Western Automotive Journalists' Annual Media Days Begins Tonight at Sundown - VIDEO ENHANCED

MONTEREY, CA - April 22, 2008: While WAJ Media Days is not quite the annual event of another "sundown commencing" event that is taking place this week, for 100-plus west coast automotive journalists it is still almost a religious pilgrimage.

Western Automotive Journalists, America's second largest group of working automotive journalists, will be holding their 16th annual Media Days event this week in Monterey. Media Days allows all group members to drive and compare dozens of vehicles, head-2-head, on an open road course, on an off-road course, and then on track at Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca.

A new participant this year is Maserati, who has been making a much stronger marketing effort in North America. Bentley Motors, who had made its first WAJ appearance last year in many years, will also be back. The Show & Shine event premiered last year will kick off tonight's activities.

MINI USA will also be staging an autocross competition for the journalists at Mazda Raceway. This event was a big hit last year and promises to be even better and more competitive with Dave Colman in attendance.

And once again, The Auto Channel is a co-sponsor of this year’s WAJ Media Days.

Click PLAY to watch video hot laps from the 2007 event

Other OEM manufacturers in attendance will include Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, Jaguar, Jeep, Kia, Land Rover, Lexus, Lincoln-Mercury, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Subaru, Suzuki, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo.