Perusing Motor Trend on the throne, I contemplated angus mackenzie’s rant “the future of the american muscle car.” My first thought: when did capital letters go out of style? My second thought: spending nine paragraphs forwarding the not-so-radical idea that american muscle cars will become lighter, rear wheel-drive, turbo-V6 or diesel-powered somethingorothers is an awful waste of editorial space. But then, we are talking about Motor Trend, a walk-softly-and-carry-a-small-shtick buff book. And as my mentor said, there are no boring stories, only… Anyway, the American muscle car’s eventual evolution– or lack thereof– is a fascinating topic. How do automakers adapt these snorting, snuffling, gas-sucking examples of automotive Americana for a federally-mandated fuel-efficient future? Can they? Should they? Instead of debating it below, I invite our Best and Brightest to put fingers to keyboards and share their thougths on this life-or-death-car subject in long form. Send 800 words– not one word more or less— to robert.farago@thetruthaboutcars.com. Put MUSCLE CAR in the subject bar. Get it done by next Wednesday, September 10. Justin and I will sort through the entries and publish the three best (wihout editing) for a final vote. The winner will receive a one-year subscription to the UK’s Octane magazine. Let’s show angus how it’s done.

Shaker asks:

I've been hearing about these systems that use hydrogen added to the intake systems of cars resulting in mileage gains of 20-30 percent. My engineering background tells me that this can't be the case (as you can't get "something for nothing"), but the latest spin that I've seen on the Web is that small amounts of added hydrogen somehow enhance the combustion of regular gasoline, so that a small "hydrogen generator" unit is sufficient. There's even a guy at our company (still hearsay) that claims to have increased the mileage of his Civic by 10MPG. I think this is very unlikely (if not impossible), but maybe your crew could debunk the myth, or find that there's some merit there.

So how about it? Do any of you have any experience with hydrogen injection or can explain how it could improve mileage? For that fact, have any of you ever used any gadget advertised to increase gas mileage that actually worked as claimed?

My wife and I have been studiously and dutifully test driving cars because we are about to buy two. So far she is insisting upon the better look, roominess and fun to drive 2009 Mazda6. I can't blame her as it is fun and I love our 05 3 hatch. And as of now, after driving the Accord and Nissan and Fusion it has now become my very favorite smooth and buttery 4 cylinder car.But here's the problem… We drive long distances to visit out second home in the mountains of southern MO and we are also looking for a great road cruiser. This is done every two weeks. We want the luxury, but still some hinting of sportiness. Now, after testing so many cars, is it possible that the very best drive for the money is a Hyundai? We half jokingly tested the Genesis…but after the drive, we both stood there with our six foot son and wondered what had just happened. It was absolutely wonderful:

Powerful and quiet 6.
Road softer and sportier than the Avalon.
Great luxury MPG.
Tomb quiet.
The insides felt like Euro pillow mattresses.
Great looks, finish and outstanding paint.
Room for the kid(s)to enjoy the 7 hour drive.
This for around 35K?????

So help us! Please tell us what we missed before we buy! This cannot be true! – PPellico

"What is more fuel efficient for automatic cars, accelerating quickly or slowly?  And what is generally peak torque for typical passanger cars and trucks? For manuals, quick and smooth acceleration is most efficient.  I would expect that the same is true for modern automatics, but don’t know for sure.  With my own automatic trans car, I notice no difference between the two, maybe a slight improvement with faster acceleration.  In the past, a study was done comparing slow braking and acceleration with fast braking and acceleration, but they didn’t investigate fast acceleration with light braking. I’ve been accelerating quickly (but keeping RPM below 3500 where I suspect efficiency drops off) and adjusting my speed mostly with the accelerator (easing off earlier to provide a little extra safe following distance and keeping near the speedlimit to time traffic lights).  I get pretty good gas mileage, between 26 and 30 MPG (mostly sub-urban highway driving during rush hour). Before I started accelerating more quickly I got about 26-27 pretty consistantly. Is the efficiency of slow acceleration just a myth?"

