2017 BMW Alpina B7 xDrive

Fast enough was supposed to be 193 mph: That was the top-speed forecast offered when the 2017 BMW Alpina B7 xDrive was launched at the 2016 Geneva auto show. That impressive number has since been revised. During testing on the 7.8-mile circular track in Nardò, Italy, the Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires worked so well that Alpina decided to raise the terminal velocity to a robust 205 mph. That puts the top-of-the-line Alpina-tuned Bimmer comfortably ahead of the competition from Mercedes-AMG, Bentley, and Porsche. Starting at $137,995, the Alpina B7 stands at the top of the 7-series lineup, at least until BMW’s own M760i appears. But the Alpina offers a distinctly different character: The M760i will be powered by an updated version of BMW's twin-turbocharged V-12, while the B7 employs a twin-turbo V-8, based on the 750i's 4.4-liter N63 eight-cylinder. Alpina’s designation for its version of the engine, confusingly, is M3; the car’s name contains the suffix Biturbo in other markets. Alpina—closely allied with Munich but still independent—makes extensive modifications that include upgraded turbochargers, its own intake and intercooler setup, special Mahle pistons, an Alpina dual-mode exhaust, and up to 20 psi of boost, lifting maximum output from 445 to 600 horsepower. Peak torque is rated at 590 lb-ft and available on a plateau that stretches from 3000 to 5000 rpm. Funny coincidence there: The M760i also will be rated at 600 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque, but it will come with a 155-mph governor (optionally increased to 190 mph, just enough to top the Mercedes-AMG S63’s 186-mph governor). Alpina says the B7 accelerates to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds, which may be as conservative as the original top-speed forecast; a 2013 Alpina B7 we tested with a mere 560 horsepower ran to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds, and we expect the new model to be about 200 pounds lighter

2017 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport 2.0T AWD

The word “Sport” in the name of the Hyundai Santa Fe Sport distinguishes this two-row crossover from its bigger Santa Fe cousin. While its dynamic résumé isn’t exactly a thriller, the Santa Fe Sport has plenty of other virtues, amplified by a batch of 2017 updates. Exterior revisions are modest: a redesigned front fascia with a new grille and headlamps, new taillights and exhaust tips, silver trim for the rocker panels, new wheel designs (17, 18, and 19 inches), and optional new LED daytime running lights. Design tweaks are expected at a midterm update, but Hyundai didn’t really have to make sweeping changes; the Santa Fe Sport looked pretty snappy to begin with.

2017 Volkswagen Beetle Dune Convertible

The 2017 Volkswagen Beetle Dune convertible wears bold bodywork that writes a check that its run-of-the-mill powertrain can’t cash. While the Dune’s extra 0.2 inch of ground clearance, aggressive fascias, fender flares that widen the body by 0.6 inch, trim-specific 18-inch wheels, and rocker-panel-level “Dune” graphics present the posture of a Global Rallycross car, the front-wheel-drive convertible’s 170-hp 1.8-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine and smooth-shifting six-speed automatic transmission mean the Dune is little more than a Beetle 1.8T convertible on stilts. Really short stilts. We were more excited about this offering when we assumed that, like the concept car displayed at the Detroit auto show two years ago, it would be based on the more powerful Beetle R-Line with the turbocharged 2.0-liter rated at 210 horsepower. To really pay off on the styling’s promise, it also would need all-wheel drive, but even the concept car did without that hardware.

2016 Lexus GS F

What’s a nearly $90,000 hot-rod sedan doing with fixed-rate dampers and a naturally aspirated engine in the year 2016? Besides getting its doors blown off by the competition in straight-line acceleration? The 2016 Lexus GS F invites senior managers and junior execs to enjoy driving again. Squeal the tires around every cloverleaf, hit 7300 rpm racing down every on-ramp, and terrorize every backwoods holler in a 100-mile radius. In the era of launch control and electrically actuated cupholder covers, the GS F is charmingly old school. It’s a throwback to a time when sports sedans were measured by character rather than horsepower and cornering grip. One Mode Is Better Than Many That’s not to say it’s a covered wagon. The GS F offers more selectable settings than a Japanese toilet—four tied to the engine, transmission, and electric power steering, three for the stability-control system, and another three for the torque-vectoring differential.

2018 Audi S5 The sports coupe,

 

First Drive Review

At the media drive event for its new A5 and S5 coupes, Audi repeatedly proclaimed the cars to be design icons, as if looking to imbue them with an ineffable status. When Ingolstadt trotted out the first A5 at the 2007 Geneva auto show, jaws quietly dropped. It was a subtle car; its sinew was suggested, rather than paraded. It was an undoubtedly lovely automobile. Fine to drive, too, especially in manual-transmission S5 form, where it took on the character of a quietly brutish hooligan, more back-of-the-pub rude boy than flamboyant Ted or greased-up rocker.

2017 Porsche Panamera: Beautifully Advanced

 

Official Photos and Info

When Porsche originally decided to move forward with the Panamera, a lot of options were on the menu, including a traditional three-box sedan. But there were enough of those in the market, and not so many hatchbacks. Since then, more hatchbacks have joined the luxury arena, including the Audi A7 and the Tesla Model S. But the Panamera stands alone: More spacious than the A7 and more luxurious than the Tesla, it’s a valid contender against the Audi A8, the BMW 7-series, and the Mercedes-Benz S-class, although its shape and dynamics pit it against top versions of the Germans’ sleeker offerings, such as the Audi RS7, BMW M6 Gran Coupe, and Mercedes-AMG CLS63 S.

2016 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid

 

Instrumented Test

Buyers are shunning sedans to join the lemming-like rush to crossovers, dropping the car share of the market from 50 percent to 43 percent in just three years. If regular gasoline zooms past $3.60 per gallon, as it did in 2012, many of these defectors may pine for the fuel efficiency of a modern four-door family sedan. That’s when the growing crowd of hybrids, such as the Chevrolet Malibu reviewed here, will seem eminently sensible. Basic math tells all: $3.60 per gallon divided by 46 mpg (EPA combined rating) equals 8 cents per mile for gasoline. A large, premium-fueled crossover could cost three times that much.