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Five vehicles named Top Safety Pick+ including new Civic, MKZ

In an attempt to help push vehicle safety to a higher level, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety created a stricter Top Safety Pick+ rating last year, which incorporates a brutal small overlap test and requires cars to get Good ratings in four out of the five categories (and no less than Acceptable in the fifth). Joining the list of the safest cars of 2013, the 2013 Volvo XC60, Lincoln MKZ, Honda Civic (sedan and coupe) and the 2014 Mazda6 have all received the coveted TSP+ rating.
The Mazda6 and Lincoln MKZ have both been completely redesigned, and both received Acceptable ratings in the small overlap test. The Honda Civic, coming off its emergency refresh for 2013, is the first small car to be subjected to the small overlap test, and IIHS says that one of the car's many upgrades includes a stiffer front structure allowing it to receive Good ratings in all categories. Similarly, the XC60 gets all Good ratings thanks to, according to IIHS, Volvo updating the airbag software allowing the side airbags to inflate during the small overlap test.
The 2014 Subaru Forester has not yet been subjected to the small overlap test, so it must make do with just a Top Safety Pick rating until the IIHS tests small utility vehicles, which is expected to happen later in the spring.

2014 Mazda3 2.0L Hatchback officially rated at 40 mpg highway

The Environmental Protection Agency has spoken, and these are the miles per gallon numbers it has officially bestowed on the 2014 five-door Mazda3 hatchback with the SkyActiv-G 2.0-liter engine: 29 city, 40 highway, 33 combined when fitted with the six-speed manual; 30 city, 40 highway and 33 combined when equipped with the six-speed automatic.
Those numbers exactly match the fuel economy targets that Mazda had set for the car when optioned with the 2.0-liter Skyactiv-G with 155 horsepower and 150 pound-feet of torque. For comparison to other cars in the segment, the EPA numbers for the 2013 Honda Civic sedan are 28 city, 39 highway, 32 combined when its 140-hp, 1.8-liter four-cylinder is paired with the five-speed automatic. The Hyundai Elantra GT gets 27 city, 37 highway and 30 combined according to the EPA when its 148-hp, 1.8-liter four-cylinder is paired with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission. The numbers for the 2014 Ford Focus aren't out yet.

Mazda's awesome Hiroshima museum now navigable by Google Maps

Visiting an auto museum is one of the best ways we know to connect with car culture and to commune with the past and bone up on one's knowledge. Most of us have a decent museum within a few hours drive of where we live, but that doesn't mean it's easy to see the world's great collections - factors like cost, time and mobility can get in the way. Videos are great, but they don't allow us to browse at our own pace or choose what we'd like to focus on. The folks behind Google Maps have a solution - the virtual museum tour, as seen here at Mazda's fantastic museum in Hiroshima, Japan.
The Google Maps tour allows viewers to take a walk through the main exhibition area of the museum, and you can focus on specific classic cars from Mazda, or check out displays featuring new technologies like Skyactiv. To take a quick spin through the museum - or a leisurely stroll at your own pace - scroll down to start your own virtual tour.