Autoblog

We've already seen some undisguised pictures of Kia's handsome new midsize SUV, but the vehicle just launched officially in Korea as the Mohave. Official launch means official pictures, and that's what we have here, a ton of really beautiful images of what we'll soon know as the Borrego. Not that Borrego, this one sports a full frame, seating places for seven, and the choice of Kia's strong-like-bull V6 or their first V8. The wisdom of introducing a new body-on-frame SUV at this point, especially in light of the coming new CAFE rules, might be questionable, but the vehicle itself is handsome and it's hard to deny the inherent value that Kia bakes into its cars. We'll check the Borrego out in person when it makes it's US debut at the Detroit Auto Show. In the meantime, Carscoop unearthed a lot of great pictures to tide us over.

[Source: Kia via Carscoop]

What do you get when you cross a Lexus LS460 and and a BMW 5-Series (plus a healthy dollop of Toyota Crown -Ed.)? You get what appears to be the production Hyundai Genesis sedan. The front end looks as though it was ripped right off of the most expensive Lexus, with a strikingly similar set of headlights, a spot-on grille, and similar brightwork. Only the lower fascia wanders from the LS460. Out back, it appears that Hyundai took a pass on the classic Lexus C-pillar, but the Korean automaker's designers were obviously fond of the BMW 5-Series.

The big difference between the Genesis sedan and the vehicles it borrows from is that Hyundai likely has no intention of charging $60,000 for its RWD 4-door. While we're generally not a big fan of derivative styling, the Genesis looks pretty good for a RWD V8 sedan priced in the $30,000 range.

Thanks for the tip, Jose!

[Source: bobaedream]

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]

Remember our post about the revised Kia Opirus? The sedan, which is sold in North America as the Kia Amanti, will be arriving in the U.S. some time next year. According to senior vice president Jean-Charles Lievens of Kia Motors Europe, the 2007 Opirus/Amanti will make its debut at the Paris Motor Show this September.

Besides its heavily revised interior and exterior, Kia's flagship will boast a new all-aluminum, 3.8-liter, 266 horsepower engine, replacing the current 200 horsepower one. It's too early to tell what the price may be, though speculation is around $30K, a new high for the Korean automaker.

[Source: Edmunds]

The new 2007 Hyundai Elantra is the seventh new product from Hyundai in the last two years. The all-new midsize (that’s a new EPA classification thanks to 112.1 cubic feet of interior volume) gets Hyundai’s now traditional battery of safety equipment including six airbags, ABS brakes and front-seat active head restraints. The new lines echo the company’s recent design philosophy of restrained expression. While some might call that boring, others will see the new Elantra as more mature in appearance than its predecessors. The bigger dimensions allow for an interior that’s larger than the inner sanctums of the Civic, Corolla and even the Acura TL. It's clear that Hyundai is aiming the Elantra directly at both Japanese small sedans and will likely undercut them in price by a large margin.

We’ll have to wait until later in the day to bring you more specifics on the Elantra’s hardware, so in the meantime you can feast on more pics and Hyundai's pre-show press release after the jump.

[Source: Hyundai]