Automotive

2017 Kia Niro Hybrid Touring Review

The all-new 2017 Kia Niro Hybrid stacks up against some pretty stiff competition in the hybrid crossover segment. The small crossover competes against the number one selling Toyota Prius, popular Ford C-Max Hybrid wagon, and Toyota RAV4 Hybrid.

However, it’s got a lot of appeal for crossover shoppers with its stylish exterior design, fuel-sipping drivetrain, and crossover utility.

This week we drove the 2017 Kia Niro Hybrid Touring, the top trim level.

What’s New

The 2017 Niro is an all-new model in the Kia lineup. The well-equipped Touring offers up a host of modern comfort features for consumers.

Features & Options

The Touring trim ($29,650) comes standard with 18-inch wheels, front and rear parking sensors, black front grille trim, a sunroof, door scuff plates, driver’s seat memory settings, ventilated and heated front seats, and a heated steering wheel. Other creature comforts include leather upholstery, a larger 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with navigation, HD and satellite radio, an eight-speaker Harman Kardon sound system, and LED interior lights.

Options on our Touring tester included the Advanced Tech Package ($1,900) with active safety systems like lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and forward collision warning. It also came with a 115 volt inverter and wireless phone charger.

Total MSRP including destination: $32,840.

Interior Highlights

The first thing we noticed upon getting this Niro Touring tester was the ease of entry. The Niro sits up a bit higher and getting in and out is easier than many small crossovers. My 6’ 8” passenger this week commented on the abundant headroom, a plus for taller drivers. As is typical for this price point, there’s still some hard surfaces that cover the doors, dash, and center console areas.

There are soft-touch surfaces on the upper parts of the dash and armrests, however.

The tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel and power driver’s seat have two-way lumbar and height adjustments that made it easy to find the perfect driving position. We put a lot of miles on our Niro but never felt tired or fatigued after longer trips.

In the back, there’s ample head and legroom, but there was no room behind my tall passenger when he moved the seat back to accommodate his 6’ 8” frame. Still, the rear seats split 60/40 and fold perfectly flat for a nice load floor. We had to load nine long boxes this week, and the small crossover had enough room for the extra cargo. There’s 19.4 cubic feet with all seats in place and 54.5 cubes when folded flat.

The rear hatch makes it convenient to load groceries and the kid’s sports equipment.

Engine & Fuel Mileage Specs

The 2017 Kia Niro is powered by a 1.6-liter four-cylinder hybrid-electric powertrain, producing 139 horsepower and 195 lb-ft. of torque. Power is sent to the front wheels via a six-speed, dual-clutch automatic transmission in lieu of the more conventional, continuously variable transmission (CVT) like we see on most small crossovers.

Unfortunately, all-wheel drive is not available.

EPA-estimates are 46/40 city/highway and 43 combined mpg.

Driving Dynamics

The 2017 Kia Niro delivers a satisfying driving experience in the city and on the open road. We experienced a fair amount of both this week as we traveled the city streets of Denver, and on the open road between Denver and Colorado Springs. The Niro is an ideal size vehicle for navigating busy streets as we made multiple U-turns, and had to cut across lanes of traffic to catch our exit.

On the open highway, there was a bit of road noise as we traveled 75 mph (yes that’s the speed limit) on the way to Colorado Springs. We especially enjoyed the Smart Cruise Control that not only keeps you at a constant speed, but will slow you down if you approach another car. It then gets the vehicle back up to your set speed when the traffic flow gets back to normal. It does all this without you ever touching the brake or gas pedal.

The Niro stayed planted in the tight mountain curves, thanks to a lower center of gravity because the batteries are mounted beneath the rear passenger seat. We thought the Niro handled more like a car than a crossover. With the six-speed automatic transmission, shifts come quick and smooth, providing a more pleasant driving experience when compared to a CVT automatic.

Conclusion

Overall, the new 2017 Kia Niro is a good city commuter, and should be a vehicle families check out. It gets excellent fuel mileage, has ample head and legroom for taller drivers, and it has the utility of a hatchback. It’s a pleasant ride at high cruising speeds or in stop-and-go city traffic.

Denis Flierl has invested over 25 years in the automotive industry in a variety of roles. Follow his work on Twitter: @CarReviewGuy

2017 Kia Niro Gallery

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2017 Kia Niro Official Site

Photo: Kia Motors America

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Letter From The UK: Winds Of Change

Have you ever seen a plastic bag caught in swirling gusts of wind? It flies this way and that, never knowing where it will go and where it will come to rest when the wind drops.

That’s Europe, that is; right now.

Winds of change are blowing across the bleak political landscape that could affect the car industry and life in general for Great Britain.

