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We're actually kind of fond of the Ford Ka. Apparently, so, too, is Kylie Minogue.

"Hey, Kylie, get off that StreetKa."

She won't listen. She's already gotten comfortable.

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Since the birth of the automobile, women have been posing on cars. Often, it’s in order to sell something. Spokesperson + product = advertisement. Sometimes, the car and the woman placed together highlight the aesthetic qualities of one another, making a good photograph great. Occasionally, there’s no good reason for anyone to be on top of a vehicle (sometimes accompanied by us yelling, “Hey, that’s my car!”).

The above gallery, without veering off into the arena of the wholly distasteful (*cough*lowriders*cough*), runs the gamut of these types of woman-and-car matchups. Click through, and enjoy.

Recent List:

+ Ten Cars We Wish Were Still Sold Here

Pros:

• Attractive instrument panel provides useful feedback for fuel-efficient driving
• Very quiet in electric and gasoline modes
• Comfortable and roomy

Cons:

• Not much different from Ford Fusion Hybrid
• At-the-pump savings overshadowed by price tag
• Softness and quietness extinguish driver excitement

Car Summary:

The Mercury Milan Hybrid, though providing little excitement, is a pleasant and entertaining car to drive. While it may not be worth the higher price tag when compared to what one would save on fuel costs, the Milan captures the spirit of hybrid ownership. With a supremely quiet ride, a long range, and an instrument panel that constantly gives feedback about power usage and fuel economy, among other things, this sedan allows the driver to understand when and how they are reaping the benefits of the hybrid technology. Furthermore, the Milan offers a comfortable, roomy ride and a dignified (though rather ordinary) appearance.

Read more about the 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid on the vehicle's buyer's guide page, where you'll find our driving impressions, previous road tests, galleries, and more. You can find buyer's guides to other vehicles in the NextAutos car search database.

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Ford did an extensive overhaul on all three of their mid-size cars -- the Fusion, Milan, and MKZ. We've just received our first one of these into the test fleet, and it's a Mercury Milan Hybrid. Ford is really proud of their latest hybrid offerings, and with proposed fuel economy of up to 41 miles per gallon in the city, they have every right to boast.

Click on over to our Ask It forum and tell us what you want to know about the new gas/electric Mercury. We'll do our best to answer all of your questions during the Milan's week-long stay in our office and post other driving impressions about the vehicle, too.

+ NextAutos Forums: Ask It: 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid

As Ford continues to expand its North American lineup, the company's entire portfolio is expected to be largely upgraded by 2010. Ford's new focus on small cars and infusing its European models into the American lineup are of greatest concern.

It has now been confirmed that Ford will be cutting the Taurus X and Mercury Sable. Dealers have already been told to start taking final orders, and production on both models will end within the first and second quarters of next year. This seems like a logical step for Ford, seeing as how Taurus X sales were down 41 percent to last year with the Sable down 21 percent, as well. With the new seven-passenger Ford Flex trumping the Taurus X in style and space, it's no wonder that the second-generation Freestyle would be put to sleep. The Sable, on the other hand, isn't too drastically different from the Taurus sedan and only managed to sell 15,586 units last year.

+ Motor Authority: Ford ending production of Taurus X and Mercury Sable

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Toyota Prius
48 mpg city / 45 mpg highway / 46 combined

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If there was one positive factor about 2008's energy crisis, it's that it forced consumers to put more weight on fuel economy when making car-buying decisions. And while we may have moved away from $4-per-gallon gasoline, fuel efficiency still places high on the "must have" list for a lot of new car shoppers. Now that we know how easily these price hikes can happen, it's better to be safe than sorry, right?

We've seen major manufacturers expanding their ranges of hybrid offerings, and for the first time, clean diesels are starting to make their way onto American soil, proving that you don't have to sacrifice performance for the sake of fuel consumption. Scroll through the gallery above to see out list of the ten most fuel efficient cars for 2009.

Note: This information is based off of the 2009 FuelEconomy.gov listing.

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After spending a little over a week and a half in our test fleet, we found the 2009 Mercury Mariner Hybrid to be a good contender in this segment, but not something we’re eager to drive on a daily basis. For the new model year, Ford bumped up the power of the four-cylinder gasoline motor to 175 horsepower, but overall acceleration is still somewhat slow. On top of that, the weak engine mated to continuously variable transmission creates a really horrible noise when a lot of power is needed. The interior, however, is quite pleasant, and we're definitely not complaining about nearly 30 miles per gallon in observed fuel economy.

Click through to read all of our individual impressions of the Mariner Hybrid.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/080722/ford_smallcar.html?.v=2

Mercury, a marque founded by the Ford Motor Company in 1939, may see the end of its days in 2012. Current models such as the Montego, Grand Marquis, and the Mariner will end approximately in the 2011 to 2012 period without any plans for renewal. In fact, the last vehicle remaining from Mercury could be the midsized four-door Milan, as no other models are planned beyond 2012.Though officials from Ford won't confirm the phasing out of Mercury, all clues still point in the same direction.

When Ford CEO Alan Mulally verified that there indeed was a new Ford Taurus for 2010, nothing was mentioned about a Mercury version; same story with the Lincoln MKT crossover concept when it was revealed at the Detroit auto show.

(Click through the jump to read more.)

Last week we brought you Consumer Reports’ Top Picks of 2008. Now, we’re letting you in on the worst 11. Chrysler takes a huge hit from Consumer Reports with four out of the bottom 11 belonging to the struggling automaker.

Lincoln Mercury dealers were looking for some insight into Mercury’s future from Ford execs at this year’s National Automobile Dealers Association Conference. They didn’t get it.