crossovers

The R-Class won a design award, went on tour with the Rolling Stones, was dropped in price, and still sold so poorly that Mercedes admitted the car was a failure. Yet M-B head man Dieter Zetsche said the car isn't going away, so as one does with continuing product, the R-Class is getting some face and tail work done.

Ford of Europe has an Individual Program that's been rolled out for a number of old world offerings, and now the Kuga gets its turn in the wardrobe room. Inspired by the Iosis concept from 2006, the new body kit and 20-inch wheels clothe a specialized interior for the Kuga Titanium that features Ebony Nappa and Bond leathers with contrasting piping and high-gloss Piano White fixtures.

The Chevy Orlando, due to be revealed at next month's Paris Motor Show, has turned tail and the rendering doesn't look half-bad. It's mildly reminiscent of the Audi A2 from way back when, in an exaggerated, chunked-up way, and we get a little Volvo feeling from the sculpted area of the rear lights. Overall, we give it a thumbs up.

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Audi Q5

For those of you queuing for the Q5, Audi has let loose a flood of new info on its high performance, low consumption, relatively low emission sports SUV. Consumers outside the U.S., get to choose between one of two diesel-sipping TDIs -- of 170 hp and 240 hp -- that are the envy of Stateside quattrophiles. Even with that 240 hp and 369 lb-ft, you'll still get 31 MPG. Folks in the fifty U.S. will need to make do with the 211 hp, 2.0-liter V6 FSI... which isn't exactly a complaint.