Just in time for the opening of classes throughout the country, CNN Money recently released its selection of the seven best college cars. Choosing the best from today’s crop of new, low-priced car models is not an easy task. The team at CNN Money found that there is a surprising number of options available for the college student or the recent college grad even though they restricted their choices to cars with a starting base sticker price of below $16,000. CNN Money’s criteria for choosing the best college cars include great fuel economy, functionality and safety and size. Based on these, here are the seven best college cars according to CNN Money, ranked from the lowest to highest base price:

Nissan Versa - $12, 450

Scion xA - $12, 780

Dodge Caliber - $13,425

Ford Focus - $13,450

Mazda3 -$13, 710

Honda Fit - $13,850

Kia Sportage - $15,900

Source

Japanese automakers Toyota and Nissan will recall more than half a million vehicles due to various defects. Toyota will recall SUVs due to a piece from the console that can obstruct the gas pedal while Nissan will recall sedans to fix faulty sensors. The Toyota recall encompasses 2004-2005 Highlanders and Lexus RX 330’s as well as early 2006 models of the Highlander and RX400 hybrids. Seven complaints and two accident reports prompted the company to order the recall. Meanwhile, the Nissan recall involves vehicles with 2.5 liters. Defects in these cars sensors can cause the engine to stall at low speeds or at stop-and-go traffic.

The information gathered from more than 60 million visitors of Kelley Blue Books’ kbb.com, the most visited third-party auto web site in the net, comprised of the raw data of the latest most researched vehicles for the first six months of 2006. Included in the Top 20 list of America’s most trusted source of new and used automotive information are the following.

Honda Civic
Honda Accord
Toyota Camry
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Rav4
Honda Odyssey
Honda Pilot
Toyota Highlander
Chevrolet Tahoe
Honda CR-V
Ford Mustang
Nissan Altima
BMW 325
Acura TL
Toyota Sienna
Toyota 4runner
Ford Escape
Infiniti G35
Toyota Avalon
Mazda 3

On top of the list are Asian models, Honda and Toyota. Seven slots are occupied by Toyota and five by Honda, which are all included in the Top Ten. In place of the Chrysler 300 and Jeep Grand Cherokee, which has fallen off from the current list, are Toyota RAV4 and Chevrolet Tahoe. Together with the Tahoe is the Ford Mustang, the sole domestic models that made it to the most researched line-up.

Two utilitarian minivans came in at the 6th and 7th spots, the Honda Odyssey and the Toyota Sienna respectively. Three entry level luxury vehicles also made it in the list - the BMW 325, Acura TL and Infiniti G35 (pictured above) – which according to Jack R. Nerad, executive editorial director and market analyst of Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com have definitely become the brands and vehicles that the public aspires to drive and own.

The German Car Blog reports that Audi has begun production of the newest version of the Audi TT sports car. Audi has spent almost 230 million euros on new production technologies and equipments to ensure that the new TT is produced with highest quality standards and latest production methods. The production of the TT will be a joint effort between two Audi plants, the main plant in Ingolstadt, Germany where the TT’s body will be built and painted and the Audi Hungaria Motor Kft. in Györ, Hungary where final assembly will take place.

The assembly line at both plants have been redesigned and streamlined without any compromise in the quality of the vehicle, Audi says. The automaker is not about to gloss over the finest details. In fact, TT’s are regularly taken out of the production process and tested by laser measurement to ensure that everything is at its right configuration.

The new TT is an improvement on its predecessor especially in the way it is constructed, its overall body weight and weight distribution, longer wheelbase, and roomier interior. The body of the new TT is a mix of both steel and aluminum that weighs in at 3146 lbs, about a hundred pounds lighter than the previous version. The redesigned and freshened 2007 Audi TT is poised to be a fierce challenger in the luxury sports car segment, already populated by the BMW Z4 Coupe, Nissan 350Z, Porsche Cayman S and the Mercedes-Benz SLK. It will be available in North America by April of next year.

The legendary Chevrolet Corvette widely regarded as “America’s Sports Car’, zoomed to the top of 2006 list of the top ten “sexiest, hottest, and wildest wheels” released by Road and Travel Magazine. The other pony car, Ford Mustang, came in at second. Rounding up the elite list were the BMW Z4, Hyundai Tiburon, Honda S2000, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Mercedes-Benz SLK, Nissan 350Z Roadster, Dodge Charger, and the new Pontiac Solstice. As expected, almost all the cars listed were sports cars and coupes with the exception of the Dodge Charger, the only four-seater on the selection.

All these cars possessed one common denominator: pure sex appeal. Road and Travel Editor-in-chief Courtney Caldwell explained the predilection towards sports cars. She said that ‘sports cars are all about the sensations they inspire from how the supple leather feels on our skin to its aromatic splendor, from the youthful spirit felt driving one to the sun on our back and wind in our hair; Sports cars are about fantasy and self image. Just looking at one incites erotic thoughts and visions of grandeur. Owning one turns those images into reality!’

The other cars who made it to the list have already won accolades from other award-giving bodies. The Pontiac Solstice took home the ‘Most Sex Appeal’ award at the 2006 International Car of the Year Awards. The Dodge Charger won the coveted top plum: Car of the Year. Meanwhile, Nissan 350Z’s ads won for it the 2nd Annual Heart String Award for best car commercial, also given out by Road and Travel Magazine.

The market share of the three major domestic automakers continues to slip, with sales for the month of May remaining flat, and market share falling to a near-record low of 52.9%. General Motor’s share fell to 22.7% down from 28.8% in 2005. Ford also experienced a slight drop in share, from 18.9% last year to 18.6% this year. Ford’s perennial bestseller, the F-150 saw a drop in sales by up to 6% last month, despite incentives. Chrysler’s share took a dive to 14.3% from 15.5%.

