2008 may have been brutal for the auto industry but there have never been so many great cars.

Competition is fierce to say the least.

Despite what our congressmen in Washington D.C. may think, everyone, and I do mean everyone is turning out world class product these days.

I drove nearly 100 different examples of modern transportation this year and only a couple were duds.

Things are just that good.

With a tip of my hat to''This is Spinal Ta'' I humbly offer up my Top 11 List.

I base my choices on design, value, overall driving dynamics and how each vehicle stacks up to the competition in its class.

There are a few rules I always follow in this yearly ritual.

To keep things somewhat sane I have a price cap of $75,000.

That keeps the fabulous Nissan GT-R, BMW M3 convertible and Audi R8 out of the hunt.

If I didn't drive it then it doesn't make the cut.

Embarrassingly it means I have to pass on both major league pickup debuts, Dodge Ram and Ford F150.

I hear excellent things about both.

Finally, previous winners are allowed to compete even if I didn't warm their seats in '08.

Let's begin in alphabetical order.

Audi A5/S5. I drove the V8 S5and I can still hear the throaty engine in my dreams. Athletic and full of character, the A coupes ooze sophistication inside and out. We should all be so lucky. This Audi handles both luxury and performance roles with ease.

Cadillac CTS returns from 2007's Top 11 list. Distinctive knife edged style, dynamic performance and a well crafted cabin keep this car a winner. Available in rear and all-wheel drive, CTS proves The General has what it takes to compete. Leave this performance sedan off your test drive list and you're only cheating yourself.

Chevy Malibu is also back for a second year. In the white hot sedan market Malibu offers up what people want - an exceptional balance of handsome design, composed comfort and excellent fuel economy. All that at a reasonable price. A friend of mine saw one drive by and assuming it was imported asked''Why can't Americans build cars like that'' They do and it is good.

The perfect '70s time machine has been built and it's the Dodge Challenger R/T. The Prius crowd may not like the idea of a muscle car revival but this Dodge really draws a crowd. Punch the go pedal and an involuntary grin will stretch across your face. Not only does it have excellent performance and handling, it's perfectly drawn. Challenger gets my vote for design of the year. I prefer the R/T version to the uber powerful SRT8 because R/T offers better bang for the buck.

Ford’s Flex delivers on their outgoing slogan Bold Moves. It looks like a giant Scion xB or MINI Cooper. This rectangle on wheels is uncommonly quiet, spacious as a limo and can be had with Microsoft’s Sync system. There’s even an optional refrigerator allowing Ford to quip it’s the only vehicle on the road with a Sync and a fridge. If you need to transport seven people, Flex makes it hip to be square.

The small Honda Fit is a big deal. New and improved this year, it's frisky, frugal, and functional. It can hold five adults and handle loads of cargo with unique folding seats that have more moves that Juliana Huff. Looking to keep the budget lean? Fit is clearly the most engaging car in its class. Put it on top of your test drive list. I’ll have a full report on the Fit in the next week or two.

Jaguar XF is luxury redefined. Artistic, theatrical and emotional, the XF delights everyone who comes near it. The start button pulses with a heartbeat and the transmission controller rises up upon engine ignition. At night the instrument panel looks like a character from the classic Disney movie Tron. This is a beautiful car that almost seems alive, especially to a driver.

Who says families have to drive boring cars? Mazda6 has grown up in its redesign. There's generous room for five adults, spirited acceleration with the optional V6, crisp handling and sheetmetal that looks as if it were rendered in Italy. The 6 is one of the most dramatically improved cars of 2008. Check it out.

Pontiac G8. Possibly the most overlooked sedan of 2008. Many cars claim to be a budget BMW, G8 comes the closest. A true rear-drive performance machine, it's sized like a 5 Series but priced below the 3. Where I come from that's called a good deal. Available in V6, V8 GT, and soon the extra-strength GPX edition. Screwed together in Australia, G8 is the classic American performance sedan.

At first glance it would be easy to view Toyota's Venza crossover as the new Lexus RX350. It looks that good. The pleasantly designed cabin will haul five adults and their luggage. Venza is not a radical new kind of vehicle but a steady stream of small details keeps popping up, winning people over. Available in front or all-wheel drive, Venza will keep families happy for the long haul.

