Mercedes-Benz has introduced the S 320 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY which gets up to 31 mpg.

The most fuel-efficient S Class is powered by a 3.0L diesel engine that is mated to a seven-speed automatic transmission. The S 320 gets almost 31 US mpg, which is a little better than the S 400 BlueHYBRID which gets up to 28 mpg.

Mercedes has announced the pricing for the S 320 CDI in Germany, but there is no word if the car is going to end up on our shores as well.

For the past few weeks Lamborghini has been teasing us with teaser images of its four door concept, but now we have our first look at the full car thanks to AutoJournal.

The Estoque Concept borrows a few design elements from the Reventon supercar like the huge air intakes in the front bumper. It's now being rumored that the concept is going to have the same 5.5L V10 engine as the Gallardo LP 560-4 mated to an all-wheel-drive system.

Stay tuned for the actual press release from Lamborghini.

Following last night's photo leaks of the X1 Concept, BMW has officially unveiled the Concept in Paris.

The X1 Concept, which is very similar to the production version that will go on sale next year features a front end that is very similar to the new 7 Series. In terms of size BMW's newest small SUV looks very close in size to the current X3. It remains to be seen if the next X3 which is also due out sometime next year will move up in size. Overall the styling looks like a combination of the new 7 Series and the current X3 and X5.

Photos of Audi's newest concept the Audi A1 Sportback Concept have hit the web a day before its official unveiling in Europe.

The A1, which is smaller than the current A3 in Audi's lineup is going to go head to head with the MINI when it is released in Europe next year. The production model is expected to look very close to this concept. The A1 Sportback Concept is powered by a 150-horsepower 1.4L TSI engine mated up to a 27-horsepower electric motor. The engine is mated to Audi's S-Tronic dual clutch transmission. The concept also gets an estimated 60.3 mpg.

GM is going to officially debut the new Chevy Cruze at the Paris Motor Show tomorrow, but GM has released official photos a little early.

We've already seen photos of the Chevy Cruze compact that will hit our shores in 2010, but this is the first time that we are seeing official photos of the interior of the car. The overall interior design is aligned with GM's new design theme and draws cues from the Malibu. It looks far better than the current Cobalt interior!

The Cruze is going to launch in Europe first next spring, but we will not see it until the spring of 2010 as a 2011 model.

GM has officially unveiled the Chevy Orlando Concept at the Paris Motor Show.

The Orlando Concept hints at a new production MPV for the Chevy brand. The 7-passenger Orlando Concept is based on a modified Delta II platform, the same platform that the Cruze is built on.

Lexus has unveiled the 2010 Lexus IS 250C at the Paris Motor Show.

Lexus took its popular IS sedan and chopped off the roof and two doors to create the IS 250C. The newest Lexus convertible features an aluminum folding roof that takes just 20 seconds to open. The IS 250C is powered by the same 2.5L V6 as the sedan.

Europe will get the new IS 250C first in the summer of 2009 and the US will get it shortly thereafter.

Honda has officially unveiled the Honda Insight Concept at the Paris Motor Show. The concept is supposed to give a strong indication of what the production version will look like when it hits showrooms next spring.

Honda has announced that the new hybrid will be powered by a 1.3L engine that will be mated to an electric motor. It's not known how good the gas mileage will be although it is rumored that it will get close to 60 mpg.

The Insight will also feature ultra-light aluminum 18" wheels.

Infiniti has released a seconds teaser photo of the 2009 G37 Convertible that is going to be officially unveiled at the LA Auto Show next month.

The G37 Convertible features a retractable hardtop and is powered by a 328 horsepower 3.7L V6.

Stay tuned until next month for all the details from the show.

Mercedes-Benz has already unveiled the S 400 BlueHYBRID, but now comes word that Mercedes is also working on hybrid version of its E and C-Class sedans.

After the S-Class hybrid arrives, the E-Class hybrid will be released in 2010 based on the next-gen sedan. By 2011 a C-Class hybrid will also be released based on the refreshed model.

"We have decided on hybridization on all our cares in the future and so far we have had a lot of questions and excitement, but I don't know how that will translate into a take rate," CEO Dieter Zetxche said at the Paris Motor Show.

Ford introduced the world to the all-new Ka subcompact at the 2008 Paris Motor Show last week. At first Ford said that there were no plans to bring the Ka to the US, but the increased demand for small cars has forced Ford to rethink that decision.

