Move over, Christine– you're so last century.  Stephen King's furious Fury is being replaced by a hybrid. Variety reports Voltage Pictures is beginning production of "Hybrid," a horror flick "about a female mechanic in a Chicago police garage who spends a night of terror with a hybrid car." (No, I'm not making that up.) They don't give much more information about the movie except it's budgeted at $10m and is shooting around Regina, Saskatchewan. Nor do they say which hybrid is the objet terrible or how it goes about its evil business. Anyone want to make any suggestions on how a predatory Prius or internecine Insight would go about terrorizing its hapless (and oh so very cliché) female victim?

Last week, the Americans sold Jaguar to the Indians. After losing billions on the English marque, Ford finally unloaded their perennial loss maker on Tata Motors. Amidst varying reports on the Indian conglomerate’s plans for the brand, the new XF sedan continues to roll down the assembly line. We’ve already driven the base model of the car that is (for now) Tata’s greatest hope for immediate profit. Now we turn to the Supercharged model. Stateside, acquiring the XF Supercharged requires an extra ten grand (and the rest) above than the base car’s base price. Is it worth it?

Canadian-Austrian venture Magna Steyr had a mini hit on its hands at the Geneva Auto show with its Mila Alpin. With no trucks on the market light enough for hybrid or EV conversions, the folks who developed Mercedes 4-Matic and built everything from the X3 to the G-Wagen wanted to give it a shot. Not only does the Mila Alpin climb 45 degree inclines, it's super light, designed to work with CNG, hybrid, or electric powertrains. More importantly, it's not aimed at fanboys. "Der Magna Mila Alpin ist so konstruiert," says Auto Motor Und Sport, "dass sich fremde Karosserieformen leicht auf der Plattform aufbauen lassen." It's built for others to build on. And just like that, Mercedes and BMW are talking joint project, in hopes of backing-up eco-friendly PR chatter on the (relative) cheap. BMW Development chief Klaus Draeger says talks with Magna Steyr are not about technical ability; they are about strategy and marketing. Mercedes confirms that they're schmoozing with Frank Stronach's boyz, but say their A and B Class cars were designed with "sandwich" floors to ease the adoption of alternative drivetrains. My gut says BMW will go for it. Their motorcycles prove they can go anywhere with their brand. A crazy Isetta electric off-roader would freaking rule.

TTAC is often accused of torturing prose in the name of… showing-off in a smarmy-ass, we're trying too hard to be funny kinda way. We prefer to think of it as cutting edge infotainment, part of the "TTAC School of Automotive Criticism." Of course, that's about as pretentious as it gets. Unless you happen over to The Old Gray Lady for Ezra Dyer's psychographic breakdown of Scion's recent model moves. "The old xB was like a newly arrived Japanese exchange student who dresses like Max Headroom and pulls live sea urchins out of his lunch bag, blissfully naïve about his lack of assimilation. The new xB is like the same kid six months later, still unquestionably the product of a different culture, but now self-conscious of that fact and beginning to temper his perceived eccentricities with trips to the Hollister store and the occasional McRib sandwich for lunch." Translation: the xB's been assimilated– and not in a good way (a fact that's been well and truly documented hereabouts). I do like Dyer's xD vs. Matrix comparo leading-up to this mondo-metaphor. "Driving an xD versus a Matrix doesn’t mark you as antiestablishment any more than wearing an Old Navy sweater instead of one from the Gap." Now that's funny! 

“You’re free to go.” With those hackneyed words, the Goldendale police officer returned my license. They were the very same words I’d heard in my head just a few hours earlier. At one-thirty last Sunday, my older son Ted called: “If you can drop Will [(his brother) here by three, we can take him back with us to Portland for a few days.” Cabin fever was at 103. The ninety minute deadline to pick a destination and pack the xB was just the tonic I needed. Time to head for… (flings open the atlas)… Wenatchee!

Fact: Jaguar sold 54k cars last year. Fact: Jaguar sold 70k cars in 2006. Fact: Just-auto [via Motor Authority] says Jaguar sales "could potentially double within the next couple of years." How's that? "Forecasts compiled by just-auto map out Jag's production future for its four main models – the X-type, XF, XK and XJ – and foresee volume rising to a more sustainable number closer to the magical 100,000 mark." Sorry, but no fucking way. But wait, there's more! "Possible new models in the Jag product plan, which await the green light from Tata, could further lift this figure towards 150,000 by 2012/2013" The XJ is an albatross and the X-type is the brand's cancerous Achilles Heel. I'm just going to start playing it their way. I'm predicting that Chrysler is going to launch an unspecified new model at some future date and they will sell more cars than Toyota. Like, lots more. In the future. Lamborghini, too. Man, this is fun. Hey Farago, where's my check?