Finally, Volkswagen’s Jetta SportWagen. German engineering that looks and feels more expensive than it is. In the week I spent with this car it served my family’s needs perfectly, even enduring a mega shopping spree at IKEA. Available with a clean diesel engine that returns high MPG, SportWagen is fun to drive and useful to boot. If you don’t buy in to the misconception that wagons are dowdy, SportWagen just may become your best friend.

Those are my top picks for 2008.

You may have noticed the links that will send you to longer written reviews and streaming videos.

It was unusually tough to cull this list down this year. Other cars I enjoyed in '08 are Acura TL, TSX and MDX, Audi A4, BMW 3 Series, Buick Enclave, Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Journey, Infiniti G37, Kia Rondo, Mazda5 and Subaru Forester. All of these were seriously considered as possible Top 11 choices and worth a strong look.

Source:http://www.nbc13.com/vtm/news/local/article/video_best_cars_of_2008/53203/

For 2009, Infiniti is introducing a convertible version of its successful G series. In 30 seconds, this four-passenger sports machine will drop its three-piece folding steel roof to let in the sun.

The Infiniti G was originally introduced to Canada in 2002, featuring the manufacturer's trademark 3.5-litre V6 motor. For 2009, the G's displacement has been bumped to 3.7 litres. Peak power is delivered towards the 7,600 rpm redline; the motor is rated at 325 horsepower at 7,000 rpm and 267 lb.-ft. of torque at 5,200 rpm. Although the 2009 G37 Coupe can be had with all-wheel-drive, the convertible powers the rear wheels only.

Reinforced for both safety and structural rigidity are the body sills, front side member, and windshield pillars. Curtain-type airbags will rise from the side sills and a rear roll bar will pop up if things take a turn for the worse. Alas, structural modifications and roof mechanicals have added about 200 kg to the G37 Convertible, and the rear suspension has been revised accordingly.

Compared to the coupe, the G37 Convertible has a slightly wider rear track and larger overall width to accommodate the hardtop. To access the rear seats, the front seats electrically move forward at the touch of a button. Though the rear passenger space is smaller, the convertible has the same rear headroom as the coupe when the top is up. In this configuration there is a healthy 293 litres of trunk space that unfortunately crumbles to 56 litres when the top is down.

The 2009 Infiniti G37 Convertible has two variants that mainly differ by driveline. The Sport 6MT model lets the driver use their left foot and intuition to manipulate a proper manual transmission with 6 speeds. The other available model utilizes an advanced 7-speed automatic transmission. Though not a 'dual clutch' type, this automatic box features paddle shifters, a sports mode, and rev-match downshifts.

Source:http://www.auto123.com/en/news/car-releases/infiniti/2009-infiniti-g37-convertible-preview?model=G+Convertible&artid=103676

Bottomley, 85, is a native Chicagoan who remembers when ice and milk were delivered by horse-drawn wagons. After living as a starving artist in Paris he got his act together at age 50, started his own company, got married and never looked back.

My sister Phyllis, who is five years my junior, and I have been enthralled by the mystique of the automobile for our entire lives. In fact, I've been told the very first word I spoke was not mama or daddy, but "CAR!"

We are both now in our 80s, and we've owned a great many off-beat cars - mostly convertibles and jalopies. Some of these models went on to become valuable classics, such as my 1935 Ford convertible coupe and her 1950 Ford convertible, but along the way there have also been an MG Midget, a Hillman convertible, a Henry J, a 1964 Mustang convertible, a 500cc Fiat and a 1931 Rolls-Royce hearse. When my wife Anne and I married in 1975, Phyllis and her late husband drove the hearse to our church with big signs in the windows reading "Til Death Do Us Part," and "Marriage Is a Grave Undertaking."

My very first car was a 1930 Model A roadster acquired when I was 17 and my sister was 12. Together we painted it canary yellow and tore around our Chicago neighborhood in great style until World War II put an end to driving for pleasure and I was drafted into the army.

In more recent years, a friendly competition sprang up between us. To begin with, right after I got married, my wife and I bought a new 1975 Fiat X1/9 mid-engine sports car with a targa top. Phyllis countered with an electric VW Beetle that she and her family built by replacing the gas engine with a giant electric motor and filling the back seat area with 12-volt car batteries. It only ran a few hundred feet but it was nevertheless amazing!