The all-new Ka features Ford's European Kinetic Design that is similar to the larger Fiesta and Focus. This morning CEO Alan Mulally told a Detroit radio station that Ford is rethinking the original decision to not bring the Ka to the US.

The Ka goes on sale in Europe in early 2009. If Ford does decide to bring the small car here, don't count on it before 2011.

Toyota and Audi recently showed off their iQ and A1 small cars at the Paris Motor Show last week. Originally both automakers had not planned on introducing either car to the US market, but as everyone is now witnessing...small cars are in.

Audi's worldwide sales and marketing boss, Peter Schwarzenbauer recently stated, " A year ago, I would have said no. I did not see any trend in the US which showed me that small cars could have a lasting, sustainable chance. I think this has changed. Therefore we definitely have to reconsider the A1." The hybrid A1 concept is powered by a 1.4L four-cylinder mated to an electric motor.

Yesterday Ford announced that the slow-selling 2009 Ford Flex would have an available $2,500 rebate to help move them off the lots. The Mazda CX-9 has also failed to reach the top in sales either, but Consumer Reports has announced that both vehicles are one of the top five three-row SUVs they tested.

“Ford’s new Flex wraps a versatile, cavernous interior in a distinctly boxy styling,” the magazine writes. “It is also lower and more wagon-like than the others in this class.”

Ford has announced the MyKey system that helps parents ensure that teens drive safer.

Ford's new MyKey system allows parents to limit the speed and audio volume of their teen's car to make them drive safer. The system will debut as standard equipment on the 2010 Ford Focus and will eventually be added to other Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models.

We've already seen countless photos of Ferrari's newest model, the California. But these newest photos were actually taken in California (note the pics of the car on the Golden Gate Bridge and Bay Bridge).

The Ferrari California is powered by a 460 horsepower 4.3L V8 that is mated to 7-speed dual clutch transmission. The car reaches 0-60 mph in less than 4 seconds.

Oh also just in case you're actually one of the few not effected by the current economic crisis, the Ferrari California is supposedly sold out through 2010.

BMW and Neiman Marcus have announced that the all-new 2009 BMW 7 Series will be offered in this year's Neiman Marcus Christmas Book.

The limited edition 7 Series is going to be offered at $160,000 and only 31 of them will be offered. What is special is that 31 Neiman Marcus customers will be able to purchase the car before its official launch date next year.

Iridescent Diopside Black metallic paintwork and exquisite BMW Individual Champagne Merino full leather are part of the limited edition package.

In just over a month Ford is going to officially unveil the 2010 Ford Mustang, but for now Ford has released another teaser photo of the dashboard.

The overall shape of the dashboard is similar to that of the 2009 model. We're still waiting to see what changes have been made to the center console.

Stay tuned.

Yesterday DigitalCorvettes started a rumor that GM had stopped production of the Corvette ZR1 and that the car had been killed. Well today those rumors have been put to rest by Terry Rhadigan ), Chevrolet’s manager for global communications.

Rhadigan recently told Autoblog that the rumors were "Not True." GM still has orders for the ZR1 and production is going to start up again next week.

Both Ford and Chevy will have convertible versions of their new muscle cars (Mustang and Camaro) next year, but Chrysler will not.

Originally Chrysler planned on producing a Challenger convertible that would have been introduced for the 2010 model year, but according to Mike Accavitti, director of Dodge brand marketing those plans have been cancelled.

“We considered a convertible when we were developing Challenger, but the extra weight needed to beef up the car when the top was removed was too much of a penalty,” Accavitti told KickingTires in an interview. “And that was with a manual soft-top. A power-retractable hardtop would add even more weight.”

Accavitti also stated, "We didn't see a huge market for a convertible that would justify the vehicle."

Today on my way into my day job, I happened to come across a 2010 BMW Z4 being driven around Santa Monica.

Unfortunately as many of you know, LA traffic is horrible so these are the best shots I could get before I slammed into the other cars in front of me. They were also taken with my iPhone..so of course they aren't the best quality.

The next-gen Z4 is definitely bigger than the current generation, most likely to make room for an even smaller BMW roadster built off the 1 Series platform. Other than the bigger exterior and possible retractable hardtop, the car sounded great.

Stay tuned for the official unveiling of the 2010 BMW Z4..whenever that is. :)

Mazda has officially taken the wraps off the all-new 2010 Mazda3 before its official unveiling at the LA Auto Show next month.

