Revving nearly six grand through a combination of corners in the hills outside of Seattle, one thing is abundantly clear: the chassis on the Ford Focus is dialed-in. Turn-in is crisp, the tires deliver good grip, the suspension takes a nice set, and the brakes are responsive. The only shortcoming is that we could really use another 60 horsepower.

In the past year, the automotive industry has had considerable focus on full-size pickups. Toyota’s all-new Tundra, Ford’s Super Duty pickups and supercharged Harley Davidson F-150, and GM’s Silverado/Sierra have all but stolen the spotlight away from the smaller haulers that these manufacturers offer. We often forget about the Tacomas, Frontiers, Canyons, Colorados, and Rangers of the world, so it’s nice to be reminded about their presence every now and again.

We have just spent a week with Nissan’s offering in the baby pickup segment, a 2008 Frontier outfitted with the Nismo off-road package. Complete with a 261-horsepower V-6 engine and six-speed manual transmission, we’re happy to say that the Frontier left smiles on our faces.

Click through the jump for our driving impressions and click the images below to open a high-resolution gallery.

Price as tested: $29,095 (est.)
Miles driven during test: 690

Subaru launched the WRX Impreza back in 2002 to rave reviews from enthusiasts. We overlooked the unique styling of the first WRX because it was such a great car from behind-the-wheel. A turbocharged variant of Subaru’s creamy flat-four and symmetrical all-wheel-drive all rolled up into one very neat package made our hearts beat just a little bit faster every time we drove one. Four generations later, we still praise the WRX for these qualities, though the initial shock value has worn off. The same general components are there, but this WRX has just a little bit more to love.

Introduced at this year’s New York International Auto Show, members of the press and Internet forum goers instantly turned away from the fourth-generation WRX’s exterior styling. While we’re not in love with it, let it be known that two-dimensional photography does not do this Subie justice. When our silver test car first arrived at our Ann Arbor offices, we were a little skeptical about the appearance, but after spending some quality time with the WRX, many staffers warmed up to its look. Overall, we feel that the front fascia isn’t nearly as aggressive as the outgoing model, but like the added ground effects along the front and side panels.

Inside, the WRX’s interior quality is much improved...

(Click through the jump for more impressions of the WRX, and click the images below to open a high-resolution gallery)

Price as tested: $21,615
Miles driven during test: 294

The lead photograph above, taken by WINDING ROAD associate art director Adam Morath, perfectly captures what we liked most about the Mitsubishi Lancer GTS that graced our test fleet recently. Onlookers were impressed with the road presence that our electric blue Mitsu had—several car junkies approached us wanting to know more about the car, and others just stared enviously. Simply put, this is one of the best looking cars to ever come out of Mitsubishi.

The front and rear look particularly menacing, and the GTS’ standard eighteen-inch wheels really give the model a great stance. However, after spending some time in the good graces of this Lancer, our main gripe is that its mean, aggressive exterior styling isn’t truly reflected in the overall driving experience...

(Click on link below to continue reading this WR Fleet entry, or on the thumbnails below to launch a high-resolution gallery)

Price as tested: $45,610
Miles driven during test: 560

I was fortunate enough to take our test Suburban to a weekend family gathering in Lewiston, Michigan earlier this month.

Audi S8 Quattro AT6
Price as tested: $110,170
Miles driven: 95

According to spy shooter Hans Lehmann, the snapper who provided us with these unorthodox spy shots, this morbid hunk of a test car is actually an Audi RS8. We’ll leave the brief telling of this sob story to Hans:

2007 SAAB 9-5 AERO SPORTCOMBI
Price as tested: $44,370
Miles driven: 467.7

When I was much younger, my mother was working as the office manager at Automobile Magazine, and frequently drove home in a cherry red long-term Saab 9-5 Wagon. I remember loving that car, even from the passenger's seat. To this day, I can remember the smell of the leather, the quirky chirp the car would make when the doors were locked, and the frustration on my mother's face while neglecting to remember the center console-mounted ignition. I always felt so high and mighty when she would drive me to school in that car, simply because the 9-5 stood out as being genuinely unique when mixing it up with the barrage of minivans and sport-utility vehicles in the parking lot.

Just as nostalgia was taking hold of my brain, I was pleased to learn that not only would a 9-5 wagon (now dubbed "SportCombi") be joining our fleet, but it would be my chariot for one of the warmest, most beautiful weekends that we've had in the past few months here in southeast Michigan. Three days and 467 miles later, I'm quite pleased with Saab's top-dog estate.

2007 GMC Acadia FWD SLT
- As tested price: $40,745
- Driven from Ann Arbor to Traverse City, Michigan, Round trip, 550+ miles.
- Fuel Economy: 18 city / 26 highway

Under normal circumstances, the 250 mile drive from Northern Michigan's vacation land back down to Detroit takes four to five hours. In a blizzard, on unplowed highways, with gusting wind and snow so thick you can barely see what's in front of you, tack on another three and hope you've got the right car for the job.

The first hour or so of just such a drive, I wasn't sure about GMC's new Acadia. When better-equipped H2s and Yukons are just barely inching past, obviously fighting their own battle against the elements, your thoughts enter a deep philosophical exploration as to how a sport-utility vehicle (crossover or otherwise) can be labeled as such with front-wheel drive only. One might compare it to drinking decaf or cooking with Splenda: you get the form but not the function. Perhaps we could coin "stylish [but] useless vehicles" for cases like this - but it's best not to jump to conclusions.