Hatchbacks
-
Ford last month took the covers off a redesigned Focus in hatchback (regular and soft-roader), sedan and wagon body styles. The car represents the fourth generation of the popular compact and is due in most markets later this year. Unfortunately, Ford last week confirmed that North America will receive just one variant of the car: the Focus Active soft-roader. It's due here in the fall of 2019 and will be sourced from a plant in China. Yep, no more sporty ST or RS variants. The move is part of Ford's plan to drop virtually all of its passenger car lineup in North America. In fact, the only...
-
Living with the 2018 Kia Stinger GT: the good and the bad
It took years for Americans to embrace Japanese performance cars and the different philosophy behind them. If the 2018 Kia Stinger GT is any indication, it won't take South Korea nearly as long to gain a foothold with American performance shoppers. That's because there's something intrinsically...
Brandon Turkus -
2019 Audi A1 spy shots and video
Engineers from Audi are out testing prototypes for a new generation of the A1 subcompact hatchback. The current A1 debuted in 2010 and sadly was never offered in the United States. We’re afraid there’s also little chance we’ll see the redesigned model as Audi has ruled out...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Ford's new Focus ST tipped to receive RS's 2.3-liter engine
Ford has just redesigned its Focus but the sporty ST version isn't quite ready yet. (The debut is expected to take place at the 2019 Geneva auto show next March.) Prototypes for the new Focus ST suggest the car will follow a familiar path in terms of styling, but what's making up the mechanicals...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2018 Volkswagen Golf R first drive review: no juvenile delinquent
Automaker family portraits are like most of ours. See that mohawk in the back? That’s the Honda Civic Type R. The blue-face scoundrel flipping the bird? Hello, Ford Focus RS. Every family has someone bound for the pokey—even short stretches, but the 2018 Volkswagen Golf R skips hard...
Brandon Turkus -
Buick Velite 6 hybrid and electric cars bound for China
Buick on Wednesday revealed a new electrified car called the Velite 6 that's due to hit the Chinese market this year. It's a follow-up to the Velite 5 extended-range electric sedan Buick launched in China last year, the brand's biggest market. However, unlike the Velite 5, which is really just a...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
What’s the biggest sacrifice you’ve ever had to make? Drip coffee at home instead of a drive-thru latte? The middle seat in back, in coach? Okay, breathe. The base 2018 Porsche Panamera won’t trigger any gasps like those commonplace horrors. We’ve driven all kinds of Panameras this year, from the astounding Turbo and S-E Hybrid, to the only slightly more sedate Panamera 4S. A couple hundred miles in the base Panamera V-6, stickered well below $100,000, underlines how expertly today’s Porsche four-doors can mimic its sports cars. Those sports cars have it so good...
-
2019 Toyota Corolla Hatch debuts at 2018 New York auto show
We just saw it at the 2018 Geneva auto show, but now Toyota's new Corolla Hatchback has arrived in the United States for a local debut at this week's 2018 New York auto show. The new compact hatch, which is called an Auris in Europe, is due in showrooms this summer as a 2019 model. It replaces the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Baby got back: 2019 Audi RS 5 Sportback debuts in New York
As much as we love Audi Sport's latest RS 5 coupe, the car's two-door body is definitely a limiting factor. Which coupe owner doesn't feel a tinge of pain folding down the front seats whenever friends or family, muddy shoes and all, have to climb into the back? The solution is the new RS 5...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Renault rolls out F1-inspired Clio RS 18 hot hatch
Renault's Clio subcompact is quite popular in Europe thanks to its small size and relatively long features list. To help bolster the range and boost sales further, Renault offers a sporty variant known as the Clio RS. It's the French firm's rival to cars like the Ford Fiesta ST and Volkswagen Polo...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
This armored Peugeot 205 is the safest hot hatch in the world
The Peugeot 205 GTI never arrived to battle the Volkswagen Golf GTI on our shores. That's a shame because the ensuing hot hatch shootouts could've been the stuff of legend. Were it our money, we'd track down the 205 T16 model with its race-ready upgrades. There's another version that's recently...
