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Review: 2011 Ford Fiesta SES promises the democratization of fun

August 5th, 2010

2011 Ford Fiesta SES shown

2011 Ford Fiesta SES – Click above for high-res image gallery

Remember when economy cars offered few concessions beyond roll-your-own windows, rear window defrosters and AM radios? It was only a handful of years ago that features on our 2011 Ford Fiesta SES tester would’ve qualified it for premium car status – if indeed items like Bluetooth, SYNC, a capless fuel fill and knee airbags were even available.

There’s no denying the steady trickledown of luxury goods into workaday iron, and the Fiesta is rolling proof.

As you might also recall, back about 10 years ago, Ford executives and those charged with its British outpost, Jaguar, worked themselves into a froth over the possibilities offered by ‘The Democratization of Luxury’ – boldly and conveniently overlooking that when a premium feature becomes affordable to everyone, it ceases to be a luxury at all. And while this sort of marketing doublespeak was the undoing of the ill-conceived Jaguar X-Type – and perhaps the undoing of Ford’s ownership of Coventry’s favorite feline altogether – there’s no denying the steady trickledown of luxury goods into workaday iron, and the Fiesta is rolling proof.

Of course, any automaker can lash a bunch of features onto a car and call it a day, but it’s not a real value unless all of those baubles and braze-ons are bungeed to a platform and drivetrain whose creators have that whole engineering ‘special sauce’ thing figured out. In other words, the democratization of luxury is one thing – but does the Fiesta deliver the democratization of fun? Click through to the jump to find out.

Photos copyright (C)2010 Drew Phillips / AOL

Continue reading Review: 2011 Ford Fiesta SES promises the democratization of fun

Review: 2011 Ford Fiesta SES promises the democratization of fun originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 05 Aug 2010 11:57:00 EST.

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First Drive: 2011 Nissan Leaf doesn’t change the game, just the players

July 27th, 2010

2011 Nissan Leaf – Click above for high-res image gallery

We’ve met the Nissan Leaf before. First at its coming-out party in Japan, followed by an all-too-brief stint behind the wheel of a Versa-based prototype late last year. Now we’ve had a chance to sample Nissan’s first foray into the world of electric vehicles in production form and the automaker picked one of its most important markets – the heart of Silicon Valley – to give us some seat time.

If there’s any area ripe for early-EV adoption, it’s San Jose, CA. And during a quick test loop through the tight confines of Santana Row and a run through the city’s suburban surrounds, it’s obvious that the first mass-produced EV is officially ready for prime-time.

Follow the jump to continue.

Photos copyright (C)2010 Damon Lavrinc / AOL

Continue reading First Drive: 2011 Nissan Leaf doesn’t change the game, just the players

First Drive: 2011 Nissan Leaf doesn’t change the game, just the players originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 27 Jul 2010 12:30:00 EST.

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Audi A7 Sportback images leaked ahead of Monday reveal

July 25th, 2010
udi A7 Sportback
2011 Audi A7 Sportback – Click above for image gallery

Tomorrow afternoon, Audi will formally unveil the new A7 Sportback at a museum in Munich. While that fanfare will go on as scheduled, as is so often the case nowadays, the big reveal has been undercut somewhat as leaked official images have made their way onto the web a day early. Carscoop.com has posted four shots of the A7 Sportback, giving us the first solid looks at the production car’s bodywork and interior. As you can see, the five-door A7 remains true to the concept car that made its debut at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show.

Carscoop further reports that the Audi A7 Sportback is a four-seater only, and will be offered with a selection of gas and diesel V6 engines (in European guise, we assume). We’ll have full details and more images tomorrow once the car gets unveiled at 2:30 PM Eastern. In the meantime, have a gander at the leaked shots below to whet your appetite. Top tip, Rally!

[Source: Carscoop]

Audi A7 Sportback images leaked ahead of Monday reveal originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 25 Jul 2010 09:34:00 EST.

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Volkswagen reconfirms EVs for 2013, next-generation vehicles to reduce weight

July 20th, 2010

Speaking outside its Electronics Research Lab in Palo Alto, California, Volkswagen chairman Dr. Martin Winterkorn reconfirmed the automaker’s commitment to bring electric vehicles to market in 2013, beginning with the eGolf compact and eUp! city car.

Drawing a faint parallel to the original Beetle, Winterkorn told the assembled media that “Volkswagen is working on the electric car for everyone.” And one of the first electrified V-Dubs will be its bread-and-butter Golf hatchback.

“The automotive industry is reinventing itself,” Winterkorn continued, “and Volkswagen will be the first automaker to mass produce the electric car for everyone.” VW believes that electric vehicles are the next great revolution in the automobile, and in order to achieve its goal of becoming the world’s top automaker by 2018, it believes it has to dominate the EV segment.

