Considering their specs alone might lead you to believe that these two Detroiters are cut from the same bolt of cloth. After all, both are based on bargain-priced grocery-getters fortified with blown four-cylinders, big rolling stock, and additional aero appendages.

By Jim McCraw

After recently testing the 2009 Toyota Matrix, we ordered up a new Pontiac Vibe AWD for a one-week stay in our test fleet. While the Vibe didn’t knock our socks off with outstanding performance, we commend the little five-door on its all-around usable nature. Click the images below to launch a gallery and click through the jump to read our full impressions.

Imagine being a Hummer engineer.

Just in time for warm weather to grace our Michigan office, a 2009 Mercedes-Benz SLK350 rolled into our test fleet for a fourteen-day stay. For 2009, Benz has removed the manual transmission from the 350, which was one of the best parts of the SLK we tested last year, but we weren’t completely turned off by the 7G-Tronic manu-matic setup which has been added in its place. The new SLK boasts more power and a revised appearance, and it quickly became a dear friend to all of us on staff. Click through the jump to read our full impressions and click the images below to launch a gallery of our SLK350 test car.

So, you want a Porsche Cayenne Turbo, but Stuttgart's two-row SUV isn't spacious enough to swallow your clan and its growing impedimenta. What's a well-heeled enthusiast to do?