2013 Hyundai Veloster $17000 Up To 40 Hwy Mpg on 2040-cars

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Ford Mustang Mach-E fails Sweden's moose test

The infamous moose test has claimed another casualty. This time it's the Ford Mustang Mach-E AWD Long Range, which was tested in an electric four-way alongside the Tesla Model Y, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Skoda Enyaq iV (an electric utility vehicle closely related to the Volkswagen ID.4 that is sold in the United States). According to the Swedish testers at Teknikens Varld, Ford's electric car not only failed to hit the speed necessary for a passing grade, it didn't perform well at slower speeds, either. To pass the outlet's moose test, a car has to complete a rapid left-right-straight S-shaped pattern marked by cones at a speed of at least 72 km/h (44.7 miles per hour). The test is designed to mimic the type of avoidance maneuver a driver would have to take in order to avoid hitting something that wandered into the road, which in Sweden may be a moose but could just as easily be a deer or some other member of the animal kingdom elsewhere in the world, or possibly a child or car backing into the motorway. Not only is the maneuver very aggressive, it's also performed with weights belted into each seat and more weight added to the cargo area to hit the vehicle's maximum allowable carrying capacity. The Mustang Mach-E only managed to complete the moose test at 68 km/h (42.3 mph), well below the passing-grade threshold. Even at much lower speeds, Teknikens Varld says the Mach-E (which boasts the highest carrying capacity and was therefore loaded with more weight than the rest of the vehicles tested in this quartet) is "too soft in the chassis" and suffers from "too slow steering." Proving that it is indeed possible to pass the test, the Hyundai and Skoda completed the maneuver at the 44.7-mph figure required for a passing grade and the Tesla did it at 46.6 mph, albeit with less weight in the cargo area. It's not clear whether other versions of the Mustang Mach-E would pass the test. It's also unknown if Ford will make any changes to its chassis tuning or electronic stability control software, as some other automakers have done after a poor performance from Teknikens Varld, to improve its performance in the moose test. Related video:

2013 Hyundai Santa Fe

Standing Out In A Segment Of Me-Too Crossovers
This may sound strange, but bear with us - there is indeed a point to this little exercise. Okay, ready? We'd like you to close your eyes and imagine a crossover. Any modern crossover is fine.
Done? Good. Recall what you saw in your mind's eye. What did it look like? Did it have a somewhat aggressive shape - an upright greenhouse, pronounced wheel wells with some type of body cladding, a bold grille up front bracketed by large headlamps and hulking bodysides with a bit of visual flair provided by creases or rising shoulder lines? Did it sit jacked up a tad on oversized alloy wheels, distancing itself from any thoughts of mere station wagons? Yep, that was a crossover all right.

2018 Hyundai Kona Ultimate 1.6T Review | The muscle has arrived

The 2018 Hyundai Kona sure is a breath of fresh air. To date, if you were looking for a subcompact or "B-segment" SUV, it was probably going to be a bit dreary to drive with a slow, undesirable powertrain. Mazda's CX-3 is an exception, but its tiny interior is even more Miata-inspired than its driving experience. Really, everything in the segment has at least one fundamental flaw that makes it tough to recommend, and although the new Kona certainly isn't flawless, it's the first member of the segment to provide abundant power, all-wheel drive and a transmission that isn't depressing. After driving a Kona 1.6T AWD for a week, I found it to be pleasantly well-rounded, surprisingly good to drive, and just as competitive as our on-paper comparison suggested it might be. First, though, the engine. The Kona's standard 147-horsepower naturally aspirated four-cylinder is perfectly competitive in terms of power, and isn't saddled with a CVT or the Jeep Renegade/Fiat 500X's nine-speed box of highly confused gears. That amounts to a win, but the engine to get is the 1.6-liter turbo-four good for 175 hp and 195 pound-feet of torque. That's more than a Volkswagen Golf, and although this Hyundai mill sounds too much like a growly sewing machine under light acceleration, it's an acceptable tradeoff for acceleration that blows the doors off everything in the segment except the 201-hp Kia Soul "!" trim (and that car is front-wheel drive only). Testing from various publications indicates 0-60-mph times in the mid-to-upper-6-seconds range, which would be about 3 seconds quicker than just about everything else in the segment. Some are even in the 10s. That vast difference is one you'll immediately notice on back-to-back test drives, and an advantage you'll be happy to have in the long run when you consider its estimated fuel economy of 27 mpg combined is equal to the 147-hp base engine – and better than most in the segment. It's paired to a seven-speed dual clutch automated manual that's been been smoothed over from earlier Hyundai/Kia applications, no longer herking and jerking at low speeds, and more responsive to throttle inputs. That's the case regardless of the selected driving mode. In past Hyundai/Kia efforts, Normal could be too lethargic, while Sport could feel over-caffeinated. Here, they're actually appropriate for the situations their names imply.