In addition to bringing two EVs to market in the next three years, the Touareg Hybrid (shown above) is being produced, with the hybrid Golf and Jetta due later that year and the hybrid Passat following in 2012. All of which VW considers to be interim products.

Although current battery technology has limited the eGolf to a 100-mile range when fitted with a 26.5 kWh battery pack, Winterkorn asserts that “Our customers are not willing to compromise. They expect the same thing from a standard [internal-combustion engine] Golf as they would from an electric Golf.” But until its partnerships with Samsung, Toshiba and other battery manufacturers pan out and develop lighter, smaller, less expensive and higher capacity batteries, they’ll have their work cut out for them.

When asked what VW plans to do about vehicle weight, Winterkorn rattled off a litany of advanced materials – from carbon fiber to magnesium – and told Autoblog that the next generation of Volkswagen products will undergo a weight loss program.

[Image: Sean Gallup/Getty]

Volkswagen reconfirms EVs for 2013, next-generation vehicles to reduce weight originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 09:31:00 EST.

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Spy Shots: Audi RS3 takes to the ‘Ring (with adjustable wing?)

June 22nd, 2010

2011 Audi RS3 – Click above for high-res image gallery

The next generation Audi RS3 is coming, it’s just a matter of when. But the bigger question is what’s going to power Audi’s hottest hatch when it arrives on European shores.

Considering that the A3 on which it’s based shares the same platform (PQ35) as the TT RS, there’s a good chance that Audi could swap the coupe’s turbocharged 2.5-liter FSI inline-five into the engine bay. Unchanged, the five-pot would put out 335 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque to either a six-speed manual or S Tronic dual-clutch gearbox, and naturally, power will be delivered to all four wheels with a similar 40:60 front-to-rear torque split.

Our recent batch of spy shots show a slightly modified A3, complete with a RS-ified fascia, lower stance and massive brakes front and rear, although the single, twin-tipped exhaust (and grilled-mounted badge) could be mistaken for a standard S3. More interestingly is the rear wing, which remained fixed during part of the RS3′s ‘Ring run, but was canted upwards around another section. It could be some kind of adaptive air brake or it could’ve just come undone while whipping around the track.

Regardless, since Audi doesn’t offer an S3 in the U.S., there’s little chance of the RS3 making it to the States anytime soon.

Spy Shots: Audi RS3 takes to the ‘Ring (with adjustable wing?) originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 15:01:00 EST.

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2011 Honda CR-Z goes on sale August 24, starting at $19,200

June 22nd, 2010

2011 Honda CR-Z – Click above for high-res image gallery

We’ve driven the 2011 CR-Z and now Honda’s slapped a sticker on its hybrid hatch before sales begin August 24.

The CR-Z is available in three trim levels, with the base price of the six-speed manual-equipped model coming in at $19,200 (plus a D&D charge of $750). Option up for the EX and a 360-watt stereo, Bluetooth integration and a leather wrapped wheel are yours for the taking for $20,760. Tack on the navigation system (“Navi” in Honda parlance) and the price swells to $22,560.

If you absolutely must – and we’d seriously advise against it – you can equip the CR-Z with the CVT for $650, complete with seven faux ratios and a slight boost in fuel economy. Make the jump for the details and a complete pricing breakdown.

Continue reading 2011 Honda CR-Z goes on sale August 24, starting at $19,200

2011 Honda CR-Z goes on sale August 24, starting at $19,200 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:57:00 EST.

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First Drive: 2011 Honda CR-Z

June 18th, 2010

2011 Honda CR-Z – Click above for high-res image gallery

Let’s get this out of the way right now: the 2011 Honda CR-Z is not a CRX redux. To compare the two – no matter how much Honda may want to – is to misunderstand the former and besmirch the latter.

No, the hybrid CR-Z is an entirely different beast. Despite its three-door shape and two-seat configuration, it has about as much in common with the O.G. hatch as a big-screen remake of your favorite childhood TV show. The basic components are there, but the whole concept has been throttled to within an inch of its life with high-tech gadgetry, odd casting decisions and a questionable demographic.

But to Honda’s credit, its rhetorical comparisons to the CRX have died down considerably since the CR-Z debuted in concept form and then progressed into a production model. Honda may have recognized after a lukewarm introduction outside the U.S. that glomming onto nostalgia will only get you so far (see: Dodge Challenger and Chevrolet Camaro). And to make something special – a vehicle that transcends the emotional baggage of its predecessor – you’ve got to evolve the concept and avoid relying on rose-tinted sentimentality.

To an extent, that’s exactly what Honda has created. It hasn’t built another hot hatch – the lightweight, K20-powered three-door enthusiasts crave – and instead it has attempted to meld the technology of the moment into a greenified competitor to the Mini Cooper. Think of it as the rogue lovechild of the original and current Insight, with a few sporting genes spliced into its DNA. But can a hybrid hatch be an entertaining steer? We took to California’s twisties and clipped a few cones to find out.

