compact car
BMW MegaCity May Be Offered On Lease Only Basis
BMW is looking for an alternative to traditional purchasing options for their upcoming MegaCity urban vehicle, as the high cost of developing substantially new technology may result in the vehicle becoming prohibitively expensive for consumers. Among the projects being considered are a car-sharing service similar to the one operated by Daimler for their Smart car…
Honda Fit Overtakes Toyota Prius In Japanese Car Market After Hybrid Subsidies End
The best-selling car in Japan is about to change as government subsidies on hybrid cars has lead to a drop off in sales of the Toyota Prius. Analysts expect the Honda Fit to take the top spot. Prius sales began to dip in September after the government subsidy program ended, but Fit sales remained strong, buttressed by the introduction…
Alfa Romeo, Jeep To Build 280,000 SUVs Per Year In Italy
As part of the new joint venture between Fiat and Chrysler, the two companies will build 280,000 SUVs a year at the new Fiat facility near Turin, Italy. The SUVs will be produced for the Alfa Romeo and Jeep brands. The Alfa SUV, the first for the 101-year-old sports car maker, will compete with offering…
2012 Fiat 500 Misses The 40 MPG Mark
The Fiat 500 just missed the now coveted 40 mpg mark, returning 30 mpg in the city and 38 mpg highway with the 5-speed manual, while automatic versions will net 27 mpg in town and 34 mpg while cruising. While the numbers are nothing to frown about, expectations were higher considering the car’s 1.4L four-cylinder…
Mercedes-Benz To Launch Entry-Level Lineup, Including, SUV, Coupe, Shooting Brake
Mercedes-Benz will launch a new front-drive model for the United States market, aimed at capturing sales from a younger demographic, as the company seeks to stay competitive with rivals BMW and Audi. A coupe and SUV have been confirmed for an expected 2013 launch, while a third variant is under considering. Mercedes is evaluating both…
Volkswagen Golf MKVII To Bow In 2013
Although the current MKVI Volkswagen Golf has only been on the market since 2009, the car will have an extremely short product cycle, as Volkswagen confirmed that the next generation car will debut “end of 2012 or early 2013”. Although German media reports said that the car will hit showrooms in November of 2012, VW…
Aston Martin Cygnet Priced At $50,000
The Aston Martin Cygnet, the British luxury brand’s take on the Toyota iQ, is almost ready to go on sale, and the ultra-lux city car will start £30,995, or about $50,000 USD. Using the 1.3L Toyota engine and a 6-speed manual or CVT gearbox, the iQ’s 11 second 0-60 sprint is decidedly not Aston-like in…
Kia Drops Borrego, Rondo From U.S. Market
Kia‘s Rondo small minivan and Borrego SUV have been dumped from the U.S. lineup, ostensibly after slow sales forced Kia to cease importation. Although originally reported by Automotive News, Kia declined to comment on the matter. The Borrego was never a strong seller in the U.S., although the large SUV, along with the Rondo small…
T.27 Electric Car Designed By Ex-McLaren Engineer Passes European Crash Tests
Gordon Murray’s most famous project so far has been the McLaren F1. But if the legendary South African designer has his way, his next project will be the one that forms the basis of his legacy, and the T.27 electric city car may just make it after passing a European market crash test with flying…
2012 Honda Civic To Launch As Part Of Product Blitz
Honda‘s previous Civic launches have seen the base models get the star-treatment right out of the gate, with performance and eco variants following later on. But this time will be different, as Honda plans to launch the regular Civic, Civic Si, Civic Hybrid and a natural gas powered Civic within weeks of each other. The…
Nissan Cube Pulled From European Market
Nissan‘s Cube has had a lukewarm reception outside its home market of Japan, and sales have been so poor in Europe that Nissan has decided to axe the vehicle entirely. Nissan is citing exchange rate issues between the yen and the euro as the underlying cause, but the dismal sales are likely an equal culprit…
Fiat 500 Launch Looking Rocky As Lacks Of Dealers, Manual Transmissions Cause Problems
The launch of the 2012 Fiat 500 may present some problems for parent company Chrysler, as only 20 percent of Fiat franchises will be ready to go in time for the vehicle’s launch in late February. In addition, the initial batch of cars will only have manual transmissions, even though Fiat expects most 500s to…