Starting with 2009 models, the California Air Resources Board will require all new vehicles sold in the Golden State to carry a sticker which shows a CARB-determined "Smog Score" and "Global Warming Score." The Toyota Open Road Blog's editor Jon Thompson is all excited over this "because our Prius Hybrid is listed by CARB as one of its top 10 cleanest cars" and "Camry and Camry Hybrid are right behind Prius with scores of 9, and Highlander Hybrid follows closely along with a score of 8." Funny thing, though, he doesn't mention where Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Tundra, Tacoma or any of their other large trucks fall in those ratings. And all he says about the Global Warming score is that it's "based in part on the vehicle's greenhouse gas emissions." The part he doesn't mention, according to the CARB EP Label Fact Sheet (click here to view): the greenhouse gases resulting from "fuel production." So when the Prius PHEV hits the market, will the score reflect the coal and other fuels burned to produce the electricity to recharge it? That could be an eye-opening addition to what Thompson terms the "growing amount of information that's available to help you make a studied automotive choice." So I put Thompson's closing question to our Best and Brightest: "Should this sort of labeling be adopted by all the states?"

How does a Mustang fare in a harsh, North-eastern winter? More specifically, Canada. I only ask because last year, Montreal, where I live, was covered with over 200 inches of snow. I've already done the rear wheel-drive-in-winter thing in my first car. I was behind the wheel of a Chevette with about four hp and two ft.-lbs of torque (slight exaggeration). In other words, it came standard with engine-limited traction control. A buddy of mine tried to negotiate last winter in his Twin Turbo Supra. Fancy snow tires and 200 lbs. of gravel in the trunk still made it the worst winter car in the universe. He ended up buying a Hyundai Accent to get through the season (ouch). True fact: in my entire life, I think I can count on one hand the amount of winterized Mustangs I've seen, complete with ugly black wheels and skinny winter tires. So, do the other Mustang owners who leave theirs in the garage all winter know something I should know?

Porsche GT3 on snow

A TTAC reader named Don has requested a semi-private audience with our Best and Brightest. Don wants to purchase a used BMW 3-Series. Here's Don's dilemma: "I'm looking for a 2003 to 2008 model four door. I am replacing a 1994 Lexus SC400 and I want to experience BMW's great handling and road feel. 80% of the time I will be driving alone or with 1 passanger, but 20% of the time I will have my wife and some or all of my 3 kids along with me. I am undecided as to an automatic or a stick shift. My main priority is handling and feel and I am hoping for good reliability (are BMW's reliable?). Power, speed, and fast acceleration are not that important to me. Is there a superior model year in my range (I think that a body style/size change took place around 2006) or have the characteristics that I am looking for slowly evolved and improved each year?" Feel free to think laterally here, lady and gentlemen. But remember: most of the time people buy what they want to buy regardless of anyone's advice. Or, as my beloved wife reminds me (to no avail, obviously), no one ever got into trouble by nodding their head. At least not straight away.

I love bad puns. This morning, during a lull in the action while we waited for the footware to fall on Slick Rick's press conference, I asked our esteemed publisher "if GM started designing the second generation of their electric vapormobile, would it be considered re-Volt-ing?" Lacking my finely honed sense of humor, he merely responded "har, har." Then I reminded him that if someone wrecked their S-Class, all you could so is say "well, that's the way the Mercedes Benz." OK… I know they're bad.  And I know there have to be a lot more automotive puns out there. So c'mon… hit me with your best (or worst) shot. I'll be mighty be-Holden to you if you do.

Yes, I know this, uh, feature was originally posted last month. And I realize I've been dumping on The Detroit News for a couple of days now. But they deserve it and honestly, even if this isn't the world's ugliest car (remember: the Aztec and Tribeca B9 are SUVs), the 789 sure doesn't qualify as "best of past, present." Seriously, am I supposed to take this car seriously? "Take the most distinctive elements of the 1957, 1958 and 1959 Chevrolets," Larry Edsall (no really) writes. "Put them together around a new Corvette chassis and what do you have? You have the spectacular 789 from Kanter Concepts and n2a Motors." Apparently, I'm in the minority in thinking that the only reason there isn't a single ten-foot pole mark on this thing is because people wouldn't touch it with one. "The goal is to sell as many as 100 copies. Nos. 15, 16 and 17 are under construction with sales contracts just in for Nos. 18 and 19, [CEO Greg] Langmesser said." No way! I mean, n2a stands for "no two alike"– which doesn't fill me with confidence to their build quality, even at $75k ABOVE the cost of a donor Corvette. And for those who [happen to] agree with me that this is a hideous piece, check out that site for the Anteros. Or, if you're of a delicate disposition, not. 

