With the 2011 Buick Regal CXL, Buick takes a giant step toward relevance, desirability and-can it be? - excitement.

The Regal's tidy dimensions, athletic shape and excellent handling inject some badly needed panache into the brand General Motors chose to save over Pontiac, Saturn, Saab and Hummer.

The Regal aims to compete with sporty front-wheel drive midsize sedans such as the Acura TSX, Mazda 6 and Volkswagen Passat.

Prices for the 2011 Regal start at $26,245 for the CXL. It comes with a 182-horsepower 2.4-liter four-cylinder direct injection engine and six-speed automatic transmission. The CXL is the only model currently on sale. Buick plans to add a 220-horsepower model with a turbocharged 2.0-liter later this year. Prices for the Regal CXL Turbo will start at $28,745.

LOS ANGELES -- Cars typically force drivers to make a choice: sporty but piggish on fuel or efficient and underwhelming.

With its 2011 CR-Z, Honda Motor Co. is playing with a new concept. It's called responsible indulgence, and Honda's debuting the idea with a two-seat "sporty hybrid coupe" that's got some spunk but doesn't force drivers to check their environmental consciences at the door. Starting at $19,200, the CR-Z offers conservationist virtues and Kardashian curves on a Kmart budget.

The latest gas-electric powertrain from Honda is slightly larger than the one used in its slow-selling Insight hybrid. The CR-Z has 0.2 liters of additional displacement and twice as many valves on its inline four cylinders. As a result, its 1.5-liter i-VTEC engine and 10-kilowatt brushless electric motor are slightly less fuel efficient, rating 39 miles per gallon on the highway for the automatic and 37 mpg for the one I tested - a six-speed manual transmission, a first for a hybrid car.

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/27/2986767/honda-cr-z-aims-to-have-fuel-efficiency.html?storylink=lingospot_related_articles#ixzz0yJigwGgq

Despite economic uncertainty, Californians apparently are ready to hit the road over the upcoming holiday weekend.

A survey released Monday by AAA Northern California predicts an 11 percent increase in the number of Californians expected to travel over the Labor Day weekend, compared with last year.

AAA projected that more than 4 million Californians will travel 50 miles or more from their homes.

"Despite the continued mixed feelings regarding the economic recovery, a strong comeback in travel is anticipated for this holiday weekend," said AAA spokeswoman Cynthia Harris. "Compared to last year, fewer Californians are expected to pull back on discretionary spending, which will have a considerably positive impact on travel."

AAA expects that more than 3.5 million Californians will drive to reach their holiday destinations, an 11.6 percent increase over 2009.  Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/31/2993798/11-rise-forecast-in-californians.html#ixzz0yCMVnKTK

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