It's Time to Get High And Rank Automotive Podcasts for the End of the Year

We're driving toward the end of the year and that means it's time for the best of lists. One of my favorite's is the Car and Driver Top 10 list, and that is even more true this year because the car I bought -- the VW GTI -- is on the list. The Car Connection named it's best buy of the year and the nominees for North American Car and Truck of the Year were announced. I lay out the likely winners and their odds.

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Some of the vehicles getting picked as the best of the year are hybrids, and this research paper looks at the likelihood that people will buy more high-tech fuel efficient vehicles in the coming years. Nissan is betting that hybrids will continue to grow, so they plan 15 new models.

We are passionately against any kind of driving under the influence, but some folks are saying that new laws which both legalize marijuana and add new regulations for driving aren't fair.

In another instance of the man keeping people down, black boxes are now in the majority of new cars, but the AAA is worried about privacy even as regulators seek to make them mandatory.

Bluetooth connected seats

Google Maps finally returned to Apple's iOS and iPhone and Mathew says it's beautiful, and David promises to compared it with his new Nokia Maps.

Two new seat technologies promise to make you more comfortable and save your life when you get caught in deep water.

Finally, here are some gift ideas for the car fans in your house.

We'll Buyback This Jointly Owned, HIGHly Satisfying Podcast

It's the beginning of the holiday season and car dealers and auto makers got some nice holiday news already as folks went out to the car dealers in November, pushing up sales to recent highs.

Chevrolet has had some great success recently with the Volt, nabbing lots of early sales and love from buyers. But they have hit a bump recently with the NHTSA report about a Volt that caught fire. Now GM is offering to buy back vehicles from people who are unnerved by the sketchy fire risk.

Tokyo is a hub of crazy Japanese car culture and the annual motor show there is always delightful. We review some of the interesting designs.

Safe drivers?

We love cars and want to drive something really interesting. But would we spend $8 an hour to own a Ferrari. Maybe.

Voice control is back in vogue and one smart guy has hacked his iPhone to have Siri take control of his car.

MIT researcher who are even smarter have designed an algorithm that can predict whether people will run a red light in 5 milliseconds. But what to do with information.

It might be that smoking marijuana could makes roads even safer. Mostly because pot smokers don't go anywhere.

Finally, some ideas for holiday gifts that car fans would like.

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