Goodbye General Motors

It won’t have escaped your attention that General Motors is considering selling its loss-making European operation to the French PSA Group, which builds Citroen and Peugeot vehicles. This could have repercussions for the Vauxhall brand in the UK (badged as Opel on continental Europe). This is of sufficient concern for the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, to meet up with the Peugeot boss, Carlos Tavares, to discuss the potential issues, of which could mean job losses.

GM has two motor plants here, at Ellesmere Port and Luton, plus sundry ancillaries. They build, among others, the popular if unexciting Corsa and Astra models which regularly feature in the UK automotive top ten. No doubt Mr. Tavares will make the usual positive noises but, as in any industry, can PSA ultimately be trusted?

It has always been very clear that when a sale or takeover of this magnitude happens there will always be an element of what is euphemistically described as “rationalization.” You can bet your bottom dollar when that word is used, then someone, somewhere is going down. In this case the ax will certainly fall on the necks of British workers. The PSA Group is very unlikely to expose its own workers to the inevitable.

Your average French car worker can get very testy, I hear, when their job is threatened.

Vauxhall Ellesmere Port facility. Photo: Opel Pressroom Europe.

Brexit. Again.

Since the British voted to leave the EU last year, there has been a further rise of Europe’s populist movements that are on the cusp of sweeping far-right, nationalist, and euro-skeptic parties into power across the continent in a series of upcoming elections. Political groups of this type, like our very own United Kingdom Independence Party, were once seen as buffoons; a joke. Well, Europe’s smug elite are not laughing now. Once consigned to the fringes of the political scene, these parties now hold considerable sway, arguably enhanced by President Trump’s notorious victory.

UKIP’s former leader Nigel Farage – a friend of the American President – has handed over the leadership reins to a man who makes Cletus Spuckler seem like a dangerous intellectual; yet they are within a gnat’s whisker of winning another seat in the UK parliament.

In the Netherlands, a certain Geert Wilders with his Tarzan-like hair seems very likely to carry his far-right party to victory in the soon to be held Dutch elections. Similarly, Marine Le Pen of the French Front National is within an outside chance of becoming President soon. It is my contention the Euro-federalists have brought it upon themselves. Never has the running of the European Union seemed so remote. The British people see unelected, often self-important people calling the shots and they don’t like it.

Voters tend, in general, to see things in black and white. That’s why the UK voted “out.” It may not prove to be a rational decision but the plain fact is that as things stand, the voters just didn’t like the smell emanating from Brussels. This same sense of being talked down to by the political elite could explain the rise of your President.

The turmoil is sure to continue.

Winds Of Change

This turmoil is highly likely to affect the car industry and not just in Europe. In the United States, your President’s proto-protectionist policies are already having an unsettling effect on foreign car makers. American manufacturers are bringing jobs back to the States and the United Auto Workers, so we hear, are planning an advertisement to get U.S. car customers to “Buy American.”

That does not bode well for the much-vaunted global car industry.

Meanwhile, back here in blighted Britain – that running sore on the nose of European integration – we await the verdict on the GM fire-sale. With the British Government planning to signal our official leaving of the European Union in March, there are still stormy seas ahead for the UK car industry.

Already car prices in Britain have risen by over five percent since that fatal vote, thanks to a weak currency and other Brexit woes. Even if the Vauxhall factories continue production in some form or another, will their exports be subject to tariffs on the European border just a few scant miles across the English channel? Will our tit-for-tat tariffs have a similar effect on Euro car makers?

If this turmoil does adversely affect the European car industry and the PSA Group hits rough waters, who are they going to put in the lifeboats first? It won’t be the neighbors, it will be their own family, that’s for damn sure. Call me paranoid but I think this wind of change is an ill one and, like President Trump’s hair in a gale, the outcome won’t be pretty.

Geoff Maxted is a motoring writer, photographer, and author of our Letter From The UK series. Follow his work on Twitter: @DriveWrite

Cover Photo: Foto-RaBe

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2019 VW Arteon: Tremendous Value But Will It Actually Sell?

