There are two different schools of thought regarding the Toyota Prius hybrid. Some see it as the future of transportation -- a roomy family car that uses about half the fuel of a typical mid-size sedan. Other see it as the anti-car, a joyless, soulless form of transportation completely lacking in the character which car fanatics love so much. Personally, I can see both side of the argument -- and apparently so can Toyota, because they've attempted to imbue the all-new Prius with something the old car lacked: Personality. Has it worked? Find out in my 2010 Toyota Prius test drive and review. -- Aaron Gold

Photo © Aaron Gold

http://cars.about.com/od/toyota/fr/10_prius.htm

I often go to press previews for new models. Before we drive, we're given a technical presentation, and most of these start with a "State of the Company" section. Naturally, all the talk has been about when the auto industry will recover. Some say recovery is just a few months away; others say things won't get back to normal until 2014 at the earliest.

So, I'm curious: When do you think the auto industry will recover? And by "recover", I mean that sales bounce back -- if not to pre-2006 numbers, at least to a level consistent with the growth we were seeing before the bottom fell out of the economy. Vote below, and if you'd like to elaborate on why you think what you think, by all means please click the "comments" link. -- Aaron Gold

As we head into winter, I'm focusing on our upcoming Best New Cars of 2010 awards. I have a feeling it's going to be a long list -- 2010 may be shaping up to be a bad year for car sales, but it's a great year for new models. I've got contenders lined up two at a time for test drives right through the end of December, and I recently spent some time revisiting couple of hopefuls that I haven't driven for a while. Read more...

Yesterday, Fiat and Chrysler held a marathon press conference to discuss Chrysler's future. Read more...

The Internet Car and Truck of the Year is now down to the final round of voting! For those unfamiliar, there are actually two Internet Car and Truck of the Year awards: The jury's pick and the consumer's pick. You, the consumers, have narrowed your choices down to three finalists in each category:

• Cars: Chevrolet Camaro SS, Ford Taurus SHO, Ford Shelby GT500
• Trucks/SUVs: Audi Q7 TDI, Chevrolet Equinox, Ford F-150 Raptor

Meanwhile, the jury of twelve Internet journalists -- one of which is yours truly -- has selected slightly different finalists. On the car side, we're choosing between the Ford Fusion Hybrid, the Ford Shelby GT500, and the Mazda3. On the truck side, we're also chosing between the Equinox and the Raptor, and the third contender is the Volvo XC60.

I think I know which truck I'm going to vote for, but I'm having a heck of a time picking a car. For me, it's between the Ford Fusion Hybrid and the Mazda3 -- don't get me wrong, the GT500 is an awesome automobile, but I'm thinking about the direction our country needs to go in terms of the vehicles we drive. I've just spent a week with the Fusion Hybrid, and I think it's remarkable -- great hybrid drivetrain, fantastic SYNC system, and I averaged 37.2 MPG without even trying. But I also love the Mazda3, because it's the first compact car to offer pretty much all of the amenities you can get in a large car -- and buying a smaller car is a great way to save money and use less fuel. I honestly have no idea how I'm going to choose between them.

Meanwhile, you can cast your vote by visiting the voting page. Voting closes at 5 pm EST on November 13th. Need more information on the vehicles? You'll find information on the cars here and information about the trucks and SUVs here. -- Aaron Gold

Jason Fogelson is the guy who runs About.com's SUVs site. We often disagree on whether a vehicle should be considered a car (and therefore reviewed on my site) or an SUV (reviewed on his). I expected the 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour to be one of those vehicles, but when Jason asked if I could attend the Accord Crosstour press preview on his behalf, I figured the review was mine, all mine, what with possession being 9/10ths of the law and all that.

As soon as I saw the Accord Crosstour in person, I knew that my test drive would belong on the SUV site -- even though it's only a couple of inches longer and wider than the Accord sedan on which it is based, it feels like a significantly bigger vehicle. However, I think it's an SUV that will appeal to car people. Now, I know the Accord Crosstour has been much maligned in the press due to its looks. But having seen it in person -- and driven it in person -- I can tell you that there's a lot more to this vehicle than meets the eye. Get the story in my 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour test drive -- which, of course, is hosted on Jason's SUVs site.

