FORD MUSTANG

Starting price: around $20,400

It comes with a V6 or V8 engine, and it is more powerful than most other cars in its class (by this we mean – affordable nice looking cars). The six-speed transmission in this model can be automatic or manual; both are precise and easy to handle. The interior design could be a little more modern, but it is spacious enough and comfy.

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1964 SHELBY COBRA DAYTONA COUPE

1964 SHELBY COBRA DAYTONA COUPE

Current value: $4.4 million

There were only six Shelby Cobra Dayton Coupes produced between the 1964 and 1965 editions of the auto, and they are some of the most amazing vintage cars ever produced. The Cobra Dayton Coupe was made with the new Ford V-8 289 ci engine at the time, and was the first car to end the Ferrari 250 dominance of the racing circuit at the United States Road Racing Championships shortly after its debut. The cars were retired after 1965 when Ford hired Shelby to help them race the GT40 line. The car engine is rated at 340 ft-lbs of torque and 385 horsepower. When new, the auto could go from zero to 60 MPH in just 4.01 seconds, and zero to 100 MPH in 8.81 seconds.

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Nissan Sway Concept: Stylish subcompact strikes

With the Nissan Sway subcompact, the Japanese automaker is making a statement that small cars need not be boring cars. Positioned as a possible successor to the Micra, a small hatch primarily sold in Europe, the Sway adapts the design language that has been featured on larger Nissan products like the newly redesigned Murano crossover and Maxima sedan

In introducing the Sway, Nissan's chief of design, Shiro Nakamura, said that the vehicle incorporates the V-motion grille theme, floating roof, kicked-up C-pillar treatment and flowing fender lines that have come to characterize the company's styling philosophy. The 4-door hatch uses rear-hinged back doors and no B-pillar to ease cabin access. The coach-style doors give the car the look of a sporty 2-door

A study of contrasts

By using an orange metallic paint on the roof rails and rocker extensions as well as inside the front air intakes to contrast with the bluish gray interior, the contrast highlights the floating roof design and adds a muscular, planted look to the lower body. Another design signature developed for the car was the boomerang shape to the front and rear LED lighting elements

The Sway also features a glass roof, and an interior with a floating wing-design dash inspired by the IDx concept car. The wing shape was adopted for its elegant simplicity. The result is an interior where function takes a priority, and where nothing is used for purely decorative purposes. Structural elements, for example, are shown as structural elements. The door pulls are designed to be integrated as a part of exposed aluminum struts. Even the three-spoke steering wheel has a 'back-to-basics' simplicity, with a squared off bottom section and aluminum spokes

Back to basics

Just two basic instruments face the driver, with all other functions captured on a large trapezoidal tablet in the center of the dashboard visible - and usable - by both driver and front seat passenger. The lightweight seats have an aluminum structure - once again exposed - and are covered in a premium suede-like fabric partially accentuated with pearl-effect material, featuring stitching techniques more usually found on luxury handbags. Color coordination sees the use of strong blue and orange themes inside, complementing the exterior perfectly

"With this new concept car for Geneva, we are experimenting to see how Nissan might be able to bring fresh ideas to the compact hatchback segment," Nakamura said. While this may or may not be the shape of the next Micra, the car's upscale looks in a small package would be a welcome addition to Nissan's U.S. lineup

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CHEVROLET CAPRICE PPV

CHEVROLET CAPRICE PPV

In the fall of 2009, General Motors announced their latest addition to the police vehicle market with the upcoming Chevrolet Caprice PPV (Police Patrol Vehicle). The previous edition of the Caprice targeted to law enforcement was produced between1991-1996. The updated model continues to be sold to law enforcement agencies, and it features the 6.0 L77 AFM V8 that was standard with the cars sold in 2011. Beginning in 2012, the standard 3.6 L LLT SIDI V6 engine was adopted as an optional package for law enforcement agencies who demand greater fuel efficiency from their police cruisers. Both engine models are designed to be compatible with E85 ethanol capable fuel, and the cars feature a wider wheel base than the Caprice models sold to the general American public. The PPV edition of the vehicle also features a dual engine exhaust, console floor shifter, and a touch screen for radio and HVAC controls of the vehicle.

