British carmaker Aston Martin brought its sleek luxury sports car, the 2014 Vanquish, to the Los Angeles Auto Show.

Featuring a 6.0 liter V-12 engine that cranks out 565 bhp at 6,750 rpm and a new carbon fiber body, the first customer-ready cars will be delivered to the Americas during the first quarter of 2013.

Photos: 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish

The new $280,000 Vanquish can go from 0 to 60 mph in four seconds flat and hit a top speed of 183 mph.

“Vanquish is the ultimate expression of Aston Martin design ethos, engineering innovation and technical ability,” Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin chief executive, said in a statement. ”It offers luxurious, continent-crossing capability and pure driving excitement without compromise.”

Photos: 2012 L.A. Auto Show

It has been a busy three months for the Vanquish since initial unveiling at the Monterey automotive week in the summer. The new car has appeared at events across North America and Canada.

At the show, the new Vanquish...

The L.A. Auto Show is as much a showcase of new cars as it is of new technology, and one of the standout new technologies at the convention is a system that will help you detect animals on the road while you drive at night.

The system uses various algorithms and thermal imagery infrared cameras to see and detect animals on the road that are beyond vehicle headlights' field of vision. The system then uses an in-car display, audible notification and an alert on a heads-up display to warn drivers of animals that are on the road ahead.

The technology is the next generation of Night Vision, a product built by Sweden-based Autoliv, that is already on some vehicles and is capable of detecting pedestrians.

More importantly, the animal-detection system is the latest advancement in collision avoidance systems, which use sensors to anticipate collision risks. These systems are available in a number of luxury cars and have also recently become available on cheaper models with high-end option...

Elizabeth Taylor’s 1956 Continental Mark II headlined a bundle of classic Lincolns on display at the L.A. Auto Show on Wednesday.

Like the actress who once owned it, the Continental Mark II stole the show. That's thanks to its elongated hood and unique color, which was designed to match Taylor's famously blue eyes.

Photos: Classic Lincolns at L.A. Auto Show press day

But just like "Liz and Dick," the recent Liz Taylor biographical TV movie starring Lindsay Lohan, the Continental Mark II had poor results. (As an aside, Lohan was arrested early Thursday after a New York City bar fight.)

Lincoln charged more than $10,000 for each car -- a princely sum in those...

The family sedan marketplace has become a brawl, with Honda'’s Accord, Nissan'’s Altima and Ford'’s Fusion all newly redesigned and looking to unseat Toyota’'s Camry as the best-selling car in the U.S.

Mazda joined the fray Thursday with the introduction of the 2014 Mazda 6 sedan at Los Angeles Auto Show.

The car will be available with one of two new engines, gas or diesel, both designed for efficiency and foreshadowing company plans for future models.

Photos: 2014 Mazda 6 sedan

The gas model will go on sale in January. It features a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine making 184 horsepower and 185 pound-feet of torque. It routes power to the front wheels through either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission.

PHOTOS: Highlights from the 2012 L.A. Auto Show

Mazda says it doesn'’t yet have fuel economy...

The new Toyota RAV4, a hot-rodded Ford Fiesta and graceful looking Jaguars and Range Rovers were among the standouts at the Los Angeles Auto Show, according to the auto experts at Consumer Reports magazine and Edmunds.com.

Consumer Reports automotive tester Jake Fisher said Toyota’s new RAV4 sport-utility vehicle, the first full redesign of the vehicle in seven years, “looks really promising. It is a significant mainstream vehicle and has become the new family car.”

He said the new RAV4 shows that Toyota is aware of its “traditional shortcomings” and has worked to make the new model more stylish and fun to drive.

Fisher also wants a chance to drive the new Fiesta.  While the version with the three-cylinder engine has grabbed a lot of attention at the show, it's the 197-horsepower, turbocharged Fiesta ST “that I am dying to drive,” he said. “With almost 200 horsepower on board that thing should be a blast.”

Fisher was less...

The 2013 line of Ford Fusion vehicles was named this year's Green Car of the Year on Thursday morning at the L.A. Auto Show.

The sedan was chosen by Green Car Journal for its low petroleum use, low carbon dioxide emissions and its pricing, which the publication said can lead to the kind of sales "that can truly influence environmental improvement." The Fusion starts at $21,700.

