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Junkyard Gem: 1991 Ford Festiva with 317K miles

Most cars that make it to astoundingly high mileage figures tend to fall into one of two categories: engineering masterpieces that ended up being hard to kill (and got a lifetime of at least the most important maintenance items) or machines that inspired unquestioning love from owners willing to keep opening their wallets for decades to keep them on the road. Today's Junkyard Gem falls into neither of those groups; it's a penny-pinching Ford Festiva, one of the cheapest cars available in its time … and yet it cracked the magical 300,000-mile mark before getting discarded. So, a total of 317,207.3 miles over its nearly 30 years on the road. We just saw a discarded 1989 Honda Civic with a mere 308,895 miles on the clock, and this Festiva comes close to topping this 1993 Honda Civic DX. The highest-mileage junkyard car I've ever found (keep in mind that most cars before the middle 1980s had 5-digit odometers, and most cars this century have unreadable-in-the-boneyard electronic odometers) is this 1987 Mercedes-Benz 190E with an amazing 601,173 miles. This Mercedes-Benz 300D came close, with 535,971 miles. Detroit went to six-digit odometers late in the game, but this 1986 Olds Calais reached 363,033 miles, and this Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor reached the 412,013-mile figure thanks to a second career as a taxi. A Festiva surpassing the 300k mark, though, is not something I ever expected to see. These cars were sold as cheap, no-frills transportation, period. The MSRP on a base-level Festiva started at $6,620 in 1991, or about $12,610 in 2020 bucks. Not many cars could squeeze under that price at that time; the Subaru Justy could be purchased for $5,995, the Hyundai Excel 3-door hatch cost $6,275, and the Yugo GV (yes, it could still be obtained new as late as 1991) had a hilarious $4,435 price tag. Even the lowly Geo Metro, Pontiac LeMans, and Toyota Tercel EZ cost more than this Festiva. Still, this car came with snazzy pinstripes, now faded to near-invisibility by the Colorado sun. You can see the cover plate in the spot where the air-conditioning button would have gone, had the original buyer of this car been willing to squander precious dollars on such frivolity. Five-speed manual transmission, naturally. You could get an automatic in the Festiva, but anyone willing to spend that kind of money on extras would have been able to afford a much nicer Tercel EZ.

Next-generation Kia Soul spied with old box shape, new split headlights

The current Kia Soul has been around since the 2014 model year, and Kia has kept the little box fresh with the introductions of electric and turbocharged variants, the latter of which appeared for the 2017 model year. But based on these spy shots, Kia is preparing a more thorough redesign of the hatchback/quasi-crossover. Though Kia has covered the front and rear of the new Soul carefully, the middle section gives it away as the favored transportation of anthropomorphic hamsters. Also, while there are indications there will be significant design changes, the basic formula won't change. It will still have a really thick D-pillar, darkened A-pillar and a roof that gets thinner toward the front. The roof itself also looks a bit taller, although perhaps its just the rear windows that have gotten smaller. It appears the front fascia and windshield will also retain a similar amount of rake to the current models to prevent it from looking overly boxy. The front end, as camouflaged as it is, also reveals a major lighting change. Instead of the very large headlamps of the last two generations, the forward lighting will be split in two, and the primary illumination looks to be coming from the lower elements. This design follows in the footsteps of Hyundai's Kona and upcoming Santa Fe, as well as the Nissan Juke and previous Jeep Cherokee. The upper elements also look as though they sit lower in the fascia than on past models, perhaps to give the new Soul a more aggressive look. The back is also thoroughly covered up, but we can tell that the high-mounted taillights in the D-pillars will continue. It also looks like they wrap around the bottom of the rear glass this time. This is the first time we've seen the new Soul, and Kia hasn't said much about its plans for the car. We expect that it will continue to offer at least one naturally aspirated engine, if not two as it does currently, and a peppier turbo model. We would also suspect that all-wheel drive will be on the table to better compete with sub-compact SUVs like the Jeep Renegade and Honda HR-V, which have virtually the same body style as the tall, boxy Soul. Many already consider them rivals and Kia has even hinted at the possibility with its Trail'ster concept. We'll be keeping an ear to the ground, and an eye on the rear ends of Souls, to learn more in the future. Related Video: Featured Gallery Kia Soul spy shots View 11 Photos Image Credit: Brian Williams Spy Photos Kia Crossover Hatchback Economy Cars

Did Lexus make a BMW? Or did BMW make a Lexus? This and other 2017 surprises

It's that time of year again. The calendar is about to reach its end, Star Trek Cats 2018 is about to take its place, and I'm reflecting about all the cars that graced my driveway this year or summoned me to exotic places. You know, like Stuttgart or Phoenix. In 2017, I drove at least 57, and as I perused the list of them, I started to notice a common refrain: "This car surprised me." Most were pleasant surprises, but there were a few head scratchers and facepalms for good measure. In both cases, it was generally the result of car companies seemingly trying to break out of an existing mold. Nowhere was that more apparent than the pair of Lexuses slathered in Infrared paint: The LS 500 that left me this week and the LC 500 that was my favorite car of 2017. Though Lexus has been trying to shake its crusty, gold-packaged reputation for some time now, its efforts always seemed like an old man choosing Hollister to redo his wardrobe after realizing it hasn't been updated since 1987. I fell in love with the LC, genuinely floored by its near-perfect take on the GT. It's characterful in sound, appearance and tactility. It was at home in the city, in the mountain and on the open road. It was both comfortable and thrilling, and after driving the mechanically related LS 500, I can report that the LC's talents aren't an outlier. The LS 500's turbo V6 may make different noises than the LC's naturally aspirated V8, but it nevertheless invigorates the cabin when the car is placed in Sport+ mode. The steering is truly communicative, body motions are kept in miraculous check, and I absolutely forgot I was in an enormous luxury limo ... and a Lexus one at that. It was everything that the BMW 530e was not. I drove that on the exact same roads and was utterly bored the entire time. Generally doughy, lifeless steering, more distant than Planet 9. And no, the plug-in hybrid powertrain had nothing to do with that. At least it shouldn't. The Porsche Panamera S e-Hybrid I also drove this year proves that, as do the Hyundai Ioniqs, which are surprisingly adept and fun little cars regardless of what powers their wheels (Hyundai + hybrid = fun really blew me away). I would drive that Lexus LS F Sport over the BMW 5 Series any day of the week, which seems like a shocking thing to say in relation to either car. While Lexus is seemingly breaking out of its old crusty mold, BMW seems to be climbing into one.