2007 Kia Sedona Premium Cloth 3rd Row 7 Passenger 3.8l V6 Clean Carfax on 2040-cars

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Car flies off Pittsburgh parkway and into auto shop parking lot

A motorist lost control of their car on a Pittsburgh freeway yesterday and, after hitting a curb, flew off the freeway and crashed into the parking lot of a local auto shop. According to KDKA, an unidentified motorist was driving along Parkway West in a Kia Optima just after noon on January 30 when they missed a sharp turn near the Campbell Road exit. The Kia hit the curb, flew into the air, smashed through Snyder Brothers' Automotive's sign, and landed nose-first in the repair shop's parking lot. "It sounded like a shower of debris hitting the floor, you know, the ground out there," owner Donald Snyder told KDKA. "We ran out there and we had 911 on the phone and he told me to check him out. We were checking him out. I looked at him, he didn't have no bruises on him, no scratches, it was amazing," Snyder told reporters that this isn't the first time a car has flown off the Parkway and into their lot. In fact, it's the eighth one in nine years. "We've had cars flip over, catch on fire. Hit the building, time and time again," said Snyder. "You know, coming down 376 and when you're in the right hand lane to exit – that's a long run. I think people, they are not prepared to make that sharp turn. Also, I think people become distracted. This fellow, he didn't even hit his brakes, he just kept going straight without turning." Snyder has reported the situation to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation numerous times. He said that PennDOT keeps putting up warning signs, but they just get destroyed by the next person who misses the corner and crashes into his lot. He told KDKA that he just wants people to be careful out on the Parkway. "Slow down and be aware of that sharp turn," said Snyder. Related Video:

2018 Kia Stinger GT Long-term Update | Addictive power, less addictive response, fuel economy

One of the big draws of our long-term 2018 Kia Stinger GT is its twin-turbo 3.3-liter V6. With 365 horsepower and 375 pound-feet of torque hooked up to a rear-drive-based drivetrain (rear-drive is standard), it's an exciting proposition. In real life it lives up to the promise with only a few minor caveats. First the good stuff: This engine is a real ripper. It feels much, much stronger than the numbers purport. Shove the throttle down and the Kia shoves you back and doesn't let up. Your only reprieve is at redline when it shifts, then the process starts again. This sensation is accessible anywhere in the rev band, too, a benefit of peak torque arriving at just 1,300 rpm. It's an exciting and addictive feeling, and it matches the Stinger's fierce appearance. From the driver's seat, it sounds good but not great. It produces a smooth, deep growl, but it's flat. Other V6s have more of a gargle, or a howl or a shriek that provides personality. The Stinger's V6 sounds generic in contrast. Bystanders won't even get a generic growl, though, as the car is as quiet as a Camry from the outside. On the plus side, keeping the Stinger GT quiet does help it stay peaceful on commutes and road trips, but some kind of electronically adjustable exhaust would really liven up the Stinger GT's soundtrack without sacrificing refinement. In addition to some better pipes, the Stinger GT could use better throttle response. We've become accustomed to wickedly responsive turbo cars nowadays, so it's a little surprising to hop in the Stinger GT and feel a moment's pause before the revs rise and the boost hits. The slow response works the opposite way, too, with acceleration continuing for a moment after releasing the gas pedal. Sport mode helps alleviate the lag, but it never disappears entirely. Still, you can adjust to accommodate the sluggish throttle response, but the Stinger would be an altogether more confidence-inspiring car without it. Finally, when it comes to fuel economy, the Stinger GT meets expectations. The EPA rates it for 17 mpg in the city, 25 on the highway and 20 in combined driving, and almost every entry in our fuel log fits that range. There were a couple refuels that revealed numbers as low as 15 mpg, though our Green Editor John Snyder managed to break 29 mpg on a trip.

Hyundai Group invests $90 million in Rimac to develop electric halo cars

The Hyundai Group is the next large automaker to make pilgrimage to Croatia, all for the purpose of investing 80 million euros ($90 million) in Rimac. Hyundai has chipped in 64 million euros ($72 million), while Kia added 16 million euros ($18 million). The tie-up puts a much faster spin on the South Korean automaker's electrification goals, with current plans to get 44 "eco-friendly models" on sale by 2025. Developing products with Rimac means working up two proper halo models to lead the charge. The press release stated Hyundai's intent to "to lead the high-performance electrified vehicle market and enhance its status as a game changer in Clean Mobility." According to Thomas Schemera, EVP of the group's product division, "Our goal is to popularize electric vehicles and to create social value through world-class technology and innovation in performance." The Hyundai Kona Electric, Ioniq and Nexo, and the Kia Soul EV and Niro EV have all won praise, but won't be enough in their current forms to garner the attention Hyundai and Kia desire. We'll see first fruits as soon as next year. Two high-performance electric prototypes are expected to debut, one being a battery-electric vehicle, the other a hydrogen fuel cell EV. The battery-powered offering will be a zero-emission version of Hyundai's mid-engined sports car for the N division. This has been in the works for seven years now, with three concepts put on show starting with the Veloster Midship in 2014. The RM15 followed a year later, the RM16 N (pictured) a year after that. The automaker didn't indicate what the FCEV would be. The aim, however, is to bring both to marker "at a later time." On Rimac's side, the investment helps the small Croatian on its quest for Tier 1 Supplier status. Only ten years old and employing about 500 people, Rimac has supplied technology to Aston Martin for the Valkyrie, Jaguar for the E-Type Zero, Koenigsegg for the Regera, and Pininfarina for the PF0. Porsche bought a ten-percent stake in Rimac last year, following a 30-million-euro investment from Chinese battery maker Camel Group to take a 19-percent stake. The Eastern European concern remains focused on its own bowtie-inspired hypercars as long as founder Mate Rimac leads, though. As he told Motor Trend in April, "Of course I'm very passionate about helping other manufacturers build their cars. But if the shareholders decide it doesn't make sense to produce our own cars, they we'll have to find another CEO."