Only when that unholy din is subdued does the GT3 RS sound anything like the smooth, sophisticated Porsche 911 we’ve all come to know and love.

But sitting in neutral, ticking away at its sub-1,000- r.p.m. idle with not even a hint of the orchestral exhaust music that awaits, the GT3 has already announced it is a race car. Although the ruckus is admittedly slightly attenuated from that of a track-only IMSA car or purebred Le Mans racer, there’s no mistaking all those mechanical grumblings for anything other than a highly tuned machine scrubbed of all unnecessary amenities (the carpeting is shaved to save weight, for gosh sakes), sound-deadening material and anything else not specifically dedicated to wringing every last ounce of speed out of its 4.0-litre highly tuned boxer six-cylinder.

Squint hard enough and the RS’s impatient idle is so authentic the Porsche factory’s parking lot is really Circuit Paul Ricard’s pit lane, the security guard is your pit crew and that uniform he’s wearing is really a Nomex fire retardant suit.

But there’s a third act, one that involves the twin conical aftermarket air filter kits feeding the larger 53-millimetre intake tubes. As the revs stretch for that last 2,000 r.p.m. to the RS’s 8,500-r.p.m. redline, those great honking intakes start making a sucking sound so convincing you start worrying for the poor birds flying overhead lest they get caught in the vacuum and are barbecued atop some high-compression Mahle pistons.

Naturally, all this assumes you have time to pay attention to this aural delight. All the internal-combustion music is the direct result of one seriously breathed-on boxer motor, one Porsche claims is churning out 493 horsepower. That’s the most ever from a normally aspirated 911 motor and within spitting distance of the immortal, twin-turbo-charged Turbo S.

Indeed, Porsche says the GT3 accelerates to 100 kilometers an hour in just 3.9 seconds, a time rendered even more impressive when you consider the RS is only available with a retro-tech six-speed manual gearbox that lacks the launch-control trickery of the Turbo’s PDK tranny.

But, in truth, neither the symphonic engine note nor the acceleration is the big surprise – the former because Porsche’s engines always sound sporty; the latter because even I can read press kits and 493 h.p. driving only 1,360 kilograms of car is always a recipe for ungodly acceleration.

Rather, it’s the amazing tractability of this motor that continued to astound long after I got used to just how quickly it could make the telephone poles fly past. This engine is tuned within an inch of its life.

Porsche didn’t start with its latest high-tech direct-injection boxer six when it created the new GT3 RS, but something called the Mezger engine – posed by the old block design – but to lengthen the stroke rather than bore the cylinders. That means those poor 102.7-mm pistons are traveling an almost Formula One-like 22.8 metres per second when the GT3 spins all the way to 8,500 r.p.m.

Engines like these are supposed to be highly strung beasts, temperamental in their comportment and ready to grenade at the slightest provocation. Instead, the GT3 is a model of civility (apart from the aural cacophony of meshing gears and booming exhaust, is easy. Street-legal it may be, but a daily driver it is not. Besides that stiff clutch, slightly reluctant gearshift lever and all that noise, there’s a suspension as stiff as Mike Huckabee’s speech delivery (the adjustable suspension offers two settings – immovable and intractable), tight-fitting, non-adjustable Recaro sports seats (conventional seats are available as a no-cost option) and brakes more sensitive than a Greek civil servant asked to give up his pension benefits.

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It is called the Kia Forte 5, and as the name implies, it’s a five-door compact hatchback. But with up to 550 litres of cargo volume, it is a station wagon both in capacity, utility and appearance.

Sharing the same architecture as the Hyundai Elantra Touring, the taut lines at the front penned by Kia chief  designer, Peter Schreyer, must by necessity give way to the more rounded lines at the rear to accommodate all kinds of cargo space.

It still is a very handsome design and a world away from the drab looks of the pre-Shreyer era. The Forte 5 will be available with a choice of two, inline four-cylinder engines starting with a 2.0-litre producing 156 hp and 144 lb-ft of torque found in the entry-level LX and the mid-level EX.

The other is the trusty 2.4-litre “world engine” used by a number of manufacturers besides Kia. It produces 137 hp and 168 lb-ft of torque and is used in the top trim SX.

A six-speed manual is standard for all three models with a six-speed automatic optional. Fuel consumption starts at 8.1/5.7L/100 km city/highway for the 2.0-litre manual to 8.0/5.5L/100 km for the automatic. With the 2.4-litre, the manual returns 9.2/6.2L/100 km while the automatic gets 9.0/6.2L/100 km while the automatic gets 9.0/6.2L/100 km.

Notice how advances in transmission engineering are starting to make the automatics more fuel efficient than manuals which has been historically the opposite for decades.

Six airbags, electronic stability control, traction control, anti-lock four-wheel disc brakes, brake assist and electronic brake force distribution are all standard and this is in a car. I drove both the LX and EX models starting with the LX with automatic.

