Lexus

2011 Lexus CT 200h Base price: $29,995 (including destination charge) Price , as tested: $32,325 Powertrain: 1.8-liter, inline four cylinder DOHC with VVT-i engine with 60-kilowatt electric drive motor; electronically controlled continuously variable transmission (CVT) Horsepower: 134 Torque: 142 pound-feet at 4,000 rpm (gas engine only) 0-60 acceleration: 9.8 seconds Curb weight: 3,130 pounds    Wheelbase: 102.4 inches Overall length: 170.1 inches EPA fuel economy: 43 mpg city/40 mpg highway Final thoughts: A hybrid hybrid.

Lexus recently introduced an all-new car, the CT 200h, and it's a hybrid in more ways than one. Unless you're a descendant of Gregor Mendel or his peas, it's likely you think of hybrids in strictly automotive terms. But let us not forget that the term has long been more broadly applied to the result of two dissimilar entities being combined. Think of the pluot, a sweet combination of the plum and apricot. To that end, this five-door hatchback is a hybrid of performance and efficiency, entry-level economics and stylish luxury and, unfortunately, Lexus and cost cutting.

With all due respect to your bald neighbor in the sports car, the 2011 Lincoln MKX knows how to deal with a midlife crisis. Carmakers regularly update a model midway through its life cycle with minor tweaks to the interior, exterior or the engine's output. Quick fixes like these keep the car relevant while the automaker goes through the considerable cost and time of completely redesigning the model. Except no one told that to Ford Motor Co. when it went to update the MKX, which is largely based on the more pedestrian Ford Edge.

Recalls continue to plague Toyota Motor Corp., with the latest round extending to its premium Lexus line in the United States and to vehicles sold in Europe, where the Japanese automaker wants to sell more cars. Toyota is recalling 1.7 million vehicles worldwide because of a variety of problems with fuel systems. In the United States, Toyota said Wednesday that it would recall about 245,000 cars from its upscale Lexus line to inspect a fuel pressure sensor. Additionally, there are about 100,000 vehicles affected by the same problem outside of the U.S. The automaker also said it would recall more than 1.3 million vehicles sold outside of the U.S. to fix various fuel system problems unrelated to the defect in the Lexus models.

Toyota Motor Corp. cannot keep secret the terms of a settlement it made with the family of four people killed in a Lexus accident outside San Diego last year, a Los Angeles judge has ruled. California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor and three members of his family were killed in an August 2009 crash that was blamed on sudden acceleration, setting off a series of recalls and investigations into safety and quality at the world's largest automaker. Last summer, the Japanese automaker reached a settlement with relatives of the victims for an undisclosed amount.

A Torrance woman has sued Toyota Motor Corp., blaming a deadly 2008 freeway crash on a defect that she said caused her Lexus sport utility vehicle to accelerate out of control. Unmi Suk Chung was driving her 2004 RX330 on the 10 Freeway in West Los Angeles on Dec. 15, 2008, when the car raced to 80 mph, crashed on the Overland Avenue offramp and overturned, killing a passenger in the back seat. Chung and another passenger were injured. The lawsuit comes less than two months after the Los Angeles County district attorney's office dismissed a felony vehicular manslaughter charge it had filed against Chung in connection with the accident.

In a dogfight that could help consumers get some of the best deals in years, Mercedes-Benz and Lexus are neck and neck in the race to be the top seller of luxury vehicles in America. For the first time in a decade, Mercedes-Benz is close to toppling Lexus for the bragging rights. But with two months of sales left, Lexus isn't ready to give up the title. That has set the stage for what is expected to be an all-out fight with both brands pouring on the advertising and offering year-end deals.

Prosecutors have dismissed a vehicular-manslaughter charge against a Torrance woman who had blamed a deadly 2008 freeway crash on a mechanical glitch she said caused her Lexus sports utility vehicle to accelerate out of control. The decision by the Los Angeles County district attorney's office circumvented what could have been a spirited trial about whether human error or a computer-system malfunction caused Unmi Suk Chung's Lexus RX330 to crash on the 10 Freeway in West Los Angeles, killing a passenger in the backseat.

Two major Japanese automakers ? Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. ? said Thursday that they were recalling millions of vehicles to fix brakes that could leak fluids and hamper stopping power. Toyota is calling back and repairing free 1.53 million Avalon, Highlander and Lexus vehicles. Separately, Honda said it was recalling an undetermined number of Acura sedans and Odyssey minivans. Toyota's latest move follows a string of vehicle callbacks that has seen the world's largest auto manufacturer recall more than 10 million cars, trucks, SUVs and minivans because of various problems, including sticky gas pedals and defective electronics.