The Dodge Avenger is certainly a vehicle that makes you reevaluate the entry level car market. Starting out at $21,500 the four door mini Charger may seem like a good deal, however after checking enough option boxes to make it a V6 powered Official Passenger Car of NASCAR complete with navigation and a set of stylish 18 inch wheels just like our fully loaded 2009 Avenger SXT, the price creeps up pretty close to the $30,000 mark. The Dodge Avenger is the smallest sedan in the Chrysler lineup and because of that it carries a few styling cues from its larger four door brother, the bold faced Charger, with touches like a squared off front end and bulging fender flares and a solid looking rear end.
Covered in a beautiful coat of Deep Water Blue Pearl paint our Avenger SXT came equipped with stain resistant cloth seats and a 2.7 Liter six cylinder engine mated to a four speed automatic transmission that made 187 HP while returning an estimated 19 MPG around town and as much as 27 MPG on the highway. Heavily optioned with features like a power everything including a sunroof, Chrysler’s Uconnect GPS with Sirius satellite radio, remote start and a cup holder that can either cool or warm its contents depending on what you wish, not to mention the $740 destination charge; a well equipped Avenger like this one will set you back a total of $27,955. Quite a bit more then you would expect to pay for Dodge’s smallest offering.
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The Japanese automaker Mazda has commenced production on their compact hatchback the Mazda2 at their AutoAlliance factory in Thailand. Although the diminutive city car may not seem so impressive, you have to remember that it did win a few car of the year awards in its previous form and that the new car comes with an all new enticing feature, an even wider grin. The new Mazda2’s smiley face is not only more inviting than the generation that came before but it also gives the 2010 model year small city car a fun face that adds to the Japanese automaker’s Zoom-Zoom spirit of car building.
Just like the new MX-5, the Mazda2 has undergone a design refreshening and features a new front bumper that incorporates a set of larger larger vertical air intakes as well as the new happy face five point lower grill that is going into all of Mazda’s fun to drive vehicles. A new Mazda2 also gives hope that a new open air roadster inspired version could be in the works, especially after consumers have adjusted to the new car’s playful front end. As for now, these images are pretty much all we have to go on, but we promise to get back to you with more details as they become available.
UPDATE 08/05/2010: Check out our review of the 2010 Mazda2 by clicking here!
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While the current economic crisis has resulted in a few interesting partnership with a number of unlikely automobile manufacturers and other manufacturers weary of risky high priced ventures, the man from Prodrive feels that his super car company can sell premium compact city car for the not so unheard of asking price of $32,000; after all it is an Aston Martin. As part of the English coach builder’s plans to unroll a few new vehicles in order to recuperate some profits the powers at be behind Toyota and Aston Martin have joined forces to create a fashionable compact city car for the crowded narrow streets of densely populated European urban environments. What they ended up with is the upscale Aston Martin Cygnet based on the economical Toyota i.Q.
The venture actually sounds like another English sport/luxury hybrid when Mini commissioned the design team at Rolls Royce to produce a series of extremely extravagant small cars. The car’s foundation will be built at Toyota’s factory in Japan and then shipped to the Aston Martin factory in Gaydon where the team of hand built super car interiors will have a go at restyling the lowly Toyota’s interior bringing it up to super car status. Obviously the Cygnet should also wear some unique body work like an Aston Martin style twin vented hood, some flared arches and plenty of winged emblems.
This is a very bold move for the English automaker, attempting to sell a car smaller than a Smart for a little over $30,000. The German luxury automaker Audi has recently admitted to having a hard time justifying a premium hatchback for the U.S. market, dooming whatever chances we might have had for an RS3 stateside. The Vantage should be happy because it can now pass on the title of being the baby Aston; if they can keep production limited and watch the demand skyrocket, they should have no problem selling out of their Cygnet inventory. After all, who would pass up on the chance to buy a brand new Aston Martin for the price of a Nissan Maxima.
The blue oval has just unveiled the extremely efficient new for 2010 Ford Focus ECOnetic at the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany without the use of any electric motors. The new more environmentally friendly Focus incorporates the American automaker’s new Ford Auto-Start-Stop system that eliminates wasteful emissions by brining the car’s engine to a halt when the Focus is at rest, this mild hybrid system was first previewed on the Ford iosis MAX Concept from the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year.
The 2010 Focus ECOnetic is powered by a 1.6 Liter Duratorq TDCi engine that makes a maximum output of only 109 HP because when you are looking for efficiency, power isn’t quite a priority when you are getting 74 MPG. The Duratorq four cylinder engine makes use of a standard coated Diesel Particulate Filter that reduces the vehicle’s harmful emissions to a road legal level. The Focus ECOnetic is also the first vehicle from the automaker to feature Ford’s new Eco Mode system standard, a software application that is integrated into the instrument cluster in order to give the Focus’s driver a more useful and realistic green driving experience.
According to Dr. Thilo Seibert, Manager of CO2 Technologies for Ford of Europe, "From the very beginning of Ford’s ECOnetic approach it has been our clear intention to offer customers affordable eco-technology, and to also pave the way for the possible integration of these technologies into the core vehicle programs,...with its new comprehensive set-up, the new Focus ECOnetic offers exactly what it takes: versatility, latest level technology and – regardless of version – excellent CO2 and fuel economy figures."
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The Korean automaker Hyundai has just officially unveiled the all new 2010 Sonata in its home market of South Korea, after which the next generation Sonata will follow up with a U.S. market debut at either the upcoming L.A. Auto Show in December, or at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit early next January.
The sixth generation Hyundai Sonata makes use of the automaker’s more fluid design language that has shaped the Hyundai Genesis luxury sedan. The exterior of the new Sonata is made up of a host of complex curves and bold body lines that create character through their refined and harmonized sculpture. The interior of the new Sonata has a very dynamic look that compliments the exterior while refusing to compromise comfort or convenience for the passengers traveling inside. The 2010 Hyundai Sonata is available in nine different exterior colors ranging from Remington Red to Blue Black and even Espresso; a move made in order to appeal to a more diverse younger customer base.
The new Sonata will be powered by a 2.0 Liter Theta II MPi gasoline burning engine cranking out 165 HP and an alternatively fueled LPG variant that generates a maximum output of 144 HP, in either instance the power plants are mated to a new six speed automatic gearbox. When it finally does arrive stateside, Hyundai’s updates to the 2010 Sonata should payoff big time.
UPDATE 08/11/2010: Check out out review of the 2010 Hyundai Sonata by clicking here!
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