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Consumer Reports' Luddites strike again

I am a technological wizard. At least that's the conclusion to which I've come after reading the January issue of Consumer Reports, which calls Cadillac CUE, the automaker's new infotainment system, “maddening.” After all, I had figured out CUE in a matter of minutes while acclimating myself to our Best of the Best ATS sedan last month. CUE, short for Cadillac User Experience, uses a touch-sensitive screen, capacitive switches and tactile, vibrating feedback to help drivers perform various functions.

First Sight: Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupe

The third installment of Mercedes-Benz's ‘small' car family will receive its global preview with a close-to-production concept set to debut at the Beijing motor show next week, but Car Design News has gained an early peek of the official images and details. The Concept Style Coupe heralds the much-vaunted ‘mini-CLS' compact four-door coupe production car (rumored to be dubbed BLS or CLA) that's slated to go on sale in the second half of 2013. It's based on the same new platform – called MFA for ‘Mercedes Front-wheel drive Architecture' – that has already spawned the new A- and B-Class cars.

McLaren Automotive officially launches as the MP4-12C speeds toward production

McLaren Automotive laid out its ambitious plans to become a competitive player in the high-performance car market on Thursday and wants to build up to 4,000 top-shelf sports car annually by the middle of the decade. The company held a grand opening at its base in Woking, England, to celebrate the progress and officially unveil the MP4-12C as it moves toward production. The estimated 592-hp supercar is expected to be exceptionally light and aerodynamic as the company takes aim at the best of Ferrari and Lamborghini.