2019 VW Arteon: Tremendous Value But Will It Actually Sell? The 2019 VW Arteon arrives at dealerships this month.
Front-wheel drive models start at $35,845; $37,645 for all-wheel drive.
VW says the Arteon combines the space of a sedan with the design of a coupe.
So they’re really making this thing? “This thing” being the 2019 VW Arteon, a top-of-the-line, all bells and whistles halo car VW seems to think everyone wants. Every so often, VW does something like this. They made a Passat with half of a Veyron engine, a W8, 15 years ago. They made this big luxo sedan, the Phaeton, a couple of years after that. Nobody bought them. Why? A couple of good, solid reasons.
So what makes Volkswagen think it’s going to work this time around with the 2019 Arteon?
Lessons Learned?
Near as I could tell, the W8 Passat and the W12 Phaeton failed to hit sales targets for two main reasons. One, when something went wrong with either of those engines (and sooner or later, something always did), it’s like you had to suddenly write a check for a new sailboat. And two, why buy a top-of-the-line VW loaded with every possible performance and luxury feature on the planet, when, for a few dollars more, you could buy nearly the same thing from BMW or Mercedes-Benz or Audi – shoot, Audis are pretty much Volkswagens already!
But whatever, VW does not seem concerned with those questions, but they do seem concerned with people knowing about the Arteon.
2019 VW Arteon. Photo: Volkswagen of America, Inc.
Value Proposition
So here we are. The Arteon (I will not make a comment on that name, no I will not) is loaded down with every high-tech means to move you, stop you, change directions for you and, in the meantime, keep you warm and dry and safe and happy. VW says the Arteon will do this for . . . holy smokes, this thing only costs $36,000?! That’s nuts. That’s about what an Audi A4 goes for, and the Arteon has all the features of an A8 (okay, an A6 at least).
In other words, VW is going down the same road it did with the W8 Passat and W12 Phaeton; lots of bang for your buck, but nobody bought them.
Here’s what you get for that $36,000 starting price (they top out around $45,000 for the full-zoot model). There are three trim levels: the SE, SEL, and SEL Premium. Even the “base” SE has most anything a modern luxo-barge buyer would want these days.
The performance-inspired R-Line package, with its more sporty treatments, is available on every trim level. Photo: Volkswagen of America, Inc.
2019 VW Arteon SE
The front-wheel drive Arteon SE, starting at $35,845, features a 2.0L four-cylinder turbocharged TSI engine. Not very impressive in the engine department, sure, but everything else is. For an extra two grand you can get an Arteon SE with 4Motion all-wheel drive. Standard exterior goodies include 18-inch aluminum wheels, LED headlights and taillights, a chrome grille, and dual trapezoidal exhaust tips.
On the inside, the SE has leatherette seating surfaces, heated front seats with 12-way power adjust, and four-way lumbar support. Keyless access with push-button start fires the whole thing off, and there’s three-zone automatic climate control for when you’re underway. The SE also comes with a leather-wrapped and multi-function steering wheel, rearview camera, rain-sensing wipers, and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. The brushed metallic décor bits are all over the place, along with stainless-steel door sills and pedal caps.
There’s tons of multimedia stuff crammed into the dash: an eight-inch Composition Media infotainment system with SiriusXM, Bluetooth connectivity (of course), two USB ports, and eight speakers. Volkswagen’s Car-Net App-Connect includes Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and MirrorLink. Standard driver assist features include Forward Collision Warning and Autonomous Emergency Braking, Side Assist, and Rear Traffic Alert.
And all that stuff is in the “entry-level” SE!
2019 VW Arteon interior layout. Photo: Volkswagen of America, Inc.
Related: An in-depth look at the 2019 VW Arteon.
2019 VW Arteon SEL & Premium
VW ups the game with the Arteon SEL, which starts at $39,995 for front-wheel drive; $41,795 for all-wheel drive, neither of which are unreasonable. The standard LED headlights now have an Adaptive Front-lighting System. There’s a panoramic sunroof, power-folding mirrors with memory, remote start, Nappa leather seating surfaces, and ambient lighting. This time, it’s an eight-inch Discover Media infotainment system with navigation and a 12.3-inch Volkswagen Digital Cockpit display.
There’s also Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop and Go along for the ride.
At the top of the heap, we have the Arteon SEL Premium starting at $44,945. The SEL Premium, riding on 19-inch aluminum-alloy wheels, is only available with all-wheel drive. The interior receives a heated steering wheel, paddle shifters, ventilated front seats with a massaging driver’s seat, heated rear seats, and again, brushed aluminum décor all over the place. The 700-watt Dynaudio stereo with 12 speakers should be loud enough to make even Nikki Sixx want to turn it down.
Photo: Volkswagen of America, Inc.
A Great Vehicle Indeed
So yes, the new Volkswagen Arteon is an amazing car, loaded down with features you’d expect in something costing twice as much. And yes, the 2019 VW Arteon would be the smart choice concerning cost versus value. But no, VW probably won’t end up selling enough of them. More’s the pity. They seem like great cars.
Tony Borroz has spent his entire life racing antique and sports cars. He is the author of Bricks & Bones: The Endearing Legacy and Nitty-Gritty Phenomenon of The Indy 500, available in paperback or Kindle format. Follow his work on Twitter: @TonyBorroz.
2019 VW Arteon Gallery

Photos & Source: Volkswagen of America, Inc.

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2017 VW e-Golf Improves Strongly Over 2016 Model

Volkswagen of America, Inc., recently announced fuel economy figures for the new 2017 e-Golf. The car features an improved EPA-estimated range, better fuel economy, and more power when compared to the outgoing model.

The 2017 VW e-Golf has a new lithium-ion battery with an increased energy capacity of 35.8 kWh from 24.2 kWh. This allows the range to increase from an EPA-estimated total of 83 miles to 125 miles on a single charge.

