Category: New Model Introductions

Let's call it a shindig. A Hollywood premiere. Audi introduced its all new A8 premium luxury sedan to the world on Monday night in Miami Beach at the renowned Founainbleau Hotel. As a sponsor of Art Basel Miami Beach, Audi has provided transportation to various venues and display space for contemporary art.

It's not everyday you have the chance to visit a brand spanking new automotive assembly plant, but the new Kia plant in western Georgia (USA, not Eastern Europe) is the latest "transplant" to begin producing new vehicles. Kia began producing the all-new 2011 Kia Sorento in small volumes in Fall, 2009 right on schedule. Full production begins in mid-November.

The 2011 Kia Sorento is all-new, meaning it has practically no relationship to its predecessor. All the part numbers are different. It is now based on a front wheel drive, unit body platform shared with the next generation Hyundai Santa Fe.

Nissan releases the first photos of next year's electric vehicle.

Suzuki Kizashi looks sporty and has more flair than most mid-sizers, but does it have enough size and power to compete?

Lexus' newest addition to the IS line will not get any better treatment from "true enthusiasts", but the folks at Lexus has thought this through.

The Ford Taurus SHO returns after a decade's absence from the American auto scene. Formerly Yamaha engines provided the power for the SHO, but today Ford's new EcoBoost powertrain technology provides the power. EcoBoost in Taurus form includes twin turbochargers and gasoline direct injection. Still with a heavily beefed up 3.5L V6, EcoBoost bumps up power from 263-horsepower to 365-horsepower in the SHO. Torque grows from 249 lb-ft to 350 lb-ft. And rated fuel economy stays the same.

Wanna know why the Elantra Touring looks absolutely nothing like the sedan that it shares its name with?
This wagon addition to the Elantra lineup was really sort of a last minute add to Hyundai’s US product portfolio. You might recall that the previous Elantra was available as a SAAB-esque hatchback, and the one before that was available as a station wagon. However, because Hyundai’s Korean management knew that Americans seemed to overwhelmingly prefer sedans over hatchbacks or wagons, they made the decision pretty early on to offer the current Elantra as a sedan only.

I approached the 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe with great interest. Yeah, sure, it’s got all the things to make a car enthusiast swoon: great styling, rear wheel drive, and lots of power. But what made the car of particular interest to me was the fact that I had a small hand in the development of the car. I wanted to see how the finished product had turned out.
Yup, not that long ago I used to work for Hyundai as a product planning manager, and I watched the car’s development as it progressed from simple sketches to computer generated 3D images to full-size clay models. I even got to drive early prototypes of the car over two years ago on Hyundai’s test track in Namyang, Korea.

The second generation Prius, which debuted for the 2004 model year, has become an icon on many levels. It’s a green statement. It’s a political statement. It’s even a technology statement. I’ve been saying for quite a while now that history will look upon the little lozenge-shaped car as THE iconic vehicle of this decade, much as the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air was the iconic car of the 1950s.
The second generation Prius was the car that brought hybrids to the mainstream. The dorky first generation car looked and felt somewhat like a science project…and the quirky original Honda Insight even more so. But Prius v2.0 boasted a really usable interior package, decent performance, and a unique look that proclaimed to the world that you were ready for something beyond the status quo.
There was just one problem: [...]