2012 Hyundai Genesis / 3.8 / Push Button / Alloys / Certified To 100,000 Miles on 2040-cars

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Ford Ranger, UK Mustang, Hyundai Hybrid | Autoblog Minute

Ford may bring the Ranger back to the US, the UK goes nuts over Mustang, and the battle of hybrids heats up with spy shots of Prius and a new Hyundai. Autoblog senior editor Greg Migliore reports on highlights from the week in automotive news.

Honda, Hyundai and Kia get best word-of-mouth recommendations in US

Forget advertising, incentives and, yes, even our excellently crafted vehicle reviews, sometimes the best way for automakers to sell cars is still good ol' fashioned word of mouth. In an attempt to measure this "word of mouth" power, The Boston Consulting Group, a management consulting firm, has created a new study called the Brand Advocacy Index (BAI). The index takes a look at how various industries perform from person to person. Those industries include automotive, smartphones, grocery, mobile telecommunications and banking.
The study polled more than 32,000 individuals across Europe and in the US to come up with the top 55 brands in these various industries. On the automotive side of things, the top brands in the US were Honda, Hyundai and Kia, all tied at 63 percent. On a global scale, Volkswagen and Toyota scored the highest with a 65-percent BAI rating (both in France). The average BAI for auto industry players tallied 50 percent.
As for companies in other industries, Apple's iPhone was the index's top-rated smartphone, Trader Joe's was the highest recommended grocery store, Virgin was sat atop the mobile telecom industry and USAA was the top retail bank. Scroll down for the full press release on the new study.

Hyundai, ARK Performance combine for SEMA-bound Legato Genesis Coupe

The latest body-kitted Hyundai Genesis Coupe scheduled to appear at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show in Las Vegas is the ARK Performance Legato Concept. In a nod to performance fiends, Hyundai built a stroker V6 good for 400 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque to really set the coupe off.
The extra power is a very good thing when one considers how fast the Legato Coupe looks. Speaking of the Italian musical term "legato," it translates to "tied together," and it was the theme ARK adhered to when it designed the car. In ARK's words, the the Legato conveys "the seamless integration of exotic design, tuned performance and luxury coupe interior ambience."
ARK's body kit includes front and rear bumpers, side skirts, deck lid and "wide-body cues." The 3.8-liter V6 was stroked to 4.0 liters courtesy of JE pistons, connecting rods and a billet steel crankshaft. ARK supplied an intake system and headers, and bolted on a lightweight pulley kit. An ARK oil cooler keeps the engine running at the right temperature. The tuning company also bolted on one of its dual-mass flywheels and carbon clutch kit to handle the extra power.