We already saw a near-production version of the next-generation Chevrolet Aveo at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show. Now our spies have managed to catch a nearly undisguised prototype during testing in Detroit.
As you can see, the production Aveo looks as though it will carryover almost unchanged. And that my friends is probably a good thing as this Aveo looks like a pretty sharp little hatchback. You can argue about the nose all you want, but the rest of the car has nice short overhangs, a decent-sized greenhouse and nice proportions. Could be a decent alternative to the Honda Fit if the suspension is well sorted.
2010 Detroit Auto Show: Chevrolet Aveo RS Concept
Categories: Chevrolet,Detroit Auto Show,Hatchbacks,Spy Photos
The camouflage is starting to thin out as the 2011 Audi A1 gets closer to its official debut. Like the Mercedes-Benz B-Class we showed you yesterday, the Audi A1 is a small hatchback that has been considered for the U.S. market but will likely remain in Europe.
Like Mercedes-Benz, Audi is wary of getting spread too thin in the American market. If the A1 were to come in at the bottom around say $24-25K, the brand would stretch from there all the way to $155K for the R8 V10. That's quite a spread.
It begs the question: Do you consider Audi and Mercedes-Benz to be pure luxury brands only? Or would you consider an Audi or Mercedes that was priced more like a mainstream brand like Ford or Honda?
Categories: Audi,Future Vehicles,Geneva Motor Show,Hatchbacks,Luxury Cars,Spy Photos
Subaru announced today that it will show a new production version of the Impreza at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show. Called the Subaru Impreza XV, it will be offered with Subaru's boxer diesel four-cylinder (or a gas engine) and go on sale in Europe this summer.
The engine meets the Euro 5 standard, but don't start getting hopeful about a diesel Impreza, or a diesel anything else, coming to the United States. Subaru would need to contract with an AdBlue system supplier and then figure out how to still make money on the car.
Based on the current five-door hatchback, the Subaru Impreza XV is said to offer "crossover styling" with special detailing on the fascia and wheel arches, plus a standard roof rack. So it could be a diesel Outback Sport then. Which means it probably won't be pretty.
Not that we know for sure, though. Subaru has released no photos of the XV hatch, just a couple computer renderings of its Geneva booth layout. As you can see, the Impreza XV will share the stage with the Hybrid Tourer unveiled in Tokyo.
Categories: Diesels,Geneva Motor Show,Hatchbacks,Subaru
Remember the Mercedes-Benz B-Class? It's a tiny little hatchback thing that almost made it to the U.S. a few years ago. The prototype you see here is the next-generation version, and like its predecessor, it has a chance of coming to the U.S.
Not a very good one mind you, mostly because Mercedes-Benz is a little unsure whether Americans are ready for such a small vehicle with a three-pointed start on the back. Then again, it would be a big help in terms of lowering the company's fleet-wide fuel economy numbers, so that could convince Dieter that's its worth the trouble.
Categories: Future Vehicles,Hatchbacks,Luxury Cars,Mercedes-Benz,Spy Photos
NHTSA is turning the screws on Toyota just a little bit more today with the announcement that it will begin investigating complaints of brake problems with the latest Prius.
Complaints were reported in both the U.S. and Japan and most of them focus on momentary loss of brake power while driving over a bump or through a pothole. Toyota has acknowledged the problem and says it's an issue related to the switchover from the electric to the hydraulic brake systems.
AutoObserver: Despite Quality Woes, Toyota Turns a Profit, Admits Prius Brake Problems
Categories: Hatchbacks,Hybrids,Toyota,Toyota Recalls
At first blush, the idea of running a hybrid on a chassis dyno is silly. A dyno is all about power and performance, and a hybrid, well, isn't.
That is, unless the hybrid is the 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6, of which its creators reckon is the most powerful in the world. Have a look at its stats as claimed by BMW -- 480 horsepower and a staggering 575 lb-ft of torque.
This prodigious output comes by way of a 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 and a two-mode hybrid system. The product of the now-defunct collaboration between GM, DaimlerChrysler and BMW, this hybrid system is fundamentally similar to that of the Chevy Silverado Hybrid and Tahoe Hybrid. Pairing these two power generators together is like dashing creatine powder onto a medium-rare strip steak.
This ActiveHybrid X6, then, is a hybrid with a chip on its shoulder, just begging to have its claims put to the test. And test it we did, strapping it down to a chassis dyno and making it sing. Er, whir and hum quietly.
Dyno charts and photos after the jump.
Continue reading Inside Line Dyno Tests the 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6.
Categories: BMW,Car Tech,Crossovers,Green Tech,Hatchbacks,Hybrids,Luxury Cars
Yes, a car that retails for the equivalent of around $2,000 is the hottest car in India. Strangely enough, this applies to rich and poor alike according to a recent report in the Christian Science Monitor.
It quotes a rural farmer named Satish Kumar who says he doesn't really need a car. "I'm mainly concentrating on using it socially - taking my whole family to weddings and other family functions," he says.
The flip side of the situation is those who already have cars said a local Tata dealer. "We were expecting people to come who were ... on two-wheelers, or in lower-model cars. It was a total surprise - people were coming ... who have two or three cars, but wanted the Nano just for the sake of having it."
Tata says it wants to sell the Nano in the U.S. after some extensive modifications. Somehow we don't see it getting quite the same reception here.
Christian Science Monitor
Categories: Auto Industry,Hatchbacks,Tata Motors
GM has released a statement regarding the 2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe that was recalled along with a whole bunch of Toyotas last week. GM says that based on its experience, "the Vibe is safe to drive," and it received no complaints of unintended acceleration prior to the recall.
