Autoblog

Fiat dishes up more information on 500L five-door

Zach Bowman — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 18:02:00 EST

Filed under: Budget, Etc., Crossover, Fiat

Fiat has served up a few more tidbits on the upcoming 500L five-door expected to debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March. According to Automotive News, the vehicle will feature a taller roof than the thee-door Fiat 500, and while the two sill share a front fascia, the larger vehicle will ride on a widened version of the same chassis that underpins the Fiat Punto. All told, the Fiat 500L will be around 163.38 inches long, which is around 2.36 inches longer than the current 500.

Interestingly enough, Fiat plans to introduce both five-seat and a seven-seat version of the 500L in the near future, though American buyers are only likely to be able to enjoy the former configuration. The 500L is expected to touch down on dealer lots in Europe in July, while Americans will have to wait until early 2013 to plop themselves in the driver's seat.

In Europe, the vehicles will likely be available with with a turbocharged two-cylinder 900cc gasoline engine with 85 horsepower as well as a 1.4-liter four-cylinder good for either 77 or 105 hp depending on configuration. A 1.3-liter diesel will also be an option across the pond with either 75 or 99 hp. Odds are American buyers will simply see the 1.4-liter Multiair four-cylinder on their option sheets.

Fiat dishes up more information on 500L five-door originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 29 Jan 2012 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Volkswagen reveals production five-door Up!

Zach Bowman — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:31:00 EST

Filed under: Budget, Etc., Europe, Hatchback, Volkswagen

Volkswagen has unveiled the new production model five-door Up! after patent drawings of the vehicle made their way to the web. The newest member to the Volkswagen small-car line is expected to land on dealer lots in Germany by early March, with availability opening up to the rest of Europe by summer. The vehicle will launch with the exact same engines and external dimensions as its three-door brethren. That means buyers will be able to opt for either a 60-horsepower, 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine or a 75 horsepower version of the same powerplant. Even so, Volkswagen anticipates roughly half of Up! buyers will opt for the new five-door bodystyle.

The five-door Up! does serve up a few stylistic changes over its three-door counterpart beyond the addition of two extra doors. For starters, the rear hatch is solid glass and the hatchback's side profile line is now basically straight from front to rear. In the three-door version, that line kicks up slightly as it heads toward the rear of the vehicle. Buyers can expect to pay $13,295 (including Europe's notorious taxes) at current conversion rates, which is a little over $600 more than the three-door hatch. Hit the jump for the full press release.

Continue reading Volkswagen reveals production five-door Up!

Volkswagen reveals production five-door Up! originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Europe's Honda Civic hatchback spills out ahead of Frankfurt debut

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:29:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Hatchback, Honda

Honda has released a smattering of images that give us lots more to chew on when it comes to the brand-spankin'-new European edition of the 2012 Civic.

It's been said before, and we're going to say it again: The European-market Civic hatchback is much funkier and - to our eyes, at least - more attractive than its North American equivalent. Some things never change. According to Honda, design inspiration for the latest Euro Civic came from "a 'blended wing body' airplane in which the fuselage and wings blend into a single body for superior aerodynamic performance." Alrighty then.

In any case, the new body blends sharp new headlamps and more assertive fender flares with a unique Y-shaped blacked-out front fascia, but it shares design elements with the successful last-generation five-door, including a split-glass hatch area and rear door handles hidden in the C-pillar.

There aren't any details just yet on what's underneath that form-fitting sheetmetal, but we're sure the typical small-displacement gasoline and diesel powerplants will be on offer along with various automatic and manual gearboxes. The automaker is claiming reduced carbon emissions (a given these days), improved ride and handling and class-leading interior space.

We'll be getting an official debut from the floor of the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, but in the meantime, we suggest you browse through our high-res gallery of images and check out the brief press release after the break.

Continue reading Europe's Honda Civic hatchback spills out ahead of Frankfurt debut

Europe's Honda Civic hatchback spills out ahead of Frankfurt debut originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2012 Hyundai Accent Five-Door

Zach Bowman — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 11:55:00 EST

Filed under: Budget, Hatchback, Hyundai, First Drives, South Korea

Serving Notice To The Subcompact Segment

2012 Hyundai Accent Five-Door - Click above for high-res image gallery

It's been a busy two years in the subcompact world. Newcomers like the Ford Fiesta and Mazda2 have made it clear they intend to give models like the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and segment volume leader Nissan Versa a run for their small-displacement money. Even General Motors is getting into the fray with the upcoming 2012 Chevrolet Sonic after years of trying to pass off the Aveo as legitimate transportation. So when Hyundai announced it was taking the knife to its Accent, we knew to expect good things.

