Car Throttle

2010 is undoubtedly the year of eco-consciousness among automotive companies. I mean, there have been some exciting gas-guzzling debuts (hello, Audi R8 V10 Spider, 2011 Mustang GT500, and Ferrari 458 Italia!) but for the most part the focus of the industry has been on boring things, like diesels and hybrids and, god forbid, diesel-hybrids.  Still, there's a whole heap of fresh metal coming out this year, and there's quite a bit to be excited about.  What upcoming cars are you the most stoked to get your greasy little paws on in 2010? For me, it's a pretty long list.  And atop it is Honda's polarizing CR-Z.  While "Hybrid" and "Sports Coupe" seem to go together like peanut butter and salmon, it's an intriguing concept to me

Right now, the golden children in the media are Hyundai and Ford. That isn't without reason either - both Ford and Hyundai have released a slew of competitive new products, and both manufacturers have the sales numbers to match. Some peg the Hyundai Sonata and Ford Fusion as being the new leaders of the mid-size segment. We have yet to test either to know for sure, but we would be inclined to agree. General Motors, on the other hand, has been largely flying under the radar as it has made impressive gains. The new Equinox is an extremely impressive product, and a lot of underlying data on sales for GM corporate-wide has gone unnoticed. They results are showing up with consumers. Auto Trader has just released it's automotive research data that shows

Hyundai/Kia is definitely the talk of the New York International Auto Show. Usually the automotive press declares a show "winner" and in New York, that would definitely have to be Hyundai/Kia. New introductions have included the Hyundai Sonata Turbo, Sonata Hybrid, Equus and the Kia Forte 5-door as well as the official pictures and information drop on the Kia Optima. The Optima is one handsome mid-size sedan - and expensive looking too. Kia has clearly settled on a design language with its newest products, and it is one we really like. It looks solid and technologically-oriented. One thing is clear, that while the Sonata and the Optima share platforms, the two are nothing alike. This is platform sharing done right. Our favorite view is of the rear. It looks really different and is

Hyundai's new Sonata sedan has been a press darling these days. It's got everything that mid-size car buyers are looking for: great looks, a reasonable price and a long warranty, plenty of space and quality, and a remarkable power-to-efficiency ratio.  Hyundai just debuted the 2011 Sonata Turbo at the New York Auto Show, and if anything the media love for the new four-door is about to reach a fever pitch. Let's talk numbers for a minute.  The regular Sonata uses a 2.4L 16v I4 with gasoline-direct-injection to produce a healthy 198bhp and 189lb-ft of torque, which is more than any of the four-cylinder competition in it's class, all at an "are you serious?" 35 highway MPG.  That's impressive in it's own right - they're out-Honda-ing Honda

At CarThrottle, we love drag racing videos, and we assume you probably do too. One we thought particularly interesting and that garnered a lot of attention is the Ford-sponsored one between the Ford Taurus SHO and the Audi A6 4.2 FSI. Manufacturer-conducted races are pretty much a foregone conclusions for the company conducting it, but that doesn't mean they aren't interesting to watch anyway. This one done by Hyundai in Korea pits two cars that don't seem like the likeliest candidates for drag racing - the new Sonata against with it's 2.4 GDI 4-cylinder against the 2.5-liter 4-cylinder in the Camry. The results are pretty interesting - the Camry is clearly quicker off the line but the Sonata overtakes it later on. The Korean language means most of

Hyundai has been continuing on a relentless drive upmarket, and has met a lot of success doing so. Each model has improved so much with ever passing generation, and entrants like the Azera and Genesis have been met with critical acclaim. This month's sales being up The next leap is set to come with the Equus full-size luxury sedan. For now though, Hyundai is turning to it's mid-size sedan, a crucially important segment for any volume manufacturer. Mercedes-Benz CLS, is that you? No, it's the Hyundai Sonata - but that's what Hyundai wants you to think of when you see the Sonata. There is a clear "inspiration" here from that car, and it's never a bad thing to be compared with the CLS. The CLS started this