New auto models combine efficiency, performance.

The high costs of gas seems to be driving the new auto models this year.

Manufacturers have responded to consumers' demands for a vehicle that doesn't guzzle fuel when a gallon costs more than $3.

Take for instance the brand new Acura RDX, a five-passenger small sport utility vehicle with a four cylinder turbo-charged engine.

Acura of Glendale General Manager Jeanne Brewer has taken the vehicle out for a test spin and was impressed with how well it handled.

"You get so much more economical gas mileage when there is no wasted energy going to the wheels," Brewer said.

Acura is not alone in introducing a turbocharged SUV into the market. Mazda has the CX-7, a crossover SUV with the sleek design of a sports car.

The use of turbo engines in Acura and Mazda vehicles is an example of how the industry is addressing the fuel efficiency issue in the different vehicle segments, said Brian Chee, editor of Autobytel.com, an online automotive marketplace.

"The application of turbo across various types of vehicles helps keep fuel economy at a solid level but also factors in performance, which when you come into the luxury market becomes more important," Chee said.

In the opposite end of the size spectrum are the new Dodge Caliber, Toyota Yaris, and Nissan Versa, which Chee described as small cars that get good gas mileage.

Even the makers of larger vehicles are getting into the gas saving act.

In advertising for its 2007 models of the Tahoe and Suburban SUVs and Avalanche sport utility truck, General Motors plays up the new technology in me power train that will increase the efficiency of the engines.

"They see even in the large SUV category people want fuel economy even more so than they have ever had," Chee said.

What Brewer has seen at her dealership-which moved to Glendale after 19 years in Pasadena--is a move away from the large SUVs to smaller ones such as the MDX, redesigned for 2007.

"It's a compromise for people who still need a seven-passenger vehicle," Brewer said.

The RDX will be available in August. In late September, Brewer's dealership takes delivery of the remodeled MDX, followed in October with three models of sedans.

Unlike, say 10 or 20 years ago when most new cars were rolled out in September, now car makers release new product over an extended period.

The CX-7 was released in June, and the Lincoln-Mercury MKX, a 5-passenger crossover sport utility with a V6 engine replacing the Aviator, and the CX9, a new 7-passenger SUV that will be the largest vehicle from Mazda won't be available until December.

Early in the new year comes the new Tundra truck from Toyota, a vehicle that excites Lancaster dealer Jim Hawse.

The truck segment is one that is open for opportunity and is in Toyota's sights as an area for growth, said Hawse, owner of Sierra Toyota.

Volvo and Mazda introduce for hardtop convertibles for the new model year. The C70 from Volvo was released in small numbers for 2006 but production is being ramped up for 2007, said Patrick Herron, general manager of Galpin of Santa Clarita.

BY MARK R. MADLER

Staff Reporter