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One of the first major automotive events of the year is the Detroit Auto Show, which kicks off this week. Many car manufacturers will take this opportunity to unveil new cars, and one of the standouts this year comes from the Lexus booth. The Lexus IS-F is the first in a line of high-performance cars that will form a new marque within the Lexus brand -- designated by the letter "F". This new marque will compete with the likes of Mercedes' AMG, BMW's M Division, and Audi's S line.

The IS-F is based on, you guessed it, the Lexus IS sport sedan. The F treatment includes a 5.0 liter V8 motor pumping out over 400 horsepower, and some aggressive new styling. Time will tell if it will give the current champ of the hi-po sport sedan world, the BMW M3, a run for the money. But you know what, I am a firm believer that competition breeds excellence. You know that BMW and Mercedes can't be slacking off at the design board now that Lexus has entered the game.

Check out these links for more photos and info.

Lexus IS-F

Detroit IS-F launch coverage from Autoblog

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Happy New Year! It's the start of 2007 and many people see the start of a new year as a time for change, to make one's life better. Rather than be so self-absorbed (and besides, we are already perfect in every way), V. and I decided to help the needy by giving to someone who truly deserves our generosity. Our little buddy Spencer has been slogging away the days in a tiny little fishbowl, and been such a good little fish ever since we took him in. We felt his crib needed a 1st-class upgrade. And so V. brought home a nicer, bigger fishbowl for him. And to pimp out his new mansion he has this groovy coral reef and faux-anemone to hang out in. The anemone even glows in the dark, positively bad-ass! He seemed a little disconcerted when we took him out of his condo and dropped him into the new palace but he seems to have adjusted well and now he has a lot more space to swim around in. Stretch out and relax Spencer!