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Hyundai is Awesome. Even Honda Admits It!

Remember when Hyundai was a joke?

When Japanese automakers entered the U.S. market, they changed the very fabric of the American auto industry. The cars they offered were small, inexpensive and quickly built a reputation for reliability that exists to this day.

Toyota, Honda and Nissan happily took market share away from the U.S. automakers and never looked back.

Today though, the Japanese are forced to glance backwards because South Korean automaker Hyundai is storming forward and steadily taking customers away; just as Japanese companies did to the U.S. automakers.

The irony comes full circle with this quote from Honda CEO Takanobu Ito:

Hyundai is awesome. They are undoubtedly a threat because their products are cheap, and the quality is improving.

To say Hyundai’s quality is “improving” is like saying the Pittsburgh Steelers are Super Bowl contenders. Hyundai isn’t improving, the company has improved to the point where I believe it could build a better Honda than Honda does.

Toyota’s chief even went so far as to say that his company is “grasping for salvation” and is in the final stages of corporate decline.

While that may be a bit of an exaggeration, Nissan’s senior vice-president Shiro Nakamura compared the whole situation to food by saying,

We have to offer the equivalents of sushi, tempura and kaiseki to compete against Korean barbecue.

I think what he was trying say, in a really weird way, is that Japanese automakers need to find a way to make sure consumers see the value in paying more for Japanese cars. I’m not sure that’s a winning proposition, as this Great Recession will only motivate more buyers to look for long-term value and reliability.

That’s an equation Hyundai has a very firm grasp on.

Will Hyundai continue its rise and overcome Japanese automakers? I think Mazda and Nissan are more at-risk than Toyota or Honda, but what do you think?

-tgriffith

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2010 VW Rabbit TDI Will Hop [Sorry] Into The U.S. Next Fall

2010 Volkswagen Rabbit TDI Spy Photo

Eagerly anticipated by environmentalists and Vee Dub fans, the 2010 eco-friendly, diesel-fueled VW Rabbit TDI will be introduced to the U.S. in the fall of ‘09. According the VW, the Rabbit TDI’s will be released in a limited number and are intended to measure the market’s receptiveness of compact, diesel cars.

Powered by VW’s 2.0L Clean Diesel engine, the 2010 Rabbit TDI features the same performance as a standard-fuel Rabbit but with double the fuel efficiency. Featuring an EPA fuel consumption estimate of 50 mpg combined, the Rabbit TDI also delivers 140-hp and 235 lb-ft of torque - not to shabby for such a green machine. To separate it from the herd [again, sorry], the 2009 Rabbit TDI will get half the murder treatment, with a dark charcoal/black chrome replacing the usual platinum chrome finish. Price estimates place the 2009 VW Rabbit TDI at around $18k, and I can honestly say that I can’t wait to get my hands on one.

2011 Jaguar XJ Spy Shots Revealed, Sir William Lyons Turns In His Grave

Jaguar XJ Concept

Spy shots and concept photos published in British publication Car [which I came across via Autopia] reveal a Jaguar XJ that has been redesigned to ensure that Jaguar ultimately meets the same fate as Volvo: obscurity and unpopularity. Abandoning the traditional makeup WHICH MADE THEM LEGENDARY - ahem, excuse me - Jaguar’s design chief Ian Callum appears to have engineered yet another interchangeably-styled luxury sedan. 2011 XJ test mules that were spotted on the test track were heavily disguised under the body work of the current model XJ saloon’s, but I’m not fooled. According to sources, the Jaguar XJ’s new design direction is a heavy crossbreeding of the Aston Martin Rapide and the Bentley Continental GT, which several auto enthusaists have heralded as a much-needed revision of the Jaguar XJ’s “outdated style.”

Sigh.

Ok. Let me break this down for you: When Ford bought Volvo in 1999 they performed the same kind of overhaul, abandoning the “turbo brick” styling. The result was a retooled Volvo that looked like little more than a high-end Ford Taurus. Now, thanks to that brilliant maneuver, Volvo’s popularity as a brand has been “put in the back on the discount rack, like another can of beans,” [to quote Billy Joel]. The only motorists that are still enthusiastic about Volvo are the loyjala fanatiker like myself who remain true to the original Volvo line, manufactured from 1927 to 1999. As a matter of fact, if you ever crack open the pages of Rolling Magazine [the official publication of the Volvo Club Of America], you’ll notice a distinct lack of anything influenced by Ford.