Meanwhile, Asian automakers continue to expand their share of the market. Toyota’s sales were stronger by 17% boosted by strong performance from luxury arm Lexus. For the second consecutive month, sales of Toyota brands outpaced that of Daimler-Chrysler’s. Meanwhile, Honda sales, riding on the very successful Civic, grew by 16.1%. Not all Asian brands, however, were looking up. Sales for Nissan dropped to 7.3% as most of the cars and trucks in its lineup are nearing the end of their model life. Demand for minivans, SUVs and pickup trucks stayed flat with buyer interest shifting towards smaller, fuel-efficient cars because of the high gas prices.

Adaptive Cruise Control is one of the most advanced innovations in automotive technology today, probably a precursor to fully automated travel. A number of luxury vehicles offer ACC. Mercedes Benz was the first to offer ACC, called the Distronic system. Other automakers followed suit, such as Lexus’ with its Dynamic Laser Cruise Control, Acura, Audi, Nissan, Volkswagen, BMW, Infiniti, Cadillac, Toyota and Jaguar.

Adaptive cruise control uses either radar or lasers that signal the car to slow down if it gets too close to another car on the road and accelerate again if the traffic allows it. AAC promises to reduce rear-end collisions in heavy traffic as well as reduce fuel consumption. ACC can also handle twice or thrice today’s traffic.

Among the models with Adaptive Cruise Control, the Acura RL’s has a collision mitigating braking system. Some Infiniti models are equipped with sensors and cameras that read the lane markers and alert the drivers when crossing into another lane. Meanwhile, sensors in the Audi Q7 monitor blind spots.

Luxury automaker Lexus took home AutoPacific’s 2006 Vehicle Satisfaction Rating for Top Brand on account of the solid performance of its LS 430 premium luxury car and excellent ratings of other models in its lineup. Meanwhile, Lincoln Navigator Luxury SUV owners were the most satisfied with their vehicle, while the Hyundai Azera was the highest rated car. The auto consulting firm’s Vehicle Satisfaction Awards aims to objectively gauge owner satisfaction with their new car or light truck. Six automakers were honored in eighteen Vehicle Satisfaction categories. The results were calculated according to owner satisfaction in different areas including vehicle operation, comfort, and safety. This year’s top performers are the following:

Top Brand: Lexus

Top Passenger Cars:

Premium Luxury Ca: Lexus LS
Entry Luxury Car: Cadillac CTS
Luxury/Large Car: Hyundai Azera
Premium Mid-Size Car: Volkswagen Passat
Mid-Size Car: Mercury Milan
Image Compact Car: MINI Cooper
Compact Car: Honda Civic
Sports Car: Chevrolet Corvette
Sporty Car: Acura RSX

Top Light Trucks:

Large Light-Duty Pickup: Nissan Titan
Large Heavy-Duty Pickup: Chevrolet Silverado HD
Sport Utility Truck: Honda Ridgeline
Compact Pickup: Mitsubishi Raider
Luxury Sport Utility: Lincoln Navigator
Large Sport Utility: Nissan Armada
Premium Mid-Size Sport Utility: Mitsubishi Endeavor
Mid-Size Sport Utility: Hyundai Santa Fe
Compact Sport Utility: Suzuki Grand Vitara
Minivan: Honda Odyssey

The Nissan Altima is strong player in the highly-competitive mid-size car segment. This sedan offers a potent combination of a sophisticated and distinct exterior styling, a powerful four cylinder engine, spacious and upscale interiors, and a sport-oriented suspension. Now, the Altima adds one more coveted attribute in its long list of features – excellent fuel economy. This comes through a new hybrid-gasoline powertrain that will make a debut in the 2007 Nissan Altima Hybrid.

The new green Nissan Altima combines an eco-friendly hybrid powertrain with a 2.5 liter, 4-cylinder engine with XTronic Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) and an electric motor and generator. Still, despite its “green” nature, there is no compromise when it comes to the impressive styling of the Altima hybrid – both in the exterior and interiors. Also, the Altima hybrid offers the same feisty performance of its non-hybrid siblings.

The new Altima hybrid is just one of the many environment-friendly technologies and initiatives that Nissan has introduced through the years. Some of these include the introduction of the first partial zero emission vehicle (PZEV) in 2000 with the Nissan Sentra CA. Nissan also has several flex fuel vehicles (FFV) such as the Nissan Titan. Meanwhile, Nissan also continues to be a leader in fuel cell vehicle development.

Kelley Blue Book recently named the top ten coolest new vehicles priced under $18,000. With the average price of a new vehicle at over $25,000, this list is an excellent guide especially for new car buyers who think that there aren’t any cool cars, trucks, and SUVs below the $18,000 price mark. The editors of Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com first put together a list of all the new vehicles available at $18,000 then picked the top ten coolest from the list. Coolness refers to a wide range of characteristics and values such as performance, reliability, styling, versatility, economy, comfort or any combination of these. The vehicles on the list definitely offer quite a good mix of these values.

Jack Nerad, editorial director of Kelly Blue Book’s kbb.com remarked that “While everyone bemoans the fact that new cars are so expensive these days, we found a wide variety of cool, fun-to-drive vehicles that are still affordable. We settled on the $18,000 price point, because it offers most buyers a monthly payment of less than $350 over the course of a five-year loan.” The 2006 Yaris, Toyota’s best seller in Europe and the least expensive vehicle in Toyota’s current line up, was the least expensive cool car on the list with an MSRP of $14,630. Meanwhile, the 2006 Toyota Scion tC was the most expensive at $17,640. So if you are planning to buy a car, these choices are definitely worth considering.

Here are the top ten coolest new cars priced under $18,000: