Carmakers try to add value, safety, improved mileage to 2010 models; a list of the changes

What’s new in 2010: Mitsubishi to Volvo

MITSUBISHI

A five-door Lancer Sportback debuts with two engine choices: a 168-horsepower, 2.4-liter four cylinder and a 237-horsepower, 2-liter, turbocharged four cylinder. Both front- and all-wheel drive are offered. Starting retail price for a Sportback is $19,910.

Mitsubishi’s Outlander has mildly updated styling and adds a sporty, all-wheel drive GT model powered by a 230-horsepower, 3-liter V-6.

The Galant sedan adds standard electronic stability control this year, and the Raider pickup truck is gone.

NISSAN

The company’s affordable supercar — if you consider $81,790 affordable — is only in its second year in the United States. But there are many adjustments for the Nissan GT-R two-seater for 2010, including the addition of 5 more horsepower coming from the 3.8-liter, twin-turbocharged V-6. Peak horsepower in the 2010 model is 485.

Other notable updates are new transmission control module programming for the six-speed, dual-clutch automatic tranny, more rigid brake lines for durability, retuned suspension, a different tire compound for the Dunlop summer tires, and side-mounted and roof-mounted air bags made standard.

The count of Nissan dealers certified to sell this special car also has risen to 700 nationwide.

But note the price hike for the GT-R. The $81,790 starting retail price is a $3,950 boost from the base 2009 GT-R.

Nissan’s other two-seat sports car, the 370Z, adds a topless version in 2010. Everything from the 332-horsepower, 3.7-liter V-6 and automatic and manual transmission choices to most major components are shared with the 370Z coupe.

But the roof on the 370Z Roadster is an all-power cloth top that goes down in about 20 seconds.

Starting retail price for the 2010 370Z Roadster is $37,690.

Also in 2010, the Sentra small sedan as well as the Versa have freshened front and rear styling.

PONTIAC

Parent company General Motors Co. emerged from bankruptcy protection in July and announced it is phasing out the Pontiac brand. A 2010 Pontiac Vibe, however, was already under production and debuted with a starting retail price of $16,820.

It was to be a short production run, ending in August. Thus, the 2010 Vibe is part of the Pontiac vehicle selloff going on at dealerships.

Sister vehicle to the Toyota Matrix, the five-passenger Vibe is powered by a 158-horsepower, four-cylinder engine.

PORSCHE

The first four-door Porsche car arrives in 2010. The new Panamera has the sleek, iconic look of a Porsche, but it’s a longer car — to accommodate the back seats, obviously, plus a hatchback cargo area and those two extra side doors.

The Panamera is wider, too, than the Porsche Cayenne SUV.

Indeed, at 16.3 feet long from bumper to bumper, the Panamera has honest-to-goodness room for four adults inside.

Yet it is a performance machine, with both engines being V-8s and offering at least 400 horsepower.

Specifically, the base engine is a 400-horse, 4.8-liter V-8 putting out 369 foot-pounds of torque, while the uplevel 500-horse, 4.8-liter V-8 has twin-turbochargers and 568 foot-pounds of torque.

But don’t expect the Panamera to handle like a 911 or another of Porsche’s two-seaters. The four-passenger Panamera weighs a considerable 4,000 pounds.

Starting retail price is expected to top $90,000.

ROLLS-ROYCE

The wait is nearly over for a slightly downsized Rolls, and the name being rumored for the new model is Ghost.

Details are sketchy, but it’s expected that the Ghost will be 2 feet shorter than the gargantuan Rolls-Royce Phantom. With a heavy steel chassis, rather than a lighter-weight aluminum one, the Ghost likely will have a V-12 under the hood with more than 500 horsepower. Starting retail price may be in the $200,000 range.

SAAB

The biggest news at Saab is the sale of the brand this year to a consortium headed by Koenigsegg Automotive AB. It’s all part of the big selloff of automotive brands that General Motors undertook while in bankruptcy protection in 2009.

Understandably, future product plans for Saab are still under review. But the company confirms that a new Saab 9-5 sedan will debut in 2010.

Exterior styling of the 9-5 five-seater is clean and minimal in a Scandinavian way, and three engines — all turbocharged — will be available. These include a 220-horsepower, 2-liter gasoline engine and a 300-horsepower, 2.8-liter gasoline V-6.

The new 9-5 will be available with all-wheel drive.

The new 9-3X was introduced earlier this calendar year as a revised five-door wagon with available all-wheel drive.

The turbocharged V-6 of the previous 9-3 SportCombi is gone, so the only powerplant is the 210-horsepower, 2.3-liter turbocharged four cylinder.

SATURN

While in bankruptcy protection this year, General Motors said it is selling its Saturn brand to Penske Automotive Group, owned by former race car driver Roger Penske. But the deal is not expected to be finalized until this fall.

While future Saturn products are still being worked out, there’s word that Penske is already talking with French automaker Renault and its Japanese affiliate, Nissan, to provide cars for Saturn dealerships.

Details are forthcoming. Renault hasn’t had a U.S. sales outlet for its cars since the 1980s.

The Penske Automotive Group is the No. 2 auto retailer in the United States.

SCION

Scion’s xB and xD get new sound systems, and electronic stability control becomes standard on all xDs.

SMART

The brand continues with its two-seat fortwo model available in coupe and convertible versions.

SUBARU

It’s not your imagination. The new-generation, 2010 Subaru Legacy is bigger than any Legacy before it. Flagship sedan of Subaru, the mid-size, five-passenger Legacy is restyled and has grown in length, height and even weight over its 2009 predecessor. The back seat area, in particular, is nicely improved.

Power comes from a base 170-horsepower, 2.5-liter, boxer four cylinder now mated to either a new six-speed manual or a new CVT.

Buyers of the uplevel Legacy GT get a 265-horsepower, 2.5-liter, turbocharged, boxer four cylinder, while a Legacy R model has a 256-horsepower, 3.6-liter boxer six cylinder.

Starting retail price, including destination charge, is $20,660.

Since the Legacy is revamped for 2010, so is the Outback, which is a wagon based on the Legacy. Like the Legacy, the 2010 Outback is bigger than its predecessor, and it offers the two four-cylinder engines that the new Legacy has.

Starting retail price is $23,690.

The 2010 Forester, which is subtly revamped, was out early in calendar 2009.

Don’t forget that all-wheel drive is standard on every Subaru.

SUZUKI

Suzuki’s new mid-size sedan looks every bit as attractive as America’s best-selling Toyotas and Hondas. But the name may be a bit difficult for some Americans to pronounce: It’s Kizashi (Kee-zah-shee), which was the name on this sedan’s show car concept. The word loosely means “preview,” as in preview of good things to come.

Certainly, the new-for-2010 Kizashi is a unique entry from Suzuki in the U.S family car market.

While the five-passenger Kizashi is a bit smaller than the segment-leading Toyota Camry sedan, it’s bound to be fuel thrifty with its 2.5-liter four cylinder engine. No final horsepower and torque numbers have been released, though, and pricing has yet to be announced.

Meantime, Suzuki adds the SportBack five-door hatchback to its SX4 line. Powered by a 150-horsepower, 2-liter four cylinder delivering 140 foot-pounds of torque, the SportBack is designed as a zippy, fun, front-wheel drive performer.

A manual transmission and a continuously variable transmission (CVT) that a driver operates like an automatic are offered.

Note that the 2-liter four cylinder in the SportBack also is in the other SX4 models, so horsepower in those cars is increased to 150 from last year’s 143.

The SportBack’s CVT replaces the four-speed automatic in the other SX4 models.

Lastly, for 2010, Suzuki drops its largest SUV, the seven-passenger XL7.

TOYOTA

The 2010 model year marks the start of a new, fifth generation 4Runner SUV.

The truck-based 4Runner has become pricey, with starting retail price nearing $30,000 for a 2009 model, and sales have declined 58 percent from calendar 2004 to 2008.

Details are sketchy on the 2010 4Runner, but look for a more comfortable interior plus a revised 4-liter V-6 base engine with variable valve timing. The 4Runner also will get a new V-8 with six-speed automatic.

Toyota’s full-size pickup truck, the Tundra, arrives in 2010 with updated front and rear styling and a new, more fuel efficient, standard V-8.

On two-wheel drive Tundras, the new, 310-horsepower, 4.6-liter V-8 provides for a 15/20-mpg federal government fuel mileage rating. This is a 1-mpg improvement in highway mileage over last year’s Tundra with base V-8.

The new 4.6-liter V-8 engine is added to the Toyota Sequoia SUV line, too. It’s standard in the SR5 model and provides 310 horses.

The Corolla and Matrix small cars get electronic stability control and traction control as standard equipment starting in the 2010 model year.

Toyota’s dedicated gas-electric hybrid, the Prius, debuted earlier this calendar year as a 2010 model. The company retained the starting retail price, including destination charge, of $22,750.

Toyota’s best-selling model, the Camry, also bowed as an early 2010 model back in March.

VOLKSWAGEN

It’s time for a sixth-generation VW Golf/Rabbit. But for the second time in history, the company is dropping the name “Rabbit.”

Thus, VW’s 2010 five-passenger, compact car will be called the Golf only.

Styling is new, and so is the interior. Even the chassis is reworked for better handling and ride. The Golf’s 170-horsepower, 2.5-liter, inline, gasoline five cylinder remains, but a zippy 140-horsepower, 2-liter, turbocharged, diesel four cylinder also will be available. Best of all, this turbodiesel helps give the new Golf an enviable fuel economy rating of 30 mpg in city driving and 42 mpg on the highway.

VW’s sporty GTI hatchback also is restyled inside and out for this model year.

But the GTI engine remains the same as in 2009: a 200-horsepower, 2-liter, turbocharged, gasoline four cylinder.

In both the VW CC and the Passat, the six-speed automatic transmission is replaced this model year by the Direct Sequential Gear, six-speed, dual-clutch automated manual gearbox.

Also in 2010, the Touareg SUV no longer is available with a 4.2-liter V-8.

VW started offering a 225-horsepower, 3-liter, diesel V-6 earlier this year.

VOLVO

Already known for safety, Volvo launches the 2010 XC60 as possibly the safest car ever.

It’s a smaller-size crossover SUV that borrows pieces from several Volvo cars, including the V70 wagon and S80 sedan.

But there are safety features galore — from outside mirrors that alert a driver about cars in the blind spots to an automatic braking system called City Safety that works in slow-speed conditions.

Power comes from a 281-horsepower, 3-liter, turbocharged, gasoline, inline six cylinder that generates a healthy 295 foot-pounds of torque.

There’s also a 3.2-liter, non-turbocharged, inline six cylinder that delivers 235 horses.

The 2010 XC60 has a starting retail price of $33,245.

Also in 2010, the Volvo V70 and XC70 have a revised 3.2-liter, inline six cylinder with less horsepower — 225. The change improves the vehicles’ emissions rating.

And the S80 sedan is mildly freshened inside and out.

The S60 sedan is discontinued.