Filed under: Videos , Smart Drifting Smart fortwo - Click above to watch the video after the jump There are some images that don't fit into Newton's laws of physics. In nature, flying pigs and twinkle-toed Grizzly Bears come to mind. On the track, we can't think of many things more odd-looking than a drifting Smart ForTwo. After all, it's about as tall as it is long, and it's awfully narrow, too. It's like drifting a postal truck... only smaller... and less agile... and more prone to flipping on its side. That didn't stop one pioneering tuner from turning the ForTwo into the ultimate lunchbox drifter. The white Smart looks to be modded to the hilt with an overhauled powertrain ('Busa, anyone?), exhaust and larger wheels and tires.

Filed under: Hybrid , Ford , Honda , Toyota 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid - Click above for high-res image gallery There's no doubt about which automaker leads the hybrid vehicle race. Toyota - and particularly the Japanese automaker's Prius hybrid - outsells all other manufacturers combined. In total, Automotive News calculates that Toyota sold 144,351 hybrid vehicles in the first nine months of 2009, which actually represents a 28-percent drop from the previous year. So far this year, Honda has come in second with its new Insight, but that position is currently in jeopardy. The 26,016 hybrid vehicles sold by Ford in the first nine months of the year represents an impressive 73-percent gain from last year. Honda has sold 29,958 hybrids so far in '09, representing a much smaller eight-percent increase. In both July and September, Ford actually sold more hybrids than Honda. In other words, Ford, led by its Escape Hybrid and new-for-2010 Fusion Hybrid, is gaining on Honda at a very rapid pace. Moving on down the line, General Motors slots in at number four with 12,556 total hybrid so far this year and Nissan's 7,713 units make it the number five hybrid seller in the U.S. Gallery: ABG Garage: 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid Limited [Source: Automotive News - Sub.

Filed under: Coupe , Performance , Chrysler , Dodge , Design/Style 2010 Dodge Challenger in Plum Crazy - Click above to enlarge Of the three classic muscle car nameplates currently on sale in the United States, the Dodge Challenger may very well sport the most retro look and feel. Whether or not that's a good thing depends on your personal point of view, but Chrysler seems happy to accept the role and is further promoting the link to Challenger's '70s heritage with a new Plum Crazy Pearl Coat color option for 2010. In case you're not aware, Plum Crazy was the surprisingly popular deep purple hue found on the Challenger and its stablemate, the Plymouth Barracuda, during the heyday of the American muscle car wars. These days, any car originally painted up in Plum Crazy has an intrinsic value to many collectors, and it seems Dodge is hoping for a similar situation the second time around. The purple color is only available on R/T (for $225) and SRT models (for $500) for 2010 and the package also includes Plum interior stitching and a Plum seat stripe on the SRT8. Outside, buyers can choose from either Black Dual Wide Stripes or a newly-optional set of stripes in white. Previous High Impact colors Detonator Yellow and B-5 Blue are no longer available for order. Also new for the Challenger in 2010 is a Super Track Pack option for a reasonable $400 that allows the driver to fully disengage stability control (finally) and adds 245/45ZR20 tires from Goodyear along with an uprated suspension with Load Leveling and Height Control, Performance Steering and heavy-duty disc brakes. [Source: Allpar , Motor Authority ] Dodge Challenger goes Plum Crazy Purple for 2010 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .

