Audi thought it need to commission actor Jason Statham to star in a multi-million dollar Super Bowl advert to boost the A6's image. Well, that and to highlight the automaker's all-new supercharged 3.0-liter TFSI V6 – the same engine due to be fitted to several new Audis, including the 2010 Audi S4. How does the restyled A6 fair during a week of testing? And more importantly, is this new blown V6 a suitable replacement for Audi's 4.2-liter V8? Find out after the jump.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Last year, we compared the dirtside manners of the Hummer H2 and Toyota Land Cruiser. Both trucks did everything we asked of them, but at the end of the excursion we were left with another question begging to be answered: could the Hummer H3T stand up to the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon? These cruiserweights live on a fatter part of the buying curve, and any time a Jeep is summoned to the ring, the other vehicle is inevitably the challenger. Even though the H3T is still relatively new to the world, it came time to find out if it was ready to stand up and fight for its place. Follow the jump to see how it held up.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Jonathon Ramsey / Weblogs, Inc.

For longer than we can remember, words like 'cheap', 'unattractive' and 'lousy' were used to describe America's domestic offerings in the compact car segment. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler have never figured out how to make money with small cars, so the domestic trio seeming has rarely put forth the effort to create competitive compact products. And although FoMoCo had a solid player in 2000 with the introduction of the Focus, when Ford of Europe received the thoroughly revised model in 2005, customers in the States got the short end of the stick. Until now.

While the 2011 Ford Fiesta isn't the Euro-Spec Focus that we've long-admired from abroad, this compact five-door offers a compelling list of kit in a tidy package. Ford is billing it as a great looking, high-quality vehicle that just happens to inhabit a small footprint. So the Blue Oval has imbued the Fiesta with the same technology and amenities found in other larger, more expensive offerings and added a healthy dose of nippy handling and top-notch fuel economy to boot. But those attributes come at a cost that – historically – Americans haven't been willing to pay for. So is the Fiesta worth your time and hard-earned coin? It's time to find out.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Chris Shunk / Weblogs, Inc.

Climb into the Pontiac Solstice Coupe and there's an unsettling feeling of familiarity. We've been here before. And after driving off, it all begins to gel, although it has nothing to do with our previous stints in the drop-top variant. The Coupe feels like the unruly offspring of a night of passion between a C4 Corvette coupe and a Dodge Viper. And while the Solstice is nowhere near as large or as powerful as those two American icons, the DNA of both is undoubtedly present in this little machine – for good reason.

It's no coincidence that the history of the Solstice spans the Bob Lutz era at General Motors. After Lutz joined GM in 2001 to guide its product development, one of the first tasks he assigned the design staff was to create a new concept for the Detroit Auto Show. The Solstice was born, a stylistic hit was made and the convertible was rushed to production. Now, as Lutz is winding down his time at GM, the Solstice and the entire Pontiac brand are also fading off into the sunset. In many respects, this Solstice is symbolic of what was right and wrong with GM and Pontiac. And our time with the Solstice Coupe is a telling tale about the final new model from a vanishing brand.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid, Max Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Before even throwing a leg over the new 2009 Yamaha FZ6R, we couldn't help but think that this bike fits neatly into the burgeoning entry-level sportbike category and is just the kind of motorcycle that most Americans would be better off purchasing than a bike from the more popular supersport category. Generally speaking, though today's crop of 600cc race-replica motorcycles are tons of fun to ride in a proper setting, there are few if any circumstances where it's necessary to have a machine capable of topping 160 mph or accelerating to 60 in around three seconds on public roads. With this in mind, we had very high hopes for Yamaha's latest middleweight sportbike. Did it meet our lofty expectations? Read on to find out.



Photos copyright ©2009 Jeremy Korzeniewski / Weblogs, Inc.

The Lincoln MKZ began life as the Zephyr. It was bland-looking and far too underpowered to compete in the increasingly competitive entry-level luxury class. Ford updated the mid-size sedan back in 2007 with a more powerful engine, some cosmetic updates, and a new alphanumeric moniker. Despite the alterations, the least expensive Lincoln still didn't stack up with the competition in many areas, let alone in terms of image or "wow" factor.

Understandably, Lincoln is looking to reverse the fortunes of its MKZ for the 2010 model year, with a thorough makeover on the inside and some major cosmetic tweaks on the outside. Has Lincoln improved its volume sedan entry enough to make the MKZ a consideration for car shoppers? Hit the jump to find out how the 2010 Lincoln MKZ fared in our Autoblog review.



Photos copyright ©2009 Chris Shunk / Weblogs, Inc.

During both our first drive and in our full review, we concluded that the 2010 Ford Mustang has raised the bar for modern day pony cars. The sculpted body, finely tuned suspension, higher quality interior and additional horsepower make it one of the best Stangs to ever come from the Blue Oval's stable. With a flood of aftermarket variants sure to come, we couldn't help but wonder if the new Mustang would provide an even better platform to work with, or if tuners might struggle to improve on an already excellent product. We now have the answer.

Roush, who were given inside access to the 2010 Mustang by Ford for their own product development, were first to market with their 427R Mustang that was unveiled back in March. We were lucky enough to be one of the first to get behind the wheel, and recently spent a full week with the 427R. Was Roush able to use their five years of experience with the S197 platform to capitalize on the upgrades and refinements made available in the 2010 Mustang? Read on to find out.



Photos copyright ©2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

Greeting the Kia Soul with low expectations didn't make sense. Perhaps the details of the funkwagon's story seemed overly familiar at first blush – Kia wants, nay, needs to be more than just the bargain-basement Hyundai store. Differentiating product lines with the help of bold design has been tried before, and the results have been disastrous more often than they've been wildly successful. Finding out that the Soul's styling inspiration was a wild boar sent the cynical mind of this autowriter reeling, preparing to suffer with a bore of a swine-inspired car. But Kia's been on a roll lately with aggressively priced product that's well equipped and imbued with performance that's often more inspired than the sum of its parts. If any brand stands a chance of melding its design studio's hit parade with tuning that lives up to the looks, it's Kia... right?



Photos Copyright ©2009 John Neff / Weblogs, Inc.

Back in 2001, BMW revived the Mini brand by unveiling a new Cooper model that updated the classic English design of the original while growing the car's trademark size just enough to fit the engineering, safety equipment and conveniences that modern drivers demand. It was a perfect play, and if Mini sales haven't exactly set the world on fire here in the U.S., that's only because the brand has been alone in teaching American car shoppers what Europeans already know: Premium small cars are worth every penny. In other words, Americans generally associate the value of a vehicle with its size – the more you pay, the larger a vehicle you should get. The Mini Cooper exists in stark contrast to this notion.

Fast forward to 2009 and we're already a couple of years into the second generation of the modern Mini Cooper, also known as the R56. The redesigned hatchback was joined last year by the long-wheelbase Clubman and the R56 lineup is now complete with the arrival of the convertible model. Our tester, a 2009 Mini Cooper S Convertible, will challenge the notion that value equals size. Why? Aside from opting for the high-performance John Cooper Works trim, the convertible is the most expensive model in the Mini lineup, and the S model makes it even more so. The total tally for our tester, including $650 in destination charges, is $32,700. Read on to find out if the Mini Cooper S Convertible is packed with enough value to prevent its sticker shock from sending you into cardiac arrest.



Photos Copyright ©2009 John Neff / Weblogs, Inc.