Scott Usa Xi/80s Works Film Kit - Clear on 2040-parts.com

Secrets of bidders: Is this your year to steal a car at the Arizona auctions?

Each January, enthusiasts flock to Arizona for the most exciting events on the auction calendar. Seven companies--Barrett-Jackson, RM Auctions, Gooding & Co., Russo and Steele, Kruse International, ICA Auctions and Silver Auctions--will duke it out, with more than 3,000 collector cars on the block. But with real estate tanking, the economy in a tailspin, consumer confidence at an all-time low, retail car sales bottoming and automakers begging for loans in Washing-ton, is this any time to buy an old car at auction?

Ford's Mulally gets warm reception at CES

Ford CEO Alan Mulally introduced the Focus electric at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show on Friday in a presentation that was short on details about the car and long on cures for range anxiety. That's partly because Ford is saving details about the car for next week' Detroit auto show, and partly because range anxiety figures to be a major reason for all but the most committed customers to avoid electric vehicles like the Ford Focus electric. Mulally managed to avoid using the term, but said Ford is confronting range anxiety head-on.

One Lap of the Web: Cop-car guide, an inside look at Morgan Motors and the best hybrid cars

We spend a lot of time on the Internet -- pretty much whenever we're not driving, writing about or working on cars. Since there's more out there than we'd ever be able to cover, here's our daily digest of car stuff on the Web you may not otherwise have heard about. -- Just when we think everything is going smoothly when we're driving, those flashing lights pull up behind us.