NY Auto Show

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The New York International Auto Show was paired down compared to years past but was not without its share of new vehicle introductions and concept car debuts. The list below details what was hot at the 2009 show.

The new 2010 Range Rover Sport Supercharged is a wolf in sheep's clothing. The Jaguar powered 5.0-liter supercharged V8 puts out 510 bhp, besting last year's 4.2-liter engine by 120 hp. You even get steering wheel mounted paddle shifters. This new engine is good for a run from  0 to 60 mph in 5.9 seconds. I know, I know, it's not a true sub-5-zero car, but I include it since it certainly conforms to our criteria in spirit.  And any time a truck gets jacked to over 500 hp you have to take note. Check out the video of the 2010 Range Rover Sport tackling some rough terrain:

A couple weeks ago we posted an article about Brabus beating AMG to the punch in tuning the new Mercedes-Benz E550. Now, AMG has come back over the top with the unexpected. The 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG packs a 6.3-liter V8 engine putting out 518 hp with 465 lb-ft of torque. This makes it capable of a 4.4 second 0 to 60 mph time. The new AMG bests the Brabus version by 56 hp and .3 seconds in the sprint to 60 mph. Top speed is electronically limited to 155 mph (but an extra AMG option allows it to run up to 186 mph.)

The new Audi A5 and Audi S5 Cabriolet have just made their debut at the 2009 New York Auto Show. Both models sport a new lightweight fabric top that opens in 15 seconds. Just long enough to slap on your sunglasses and take a sip of latte. There are now folding rear seat backs and a large pass through available between the trunk and interior as a result of using a cloth top.

No question, the 2009 Nissan 370Z is an amazing car. But, personally, I feel that the aesthetics make the car look a bit soft since it has to appeal to both sport cars junkies and people who like to think it's "cute." The 2009 NISMO 370Z takes that fluff, beats out the stuffing, gives it some jail house tats and puts a chip on its shoulder (figuratively speaking of course). The car that I had hoped the new Z would closer approach is now going to be available thanks to the gear-heads over at NISMO, Nissan's in-house tuning operation.

Much has been said about the previous Nissan 350Z convertible and none of it was good. A few expletives were even thrown in... But now, the 2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster looks like it's comfortable in its own skin. The new fabric top is single-action and power-operated, even taking care of such mundane duties as securing the latch to the windshield header. It can be activated either by a switch inside or a small button on the door handle. Because of exposure to the elements, heated and cooling ventilated net seats are now available.

The new 2010 Nissan 370Z Roadster uses the same 3.7-liter V6 engine as the Coupe which puts out 332 hp with 270 lb-ft of torque. It also offers identical choices of transmissions. The 7-speed automatic with Downshift Rev Matching and Adaptive Shift Control provides the driver with the ability to change gears using paddle shifters when in manual mode. If you want the real deal, a 6-speed manual gearbox is available as well. The estimated gas mileage is 18 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway for both transmissions.

Sales for BMW's M Division were up 50% in 2008. Go figure. And, when they announced these figures back in February of this year, BMW M Gmbh promised to actually expand its range in 2009, bucking the current economic climate and prevailing trends.  Until now their product line included the M3 Coupe/Sedan/Convertible, M5, M6 Coupe/Convertible and Z4 M Roadster/Coupe.

The 2009 NY Auto Show will showcase the new BMW X6 M and BMW X5 M sporting twin-turbocharged 555 hp engine capable of 500 lb-ft of torque in a wide power band from 1,500 up to 5,650 rpm. This is a substantial boost from the standard 4.4-liter twin-turbocharged V8 found in both previous top-of-the-line vehicles that produced a maximum of 400 hp and 450 lb-ft of torque. And how, pray-tell, did they accomplish this feat? With a little engineering wizardry known as Cylinder-bank Comprehensive Manifold (CCM). The new M engine is the first in the world with a pulse-tuned exhaust manifold covering the cylinder rows in combination with high-performance twin-scroll twin turbo technology. The end result is that both models perform 0 to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds.