LA Show 2009 Highlights: 2011 Ford Fiesta

What's good for Mini is good for Ford, right? Hold on. While the 2011 Ford Fiesta on sale this spring won't range from $20,000 to $30,000+, it easily will stretch into four-cylinder Fusion territory thanks to a long list of gee-whiz features that don't come with the base model.

To get costs down for North American-market prices, Ford has scrapped the European Fiesta's "cheap and cheerful" interior, with its techy two-tone seats and matching dashboard-top colors. The North American Fiesta has black-on-black dashboard tops with contrasting plastic grains, although top-of-the-range the SES and SEL do come with different-colored lower dashes and door inserts and are available with supple leather seats with contrasting piping and stitching.

Ford will offer all trim levels of the Fiesta with the same five-speed manual as in the European version, on sale since October 2008. A new dry dual-clutch six-speed automated manual will serve the vast majority of buyers. Unfathomably, it won't come with a manual gate feature. Ford says market research argued for putting that money into the interior, instead. While it doesn't need paddle-shifters, a manual-shift gate would let young drivers take advantage of what company engineers say has "the spirited feel of a manual with the convenience of an automatic."

With the automated manual, dubbed "Powershift," and the car's 1.6-liter four with twin independent variable cam timing, Ford expects 30/40 mpg EPA numbers.

Other changes from the European model include a Fusion/Taurus-like three-bar chrome grille for the sedan (the hatchback retains the European "look") and U.S. bumper offsets that add 60-mm to the nose. The sedan's taillamps look very Taurus-like. The European car's standard summer tires are replaced with 16-inch Kumho all-seasons and the electric power steering has been retuned slightly. A boron high-strength steel b-pillar support for meeting new U.S. rollover standards adds just 10 pounds to the car. The dashboard has been reshaped slightly for crash standards, and the North American car comes with seven airbags, including a driver's knee bag.

Its long list of features include quad-beam headlamps with LED auxiliary lamps (see the Verve concept), side-mirror repeaters, integrated blind spot mirrors, pushbutton start and "intelligent" access, moonroof, hands-free Sync controls, a four-inch multi-function dashboard display, a "cellphone-inspired" center stack, USB port for Sync and audio jack, ambient lighting with two LEDs front, two LEDs rear and in the cupholders and Ford's capless refueling.

The only item standard on the base S, though, is the capless refueling. And only the four-door sedan is available in S trim; the four-door hatchback starts with the SE trim level. Ford says customers - the car will target Milennials and Baby Boomers - perceive the hatchback as the premium bodystyle, presumably because it's more "Europeanish."

Ford has no plans to sell the two-door hatch in North America, though we'll probably see an SVT, possibly with a paddle-shifted Powershift within a year or two. With its kicky kinetic styling, cutesy colors like Lime Squeeze and Sunburst and 100 Fiesta Movement Agents spreading the word, Ford figures the U.S. will contribute mightily to 500,000 units per year globally. Could happen in the first year ... with all those assumptions counter-intuitive to the U.S. market, will it sell well for a full product cycle?

Thanks to: Motor Trend

LA Show 2009 Highlights: 2011 Hyundai Sonata

You're looking at the single most important car Hyundai will launch in America this decade. While the upscale Genesis sedan has transformed Hyundai's image, the new Sonata is intended to make the South Korean automaker a major player in America's most competitive vehicle segment -- at the expense of Toyota's Camry and Honda's Accord.

Hyundai's done its homework. The all-new sixth generation Sonata is big -- it is classified by the EPA as a large car, rather than a midsize. It is fuel efficient -- standard engine will be the new direct injection, 198-hp 2.4-liter Theta II four cylinder that Hyundai claims will deliver 23 mpg city and 35 mpg highway with the available six speed automatic transmission (a six speed manual is standard). And it will offer something for the enthusiast driver -- a sporty SE version with 200 hp (thanks to a dual exhaust), tuned suspension, and 18-in. wheels.

The quick take: It's as big as an Accord, more fuel efficient than a Camry, and should be more fun to drive than both. And if Hyundai delivers the Sonata with Genesis-like build quality and refinement, both Honda and Toyota should be worried. This could be America's next best-seller.
Previous Sonatas have been relatively anonymous looking sedans. The 2011 car is anything but, with wedgy sheet metal, a bold grille, fashionably oversized headlights, and a distinctive chrome spear that starts at the headlight and runs back along the base of the greenhouse to the steeply raked C-pillars. Depending on model, the car will roll on 16-, 17- or 18-in. multi-spoke alloy wheels.

The interior is also dramatic, with strong shapes and interesting surfaces. The center stack features simple controls, and relatively few buttons. Hyundai will offer four different audio systems, ranging from a standard six speaker unit that includes sat radio and MP3 capability, to a touch screen controlled unit Infinity system with a 400watt external amplifier system. All Sonatas will come with three months of XM Satellite Radio, NavTraffic and Data service, standard Bluetooth hands-free phone capability, and iPod/USB inputs.

