Hatchbacks

  • 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric

    Market adjustments are nothing new, and electric cars are hardly immune to price bumps—up or down. Last month, the 258-mile 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric crossover quietly became $500 dearer to interested EV shoppers without any equipment changes. The automaker hiked the starting price for a 2019 Kona Electric SEL to $37,995, up from $37,495, including $1,045 mandatory destination charges. The increase was effective March 27, according to documents from the automaker, however the Hyundai consumer site doesn't yet reflect the new starting price. Our colleagues at CarsDirect reported on...

  • 2019 Nissan Leaf
    226-mile 2019 Nissan Leaf Plus costs $37,445 to start

    When it arrives in dealers this month, the longer-range 2019 Nissan Leaf S Plus will cost $37,445, including destination, the automaker said Friday. That's in line with what we expected from documents leaked earlier this year, and drives the net price of the compact hatchback close to $30,000, if...

  • 2018 Subaru Crosstrek first drive
    New Subaru Crosstrek plug-in hybrid coming for 2019

    Subaru announced Friday that its long-awaited Crosstrek Hybrid, a plug-in model, will go on sale as a 2019. Last month, Car and Driver reported that Subaru filed the trademark name Evoltis with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office, leading to speculation that the name could be applied to the...

  • 2018 Chevrolet Impala
    More sedan, smaller, entry models bite the dust in Detroit

    Two years ago this month, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles essentially threw in the towel on the "automobiles" part of its name. Canceling the compact Dodge Dart and the mid-size Chrysler 200 sedans, the company doubled down on the pickup trucks and utility vehicles that had long been its profit centers...

  • 2017 Toyota Prius Prime Premium
    2019 Toyota Prius will be restyled to look more like Prime: report

    Global sales of compact hatchbacks are hardly surging, and fuel economy for all types of vehicles is steadily improving. Even given those factors, though, the fourth-generation Toyota Prius hybrid has had an especially rough road since its launch as a 2016 model. At just 108,661 deliveries across...

  • WaiveCar Hyundai Ioniq Electric
    2018 Hyundai Ioniq Electric "Unlimited" subscription more limited this year

    While global demand for the Hyundai Ioniq Electric appears to be strong, supplies have remained limited. The battery-electric compact hatchback, rated at 124 miles of range by the EPA, forgoes the "weird styling" of contenders like the previous Nissan Leaf. In the U.S., however, the all-electric...

  • 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric

    After a Detroit auto show that was about little except pickup trucks and a new Jeep, followed by a tepid Chicago show, New York proved to be relatively rich in interesting new green cars. The standout was clearly the 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric, the 250-mile battery-electric small hatchback that will go on sale before the end of the year. While it hasn't been priced yet, it's the first mass-market competitor that actually beats the 238-mile, $37,500 Chevrolet Bolt EV on range. DON'T MISS: 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric US debut: 250 miles of range from small electric car Hyundai-Kia has always...

  • 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric
    Kona Electric, Bolt EV, Niro, C-HR aren't crossovers, despite what makers say

    It happened again. At this week's New York auto show media days, a manufacturer rolled out yet another vehicle that it calls a "crossover" despite that vehicle having neither the ground clearance nor the all-wheel drive to qualify as a light truck. The car in question was the 2019 Hyundai Kona...

  • 2019 Toyota Corolla hatchback, 2018 New York auto show
    2019 Toyota Corolla Hatchback returns at NY Auto Show

    The Toyota Corolla is the world's highest-selling nameplate, having surpassed the Ford Model T and Volkswagen Beetle years ago. It exists in many different models and varieties all over the world, but the U.S. hasn't always been offered the hatchback version. In fact, the Corolla lineup only...

  • Mitsubishi e-Evolution concept, 2017 Tokyo Motor Show
    In what segments will electric cars do best by 2025? Twitter poll results

    As U.S. car buyers increasingly opt for crossover utility vehicles of all sizes over passenger sedans and hatchbacks, that shift has come to pose a problem for electric cars. The bulk of battery-electric models on offer today are compact five-door hatchbacks without available all-wheel drive. Think...

  • 2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV
    Which electric car is your favorite? Twitter poll results

    Many times our polls deal with weighty issues—climate change, renewable energy, the effects of denying science—or survey expectations for the future. But sometimes we just do a "Pick one!" kind of poll. That's what we did last week, when we asked Twitter followers to name their favorite...

  • Mitsubishi eX Concept, 2015 Tokyo Motor Show
    In what segments will electric cars do best by 2025? Take our Twitter poll

    Over the last several years, U.S. sales of utility vehicles, from small crossovers to hulking truck-based SUVs, have surged. Meanwhile, passenger cars—sedans, hatchbacks, the occasional wagon—have stagnated and in many cases, fallen sharply. Several factors have driven this shift. DON'T...

