If there’s one word to describe the 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport, it would be “surprising”.  This is a great little compact SUV that seems to have been flying below the radar of lots of buyers, and they will be pleasantly surprised when they check it out.

Let’s start with the looks. For 2013, the Outlander Sport will get some extra second glances, thanks to a new front and rear fascia the gives a cleaner, more cohesive appearance. This is a handsome, modern looking SUV. While not as adventurous as the new Toyota RAV4 or Kia Sportage, it still has a nice, muscular shape that is quite tasteful. Even though our tester was the entry-level 2WD ES model, finished in a tasteful Quick Silver and sitting on tough-looking standard 18-inch alloy wheels it got loads of compliments, many saying it’s the nicest Mitsubishi they've seen in a long time. More...

Top 10 Best New Cars for 2012: Under $20,000, Over 30 MPG

There's nothing more satisfying than finding the best bang for your buck, so we've compiled our second annual list of the Best Cars Under $20,000 with Over 30 MPG.

Whether you're looking for an SUV or a hatchback, everybody wants value. For this list, we looked at some of the most affordable cars on the market that also deliver on the road. Buying a cheap car is no longer the sacrifice that it used to be - even new cars with the lowest price tags have plenty of standard amenities like power windows and seats, a plethora of airbags and quality interior materials. They also look cool.

You also have to be gas-conscious with your new purchase. The price of fuel seems to fluctuate with each passing day, and you need a car that will be able to run whether the pumps are harsh or forgiving. New technologies like hybrid and electric cars are great on gas, but they can be extremely pricey on the dealer lot, which kind of defeats the purpose.

Luckily, there are many cars these days that deliver high quality and fuel economy at a reasonable price. Here are fifteen of our top recommendations for affordable efficiency. More...

You have to give MINI credit. The original “new” MINI that arrived in 2002 was a huge hit. Really, all they had to do was keep refining and freshening the model, and everything would have been fine. But smart marketers that MINI and parent company BMW are, they wanted to grow the MINI family to attract more people into the fun and funky brand.

So we’ve seen some interesting products: After the original hatchback, we got a convertible, then the extended wheelbase Clubman and mini-SUV Countryman. Next up, a pair of two-seaters—a first for MINI.

The 2012 MINI Cooper Coupe and Roadster are more rakish, more daring, and with even more edge than the original 3-door. We tested the MINI Cooper S Coupe.

At first glance, the Coupe looks like a MINI hatchback that was handed over to a hot rodder. Sitting slightly lower than the hatch, the Coupe’s calling card is a chop-top low-slung roofline that MINI says was inspired by a baseball cap on backwards. It’s polarizing; you either hate it or love it—but we got lots of thumbs up driving around in our test Coupe. More...

We’re always happy to spend some time in the Acura TSX. While it originally started out as a four-cylinder sport sedan, Acura added a powerful V6 to the second-generation TSX lineup, and an especially handsome (four-cylinder-only) TSX Sport Wagon.

If you want a manual transmission—and there are still a bunch of us driving enthusiasts who love to shift—your choice comes down to one: the Acura TSX Special Edition Sedan.

So we were especially pleased to find a TSX SE waiting for a test drive. The first thing that grabbed our attention was the eye-catching Milano Red paint on our tester. A bright, vivacious red, it’s unique to the TSX SE model, and combined with the SE’s special lower body kit on the front, sides and rear, we got a lot of compliments and second glances on our car. Considering that the TSX has been around a few years, it’s impressive that a new color and a little tweaking of the exterior got this much attention.

If you want to be stealthier, the Acura TSX SE is also available in White, Black and Silver. No matter the color you choose, the Special Edition TSX also enjoys unique charcoal tinted 17-inch wheels that add a little added toughness to the look.

While the look of the TSX Special Edition is a little different, mechanically, it’s unchanged. That’s fine by us, because this is a delightful sport sedan to drive. The 201-hp four-cylinder is turbine smooth and revs quickly, made all the more enjoyable by a light clutch and a six-speed manual gearbox that has a direct, short throw and snicks into gear with lovely mechanical directness. (By the way, a five-speed sport-shift automatic is also available at no extra cost.) More...

Chrysler’s SRT (Street and Racing Technology) group develops performance versions of Chrysler products that focus on five specific attributes: “awe-inspiring” powertrains, outstanding ride and handling, “benchmark” braking, “aggressive” exteriors and “race-inspired” interiors. The 2012 Chrysler 300 SRT8 wears its own front fascia with a new grille and new Chrysler wing badge. It’s lowered a half inch and sports SRT-exclusive body-color side sill cladding. The rear view is dominated by a unique lower fascia with a chrome accent bar, four-inch round dual exhaust tips and an SRT8 deck-lid badge.

Its 6.4-liter HEMI V8 offers 470 horses and 470 lb.-ft. of tarmac-shredding torque, up 45 hp and 50 lb.-ft. over the 6.1-liter HEMI V-8 it replaces. It can thunder from rest to 60 mph in less than five seconds, run the quarter-mile in the high 12-seconds, stop from 60 mph in 120 feet and accelerate to 100 mph, then brake back to a stop, in less than 16 seconds.

Yet it uses Chrysler’s Fuel Saver Technology (cylinder deactivation) to boost fuel efficiency by shutting down four of its eight cylinders under light loads. While its EPA city fuel economy is a thirsty 14 mpg, its 2012 highway number is up 21 percent from the previous generation’s to a respectable 23 mpg. The smooth five-speed automatic (not yet a six-speed or the regular 2012 300’s new, more fuel-efficient eight-speed) offers a choice of “Normal” or “Sport” modes and new steering wheel paddles for quick and easy manual shifting. More...

Like almost every other car in their class, the Lexus IS 250 and IS 350 have a problem: The BMW 3 Series. The Bavarian has pretty much been top dog in the small sport luxury segment since it was born and, to their credit, BMW has continued to refine and improve their models to stay at the top.

When the original Lexus IS 300 was introduced, it probably gave the folks at BMW some sleepless nights, as it offered a very German driving feel, a handsome look, and was competitively priced. When the second-generation was introduced, the IS was still sporty, but seemed to have dialed back the sport, and turned up the luxury. It was still a very nice car, mind you, but just a little soft.

Thankfully, Lexus heard the cries of the enthusiasts and developed Lexus IS F Sport models (beginning in 2008), to the point that anyone thinking of a European sport sedan should give the Lexus IS F Sport a long, hard look.

Which is pretty easy to do, because this is one good-looking vehicle. The Lexus IS already enjoys handsome, muscular lines, but with the F Sport’s unique dark chrome finish on 18-inch alloy wheels, it really stands out. A front and rear spoiler, plus dark chrome grille, finish off the look. Our tester was a sophisticated Nebula Gray Pearl, but if it were our dough, we’d be super-tempted by the breathtaking Ultrasonic Blue exterior. More...