Besides all the safety stuff the LX is surprisingly well equipped for the price with standard power windows/locks/power and heated mirrors; Bluetooth connectivity, 60/20 split rear seat and steering wheel-mounted audio controls.

One thing you can’t get on the base LX is air-conditioning. Rolling around outside Ann Arbor, Michigan, usual co-driver and I discussed how far and how fast Kia has developed in such a short time.

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For the 2012 Civic Hybrid, these improvements are numerous and include a new lithium-ion battery. Let’s look at what’s new with this hybrid system.

First, the Civic Hybrid’s performance has improved from the previous fifth-generation model significantly. Peak power numbers remain the same, but it comes in 500 r.p.m. sooner. Torque is up four foot pounds from 1,000 to 3,500 r.p.m.,which is a broader range that the torque band of previous models.

The result is quicker acceleration and better fuel economy, which is now estimated at 4.4 L/100km city and 4.2L/100 km highway.

The lithium-ion battery pack is one of the changes that contribute to these improvements. Located behind the rear seat back on the driver’s side of the car, the battery has a 35 percent increase in efficiency over the nickel metal-hydride battery previously used. The battery is also smaller and lighter, which helps improve both trunk space and vehicle performance.

There are well over a hundred different types of lithium-ion batteries. Each has its own unique chemistry and some are more efficient than others. In discussion with the Honda engineers, they chose their battery design based on performance and safety with an emphasis on safety.

There have been examples of lithium-ion batteries in consumer products such as laptops causing fires because of internal shorts developing, but the engineers tell me this happened because of that battery’s specific composition. The materials and design of the Honda battery are such that even if by chance an internal fault did develop or it was damaged in a collision, the battery would remain stable and safe.

A larger 1.5-litre gasoline engine is now used in the Civic Hybrid and it is combined with a more powerful electric motor. The control module optimizes the combination of gasoline and electric power to maximize the vehicle’s efficiency.

One of the major changes has been the ability of the car to operate in electric vehicle (EV) mode for a greater distance than in the past. The original IMA systems always started driving with the gasoline engine and used the electric motor to assist acceleration and provide regenerative power to charge the battery during braking.

The 2012 Civic Hybrid will pull away quietly under electric power only. To do this, the controller closes the engine valves and turns off the fuel injectors. The crankshaft is still coupled to the electric motor and still turning, but internal engine changes to reduce friction mean there is very little parasitic loss because of the turning crankshaft.

Friction-reducing strategies include plateau honing, which uses a two-stage grinding process instead of the more conventional single-honing process. Combined with a molybdenum coating applied in a unique dot-pattern on the piston skirts, low-tension piston rings and offset cylinder bores to reduce piston skirt loading, the pistons move with much lower friction in the cylinders and long-term wear is minimized, meaning longer engine life.

Other fuel-saving features include a two-stage variable valve control with variable cylinder management cylinder deactivation, low-friction valve train with roller rocker tips and a compact roller chain drive system for the valve train.

Achieving fuel economy is done in small steps rather than with one magic feature. The Idle Stop feature saves fuel in city stop-and-go driving, as does the combination belt/electric drive air conditioning compressor. A cooling-control spacer in the engine water jackets maintains a slightly higher cylinder temperature that increases piston-to-cylinder clearances for reduced friction. This feature alone increases fuel efficiency about one percent.

Finally, feedback to the driver is provided by the colour of the dash display, with green showing when driving the most efficiently. Honda’s new MID display monitors driving style and provides feedback on fuel economy, driving efficiency and hybrid power-flow patterns.

Modified driving style can have a huge impact on fuel economy, so this combined with all the other new technology on the 2012 Civic Hybrid brings it to a new level of efficiency.

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TYPE OF VEHICLE: Front-wheel drive compact sedan hatchback

ENGINE: 1.6L DOHC four-cylinder

POWER: 103 hp @ 5,800 r.p.m.; 107 lb-ft of torque at 3,600 r.p.m.

TRANSMISSION: Five-speed manual

SAFETY: ABS, side seat-mounted air bags (optional)

PROS:

1. Affordable transportation
2. Fuel economy
3. Hatchback versatility

CONS:

1. Sparse interior (LS)
2. Availability of ABS airbags
3. Performance

TRANSPORT CANADA RECALLS:

2006: Certain vehicles equipped with a 1.6L engine develop a fuel leak as a result of fuel line rupture in frontal crash test. In addition, the crash damage car four short circuits in the fuse block, the combination of which allowed the fuel pump to continue running allowing fuel to be pumped onto the ground.

2009: On certain vehicles, the hardware that secure the intermediate steering shaft to the steering gear have been incorrectly assembled and could loosen. Should the intermediate steering shaft detach from steering gear, a loss of steering control would occur.