  • 2019 Toyota Corolla hatchback

    Remember hatchbacks? Actually, come to think of it ... remember passenger cars? You know, the sedans and wagons and hatchbacks that don't have all-wheel drive and aren't jacked up 6 to 9 inches off the ground? They used to roam this fair land of ours, but lately, they seem to have been routed by crossover utility vehicles and SUVs and trucks of every size, shape, and segment. DON'T MISS: 2016 Scion iM: First Drive Of New Compact Hatchback (Sep 2015) That means that the 2019 Toyota Corolla Hatchback that debuted in Geneva on Tuesday may not make an appearance in the U.S. But maybe it will;...

  • Professor John Kelly of Weber State University, Utah, shown before Chevy Bolt EV battery disassembly
    Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car: what's inside the battery? Teardown video shows all

    The battery packs of most modern electric cars are far different than those in your mobile phone or other portable devices. In most cases, they include hundreds or thousands of cells, arranged into modules, and usually surrounded by channels containing liquid coolant to keep the battery in its...

  • 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric police car, operated by Hyattsville City Police Department, Maryland
    Is this the country's first Chevrolet Bolt EV police car? (updated with video)

    Using electric cars as police vehicles has some distinct advantages. Among them are near-silent operation, maximum acceleration from 0 rpm, and a novelty factor that can lead to friendly, beneficial interactions between officers and citizens. Now, the small Maryland city of Hyattsville, a suburb of...

  • Two 2018 Nissan Leafs with EVgo fast charger at NJ Turnpike Joyce Kilmer travel plaza, Feb 2018
    2018 Nissan Leaf electric car: four-day winter road-trip review

    The first generation of mass-priced electric cars with ranges of 60 to 90 miles simply didn't have enough range to be used outside predictable daily commute duties and local errands around town. Sure, four-fifths of vehicles in the U.S. cover less than 40 miles a day—but that other fifth...

  • 2018 Renault Zoe electric car in Purple Blackberry paint color
    2018 Renault Zoe electric car: more powerful motor to go with last year's bigger battery

    The subcompact Renault Zoe hatchback has been Europe's best-selling electric car for several years now. Last year, sales soared after it received a major upgrade to its battery pack, which grew to 41 kilowatt-hours, up from 22 kwh in earlier versions, almost doubling its range to 300 to 400...

  • 2018 Fiat 500e
    2018 Fiat 500e preview

    When the Fiat 500e electric minicar launched in 2013, its range was rated at 87 miles, but its most distinctive feature was its wickedly fun-to-drive character. Six years later, the fun driving remains the same—and the range has fallen slightly to 84 miles, based on changes to EPA test...

  • 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid

    Nearly a year ago, we published a gas-mileage review on the Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid, the South Korean brand's Toyota Prius challenger. We saw 49.5 miles per gallon over 565 miles of driving. Now, we've tested the Ioniq Hybrid in more extreme conditions, on the cold, wintry roads of Detroit, Michigan. Not only did we cover exactly 400 miles on those frosty roads, we did it during the madness of the Detroit Auto Show, which led us to spend more time than usual driving in stop-and-go city conditions. DON'T MISS: 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid: gas mileage review The Ioniq Hybrid is by far the most...

  • 2017 Fiat 500e
    Used Fiat 500e electric cars outside California: is service an issue for buyers?

    So you've always wanted to drive a battery-electric car, but you're a frugal and sensible shopper who's noticed that prices of used electric cars are remarkably low. And you always through the Fiat 500 was kind of interesting; the idea of a tiny three-door all-electric hatchback appealed to you...

  • 2018 Nissan Leaf
    Looking at leases on 2018 Nissan Leaf electric car: how do they stack up?

    This past Tuesday, the 2018 Nissan Leaf—an entirely redesigned second generation of the pioneering electric car—officially went on sale in the U.S. It's quicker and has more features than its predecessors, not to mention a significantly longer range: 151 miles combined, according to the...

  • 2018 Nissan Leaf
    2018 Nissan Leaf electric car gets 151-mile EPA range rating

    When the 2018 Nissan Leaf electric car was unveiled last fall, the company said it would have a range of "140 miles or more." That had risen to "150 miles or more" by the end of last year, and now we have the final confirmed figure. The EPA combined range rating for the second-generation Leaf is...

  • John and Mimi Porter of San Diego, California, with their new 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV, in Feb 2017
    2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car: owners' impressions after a year

    Californians got the chance to buy Chevrolet Bolt EV electric cars before everyone else, and the compact hatchback has sold well in the state, aided by its 238-mile rated range. Last February, readers John and Mimi Porter of San Diego shared their first impressions of the new silver Bolt EV they...

  • 2017 Kia Soul EV
    2018 Kia Soul EV gets bigger battery, range boost from 93 to 111 miles

    Updates to conventional cars come in a predictable pattern. Once a new model is launched, it gets only minor tweaks to features, prices, and paint colors for two or three years. Then in the third or fourth year, it gets what the industry calls a "mid-cycle refresh": some updated sheetmetal, perhaps...

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