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Automotive Guide - Trucks & SUVs
Knoxville, Tennessee

Foreign influences muted in Ford's new CUV

That is the reason for the existence of such cars as the new Audi S6 and S8.

You could speculate that the reason Ford decided to call its important new offering the Edge was because of its desire to imbue the crossover utility vehicle with a distinctly American personality _ an edge, if you will.

Just as the Mustang is a distinctly American car, with no hint of European or Asian genes, the 2007 Edge also was conceived to project American bravado and tastes, according to Peter Horbury, Ford's chief designer.

New Acura defines 'premium crossover'

It's tall but not too tall. Powerful, but not too powerful. Big, but not too big. Luxurious, but not too luxurious. Expensive, but not too expensive. Like an SUV, but not too SUV-like.

That about sums up Acura's new foray into the burgeoning crossover sport utility niche in the automotive marketplace. It is the 2007 RDX, which is intended to define the so-called entry-premium crossover utility vehicle (CUV) segment.

Ford steps up with a new
Expedition as competition arrives

It took more than 70 years, but Ford finally has a competitor for the venerable Chevrolet Suburban.

The Suburban, first introduced in 1935, had the giant-sized sport utility market virtually to itself over the years.

Surprisingly, with all of its expertise in trucks, Ford never saw fit to directly challenge the Suburban. A few years back, it went the one-upmanship route with the bigger Excursion. But it was too much _ too heavy-duty, mostly _ and it never caught on.

Suburban remains the unchallenged beast of burden

When you've performed a popular solo act for nearly three-quarters of a century, you'd be tempted to park on your laurels.

Chevrolet could have done that with its Suburban, which had its debut in 1935 and has owned the giant SUV niche since. But it did not. Along with the other General Motors full-size sport utility vehicles, the Suburban received a full re-design for the 2007 model year that encompassed improvements in ride, handling and power.