2013 Buick Encore priced at $24,950

The 2013 Buick Encore crossover will cost $24,950, including a $750 destination charge. The top trim package, called Premium, will sticker at $28,940. A 1.4-liter turbocharged engine will power the small SUV, which competes against the Acura RDX, Hyundai Tucson and the Ford Escape. The output of the turbo mill is 138 hp and 148 lb-ft of torque. Both front- and all-wheel-drive versions are offered with a six-speed automatic transmission....

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2013 Ford Fusion Drive Review

What Is It? The Ford Fusion is the biggest-selling car in the Ford lineup – only the F-150 pickup truck moves out the dealership doors faster. So when it came time to redo the Fusion, Ford put major resources behind it to make it not only just what customers want, but to give them stuff they didn't think they'd ever get. The Fusion is Ford's best shot aimed directly at the soft white underbelly of the massive mid-sized sedan segment. The...

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2012 Toyota Prius Four car review

No one buys a Toyota Prius to get anywhere quickly. At least we haven't met any folks as such, and after running the car through our autofile paces, we have the quantitative data to back up why it would be stupid to do so. (Why the Prius isn't the most environmentally smart automotive choice one can make? Well, that's a a whole 'nuther story.) The Prius does satisfy other automotive yens, however, as witnessed by all the owners we heard...

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Porsche 918 Spyder clocks a time of 7:14 on the ‘Ring

Porsche has announced an official Nürburgring lap time of 7 minutes, 14 seconds for the 918 Spyder following a series of official tests with prototypes of the advanced gasoline-electric hybrid supercar at the famed German circuit this week. Although Porsche isn’t prepared to confirm who was driving the early version of the 918 Spyder at the time, it does say the lap time was achieved with a prototype boasting what it describes as an...

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2012 Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG review notes

DIGITAL EDITOR ANDREW STOY: As fate would have it, I was handed the keys to the 2012 Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG immediately after I spent the evening in a disappointingly over-automated CL550. My hope was that the additional $34,000 and rescrambling of the decklid alphabet soup would result in a true driver's car. I wasn't disappointed. It's no C63 AMG in terms of its violence, but the S63 is a camouflage cruise missile of the first order—an...

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Jaguar offering one XJL Ultimate at Gilt.com

Jaguar is partnering with Gilt.com to sell a special version of its 2013 Jaguar XJL Ultimate. It will come with a Polaris white paint job and a black interior. This is not an auction. Buyers have to be logged on at noon Eastern on Friday, Sept. 21. First click gets the car. As a bonus for signing the $155,875 check, you get a vacation for two to London. It includes a stay at the world's only Jaguar suite, designed by Ian Callum. The suite...

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2012 Coda Sedan drive review

What is it? There is a place for a modest electric vehicle. A workaday electric vehicle. An electric vehicle for the vegan who doesn't feel the need to engage in bumper-sticker politics. An electric vehicle that gets one from place to place with not a modicum of fuss and engenders minimal range anxiety. Coda aims to build that electric vehicle. So they engineered a very fine battery, a lithium-iron phosphate (LiFePO4) unit they believe...

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New Audi S3 packs 296-hp punch

Audi has turned up the heat on the S3 as it prepares to take the fight to the likes of the recently introduced BMW M135i and upcoming Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG in what is set to become an intriguing battle for premium-brand hot-hatchback supremacy. Audi does not sell the current S3 in the U.S. market. The third-generation model of Audi's all-wheel-drive S3 is pictured here officially for the first time ahead of its public debut next week...

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