Mitsubishi Colt To Take On Ford Fiesta, Debut In Geneva
The Mitsubishi Colt is one of the oldest nameplates in the compact car market, having been sold across the globe in fairly substantial numbers. While North Americans missed out on the previous incarnation, the Colt was well regarded as a practical and inexpensive subcompact that was also a competent driver’s car. For the next generation…
2012 Kia Rio To Debut At Geneva Auto Show, Return 50 MPG Highway
The Kia Rio is well overdue for a replacement, and with a new Hyundai Accent on the way, it stands to reason that its platform-mate will also get a thorough re-design. Although only a sketch has been released so far, the familiar design language brought forth by Kia styling boss Peter Schreyer. Mechanically, the car…
Buick Verano GS, Hybrid A Possibility According To GM Executive Ed Wellburn
Although there is no high-performance version of the Chevrolet Cruze, its platform-mate, the Buick Verano, could see a GS version sometime in the future, according to GM’s Ed Wellburn, a senior figure in the General’s design department. Wellburn claimed that GM was “toying” with the idea of a Verano GS, and that concept sketches have…
Detroit 2011: Honda Civic Concept Previews Production Car
Honda has a history of releasing “concepts” of their newest products that are barely disguised versions of what they’ll be selling to the public, and the Honda Civic Concept is no different. Both sedan and coupe concepts resemble the current car quite strongly, but the styling is more aggressive, with swoopy lines and big 19″…
New MG Cars Debut In China
You may have never heard of Guangzhou, China, but with nearly 12 million people, the industrial metropolis is a major player in the Chinese auto market. Making its debut at the show is one of China’s most anticipated new cars, the MG3 hatchback and MG6 sedan. Although Chinese cars are a laughing stock in much…
Tesla Says Model S Will Be More Profitable Thanks To Cheap Batteries
Tesla‘s Model S Sedan will be profitable for the company, even at lower volumes thanks to its cheaper batteries. While Tesla says it only needs 20,000 vehicles a year to make money, whereas competitors like Nissan need to move 500,000 units annually to amortize the R&D costs of their EV systems. Tesla’s battery systems are…
Honda Fit Recalled Over Headlight Defect
143,8003 Honda Fit hatchbacks from the model years 2007 and 2008 are being recalled in North America due to a defect that could cause the low beam headlights to stop working. Plating on the vehicle’s headlight connector has been identified as the culprit, with the automaker stating that it “can become warn after repeated use…
Honda Civic Si Is Canada’s Most Stolen Car
The 1999 and 2000 Honda Civic Si (known as the SiR in Canada) have been named as Canada’s most stolen cars, with the 2000 model taking the top spot, and the 1999 following it. Previous years have seen the Subaru Impreza WRX, Acura Integra GSR and Integra Type R claim the title, but the Civic…
Honda Civic Concept Sketch Released [BREAKING]
Honda will unveil a concept of the upcoming 9th generation Civic at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show. The updated Civic will go on sale this spring, but Honda will be showing the car at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) and via a live webcast on January 10, 2011. Rumors have suggested a 1.5-liter…
Mazda5 Fuel Pump Concerns Spark Recall
Mazda‘s diminutive minivan, the Mazda5, is the latest car to fall victim to the recall machine, this time a faulty fuel pump being the culprit. Water that remains in the fuel pump may corrode the electrical connectors for the electrical harness. Should the part fail, the engine may stall and be unable to restart, which…
Fiat Sues Journalist Over Negative Review
One recent discussion taking place at Autoguide HQ was how long it’s been since we’ve driven a car that was truly worth a bad review. Most cars these days are pretty good, and the true stinkers are few and far between. The other side of the coin is that competition for your dollars is fierce,…
Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe Is A Compact Car According To EPA
In what might be the most perverse story of the day, the New York Times is reporting that the Environmental Protection Agency is classifying the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe as a compact car, due to their standards for classifying vehicles, which measure interior volume. The same regulation has the Aston Martin DBS classified as a “minicompact” alongside the…
