Most Reliable Compact Cars

April 8, 2012 admin Compacts

Consumer Reports 2010 Vehicle Reliability Survey shows what their research indicates are the most reliable compact cars. Despite the troubles Toyota faced with recalls last year, Asian automakers continue to score well in reliability ratings. They are again in the lead although American automakers have made improvements. Seven of the top ten makes for 2011 predicted reliability are Asian automakers.

According to Consumer Reports, the top ten most reliable car companies are:

1. Scion
2. Porsche
3. Acura
4. Honda
5. Infiniti
6. Toyota
7. Subaru
8. Volvo
9. Lexus
10. Ford

Scion, the number one overall brand which is made by Toyota, sells only compact and subcompact models, which are primarily aimed at younger buyers. Scion’s most reliable model was found to be the xD while its least reliable model was the xB. Another standout among small cars was the Toyota Yaris, which was the make’s top rated model. Hyundai, Mazda, Kia, and Nissan finished in 11th, 12th, 13th, and 14th places, respectively, in the rankings.

In terms of the least reliable subcompact and compact cars, Mini finished 25th out of 27 automakers. Its worst ranked model was the Mini Cooper Convertible. Chrysler finished in last place. For Chevrolet, which finished in 17th place, the subcompact Aveo was its lowest ranked model for reliability. Subaru models were round to be reliable with only the Impreza WRX model falling below average. The Nissan Cube did not fare well in its first year of being rated, finishing as the least reliable of Nissan’s models.

Despite the Asian automaker’s dominance in the ratings, U.S. automakers made significant strides in reliability from previous years. Chevy had 83% of its model lineup received scores of average or better. Ford, the 9th place finisher, had 90% of its model lineup received scores of average or better. However, not a single Chrysler product was able to receive a reliability rating higher than average. European brands were a mixed bag.

Consumer Reports is a leading authority on product reviews. The magazine only recommends models that have performed well in road tests, safety tests, and have a score of average or better in predicted reliability based on its annual survey

Reliability is an important factor for car buyers, as they want their car to last and be as trouble free as possible. High reliability ratings can help automakers sell cars. These most reliable compact cars mentioned herein are worth considering if you are in the market for a small car.

Originally posted 2011-04-20 16:37:20. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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2011 Chevy Cruze

April 8, 2012 admin Compacts

The 2011 Chevy Cruze is an all-new compact sedan from the American automaker. It replaces the dated Cobalt in Chevy’s product lineup. Chevy has aimed to make a dent out of the sales of the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, and Ford Focus in the compact class. The Cruze is offered in the U.S. in sedan form only with four doors and seating for up to five passengers.

The 2011 Cruze is offered in five trim lines with two different engines. The trims are: 2LS, 1LT, 2LT, ECO, and LTZ. The base 2LS has an MSRP of $16,525 and comes standard with power door locks, air-conditioning, and power windows. The 2LS offers a 1.8-liter, 136 horsepower four-cylinder engine that gets 26-mpg city and 37-mpg highway with standard six-speed manual transmission. The optional six-speed automatic gets EPA rated fuel economy of 22-mpg city and 35-mpg highway.

2012 Chevrolet Cruze
Creative Commons License photo credit: MSVG

The Cruze is offered with a second engine type. The 1LT is offered with a 1.4-liter 138 horsepower turbo-charged four-cylinder engine. This engine is all-new to Chevy and GM and helps boost torque while still being miserly on gas. The 1LT has an MSRP of $18,425 and comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission. Its fuel economy is rated at 24-mpg city and 36-mpg highway.

The top trim LTZ has a starting MSRP of $22,225 and comes standard with leather seats. Sunroof and a navigation system are optional features. In the LTZ trim, the Cruze has a 0-60 time of nine seconds according to Motor Trend magazine. For fuel economy minded drivers, the ECO trim, which has the 1.4-liter Ecotec Turbo engine is rated at 28-mpg city and 42-mpg highway when paired with the six-speed manual transmission.

All Cruzes come standard with a host of great safety features including ABS, traction control, electronic stability control, and driver, passenger, and side airbags. The Cruze made the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s “Top Safety Picks” list making it among the safest 2011 small cars.

The Cruze has a sleek styling and is roomy for a compact. Among compact sedans, only the Volkswagen Jetta has more trunk space. However, some writers in the automotive press have complained about the Cruze’s powertrain, especially the 1.4-liter Ecotec engine.

It does seem that Chevy could have done more to differentiate the two engines offered in the Cruze as they offer similar power and fuel economy. The model is also heavy for the compact class. The 2012 Honda Civic weighs nearly 500 pounds less than the Cruze and the 2011 Hyundai Elantra weighs nearly 400 pounds less.

Chevy is selling hatchback trims of the Cruze in Europe but is not currently offering them in the U.S. It will be interesting to see if Chevy changes this in 2012. The Cruze is assembled in Mexico. Other compact sedan competitors include the Mazda Mazda3, Kia Forte, and Subaru Impreza.

If you like the Cruze, vote for it in the poll in our “Best 2012 Compact Cars” post.

Originally posted 2011-06-14 15:40:16. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Compact Car Sales For May 2011

April 8, 2012 admin Industry News

Compact car sales for May 2011 show the strength of the segment. The class sold more than 130,000 units combined with the Chevrolet Cruze (22,711), Ford Focus (22,303), Hyundai Elantra (20,006), and Volkswagen Jetta (16,671) being among the leaders. Despite being the class sales leader, the Cruze’s sales were actually down nearly 10% from April 2011 when Chevy sold 25,160 units, when it finished behind the Honda Civic.

The sales figures show that Americans are being increasingly drawn to fuel- efficient cars. The Jetta TDI with its fuel-efficient turbo-charged diesel engine accounted for 22.5% of the model’s monthly sales. Overall, the redesigned Jetta is on pace to sell more than 150,000 units in 2011, an impressive total.

Detroit Institute of Arts
Creative Commons License photo credit: MichiganFirstCU

2011 Chevy Cruze

4. Firmenlauf in Köln
Creative Commons License photo credit: Ford Deutschland

2012 Ford Focus

The Japanese earthquake and tsunami that occurred in March had a significantly negative impact on sales for Japanese automakers. The Honda Civic sold just 18,341 units compared to 26,777 units in April. Honda has announced that supply shortages of key electronic parts and raw materials from Japan have reduced production of the 2012 Civic to 50% of capacity till the fall. For the first time in years, only one Japanese model was in the top 10 in sales for the month, with the Nissan Altima selling 25,525 units, good for 4th place.

The Toyota Corolla/Matrix sold just 16,985 units in May after selling 24,214 in April. The Matrix’s sales have taken a dip as the model ages and an increasing number of hatchbacks are on the market. According to Ward’s Auto, Toyota sold just 14,592 Matrix in the U.S. last year. However, the model is still a decent seller in Canada.

Toyota is determining whether or not to offer the Matrix when the redesigned 2013 Corolla is launched. However, hatchback sales are up overall. Ward’s Auto has reported that 43% of the 2012 Ford Focus’ sales have been hatchbacks. The Focus is one of the Corolla’s key competitors.

In terms of overall May 2011 auto sales, the Japanese production problems made it a big win for American manufacturers as GM, Ford, and Chrysler finished 1-2-3, respectively. Jeep posted a 55% gain in sales compared to May 2010. Jeep sold 35,573 units. Toyota finished fourth with 108, 387 units sold for the month. Its Lexus luxury division had one of the largest dips of any brand with sales falling to 12,305, down 44.6% from May 2010.

Korean manufacturer Hyundai/Kia finished fifth, a huge step for the company, as it sold 107,426 units, just behind Toyota. Kia posted a large gain with a 53.4% increase in sales to 48,212, compared to 31,431 in May 2010. Hyundia/Kia pushed Honda to sixth place in the overall rankings. American Honda/Acura sold just 90,773 units combined. Acura performed poorly selling 9,000 units, down 23.5% from last year.

Originally posted 2011-06-02 15:47:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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2012 Hyundai Accent

April 8, 2012 admin Subcompacts

The 2012 Hyundai Accent is an all-new generation of the model from the Korean automaker that is already on sale. Hyundai has made significant improvement for its subcompact for the 2012 model year. However, with improvements come a higher price. No longer is the Accent just a low cost play, it is now a value play.

Where as in 2011, the Accent had a starting MSRP of $9,985, making it the cheapest 2011 new car, the 2012 Accent starts at $12,445 for the GLS 4-door sedan. Two other trims are offered GS and SE, with both being 5-door hatchbacks. The top end SE has a starting MSRP of $15,795. It comes standard with power door locks, power windows, CD player, and air conditioning. The Accent is no longer offered as a 3-door hatchback.