Filed under: Safety , Crossover , Honda , Specialty 2010 Honda Dog Friendly Element - Click above for high-res image gallery The Honda Element would seem to be a fine choice for anyone with an active lifestyle that wants a vehicle that's able to haul a ton of stuff while getting reasonable fuel economy and not breaking the piggy bank. Now - if you'll forgive us for regurgitating this very tired joke - it's gone to the dogs . Starting on November 16, Honda will begin selling a "Dog Friendly" version of the Element for an extra $995 with a "pet accommodation system designed to improve safety, comfort and convenience for dogs and their owners alike." Out back, a nylon-webbed car kennel is intended to be a secure place to keep your precious pooch, and a soft floor and dedicated fan keep Fido comfy. To ease ingress and egress, an integrated ramp is also included. For the 2010 model year, pricing for the Honda Element 2WD LX model starts at $20,525, and a fully-loaded 4WD EX with navigation will peg the meter at a fair $25,585. All Elements come with the same 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and five-speed automatic transmission. Two-wheel drive models garner EPA ratings of 20 mpg city and 25 highway; adding 4WD drops each of those figures by one. Want to know more? Hit the jump for the official press release. Gallery: 2010 Honda Dog Friendly Element Gallery: New York 2009: Dog Friendly Honda Element Concept [Source: Honda] Continue reading Ruffing It: Honda confirms canine-friendly Element to nuzzle into showrooms next month Ruffing It: Honda confirms canine-friendly Element to nuzzle into showrooms next month originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:29:00 EST.

Filed under: Etc. , Honda , Hyundai , Nissan Old Hyundai Excel print ad. Nobody's laughing at Hyundai today. Japan's automakers know a threat when they see one, and based on their words, it sure isn't in Michigan. Motown is fleeting image in the Japanese carmakers' rearview mirrors, which they're now nervously checking for a budding South Korean juggernaut. Honda CEO Takanobu Ito minced no words when he told the Associated Press, "Hyundai is awesome. They are undoubtedly a threat because their products are cheap, and the quality is improving." The numbers seem to bear that out, as Hyundai and its corporate sibling, Kia, continue to show substantial sales chart improvements in key markets like the Europe and the US, where it continues to show strong growth while many other automakers look at double-digit shortfalls year-over-year. Nissan's Shiro Nakamura echoes Honda's Ito when it comes to identifying Japan's new boogeyman, "Hyundai is the biggest threat for the Japanese automakers. They have the technology, but they seem to have cheaper labour." Hyundai, once basically a joke (we all remember such legendary products as the Excel, pictured above), is catching the Japanese by beating them at their own game -- offering a mix of value and quality that's hard for shoppers to ignore. Japan knows it needs to defend itself, too.

Filed under: Concept Cars , Hybrid , Minivan/Van , Japan , Tokyo Motor Show , Honda 2009 Honda Skydeck Concept - Click above for hi-res image gallery This is the Tokyo Motor Show-bound Honda Skydeck concept, a minivan that is, essentially, a perfect storm of non-standard-hinged door technology. Those doors lead to a passenger cabin featuring center-mounted floating seats that are stackable for easier access to the third row. From there, passengers can take in the breathtaking vistas offered by the all-glass roof, or simply enjoy the Skydeck's minimalist interior , which looks as if it could be the handiwork of IKEA designers being held against their will by armed ASIMO centurions . For added Earth-loving wonderfulness, the Skydeck is, of course, a hybrid. Plus, it earns major bonus points for having translucent green wheels even though SEMA's still over a month away! Check out more pics of the Honda Skydeck in the gallery below. Gallery: 2009 Honda Skydeck Concept [Source: Honda ] Tokyo Preview: Honda Skydeck concept van achieves door Nirvana - scissors AND sliders originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read

Filed under: Concept Cars , Japan , Tokyo Motor Show , Hatchback , Honda , Alternative Fuel Honda EV-N Concept - Click above for high-res image gallery When the curtain rises on the Tokyo Motor Show next month, Honda's green-themed display will include what it calls the HELLO! Zone, a showcase for electric vehicles. Why "HELLO! Zone"? Well, we have no idea, other than it reminds us of a certain feline and that the Japanese clearly have a thing for all-caps names and exclamation points. In the HELLO! Zone, showgoers can say, uh, "hello" to the excruciatingly neat, relentlessly cute EV-N concept. It's a retro-styled battery-powered car with a face of a pug puppy crossed with a Trabant and nifty concept-y features like swappable seat fabrics , a solar roof, and a "communications system" embedded in the black front fascia. Most importantly, however, the EV-N's passenger door contains one of those bizarrely kickass UX-3 super gyroscopic robot unicycles, which pretty much makes the EV-N the coolest electric car of all time. We think. Anyhow, when Honda unveils an ASIMO that can both drive the EV-N and then self-deploy on the UX-3, it's time to go hide under your beds, because that'll be the signal that their robot army is ready for world domination. But we digress. Check out the high-res pics of the EV-N in the gallery below.