The New York Times Wheels blog has a post up today about how the Porsche Cayenne might be the car of the decade. Author Christian Edstrom argues that the fugly off-roader dumped buckets of duckets into Porsche's coffers, saving the independent automaker from takeover. Moreover, ignoring CAFE-type reasons and sordid family history, Edstrom perpetuates the party line: Porsche bought VW to maintain a steady flow of parts for their SUV cash cow. Nice theory, but car of the decade? I don't think so. To my mind, the car of the Oughts (Naughts?) is the Subaru WRX. Hear me out. The WRX is the democratization of performance. For just $25k, the Subie could run with Porsches (and on certain roads, outrun them) and haul the kids. Moreover, everyone paid attention. Sure, M and AMG predate the Rex, but those are rich people toys. Nowadays? EVO, Redline, GXP, Volkswagen's R, MazdaSpeed, SS, SRT not only exist, but are more than just superfluous badging (typically meaning AWD, turbocharging or sometimes both) thanks to the Rex. Besides, as much as I like the (turbocharged) Cayenne, I just ain't buying it. Even if I could. You?

CNET News stipulates that plug-in hybrids get more mpg and emit fewer pollutants than standard cars or hybrids, but objects that it would take decades of driving to actually save any money by driving one. According to several months of data from RechargeIT.org, plug-in Priora only use about 88 fewer gallons a year than unplugged Priuses in urban driving, saving between $158 to $250. A $15,000 CalCars conversion would take 60 years to recoup, and a $55K AC Propulsion upgrade – well, forget saving money there. Motion granted, but CNET misses two a Priori points: First, many people didn't originally buy Priora to save cash, they bought them to save the planet – and to be seen as saving the planet. RechargeIT's engineering product manager, Alec Proudfoot, says, "the big focus … is on the CO2 savings, not the cost savings." Second, many people who remember sitting in gas lines, see plug-ins as a hedge against having to do so again. Nevertheless, unreliable batteries may dissuade even the most ardent eco-warrior from relying on a plug-in to get there and back again.

The General has settled a class-action lawsuit claiming damages from its "Dexcool" coolant, agreeing to pay up to $800 each to customers who can prove damages. Plaintiff attorneys estimate that the final number of claims could top $20 million, a bill which would cost GM of hundreds of millions of dollars. "It could be multiple nine figures; it depends on how many people make the claim," co-counsel for the plaintiffs, Jack Brady tells the International Herald Tribune . "I think it could be a huge settlement." Of course, while the people who had to replace manifold gaskets and heater cores get between $50 and $800 for repairs, Mr Brady and his co-counsels will pocket up to $23 million in fees and $2.8 million for expenses. Still, if you own a GM vehicle with the 3.1-liter or 3.4-liter V6 engines for model years 1995 to 2003; the 3.8-liter V6 engines for model years 1995 to 2004; or the 4.3-liter V6 engines for model years 1995 through 2000 and have had to pay for coolant-related damages, you should check dexcoolsettlement.com to file a claim.

In one of life's little ironies, Volkswagen is this year's "Official Vehicle" of Adolf Hitler's forgotten brainchild, the Olympic Torch Relay. With riots on the streets in Lhasa and reports of terrorism threats in China already marring the feel-good "One World, One Dream" vibes, the torch run was supposed to be a major  PR effort for the Chinese government and major sponsors. But things are not quite going to plan. The Guardian reports that pro-Tibet protesters broke a "tight security cordon" at Thursday's torch lighting ceremony, and are now planning multiple protests along the relay route. The convoy has already been held up several times due to protesters lying in front of the Vee-Dubs, and the Greek government is upping security in response to specific threats over the weekend. And the caravan of love hasn't even come close to the Nepal area yet where soldiers are already deploying to deal with protests. Maybe someone just needs to let everyone know that it's all good, man… these are green Volkswagens.

With all of the downsides of corn-based biofuel now widely known, eco-friendly motorists are anxious to hear a little good news from the developers of so-called second-generation biofuels. One of the most promising of these new, non-food-based fuels comes from algae, which scientists have been breeding and researching since the Carter Administration. The March cover story at Green Fuels Forecast tells of the National Renewable Energy Labs Aquatic Species Program (ASP), which has been looking for biodiesel-producing algae since 1978, and is now providing the backbone of technology for some frenzied venture capital activity. When the program started, it was estimated that all of America's transportation and home-heating needs could be met by 15k square miles of algae farms. Of course in the 90's as petroleum costs dipped, the Clinton Administration axed the ASP in favor of further ethanol research. Now, the government's abandoned investment is attracting the big boys: Chevron, Shell and others are forming partnerships with start-ups who are building on the ASP's knowledge base. The upsides? Algae needs only sun and C02 to produce the oil which can be burned as fuel or used in a number of other applications which currently require petroleum products. In other words, the perfect fuel source for your favorite Waterworld-esque, post-apocalyptic fantasy.

