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If you were paying attention to the New York Auto Show, and looking away from cars like the Scion FR-S and Lexus LF-Gh, you would have seen that small, fuel-friendly vehicles were all the rage. Long story short, this is the year of the cheap car. Although cars like the Subaru Impreza and Volkswagen Beetle have their own threads, these four cars will share their own...
2012 Hyundai Accent
Hyundai is getting out of the bargain basement game. While the current Accent gets to own the title of "cheapest car in America," the new Accent moves upmarket as Hyundai attempts to escape its older reputation. The new Accent takes its visual cues from the Elantra and Sonata, and borrows some of their technology as well. Debuting in the new Accent is the 1.6L GDI direct-injection four-cylinder, producing 138 BHP. Not only is it one of the most technologically advanced engines in the segment, it is also one of the smallest, and most fuel-efficient. Hyundai says its good for 40 MPG on the highway, which appears to be par for the game these days. The car will be available as a four door sedan or a five door hatchback. Pricing starts at $12,445 and will run north of $16K in top-trim form.
2012 Kia Rio
Woah. Take the Hyundai Accent, give it some funky juice, and you get the Rio. Same basic bits underneath, including that tech-savy 1.6L engine, and some German-designed pieces in and out and you get this... The mini Optima. Or, ultimate badassery in the Rio5. The car looks funky, inside and out, and is probably the best stylistic challenges to the Fiesta that exists. With a six-speed manual or automatic, the car should be capable of 40 MPG as well. No word on pricing, but it would be fair to expect it to be in-line with the Accent as well.
(See more of what I mean by "Kia Doing it Right" here)
2012 Nissan Versa
I have to say that this is probably the most-perplexing vehicle of the 2011 New York Auto Show. By most accounts, the Versa has been a solid success for Nissan in North America, and thereby a follow-up had to be a home-run. One of the weak points of the current Versa is the styling, and this one? Well, it is take it or leave it. Although it isn't as polarizing as the Juke, it certainly isn't that attractive. The big news here? A starting price of $10,990, and 33 MPG. Sure, a big jump from the current Versa 1.6 model that has well... Nothing. This one gets you most of the basics, which should satisfy most folks.
2012 Mazda 3 SkyActiv
Okay okay, we've known that this one was coming for a while. Still, it is a known fact that GTP loves the Mazda 3. Several users own them, several us have nearly bought one... We just love this car. The big deal here is the debut of the new 2.0L SkyActive engine, which replaces the outgoing 2.0L unit that was standard in the 3i models. With a modest power bump coming from the use of direct-injection and some clever crafting. Long story short, the car is good for 40 MPG with the automatic gearbox, and will be an option on both the sedan and hatchback variants of the 3. No word on pricing at the show, but if that means you can get the hatchback for a little less while running with the SkyActiv technology, that's a big deal for potential 3 buyers.
2012 Hyundai Accent
Hyundai is getting out of the bargain basement game. While the current Accent gets to own the title of "cheapest car in America," the new Accent moves upmarket as Hyundai attempts to escape its older reputation. The new Accent takes its visual cues from the Elantra and Sonata, and borrows some of their technology as well. Debuting in the new Accent is the 1.6L GDI direct-injection four-cylinder, producing 138 BHP. Not only is it one of the most technologically advanced engines in the segment, it is also one of the smallest, and most fuel-efficient. Hyundai says its good for 40 MPG on the highway, which appears to be par for the game these days. The car will be available as a four door sedan or a five door hatchback. Pricing starts at $12,445 and will run north of $16K in top-trim form.
2012 Kia Rio
Woah. Take the Hyundai Accent, give it some funky juice, and you get the Rio. Same basic bits underneath, including that tech-savy 1.6L engine, and some German-designed pieces in and out and you get this... The mini Optima. Or, ultimate badassery in the Rio5. The car looks funky, inside and out, and is probably the best stylistic challenges to the Fiesta that exists. With a six-speed manual or automatic, the car should be capable of 40 MPG as well. No word on pricing, but it would be fair to expect it to be in-line with the Accent as well.
(See more of what I mean by "Kia Doing it Right" here)
2012 Nissan Versa
I have to say that this is probably the most-perplexing vehicle of the 2011 New York Auto Show. By most accounts, the Versa has been a solid success for Nissan in North America, and thereby a follow-up had to be a home-run. One of the weak points of the current Versa is the styling, and this one? Well, it is take it or leave it. Although it isn't as polarizing as the Juke, it certainly isn't that attractive. The big news here? A starting price of $10,990, and 33 MPG. Sure, a big jump from the current Versa 1.6 model that has well... Nothing. This one gets you most of the basics, which should satisfy most folks.
2012 Mazda 3 SkyActiv
Okay okay, we've known that this one was coming for a while. Still, it is a known fact that GTP loves the Mazda 3. Several users own them, several us have nearly bought one... We just love this car. The big deal here is the debut of the new 2.0L SkyActive engine, which replaces the outgoing 2.0L unit that was standard in the 3i models. With a modest power bump coming from the use of direct-injection and some clever crafting. Long story short, the car is good for 40 MPG with the automatic gearbox, and will be an option on both the sedan and hatchback variants of the 3. No word on pricing at the show, but if that means you can get the hatchback for a little less while running with the SkyActiv technology, that's a big deal for potential 3 buyers.