The bold new exterior styling is not the only risk Hyundai's taking with the new Sonata. Unlike all its rivals -- which include Chevy Malibu, Ford Fusion, and Nissan Altima -- it will not be offered with a V-6 engine. Instead, Hyundai plans to roll out a turbocharged 2.0-liter Theta II for customers who want more power and torque by the end of the year. For those wanting even more fuel efficiency, a hybrid version is also coming in the next 12 months.

Thanks to: Motor Trend

LA Show 2009 Highlights: 2010 Range Rover Sport Autobiography

When buying a 510-hp supercharged Range Rover Sport seems too plebeian, perhaps the newly unveiled 2010 Range Rover Sport Autobiography Limited Edition would suit you better?

Like the Range Rover Sport Supercharged, the Autobiography Limited Edition -- debuting at the Los Angeles Auto Show -- is refreshed for 2010. That means much more powerful engines and tweaked styling. This special edition adds to that package (and to the base price, of course), enhancing the SUV's design inside and out. The effort is most eye-catching on the interior, where two-tone leather is available in three color combinations. An Autobiography Sport logo can be found in the front and rear headrests, as well as on the wood door panels. We see the interior changes improving an already posh cabin.

Santorini Black is the only exterior color for the 250 Autobiography Limited Editions, which are all equipped with 20-in. Diamond-Turned alloy wheels and a unique grille. The look is more subtle than the attractive 5-spoke wheels available on the regular Supercharged model. The Limited Edition also gets beefier-looking exhaust extensions, something Land Rover should consider implementing on the rest of the line when sales of the Range Rover Sport begin to falter.

Like the identically powered Range Rover Sport, the Limited Edition will sprint from 0-60 mph in 5.9 sec.

Included in the Limited Edition are a number of otherwise optional features like an electronic rear differential lock, adaptive cruise control, HD radio, and a rear seat entertainment system with 10-in. displays mounted in the back of the front seat headrests. Altogether, a regular Range Rover Sport with these options would cost around $80,000. Factor in the extra equipment and exclusivity of the Limited Edition and you are left with its $88,545 price, including $850 for destination.

If you're already set to pay this much for an SUV, why not go all the way?

Thanks to: Motor Trend

LA Show 2009 Highlights:Volkswagen Up! Lite Concept

Volkswagen has seemingly combined the best of two of its recent Frankfurt concepts -- the E-Up! and 1L -- to form its LA show car, the Up! Lite. With a relatively spacious interior and a hybrid-diesel powertrain, this fuel-sipping concept could be the most production-viable Up! yet.

Although theoretically built upon the same "New Small Family" platform as other Up! concepts, the Up! Lite concept looks slightly different from its siblings. Volkswagen's tried to reduce drag by shrinking the front fascia, and the result looks more like a miniature Scirocco than an E-Up! Even though it's both lower and longer than the E-Up!, the Up! Lite has interior space comparable to a three-door Polo, and can easily seat four.

While the one-liter concept made use of a ridiculously tiny turbo-diesel engine and the E-Up! an electric motor, the Up! Lite combines the two into a single package. Motive power stems from the same 51-hp, 0.8-liter two-cylinder turbo-diesel TDI engine used in the 1L concept, but in this instance, it's pared with a 10-kW electric motor. Both power sources channel their energy through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

Power mostly stems from the microscopic TDI, but the hybrid driveline is capable of allowing the electric motor power the car on its own. VW claims the car has 1.2-mile range in EV mode, making it ideal for parking lots, neighborhoods, and other short-range, low-speed scenarios. VW could extend that range by stuffing in a larger battery pack, but the automaker claims the car's effiency would suffer as a result.

Honestly, if the figures given from this car are true, it's hard for any fuel miser to scoff at the Up! Lite. Volkswagen says the car can return approximately 70 mpg on the freeway -- substantially less than the 235 mpg offered by the 1L, but not bad for a vehicle that carries four and offers some additional cargo space.

The 70 mpg figure is accomplished in a few different ways. First and foremost, VW used a lot of carbon fiber and aluminum in the car's construction (both materials even appear in the 18-inch wheels). As a result, the car weighs a scant 1402 lbs.

Further, drivers can make the most of the Up! Lite's efficient powertrain by not using it to its maximum power. By selecting an "Eco" mode, output of the two-cylinder TDI is limited to 36 hp. This is ideal for long cruises, but full power can be dialed in should the driver need to pass (slowly, mind you; 0-60 mph comes in 12 seconds). Better yet, seeing as the TDI is shut off during stretches of coasting, the car's navigation system can route drivers on roads that offer long stretches where the engine won't be needed.

