This week’s Wednesday Walkaround is a double feature: We get first drives of the 2009 Hummer H3T pickup and the 2009 Hyundai Genesisi luxury sport sedan. Enjoy!

This week we look at the 2008 Audi S8 luxury sport sedan in the backyard.

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There are vehicles that are easy to drive and there are vehicles that are fun to drive, but so many times we see these two concepts fail to come together in one particular model.

And then there is the Nissan Rogue.

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This week, along with a group of other bloggers and journalists, I was invited to attend Ford’s 2009 Model Year Program in Dearborn, Michigan.

2009 Mustang Bullitt

Our morning started early at the Dearborn Development Center, where we were greeted by Derrick Kuzak, group vice president of Product Development. We were divided into four color based groups, and told we would rotate through the following locations: the Quality & Safety tent at the VDA, a track experience at the VDA course, the Green & Smart tent at the Heli pad, and a track experience on the Steering & Handling course. I was pleased to join David Goodspeed, our Grinding Gears editor (representing AutoworldToday), as well as other writers I had met previously at the December Ford event.

I thought we might get to drive a new model vehicle when I was given the invite, perhaps because it mentioned no open toes on the track, but I didn’t expect the chance to drive the 2009 Mustang GT, Mustang Bullitt, and the new Ford Flex among many others…nice!

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Despite building a very good midsize sedan, Mazda knew it needed to undertake a significant model makeover in order to keep up with the “Joneses” of the CD-segment, namely Accord and Camry. With the new 2009 Mazda6 it has done that and more.

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When we first got our hands on a new 2008 Chevy Malibu for review, this is some of what I wrote:
“I had been so skeptical about the new Malibu since seeing the earliest concepts and artists’ renditions that once I finally got to drive it, I spent most of my week behind the wheel trying to find fault with the car instead of focusing on the positives.”

My conclusions? Those import models that have been cannibalizing midsize sedan sales over the past couple of decades had better be worried.

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Over the past week, Grinding Gears editor David Goodspeed has been privileged to drive a pair of all-new vehicles from Ford and Lincoln, both of which will arrive in dealerships this summer.

The first stop was Washington, D.C., for the 2009 Lincoln MKS.
That was the trip whose highlights included a visit to a winery, a sneak peek at a future Lincoln, outrunning tornados, a dead turtle and not quite making it back to our starting point.
All-in-all a very memorable trip. And a great new Lincoln.

Next stop: LA – Santa Monica to be precise – for the launch of the all-new 2009 Ford Flex.
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Lincoln promised us a memorable time for our drive experience of the all-new 2009 MKS luxury sedan – and they weren’t lying.

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In recent months I’ve been looking at getting a new car.  Actually, at first, I was looking at used cars, but, eventually, I ended up looking at new hatchbacks.  I was replacing a sports car and the point of the exercise was to get a vehicle that would save me gas, and be a little more utilitarian without totally giving up the fun factor.  After doing tons of research on the Internet, I ended up buying a special edition of the 2008 Scion xB - the Gold Rush Mica Release 5.0.

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At the beginning of April we brought you information about OnStar’s announcement concerning a couple of new navigation-based technologies it will soon be offering in nearly all GM vehicles equipped with the OnStar gear (that big blue button on your rearview mirror, for most of you who drive a newer model GM).

Today we visited with the traveling tour of the upcoming Generation 8 technology that will soon be ending high-speed stolen vehicle police chases as we know them - at least if the stolen vehicle is a new GM product.

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