New Car Review: 2013 Toyota Prius V

The expansion of the Prius line seems to be paying off.  A decent number of the baby Prius C models are on the road, and if you look, you'll see quite a few of the Prius V as well.  V in this case is not a Roman numeral, it is a letter...and it stands for "versatile".

New Car Review: 2013 Chevrolet Sonic LTZ Turbo





The 2013 Chevrolet Sonic LTZ Turbo.

There are only so many ways to package and design a modern small car. That accounts for there being a bit of a resemblance between the all-new, American-built Chevrolet Sonic and the car it replaced, the unloved Korean import Chevrolet Aveo. The second-gen Aveo was so vastly improved over the first-gen that I gave it a largely favorable review. Two and a half years later, it's become clear that was more of a reflection of how bad the early Aveo was than anything else.

The Chevy Sonic is a completely different story.

New Car Review: 2012 Lexus CT 200h Premium F Sport




The 2012 Lexus CT 200h Premium F Sport.

Regular TireKicker readers will recall that just 13 months ago we were puzzling over the place of the CT 200h in the universe...or at least in Lexus' lineup.

Our questions revolved around whether Lexus needed another small car (question since answered...they've killed off the over-priced HS 250h, the closest Lexus has ever come to the Cadillac Cimarron or Lincoln Versailles).

Well, sales are up 500% so far this year over last, so apparently, there is a market for a small Lexus hybrid hatchback.

Now...how about a performance model?

New Car Review: 2012 Kia Rio Sedan and 5-Door

The 2012 Kia Rio Sedan.

If the rest of the world's automakers aren't taking Kia seriously yet, it may be too late.

With the 2012 Kia Rio, these guys have stepped into serious contender status, and if I were playing with my own money, they might just end up selling me a car.

The Rio has, in the shortest imaginable time, gone from being the worst thing that could happen to you at the rental counter to a car that absolutely nails its intended target in a way a car in this class hasn't done since the mid-1980s glory days of the Honda Civic.

New Car Review: 2012 Mazda 3 Skyactiv i Grand Touring

The 2012 Mazda 3 Skyactiv.

Five weeks ago, we gave you our first impressions based on a very short (fewer than 100 miles) time behind the wheel of the Mazda 3 Skyactiv. Bottom line for the link-averse, it was all good things we expect from Mazda in general and the Mazda 3 in particular, with some promising gas mileage figures (we averaged 29.5 miles per gallon, the EPA estimates are 28 city, 40 highway).

The first car was a bare-bones stock model...zero options, with a price tag of $19,300 plus delivery charges.

This time around, things were different. Mazda USA's press folks sent an i Grand Touring model with Skyactiv. Base price $4,000 higher at $22,300...and there were options.

New Car Review: 2012 Toyota Prius V




The 2012 Toyota Prius V.

Toyota's expansion of the Prius into a full family of cars begins here with the Toyota Prius V.

We can hear the puzzled readers now: "Prius V? What are Prius A through U like?" No, this is V as in roman numeral for the number 5. So it's "Toyota Prius 5". Why? Because it has five doors (okay, it also stands for "Versatility", according to Toyota).