Thanks to: Motor Trend

LA Show 2009 Highlights: 2010 Volkswagen New Beetle Final Edition

Since its debut in 1998, the Golf-based, retro-styled New Beetle has gone through a refresh or two, with continual improvements made and additional trim levels added, including a drop-top version. Still, the party couldn't last forever, and now VW has announced that 2010 will be the final model year for this aging neo-icon.

To commemorate the end of the New Beetle (though an all-new car is said to be in the works), VW will launch a special Final Edition model run, with 1500 cars to be available beginning in Spring 2010. To be sold exclusively in the U.S., Final Edition coupes will feature unique Aquarius Blue paint and a black roof, while convertibles will get a two-tone paint scheme with Aquarius Blue and Campanella White, along with a white top and interior.

Each car will be individually numbered and will include a sports suspension, fog lights, 17-in. alloy wheels, the standard 150-hp 2.5L I-5 engine, and a six-speed automatic transmission. Pricing for the Volkswagen New Beetle Final Edition is $20,240 and $27,170 for the coupe and convertible, respectively, not including destination fees.

Thanks to: Motor Trend

LA Show 2009 Highlights: 2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe

After a long wait—the concept debuted at the 2008 Detroit auto show—Cadillac has officially taken the wraps off the 2011 Cadillac CTS coupe. Originally planned as a 2010 model, the release was pushed back as General Motors slogged through bankruptcy restructuring and the sexy 2+2 will now debut at the Los Angeles auto show before hitting the market in the spring. Rear- and all-wheel-drive variants will be available, while a 556-hp CTS-V Coupe also is en route and will debut later in 2010.

Based on the CTS sedan, the coupe rides on the same 113.4-inch wheelbase, yet is about two inches lower and two inches shorter overall. The seductive design includes a more rakish windshield, as well as blacked-out B-pillars, hidden touch-pad door releases, a unique rear fascia with twin center-mounted exhaust outlets, and an integrated rear spoiler.
A 304-hp, direct-injected 3.6-liter V-6 is the only engine for non-V models and will be backed by a standard six-speed manual transmission—with a clutch and flywheel revised from the CTS sedan—or an optional six-speed automatic. Cadillac estimates highway fuel economy will be as high as 27 mpg. The CTS sedan with the direct-injected 3.6 is rated at 16 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway and manual gearbox and 18/27 with the automatic. Eighteen-inch wheels with all-season tires and a sport suspension will be standard on both rear- and all-wheel-drive versions, while a Summer Tire Performance Package will add sportier 19-inch rubber, likely only on rear-drive models. A limited-slip differential is standard, as is electronic stability control.
The CTS sedan is already a pretty posh place to pass the miles, and the coupe will include the same hand-stitched leather accents and attention to detail, along with similar amenities such as a 40-gig hard-drive entertainment system, a pop-up navigation display, active forward lighting, standard keyless access and remote start, a rearview camera, and a Bose audio system. Fourteen-way power adjustable Recaro sport seats, previously only offered on the CTS-V, also will be available on all coupe models.

Thanks to: Car and Driver

LA Show 2009 Highlights: 2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder

Tossed out the window -- no, out the open cockpit, actually -- are the radio, the air con, conventional door pulls, and more. Porsche says the result is a weight savings of 176 pounds over the Boxster S, making the new Boxster Spyder, at a claimed 2800 pounds, the lightest model in the maker's production-car lineup.

Perhaps stung by criticisms of "diluting the brand" (i.e., Porsche sport/utes and the new Panamera four-door), the iconic German speed factory has countered with a sporting piece nearly as pure and purposeful as James Dean's 1955 550 Spyder. As such, this newest, fastest Boxster also qualifies as the most toy-like model in the range, a pricey plaything for perfect days and writhing roads -- and almost exclusively so. How long would the Spyder's charms last, I wonder, without refrigerated air and the diversion of a radio during a long stop-and-go commute on a blistering summer day? (Not to worry: If you're feeling "unpure," you can pile on A/C, radio, nav, and whatever other options you like.)

So, no, in basic "stripped" form the Boxster Spyder isn't an ideal daily driver; you'll want to be rich enough to own one as your second or third car. Ah, but for those days that call for a leather jacket and driving gloves...

In addition to the jettisoned A/C and radio, the Spyder features aluminum doors (saving 33 pounds), lightweight sport bucket seats (saving 26 pounds), an aluminum rear deck (saving 6.5 pounds), and the lightest 19-inch alloy wheels in the Porsche catalog. Also changed over conventional Boxsters are the side windows -- they're lighter and lower -- and the soft top, which for Spyder duty is a manually erected affair that's little more than a handkerchief for blocking the sun (the lid, which stows away above the engine, isn't even waterproof; indeed, Porsche admits it won't stand up to a car wash).

Thanks to: Motor Trend