Kia Reveals Next Global Cerato Sedan

Kia recently released several sketches of the 2014 Cerato sedan—a car you know here in the U.S. as the compact Forte—and this past weekend the Korean automaker finally revealed the real deal. Even though the company provided only three images of the new Cerato, which also goes by the name “K3? in Korea, the photos clearly show the four-door is handsome. Kia also released some technical details about the new Forte, but let’s take a moment first to drink in Kia’s latest successful design. 

According to Kia, the next Forte/K3/Cerato will be longer, lower, and wider, plus will boast a stretched wheelbase. While we can’t speak to the first three dimensional increases, the longer wheelbase certainly is apparent; the acre of space between the wheels gives the sedan proportions similar to that of the Hyundai Elantra. Overall, the Forte is a handsome piece, and its design incorporates elements from Kia’s larger Optima and the smaller, subcompact Rio to good effect.

The new compact sedan will go on sale in other markets early next year, but it’s not clear yet when the Forte-badged version will reach our shores. Look for the 2014 Forte to appear at an auto show soon, likely at L.A. this fall. 

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Chevrolet Buyers Shunning New 2013 Malibu Eco for Incentive-Laden 2012 Malibu

General Motors wanted to get ahead of the competition in the mid-size segment by launching the all-new 2013 Malibu in Eco trim with a 37mpg highway 2.4-liter eAssist engine in March, six months before the arrival of the regular 2.5-liter base engine and the 2.0-liter turbo flagship. 

However, GM's dealers had plenty of 2012 Malibu sedans sitting on their lots and as surprising as it may sound to some, up until now, the older model is heavily outselling its successor. 

According to data obtained by Autonews, from the March launch through June, GM sold about 7,000 examples of the 2013MY Malibu Eco, compared with around 100,000 units of the 2012MY Malibu.

Nevertheless, there's a completely reasonable explanation for this disparity in sales: the 2012 model comes with special incentives that can drop its price to about $6,000 less than the 2013 Malibu Eco, which starts at $22,390 (excluding a $760 destination and handling fee), to around $16,400 (€13,350). 

And as is the case with most mainstream buyers looking for a new ride, money talks… 

Gallery-

2012 CHEVROLET MALIBU

 2013 CHEVROLET MALIBU ECO

 

 

 

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Superchips Electronically Boosts Ford's 1.0-liter EcoBoost Petrol Engine

Through the use of new software for the engine control unit (commonly known as ECU), UK's Superchips has been able to improve the performance of Ford's new 1.0-liter three-cylinder, direct injection turbocharged Ecoboost engine found on several European market models such as the Focus and the B-MAX. 

In stock trim, the three-cylinder gasoline unit is officially rated at 123hp (125PS) and 169Nm (125 lb-ft) or 200Nm (149 lb-ft) with the overboost function. On the dyno, Superchips found that the engine is slightly more powerful delivering 127hp. 

After the company's engineers updated the ECU, the 1.0-liter engine was dyno-tested at 145hp (147PS) at 6,169 rpm and 227Nm (167 lb-ft) at 2,656 rpm. 

The British tuning firm claims that the remap doesn’t detract from the standard Focus 125PS Ecoboost’s 56 mpg UK (46.6 mpg US or 5.0lt/100km) average fuel consumption, just as long as the car is driven in a "like for like" manner. 

Superchip's ECU upgrade is priced at £455 (about US$713 or €580) including VAT and can be fitted on all arch 2012 onwards variants of the 125 PS (123 bhp) Ford Focus 1.0-litre Ecoboost models. 

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2011 Kia Optima SX Verdict

Not that long ago, Kias were the butt of many jokes. But times have changed, and in just a few years, products from the Korean automaker have gone from afterthoughts to serious contenders on the automotive scene. Nothing hammers that point home more than the Optima SX. This Kia looks like no other Kia on the road, and people notice. Countless times, folks asked me what kind of car it was, or said, "Is that really a Kia?" When I'd assure them it was, their reactions were always the same: "Really! I thought Kias were cheap little cars." I'd reply, "Well, they kind of were, but not anymore." 

In the cabin, a child's car seat requires a lot of space. The front passenger seat has to be moved up quite far, and that usually cuts into the passenger's legroom. Fitting our Recaro child seat is not an issue in the Optima, even with 6-foot-tall Mom as the front passenger, and the latch points are easily accessible for installing the seat. The Optima's suspension feel has been an area of controversy. I found it too firm and jarring, especially on SoCal's uneven roads. Many of you commented on previous updates that the suspension was just fine, and I was being overly critical. As I've said, with plenty of power on tap from its turbo engine, the Optima feels great gliding down a smooth road, but the minute the surface gets bad, the car lets you know it. 

