We here at Top Speed have thoroughly enjoyed our run with the subcompact Toyota Yaris. Since we received the tiny five door, we have thoroughly tested the car both on highway and off. The VVT-i 1.5 Liter four cylinder works hard at higher speeds, but is able to chug along with the flow of traffic. Despite the car’s smaller footprint, the Yaris is extremely spacious on the interior, and the cloth seats were extremely comfortable on our two hour highway stint. The Yaris did quite well on the open road, the car was able to get up to speed quickly, there was minimal exterior noise in the cabin and the seating position kept the controls in easy reach while allowing you to relax for the duration of the trip.
The Yaris shines in a crowded urban environment. The way that the wheels are pushed out to the far corners, just like the original compact car the Mini, allows for many of the same benefits. There is maximum use of the interior space, weaving in and out of traffic is a breeze and finding a parking space has never been easier. For those reasons and many more, we don’t mind trading in massaging seatbacks and fancy hard drive based navigation units for a simpler, less-complicated automobile. However our favorite feature of the Yaris are all the storage compartments hidden in the dashboard.
The Toyota Yaris is not only a great first car; it is also a great second car. Save the 599 for the weekends, tell your wife that you’ll be taking the Yaris to the office today, you’ll just have to be selective about which clubs to bring to the driving range after work, because an entire golf bag definitely won’t fit in the trunk. But for around $15,000 you can’t go wrong with a Toyota Yaris, it also comes with one of the greatest guarantees in the world, it’s a Toyota.
.
We have just received the all new 2009 Ford Focus Coupe in the Top Speed test fleet. The profile of the two-door Focus with its fastback styling immediately reminded us of the old Sierra Cosworth, with the modern day car’s long slanted C pillar and oversized rear wing. The Focus Coupe gives the impression of being a sports car, something that is only accentuated by its Sangria Red metallic paint and the rally inspired premium dark painted wheels.
The interior of our Focus Coupe comes with Medium Stone leather seats and Ford’s Sync audio system. These are two luxuries that you won’t find in many other $20,000 new cars. It looks like Ford is targeting the youth market with the Focus Coupe, aside from the sporty exterior styling; the gauges have a very tuner style look to them, they are bright, bold and in your face. Another interesting feature that we’ve noticed is the door chime, gone is the annoying monotonous “ding” and in its place is a sound that is more reminiscent of something coming from an Atari video game.
Our Focus is powered by a 2.0 Liter Duratec 16 valve four cylinder that makes 140 HP. The blue oval guys claim that the Coupe comes with a sport tuned exhaust as well as a sport tuned suspension, two things we are looking forward to listening to and trying out. Despite the sporty nature of the Focus Coupe, Ford is already ready for the future CAFÉ standards because our car get an EPA estimated 35 MPG.
For a 360 degree view of the Focus check out the video after the jump.
> More
.
Press release
Enter the new 500, the manifesto of the ‘new Fiat’, a model that represents to all intents and purposes the materialisation of a new approach, of new brand strategies, and a different approach to the car. Exactly 50 years after the launch of the first edition of the model, which was to become an icon of Italian motoring and of an entire period of history, Fiat is accelerating into the future.
Anyone could re-edit the 500, because its shape is part of our (...)
> More
We were happy to hear the Toyota Yaris was going to be joining our fleet because we have plenty of first-hand knowledge of Toyota’s legendary quality, but we are curious how that holds up on the lowest rung of the ladder. The Yaris starts at about $15,000, and for that kind of cash we knew that there would be the quality materials from Toyota. But would there be enough compelling reasons to keeps us, if it were our money, from buying a late model used car?
There are three basic reasons not buy new as opposed to used in the automotive world. First is that new cars have the best warranty. Second is that the history is known about a new car (there are not that many grannies who only drive on Sundays out there.) Last is selection. Even in the days of internet searches, its still easiest to get the ideal car by buying new instead of used.
So basically for the Yaris to win us over, it not only had to be dependable, but it also had to have charm. To accomplish this, a Toyota dropped a five-door Yaris S with enough goodies to push the price up to $19,244.
> More
Value is the current buzzword in car buying. As belts are tightening, we are going to take a long look at our economy cars like our Chevrolet Aveo5.