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NEW NISSAN Qashqai £18,795

Exterior

Most SUVs, especially smaller ones, are about style above all else, and this is an area in which the Qashqai excels. The front end features crisp lines and bold details, the LED running lights and the deep, angular grille being the highlights. Things are just as fresh at the rear end, with swooping LIGHT clusters and muscular rear haunches. This is one very handsome car. Entry-level Visia cars miss out on alloy wheels, but they still look reasonably swish.

Interior

If you thought the Qashqai looked swish on the outside, you’ll be just as impressed by the interior. All the materials have a plush, high-grade feel, particularly on the main touch-points, and the design is modern and attractive.IMPORTANTLY, though, this hasn’t come at the expense of ergonomics. The various switches and buttons are logically placed and clearly marked, and the touch-screen infotainment system (standard on the top two trims) has sharp graphics and clear, logical menus. What’s more, the high driving position that SUV buyers love has plenty of adjustment, so life is very comfortable at the wheel. The limited rear visibility is the cockpit’s only real weak point.

Practicality

Even when compared with its best rivals, the Qashqai has no trouble on this score. The rear seats have plenty of headroom and legroom, making life very comfortable for four gangly adults, and five will cram in at a push. The 430-litre BOOT rivals those of the best cars in the class for capacity, and it also has some really clever features. We particularly like the two movable boards, which help give you a perfectly level load floor when the back seats are folded, and which can be slotted in vertically as well as horizontally, to stop small items sliding around. These boards are standard on all trims except entry-level Visia.

Ride and handling

On the road, the Qashqai’s focus is very much on comfort, with good bump absorption at low speeds and fantastic smoothness and stability at moderate and high speeds. Despite the Qashqai’s civilised character, the handling is also impressively neat. The body stays impressively flat in corners so you don’t get thrown around in your seat, and the car always feels grippy, stable and predictable. You can change the weight of the steering by selecting one of two modes, too. The Sport mode has an artificially heavy feel, but in Normal mode, the weighting feels just right and gives crisp responses.

Safety

All Qashqai models come with six airbags and stability control as standard, while Acenta Premium models have a few more clever safety features and Tekna models have more still. The Qashqai has also achieved the maximum five-star rating in Euro NCAP crash tests.

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2015 MCLAREN 650S SPIDER REVIE

The McLaren 650S Spider does absolutely everything well. This technological masterpiece will go from 0-62 MPH in 3 seconds flat, and a top speed of 204 MPH will have anyone in the passenger seat shrieking in delight (or maybe panic). On the road, the 650S turns and stops better than just about anything else, and no matter where you park it you’ll draw a crowd of earnest admirers

You want this car. Obviously. The only question is, do you want it bad enough to lay down one-third-of-a-million bucks for it, compared to everything else on the market

Power and performance

The 650S is the latest supercar from McLaren Automotive. The 650 stands for the car’s Pferdestärke rating (roughly equivalent to horsepower), the S is for Sport, and the McLaren means Magnificent. Like past offerings from the exotic car company, the 650S is a pure supercar where price is no object and performance is paramount

Digging right in where it counts, the 650S is powered by McLaren’s own 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 engine, designated the M838T. The engine weighs just 438 pounds owing to its all-aluminum construction, and features a dry sump oiling system commonly found on racing cars. The engine also gets the usual array of nifty features including new development work on the heads, pistons, valve timing, and so on

Most of the engine work, but not all of it, is designed to bring more power to the car throughout the engine’s power band — which stretches all the way up to a shrieking 8,500 RPM. You get four engine/transmission modes: Normal for around-town driving, Winter for driving in poor conditions, Sport for enthusiastic driving, and Track for obvious purposes. Most of the difference in these modes comes in the transmission, which will change its shift points and behavior to match the mode 

you’ve selected

Sport mode contains a gimmicky feature that’s pure entertainment: In this mode, the engine will cut spark for a moment on full throttle upshifts. This produces a bolus of unburned fuel in the exhaust stream. That fuel is ignited when the spark comes back, creating a burst of flame out the back and a delightful pop. Sure, it’s a trick, but it’ll put a grin on your face every time

The transmission is McLaren’s own 7-speed twin-clutch Seamless Shift Gearbox (SSG). Development on this unit has made upshifts lightning fast. McLaren isn’t lying about seamless, either. Upshifts are so smooth you have to listen for them, because at anything less than wide-open throttle, you won’t really feel them