Photos by Damon Lavrinc / Copyright (C)2010 Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading First Drive: 2011 Honda CR-Z

First Drive: 2011 Honda CR-Z originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 03:02:00 EST.

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Report: Bentley says shooting brake a possibility?

May 26th, 2010

Touring Superleggera Flying Star – Click above for high-res image gallery

The Porsche 918 Spyder might’ve been our pick of the Geneva Motor Show, but the consensus on which vehicle we’d drive home was unanimous: The Bentley Continental-based Flying Star.

As many of you have pointed out, we’ve got a undying love of all things shooting brake, so the Flying Star lit up all the right nerve endings. And apparently, we aren’t alone.

Car and Driver spoke with Stuart McCullough during the launch of the Mulsanne and when asked about the possibility of a Bentley-built hatch, the Volkswagen board member said, “We have an idea in the back of our minds that we may yet bring to market.”

That’s far from a confirmation and it’s doubtful that a Continental-derived shooting brake is coming, particularly when you consider that the GT is due for a refresh. However, something based on the Mulsanne’s underpinnings could replace the aging Continental, and Bentley is sure to be considering other body styles when that model arrives within the next few years.

[Source: Car and Driver]

Report: Bentley says shooting brake a possibility? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 May 2010 18:25:00 EST.

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Review: 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour hatches a new niche

April 7th, 2010

2010 Honda Crosstour – Click above for high-res image gallery

Its introduction was a case study in how to bungle an automotive social media campaign. Badly. It had people running for thesauruses to find new and fascinating synonyms for “ugly.” Its TV campaign has something to do with jazz music and animals. And yet, for all the hubbub, hysterics and lamentations that Honda had completely lost its mind, the 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour quietly showed up and began finding customers.

Last month – its best sales performance to date – 2,587 people drove the odd-looking hatchwagon home. Recently, we took delivery of our own Crosstour EX-L tester, loaded-up with all-wheel drive and navigation, to see how we felt about spending a week with Honda’s latest experiment.

Photos by Drew Phillips / Copyright (C)2010 Weblogs, Inc.

Continue reading Review: 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour hatches a new niche

Review: 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour hatches a new niche originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 07 Apr 2010 11:57:00 EST.

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Reader Spy: 2011 Scion tC caught on New York show stand ahead of reveal, looks much the same *Updated

March 30th, 2010

We have always thought that the Scion tC was a pretty tidy looking little hatchback, but as it’s been on sale since 2004, well, it’s gotten a bit tired, even though there are very few inexpensive front-drive sport-ish coupes to choose from these days. With that in mind, we’ve been looking forward to the introduction of the long-awaited 2011 model, expecting a fairly radical step forward. Judging by this new spy shot from an anonymous tipster, perhaps we ought to temper our expectations a bit.

While the single snapshot in question is blurry and blown out, it does show what appears to be a new lower fascia, grille, wheels, and side mirrors. The headlamps are too washed out under the showstand’s high-power lights to tell if they’ve been altered (it appears that the photo was taken during a presentation rehearsal ahead tomorrow’s New York Auto Show reveal), but it’s reasonable to assume that the tC will receive new lights both front and rear, as they’re a hallmark of almost any vehicle refresh.

As for what lies underneath the reskin, we’re not yet sure, as the only thing to have slipped out about the new model that appears credible are a few official-looking detail shots that reveal items like a new manual shift mode for the automatic transmission and revamped HVAC controls.

We’ll have more on the 2011 tC after Scion’s press conference tomorrow, but in the meantime, you can play a game of “spot the differences” from the outgoing car by checking out our high-res gallery of Scion’s latest special edition model below.

*UPDATE: Our man with the spy cam has offered up the following details about the 2011 tC:

  • 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine (2010 model has a 2.4-liter)
  • Six-speed manual or automatic gearbox with sequential shifter
  • 18-inch wheels standard (with wider tires)
  • Traction and stability control (defeatable)
  • Wider track for improved stance
  • Flat-bottom steering wheel “one of the best feeling out there (comparable to the one used in the GTI), very thick”
  • Improved seats with “good bolsters and shoulder height bolsters, too”
  • Improved rear headroom (but panoramic moonroof stays)
  • Overall, a “very nice feeling interior (for the price point and even above)”
  • Eight-speaker stereo standard
  • Single outlet exhaust (“would like nice with a dual back there”)

We’ll see if our inside man is right on the money tomorrow.

Reader Spy: 2011 Scion tC caught on New York show stand ahead of reveal, looks much the same *Updated originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 30 Mar 2010 19:31:00 EST.

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