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When it landed, the Aveo was available in base and LS models (later LS and LT). The base car arrived with, well, just the bare essentials – manual mirrors, an AM/FM audio system and a needed rear wiper for the hatchback.

Moving up to the LT added some of life’s little luxuries, including power windows and door locks as well as a CD player for the four-speaker sound system. It also featured a power mirror – on the right side.

Where the Aveo disappointed was that air conditioning and anti-lock brakes were options. Likewise, side airbags were optional until General Motors finally saw the light and made them standard in 2010.

The Aveo’s cabin was not a bad place to while away the kilometers – the materials were pretty good and the fit and finish were commendable. Ditto the driver’s lot in life. The seat was comfortable, the correct driving position was easily established and the view to the sides and rear was clean and uncluttered. In other words, it was a combination that made the Aveo very easy to wheel around in a congested urban environment.

As for the rest of it, the Aveo did deliver surprising room given its compact dimensions. Certainly, the rear-seat legroom started off as limited and shrank as the front seats were moved back, but it was usable for the most part. Aft of that, the sedan boasted a large trunk (11.7 cubic feet) and 60/40-split/folding seatbacks. The five-door model had modest cargo space with the seats upright. However, folding them flat and tumbling the rear seat up against the front seats brought a spacious 42 cu. ft.

In 2007, the Aveo sedan was restyled – with fresher interior and exterior styling – and it was longer (an increase of 75 millimetres). While the hatchback was renamed the Aveo5, it had to wait until 2009 to get its rework.

Both models arrived with a 1.6-litre twin-cam four-cylinder engine that pushed 103 horsepower and 107 pound-feet of torque. Normally, numbers like these make it feel as though one should get out and give the little car a push off the line to get it started. And, in the mid-range, it felt as though the engine was trying to push a 10-ton bumper out of its way.

Thankfully, the Aveo, while far from speedy, did feel reasonably lively when the gas pedal was prodded – credit the fact that peak torque turned up for work at a low 3,600 r.p.m. Yes, it took all of 11 seconds to meander its way to 100 kilometres an hour, but it got there without impeding traffic flow. In the mid-range, dropping a couple of the five-speed manual’s cogs saw it pull off an 80-to-120-km/h passing move in 9.6 seconds.

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“Affordability is a key issue,” he explains, “and so is weight. It’s almost impossible to keep the same size greenhouse and keep cost down without going up in weight.

“This will be a pretty substantial vehicle, because you’ve got to have a rock-solid body structure – for coupe and convertible alike.”

Although Ford has managed to keep the current Mustang’s underpinnings more or less viable for more than two decades – the Fox platform, which debuted on the 1978 Fairmont, is the oldest in the U.S. industry – those ancient bones will finally be laid to rest.

“The structure is going to be at least 85 percent new,” says Martens. “And no more Fox bits.”

But if its not Fox, then what? Mays, Martens, Hutting, and everyone else connected with the new Mustang are cagey on this point. The concept cars use the platform on which the Lincoln LS, Jaguar  S-type, and Ford T-Bird are built, but insiders hint that won’t be true of the production Mustangs. The LS platform is too expensive. Besides a well-located live axle, the new Mustangs will probably have struts up front rather than a control-arm suspension, and the body shell will be new.

We think the new Mustang will have bigger chassis dimensions -wheelbase and track – than the current car. Its length – now just over 183 inches – probably won’t change much, but it should lose the chunky looks, via a longer wheelbase (perhaps by as much as six inches over its current 101.3 inches) and reduced front overhang. Although the concept cars are two-seaters, we expect the production Mustangs will seat four.

“We plan to have defined seating positions back there, which isn’t really true of the current car,” says Martens, “but it won’t go beyond two plus two in terms of space.”

Martens and his crew are also mum on the issue of power. We know that like other gee-whiz elements – the adaptive headlamps, the convertible’s aluminum roll bar, the gear-drive watch-movement instruments, the 20-inch wheels – the concept car’s 400-hp supercharged DOHC 32-valve V-8 foretells the top-dog Mustang.

The base Mustang engine will continue to be a V-6 – “about 200 horsepower,” says Martens – but probably not the current 3.8-liter pushrod motor. What of the V-8? Our spies suggest it won’t be the current 260-hp, 4.6-liter SOHC V-8. More likely it will be a variation of the 300-hp, 24-valve V-8 from the Ford’s truck group.

“What you’re going to see is an engine you’ve seen before,” Martens says, “but maybe in a different Ford product. And I guarantee you will not be disappointed with the standard V-8.”

We expect a high-output V-8 – at least 400 horsepower – as well as an independent rear suspension on the next SVT Cobra, due within a year or so of the new Mustang.

And when will that be? We expect a first drive about a year from now, and don’t expect to see cars in showrooms before late spring. Does that seem a long time to you? Considering Ford has had almost 25 years to work on the new car, it seems that way to us, too.

Then again, at least the Mustang has a future. That alone is worth celebrating.

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