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Minivans and hybrids shopped by men and women equally

Men love fast, exotic cars, and women want something safe and practical – at least that is the way conventional thinking goes. But a new study challenges these old beliefs. According to the auto information aggregators at iSeeCars, both sexes shop for minivans and hybrids equally. The study also dug deeper into the different browsing habits between genders. For instance, women are twice as likely to shop for Kia and 67 percent more likely to shop for Hyundai. Men are seven percent more likely to buy American cars. Both sexes shop the German brands equally. It seems that men might be slightly greener in their shopping because they are twice as likely to browse electric cars and two and a half times more likely to look at diesels. Still, the old stereotype of men wanting a more performance-oriented car is not entirely false. They also are more likely to look at cars that cost over $45,000, and men are still more likely to buy a sports car. "Men like fast, flashy cars. They are performance oriented, even if they have to shell out more money," Phong Ly, cofounder and CEO of iSeeCars, said in an interview with CBS MoneyWatch. "Women are looking for the best value." The iSeeCars study got its data directly from dealers and online sellers like eBay Motors, then determined sex based on first name and excluded gender-neutral names. What it shows is that even if men might like browsing for fast cars, practicality and economy win out in the end. It's still fun to look, though. News Source: iSeeCars via CBS News MoneyWatchImage Credit: Shutterstock / Deklofenak Hyundai Kia Car Buying Minivan/Van Electric Hybrid

Kia Stonic is a compact crossover with a weird name

With Hyundai on the verge of revealing its new Kona subcompact crossover, it isn't surprising that Kia has one to show as well. It's called the Stonic, which is a fairly bizarre name with an equally odd origin. "The name 'Stonic' combines 'Speedy' and 'Tonic,' which refers to the first and last note in the musical scale," Kia explains. "Thus, 'Stonic' suggests that the vehicle is agile and offers something new and fresh in the compact SUV segment." It will be interesting to see if Kia sticks with the name, especially considering it's only one letter away from the name of a certain Chevrolet. Funky name aside, the Stonic looks like it will be fairly handsome, if a bit conventional-looking for a segment that includes the Nissan Juke and Toyota C-HR. The renderings show the car adheres to Kia's design language with organic curves and the corporate Kia grille. It then adds chunky features like beefy fender arches and a thick, raked C-pillar, all of which are bolstered by prerequisite black plastic cladding and aluminum-look faux skid plates. The interior doesn't get any more adventurous. In fact, comparing the rendering with the interior of the new Kia Rio, they look just shy of identical. The only visible differences are a slightly different dash pad over the passenger air bag, and slightly altered air vents. Though the base vehicle isn't exactly revolutionary in its design, it does sound as though owners will be able to personalize it a bit. Kia says the Stonic is "the most customizable Kia ever." Exactly how this will be realized is yet to be seen, but expect many options for interior trim, exterior colors, wheels, and more. We'll also learn the details soon, since Kia says the car will go on sale later this year. Related Video: Kia Crossover Economy Cars hyundai kona

Next-gen Kia Sedona drops more camo, shows KV7 cues

It was just two weeks ago that we saw our first glimpse of the 2015 Kia Sedona testing in full camouflage, but now Kia has stripped away some of the heavy cladding to give us an even better idea what its new minivan will look like. As we pointed out before, the next Sedona doesn't use as many design cues from the 2012 Kia KV7 as we initially hoped, but it should be interesting enough to stand out from the current crop of minivans.
Even though most of the body is still covered with the black and white pattern and the side doors still have cladding, these spy shots show off plenty of details about the new Sedona. Starting up front, Kia gave its minivan a more upright shape that we've seen a lot of on current Kia designs, while the reduced camo also makes the van's new side window shape more obvious. This pinched daylight opening (DLO) along the side is the same as what we saw on the KV7, and the window line dips back down again for the liftgate glass. While we're focused on the rear of the Sedona, that liftgate spoiler looks a lot like what we're used to seeing on the back of a Porsche Cayenne.
Kia has still yet to announce when its new minivan will be unveiled, but as things seem to be pretty far along in development, we'd expect to see something on the 2015 Sedona fairly soon.