Autoblog

After driving a bunch of cars on the road (BMW 6 series convertible, Pontiac Grand Prix GXP) I figured I'd better get back on the track before the opportunity ended. I hopped in the new Audi S4 and discovered once again a burnt smell and an abused clutch. But the S4 didn't mind it as much as the new Eclipse. I was flying in no time.

After lunch I was really worn out from the track. And i realized I wasn't getting the best feel for these cars in the everyday world. So I decided to go back on the roads of Wisconsin and enjoy the scenery and open lanes without the pressure of the track. I took the GTO and the Corvette Z51 out and turned on the classic rock stations that are indiginous to the area. The weather was finally clearing and it was the perfect setting for a few joyrides.

One of the more talked about vehicles at the rally, besides the Ford GT40, was the Mitsubishi Eclipse. It was orange. Strike that. We were told not to call it orange but Sunset something or other. But man was it orange. In the early going of the morning the Eclipse was out on the track constantly and someone didn't listen to Mitsubishi's plea "not" to trash it on the track. The clutch was certainly feeling the effects of what I called the "yahoo" factor. I was pretty surprised at how some writers totally abused the cars. There was no lack of speed for me and I managed to bring all the cars back in one piece just fine. But you could smell the burning clutches of a number of cars.

Some of the vehicles you couldn't take on the track were still very significant ones. The one that called out to me was the Range Rover Supercharged. It was big, black and, yes, very beautiful. Inside it was upscale all the way. On the road it was the surprise of the two days.

Here I am, listening to track instructions that are extremely vague. "Don't do anything crazy. Have a good time." What are these mixed messages? I have no idea what to expect on this track. There are a number of turns, kinks, elevation, straight-aways, you name it it's here and they're basically saying "have at it."

I'm back from the wilds of Wisconsin where I spent the past two days at a semi-annual rally for Midwest automotive journalists. For two days we took over Road America at Elkhart Lake to test out the latest offerings from manufacturers. On day one we were given access to the track, yes the actual race track at Road America, and a slew of available cars to take out. There was a Ford GT40, Lotus Elise and Mercedes CLS 55 AMG. All required a ride-along nanny to make sure the yahoos wielding pens kept them in one piece. But everything else was open to test to our heart's desire.

Bill gates and Bill Ford Jr. addressed the Microsoft Global Automotive Summit at Ford's suburban Detroit headquarters (hey where was our invite?). Gates said the end goal of any technology in automobiles is to create a car that avoids crashes. Currently, lane avoidance systems are an early attempt. But more logical for today are computer systems that would aid suppliers, designers and sales. Also if you haven't checked out the Engadget interview with Bill Gates go there now!

While we are chained to our desks at Autoblog's Chicago headquarters, Tom over at Chicago Car News is off visiting the local BMW dealership just for fun. This sounds like a regular thing for Tom. While it might seem like an odd habit, it has led him to the discovery of the new 2006 BMW 3 Series on lots, and it's for sale. Has anyone seen a 3 Series commercial yet? You'd think they might want to get those rolling sometime soon.

One of the least talked about but most important new models of 2005 has just been given a ballpark figure. The all-new Mitsubishi Eclipse will start around $20,000 for the GS version and $25,000 for the GT version. While the prices are slightly below the current sticker on the outgoing model, it still seems high for a coupe at a company battling uncertainty. Perhaps the price will be loaded with numerous features so there won't be much to add-on. There hasn't been much reported on the new model but we should get a chance to check it out…hmmm…let's see here…this week! Keep an eye out.

When we first saw stories on the International CXT we didn't think it would be sold in huge numbers or taken as anything more than a celebrity overindulgence. For the most part we were right, but it seems the Boston Globe actually reviewed the thing for a regular column. Unfortunately we don't really hear (or see) much that we haven't before. There are exactly two paragraphs describing the actual driving experience of the CXT. The rest seems to be all about celebs and specs we can get off the International website.