2011 Jaguar XF Spy Photos

Like Volvo, Jaguar’s design isn’t merely an odd, “outdated” aesthetic, it’s a tradition-rich design upon which Jaguar’s legacy has been built. If it’s drastically altered to resemble yet another Bentley look-alike, you will effectively destroy the only traditional thread the Jaguar XJ had left to cling to. Granted, the entire Jaguar line has suffered a fall from popularity, but tampering with it’s only remaining prize-winning formula isn’t going to change that. I say to Jaguar: leave the XJ alone and focus instead on fine-tuning the two models that are already trying to embolden the mix, the Jaguar XK and the XF. Otherwise, you’ll find yourself sitting next to Volvo on the discount shelf…I hope you like beans.

2009 Honda Insight Prepares For Parisian Debut

Today, Honda has confirmed that a bigger, updated model of their hybrid vehicle, the Honda Insight, will make its green entrance at the Paris auto show in October. Introduced in 1999, the Honda Insight is technically billed as the first mass produced hybrid vehicle and, in theory, should’ve beat the Toyota Prius at it’s own game. Unfortunately, in addition to being the leaders in hybrid technology, Honda was also the leader in aesthetically revolting exterior design. The latter distinction ultimately cost them big time; from 1999 to 2006, the Honda Insight only sold a total of 17,001 units. Expected to hit dealer showrooms in April, the 2009 Honda Insight will ditch the 2-passenger, covered rear wheel layout in favor of a five-passenger hatchback and will look absolutely nothing like its rival, the Toyota Prius. We jest, of course.

‘See The 09 Insight After The Jump

2009 Honda Insight

After licking their wounds, Honda sent the Insight back to the drawing board and for 2009, will reveal a fresh design shaded heavily with Prius-brand colored pencils. With a completely new platform, the 2009 Honda Insight adds room for three more passengers and loses those gross first generation rear panels. Although the Insight’s gasoline engine will be its primary power source, the electric motor will generate energy for the car’s auxiliary functions as well as provide additional power for accelerating, starting, and stopping. Surprisingly, the Insight’s upgrade does not spell price inflation - quite the opposite, in fact. Specifics have yet to be released, but Honda has confirmed that the Insight will retail for less than the both the $22,660 Civic Hybrid and the $21,500 Toyota Prius.

We say: We sympathize with Honda because they did it first, Toyota just did it better. We’re sincerely rooting for the Honda Insight, and if we manage to get our hands on a Prius and an Insight, we just might have to schedule a drag race shootout.

[Photo & News Source: Auto News]

Volkswagen Could Take Stake in Suzuki by 2010

Suzuki Kizashi: Will we ever see a TDI version?

Just five days ago I wrote about Volkswagen’s desire to add two more brands to its growing lineup of companies after the Porsche deal is done. I took a guess that Suzuki might be of interest to them.

About the same time, though, Bloomberg was reporting that

Volkswagen has no interest in buying Suzuki Motor Corp., Chief Executive Officer Martin Winterkorn said in an interview last night, calling the Japanese carmaker a “nice company.”

Nice company, indeed. Apparently, nice enough to buy. Check out what the Autoblog guys say:

Apparently, a Suzuki executive at the Frankfurt Motor Show mentioned that an agreement between the two automakers would be in place by the end of the year. “For Suzuki and VW this connection would be a win-win situation. Suzuki would have access to a variety of VW’s technology, while Volkswagen would have a solid supporting leg in India and Southeast Asia,” the unnamed source said.

Neither VW nor Suzuki are making any official statements, but a possible VW/Suzuki takeover could have a ton of possible ramifications. For instance:

Maybe VW would pull Suzuki from the U.S. market, as some analysts have recommended doing, and then just rebadge Suzukis as V-dubs to charge a premium price and gain a better small-car presence here. The quote above is evidence that the Suzuki brand would likely still exist to build VW’s Asian presence.

If I was leader of the growing German regime, that’s probably what I would do in my quest to dominate the auto world. And hey, I’ve been right before….

I wouldn’t mind seeing Volkswagen take a share of Suzuki. What do you think? If it happens, I want first dibs on a Kizashi TDI!

-tgriffith

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The Most Exciting Cars of 2010: Camaro? Mustang? Nope!

Is this wagon exciting?

What’s the most exciting car of 2010?

Nope. According to TIME Magazine, the Koreans nabbed the two most exciting cars of ‘10, with the number 1 spot going to the Kia Soul.

While I, and certainly many others, have an issue with calling the Soul “exciting,” I won’t argue that it isn’t cool. For me, calling a car exciting means thrilling driving dynamics, agile cornering, and a completely unnecessary amount of horsepower.

