Fifty years ago today James Dean wound up his Porsche Spyder at his Hollywood home and headed for the high desert—and the history books (and trashier celebrity tomes like Hollywood Babylon). While his three movies (Giant, East of Eden and Rebel Without a Cause—the first two won him Oscar nominations) cast a remarkably long shadow over careers from Elvis to Matt Dillon, it’s his fatal attraction to the automobile that fused his image onto the American cyclorama. You may already know the details of how and where he died – but there’s a wealth of biographical and personal stories at the official Web site for his estate. You can see an hour-long Webcast about Dean today on www.jamesdean.com, or click around the Racing section for more on his cars and motorcycles.

VW has found a new use for all those Phaetons it is finding difficult to sell – in Britain, one is being used as a mobile theater. The Phaeton in question is set to continue its supporting role in what VW describes as “one of the major successes of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2005.” (The Edinburgh Festival is the world-famous arts festival held in the Scottish city every September; the “Fringe” is the vast collection of low-budget productions that now threaten to overwhelm the Festival itself). The production of A Mobile Thriller will now “take to the streets of the U.K. as it embarks on a tour of several major cities following its festival success.”

VW explains that the theatrical production enables audiences to experience two parallel and intertwined plays, performed to an audience of three while they travel by car through the city at night. The Phaeton was initially used for the production at the Festival, and will now continue its role on the U.K. tour.

A Mobile Thriller is performed and produced by Hush productions, a new generation British theatre company, run by producer James Erskine and director Carrie Cracknell, “committed to challenging theatre convention by placing audience experience at the center of their work.”

The play undoubtedly played to full “houses” in Edinburgh, but when three people constitute a full house, the number of playgoers involved is hardly likely to set box-office records.

However, Volkswagen’s Head of Luxury Cars in Britain, Adam Chamberlain, possibly visualizing the sales possibilities of thespian activities taking place in Phaetons in all Britain’s major towns, commented: “We are delighted to be able to support such an innovative production, and hope the audiences will enjoy both the performance and their surroundings.”—Ian Norris

What’s on your wish list this year for the holidays? While we hold out for world peace and maybe a Canon 20D, Neiman Marcus hopes that 75 of you out there will put Lexus’ new hybrid GS450h sedan on yours. The luxury retailer will be the first to market the 2007 hybrid in its annual gift book. The 75 copies sold through Neiman Marcus will each feature the hybrid combo of a 3.5-liter V-6 and battery-powered motor to produce more than 300 hp, along with a specific Crystalline Ice paint job, wood and leather trim, and a Mark Levinson sound system with DVD navigation, Bluetooth compatibility and a rearview camera system. Ready to spend that $65,000? Wait until noon on Oct. 19th and dial 888-747-4504. (Trust us, kids: it’s Santa’s cell number.)

General Motors executives are confident the 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe will sell regardless of record fuel prices. In part, they say, it’s because they did their homework on aerodynamics. And that’s what gives the full-size Tahoe, with its estimated 20–mpg fuel-economy rating, better EPA ratings than the mid-size ’06 Kia Sorento.

John Cafaro, the top designer on the full-size truck project, says the new SUVs spent a lot of time in GM's wind tunnel, where experts who had worked on vehicles such as the Chevrolet Corvette uncovered new ways to improve the Tahoe's coefficient of drag. "They know all kinds of tricks," Cafaro says, and GM used all of them to move the Tahoe from a coefficient of 0.4 or more to a 0.36 coefficient of drag. The big changes included eliminating the gaps in the front of the vehicle so the Tahoe now offers a smooth, tailored face to the world. In addition, the gaps between the bumper and front fascia and around the headlights have been completely eliminated. Designers also changed the angle of front windshield by moving it out at the bottom. The also reshaped the A-pillar and mirrors and rounded the bottom of the doors to help make the vehicle more aerodynamic.

The results have been impressive with some observers, such as Joseph Phillippi of AutoTrends Consulting, observing that the vehicles actually look smaller than the older models even though the basic dimensions are identical.

The aero improvements get help from GM’s standard displacement-on-demand system, which turns off four cylinders in the 5.3-liter V-8 engine under light power demands. None of the Tahoe's competitors, which include the Ford Expedition, Nissan Armada and Toyota Sequoia, offer the setup nor can they match the Tahoe's fuel efficiency.

All this new efficiency helps mask the added heft built into the Tahoe. The new edition actually weighs about 200 pounds more than the older version because of new crash protection built into the vehicle to help meet new federal safety standards. —Joe Szczesny

Today, Bentley announced the introduction of the Continental GTC, the convertible version of the GT. The 2+2 is a welcome addition to the GT, that arrived in 2003 and so far is very successful.

The GTC has the same W-12 engine as the coupe, that delivers 561 hp and has 479 lb-ft of torque. Also the same six-speed automatic transmission, all-wheel drive system and advanced air suspension are carried over from the GT. The GTC has a top speed of 190 mph.

Although the Continental GTC shares the technology of the GT and has the same familiar family looks, the design is unique. According to design director Dirk van Braeckel, Bentley wante toensure that the GTC looks as good with the roof up as it does with the roof down.

The soft fabric roof, that is equipped with a heated glass rear window, is stowed belos a tonneau cover. The package leaves enough space for rear passengers and luggage.

The Continental GTC is the second convertible in the current Bentley range and will follow the Azure that will go on sale in spring 2006. The GTC can be expected by late 2006. More details, full technical specification, availability and pricing will be released closer to the Continental GTC's on-sale date.--Henny Hemmes