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June sales get a pick-me-up from pickups

If there's a bright spot in June's tepid light-vehicle sales, it came from an unlikely segment. After slumping for several years as the economy tanked and gas prices spiked, pickup demand is rising faster than the overall sales gains of most automakers--serving as a pillar once again during the industry's fledgling recovery. And most of the buyers returning to showrooms are pickup enthusiasts, automakers say.

2011 SEMA show: Day one highlights

-- Lexus revealed the 306-hp GS 350 F Sport, which will go on sale in February. It uses a direct-injection 3.5-liter V6, paired with the same paddle-shifting six-speed automatic transmission used in the IS-F. It has four driving modes, an upgraded suspension and four-wheel steering.

Driven: BMW 5 Series GT

It's an illustration of the place London has become that it's typically possible to park brand new or exotic cars on an average street and be met with studied indifference by the average passer by. So why, during a week of driving a BMW 5 Series GT, were we made to feel so conspicuous? Every time we parked in a busy area, at least one stranger felt the need to remark, usually to tell us how ugly they thought it was.