On an unrelated note, Basem Wasef, who runs our motorcycles site, is about to take on a long-term Triumph bike -- and he's asking the readers to vote on which Triumph model should be the subject of his twelve-month test. If you're interested in motorcycles, be sure to check out his long-term Triumph poll. -- Aaron Gold

Photo © Honda

October was our first full month with our long-term Honda Insight. When we first picked up the car from Honda, I was frantically trying to figure out how we could rack up 20,000 miles in a year. I'd even thought about driving the car from Los Angeles to the Detroit Auto Show in January (note to self: buy snow tires). My wife -- the Insight's primary custodian -- kept telling me not to worry about it. Now here we are, one month into our year-long test drive, and Robin's already racked up over 2,300 miles. And we're not just talking about a whole lot of runs to the grocery store -- Robin has already used the Insight as a family car, a moving van, and a pickup truck. Find out how things are goin in my long-term Insight October 2009 update. -- Aaron Gold

Photo © Robin Gold

A few tidbits of information about new 2010, 2011 and 2012 cars have come down the pike in the last couple of days, so I'm just going to lay 'em all on you at once. Here we go:

• Acura announced a new Sport Wagon version of the TSX. They haven't released any photos, but this picture of the European-market Honda Accord Touring should give you a pretty good idea of what to expect.
  
• Honda showed a newer version of the CR-Z hybrid concept at last week's Tokyo auto show, and knowing the way Honda does things, this one is probably very, very close to the production version (which we'll see at the Detroit show in January). Honda confirmed that the CR-Z will have a 6-speed manual transmission.
  
• Also at the Tokyo show, Toyota rolled out the FT-86 concept, which is said to be the rear-drive sports car that Toyota has been developing in conjunction with Subaru. The rumor mill points to a Subaru-sourced 2.0 liter "boxer" four-cylinder under the hood. The name is derived from AE86, the internal code name for the last rear-drive version of the Corolla, which now has a sizable cult following.
  
• Volkswagen has confirmed more details about the Jetta TDI Cup Edition and the future of the Passat once their new mid-size sedan (NMS) debuts. Details in my Volkswagen: What's new for 2010 article -- Jetta on page one, future Passat on page two.
  
• Lexus showed their LFA supercar at the Tokyo Auto Show. The quick specs: 10 cylinders, 4.8 liters, 552 horses, 202 MPH, and around $350,000. Lexus will hand-build 500 of these babies over a 24 month period beginning in December 2010. Take a closer look at this photo of the Lexus LFA. On a much less interesting note, they announced updates to the 2010 LS 600hL. You'll find details in my Lexus: What's new for 2010 article.
  
• Nissan has announced a "Krōm" version of the Rogue. Photo here and details in my Nissan: What's new for 2010 article.

Photo © Toyota

So here it is, my 2010 Volkswagen GTI test drive. I won't beat around the bush; I love this car, and I think it's the best front-drive sport-compact on the market. That's the gist of my review. But do me a favor and read my test drive anyway -- About.com pays me based on site traffic, and I have a family to feed.

One of the issues raised in recent blog comments about the GTI is the reliability (or lack thereof) of Volkswagen cars. We all know that Vee Dubs ain't exactly Hondas, but when I met with VW's executive crew back in August, CEO Stefan Jacoby said that they were aggressively addressing this problem and were seeing results: Warranty claims are down and customer satisfaction is up. For the GTI's sake, I hope that trend continues.

Incidentally, I updated the Mazdaspeed3 review I posted last week, specifically in terms of recommended rivals. I added the GTI as the best alternative, natch. But in my first draft, I neglected to mention the 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe -- a glaring oversight on my part, as the Genesis Coupe offers rear-wheel-drive, turbo power, and a lot of grins for the same price as both the Mazdaspeed3 and the VW GTI. -- Aaron Gold

Photo © Aaron Gold

I think a lot of people are going to be talking about the new Volkswagen GTI in the near future, so I figured I should give you a better look at the car by posting my 2010 Volkswagen GTI photo gallery as quickly as possible. You'll find more info about the car in the photo captions, particularly the interior and engine shots.

I'm heading into the Week from Hell, but I'll do my level-headed best to get my GTI test drive posted in the next couple of days. Along with the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi review I promised you. Wish me luck -- and take a closer look at the 2010 VW GTI. -- Aaron Gold

Photo © Aaron Gold