2008-2012 Kawasaki Klx 450r New! Complete Rear Fender. Ufo. Includes Tail Light. on 2040-parts.com

Autoweek's 2014 Best of the Best Finalists -- sneak peek

Every year, as hundreds of new cars and trucks pass through our fleet for evaluation, we are always on the lookout for those dazzling few deserving more careful scrutiny for our top honors, the Autoweek Best of the Best. It's down to three cars and three trucks that our regular readers quickly will recognize in the video above, designed to whet your appetite as we get further along in the judging. We'll be bringing you full details on our Best of the Best/Car and Best of the Best/Truck finalists in the coming days, along with updates as we get closer to announcing our winners in the December 23 issue of Autoweek.

New Mercedes CLA helps Daimler to 16% profit jump

The new Mercedes CLA (pictured) help Mercedes to a 16% profit jump. There’s an argument that the move in to more compact car sales by premium car makers will see their turnover rise and their profits fall as more compact cars tend to work on smaller margins than high-end luxury cars. But Mercedes has defied that logic by posting a 16 per cent increase in profits for the third quarter of 2013, boosted by sales of the new compact coupé – the Mercedes CLA.

Lexus LF-Ch – the front

Front view of the Lexus LF-Ch (click image for bigger photo) The LF-Ch is a big deal for Lexus. They do make a very good car, but almost all are fairly uninspiring. The sporty ISs is a fairly good drive, and the IS Convertible is a decent alternative for a 4 seat drop-top as long as you don’t want to thrash the car to the edge of its limits.