Not tween-inspired styling and clever interior lighting.

TIME’s number 2 pick is closer to my definition: the ‘10 Hyundai Genesis Coupe. A rear-wheel-drive, 300-hp V6-powered coupe certainly qualifies to appear on anyone’s list of exciting cars, especially considering its $25,500 price tag.

Rounding out the Top 3 is the Ford Taurus SHO, a car our own jgoods certainly didn’t like that much. If they could shave off some of its 4,368 pounds of weight, maybe that 365-hp V6 would feel way more exciting than it does.

And how’s this as a sign of the times? A station wagon also made the list. Granted, it’s the Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon, but still, it’s a station wagon that someone labeled “exciting.” We’ve come a long way since the ’70s, man. I guess 26 mpg on the highway from a V6 engine is exciting, just not in a pedal-to-the-metal kind of way.

Other cars that made the list include the Jeep Grand Cherokee (enter your own joke here), Toyota Venza, Suzuki Kizashi, VW Golf, and Mercedes E-Class. Only one car they picked genuinely fits the bill: the Nissan 370Z.

All of these are cool cars and worthy of consideration when car shopping… but I’ll bet CarGurus blog readers can come up with a list of 2010 cars that truly excite.

So let’s hear it: What are the most exciting cars of 2010?

-tgriffith

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Convertibles, V8 Ultra-Muscle and Hot Hatches… Oh My!

Audi RS3 rendering

Whoa, baby, we’ve got some cool cars coming to America!

What do you like: convertible muscle cars? You’re covered. A little more horsepower for your Challenger? Check. A small hatch that is affordable and still fun to drive? It can be yours. What about a 340-hp hatchback that’ll scoot to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds? We can only hope.

camaro_convertible Chevrolet is readying the popular Camaro with a rag top, according to the boys over at Autoblog. Check out this picture of a group of fresh-off-the-line convertibles sitting at the Holden plant in Australia. Anyone up for buying a 2011 convertible Camaro? Even in the silver/tan color scheme?

Owners of ‘08 or ‘09 Dodge Challengers now have an option of upgrading to the Classic Design Concepts Group 2 Challenger, a series of options that can raise the horsepower to a stellar 560. Also available are 12.5-inch-wide rear tires, Baer brakes, lowering springs, a custom hood, and more. The full upgrade can bring the cost of an SRT Challenger to over $79K, putting it close to Viper territory. Still though, at that price, it’s dang-near worth it.

suzuki-sx4-sportback Looking for something much less expensive but still fairly fun to drive? Suzuki hopes to catch your eye with the 2010 SX4 Sportback. Looking nearly identical to the SX4 Crossover at first glance, the Sportback sits lower to the ground, has 17″ wheels and tires, isn’t offered in AWD, and lacks roof rails. And it has only 410 fewer horsepower than that Group 2 Challenger.

But a six-speed manual tranny, performance shocks, and anti-roll bars should help the SX4 Sportback provide a fun drive while getting 30 miles per gallon. In my mind, the SX4 Crossover and Sportback are further proof that Suzuki is ready to seriously take on the U.S. market.

Finally, we’re nearly beyond words at the thought of the new Audi RS3 (pictured at the top of this story) hitting America. Granted, the odds aren’t great that we’ll see it here, but it’s not out of the question. So for now we can drool over these numbers provided by the good folks at Leftlane:

At the heart of the RS3 will be an Audi TT RS-sourced 2.5-liter five-cylinder turbocharged engine. Tuned to produce 340 horsepower and 332 lb-ft of torque, the RS3 should be able to easily scoot from 0-60 in about 4.5 seconds, with the electronic nannies kicking in at about 155 mph.

We’ll keep an eye on next month’s Frankfurt Motor Show, where Audi should release more info and prices.

Are there any new car debuts you’re eager to see?

-tgriffith

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Max Caves, Formula One Teams Win

Well, sort of. In fact FOTA (Formula One Teams Association) and FIA, the sport’s governing body, do need each other, and the tradeoff the teams got was having Max Mosley, FIA president, agree not to run for reelection in October as Supreme Leader. That will be a result very much to the good of the sport and its fans.

Edward Gorman of the Times Online put it well:

The reign of Max Mosley as ruler—for that is what he was—of world motorsport and Formula One has come to an end. Like all men who enjoy almost unfettered power, there was always a danger he would over-reach himself and that, in the end, has been the case with Mosley.

After constant battles with the teams and the recent imposition of a “voluntary” budget cap, the teams had had enough. Thus the split we reported. Nobody trusted the guy. Still, the sport needs a governing body, and it became apparent that the teams recognized this. If they split off from FIA, how would they organize themselves and pursue a viable 2010 season?

