Sure, it has happened where a toy manufacturer accidentally reveals a new car, but we don't believe this is one of those times. These renderings of the redesigned 2010 Mazda3 were posted in a thread over on carspyshots.net under the auspice of being toy renderings, but our colleagues from Autoblog Spanish did some digging and discovered that Mazda actually owns these images, not some Japanese toy manufacturer. Thus, it's more likely that these are actual renderings of the real, full-scale 2010 Mazda3. Of course, we could all be wrong and these renderings may have been made by a kid in his mother's basement, as the perspective and scale seems off in some areas. Then again, the design they show, which takes a few styling cues from the new Mazda6 and refreshed RX-8, is right in line with what we're expecting. Thanks for the tip, Galvin!

via autoblog 

Talon performance has created a... thing... for use on public roads that, without much doubt, will certainly turn heads, though not in the way one might like. Based loosely on the automatic transmission-equipped Kawasaki KFX 700 four wheeler, the Street Legal Quad is an exercise in the absurd. Fun on the street probably, but the mix of terrifying styling and mechanical dubiousness (note the strategic lack of brake calipers) leave this on the top shelf of potential bad ideas.

via jalopnik 

Everyone's favorite Nürburgring Taxi driver, Sabine Schmitz, is coming to America to race in Grand Am Koni Challenge events at New Jersey Motorsport Park and Iowa Speedway. Sitting behind the wheel of a VW GTI race car, Sabine will be filling in for Randy Pobst at APR Motorsport. Sadly, we'll only be graced by her presence for those two races before she flies away back to the fatherland.

So how did they convice her to jump the pond? Well, Schmitz is friends with the folks at APR Motorsport through all the testing the team has done on the Nordschleife, where Sabine is an instructor, BMW 'Ring-taxi driver, and ruling Queen. When Pobst found he couldn't drive in two of the races due to commitments in other racing series, Schmitz was the first choice to sit in. Her response?

"I am really excited to get the chance to race in KONI Challenge, in a German car with Mark White and APR Motorsport. I have spent a lot of time with the APR Motorsport Team, as well as Mark over the years, including spending some time this past spring on the Nordschleife in a GTI race car. We all developed a great amount of respect and friendship for one another and I hope to do a good job for team, as filling Randy Pobst's seat is not easy!"

via jalopnik 

Ford Motor Co. plans to halt production of the Mercury Sable sedan and Ford Taurus X crossover next year, according to company documents reviewed by The Detroit News.

Both vehicles are built at the company's Chicago Assembly Plant, which recently began production of the Lincoln MKS sedan. The factory also produces the Ford Taurus sedan on the same platform. That vehicle will remain in production.

Sales of the Taurus X -- the vehicle formerly known as the Freestyle -- are down more than 25 percent this year. Sales of the Sable, formerly known as the Montego, are down more than 8 percent from last year's already low tally. The vehicles have not been big successes for Ford and both are in conflict with the company's plans for their respective brands.

The full-sized Sable sedan does not fit with Ford's new vision for Mercury, which involves narrowing the marque's focus to smaller cars and crossovers to complement the bigger vehicles offered by Lincoln.

The full-size Taurus X crossover is an aging design that makes little sense in the Blue Oval lineup now that Ford has launched the all-new Flex crossover.

Ford would neither confirm nor deny the moves.

"We don't comment on speculation on about future product plans," spokeswoman Jennifer Flake said.

But analysts said the decisions are not surprising.

"The Taurus X doesn't really have much of a place anymore," said Erich Merkle of Crowe Chizek and Co.

"The Sable is a good enough car, but it doesn't really matter because they don't sell enough of them to make a difference."

Ford sold 2,276 Sables last month, down from 2,589 in July 2007. It sold 2,034 Taurus Xs in July, down from 2,705 the year before.

CEO Alan Mulally ordered the names of both vehicles changed to more familiar monikers last year.

At the time, he said Ford had erred in abandoning for no good reason brand names that still resonated with consumers.

Sales of both vehicles also have been hurt by rising gasoline prices.

via detnews 

 

Autocar has learned that Gordon Murray’s design company wants to build a lightweight supercar using the revolutionary chassis and body construction methods behind its radical T25 city car.

Murray, whose design credits include the McLaren F1, says that he wants his next supercar to be compact, lightweight and powered by a high-output, small-capacity engine, combining strong performance with low CO2 emissions. The car will be closer in conception to the motorbike-engined Rocket that Murray created in the mid-1990s rather than the extravagant F1.

If it gets the go-ahead, the supercar will use the same manufacturing system that is being developed for the city car. This uses a very rigid frame, offering maximum crash protection despite the car’s small dimensions, clad in recycled plastic panels. Murray won’t say what the frame will be made of yet, but we know that it’s not conventional pressed steel.

The supercar project is still at a very early stage, to the extent that no decision has yet been taken as to whether it will be front-, mid- or rear-engined.

Gordon Murray Design and its two investors - supplier group Caparo and US venture capitalist Mohr Davidow -could put the supercar into production themselves, something they’ve pledged not to do with the city car.

“We wouldn’t necessarily sell on the supercar for someone else to make,” Murray told Autocar.

via autocar 

About This Patriot

In a direct challenge to Toyota Motor Corp., Ford Motor Co.'s quality chief this morning vowed that his company's new line of compact cars will launch with the best quality in the industry.