2012 Hyundai Accent (USA)
Creative Commons License photo credit: theKCB
2012 Hyundai Accent (USA)
Creative Commons License photo credit: theKCB

With respect to exterior styling, the 2012 Accent adopts the company’s “fluidic sculpture” design theme. The Accent’s aerodynamic, distinctive styling now more closely resembles its corporate siblings: the Elantra and Sonata. On the inside, the Accept now offers best-in-class front and rear shoulder room and in hatchback from, it has best-in-class cargo volume, even larger than the Infiniti EX35.

Where the Accent has really stepped up is in its engine and transmissions. The 2012 model now offers the most powerful standard engine in the subcompact class. The engine is a 1.8-liter direct injection four-cylinder engine that produces 138 horsepower.

The 2012 Accent’s engine has 28 more horsepower than the 2011 model, making it 25% more powerful. In a horsepower comparison, its key competitors such as the Ford Fiesta (119 horsepower) and Honda Fit (117 horsepower) offer significantly less. Expect the Accent to have a 0-60 time under nine seconds, making it among the fastest in its class.

The Accent comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission with a six-speed automatic option on all trim lines. This efficient combination gives the Accent EPA rated fuel economy of 30-mpg city and 40-mpg highway.

2012 Hyundai Accent (USA)
Creative Commons License photo credit: theKCB
2012 Hyundai Accent (USA)
Creative Commons License photo credit: theKCB

The Accent now offers great standard safety features such as ABS, traction control, electronic stability control (ESC), and driver, passenger, and side airbags. The 2011 model did not even offer traction control or ESC. Due to its importance in preventing accidents, U.S. law requires all news cars to have standard ESC for 2012.

Similar to the Accent, the Kia Rio (Hyundai owns Kia), Kia Rio5, and Kia Soul see many improvements for 2012. To learn more about the 2012 Accent and see more pictures, check out Hyundia’s official website.

Do you like the 2012 Hyundai Accent?

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Originally posted 2011-06-19 05:40:23. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Best Small Cars of 2012

April 8, 2012 admin Compacts

Compact models are safer, more fuel efficient, and more spacious than ever before. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has announced its 2012 “Top Safety Picks”. An impressive 19 compact models made the list, giving small car buyers plenty of safe models to choose from.

We make our picks for the 5 best small cars of 2012:

#1. Chevrolet Sonic – The Sonic is Chevy’s all-new subcompact model that is offers as both a four-door sedan and five-door hatchback. The model features a 1.8-liter 138 horsepower four-cylinder engine and an optional 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that returns great fuel economy of 29-mpg city and 40-mpg highway with the standard six-speed manual transmission. The Sonic hatchback has a starting MSRP of $14,635 and comes standard with 10 airbags.

2012 Sonic
Creative Commons License photo credit: Stradablog

#2. Honda Fit – The Fit, a five-door hatchback, is refreshed for 2012. Besides solid driving dynamics and Honda build quality, where the Fit really stands out is in cargo room. The Fit has more cargo room than the Hyundai Tucson SUV.

#3. Hyundai Elantra – The Elantra was redesigned for 2011 but Hyundai has improved the model’s steering for 2012. The Elantra gets impressive EPA-estimated fuel economy of 29-mpg city and 40-mpg highway with a 1.8-liter 148 horsepower engine.

The Fit has more cargo room than the Hyundai Tucson SUV

#4. Mazda Mazda3 – The Mazda3 has been a big hit for the Japanese automaker. For 2012, the Mazda3 gets a refreshed interior and exterior but the biggest news is the addition of the new SkyActiv engine technology. The optional 2.0-liter 155 horsepower SkyActiv engine returns fuel economy of 28-mpg city and 39-mpg highway for the hatchback, which is about 20% better than the base 2.0-liter engine.

#5. Subaru Impreza – The Subaru is also offered as both a sedan and hatchback and comes standard with all-wheel drive. It also boosts fuel economy considerably. While the model’s engine has decreased in size and power, its lighter weight and better efficiency increases fuel by 20% to 27-mpg city and 36-mpg highway. This makes the 2012 Impreza the most fuel-efficient all-wheel drive model sold in the U.S.

All of the above 5 best small cars of 2012 were IIHS “Top Safety Picks”. The Honda Civic is also a strong contender but has been criticized for a lower quality interior in the 2012 model. The 2012 Ford Focus is also a solid pick. The model was redesigned for 2012 and has the most powerful standard engine in the compact class.

Which do you think is the best 2012 small car?

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Originally posted 2011-12-22 00:22:38. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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