You might remember Ernesto Freitas from such automotive adventures as the non-Ferrari Dino and the Dutch supercar that wasn't, the Hansen GT-R. Well friends, Senor Freitas and his Portuguese pen are back and this time he's reviving Voision. Perhaps. First, Voisin? Oui, Voisin. Back in the day (think Jazz Age), engineer extraordinaire Gabriel Voisin was cranking out some of the most sophisticated yet beautiful cars in du monde. See, before he got bit by the car bug, Gabriel was into airplanes. And he used his aviation knowledge to the advantage of his vehicles. Voisins may not have had the stump-yankin' thrust of a Bentley, but they were constructed (in Paris) of lightweight aluminum and were aerodynamic. Contrast this philosophy with Rolls-Royce, who at the time was making rolling bricks out of pig iron. Sadly, the depression wiped Voisin out. C'est la vie, as they say. Until now. Maybe, but probably not. See, Mr. Fretias has done a rendering of a vaguely Veyron-like car. He would like to drop one of Audi's diesel V12s in the middle and call the result a Voisin. Bon chance, mon ami.

CarDomain brings us the story of the Blade Runner , a battery-powered Hyundai Getz minicar which is the first vehicle recognized by Australia's Scientific and Industrial Research Organization as a domestically produced ZEV. For about $35k you get room for four, AC, powers steering, and a 62-mile range from pure electric power. The Blade Runner is the brainchild of Ross Blade from Harcourt Australia, whose Blade Electric Vehicles company strips the dirty gas-burning bits from the Getz and retrofits it with lithium iron phosphate batteries, regenerative braking and a 40kw electric engine. The Blade Runner even offers 880 lbs of towing capacity and a top speed of 75 mph, although the the 7 seconds to 62 kph (37 mph) must seem like an eternity when the kids are late for community gardening class. Still, the Blade Runner offers a peek at the burgeoning ZEV-retrofit industry, and a refreshing dose of reality in contrast to, say, the ZAP approach to bringing ZEVs to market.

The CLS fever seems to be getting everyone. VW is already a victim, Porsche, Aston Martin, Audi and others announced that they will show the first symptoms pretty soon. I have to admit I don't feel quite well myself. And this would be the only thing to explain why I like the CLS, product of a brand that I otherwise consider boring and monotonous. But why is the CLS so contagious? Well, a mélange between a sports-car and a sedan is what every motor-head dreams. An indecently sexy body with four door access, excellent dynamics with good comfort is everything you could want from a car. No wonder that Audi decided to join the fiesta with their future A7, a cocktail of A8 and A5 with just a few drops of TT. I'd like to see a few classy curves à la A5 and a low roof line joined together in an elegant manner on the car. I also hope for some dynamic headlights (I find the one used on the A5 or the new A4 a bit bulky). I don't think that the chunky wheel arches are appropriate for this car, but they appear on the Audi official sketch shown a while ago So I felt obligated to use them.

I've got more reason to hate Edmunds than anyone at TTAC. After all, they recruited me away from both here, Jalopnik and a good day job, then 4.5 days later fired me for having an unpaid speeding ticket (55 mph in a 35 mph) and saying dirty words on my old movie review site. A month later, I was contacted by an Edmunds recruiter and asked if I was still in the job market, as they were hiring for an Associate Editor. The very same position I was canned from. Talk about piling it on. Another Edmunds employee (that I stayed friendly with) said one of the rumors floating around the office was that I was fired for a DUI. Which is not only totally false, but in this business a death sentence. So, I don't like them very much. However, there ain't nothing wrong with taking a Nissan GT-R out and seeing what it can do. First of all, high speed hijinks are why people read about cars. It's the vicarious experience, stupid. Seriously– I owe the IRS $3,000 because of all the money I make writing about cars and I can't even get into a GT-R, let alone run one (nearly) flat out. Second, since our dear leader admitted to traveling faster than 170 mph in a $400k Porsche. Is RF admitting that video is more relevant than text? Thirdly, since when is speed dangerous? Especially in the hands of an experienced driver, such as Ed Hellwig? As Clarkson said after showing the video of Hammond's 300+ mph crash, "And remember, speed kills."