The 2013 Fusion is available with various engine options, including a gasoline-powered model, a 47-mpg hybrid and plug-in hybrid called the "Energi" that gets the equivelant of 100 mpg.

Photos: 2012 L.A. Auto Show

"This is a great testament for Ford," said David Mondragon, Ford general marketing manager, upon acceptance of the award. "We've moved our brand from laggards to leaders in fuel economy."

For the award, the Ford vehicle beat out four other nominees: the Dodge Dart Aero, the Ford C-MAX, the Mazda CX-5 SKYACTIV and the Toyota Prius C.

Last year, the award went to the Honda Civic Natural Gas, and the...

British car manufacturer Bentley Motors is introducing its new GT3 race car in the U.S. at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

The GT3 signals Bentley’s return to the racetrack for the first time since its historic sixth 24 Hours of  Le Mans victory in 2003.

Photos: Bentley Continental GT3 race car

The new car is based on the fastest car Bentley ever built: the Continental GT Speed.  Bentley said the GT3 features “state-of-the-art motorsport hardware and a comprehensive aerodynamic package” with the adoption of a rear-wheel-drive chassis in accordance with the regulations.

“The clear message from our customers is that Bentley belongs on the racetrack, and the Continental GT3 is the realization of a dream we’ve had ever since the launch of the Continental GT,” Wolfgang Schreiber, Bentley’s chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. “The new GT Speed is the perfect car for us to develop into a racer, and our work so far has shown huge...

Holy hot rod, Batman!

The iconic Batmobile from the 1960s television show is going up for auction early next year.

The midnight-black and fluorescent-red-pinstriped car that Adam West's Batman used to battle villains in Gotham will be up for grabs Jan. 19 at Barrett-Jackson, the Scottsdale, Ariz., rare and classic auto auction house.

PHOTOS: The original Batmobile

There is a reserve price for the car, but neither the auction house nor the car owner, famed car customizer George Barris, would confirm the lowest dollar amount they would accept. Plans for the sale were revealed at the L.A. Auto Show.

“Let's just say it's in the multimillions,” said Craig Jackson, chief executive of Barrett-Jackson. “The car is true Americana. It's hard to put a dollar figure on something like that.”

There's likely to be plenty of potential buyers. The one-of-a-kind 1955 Lincoln Futura concept car was originally created by a design team at Ford Motor Co.'s Lincoln styling department. The...

Audi came out swinging with its diesel technology at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show Wednesday, introducing four new diesel models for the U.S. market.

But the company didn'’t limit its scope to new products. It also pressed the case that wider use of diesel engines could have far-reaching geopolitical consequences.

Opening the news conference for the debut of the A6, A7, A8 and Q5, Audi of America President Scott Keogh made clear his company'’s position.

PHOTOS: Highlights from the 2012 L.A. Auto Show

"For a nation seeking to free itself from the grip of foreign oil and for a world seeking to slash its greenhouse gas emissions, clean diesel is not simply a viable choice, but frequently it’'s today's best,"” Keogh said.

Supporting Keogh'’s point is the A8 TDI, a full-size luxury car that will get an estimated 24 mpg in the city and an impressive 36 mpg on the highway. The 3-liter V-6 diesel engine will produce 240 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque, and Audi says it will do 0 to...

Chevrolet unveiled the Spark EV on Wednesday at the L.A. Auto Show, a powerful electric version of its urban mini car.

The Spark EV's electric motor, with 130 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque, makes it more powerful than its gas alternative and capable of hitting 60 mph in less than eight seconds. Chevrolet says the Spark EV will be one of the fastest electric vehicles on the market.

Another impressive part of the Spark EV is an optional feature that lets it recharge quickly. Chevrolet claims the Spark EV is the first car in North America to offer SAE Combo DC Fast Charge, a feature that lets the Spark EV charge 80% of its battery's capacity in about 20 minutes.

Photos: 2012 L.A. Auto Show

The car is also able to fully charge in under seven hours when using a 240V outlet. The Spark EV uses a 20-kWh lithium ion battery that comes with an eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty.

Another feature users may like is the Spark EV's integration with Siri, Apple's voice assistant feature for...