Filed under: Concept Cars , Japan , Tokyo Motor Show , Honda , Specialty Honda U3-X - Click above for high-res image gallery We've seen our fair share of personal mobility devices over the past few years -- from the ill-received Segway to Toyota's i-Real . Now, Honda's joining the minimalist motoring set with its own limb-atrophying U3-X. Using technology originally developed for ASIMO the robot, the "U" in U3-X stands for both "universal" and "unicycle," and that's where the interesting tech resides. Housed within the large wheel are a series of smaller wheels that can rotate independently, allowing the awkwardly perched user to go forward, backward, side-to-side or diagonally. Like the Segway, the person piloting the U3-X simply leans in the desired direction to control the movement through the Honda Omni Traction Drive System (HOT). Honda's keen to point out that the 22-pound U3-X is ultra-portable and easy to use, with fold away footrests and seat cushions. A single, lithium ion battery powers the electric motors up to one hour and the maximum speed is just a few ticks under four MPH. We'll see the U3-X in person next month at the Tokyo Motor Show , but before then, you can get an eyeful in the gallery below and make the jump for several videos of the U3-X in action, along with Honda's press release. Gallery: Honda U3-X Continue reading Tokyo Preview: Honda unveils U3-X personal mobility device Tokyo Preview: Honda unveils U3-X personal mobility device originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .

Quick Spin: 2009 Porsche Cayenne Diesel delivers torque and efficiency with negligible compromise Porsche offers every conceivable variant of the Cayenne to consumers in the States -- except one. But with the diesel-powered model is enjoying some success in Europe, Porsche is actively considering bringing it to the U.S. We give it a quick shakedown to see if the oil-burning behemoth is worthy of wearing the Stuttgart crest. 2011 Ford Super Duty debuts at Texas State Fair The circle is now complete. Following a couple model years after the redesigned F-150, Ford has taken the wraps off the new 2011 Super Duty model at the Texas State Fair. And along with its revised duds, the SD is packing a choice of either an all-new 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 or 6.2-liter gas-fed V8. Official Cash for Clunkers trade-in list reveals oddities too strange to believe After spending around $2.8 billion, some 700,000 new vehicles have found homes. But Cash for Clunkers has been a mixed bag. Helping out the auto industry is one thing, but what got destroyed at the hands of progress? The Cars.gov website reveals all, much of it cringe-worthy.

Filed under: Crossover , Kia 2011 Kia Sorento - click above for high-res image gallery Kia America has just dropped the first official pics and details of the next generation Sorento. We first saw images of the Korean market model several months back, and unsurprisingly, the version we get looks to be pretty much unchanged. The Sorento is making the transition from midsize body-on-frame SUV to unibody crossover as it also comes to America for production. The handsome CUV will be the first product coming from Kia's new West Point, GA factory, with the line cranking up in November. The new Sorento picks up about 4 inches in length and 3 inches in girth compared to the outgoing model. That, along with the new structure has allowed Kia to add a third row seat, although in a vehicle that is still only 184.4 inches long, those extra two seats will probably only be usable by small children. For the first time, the Sorento will offer a four-cylinder engine in the lineup, a 172 horsepower, 2.4-liter unit in addition to the 273 hp 3.5-liter V6. We're guessing that the public will get its first look at the Sorento at either the Los Angeles or Detroit Auto Show in December, be we expect to get our mitts on it for a review before that. Either way, Kia tells us the Sorento will go on sale in January. Thanks to Keldon for the tip! Gallery: 2011 Kia Sorento [Source: Kia] Continue reading Officially Official: Kia drops pics of the U.S.