2021 Kia Soul S on 2040-cars

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Hyundai Kia asked to pay $28.9M in patent infringement case

After years of litigation, Hyundai and Kia have lost their hybrid technology patent infringement case against Paice LLC. The jury ordered the South Korean automakers to pay $28.9 million, but according to Bloomberg, because the violation was allegedly intentional, the judge could triple that amount. The automakers have announced plans to appeal the ruling. Paice's patent dates from 1994 on a piece of tech called the Hyperdrive, and it was a way to seamlessly switch between power from an electric motor and an internal combustion engine. This lawsuit was first filed in 2012 and covered the systems in the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and Kia Optima Hybrid. According to Bloomberg, the companies tried to argue that the patent was no longer valid, but the strategy failed. "Hyundai strongly believes its position and will appeal any remaining adverse findings to the Federal Circuit," the company said in a statement to Autoblog. Paice is certainly no stranger to litigating over the Hyperdrive patent, though. It and Toyota had a similar court battle that lasted years. Eventually, there was a settlement, and the result was Paice getting royalties for each hybrid that the Japanese automaker sold. Similarly, there's a lawsuit pending against Ford over tech in the C-Max, Fusion, and Lincoln MKZ. Hyundai Statement: Hyundai believes that the verdict returned by the jury today in the matter of Paice v. Hyundai Motor Company et al., is not supported by the evidence. Accordingly, Hyundai has requested that the presiding judge enter a judgment in its favor notwithstanding the verdict. Hyundai strongly believes its position and will appeal any remaining adverse findings to the Federal Circuit.

Subcompact Crossover Comparo Roundtable | Autoblog Podcast #599

This week, we've got a special episode of the Autoblog Podcast, wherein you'll hear the extended version of the roundtable discussion from our Subcompact Crossover Comparison. In it, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski, Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder and Associate Editor Joel Stocksdale. After extensive testing (and filming) in Northern Michigan, our editors break down what they liked and loathed about the Honda HR-V, Hyundai Kona, Jeep Renegade and Kia Soul. Grab a cup of coffee with us, and enjoy. Autoblog Podcast #599 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video:    

2021 Kia Telluride Cargo Area Driveway Test | The cavernous Kia

The 2021 Kia Telluride, which company reps have taken to calling the "Sell-uride" due to its incredible popularity, is one of our favorite three-row crossovers. The Telluride may have been named for a mountain town in Colorado, but one of the key features of a large crossover is its cargo area, which in this case has more in common with another geographical feature. With the second- and third-row seats folded flat, the Telluride's cargo space is positively cavernous.  That said, it's not actually the best stuff-hauler in the segment. That nod goes to GM's three-rows, as we've demonstrated previously, followed by the Volkswagen Atlas. But not being the best doesn't automatically make something bad, and the fact of the matter is that any of these large utility vehicles can accommodate quite a bit of cargo when called upon to do so. Normally, we illustrate this with a luggage test, but since I live alone and travel light, I'm ill-equipped to replicate Autoblog's usual formula. Fortunately for you, dear reader (but definitely not for me), I've had to relocate several times over the past few years, and in the process I've amassed quite the collection of U-Haul boxes. For some more conventional context, I also grabbed a hard-sided cooler (approximately 19 1/2" x 11" x 14") and my carry-on half-duffle (24" x 11" x 9"), the latter packed with some clothes to give it some structure for the purposes of this test. U-Haul's medium-sized moving boxes are conveniently (almost) cube-shaped at 18 1/8" x 18" x 16" (L x W x H), checking in at 3 cubic feet each per the company's description. That's a great figure to have on hand for this test, as it translates nicely to manufacturer specs. Kia says the Telluride has 21 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row, 46 behind the second and a whopping 87 cubes with everything behind the first row folded flat. That should translate to seven U-Haul boxes behind the third row, 15 behind the second and 29 with everything stowed, right? Well, as often happens, reality dictates otherwise, and we had to throw the whole hypothesis out the window after putting just one box behind the Telluride's third row. While it appears at first glance that at least one box will fit back here since it sits entirely in front of the liftgate sill, we can plainly see that the interior trim on the hatch protrudes too far into the cargo area for it to close.  Seven boxes behind the third row?