2005 Mazda 6 S Sedan 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2017 North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year finalists revealed

The finalists for the 2017 North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year were announced Tuesday at AutoMobility LA ahead of the 2016 LA Auto Show. Approximately 60 judges, including Autoblog's editor-in-chief Mike Austin, evaluated over 40 vehicles and named three models as the finalists in each category. The award for the Utility Vehicle of the Year is new for 2017 and separates SUVs, crossovers, and minivans from pickup trucks. The finalists are: Car of the Year: Chevrolet Bolt Genesis G90 Volvo S90 Truck of the Year: Ford F-Series Super Duty Honda Ridgeline Nissan Titan Utility Vehicle of the Year Chrysler Pacifica Jaguar F-Pace Mazda CX-9 The winners for the 24th annual NACTOY awards will be named on January 9 at the Detroit Auto Show. Related Video: Chevrolet Chrysler Ford Honda Jaguar Mazda Nissan Truck Crossover Minivan/Van SUV Electric Luxury Sedan north american car of the year NACTOY

Recharge Wrap-up: 61 miles on Autopilot; Mazda CX-9's 32% mpg improvement

A technology analyst at The Motley Fool used Tesla's Autopilot uninterrupted for 61 miles. In order to see how far the Tesla Model S could drive itself without driver intervention, Daniel Sparks set off on the highway from Monument, Colorado, through Colorado Springs and onward toward Pueblo. Only when a truck encroached on his lane did the driver take command of the wheel, rather than waiting to see what the car would do. "With [the] Model S nearly out of Pueblo and onto a long, boring stretch of highway by the time I had to grab the wheel, chances are I could have made it all the way to Colorado City if it wasn't for this interruption," says Sparks. Read the full account at The Motley Fool. The 2016 Mazda CX-9 offers 32 percent better fuel economy than the outgoing model. The front-wheel-drive CX-9, equipped with Mazda's Skyactiv-G 2.5T engine, gets an EPA-estimated 22 mpg city/28 mpg highway/25 mpg combined. The 2016 CX-9 has shed significant weight compared to its predecessor. Its turbocharged engine uses a Dynamic Pressure Turbo system, which improves performance at lower rpm by controlling the degree of exhaust pulsation according to engine speed. The new CX-9 goes on sale this spring. Read more at Green Car Congress. A group of eight US cities have formed the Energy Secure Cities Coalition (ESCC), pledging to switch their fleets over to alternative fuels. Atlanta, Charlotte, Indianapolis, Orlando, Rochester, Sacramento, San Diego and West Palm Beach will retire their petroleum-powered vehicles in favor of EVs and cars using cleaner fuels like natural gas. The cities expect the change to help improve air quality and save taxpayer money on fuel and maintenance costs. The ESCC hopes to grow to include 25 major cities, removing some 50,000 petroleum-fueled vehicles from service and saving 500,000 barrels of oil per year. Read more in the press release below. Eight Major Cities Unite to form Energy Secure Cities Coalition—Fleets Embracing Alternative Fuels to Improve America's National and Economic Security Coalition's goal is to retire 50,000 petroleum-powered vehicles, saving tens of millions in taxpayer dollars and improving U.S. national and economic security. Washington, D.C.

2014 Mazda3

Almost by definition, affordable compact cars aren't supposed to be fun. Sure, hot hatches get our blood pumping, but not long ago, the terms "compact car" and "economy car" could safely be used interchangeably. A key exception for the last decade has been the Mazda3, a car that has consistently delivered more dynamic thrills and tactile feedback than its contemporaries. Competitors have picked up their game significantly in recent years, however, leaving the Mazda3 wanting in several areas, including overall refinement, in-car technology and cabin appointments, so Mazda went back to the drawing board to create this all-new third-gen model for 2014.
Including this redesigned 2014 model, Mazda's recent crop of new products have targeted North America's hottest non-truck segments - compact car, midsize sedan and compact crossover/SUV. Yet it might be fair to call this launch the most important of them all, as the 3 remains the Japanese marque's best-selling vehicle. While America's pool of compact hatchbacks isn't exactly deep, the 2014 Mazda3 still has a challenging road ahead of it competing against two-box compacts that include the popular Ford Focus and recent additions like the all-new Kia Forte and the still-new Hyundai Elantra GT.