Edmunds Auto Observer is often the first website to review a new car– in the sense of showering it with love and happiness or, at worst, gumming it to death. Suddenly, uncharacteristically, under the guise of humor, the bloggers who still won't fully disclose car manufacturers' contributions to their editorial (a.k.a. junketeering) grew a pair. Ish. Writer Bill Visnic offers a list of cars that "don't have a chance." Of course, it's not the carmakers' fault. Oh, no these whips are doomed "mostly [due] to the new rules governing the auto industry" Some of the cars– which now "suddenly look titanically dumb"– are easy targets (VW Rotten). Others are guaranteed sales successes (Honda Accord). So we put it to you, our Best and Brightest: which of these things is not like the other? Which of these things will not belong? And what other vehicles should be on this list of future flops, and why?

BMW X6
Cadillac CTS-V
Dodge Challenger
Dodge Ram
Ford F150
Ford Flex
Honda Pilot
Honda Accord
Infiniti FX50
Lincoln MKS
Hummer H3T
Toyota Venza
VW Routan
VW Tiguan

Yesterday, Cardomain bragged told their tribes that they were having dinner with GM Car Czar Maximum Bob Lutz. They asked readers what questions they should demand (in a sycophantic sort of way) of the winner of TTAC's first annual Bob Lutz Award. Cardomain received all of 15 responses, most of which were pretty lame. However, there were a few good ones. "Why is it so easy for foreign GM divisions in Australia and Europe to make great cars, and so hard for GM in America to make them?" We haven't been invited to dinner with anyone (and aren't holding our breath until an invitation shows up in our mailbox). But still, it's an interesting question– one that our own RF answered with "Is your pension bankruptcy proof?" So now, we're giving you, TTAC's Best and Brightest, the chance to play fantasy asshole. If Bob Lutz' handlers suddenly suffered a total breakdown in judgment and invited us– OK, you– to a one-on-one dinner with their head of Global Product Development, what would you ask GM's car guru?

Sharon found TTAC via a Google search, read our Tribeca and Compass reviews and freaked. "We are pretty clueless on car shopping and have spent way too many hours already. I would like someone's opinion that gives it to me straight." Here's the deal… She's buying the vehicle for two college-bound children. They'll be driving it in Fort Collins, CO, commuting back to Mom and Dad some six hours away in Santa Fe, NM. "One of them will keep the car as long as they can hold onto it and ensure proper maintenance." She's leaning towards the Tribeca, from a safety POV: "good test ratings, side bags, overhead curtain." Current vehicles: 2003 Tahoe (love it); 1996 Pathfinder (good condition); 1999 Honda Accord ("the transmission blew out and that's why were are in the market") and 2002 Nissan Frontier. Sharon's looking to spend $18k – $22k for this, their first used purchase. "We got a good offer (or we think it is good) on the Tribeca that happens to be fully loaded. The gas cap says 'premium preferred', but they tell us that it is not required. A Jeep salesperson just told me that Jeep is not going to make Compass in 2009 and just stick to the Patriots. His dealership in Santa Fe does not have a Compass to test drive new or used." OK guys, she asked for it: give her the inside dope. (Lateral thinking allowed.)

From TTAC commentator kawaii: New to this forum and found it interesting, however, confusing since I am a “mature” female on the waiting list for an ‘08 Prius. Husband just got a huge Tundra last December. I drive an ‘05 Subaru Outback getting 22 mpg. Now that I’m waiting for the Prius (which I wanted simply because of mpg and because I like to consider myself as “one who considers making small changes to help the environment”), but now I’m really wondering if this is a wise decision. Do I really NEED this vehicle? Will the Yaris ($10,000 less equipped the way I want it) or Corolla be a better choice? Drove the Yaris and liked it; have not driven Corolla. I live on a mountain in northern GA, drive 10 miles to work each day, rarely drive road-trips and go into the city 65 miles occasionaly. This next car will be one that I’ll drive until the wheels fall off. I can afford either car, but which makes better sense? Husband works from home (good thing with the Tundra mpg) and will retire in 5 years. Any advice?

From TTAC reader Thomas: I'm looking to buy a new car this summer but I'm stumped on which car I want. I need a car that not only has good gas mileage but has a great looks. I'm looking to spend $24k to $28k. Possibly splurge to $32k. Hopefully not. I'm 21 and this will be my first new vehicle so I need it to be hot. Ha. I love the new Malibu. First off, it's a Chevy which I love and the aggressive new look is amazing. But there's no manual and how does the four-cylinder automatic accelerate? The second car under consideration is the Audi A4. I love the car, the class, but the price is killing. I do prefer the look of the Malibu over the A4. Well, give me some ideas please. Thank you very much.