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Finer Things

Valley Scene Cars
By Rita Cook

In a world of too many choices, there aren't many when it comes to what you want to drive.

Land Rover LR2

When the Land Rover LR2 came onboard it was a great day for all. Offering an angular design it looks good when you're in or out. Both women and men find this is the vehicle they've been waiting for.

Wood and leather abound inside, and under the hood it's a 230 horsepower engine coming from a 3.2-liter inline with 234 pound-feet of torque. A six-speed automatic transmission and manual shift control and the Land Rover can hit 0-60 miles per hour in 9.3 seconds. Trim comes in HSE, 19-inch alloy wheels, a rear spoiler, foglights, a dual-panel sunroof, rain-sensing wipers, automatic xenon headlights, rear parking sensors, perforated leather seats, power front seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, keyless ignition/entry, a trip computer and a nine-speaker Alpine stereo with a six-CD/MP3 changer and an auxiliary audio jack. HSE Plus adds heated exterior mirrors, adaptive headlights, driver seat memory, Bluetooth and satellite and HD radio. HSE LUX will give you a navigation system and an upgraded 13-speaker surround-sound system with a rear seat headphone module.

MPG: 15 miles per gallon in the city and 22 on the highway

Price Tag: $40,775.

Lexus RX 450h

2010 sees an entire redesign of this hybrid version of the much-loved Lexus RX. Last year it was called 400h and this year it's the RX 450h. There's additional power and a better mile per gallon ratio and an increase in width, wheels, airbags and a keyless ignition system.The RX 450h comes in only one trim including 18-inch wheels, auto-dimming exterior mirrors, keyless ignition/entry, 10-way power front seats, a power tilt/telescoping steering wheel, wood interior trim, sliding and reclining second-row seats and a nine-speaker audio system with a six-CD changer and an auxiliary audio jack.

The RX 450h offers an output of 295 horsepower, and the 400 pounds of weight gain do not affect performance. With a 3.5-liter gasoline V6 engine and electric motor-generators to power vehicle systems and the driving wheels, the front-wheel-drive models use two motor-generators -- one acting as a starter/generator and the other providing motive force -- while the all-wheel-drive version adds a third electric motor to drive the rear wheels. The hybrid basically works as either gas-engine-only, electric-only or combination. During minimal acceleration or coasting the vehicle is all battery power.

Miles Per Gallon: 32 miles per gallon in the city and 28 miles on the highway.

Price Tag: $50,860

BMW Z4

A retractable hardtop with upscale styling inside and out. For options there is either the base sDrive30i or the more powerful sDrive35i trim. The main difference is the engine bay and several standard equipment variations such as wheel size, xenon headlamps, heated outside mirrors and rear window, a leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel. The sDrive30i comes with driver-adjustable steering, throttle and of course a more powerful engine coupled too with sun-reflective leather seating, automatic climate control and brushed aluminum interior trim.

BMW Z4 offers two engines; the base sDrive30i with a 3.0-liter inline-6 that makes 255 hp and 220 pound-feet of torque or the sDrive35i with a twin-turbocharged inline-6 that pumps out 300 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. Both options are standard with a six-speed manual transmission. Final thought - zero to 60 in 5.2 seconds and we do like that.

Miles Per Gallon: 19 miles per gallon in the city and 28 on the highway.

Price Tag: $58,550.

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