The all-new Mazda3 continues Mazda's current design theme that is also the basis for the new Mazda6 (Sustainable Zoom-Zoom).

Mazda hasn't released the final details except for the fact that the car will be powered by either a 2.3L or 2.5L four-cylinder engines when it is released sometime next year. Those engines seem kind of big for this class. Let's hope Mazda finally decides to bring the Mazda2 here to appeal to the fuel conscious folks.

BMW unveiled the concept version of the BMW X1 SUV at the Paris Motor Show last week. Many of us were not too positive about the overall styling of BMW's newest SUV, which doesn't really matter since the X1 will enter production next year.

Currently BMW's two SUVs, the X3 and X5 are only available with all-wheel-drive, but BMW is reportedly thinking about offering a rear-wheel-drive version of the upcoming X1. BMW feels that the savings on weight and fuel economy gains with a RWD version will make the vehicle more appealing. BMW currently labels its AWD system "xDrive" if the X1 gets the RWD option BMW is going to introduce a new label, "sDrive" for the system.

A hybrid X1 is expected for 2011.

Porsche's upcoming "4-door coupe" the Panamera is scheduled to hit the market sometime next year and rumors are circulating that Porsche is considering diesel and targa top versions.

The Porsche Panamera will be officially unveiled early next year and will finally hit the market late in the fall. It will be powered by either a 300 horsepower 3.6L V6, 400 horsepower 4.8L V8 or a turbocharged 500 horsepower engine. In 2010 a hybrid version of the Panamera will also join the lineup.

Today the Dow dropped below 9,000 points, its lowest point in five years.

Just as the rest of the market, GM and Ford have been hit hard by the decline. GM's dropped 31 percent and ended the day at $4.76, while Ford dropped 22 percent to $2.08. Yes that means that a single share of Ford stock is currently cheaper than a gallon of gas. Also GM's shares haven't been this low since the 1950's.

When will it all end?

Mazda unveiled the changes to the 2009 MX-5 at the Paris Motor Show. Although the changes were only to the exterior and inside of the roadster, Mazda has some big changes in store for the next-generation MX-5.

According to MX-5 program manager Takao Kijima, Mazda is looking at alternative powertrains for the next model and mazda hopes to cut its overall weight by 10 percent. By alternative powertrains, Kijima is referring to either a diesel or hybrid powered MX-5.

“I would say the chance of a diesel or hybrid engine is more than 50 per cent,” Kijima told Drive.com.au.

The main issue is that a hybrid powertrain would add a lot weight to the MX-5 courtesy of the battery pack. A diesel powertrain would make more sense, since diesels are more fuel efficient than gas powered engines and don't have the significant weight disadvantage that hybrids do. Kijima also stated that the next-generation must have a 50/50 weight distribution, which would be even harder with a hybrid powertrain.

According to sources over at Motor Trend, Toyota is going to bring the iQ minicar to the LA Auto Show, but as a Scion instead of a Toyota badged iQ.

Next month Toyota is going to show off the iQ minicar at the Scion stand next to the xB, xD, and tC models. Toyota desperately needs to bring more traffic and focus to the Scion brand, which the small iQ will do. Toyota also didn't want the small iQ to steal the spotlight from the next-gen Prius that will be unveiled early next year.

The "Scion iQ" is expected to start under $15,000 and will likely be powered by the same 1.5L engine that powers the Toyota Yaris.

GM has announced that it's going to close its Janesville, Wisconsin SUV plant by the end of the year due to poor SUV sales.

The plant currently produces the GMC Yukon and Chevy Suburban. GM originally planned on closing down the plant sometime in 2010, but the scary automotive market has sped up the process. The plant employs 1,200 workers and will close right before Christmas on December 23rd.

Earlier this month GM also announced plans to close another SUV plant in Moraine, Ohio that currently produces the Chevy Trailblazer, GMC Envoy and Saab 9-7X.

The 2009 Infiniti EX35 has been a sales disappointment for Nissan.

Potential buyers have complained about the fact that the rear seat has very little legroom and that the cargo area is somewhat limited. To address these concerns in an effort to boost sales, Nissan has announced that the 2010 Infiniti EX will get more rear legroom.

According to Nissan North America’s vice president, Larry Dominique, the EX grabbed a lot of attention when it was unveiled, but has failed to move off dealer lots. Through September, Nissan sold 10,289 units of the EX, an annual rate of approximately 15,000 units.