942544 Flowmaster 40 Series Delta Flow Chambered Muffler on 2040-parts.com

Autoweek in review: What you may have missed

A lot was going on at One Autoweek Tower during February's first week. Besides the Chicago Auto Show we talked Super Bowl commercials, Formula One testing and even reviewed a supercar. Here are some of the biggest stories from the week.

Mini Countryman (2010): first official pictures

This is the Mini Countryman, the fourth addition to Mini’s range – after the regular three-door hatch, the Convertible and the Clubman – and also the first current-generation Mini to have four-wheel drive and four regular passenger doors. No, Mini says the Countryman is a crossover, and the four-wheel drive system – called Mini All4 – is an option. Think of the Countryman as a slightly bigger and more practical Clubman with a longer wheelbase than other Minis, four proper doors and a conventional lift-up rear hatch, but to make sure it looks a bit more butch Mini has given the Countryman a bigger, bluffer nose than its siblings.

2010 Buick LaCrosse launches at Detroit Auto Show

Update: Click here to watch video of the Buick LaCrosse: http://miad.autoweek.com/vidcast/2010_buick_lacrosse.m4v General Motors’ Buick division will launch the redesigned-from-the-ground-up Buick LaCrosse at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show in Detroit on Jan. 12. GM says the new LaCrosse is truly global, with an exterior designed in the States (and reminiscent of the Invicta concept from the 2008 Beijing motor show), an interior developed in China, Buick’s biggest market, and a platform done by Opel in Europe.