Thursday, July 12, 2007
After days we published rumors about Kia and its line-up, we spy a Kia Soul test mule on the back of a transporter in South Korea.
The new Soul will sit below the Sportage in the line-up and will go on sale in 2009. The Soul will come to Europe but it will definitely be sold in North America and its home market.
Considering its size, the new crossover will rival against the Scion xB/xD in the North American market and when it comes to Europe, it could rival against the Skoda Roomster.
This time round the 2008 Honda Accord hasn't been snapped in Canada for a commercial shoot but in a car park in the U.S. In a few short months, we'll have all the information we could possibly want about the 2008 Honda Accord coupe and sedan. It's set to go on sale this fall.
We know for sure that the hybrid model is gone. Slow sales of the performance-oriented hybrid made it a one-generation wonder, so the top-of-the-line Accord for 2008 will carry a conventional gasoline-fueled V6. We're expecting power levels somewhere north of 260 horses, so this Accord will be one of the faster family sedans in the segment. Honda isn't forgetting its fuel-efficiency mission statement, however, so the Accord V6 is likely to feature a cylinder-deactivation system. It shuts down half the cylinders under light loads to improve fuel economy. Combined with a six-speed manual transmission, the Accord V6 could maintain its fuel-economy rating of 30 mpg highway even under the revised EPA guidelines for 2008. If the automatic transmission goes from five to six gears as we expect, even the V6 automatic models might get close to 30 mpg on the highway. Then again, if fuel mileage is your primary concern, a four-cylinder Accord is the way to go. The base Accord will get a slight bump to anywhere between 170 and 180 horsepower, but the focus will remain on fuel-efficiency. At the same time, whatever gains that are made will be offset by the new EPA procedures, so expect to see the 26 mpg city/34 mpg highway rating of the current model drop a notch or two. If you're after a serious high-mileage Accord, you might want to put off your purchase for a few years. Honda is working on a diesel-powered model for the U.S. market that will beat the four-cylinder gasoline engine's numbers by a wide margin. And with lots of torque, the diesel will drive better, too. Honda is still working on making it clean enough to meet tough U.S. emissions regulations, but we're expecting it to happen within the next several years.
The 2008 Honda Accord will probably incorporate all the things you expect — slightly more interior room, a quieter and more refined cabin, plus new technology like a navigation system with integrated traffic maps. And as you can see from the pictures, its styling remains conservative in every respect with a little extra chrome its only extravagance.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Much media attention lately has been drawn to the next generation Honda Accord, which was spotted recently. But that’s not all that’s new from Honda for 2008. These photos, taken just recently in the US, capture a styling update for Honda’s popular minivan, the Odyssey.
The front grille of the new Odyssey is restyled, with two horizontal bars running across the center of the grille instead of just one, and the overall shape of the grille has been updated, making it look nearly identical to the new grille design just revealed on the 2008 Accord. The under-bumper air scoop is also shaped differently, and the contours of the front end are updated with angled creases on each side of the grille that extend down into the bumper area.
The rear hatch and tail lights have also been restyled. The clear backup lights and turn signal lights have been moved from the top of the tail lights to the bottom. The center area of the tailgate has also been reshaped, tying into the shape of the tail lights with a horizontal bar running the entire width of the tailgate, just above the license plate cutout.
The freshened Odyssey will likely be released this fall as a 2008 model.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)