Hyundai has Europe’s attention. Along with its Kia subsidiary, it is the fastest-growing major automaker in Europe, outselling brands that once seemed hopelessly out of its league like Toyota and Nissan, as well as European behemoths like Fiat.
Here, during the first day of press previews for the Geneva auto show, Hyundai decided to pile it on, introducing the I-oniq, a striking design study.
Continue reading Hyundai I-oniq Concept Aims to Keep European Automakers Pacing
In which we bring you motoring news from around the Web:
• The Volkswagen GTI cabriolet, which is scheduled to have its debut at the Geneva auto show next week, is equipped with a fabric top that can fold away in 9.5 seconds, the brand asserts. With the Eos hard-top convertible in its lineup and a soft-top Beetle expected to have its debut this year, however, there are no plans to export the GTI cabriolet to North America. (Volkswagen)
After a two-year absence, the BMW M6 coupe and convertible are returning to the German automaker’s lineup, with the hardtop scheduled to be unveiled at the Geneva auto show next month. The drop-top variant arrives at the New York auto show about a month later.
Powered by a 560-horsepower twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V-8 engine, which is coupled to a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, the M6 won’t lack for off-the-line performance. By BMW’s stopwatch, the coupe needs 4.2 seconds, and the convertible 4.3 seconds, to accelerate from zero to 62 miles an hour.
Continue reading BMW Releases Details on M6 Coupe and Convertible
In an interview with Bloomberg, Olivier François, the head of the Fiat brand, said that the Italian automaker would show a wagon variant of the 500 supermini at the Geneva auto show in March, which would go on sale in the United States next year.
Fiat has not released renderings or specifications for the stretched 500. The Italian automotive magazine Quattroruote published unofficial images of the vehicle this week, but when reached for comment, a Fiat spokesman who wished to remain unidentified citing company protocol, would not confirm their veracity, although he corroborated the information in the Bloomberg report.
Continue reading Fiat to Unveil 500 Wagon at Geneva Auto Show
Nissan Leafs and Chevrolet Volts aside, few new cars are burdened with the weight of expectation like the Mazda CX-5 compact S.U.V., revealed online Tuesday ahead of its debut in September at the Frankfurt auto show.
The CX-5, a direct descendent of the Minagi concept shown at the Geneva auto show in March, heralds a new design direction for the brand and is the first showcase outside of its home market for Skyactiv, a suite of powertrain, transmission and aerodynamic features intended to squeeze considerable efficiency gains from internal-combustion technology. Skyactiv will find its way into the Mazda 3 as well and is expected to be featured in other Mazdas in coming years.
Continue reading Ahead of Frankfurt Auto Show, Mazda CX-5 Makes Web Debut