So, as one wag put it in the comments section of the Jalopnik story, “It means only that he’ll have a lot more time for Nazi orgies.” In the end, money talks, and the FIA controls a great wad of it.

Now, when and how are they going to get rid of Bernie Ecclestone, the other half of this dynamic duo?

—jgoods

Fiat Is Still Hungry

We hear that Sergio Marchionne has started talks with GM to buy Opel—and most of GM’s European operations. The Fiat CEO has some appetite. Without so much as a burp after digesting Chrysler last week, he pulls up to another table for what could be an even bigger meal.

If he gets GM and the German government to agree, the deal would give Fiat another new car company, including Chrysler, Opel, and Vauxhall (U.K.), potentially generating some $105 billion per year. Marchionne believes consolidation is inevitable in the car industry and an individual firm can’t be viable unless it produces around 5 million units a year. The GM deal would give Fiat at least a 5.5 million car capacity, and maybe as much as 7 million.

The Fiat-Chrysler-Opel alliance actually makes some sense. GM must find a partner to run Opel (whose Insignia we praised) by June 1 or bankruptcy looms. While it has other suitors, the synergy with Fiat would be better, and it’s a great fit for the latter.

There are lots of problems, however, not least of which is present overcapacity (estimated by the unions to be 1 million vehicles). There will be big debt for the new company—some 20 billion euros if the deal goes through. And then there’s the small matter of convincing the German government to kick in 3.3 billion euros to (maybe) guarantee investor loans to finance the acquisition. Fiat will likely need to terminate thousands of Opel jobs in a bad recession, no easy prospect for the government to face, as the European economy is expected to grow still worse.

So maybe Sig. Marchionne is biting off more than he can chew. It’s always fascinating to watch an overreacher, even at the dinner table.

As my mother used to say, “pigs is pigs.”

Tell us what you think would be the good things about a Fiat-Chrysler-GM combination. What kinds of cars would we get?

—jgoods

Electricity and Incest at the Detroit Show

The first news out of the Detroit Auto Show was to downplay expectations: Major firms weren’t coming; the new cars weren’t exceptional; it was a very tough year. And then things got quite green all of a sudden with the media crowing over electric cars (really hybrids with gas engines doing the battery recharging).

Lotus Evora

The idea of high-end electric cars (and most of them will be quite expensive) seems to have charmed the pants off everyone. And the sports cars generated the most comment.

The notion of driving a sophisticated batt-mobile with real performance has turned on a lot of people. Perhaps they want a quick escape from the bad financial news at the office.

Tesla, of course, has gotten terrific reviews and presold about 1,200 roadsters at $109,000 per. But it’s got money troubles and is reported to be suing competitor Fisker, whose new 4-door Karma was one of the hits of the show (a roadster is coming). The smart money seems to be on Fisker, which is getting some funding from Qatar and making an international push with their cars. Tesla developed its car jointly with Lotus of England, which is in bed with more than one carmaker.

Cadillac Converj

To me, however, the really interesting electrics are still concept cars, some of which, like Cadillac’s Converj, I hope will get built. It is designed around the same power package that the Chevrolet Volt will be using: The first 40 miles are on the batteries, then the gas engine recharges them to permit “several hundred” more driving miles in hybrid mode.

Chevrolet Volt

Like the Volt, it has a plug-in, overnight recharger. Unlike the Volt, it’s a beautiful exercise in design, executed by Simon Cox in England. As they used to tell us in the car biz, styling sells cars. If they can do this one for less than $100K, they’ll have a winner.

Maybe Chrysler will too, but who knows when? Its Dodge Circuit EV, a true electric, promises 150-200 miles between charges, zero emissions, and 0-60 mph in under 5 seconds. Though the name Charger was apparently taken, the Circuit’s origins are in the earlier Dodge EV roadster and the Lotus Europa, to which it owes big styling and engineering debts. Chrysler is being very coy about price and production. I think they may be using the Circuit to “get someone to dance” with them, as Sen. Corker put it in the bailout hearings.

Dodge Circuit EV

To reinforce the incestuous nature of this business, Lotus is working, possibly with Toyota, on its own EV car, as yet unnamed but perhaps to be styled like the Evora on display in Detroit. Likely competition will be the Tesla roadster and . . . the Dodge EV.

I do hope these folks don’t trip themselves up over all their “alliances.”

OK, let’s vote: Which of these cars would you like to have?

—jgoods

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