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Hyundai beefs up HB20 R-Spec in Brazil

If you've been following the news from the Sao Paulo Motor Show, you'll likely have seen not only a series of new concept cars, but also a whole mess of production vehicles you never knew existed because they were developed specifically for the Latin American market. One of them is the Hyundai HB20.
Hyundai Brasil makes the HB20 in Sao Paulo for local consumption in three forms: there's the HB20 hatchback, HB20S sedan and HB20X crossover. It's the former which it has transformed into the R-Spec concept you see here.
Decked out in matte blue, the HB20 R-Spec concept packs an aggressively upgraded aero kit, extra cooling ducts, 17-inch alloys, LED headlights and an interior with leather trim and striped seats. Even if we don't know what's under the hood, it all looks pretty convincing, and makes us wish Hyundai would offer it Stateside as part of the Accent family with which it shares its underpinnings.

Consumer Reports no longer recommends Honda Civic

Consumer Reports annual Car Reliability Survey is out, and yes, there are some big surprises. First and foremost? The venerable publication no longer recommends the Honda Civic. In fact, aside from the walking-dead CR-Z and limited-release Clarity fuel-cell car, the Civic is the only Honda to miss out on CR's prestigious nod. At the opposite end there's a surprise as well – Toyota and Lexus remain the most reliable brands on the market, but Buick cracked the top three. That's up from seventh last year, and the first time for an American brand to stand on the Consumer Reports podium. Mazda's entire lineup earned Recommended checks as well. Consumer Reports dinged the Civic for its "infuriating" touch-screen radio, lack of driver lumbar adjustability, the limited selection of cars on dealer lots fitted with Honda's popular Sensing system, and the company's decision to offer LaneWatch instead of a full-tilt blind-spot monitoring system. Its score? A lowly 58. The Civic isn't the only surprise drop from CR's Recommended ranks. The Audi A3, Ford F-150, Subaru WRX/STI, and Volkswagen Jetta, GTI, and Passat all lost the Consumer Reports' checkmark. On the flipside, a number of popular vehicles graduated to the Recommended ranks, including the BMW X5, Chevrolet Camaro, Corvette, and Cruze, Hyundai Santa Fe, Porsche Macan, and Tesla Model S. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the hilariously recall-prone Ford Escape getting a Recommended check – considering the popularity of Ford's small crossover, this is likely a coup for the brand, as it puts the Escape on a level playing field with the Recommended Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, and Nissan Rogue. While Ford is probably happy to see CR promote the Escape, the list wasn't as kind for every brand. For example, of the entire Fiat Chrysler Automobiles catalog, the ancient Chrysler 300 was the only car to score a check – there wasn't a single Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Maserati, or Ram on the list. That hurts. FCA isn't alone at the low end, either. GMC, Jaguar Land Rover, Mini, and Mitsubishi don't have a vehicle on CR's list between them, while brands like Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Nissan, Lincoln, Infiniti, and Cadillac only have a few models each. You can check out Consumer Reports entire reliability roundup, even without a subscription, here.

New Genesis G80 costs $2,650 more than its predecessor

If you're in the market for a Hyundai Genesis, you'd best act fast. The Korean company's new luxury sub-brand, Genesis, just announced pricing for the rebadged G80, kicking the starting figure up across the board while adding a suite of desirable safety and tech features. The base model, with a 3.8-liter V6 and rear-wheel drive, starts at $41,400. All-wheel drive adds $2,500 to that figure, while both V6 models add $2,650 to the price of a Hyundai-badged Genesis sedan. Hyundai justifies the increase with a slew of now-standard equipment from the current car's discontinued Tech Package, including automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring with cross-traffic alert, lane keeping assist, lane departure warning, high-beam assist, and adaptive cruise control. Considering the Tech Package tallied $3,500, this is a net win. You can improve your six-cylinder G80 with a pair of packages. A $4,750 Premium Package adds fog lights, a panoramic sunroof, a 14-speaker Lexicon stereo, a seven-inch color instrument display, vented front seats, and a power sunscreen for the rear window. Genesis essentially carried over the current $3,500 Ultimate Package, which now costs $4,200. It includes matte wood, full-color HUD, 9.2-inch touchscreen infotainment, a 17-speaker Lexicon stereo, and a power trunk lid, along with an upgraded power driver's seat, which used to be part of the Tech Pack. If you're hankering for the V8 model – no longer listed on the Hyundai USA consumer page – you're looking at a $650 bump, from $53,850 to $54,550. There are no option packs for the V8, so all you need to do is pick a color and drive away. Not surprisingly, the G80 undercuts its rivals by a few dollars. BMW will happily sell you a base 5 Series for $51,195. Mercedes offers an E-Class, the E300, at $53,075. Audi and Lexus are slightly more down to earth – an Audi A6 is $47,125 while a base GS is $46,595. So, going with the V6 G80 against its all-four-cylinder-turbo competition will save you, on average, around $8,100. That makes the $8,950 in option packs look awfully attractive. The difference between the G80 V8 and its rivals is smaller, but still significantly stacked in Genesis' favor, mainly because only BMW still offers a V8 in this segment – it's $67,295 ($12,745 more than a base G80 V8). Pricing on the US market 2017 E-Class is only available for the 2.0-liter, turbocharged E300, while neither Lexus nor Audi sell a V8 outside their respective high-performance brands.