Hatchbacks

The Nissan Versa is one of the largest "subcompacts" on the market. For 2014, a new hatchback model called the Versa Note joins the all-new sedan launched last year. We spent several hundred miles with a prototype 2014 Versa Note over three days of this past weekend, and came away relatively...

The 2014 Chevrolet Volt electric car will carry a base price of $34,995, a cut of $5,000 from the 2013 model. That price includes an $810 destination fee, but not any optional equipment. Chevrolet has "made great strides in reducing costs as we gain experience with electric vehicles and their...

The Honda Fit today is the oldest subcompact sold in the U.S., but there's an all-new one on the way. Now Honda has released the first official photos of the entirely redesigned Fit for the Japanese market, though only so far in the form of the Fit Hybrid model not sold in the U.S. The images show...

The Chevrolet Sonic subcompact was an impressive offering when we tested both a 1.8-liter LT hatchback and a 1.4-liter LTZ sedan almost two years ago. Now, with the advent of the 2013 Chevy Sonic RS sports model, we had a chance to revisit the car--and we remain impressed. The RS version uses the...

Mazda launched its all-new 2014 Mazda 3 compact hatchback today at coordinated events in New York, Melbourne, Istanbul, St. Petersburg, and London. The new Mazda 3 lineup, which will include a four-door sedan version as well when it goes on sale this September, is the second model designed around...

I've now had my 2013 Tesla Model S for six weeks since it was delivered in late February, and I'm getting used to living with it. I've recharged at the Supercharger network, measured its vampire current usage at night, tested the impact of speed on range, and even experienced my first software...

Last month, we told you a little about Ford’s first Overboosted EcoBoost engine, designed to make the 2013 Ford Focus ST mean and green. At that time, the $24,495 sports hatch hadn’t received its official EPA ratings, but yesterday Ford was able to announce them to the automotive world...

By carefully controlling the launch of the 2012 Ford Focus Electric, Ford is trying to appease buyers who want an electric car, while satisfying accountants who are hesitant to invest heavily in the launch.

Normally, when an automaker brings a new car to the market, it invites automotive journalists to get behind the wheel to put the car through its paces and render their professional opinion on how the car drives, feels and performs. But as part of the launch of the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic, Chevrolet is...

The 2013 European Honda Civic Hatchback was unveiled earlier this week at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show. Sleeker, more aggressive and more practical, it showcases Honda’s ninth revision of this gas-sipping compact. Sadly, just like its predecessor, the 2006-2011 Honda Civic hatchback...

The 2011 Lexus CT 200h pretty much occupies a class of one. At the moment, it’s the sole luxury compact hybrid hatchback sold in the U.S. And it’s a dedicated hybrid, meaning there’s no gasoline-only version. If you want the compact hatch, you get the hybrid. It’s also terra...

The 2011 Toyota Prius hybrid gets the best gas mileage rating of any car for sale in the U.S. market today. It's rated at 51 mpg city, 48 mpg highway, for a combined rating of 50 mpg--and that's a number no other car can match. At least, no other car that doesn't plug into the wall for some (2011...

We tend to get a lot of "What car should we buy?" questions at GreenCarReports, and we'll usually respond with a list of questions to narrow down the choices. Recently, though, our high-school friend Sarah Sette in Baltimore sent the following note: We are car shopping, seriously this time. The...

Hyundai is on a roll, hammering its 40-mpg highway gas mileage advantage and launching new cars left and right. We covered the new 2012 Hyundai Accent a few days ago when it was launched at last week's New York Auto Show--focusing on its 1.6-liter direct-injected four-cylinder engine, which is...

Mitsubishi is currently working on a new global small car positioned below its Colt hatchback and scheduled to enter production at a newly erected plant in Thailand in March of 2012. We first heard about the project late last year but at this week’s 2011 Geneva Motor Show the Japanese...

If you listen to conventional wisdom coming out of Detroit, you'd think that every single U.S. car buyer secretly wants a Suburban. Call it the bigger-longer-badder-better principle: Everyone wants the largest car they can afford. Often that's true. But not always. Sometimes people want the most...

It's always important for writers to check their cultural biases when analyzing the auto market. Or at least admit them up front. So we appreciate our colleague Scott Burgess being honest about his point of view: He doesn't like subcompacts. Nope. Doesn't have any time for 'em. Animus up front In...

The term "hatchback" has long been considered poison in Detroit, an indicator of a slow, cheap, tinny, undesirable econobox. (And when's the last time you heard "econobox," for that matter?) No one wants 'em, says the conventional wisdom. But conventional wisdom may be getting knocked upside the...

The eagerly awaited 2011 Ford Fiesta subcompact has had more than its share of challenges, but Ford wants you to know it has resumed shipping the little sedan and hatchback models. New ones should be showing up at your dealer within days. The latest issue was a problem in an unidentified part that...