Downshifts give you a satisfying sense that someone (not you) is actually rowing down through the gears with a tight clutch. McLaren gives you a set of paddles to select your own gears, but don’t kid yourself; with the exception of knowing in advance that you want to take off like a bullet, the car shifts itself far more expertly than you can ever hope to achieve

Oh, you get launch control, too. Don’t use it at Cars & Coffee

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MITSUBISHI LANCER EVOLUTION VII

MITSUBISHI LANCER EVOLUTION VII

Seen in the second film 2 Fast 2 Furious, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII was used by Brian O’Conner for his undercover mission to take down drug lord Carter Verone. Turbo charged with all wheel drive, the Lancer easily handles corners at speeds that would cause most cars to crash, allowing O’Conner to win an audition street race set up by Verone to choose the drivers he will use for his money laundering operation. Only used for part of the movie, this is one of the few cars driven by a protagonist that remains undamaged during its time on screen. Due to the GPS monitoring system integrated into the electronics of the car, O’Conner ended up ditching the vehicle for a ride that wasn’t as easy to track.

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KIA SORENTO

KIA SORENTO

While Kia packs its cars with features at the standard level, the Sorento that best replaces the minivan includes optional equipment like a macho V6 engine and the third row seating. That brings the ability to haul kids to six or seven in number, and provides the horse power and torque to feel pretty darn good on the road. Because the ride is excellent, and it’s easy to operate, the V6 Sorento climbs to the top of the list of manly cars to replace the minivan. The third seat definitely works for kids, and the second row is roomy enough for the grandparents.

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MCLAREN P1

MCLAREN P1

When people think of electric cars, they don’t often think of speed — they usually think of them in terms of envirnoment, as of nice, silent, decent looking cars that are good enough, but not too impressive when it comes to power.  Therefore, McLaren P1 comes as a surprise. With a 903 horsepower engine, P1 is a powerful hybrid with a top speed of 217 miles per hour; if  you remove the inhibitor, it can reach speeds even higher than that. It hits 62 miles per hour in just 2.8 seconds, and 186 miles per hour in 16.5 seconds, which makes it faster than McLaren F1.

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AUDI A6

Starting price: $44,800

The Audi A6 is one of the best German cars sold in the United States today. Audi has put focus on making the A6 a more luxurious version of the A7 in recent years, but its performance is on par with the A7. One of the most technologically advanced cars on the market today, the A6 base engine is a 2.0 liter turbo-four cylinder rated at 252 horsepower, and it comes with front-wheel drive and a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. All-wheel drive is an option to add to the A6, and there is a supercharged 3.0 liter V-6 rated at 333 horsepower, and a 3.0 liter V-6 diesel engine available for consumers to choose from when buying the car. The A6 can go from zero to 60 MPH in 5.1 seconds, and it gets respectable fuel economy at 19 MPG (city) and 28 MPG (highway) with a top overall speed of 129 MPH.

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1965 DODGE DEORA CONCEPT CAR

1965 DODGE DEORA CONCEPT CAR

The 1965 Dodge Deora was originally built for the Detroit Autoramain 1967 and is one of the oddest cars ever created. Created as a unique hot rod, the car does not have doors, and would actually become the model for one of the original Hot Wheels toy cars. One of the unique features of the auto is the manner by which the driver enters the vehicle. Instead of sliding in through the windows due to the lack of doors, the front of the car cab opens similar to a Venus flytrap. This allows the driver to seat his or herself before closing the cab of the vehicle and taking off. The vehicle is powered by a 2.8 liter, Slant-6 engine and uses a three speed transmission for shifting gears. The car is still around, and was sold in 2009 at auction for more than $225,000 USD.

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Alpine coupe

The Renault Alpine is another resurrection for Renault: the first Alpine was a rear-engined sports car with rallying heritage, while the Alpine GTA of the eighties was one of the most distinctive cars of its era, and a genuine rival to Porsches of the time. With the new Alpine, Renault is seeking to re-establish its sports-car credentials by building a mid-engined model, while the Alpine is likely to be one of the lightest cars in its class, too. This focus on weight-saving should mean the Alpine will have a relatively small engine, yet still be capable of 0-62mph in around 4.5 seconds.

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