Compact
Mitsubishi sketches out Concept-cX-influenced compact crossover for 2010
Mitsubishi Compact Crossover - Click above for high-res image
VIDEO: Citroën using cool interactive "augmented reality" tech to pitch new DS3
Citroën DS3 in augmented reality -- Click above to watch video
Renault releases ECO2 version of the Renault Kangoo
A panel van able to carry an euro-sized pallet a distance of 100 kilometers while burning less than 5 liters of diesel has arrived: the Renault Kangoo Rapid ECO2. The model, the larger sibling of the Kangoo Express Compact (the model that the all-electric Z.E. i
Ford Fiesta winning hearts and minds - and wallets - in Europe
2009 Ford Fiesta - Click above for a high-res gallery
Toyota working on Yaris-sized 7-Seater?
If you've been distressed by not being able to buy a clown car at any local lot, Toyota has news for you: the company is working on a Yaris-sized seven-seater. That is odd enough to make us ask "What?" and "Why?" in several languages. Even better, though, is when Toyota engineer Hiroki Nakajima says "We can do it, and give limo-like legroom in the back." We aren't sure what Nakajima-san's idea of a limo is, but the current five-searter Yaris doesn't have limo-like room for the people in the fron
Lincoln mulling compact sedan to slot in below MKZ
Automotive News sat down with Derrick Kuzak, Lincoln's product development chief, to discuss what lies ahead for Ford's erstwhile luxury marque, and Kuzak was quoted as saying, "We do think that there is room for a smaller car in the Lincoln brand," but he was unable to provide any hard details on what – if anything – is planned.
Kia Soul gets its emo on, visits Vans Warped Tour
Looking startlingly like a Vans shoe, preproduction versions of Kia's Soul will be doing their roadie routine with the Vans Warped Tour in the U.S. this summer. The front and rear of the car will be hidden under camo tape done up like Vans trademark checkerboard pattern, and dark windows will keep prying eyes out, but kids will still get a good look at what's on offer.
Mitsubishi developing RWD subcompact world car
Mitsubishi's president, Osamu Masuko, addressed the assembled masses in Beijing to inform them of plans to create a new subcompact car destined for Europe, China and Southeast Asia. The new platform will fit the standard dimensions of a Kei car in Japan (no more than 11.2-feet long and five-feet wide) and will come equipped with either the Japanese-mandated 660cc engine or, in markets outside of Japan, a 1.0-liter engine. Power will be sent to the rear wheels and the architecture will be flexibl
Lutz confirms Chevy Volt media rides in July, GM won't name battery supplier until late 2008
A little over ten days ago, GM's Bob Lutz told us that the Chevy Volt would not be ready for media drives until July. While that announcement was slightly newsworthy because it signaled a small delay/shifting of the timeline. Whatever. The news that the lithium-ion-powered mules would still be on track to be driven at all was a good sign. Lutz has now confirmed to Sebastian Blanco
Punto with a backpack - 2009 Fiat Fiorino
Fiat's new car-derived utility truck, the Fiorino Mk IV, has been revealed in all its Chiclet-colored glory. These small car-based working vehicles are just right for businesses that don't need the heft of the ubiquitous pickup-based cargo van here in the states, or larger Continental vehicles like the Sprinter. Horsepower will be around 75 whether buyers choose the 1.4 liter gasoline or 1.3 liter turbodiesel, plenty to haul all those tiny die-cast Eiffel towers down from port to the Champs &Eac
Frankfurt 2007: Renault Kangoo Compact Concept
Click the image above for high-res pics.
Mercedes BLK takes aim at 1-series
To hear some people talk, you'd be forgiven for thinking BMW's 1-Series has already won the compact luxury segment and retired to the hearth with a glass of celebratory Riesling. And it hasn't even come to America yet. In spite of the 1's much hyped and much anticipated arrival, it will still have to earn its place by taking on challengers. Mercedes' entrant is called the BLK, based on the C-Class and offered in three body styles: coupe, hatch, and convertible. Whil
The Ranger is (nearly) dead, long live the Ranger
And then there was one. All of the Ford Ranger's contemporaries have forsaken the compact segment for the middleweight class. The Ranger is long in the tooth, to say the least, but we love the smaller size and many find it a good blend of truck functionality without the bulk and heft of a full-size. You can buy into a Ranger for $15 grand, which is a reasonable point of entry for a work truck. There used to be F150s outfitted for labor in that price range, but good luck finding a decontented ful
Toyota set to unveil microcar in Frankfurt
Automotive News has a quick blurb about a new model set to debut from the folks at Toyota during this year's Frankfurt Motor Show. According to AN, Toyota's 3000mm-long microcar will be known as the Endo and will slot in below the Aygo, the smallest vehicle in the automaker's European lineup.
Future Classic: Dodge Colt
With the rise of the import trend, we're seeing Musclecar-era Japanese rides attain some of the same cachet as domestic iron from the same time. Funny, they didn't strike us this way at the time, but looking at them now, they're like three-quarter scale models of the Big Three's offerings. There seems to be a soft spot for early Celicas and of course, the Datsun 510 makes one hell of a half-price 2002. Somewhat overlooked, in our opinion, are the Mitsubishi models imported by Chrysler in the ear