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If you’re detecting a pattern with the posts on this blog its that the sport suspension or the larger engine aren’t necessarily the best choice. Except when they are. Perhaps the point is that it’s case by case. Take for example the revised SLK…

As is the case with a few cars I can name, you’d expect the standard suspension to ride smoother but that’s not really the case – extra damping can go a long way…

Our car did without sports suspension and came equipped with modest 16” alloys that should bode well for a comfortable ride, but on poorly surfaced roads it allowed a surprising degree of choppiness to intrude through the cabin, and struggled at times to keep its body movements in check. For once, then, we’d be tempted to tick the sports suspension option box… the stiffer suspension help[s] the SLK feel more tied down…

Then there’s the engine: MB’s squeezed more power from the 3.5L but it’s via what one might call the VTEC method – higher numbers on paper but even higher in the rev range (from a bottom end that’s never felt as eager to rev as its BMW and Porsche competitors…

the 280 makes for a fascinating alternative. Rarely have two V6 engines of similar capacity varied so much. The 3.0-litre engine misses out on a power boost, but with its maximum 221lb-ft of torque delivered from just 2,500rpm, it feels relaxed in its nature, whereas the 350 feels frenetic. It even has a more cultured howl when the 3.5-litre snarls.

Confused? Don’t be. Call me and it’ll all make sense…

Dodge boys forecast 4150 pounds, which is just 62 pounds lighter than the 300C. With the same 6.1-liter Hemi V-8 (425 horsepower, 420 pound-feet of torque), the same five-speed automatic, and the same final drive, and the same tires, drag strip numbers figure to be pretty much the same, too. Still, you might wonder why the smaller coupe—at 197.7 inches it’s 2.5 inches shorter than a Charger and almost an inch lower—is nearly as heavy as the sedan. Eric Heuschele, manager of vehicle development at Chrysler’s Street and Racing Technology (SRT) skunkworks, says there’s no mystery. “For one thing, side-impact standards keep getting tougher all the time, and we had to compensate for losing that beefy Charger B-pillar,” says Heuschele. “But the real answer is that when you chop the wheelbase on a Charger you still have a Charger.” – Car and Driver

Despite the car’s electrcal gremlins and ergonomic slip ups readers who have been tuned in from the start know I’ve always had a soft spot for the RL’s dynamics. In fact, my only wishes have been for more torque, a SH AWD system that’s less stingy about sending that torque to the rear, and a suspension that encouraged one to work the SH-AWD system to its fullest.

Acura engineers apparently felt the same way; the 09 has the new MDX’s torquier 3.7L, revised logic for the SH-AWD’s torque vectoring, stiffer springs and bars (and presumably dampers), revised steering, etc.

That’s the good news.

The bad: the styling’s more likely to be noticed but perhaps not for the right reasons – it’s also lacks the stealth quotient and quiet confidence of the last model. (Thankfully you don’t see the changes from behind the wheel).

Sadly the standard wheel is now 18 inches… one of the RL’s tricks was that – like an E39 series or the original Q45 its higher tire profile allowed that extra measure of compliance and confidence on rutted roads, allowing it to be driven like a large WRX through lumpy corners. (It’s a shame Honda’s completely forgotten that higher profiles and narrower section widths were part of their chassis genome – and part of what once made Hondas great…)

Not only is the R8 one of the more comfortable roadtrippers I’ve ever driven—in line with something like a 5-series or an A6—it’s also quiet, composed, and simply forget-about-it easy to cover massive miles in… Mind-blowing. – Sam Smith, Automobile

It’s a more subtle, grown-up pleasure than, say, charging around in an Evo or Impreza WRX STI, but good fun nonetheless. The IS F is also pleasingly unique: this does not look or feel like a German car, an M3/AMG/RS imitation, but a complete, comprehensively-conceived product in its own right. – 4car

what an engine [the normally aspirated 3 liter 6] is. Sweet-spinning, sonorous and powerful… [but] Sold on its sporting credentials, enthusiastic drivers might at first be a little disappointed at the way the 1-Series drives. Turn into a corner briskly and the nose is always a little too keen to wash wide. Despite the impressive weight distribution, this is not a BMW that likes to corner with a tail-out stance… That said, ease off the pace a little and the BMW is still a fine back road companion – and a very quick one at that. Accept the 1-Series… as more of an elegant… mini-GT rather than a sportscar and you won’t come away disappointed. – 4car