Rocky Mountain Driving Experience 2022
Time to get back to reviewing cars. I re-joined the Rocky Mountian Automotive Press and today is the annual Rocky Mountain Driving Experience.
A day full of driving and forming opinions of some of the newest cars on the market
Should be fun.
Time to get back to reviewing cars. I re-joined the Rocky Mountian Automotive Press and today is the annual Rocky Mountain Driving Experience.
A day full of driving and forming opinions of some of the newest cars on the market
Should be fun.
More Seoul Auto Show debuts - Hyundai Veloster
Now that we are done hearing of the concepts the major automakers debuted at the New York show, we are starting to hear reports of concepts shown at the 'other' major show starting this week - the Seoul Auto Show in Seoul, South Korea.Yesterday, we showed you the Kia KND-4 concept and now we have a sport-coupe concept from Hyundai - the Veloster.
Expect this to preview some styling elements we might see in the new Tiburon, though this concept is one step smaller and could preview a brand new, Elantra-based coupe.This concept also furthers the automakers fascination with coupes that are really 2-door, steeply-raked sport wagons...which the automakers see as a way to get customers buying sporty 2-doors again (by tempering their natural lack of utility with an extra-large cargo area out back).
See some more pictures over at:
Winding Road: Hyundai Unveils Veloster Coupe Concept in Seoul
Kia shows off KND-4 concept...but not in New York
You'd be forgiven if you thought the New York Auto Show is the only event going on this week...but this debut would prove you wrong.Kia debuted today their KND-4 3-door SUV concept at the Seoul Motor Show.
Interesting is if you take this concept together with the previously shown Kue concept (shown below) from earlier this year...the styling elements that are common likely are a strong indicator of the styling of a new Kia SUV to hit the market within the next two years and further to styling elements that we'll see on other Kia products as well.
I'd criticize this for being derivative in styling...but what SUV is truely unique, styling-wise?Read more about the concept over at:
Winding Road: Kia Debuts KND-4 Concept in Seoul
Hyundai Genesis - did we really need a rear-drive Camry?
For all the work Hyundai and Kia have done to make their cars competitive with the best in the industry - there is one place where they still are years behind...styling.
They understand fit and finish, build quality, perceived quality, and a myriad of things that customers want.
They just don't yet 'get' what styling should be about for any manufacturer.
Witness just about any car they've done to date (the current Sonata is a mild exception)...they either ape a competitor's product or look like some alien contraption.
Another lesson about styling they have yet to learn - find a corporate look and stick with it. Buyers need to be able to say 'that is a Hyundai' or 'that is a Kia' without having to look for the badge.
The latest example of this lack of understanding of auto styling are these renderings of the Hyundai Genesis concept that will debut in April at the New York Auto Show. The front has elements of the current Toyota Camry/Avalon. The rear seems Infiniti/Lincoln MKZ-esque.The Japanese went through this phase as well, so it is reasonable to expect that the Koreans will get there eventually. It just makes me sad to see yet another missed opportunity.