2012 Awd Used 2.4l I4 16v Suv Lcd on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Hyundai plans to catch up with other automakers, offer EVs

YONGIN, South Korea (Reuters) - South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co is developing its first dedicated architecture for electric vehicles, seeking to catch up with the likes of Tesla in the growing segment with multiple, long-range models. While the platform will not be completed soon, Hyundai Motor and affiliate Kia plan to roll out small electric sport utility vehicles (SUVs) based on an existing underpinning next year, said Lee Ki-sang, who leads Hyundai-Kia's green cars operations. Hyundai will launch an electric SUV, followed by a sibling model by Kia Motors next year, Lee said, citing strong demand for SUVs. The subcompact or compact models would have a range of more than 300 km (186 miles) per charge, and would be "more competitive" than rival offerings, Lee said. And Hyundai said in a statement on Thursday that it plans to launch a new luxury electric vehicle under its Genesis marque in 2021, after introducing a plug-in hybrid version of an unidentified Genesis model in 2019. The separate platform represents a major push into the battery electric-car segment for a firm which has long trumpeted rival fuel-cell vehicles, reflecting strong investor pressure to compete more vigorously in a market that has been stimulated by U.S.-based Tesla's longer-range models. And tough fuel-economy and emissions regulations in the United States, Europe and China are compelling automakers to push fuel-efficient cars even though low oil prices have undercut demand. Hyundai's electric-car platform would allow the automaker to install a battery pack in vehicle floors to accommodate more battery capacity and maximize cabin space, Lee said. "The electric-vehicle platform will require high up-front investments, but we are doing this to prepare for the future," he said at Hyundai-Kia's green car research center in the city of Yongin, outside Seoul. He did not reveal the cost. Lee, a senior vice-president at Hyundai Motor, was speaking during an interview on the eve of an auto show that kicked off in Seoul on Thursday. Analysts said Hyundai had no choice but to build separate electric-vehicle platforms to be relevant in the segment. "The separate platform may incur losses initially, but Hyundai will be left behind the market if they don't offer long-distance models, like 300 km, 500 km and 600 km," said Ko Tae-bong, an analyst at Hi Investment & Securities.

Kia Soul EV will plug into Sky DC fast chargers, EZ-Charge network

As Kia gets ready to introduce its first plug-in vehicle to the US market, the 2015 Soul EV, it is also prepping some infrastructure improvements. The company announced today that it is partnering with Greenlots and ABB on offering Greenlots' Sky Smart Charging DC fast chargers at some West Coast Kia dealerships. Greenlots president Brett Hauser told AutoblogGreen that the program will expand to the East Coast in the future. While we don't yet know all of the monetary details quite yet – Kia says that "pricing structures and incentives" for the new EV will be coming later this month – but it appears that Soul EV buyers will be able to access the EZ-Charge network and there will also be something called a Kia ChargeUp card available. The CHAdeMO-compatible Soul EV is due to arrive in the third quarter of 2014 and the Korean company has high hopes for the car in the US. Take a closer look at the car in this video and read the announcement below. Greenlots is a San Francisco-based company that is trying to make vehicle charging as easy and open as possible. Last year, it helped with the installation of 13 DC fast chargers in the greater Vancouver, BC area. Kia Motors America Selects Greenlots to Provide EV Charging Access and Networking for 2015 Soul EV Rollout Kia to rollout Greenlots' SKY Smart Charging™ platform for seamless charging experience. SAN FRANCISCO – September 2, 2014 – Greenlots, a global provider of open standards-based technology solutions for electric vehicle (EV) networks, is partnering with Kia Motors America (KMA) and ABB, a global leader in power and automation technologies, to offer DC fast-chargers (DCFCs) at select Kia dealerships on the West Coast for the soon-to-launch 2015 Kia Soul EV. The partnership illustrates the increasing role interoperability among EV charging technology networks plays in meeting pricing flexibility demands from automakers and providing a seamless experience for EV owners. Unveiled in February 2014 at the Chicago Auto Show and rolling out in the third quarter of 2014, the Kia Soul EV is the centerpiece of Kia's Clean Mobility program, and bolsters KMA's line of environmentally conscious vehicles offering drivers an alternative to gasoline-powered transportation. The 2015 Soul EV is Kia's first ever all-electric, zero-emissions car to be sold in the U.S. Beginning in the third quarter of 2014, Kia will roll out Greenlots' SKY Smart Charging™ platform to its dealerships in California.

Poor headlights cause 40 cars to miss IIHS Top Safety Pick rating

Over the past few months, we've noticed a number of cars and SUVs that have come incredibly close to earning one of the IIHS's highest accolades, the Top Safety Pick rating. They have great crash test scores and solid automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning systems. What trips them up is headlights. That got us wondering, how many vehicles are there that are coming up short because they don't have headlights that meet the organization's criteria for an "Acceptable" or "Good" rating. This is a revision made after 2017, a year in which headlights weren't factored in for this specific award. This is also why why some vehicles, such as the Ford F-150, might have had the award last year, but have lost it for this year. We reached out to someone at IIHS to find out. He responded with the following car models. Depending on how you count, a whopping 40 models crash well enough to receive the rating, but don't get it because their headlights are either "Poor" or "Marginal." We say depending on how you count because the IIHS actual counts truck body styles differently, and the Infiniti Q70 is a special case. Apparently the version of the Q70 that has good headlights doesn't have adequate forward collision prevention technology. And the one that has good forward collision tech doesn't have good enough headlights. We've provided the entire list of vehicles below in alphabetical order. Interestingly, it seems the Volkswagen Group is having the most difficulty providing good headlights with its otherwise safe cars. It had the most models on the list at 9 split between Audi and Volkswagen. GM is next in line with 7 models. It is worth noting again that though these vehicles have subpar headlights and don't quite earn Top Safety Pick awards, that doesn't mean they're unsafe. They all score well enough in crash testing and forward collision prevention that they would get the coveted award if the lights were better.