This isn't a sports car, it's a sporty family sedan, so the family shouldn't be punished when the road surface becomes irregular. Motor Trend has constantly knocked Kia for its suspensions, usually for being too soft. This time, the automaker just went too far in the other direction, but Kia is much closer to getting it right. While I didn't love the Optima's wheels, they did grow on me a little. But I like the new wheels on the refreshed Optima much better. The interior is top-notch in styling, materials, and build quality, reminding me of much higher-end European vehicles. I hope Kia continues to improve its entire line of cars, because some of them sorely need it, but the Optima isn't one of these, and it is currently Kia's top dog. It's a complete package, offering styling, performance, ease of use, and spacious interior with quality materials and build quality.

SX Premium Package ($2150: Panoramic roof, power front passenger seat, driver seat memory, heated and cooled front seats, heated rear outboard seats) Technology Package ($2000: Navigation w/ back-up camera, Infinity audio system) $240.43 (3-oil change; 2-inspection; 1-engine-air filter, cabin-air filter) 

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2014 Bentley Continental Flying Spur Spied

What It Is: A 2014 Bentley Continental Flying Spur—the four-door sibling of the Continental GT coupe and GTC convertible—caught while testing wearing fake Mercedes S-class camouflage. A lot of spy photos come through our email inboxes, but few prove as entertaining as these shots of the next Flying Spur. Not only did Bentley stick on some pseudo-Benz head- and taillights, but it went so far as to affix bulging fender flares similar to those on the current S-class. Looking past this Bentley’s drag, it’s clear that the Flying Spur will inherit the same basic stylistic upgrades that hit the 2011 Continental GT and 2012 GTC. 

Why It Matters: Bentley’s entry-level sedan has been on sale in the same form since 2005—that’s quite the product cycle. It’s an especially long lifespan when you consider the stratospheric sandbox in which the Flying Spur competes; rich or poor, people tend to crave the latest and greatest, and that counts double when customers need to shell out nearly $200,000. Mix in the competition that appeared since the Spur first went on sale—the Rolls-Royce Ghost (which beat the Flying Spur Speed in a comparison test), the Aston Martin Rapide, and the upcoming Pullman version of the next Mercedes-Benz S-class—and a freshened Flying Spur becomes even more important for Bentley. 

Powertrain: The Flying Spur will again offer a twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W-12 engine with output increasing from 552 hp to 567 for the normal sedan; the hi-po Speed model should see its W-12 jump from 600 hp to 616. (Both increases already were applied to the redesigned two-door W-12 Continentals.) It’s likely that Bentley will add the same 500-hp, twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 that’s found in “base” versions of the GT and GTC. It remains to be seen whether Bentley will position this model as a sporty Flying Spur variant or a fuel-economy special; either way, the V-8 does provide a tangible efficiency benefit for the GT, which would translate to the four-door. Regardless of which engine powers it, the 2014 Flying Spur will continue to offer only all-wheel drive.

Competition: Aston Martin Rapide, Rolls-Royce Ghost, Mercedes-Benz S-class AMG.

Estimated Arrival Time and Price: The upgraded Continental Flying Spur should appear sometime next year as a 2014 model. As with nearly every new car out there, don’t expect the Flying Spur’s base price to go anywhere but up.

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2013 Lincoln MKZ Priced from $36,800

Lincoln’s redesigned 2013 MKZ sedan goes on sale later this fall, and today the company released some pricing details for its newest four-door. The MKZ will start at $36,800; that base price gets you a front-wheel-drive version powered by a 240-hp, turbocharged 2.0-liter four. The MKZ is available in four trim levels—Premiere, Select, Reserve, and Preferred—and each trim can be had with the base turbo four, an available 300-hp V-6, or a hybrid powertrain. Incidentally, Lincoln will charge the same for the hybrid as for the turbo four, trim level for trim level. Lincoln has not yet revealed pricing for the available V-6 or all-wheel drive. The company did reveal that the MKZ’s available giant retractable panoramic sunroof will cost buyers a cool $2995.

The MKZ’s base price includes a ton of standard techno-goodies like Sync; MyLincoln Touch with an eight-inch center touch screen; Lincoln Drive Control, which can alter the adaptive suspension, steering, stability control, Active Noise control, and engine and transmission calibration to specific drive modes; remote start; and LED headlights and taillights. The MKZ concept‘s pushbutton-operated transmission survived the transition from design fantasy to production reality, and is standard on all models. More details on the MKZ’s four trim levels, minus pricing, can be found below:

MKZ Premiere: $36,800 (All of the standard equipment listed above.)MKZ Select adds: rearview camera, wood steering wheel, ambient lighting, rear park sensors, HD radioMKZ Reserve adds: navigation with voice recognition, blind-spot monitoring system, rear cross-traffic alert, power-opening trunk, cooled seats, power tilt and telescoping steering wheelMKZ Preferred adds: 19-inch polished aluminum wheels, heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, 110-volt power outlet, upgraded THX II audio system, premium floor mats,At least in terms of base pricing, the 2013 Lincoln MKZ starts only slightly higher than the $35,630 required to take home the outgoing 2012 model. The new sedan’s price barely undercuts that of the $36,995 Lexus ES350, its key competition; the no-extra-cost hybrid model slides in a significant $2945 less than the $39,745 commanded by the ES300h hybrid. The four-cylinder MKZ’s estimated 22-mpg city and 33-mpg highway fuel-economy numbers better the ES350's 21/31 figures, but Lincoln has yet to reveal estimates for the front-drive V-6 model. (All-wheel-drive V-6 MKZs are estimated to return 18/26 mpg; Lexus does not sell an all-wheel-drive ES350.) MKZ hybrid fuel-economy predictions also are forthcoming.

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MINI Prepares us for the New Paceman Crossover

You know it is only a matter of time before the presentation of a new model when a carmaker drops pictures of a barely camouflaged prototype as MINI did on Tuesday with the Paceman.

The new images show the three-door crossover model with only parts of the rear end covered in the traditional swirly livery we have come to expect from Mini's engineers over the past few years. 

Not that we're surprised, mind you, as back in April, Kay Segler, Senior Vice President MINI Brand Management, had confirmed the name of the new model and announced that the Paceman would be presented in a "few months’ time and launched onto the market in 2013".

"The MINI Paceman is the world’s first Sports Activity Coupé in the premium compact segment. It combines a clear appetite for extravagance and infectious driving fun in a style that only a MINI could pull off with such authenticity,” Segler said during the aforementioned press conference. 

What we get from these latest pictures is that the production model remains true to the styling of the Paceman concept previewed at the 2011 Detroit Motor Show, with only some minor changes to the exterior body trim such as the grille and side air vents. 

The Paceman is based on floor structure of the five-door Countryman crossover with the two models also sharing the same engine lineup. 

However, the Paceman is more than a three-door version of the Countryman as Mini's designers have penned a new exterior with a lower and sportier looking roofline, a rising waistline, more muscular rear fenders and a different rear end with bulging tail lights.  

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2012 Volkswagen Passat SEL Long

One of the toughest parts of my job, and yes, there are several, is trying to express to readers the value of a car is not necessarily found in the boxes of a spec chart. While the numbers are important, it's often the qualitative mortar in between the quantitative bricks that tell the story. When talking to friends about our long-term Volkswagen Passat, one of the first things that gets brought up is the 0-60 mph time, which happens to be 9.0 seconds. The Passat is certainly not quick off the line, but once rolling, holds its own. I have been told by a few people that they would never consider the Passat's 2.5 liter because of this stat. Apparently, they're doing more street racing with their family sedans than I am as I have yet to drag race a Camry for money. 

Having put nearly 7000 miles on our Passat, there have been only a few times I really wished for more power. Uphill passing and on our figure-8 course are the only two that immediately come to mind. Generally, however, I am fine with the 170 hp and 177 lb-ft the 2.5-liter I-5 churns out. I merge on the freeway, I turn left across traffic, I survive in L.A. -- one of the fastest, most aggressive driving cities in the country. None of the horrors of a car without 300 hp have befallen me. 

All this refinement, however, might be just in time for its final act. Rumor has it, this engine's days are numbered and a 1.8-liter direct-injected turbocharged I-4 will be taking its place in a couple of years. It will no doubt offer a flatter torque curve, possibly higher power and torque numbers, and better fuel economy. If it's similar to the 2.0T in power delivery, this will totally change entry-level VWs. Until then, VW offers the TDI and the VR6 for the aspiring Vin Diesels with kids. 

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New 2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Convertible Carries a Base Price of $60,445

The 2013 Camaro 1LE that bridges the gap between the SS and ZL1 coupes wasn't the only new model to receive a price tag, as according to Autoblog.com, General Motors also announced pricing for the 2013 Camaro ZL1 Convertible during an event in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Sunday. 

The rag-top version of the ZL1 will start at $60,445 (€49,100), which includes a $900 destination charge (*). That's a $5,450 premium over the current, 2012MY Camaro Coupe priced at $54,995. 

 

Like its coupe brethren, the ZL1 Convertible owes its prowess to a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 that delivers 580-horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 556 lb.-ft. (754 Nm) of peak torque at 4,200 rpm. The ZL1 is offered with a six-speed manual or automatic transmission. 

Chevrolet quotes a zero to 60mph (96km/h) sprint time of four seconds, a top speed of 184mph (296km/h), 11-second quarter-mile ETs (11.93 with the automatic / 11.96 with the manual transmission) and a Nürburgring lap time of 7:41.27 - though we know for a fact that the latter was achieved with a Coupe model and not the Convertible ZL1.   

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