And I will never forget driving our next car, a new baby-blue 1985 Renault Alliance convertible, off the showroom floor in Oakland. It was a lovely car that began to self-destruct almost immediately. It must have been the worst automobile ever built in the history of the universe, and by 50,000 miles it had gone through starters, alternators and, worst of all, a timing belt. Phyllis had the last laugh when we had to trade that one for an ancient Cadillac. But by 2001 I was sure my wife and I had outdone her with our very sharp little VW cabriolet (the best handling car we've ever had). However one day she drove up in front of our house in just about the coolest car I'd ever seen - a gorgeous maroon 1991 Infiniti convertible. She had the top down and wore a triumphant smile. Phyllis 1, John 0.

My wife and I had to get a car just like it. First we needed the money, which came to us out of the blue when Anne got her share of a class action settlement we'd forgotten all about! The next problem was finding an Infiniti convertible. Nissan had only made 5,000 of them and they are extremely rare. However, again luck was with us and we saw one in The Chronicle for sale from a dealer in Fremont. When we spotted the sharp all-black model on the lot we told the salesman we'd come for it. "Don't you want to know the price and don't you want to try it?" he asked. "I guess so," I replied, "but my main concern is, does the top work." The top worked. I parted with $6,000 cash and it was ours.

We'd lucked out yet again. For a car its age, it has been remarkably trouble free and has given us endless hours of pleasure in our retirement. Performance is sporty since it has the same engine as the Nissan Z cars. It is 17 years old now, and people still ask us what kind of car it is and remark on its striking beauty!

Sadly my sister's Infiniti turned out to be a lemon with unfixable electrical problems, and she had to get rid of it shortly after she bought it. Her spirit was broken and she settled for a drab econobox. However, lately she's been hinting that she'll get a smart car. My wife and I love smart cars (yes, they do make a convertible), and if she takes the bait we will be hard pressed to outdo her.

SFCHRONICLE CARS is produced by the marketing department of The San Francisco Chronicle.

For advertising rates and information, contact Brian Maier at (415) 777-8956 or bmaier@sfchronicle.com.

Source:http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/12/19/MTIA144P9U.DTL

Audi's R8 sports car has by no means become stale over its short, two-year lifespan, but the German automaker will soon be injecting the two-seater with a little more performance to ensure its ongoing popularity. Moreover, a convertible version of the R8 is just around the corner.

According to Car and Driver, Audi will take the wraps off the long-awaited R8 at an upcoming auto show, most likely March’s Geneva Motor Show. It remains to be seen what nameplate Audi will affix to the sporty drop top, but it is widely believed the new model will be dubbed the R8 Spyder.

Sources seemed to be mixed on what type of convertible top the R8 Spyder will use, with reports of both a conventional soft top and a simpler targa top. However, spy shots seem to indicate the latter. The R8 convertible’s interior will carry over from its fixed-roof counterpart. Expect to see the drop top R8 in European showrooms during the second half of 2009, with U.S. sales beginning in 2010.

But perhaps more exciting than the pending R8 Spyder’s reveal is the news that Audi plans to debut the V10-powered R8 coupe at January’s Detroit Auto Show. The V10-powered car will sport a 5.2L powerplant, developing 520 horsepower and 398 lb-ft of torque. The V10 – which will also be available for R8 Spyder buyers – will be offered alongside the 4.2L V8, but expect the V8 to be phased out in favor of the V10 in the subsequent years.

Check back for live pictures and all the details after the R8 V10 is unveiled next month.

Source:http://www.leftlanenews.com/audi-r8-spyder-v10-coupe-expected-in-coming-months.html

Audi has released details of its new A5 Convertible, the successor to the popular soft-top version of the A4. Rather than using a metal-folding roof, Audi has stuck with a lightweight fabric roof which folds down in just 15 seconds and stows neatly under the boot cover. The three-layer hood provides excellent insulation, but for even more refinement an optional acoustic hood is available which reduces sound intrusion to the same level as the A5 Coupe. There is also a new neck-level heating system built into the tops of the seats plus solar heat-reflecting leather upholstery. Prices will start at around £30,000 when it goes on sale in February.

Source:http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/coming-soon/Detail.aspx?page=284