Notably, GM says that after the recall it received several complains about sticking throttle pedals from customers. None of the claimed incidents caused any accidents.
Think people might be watching the news just a little too much?
GM
Categories: Auto Industry,General Motors,Hatchbacks,Pontiac
The papers are signed and the agreement is done. Nissan has sealed the deal on a Department of Transportation loan that will be used to modify Nissan's Smyrna, TN plant for production of the Leaf electric car and the lithium-ion batteries that will power it.
According to the press release, the plant will be capable of producing 150,000 Leafs a year and 200,000 batteries a year when fully operational.
Hope it works. That's a pretty big chunk of change to hand over for a completely unproven product. Then again, both Fisker and Tesla got half a billion each for cars that don't exist yet, so we'll see who pulls through first.
Revealed: Nissan Leaf Electric Car
Categories: Auto Industry,Future Vehicles,Green Tech,Hatchbacks,Nissan,Trends
We hope you haven't tired of seeing video of Travis Pastrana's heroically insane jump from the Long Beach Pier, because this latest video from Red Bull is easily the best yet. You get to watch the jump from three different POV cameras:
(1) One is mounted atop Pastrana's Subaru WRX STI and pointed behind it. You'll watch the jump ramp and water fall away as Pastrana takes the car airborne.
(2) Another is mounted in the undercarriage of the STI.
(3) And, best of all is the one mounted in the hatch and aimed at the cockpit. Here you see how utterly relaxed Pastrana is as he yanks the handbrake in midair and slides the car to a hard stop after landing.
"Woo-hoo. That was sick!" Yep, you'll hear that three times as well.
Categories: Celebrities,Hatchbacks,Motorsports,Subaru
The production version of the 2011 Honda CR-Z was just introduced at the 2010 Detroit Auto show, but a magazine in Japan has already taken a test drive on a closed course. Here's a translated version of their thoughts on the car.
"The production version of the car looks sharp sitting on the track thanks to well balanced proportions. The character line that runs down the side of the car looks more pronounced on the silver paint than it does on a red or blue color. The tires and wheels are noticeably less spectacular then the ones from the show car as the wheels are only 16-inches in diameter with 195/55R16 tires. That said, the wheels look of high quality and don't make the car look cheap.
Now we climb into the cabin. The tachometer sits at the center of the instrument cluster with a digital speedometer readout located immediately beneath it. The entire dashboard layout has a distinct sporty look and feel to it, leaving no doubt in the driver's mind that he's sitting in a performance-oriented car. Despite the car being labeled a 4-seater, the rear seats are quite cramped and look just large enough to fit two children.
The shift knob of the 6-speed manual transmission slides into each gear with a resounding click. We throw the lever into 1st gear and launch. The car leaves the line spritely, but accelerates in a milder way than anticipated. You can feel the presence of the electric motor, but it's quite subtle almost transparent. Continued after the jump.
2010 Detroit Auto Show: 2011 Honda CR-Z
Continue reading Japanese Mag Takes Honda CR-Z For a Drive; Says It's Slow, But Handles Well.
Categories: Detroit Auto Show,Future Vehicles,Green Tech,Hatchbacks,Honda
We hope we don't have to file this one under "Engineers Writing Checks the Production Car Can't Cash." In this subtitled video, Honda engineers in Japan talk about the development of the 2011 Honda CR-Z, noting that they benchmarked its handling off the Mini Cooper and Volkswagen Scirocco.
Sounds great, but remember that the 122-hp Honda CR-Z is saddled with a bunch of nickel-metal hydride batteries and a torsion-beam rear suspension.
The engineers also let it slip that they had a Lotus Elise on hand "for inspiration."
2010 Detroit Auto Show: 2011 Honda CR-Z
Categories: Future Vehicles,Hatchbacks,Honda,Hybrids
The exterior design of the 2012 Chevrolet Aveo is no big secret. It won't be as aggressive as the Aveo RS concept shown in Detroit last week, but it'll be close. The real question was whether or not GM could figure out a way to make the production interior look as good as the concept.
Our spy photographers recently caught up with this test mule in the Arctic Circle and managed to snag a shot of the uncovered interior. There are a few wires in the way, but most of the cabin is relatively clean.
Looks like Chevrolet will keep the odd looking instrument panel, but will replace the concept center stack with a corporate GM head unit. No big surprise there. The seats in this test car appear to be cloth and we can't see enough of the seat to know if it will have any kind of reasonable support. Oh well, that steering wheel looks pretty good.
Categories: Chevrolet,Detroit Auto Show,Future Vehicles,Hatchbacks,Spy Photos
Audi's marketing machine is clearly firing on all cylinders these days. The latest evidence? A reader's choice award from U.K. magazine What Car? for the Audi A1 subcompact hatchback.
You see, the Audi A1 has yet to be shown in production form, so all those kooky Brits voted the Audi A1 the "most exciting car of 2010" before they've even seen the vehicle. According to the editor of What Car?, "Although we haven't seen the finished car yet, a new, small car with an Audi badge on the nose can't fail to succeed."
So there you have it, Audi hatchbacks are now the big banks of the automotive world -- they cannot fail.
Categories: Audi,Future Vehicles,Geneva Motor Show,Hatchbacks,Luxury Cars
According to UK magazine AutoExpress, these are official pictures of the Mini Countryman or Crossman, whatever. It's scheduled for an official debut at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show in early March, but these pics reveal pretty much all you need to know.
All the drivetrain hardware will carryover form the current Mini range except for the all-wheel drive system. As you can see, it's not a true off-roader, more like an all-season compact utility vehicle.
AutoExpress
Categories: Future Vehicles,Geneva Motor Show,Hatchbacks,MINI,Spy Photos
