Kia: Optima Sx on 2040-cars

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LeBron James ad claims $10M fan bet proving he drives K900

As one of the nation's most famous and top paid professional athletes, LeBron James' Kia K900 sponsorship has always left us suspicious to its sincerity. The basketball player could buy any other vehicle in the world but claimed to be a fan of Kia's rear-wheel drive sedan even before he signed up as the brand's pitchman. While no weirder than many other NBA auto ads, the idea is still hard to believe. The company now wants to challenge the cynics with a three-commercial campaign called The Truth that stars King James responding to actual tweets about him driving the K900. The first commercial titled Ten Mil (above) starts with James checking Twitter and finding a skeptic that bets $10 million that the player doesn't drive the K900 to games. Since that's not the case, James confirms that a wager on social media is a binding contract and hops in the Kia with an armored car following him to go pick up the cash. However, the spot misses the mark slightly because we still only have James' word that he really takes the Kia to games Once the spots start airing, you can bet Cleveland fans start keeping an eye on how the player arrives to Quicken Loans Arena. It better be in the K900 for this campaign to work. LEBRON JAMES TELLS "THE TRUTH" ABOUT DRIVING HIS KIA K900 LUXURY SEDAN 11-Time NBA All-Star Responds To Real Tweets in New Ad Campaign First of three spots from "The Truth" campaign will begin airing on TV tonight and can be viewed at Kia.com and YouTube.com/Kia Multiplatform campaign will run through the remainder of basketball season and includes television, digital and social media elements IRVINE, Calif., December 3, 2015 – Last year, when LeBron James Tweeted "Rolling around in my K900. Love this car!!" and later stated he was a K900 driver before becoming Kia Motors' luxury ambassador, naysayers took to social media to question the validity of his claims. Now, with sales of Kia's rear-drive luxury sedan up considerably over 2014 levels, the 11-time NBA All-Star and avid car collector is tackling that skepticism head-on to prove the K900 is in fact "Fit For A King" in a new ad campaign from Kia Motors America (KMA).

Cars most likely to be involved in accidents

Data from Insurify shows which models have the most accident-prone drivers behind the wheel. It also shows the proportion of the drivers of said vehicles with an at-fault accident on record in the past seven years, based on Insurify’s analysis of over 4 million car insurance applications. For reference, the national average is 10.78%, and each of these vehiclesÂ’ drivers represent a statistically significant increase over that. Now, it would be easy to infer that these cars are dangerous, but such is not necessarily the case. Remember, drivers cause accidents, not cars. These just happen to be the cars that accident-prone drivers drive. YouÂ’ll notice that many are mainstream, affordable cars, often with decent crash ratings. Also keep in mind that vehicle accidents are up since the beginning of the pandemic, so no matter what you drive, please drive safely. 10. Hyundai Ioniq This affordable, electrified vehicle platform sneaks into this list with 14.45% of drivers with a recent at-fault accident on record. 9. Lexus CT Another hybrid, this Prius-powered Lexus beats the national average at 14.57%. 8. Toyota Prius V Yet another hybrid, the larger but discontinued member of the Prius family sees 14.72% of its drivers with recent accidents. 7. Mazda CX-3 The Mazda CX-3, which is discontinued for the 2022 model year, sees the accident-prone making up 14.9% of its drivers. 6. Infiniti Q60 The second and final luxury car on this list has more accident-prone drivers than average, at 14.93%. 5. Subaru Impreza The first of two Subarus on this list has 15.1% of drivers with recent accidents on record. 4. Hyundai Genesis Coupe The Genesis Coupe was only on the market for a brief span before it was discontinued and Genesis spun off into its own luxury brand. That said, it too beats the national average for accidents, at 15.29%. 3. Subaru WRX Despite its standard all-wheel drive, the boy-racer WRX has 15.44% of drivers with a prior accident in the last seven years. 2. Kia Stinger We love the Kia Stinger, and had great luck with our long-termer that graced the Autoblog garage for a year. That said, 15.75% of its drivers represent have a recent accident on record. 1. Scion FR-S This fun two-seater attracts the most accident prone drivers, with 15.87% with recent at-fault crashes. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Average new-vehicle transaction price hits a whopping new peak in December

Elevated prices for products and higher borrowing rates led to record high transaction prices for new vehicles in December, with the average cost in the U.S. rising to a record $49,507, according to data from Kelley Blue Book released today. The report notes that ATPs — average transaction prices — have climbed above suggested retail prices — MSRPs — for more than a year. Sales volumes were up in December on a year-over-year basis by more than 5%, a situation Kelley attributed to improved supply. Overall sales for 2022, however, were off 8% year over year. “The transaction data from December clearly indicates overall prices showed no signs of coming down as we headed into year-end,” said Rebecca Rydzewski, research manager of economic and industry insights for Cox Automotive. “Luxury prices fell slightly in December, but non-luxury transaction prices were up. Truck sales were particularly strong last month, and with many trucks selling for more than $60,000, a new record was all but inevitable.” Industry analysts claim the most obvious headwinds in the new car market are generated by higher interest rates, forced by the Federal Reserve's rate hikes intended to tame inflation, and by generally limited inventory. A recent report from J.D. Power showed that the average monthly payment for a new vehicle loan in December was $718, up $47 from a year ago. But 16% of consumers in December took out loans with monthly payments of over $1,000. Consumers think vehicles, and electric vehicles especially, are way too expensive. Fortunately, manufacturersÂ’ incentives, all but extinct in the past two years, are returning, especially in the electric-vehicle and luxury market, the Kelley data suggest. Plus, "With the new tax credits on the way, electric vehicle ATPs will drop lower for qualifying vehicles,” Rydzewski said. Non-luxury brands, such as Honda and Kia, showed particularly strong performance in December, with the average price paid at $45,578 — a record high and an increase of $994 month over month. Meanwhile, the average luxury buyer paid $66,660 for a new vehicle last month. Mercedes-Benz and Land Rover showed the most price strength in the luxury market, transacting between 2.6% to 6.5% over sticker price. But luxury brands Audi, BMW, Infiniti, Lexus, Lincoln, and Volvo showed the least price strength with some discounting in effect, selling 1% or more below MSRP in December, according to the survey.