"I used to like this car." She says as I'm opening the throttle, tearing down the only deserted stretch of roadway in Southern California last night. "But after the GT-R it's just so… I don't know…pointless and soft. And can you please stop doing that with the transmission?" The car had just changed from second to third, lagging for a second and then slamming the car forward. She was not impressed. But she does have a point.

"Oh boy, here we go…" I thought, approaching the new FX50. The standard 21-inch wheels on the new FX50 look large enough to serve as parts in a hydroelectric plant. Skinned with 45-series rubber, flashbacks of harsh ride quality in the first-gen FX started coming fast and furious. Has the redesign addressed one of the major gripes of the french-curved FX?

You and I think a lot alike. Another Oregon holiday trip candidate I've had my eye on is our 2009 Audi A4 Avant. But I reluctantly had to dismiss this one even before the FX50's arrival. And the reasons are the same.

Rear cargo space with 4 aboard? Not good enough for 10-day, 2,000 mile trip with luggage and presents aboard. Only 17.3 cubic feet are available here — less than the FX50 by a fair margin. Heck, the trunk of the Pontiac G8 GT sedan is fractionally larger at 17.5 cubic feet. This isn't a big wagon.

And like the FX50, our A4 wears summer tires in the form of the Bridgestone RE050A. They're damn good tires in the dry and wet, but they aren't intended for snow-covered roads. Even quattro can't save you if the tires don't have good snow traction.

It's a pity, I know. I really like wheeling this one around town and I'd like to stretch its legs on a road trip.

Just not this road trip.

Dan Edmunds, Director of Vehicle Testing @ 4,203 miles

Any car that spends time parking in a city will have at least one intimate encounter between it's wheel and the curb. No matter how good the driver, it happens. If you're going to come in and comment "i've never done that", well, your day will come.

While I'm never surprised when a wheel gets curbed, this one was a shock even to me.

I got a call about the BMW X5 this morning, the tire pressure light was on. Right front. Sure enough the right front tire was low and from my flashlit view, there was no foreign object embedded in the tread. Off to Stokes I went.

10 minutes went by and our guy came out with the news, the front right wheel had been curbed and bits of concrete and curb paint was lodged between the rim and tire causing a slow leak. It could be cleaned out and reinstalled without a problem. There was no charge for the repair.

I'd never seen that happen before. Any of you?

Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant

I cannot drive this car.

It pains me to say this, because in most ways the Flex is a home run. Its interior materials are what Lincoln's should be. Real adults can lounge comfortably in the third row. The second-row seats are veritable thrones. It performs well. It looks cool. Et cetera.

But I cannot drive this car.

Why? Primarily because of the absolutely demonic angle of the front headrests. In the Flex, "headrest" is an oxymoron. "Headpunch" is more like it — these things force your head forward at a ridiculously stern angle, and no, they're not adjustable. It's not just the Flex, either; a number of current Ford products share this flaw. Did anyone actually try this headrest design out before it went into production?

There's also the matter of the steering wheel, which doesn't telescope. Even with the adjustable pedals all the way forward, I can't get my lanky 6'1" frame close enough. My elbows are locked during normal driving, and I have to lean forward in my seat to crank the wheel when turning through an intersection. Hey Ford! Great car! Telescoping steering wheel please!

I like the Flex. I'd like it a lot more if I could drive it.

Josh Sadlier, Associate Editor, Edmunds.com @ 12,678 miles 

Yes, it's that time of year again. Time for me to select a vehicle from our long-term fleet for my family's annual 2,000 mile holiday trip to see my folks on the Oregon coast. As luck would have it, our new all-wheel drive 2009 Infiniti FX50 arrived just in time to make it onto the short list.

After a few days behind the wheel, I'm impressed. It steers and drives very well, and will make short work of the sinuous mountain roads we'll negotiate for almost half of the distance. It'd be nice to drive something on this trip that's a bit athletic, for a change.

And it is very comfortable and well-trimmed inside, too. Infiniti sure has upped their game on the interior front. And it has toys. Navi? Check. iPod connection? Yep. Seat heaters? Uh huh. We're good to go.

But it's not going on this trip. Here's why:

I was working on Edmunds' review of the 2009 Kia Rondo this morning and found myself thinking how I miss having our long-term '08 Rondo in the fleet. It was practical, of course, but it had comically awkward styling and a fun-to-say name that made it endearing.

This made me think of some other recent long-term cars that I miss — and don't miss. So without further ado, here's my holiday wish list for vehicles that might someday come back around and others that deserve a lump of coal in their stockings.

Here is the fun spot. From this position you can do just about anything, the Evo goes right where you point it. A quick tap of the throttle means you get there now! .

Isn't this Evo better than cars costing much more? I think it is - can anyone think of a car that's SIGNIFICANTLY less expensive but a better performer?

Now, I've got to go drive this thing more. Full tank - check, Sport mode engaged - check, Sirius Alt Nation switched on - check, loud mouth in fart-can Civic Si spanked at the stoplight - double check. This is turning out to be a fun week. 

Brian Moody, Senior Automotive Editor

I just spent a few days in our brand new long-term 2009 Infiniti FX50, and I'm looking forward to more over the next 12 months. This is a great addition to our fleet of cars and trucks. I know Infiniti doesn't exactly sell many V8-powered FXs and this 390 hp, $62,000 SUV doesn't exactly line up with a lot of people's idea of what modern transportation should be about.

But Inside Line and this blog are about the entire car industry and all the different cars and trucks out there. And we've often had an upscale, high-end V8-powered SUV in this very diverse fleet of long-term testers. Most recently an Audi Q7 and a BMW X5, which is about to leave us. The FX50 is a perfect replacement for those German machines, and I'm expecting to spend quite a bit of time behind its well-shaped, three-spoke, leather-wrapped steering wheel.

Fact is, this FX has plenty of new hardware and software for us to evaluate over the next year, including its new 5.0-liter V8 engine, its new 7-speed automatic transmission and its new around view monitor system (pictured), which is unique to Infiniti. Plus, ever since our G35 S sedan left us some months ago, we haven't had an Infiniti in our fleet, and it's important to us to keep as many brands as possible represented in this blog space, so it serves you readers as well as possible.

Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief

It may not be the best-selling vehicle in the U.S., but we thought we'd give it a shot. We've acquired an all-new 2009 Infiniti FX50 with the Sport Package.

Its 5.0-liter V8 engine is capable of 390 horsepower and should make for some interesting fuel economy posts.

All-wheel drive is standard and the FX comes with a seven-speed automatic transmission with manual shift control and rev-matched downshift capability.

Read the Introduction on Inside Line and let us know what you think.

More photos after the jump…

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor