2014 Kia Sorento Lx on 2040-cars

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Minivan market not what it used to be, but margins make up for it

Residual values for last year's minivans are higher than they were in 2000.
Much like the station wagon was the shuttle of Baby Boomer generation, the minivan has been the primary means of transport for Generations X and Y. Just as the boomers abandoned the Country Squire, though, those kids that were toted around in Grand Caravans and Windstars are adults, and they certainly don't want to be seen in the cars their parents drove.

2014 Kia Soul totally redesigned, now bigger and more refined

The 2014 Kia Soul has been unveiled at the 2013 New York Auto Show, and the all-new five-door box-on-wheels offers up nearly an extra inch of wheelbase and a track that's wider by .6 inches. The changes offer up a bit more space indoors, and since overall height has remained the same, the Soul now looks a bit less top heavy than before. A wider rear hatch opening also makes loading and unloading cargo easier. Indoors, the 2014 Soul offers a substantially revised cabin with more soft-touch materials, and leather seats are now on the option sheet. Designers borrowed inspiration from the Kia Track'ster Concept indoors, using organic lines throughout.
An available eight-inch touch screen takes care of infotainment duties on the center stack, and now features the ability to scroll through content by flicking a finger, just like a smartphone, instead of paging through multiple screens. Buyers can also fit their 2014 Soul with a larger TFT LCD color screen in the instrument cluster, which now displays turn-by-turn directions on vehicles equipped with navigation.
Engineers managed to create a chassis that's also 29-percent stiffer, with 66 percent of the shell using ultra-high-strength steel for safety and rigidity. Under the hood, base models bow with a 1.6-liter direct-injection four-cylinder engine with 130 horsepower and 118 pound-feet of torque, while Plus and Exclaim trims get a more potent direct-injection 2.0-liter four-cylinder. That engine develops 164 hp and 151 lb-ft of torque, and both mills can be bolted to either a six-speed manual or automatic depending on trim. Check out the full press release below for more information.

Driverless cars from Kia hit the road in Nevada

Drivers in Nevada might soon spot a Kia Soul EV that pilots itself because the South Korean brand is the latest automaker to get authorization from the state to test autonomous vehicles on public roads. Kia's development of driverless tech is part of the company's $2 billion investment with Hyundai through 2018 to help bring some of these systems to production models. Rather than handing complete control to the computers immediately, Kia first plans to introduce partially driverless features on models by 2020. Its engineers intend to test technology like Traffic Jam Assist, Highway Autonomous Driving, Urban Autonomous Driving, an Emergency Stop System, and Autonomous Valet Parking on Nevada's roads. Kia doesn't foresee a fully piloted model on sale until 2030 and believes innovations in vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications are necessary to make that possible. Nevada has been a vital site for autonomous technology development since the state passed a law to allow testing on public roads. Google was among the earliest to get a permit, and Audi also quickly jumped on board. Freightliner was first to expand the authorization to commercial vehicles with its license for the Inspiration semi truck earlier this year. We're sure more will follow in short order. Related Video: Kia Motors granted Nevada autonomous driving license - US state of Nevada grants Korean manufacturer permission to test autonomous driving technologies on public roads - Soul EV's Advanced Driver Assistance Systems tested in Beatty, Nevada - US$2 billion investment by 2018 to develop autonomous vehicle technology - Kia to introduce partially-autonomous driving technologies by 2020, with arrival of fully-autonomous vehicles targeted for 2030 (SEOUL) December 14, 2015 – Kia Motors has been granted a licence by the US state of Nevada to carry out testing of its autonomous driving technologies on public roads for the first time. Kia – together with sister company Hyundai – hopes to experiment with partially- and fully- autonomous driving technologies in real-world conditions, an important part of its roadmap for autonomous driving. Kia plans to introduce a range of partially-autonomous driving technologies to its model line- up including eco-friendly vehicles by 2020, and is aiming to bring its first fully-autonomous car to market by 2030.