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Lincoln Aviator returns, VW ponders pickups, and Subaru Forester endures

NEW YORK – Volkswagen is taking a hard look at a pickup truck, the Lincoln Aviator is back, and you love old Subarus (we'll explain). The New York Auto Show returned last week with flair and a wide range of promising reveals. Let's break down some of the big news, plus a few things you might have missed. News: Ford is fortifying Lincoln with the Aviator SUV Views: Doing a mid-size SUV is obvious. Calling it the Aviator wasn't. I like it. Using Navigator design cues, this thing looks the part and should give Lincoln some energy and sales volume. Not playing in the midsize SUV segment has been a mistake for Ford's luxury brand, and the Aviator should fill a much-needed hole. Props to Lincoln for dusting off the Aviator name, most recently used on a rebadged Ford Explorer built in 2003-2005. It sounds classy and historic, like something from 1930s, even though it only dates to the tail end of the " Friends" era. Speaking of names, when the MKC gets a new one, Lincoln should dust off Zephyr, a moniker it actually used in the '30s and then briefly in the early 2000s. Why use the Aviator name? Jim Farley, Ford's president of global markets, said it's about reminding consumers that Ford has traditionally built strong SUVs. "I think in a way the legacy is falling in love with what we do best," he said. "We wanted to go back to our roots. We know how to do this well." Farley also said the Aviator could prove to be Lincoln's bestseller. The Aviator was well-received in New York, earning our Best in Show award and garnering cautiously optimistic reactions from some analysts. "Lincoln ran this experiment once before ... differences in the market conditions, stronger differentiation and appetite for utility vehicles may prove a different story for this Aviator," IHS analyst Stephanie Brinley said. View 19 Photos News: VW surprised the car world with the Atlas Tanoak pickup concept Views: Good move. VW should build this. The concept is based on a longer version of the Atlas platform and would take aim at the midsize truck segment. VW is using this prototype to "gauge the reactions" of automotive influencers, but make no mistake, the Tanoak is totally doable. Using Atlas bones and mechanicals punched up with rugged styling and some soft-road capability, the Tanoak would grow VW's portfolio in a smart way. The Atlas Cross Sport concept, also revealed in New York, signals that Atlas expansion is already underway.

Subaru WRX vs. Volkswagen GTI | Under-$30K fun

If financing a new car purchase for 60 months, you'll spend roughly $200/month for those five years on every $10K you finance. Subaru's WRX and Volkswagen's GTI, each with a base price of around $25K (which equates to roughly $400/month with 20 percent down) can easily become $40K (in WRX STI and Golf R trim). That extra $15,000 will cost you almost $300/month over the life of a 60-month payment book. A $40K Subaru or Volkswagen is cheap in terms of enjoying the additional performance, but if your goal is only to get places in a fast hatch or sedan, you can keep your outlay far closer to the base price. Just mind the options. VW GTI: In the increasingly popular hot hatch segment, the GTI was arguably the first. Based on the revolutionary (for the mid-'70s) Golf hatchback, the GTI offered upgraded power, improved handling and just enough cosmetic enhancements to let others know you were driving something special. Consumer response was immediate, and imitators came out of the woodwork. Now in its seventh iteration (as of the 2015 model year), the GTI has consistently evolved. Its 2.0-liter turbocharged four makes 210 horsepower and — more important in day-to-day driving — 258 pound-feet of torque. Its footprint remains comfortably small, with easy access to front and rear seats and, if you need to carry something large, it has an expansive hatch and fold-down rear seat. Like most of the VW/Audi family, its interior design and appointment bat well above the $25,000 price point. Whether selecting the six-speed manual transmission or six-speed DSG automatic, know that a responsive, agile hatchback is just a throttle tip-in away. It's perfect for the in-town commute, weekend getaway or cross-country romp. And it appeals to a wide demographic, so resale value will remain high. Subaru WRX: This once was a performance derivative not shared with American consumers. But with its success globally, Subaru brought the WRX to the States, with the high-performance STI variant not long after. Having been offered in the U.S. as a sedan, wagon and hatchback, today's WRX is available only as a four-door sedan. As on every Subaru available in the U.S. (except the BRZ), all-wheel drive is standard. Power is supplied by a turbocharged flat four displacing 2.0 liters but upping the horsepower to 268, while available torque is numerically identical to the GTI's at 258 pound-feet.

German authorities claim 2.8 million VW diesels evaded testing

While Volkswagen admits that there are 11 million diesel vehicles around the world that may be able to evade emissions testing, investigations by government authorities are starting to provide a glimpse of where some of those actually are. According to German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt, there are 2.8 million VWs in the country with the tech to cheat environmental rules, Reuters reports. In the US, at least 482,000 cars are believed to be affected. German regulators claim not knowing about the automaker's emissions testing evasions until quite recently, and Dobrindt didn't begin a fact-finding mission into the situation until just this week. Environmental agencies around the world have also begun their own inquiries into the scandal, including in Canada, South Korea, and many countries in Europe. In the US, where the story originally broke, the Department of Justice has started a criminal investigation into VW, and a maximum fine from the Environmental Protection Agency could tally $18 billion. The automaker has responded so far by setting aside about $7.3 billion to fix the affected models. CEO Martin Winterkorn is also already gone, and Porsche boss Matthias Muller is taking the top spot. The company's next moves still aren't clear, though. "VW needs to be very open about what has happened, how it was possible that this could happen to make sure that this never happens again in the future," an anonymous, top shareholder in the company said to Reuters.