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Living Life Large: Driving $2 million worth of cars in one week

Monterey Car Week has quickly become one of my favorite events of the year. There's something for everyone – classic car shows, modern concepts and new vehicle debuts, auctions, racing, and so much more. From a media perspective, there's also a chance to drive a ton of cars. Many automakers bring their latest wares out to Monterey for us to test during our limited free time, and it's a great opportunity to experience fantastic metal against a gorgeous backdrop. That's exactly what I did this year. Instead of flying into Monterey and being driven around, my journey started in Los Angeles and ended in Napa, and I managed to get behind the wheel of some $2 million worth of new cars. Some were old favorites, and many were new experiences. But looking back, this was one of the best weeks of driving I've had in years. Rather than try to come up with some common arc to tie these cars together, here are my notes on all the cars I tested in California earlier this month, presented in the order in which they were driven. 2016 Mazda CX-3 The CX-3 pictured here isn't the exact one I drove in California, but it's close. The only difference was color – my delivered-to-LAX tester wore Mazda's awesome new Ceramic hue (pictured below on the MX-5 Miata). I used the CX-3 to slum through crummy Los Angeles traffic for two hours on the way out to Santa Barbara, with a quick stop at In-N-Out Burger on the way for good measure. A lot nicer inside than I remember. Everyone praises Mazda for its excellence in engineering and design, but there's a lot to be said for the improvements in overall interior refinement. Quiet, comfortable, and well-equipped; the CX-3 made sitting on the 405 freeway a lot more pleasant. Not all that functional. I had a hard time fitting a week's worth of luggage for two people inside. The cargo area and rear passenger compartment were filled, with only enough room on top to see out the back window. A Honda HR-V would've swallowed all that luggage with plenty of room for more. So good to drive. Not surprising, since this wasn't my first time in the CX-3. I knew this CUV would be good on twisty roads, but on the highway it's really exceptional. Road and wind noise are minimal and the overall ride quality is a comfortable sort of sporty. This is definitely something I could drive every day – it's enjoyable during commuting and entertaining on more interesting roads.

2020 Lamborghini Huracan Spyder getting Performante looks

The Lamborghini Huracan has been around since the 2015 model year, and has been pretty much unchanged with the exception of a slightly restyled rear-drive variant. Lamborghini seems to think it's about time the Huracan was updated, since one of our spy photographers caught a new version in light camouflage out testing. It appears the new model borrows heavily from the Huraca n Performante. Up front, the main grille has pretty much the same set of fins and gills as the ultra-fast Huracan. There does appear to be an extra pair of horizontal slats on either side of the middle trapezoidal shape in the grille. Along the side, things are pretty much the same as on any current Huracan, but the lower intakes now have little winglets in the middle of the air inlets. The rear of the car is the most noticeably changed. It features two large exhaust tips in the middle of the rear fascia a la the Performante. They're also housed in another trapezoidal structure, again like on the top-dog Huracan. The rear diffuser is more aggressive than the current model, but not as much as the Performante. There aren't any openings behind the rear tires, either, and the air outlets on either side of the exhaust area are new. There's also a more pronounced duck tail spoiler than on previous models. We aren't expecting any earth-shattering changes for this updated Huracan. For one thing, the visual changes show that this is mostly the same car underneath. We could see it taking advantage of the stiffer suspension and some the light, molded carbon fiber parts of the Performante to help improve the performance a bit more. The Performante's active aerodynamics will probably stay exclusive to that high-performance model, though. There's also the fact that completely new versions of the Hurac an and Aventador are on the horizon, and may pack some huge changes such as hybrid powertrains. As such, Lamborghini is probably just going to try and stretch this model until it's time for the new one. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery 2020 Lamborghini Huracan Spyder spy shots Image Credit: SpiedBilde Spy Photos Lamborghini Convertible Performance Supercars

Lamborghini builds 2,000th Aventador, production rate continues to climb

Last July, Lamborghini celebrated the assembly of its 1,000th Aventador. That was an impressive milestone for the $400,000-plus supercar, as its Murciélago predecessor took took nearly three years to accomplish the same feat. But the automaker's biggest and baddest bull has broken another milestone, as the Aventador celebrated its 2,000th vehicle produced last week. The Nero Nemesis (matte black) car rolled off the assembly line on June 6, destined to the garage of Thaddeus Arroyo, who lives in the States.
Originally launched as a closed-roof coupe at the Geneva Motor Show in 2011, the Italians introduced the open-roof LP 700-4 Roadster last fall at the Los Angeles Auto Show before allowing us to drive it in February of this year. Assembled in Sant'Agata Bolognese, Lamborghini's Aventador is currently running at a production rate of nearly five units per day.
Lamborghini has understandably been very pleased with its flagship, and customer demand shows no signs of faltering. According to the automaker, the waiting list for new car is longer than a year. Be sure to check out the press release below.