Purchasing an economy car has three distinct benefits. First good gas mileage means that not only are they inexpensive to buy but also inexpensive to run. The second advantage is the warranty that comes with a new car. Another advantage is being the first owner of a vehicle – there may be larger, slightly used vehicles at the same price point, but the owners are unknown.
Economy cars have a social standing that sometimes have people convinced that those who buy one made their decision on price only. They can sometimes be viewed as basic transportation, which gives them little social stature. So the idea with an ideal economy car is not only to spend as little as possible, but also have the appearance that it cost a lot more. That’s how value is measured in an economy car, and that’s how we equipped our Chevrolet Aveo5.
> More
.
The highest available U.S. tax credit to date now belongs to Ford. Consumers who purchase a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid or 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid will be eligible to receive a $3400 federal tax credit. Ford’s sedans get 41 mpg in the city and 36 mpg on the highway, which Ford claims is 8 mpg more than the Toyota Camry Hybrid.
In order to qualify for the full amount you must purchase a Fusion Hybrid before April 1, 2009. After that date customers who purchase a hybrid will only be able to claim a partial tax credit. This is because Ford reached a 60,000 vehicle threshold in the 4th quarter of 2008. Now the tax credit amounts are reduced by 50 percent beginning in the second quarter of 2009 and by an additional 25 percent beginning in the fourth quarter of 2009. No tax credit amount is available for hybrids after March 31, 2010.
Press release after the jump
> More
When the Ford Focus first appeared in 2000, it was Ford’s modern attempt at a real “world car” (the mid-90s Contour/Mystique wasn’t built for the world, it was an attempt at getting the U.S. to buy the second generation Mondeo.) The Focus was a vast improvement over the Escort, but the problem was that since it was built for multiple continents, it had multiple compromises.
The original Focus needed to be both a full hatchback for Europe and a full sedan for North America. While the resulting car was successful, the look was somewhat odd. Now that Ford makes two separate Focus lines (one for U.S. and Canada as well as a separate one for the rest of the world,) Ford can now focus on a traditional shape for the sedan and for the first time offer a true coupe.
> More
.
One year ago, Lorinser unveiled the new customization program for the second generation of the Smart ForTwo. Well, today the waiting is over because Lorinser is bringing the series version of the ForTwo on the streets. The new body kit of the vehicle consists in a front lip spoiler and a rear bumper with integrated air diffuser as well as a new 4-pipe exhaust system.
Under the hood, the three-cylinder petrol engine was boosted to an impressive 101 hp making the sprint from 0 to 60 mph possible in less than 10 seconds while the top speed has been limited to 100 mph. Also a new set of 17 inch wheels were added for better stability fitted with 225/35R17 tires.
> More
After a long row of tuners (Brabus, Lorinser, Konigseder) have developed various kits for the littlest product from Mercedes-Benz, the newest member of the club is Carlsson. It has been tuning the second generation ForTwo model series since last year.
The new aerodynamics kit features a front spoiler fitted to the stock bumper, an electro polished stainless steel grill insert, fog lights with chrome case, a rear skirt with diffuser and rear muffler. As an option you can choose for the lowering springs signed Carlsson 1/11 Evo BE in 16 and 17 inch wheels, pedal overlays and an aluminum handbrake handle. This is just a new way to make eco-friendly driving look a little cooler.
It’s hard enough to get your hands on a Fiat 500 outside of Europe, but if you are one of the lucky few, then here’s how to get a little more power out of the little car. JCR Racing LTD, a British tuning house specializing in Fiat and Alfa Romeo vehicles, unveiled their latest conversion kit for the Fiat 500. The new kit includes a supercharger, a new intercooler system, custom designed hood scoop or bulge, depending on the customer’s choice painted to match the color of the car and some ECU modifications.
According to the manufacturer, the supercharger boosts the power of the engine to 150 bhp (50 more hp) without affecting the fuel economy. Price of the kit: 2,800 pounds (currently about $5,100.)
You can watch a video of the engine revving here.
Pages: 
Picture Gallery
Post a comment
RSS -
Webmaster free news |
Linux System Management