Faster, More Efficient Charging

SE and SEL Premium trim levels carry a 7.2 kW unit that enables the battery to be charged in less than six hours at a 240V charging station. When equipped with DC Fast Charging (optional on SE, standard on SEL Premium), the battery can be charged to 80 percent within an hour at a DC fast charging station.

Fuel Ratings

According to VW, “battery chemistry” was enhanced to improve fuel efficiency. The 2017 e-Golf has an EPA-estimated city fuel economy of 126 MPGe, 111 MPGe on the highway, and 119 MPGe combined. This marks an improvement over the previous e-Golf which has EPA-estimates of 126, 105, and 116, respectively.

Currently, the 2017 VW e-Golf estimates are the best in the compact class, as defined by the EPA. Using 13 cents per kilowatt-hour, the EPA has estimated an annual fuel cost of $550 for the vehicle.

Power & Performance

The battery and fuel economy improvements are joined by advancements to the electric motor. For example, the 2016 VW e-Golf featured an 85 kWh electric motor with 115 horsepower. By comparison, the 2017 VW e-Golf’s new 100 kWh electric motor creates 134 horsepower. The maximum torque of the electric motor has been boosted to 214 lb-ft., an improvement of 15 lb-ft. over the 2016 model.

Finally, the 2017 VW e-Golf sprints from zero to 60 faster than the outgoing model. Just in case you feel like going pedal to the metal in your new e-Golf, you can hit 60 in 9.6 seconds. The vehicle goes on sale this spring – pricing information is forthcoming.

Carl Anthony is Managing Editor of Automoblog and resides in Detroit, Michigan.

Photos & Source: Volkswagen of America, Inc.

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2017 Chevy Camaro ZL1 Hits Record Breaking Top Speed

It’s official! The new Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 is the fastest Camaro ever, with a top speed of 198 mph. Recently, the Camaro ZL1 was put through the paces on the High Speed Oval, a 7.6-mile loop at Germany’s Automotive Testing Papenburg GmBH proving ground.

The test included a run in both directions where the ZL1 ran 202.3 mph one way and 193.3 the other.

“This test caps an impressive list of performance stats for the Camaro ZL1, which was designed to excel at everything,” said Al Oppenheiser, Camaro Chief Engineer.

Standard Settings

Papenburg’s banking allowed Chevy’s test drivers to push the ZL1 through the turns without backing off the accelerator. Papenburg features 1.3-mile turns with 49.7-degree banking on the top lane, giving way to 2.5-mile straights. Other than safety and data recording equipment, no modifications were made to this Chevy Camaro ZL1. The test was even run on the ZL1’s factory installed Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar tires.

“After testing the car in standard settings, which produced the 198-mph average, we set the front and rear camber adjustments to 0 degrees and the tire pressures to the maximum allowable sidewall pressure, and saw the ZL1 average over 200 mph,” Oppenheiser said.

The 2017 Chevy Camaro ZL1 on the High Speed Oval at Germany’s Automotive Testing Papenburg GmBH proving ground. Photo: Chevrolet.

Power & Performance

The 2017 Chevy Camaro ZL1 hits 60 in 3.5 seconds, runs a quarter mile in 11.4 seconds (127 mph), and comes to a halt in 107 feet from 60 mpg. The 650 horsepower, supercharged LT4 engine in the ZL1 is paired with a standard six-speed manual transmission with Active Rev Match or an available, all-new 10-speed automatic transmission.

The latter transmission was used for the high-speed test on Papenburg’s oval.

The 2017 Chevy Camaro ZL1 has a number of aerodynamic advancements as the car’s entire front-to-rear aero balance was fine-tuned for high-speed stability. Examples include a stanchion rear spoiler with a stronger lift/drag ratio versus a blade spoiler, and a patent-pending auxiliary transmission oil cooler to reduce front-end lift.

“The ZL1 was developed with high-speed performance in mind, incorporating a balanced aerodynamic package that reduces lift without significantly affecting drag,” Oppenheiser said.

Photo: Chevrolet.

Pricing & Availability

Available for the Camaro ZL1 are things like Magnetic Ride Control, an Electronic limited-slip differential (coupe only), and 20-inch forged aluminum wheels. Other features include Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar 3 summer-only tires measuring 285/30ZR20 in front and 305/30ZR20 in the rear, and Brembo brakes with six-piston Monobloc front calipers and two-piece rotors.

The 2017 Chevy Camaro ZL1 is available now and starts at $63,435 for a coupe with the manual transmission; $65,830 for a coupe with the 10-speed automatic.

“It’s the most capable and fastest Camaro ever,” Oppenheiser said.

Carl Anthony is Managing Editor of Automoblog and resides in Detroit, Michigan.

Photos & Source: Chevrolet

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