The Korean automaker hasn't been one to mess around lately, and vehicles like the all-new Elantra and redesigned Sonata have helped push the manufacturer to the highest market share in the company's history - 5.6 percent in May. With the segment's first direct-injection four-cylinder engine, the buyer's choice of a six-speed manual or automatic transmission, an impossibly low MSRP and 40 mpg highway from every model, it's clear that the 2012 Hyundai Accent is intent on eclipsing the competition.

Continue reading 2012 Hyundai Accent Five-Door

2012 Hyundai Accent Five-Door originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 20 Jun 2011 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don't buy 'em?

Chris Paukert — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:33:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Budget, Hybrid, Sedan, Hatchback, Design/Style

Hatchbacks and their sedan counterparts - Click above for high-res image gallery

There's a well-worn cliché that is uttered periodically by just about every product planner and PR wonk in the auto industry - one that's been dutifully parroted by the journalists and enthusiasts that surround them, and it goes something like this: "Sorry, fellas, Americans just don't buy hatchbacks." Typically, that chestnut is trotted out whenever an automaker is compelled to explain why a particularly desirable new hatchback won't be sold in U.S. showrooms. Thing is, this commonly accepted bit of wisdom isn't as true as we've been led to believe.

The hatchback accounts for 60 percent of Fiesta sales.

Just ask Ford, who announced today that its new-for-2011 Fiesta is selling more in five-door guise than it is in its more traditional four-door sedan format. According to figures the automaker has sourced from Ward's Auto, the jaunty hatch accounts for over 60 percent of the Fiesta's sales. Little wonder, perhaps, as Ford has seemingly devoted the Fiesta's entire marketing budget to that particular bodystyle.

As a further statement of faith in the viability of the utilitarian bodystyle, the Blue Oval is readying its 2012 Focus in both sedan and five-door formats, with the two-door Focus coupe being discarded in favor of the hatchback - a configuration unavailable since 2007. Ford sales analyst George Pipas nutshells what he sees as a growing trend:

"American car buyers have grown accustomed to the convenience of hatch bodystyles after years of owning SUVs and crossovers. Combined with a generation of younger drivers who have been exposed via the Internet to popular high-performance hatchback offerings in Europe and Asia, we may be seeing the beginning of a shift in buyer acceptance of hatchbacks."

Ford isn't alone in its bid to disprove that consumers are inherently averse to two-box designs because they feel they're cheap and frumpy - sensible as opposed to stylish. Autoblog recently inquired with a number of automakers who offer entry-level models available in both hatchback and sedan bodystyles, only to find out that in many cases, bubbleback models are outselling their trunked counterparts.

Continue reading...

Gallery: Hatchbacks and Their Sedan Counterparts

Continue reading Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don't buy 'em?

Hatchbacks: Who says Americans don't buy 'em? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spy Shots: Five-door Ford Fiesta/Verve

Damon Lavrinc — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 18:27:00 EST

Filed under: Spy Photos, Budget, Europe, Hatchback, Ford

Our friends over at World Car Fans procured a series of shots showing the next generation Fiesta undergoing testing, but this time it's sporting an extra set of doors. The five-door model, like its two-door sibling, will take cues from the Verve Concept that debuted last week in Frankfurt and gets an Iosis-inspired front end, complete with drawn-back headlamps and a steeply raked windscreen. The beltline moves northward in Florida-retiree style, terminating in an upswept D-pillar, while the roof-mounted wing may portend the future of a hot hatch version.

You can check out all the shots from WCF here, and compare it to its concept counterpart by checking out gallery below.

[Source: World Car Fans]

Gallery: Ford Verve Concept

Spy Shots: Five-door Ford Fiesta/Verve originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 18:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spy Shots: 2007.5 Chevy Aveo Hatchback

John Neff — Sat, 09 Sep 2006 00:35:00 EST

Filed under: Spy Photos, Hatchback, Chevrolet

The Chevy Aveo sedan is hitting dealer lots as we speak, so the surfacing of these spy shots showing the five-door hatchback version is well timed. Cheers and Gears pulls what details they can from the heavily camouflaged vehicle, which shows some interesting design details. Look closely and you'll see the one de rigueur design detail showing up on all the fashionable 2007 models: side air vents! Whether they are a portent of a performance version or will be used across the entire lineup of Aveo hatchbacks is not known, but they certainly look like production pieces to us. Stare long and hard at the front and you'll also see the pointed bottom of the new giant grille that was first previewed on recent Malibu spy shots, as well. The rear of the car shows large taillamps with round reverse lights reminiscent of the HHR. From these spy shots, it appears that the Aveo hatchback is going to get divergent styling from its four-door sibling, as well as a sub-$10,000 base price to keep it one of this market's least expensive vehicles. Expect the Chevy Aveo five-door hatchback to debut sometime next year as a 2007 model.

[Source: Cheers & Geers]

Spy Shots: 2007.5 Chevy Aveo Hatchback originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 09 Sep 2006 00:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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