carriage trade auto action
Our obsession with the European Ford Focus, the missing link in the Mazda3/Volvo S40 chain of global C1-platform cars, is well documented if not entirely justified. As silly as it seems to us, Ford's got its reasons — whether fiscal or logistical — for not completing the trifecta for its US buyers. Until Ford comes to its senses, we're stuck coveting such cars as this tuner Focus, created by German performance house Wolf Concept. They're offering a two-stage engine kit that boosts horsepower of a top-of-the-mast five-cylinder Focus ST from 225 to 275 (for the price of $3250) and to 300 (for $4700) and torque to 266 and 285 lbs-ft, respectively. Lowered suspension, 19" wheels, interior appointments and aerodynamic add-ons are available and the company is working on a new exhaust system to give the Focus a more befitting engine note.
More pics at 
Our pal Punkey zapped us the results of TopGear's awards for 2005, including runners-up. As most watchers figured, the Bugatti Veyron won for Best Car, beating the Jalopnik pick — the Ferrari F430 — and the BMW M5, which we won't get to drive until January (knock on wood). The Ferrari also lost to the Aston Martin V8 Vantage in the Best Noise category. Man, we really have to get across the pond more often. Click through for more results.
Best Car:
Ferrari F430
BMW M5
Bugatti Veyron (Winner)
Biggest Surprise:
Honda Civic
Nissan Murano
Audi RS4 (Winner)
Ugliest Car:
Ssangyong Kyron
Ssangyong Rodius
Ssangyong Musso
BMW 3-series (Winner)
Best Noise:
Ferrari F430
Mercedes-Benz CLS55 AMG
Aston Martin V8 Vantage (Winner)
Gas Guzzler:
Range Rover Sport
Bugatti Veyron
Hemel Hempstead
Ford GT (Winner)
Coolest Car:
Porsche 911 (Hammond and May's Winner)
Aston Martin V8 Vantage (Clarkson's Winner)
Related:
Metafilter brings us this classic Isuzu ad from Japan, a showcase of extreme car acrobatics that make Mazda's Zoom-Zoom feats look like just another busy morning on I-95. We're not sure when the ad was produced, but as one MF commenter points out, the Isuzu Gemini models featured are circa 
Not nearly as exhausted or long-winded at Sweet Peet D.'s year-end 
Who'da thunk it? The G35's first aid kit comes with an emergency maxi-pad, which is a stroke of brilliance. Of course, it's a tad gimmicky, but we've all had that emergency when the wife or girlfriend suddenly has an emergency while on the road. G35 guys can now whip out the first aid kit and not be chastised for having one's ex's stuff still in the trunk of the car or get questions about bizarre fetishes. Thanks, Infiniti! [And thanks to 
Inasmuch as we like the current crop of NASCAR drivers, Tony Stewart's our favorite. He's still got a bit of the old-school wild-boy streak in him; punching reporters, rescuing greyhounds and racing midgets in his spare time. The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette's Ben Smith checks in with Stewart, as well as the midget-racing scene, at the 50th anniversary Rumble in Indiana. It's one of the better pieces of newspaper motorsports coverage we've read in a while.
A very merry New Year to those who exchange assets for exposure in that fiscal daisy chain that is Jalopnik's survival. And a clink of the glass to those who would consider becoming a new 
Ezra Dyer (Automobile, Esquire) is one of the cleverest auto scribes in the business. Perfect, you'd think, for a spot on the new, US version of TopGear, which is currently in production. But judging from his account of a recent audition for the show, maybe not so much.
Casting Ouch [Ezra Dyer]
Related:
Suck or Not Suck: American TopGear on the Way [internal]