Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

AutoWeek Best of the Best 2011: Cadillac CTS-V Coupe, Jeep Grand Cherokee

Several decades have passed since we handed out an award whereby AutoWeek editors picked the best new vehicles in a given model year. We've dabbled in things such as "America's Best," when we've asked you--our faithful, opinionated and knowledgeable followers--to vote on the best vehicle in certain categories. We drive hundreds of vehicles each year (including all of the newest hardware), report the cold, hard facts and give you our opinions about which vehicles are worth your consideration when the time comes to make one of life's biggest purchases.

New Jaguar XE OFFICIALLY launched – price from £27,000

The new Jaguar XE arrives After months of teasing, years of planning and huge sums of money spent, it’s here – the new Jaguar XE. Looking like a slightly smaller version of the XF, with an upright nose, longish bonnet, coupe-like profile and stubby tail, the XE is clearly a Jaguar – and a fairly conservative one at that – which is probably sensible when  entering such a competitive sector as the ‘Premium’ compact saloon market. But the new XE isn’t just a punt for a few sales in a new sector for Jaguar, but a car that could take Jaguar from an interesting maker of relatively low volume cars to a global ‘Premium’ car maker; nose to nose in a very competitive sector with, principally, Audi and the A4, BMW and the 3 Series and Mercedes and the C-Class.

Mercedes SL (2012) first official pictures

All-new SLs seem to come around as often as Halley’s Comet, but here are the first Stuttgart-sanctioned shots of Mercedes’ sixth generation premium roadster – the 2012 Mercedes SL. If it looks familiar, that’s because it’s already had more lenses pointed at its disguised bodywork than Pippa Middleton’s derrière – and CAR’s own renderings earlier this year weren’t far wide of the mark. So what’s the big news with the new 2012 Mercedes SL then?