Jeff Glucker -
Hyundai Veloster N could get dual-clutch transmission in 2019
The first model from the Hyundai N performance division to be sold in the United States will be the Veloster N, which was revealed to the world in January at the 2018 Detroit auto show. It's due in showrooms later this year as a 2019 model. When it arrives, the Veloster N will only be offered with...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The 2019 Kia Stinger GT Atlantica pushes the luxury sport hatchback a bit further upscale. Ahead the Stinger's sophomore year, Kia unveiled Tuesday in Colorado a limited edition package that dons the five-door hatchback with a special blue exterior paint shade and a coffee-colored interior. Just 500 examples of the 2019 Stinger Atlantica will be built, each swathed in a unique Deep Chroma Blue exterior and an espresso brown nappa leather interior. Other Atlantica exclusives include a surround-view monitor, a suede-like headliner, a wireless charging pad, and a special 19-inch wheel design...
-
2019 Toyota Corolla hatchback forges ahead with hybrid power
The 2019 Toyota Corolla hatchback, or Auris in European markets, made its debut on Tuesday at the 2018 Geneva International Motor Show. The car is highlighted by chiseled new looks, and the Japanese automaker is doubling down on hybrid power for the popular compact car. The 2019 Corolla hatch will...
Sean Szymkowski -
2018 Buick Regal GS first drive review: six appeal
The 2018 Buick Regal GS wears lots of letters and words on its flanks and in its cabin. Two you won’t find? “Gran Sport.” That moniker’s a relic of an era when rear-drive Buicks prowled the roads, leaded fuel their Muscle Milk. Today’s Buicks lean heavily on recently...
Martin Padgett -
2019 Ford Focus leaked
A completely undisguised 2019 Ford Focus hatchback has been snapped during what looks to be an official photo shoot. The photo, from Hungarian website Vezess, shows a stylish design with proportions similar to a key rival overseas, the Opel Astra. Ford is expected to launch the new Focus soon, as...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Ford Focus RS production ends April 6, 2018
There's a new generation of the Ford Focus just around the corner, and if past experience is anything to go by we likely won't see an RS version of the car until well into the product cycle. That means if you were considering buying a Focus RS, you had better act fast as the current model is set to...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2018 Fiat 500 goes all-turbo, all the time
To put a little more pep in the 2018 Fiat 500 lineup's step, the Italian announced Thursday at the Chicago auto show that it is making a more powerful turbocharged engine standard equipment. The new 1.4-liter turbo-4 engine represents a 33 percent increase in horsepower over last year's non-turbo...
Sean Szymkowski -
Cape Town, South Africa - The South African landscape is unusually parched. Late January is midsummer here, and the country is in the throes of a drought that threatens the water supply. Day Zero is April 16, about a month before the rainy season that could stave off this water crisis. It's an impending problem for a beautiful country still transforming from the oppression of Apartheid to a more equal society. I can't help but feel guilty behind the wheel of the 2019 Audi A7, a luxury car that represents a transformation of its own. It started when Audi set out to turn the A6 sedan into a...
-
2018 Mercedes-Benz A-Class aims higher for compact luxury cars
Mercedes-Benz has new ideas for the compact-luxury car class, and the 2018 A-Class is the first indication. On Friday, the luxury brand unveiled the new A-Class hatchback with a sleeker design, and an interior fitted with the brand's new MBUX infotainment system. The A-Class has grown up, and it's...
Sean Szymkowski -
Report: Next-gen Minis could come from China, ride on platform deveoped with Great Wall
The BMW Group is in the requirements phase for its next-generation Mini family and options on the table reportedly include building the cars in China on a platform shared with Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor. Bloomberg last October reported that BMW was in talks with Great Wall over plans to...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Toyota Yaris GRMN hits the track
As much as we love cars like the Ford Focus RS and Honda Civic Type R, there's no denying they lack the lightness and chuckable feeling of hot hatches from the '80s and '90s. Something like a Peugeot 205 GTI or even the first Civic Type R. There are some modern options that come close, such as the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Next-gen Volkswagen Golf coming in 2019
Volkswagen on Friday revealed critical details on its next-generation Golf during a presentation with suppliers. The automaker said it is spending $2.2 billion developing the new Mk8 model, which is due to enter production at VW's main plant in Wolfsburg, Germany in June 2019. We'll likely see the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2019 Hyundai Veloster N marks brand's foray into hot hatchbacks
Who says auto shows can't surprise anymore? After releasing the details on its redesigned 2019 Veloster, Hyundai pulled a fast one on the 2018 Detroit auto show on Monday, introducing the first member of its long-awaited N performance line. The 2019 Hyundai Veloster N is the most extreme...
Brandon Turkus