2008 Kia Amanti / Moonroof / Clean / Leather / Alloys on 2040-cars

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2015 Kia Soul EV production model glimpsed before Chicago

A few days before its on-stage reveal at the Chicago Auto Show, the production version of the 2015 Kia Soul EV has been spotted, tagged and bagged in this series of spy shots. On the EV captured by our photographer's lens, we can see unusual baby blue accents on top, on the mirrors and up front, as well as a closed-off "Tiger Nose" that is both taller and larger than the grille on the standard Soul. The special "Eco Electric" badge on the sides is useful for identifying the car in the picture, but we can't imagine it'll make the transition to showroom floor (at least, we hope). The Soul EV's rear side is different, too, with the bottom lights moved lower and the design of the main taillights tweaked a bit (compare our spy shots gallery to the standard model here). The wheels get a fresh five-spoke design as well. What lies under the new exterior? Some things we already know. The Soul is supposed to have a "class-leading" range of over 120 miles on a charge thanks to a 27-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion polymer battery pack. The electric motor offers 109 horsepower and 210 pound-feet of torque to create a 0-62 mile per hour time of under 12 seconds and a top speed of around 90 mph. What we can't see in these shots is a window sticker, but from what we've heard before, the Soul EV, "won't be priced to stimulate demand." Early predictions put the price at $35,000-$40,000 US – before government incentives – when the car launches in the US in the second half of this year. The gas-powered Soul starts at $14,400. We should learn more in Chicago later this week.

South Korea firms up fuel economy regs following Hyundai/Kia debacle

According to a report from Reuters, South Korea's government has drafted strict new rules for automakers to follow when calculating fuel economy. The legislation comes after a major snafu by Hyundai and Kia that resulted in the automakers lowering the estimated fuel mileage of many popular models - some by several miles per gallon, including the Soul subcompact above - and compensating owners in the US and Canada for the reduction.
The new fuel economy rules were announced by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy in South Korea and will see average mileage ratings drop by roughly three to five percent, according to the report. In addition, manufacturers found guilty of overstating mileage figures will be liable for fines of up to $900,000.
These sweeping new regulations will go into effect in the second half of 2013 and, while they won't have any effect on EPA estimates for Hyundai and Kia vehicles in the United States, they are expected to result in new ratings for the two automakers in their home market of South Korea, where they enjoy a whopping 70-percent market share.

Autoblog fan favorite car ads from Super Bowl XLIX

Super Bowl XLIX is in the books, and the New England Patriots emerged victorious. Of course, if you're like us, the big game wasn't so much about the battle between the east coast and west, so much as a fight between the world's automotive advertisers. We collected and collated all of last night's new ads and put them together for you to vote on. And yes, we're limiting this year's contest to last night's new features. That's why you aren't seeing Dodge's epic Wisdom among our collection of commercials, and it's a similar story with Chevrolet's Truck Guy Focus Group series, which highlights the new Colorado. You can still vote for your favorites. We won't be closing the voting on our Super Bowl page, so while the winners and losers are correct as of this writing, it's entirely possible that there could be some changes in the rankings as time goes on. So, without any further ado, here are the winning ads based on your voting. Nissan: With Dad Fiat: Ready For Action Jeep: Beautiful Lands BMW: Newfangled Idea Mercedes-Benz: Fable NASCAR: America Start Your Engines As for those ads that failed to impact you, loyal readers, Toyota was the absolute, undisputed loser. The Japanese brand ran four ads in total – two for Toyota and two for Lexus – and all of them have negative tallies as of this writing. Lexus' Make Some Noise and Lets Play and Toyota's One Bold Choice and My Bold Dad both had very weak showings among the commercials that aired, although they weren't alone. Neither Mazda nor Kia scored particularly well, despite featuring celebrity magic act Penn and Teller and former James Bond, Pierce Brosnan, respectively. Chevrolet was the winner of the losers, as of our writing, recording the fewest downvotes for its audience-punking The Big Game ad. If you want to take a second look at the losing ads, you can head back to our Super Bowl page for the complete collection. But for now, head into Comments and let us know what you think of the results.