Bennie Fowler, Ford's group vice president in charge of global quality, said Ford will launch its new line of small cars from Europe with an average of 800 things gone wrong per 1,000 vehicles, better than Toyota's rate for the same class of vehicles and more than 500 fewer problems per 1,000 vehicles than the predicted industry average.

"The vehicles we deliver in 2010 will be the highest quality ever," he told industry executives gathered here for the annual Management Briefing Seminars. "We're playing to win.

To help accomplish this goal, Ford will send five to 10 hourly workers from each of its U.S. plants to Wayne State University this fall. These United Auto Workers members will receive full training to become certified Six Sigma black belts, the industry standard for quality expertise.

Ford is hoping to build on the quality gains it has made over the past several years, which have allowed the Dearborn automaker to challenge Toyota and other Japanese automakers at the top of influential rankings like the recently released J.D. Power and Associates annual survey of vehicle dependability..

via detnews 

 

Hyundai is to launch a new Coupe next year, smaller than the current model and possibly sporting a shooting-brake type tail end.

Similar in styling to the Velostar 2+2 concept, the Coupe has been developed on the i30's underpinnings and will remain front-wheel-drive

A Hyundai insider describes it as 'a little bigger than the old Ford Puma' and similar in size to the last Toyota Celica. It is, however, smaller than the upcoming new Kia coupe, which is based on the underpinnings of the US-market Forte saloon, as well as the more powerful, rear-wheel-drive Genesis Coupe.

The new Coupe is due to be launched in the autumn of 2009 at the Frankfurt Motor Show and sales will follow shortly after.

Hyundai is also gearing up to take on the Ford Mondeo and the new Vauxhall Insignia in the large family car sector with its new-generation i40.

The all-new i40, due late 2010, is set to be a very different vehicle to its predecessor, which was effectively a facelifted Sonata and not available in the UK. A saloon will be offered again, but Hyundai expects the major seller to be an estate version. This makes the new i40 a much more family-oriented proposition than the Sonata, a cheap would-be exec with pretensions.

Hyundai has furthermore confirmed production of an MPV inspired by the HED-5 iMode concept car (Geneva 2008). This is not a straightforward replacement for the ageing Matrix, but more of a Vauxhall Zafira-type vehicle.

The production model won't be as wild-looking as the concept: the rear-hinged rear doors, which slide rather than open outwards, would be expensive to bring to production, though by no means impossible

via channel4 

 

Kia's hungry for your business, which explains the pending arrival of the Forte. The Spectra is a good car, but blends in far more than the attractively turned out Forte. It seems the Forte also has an appetite, and it's for the good stuff. Kia wants to bolster its image, so what better way than a clever commercial that infers that inside the Kia is all the goodness of a partially digested Bentley? Of course it's hyperbole, that's why it's so cool! Video embedded after the jump. Thanks for the tip, Alberto

via autoblog 

With the national economy and elevated gas prices having a real impact on American households, it is more important now than ever for car buyers to look at the complete cost scenario when choosing a model. Consumer Reports analysis shows that on a typical new car, depreciation accounts for 46 percent of the owner costs over a five-year period. Depreciation is greatest in the first years. If saving money, not just fuel, is your true goal, then consider buying used.

Pre-owned vehicles have already gone through the initial period of rapid depreciation. By focusing on a nearly-new model, say 2-3 years old, you can find a vehicle that offers comparable fuel economy, performance, safety, and reliability as a new car, often with some transferable warranty coverage remaining.

With a lower transaction price, sales tax, and insurance, used cars can be more affordable to purchase and own. Of course, buying used can put a larger, better-equipped model within your budget, but if fuel economy is your driving motivation, then consider these frugal choices.

The cars below are the most fuel-efficient models available in their price range and many have performed well in our tests. Other fuel efficient cars, such as the Mini Cooper, command a premium, thus cutting into the money saving. The fuel economy numbers come from our measurements using a precision flow meter and are rounded to the nearest mile per gallon (mpg). CR's overall mileage is calculated from equal portions of city, expressway, and rural roads.

Under $10,000	Overall mpg
2000 Honda Insight (manual)	51
2001-02 Toyota Prius	41
2000-05 Toyota Echo	38
1998-2002 Chevrolet Prizm	32
1998 Mazda Protegé LX	32
1998-2000 Toyota Corolla LE	32
1998-2001 Acura Integra LS (manual)	32

$10,000-$20,000	Overall mpg
2004-06 Toyota Prius	44
2001-03 Toyota Prius	41
2006-07 Honda Civic Hybrid	37
2003-05 Honda Civic Hybrid	36
2007 Honda Fit Sport (manual)	34
2007 Toyota Yaris Liftback (base, manual)	34

There are a number of used cars that have excellent fuel economy, plus are affordable and reliable such as the Chevrolet Prizm, Honda Civic, Honda Fit, Toyota Corolla, Toyota Echo, and Toyota Yaris. Note that these days, any hybrid will be hard to find, and therefore, retail prices may be above the official value. Also, keep in mind that the older cars on this list may lack common safety features such as ABS and side-curtain airbags. Check out our complete list of the most fuel-efficient used cars and the best and worst used cars. Plus see our Guide to Green Driving for more information on fuel economy and alternative fuels. When you’re ready to make a purchase, see our used car buying guide for advice on choosing the right used car for you, selling your old car, and getting the best price.

—Liza Barth and Jeff Bartlett

For more information on saving fuel see our reports on how to get the best gas mileage and where to find the cheapest gas. 

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via blogs.consumerreports