If you’re driving a compact car, chances are good that it’s a Hyundai Elantra just because it sells so well here in Canada and abroad. Evidence of its global sales results comes in a recent milestone…

Hyundai surpasses 10 millionth Elantra milestone

What do the Toyota Corolla, Ford F-Series, Volkswagen Golf, Volkswagen Beetle, Ford Escort, Honda Civic, Opel Corsa, Honda Accord, Lada 1200, Ford Model T, Nissan Sentra, Volkswagen Passat, Chevrolet Impala, Lada Riva, Oldsmobile Cutlass, Chrysler Voyager, Toyota Camry, Mazda Protegé, Opel Astra, and Hyundai Elantra all have in common?

At first glance the only thing some of these vehicles have in common with each other is that they ride on four wheels (although some F-Series pickup trucks ride on six), but there's one attribute they all commonly share: they've all sold more than 10,000,000 copies since they came into existence.

"Reaching this historic mark is a testament to Elantra's staying power and the global appeal of a vehicle that delivers attractive design, functionality and class-leading performance," commented Tak Uk Im, Hyundai Motor's Chief Operating Officer. "As a company it also shows our ability to quickly adapt to changing consumer preferences Read Full Story
Toyota wants its latest Yaris hatchback to get noticed, so it’s branded a big, chrome “X” on the front just so you’ll see it when one drives by. It’s true, the newly redesigned Yaris makes a…

2015 Toyota Yaris Hatchback LE Road Test Review

So hold on. The new 2015 Yaris is a Japanese car, not European right? Life in the global village is certainly getting interesting, especially in the car industry. As long as I can remember, Toyota Canada's smallest offering was built in Japan. Whether we're talking Tercel, Echo or Yaris, such has been the case. For 2015, however, a new edgier looking Yaris will be shipped across the Atlantic instead of the Pacific.

The new 2015 Yaris Hatchback was penned at Toyota's European Design Centre in Sophia Antipolis near the beautiful Mediterranean city of Cannes in southern France; developed at the Japanese automaker's European Product Planning Department in Brussels, Belgium; and is now built just across the Belgian border in the northern French city of Valenciennes, before being shipped worldwide. So other than most of the mechanicals that lay beneath its dramatic new front fascia, the Yaris Hatchback is mostly European.

Just one look is all it takes to see that the new Read Full Story
Need to get from A to B as quickly as possible and have as much fun doing it as can be? Mini has the ideal car, as long as loading up more than one passenger isn’t part of your agenda. Today on CarCostCanada,…

2015 Mini Cooper S Roadster Road Test Review

While Mini completely revamped the Cooper Hardtop last year and will bring a new five-door version plus a reworked six-door Clubman to market for 2015, the rest of the model lineup will remain mostly unchanged this year, and as far as I'm concerned that's not a bad thing. I love the more aggressive look and slimmer bodylines of Mini's outgoing generation, the sharply dressed Roadster being one of its most enticing examples.

I had opportunity to test a base 2014 Cooper Roadster not too long ago, and while I loved the way it looks, its impressive roominess in the cockpit and in the trunk, and of course the way it takes to the corners, the Cooper S Roadster satisfies my desire for more power without much drain on the pocketbook when it comes time to fill up.

Behind the Roadster's impishly menacing grille is a more potent version of Mini's 1.6-litre inline four-cylinder engine, using direct-injection and a twin-scroll turbocharger to raise its game from 121 horsepower to Read Full Story
Can a Hyundai really challenge the established premium elite? The South Korean automaker has asked this question of its fans not once, but multiple times starting with the Azera way back in the ‘00s…

2015 Hyundai Genesis 5.0 Ultimate Road Test Review

There must be some kind of law. Or at least a clause in the small print of Peter Schreyer's old Audi contract that stipulates he's not allowed to design a car for Hyundai that is better looking than the "competing" model at the four-ringed German luxury brand he used to work for. But even if his past employer could do something about the latest Genesis sedan's stunning new styling, the sheer goodness in its engineering and impressive value proposed by its full feature set and comparatively down to earth pricing would ultimately win out in the end. Well, win out with price-conscious pragmatists who don't give a damn about prestigious nameplates, at least.

Truly, the only thing the new 2015 Hyundai Genesis 5.0 Ultimate lacks that its German rivals possess is a premium badge, the V8-powered, eight-speed automatic-infused, all-wheel drive sport-luxury sedan one of the more impressive premium-level four-door players I've had the pleasure of piloting in some time.

Schreyer Read Full Story
Are Scion’s customers growing up? Do they need a sporty family vehicle with customizable potential? First off, one has to wonder just how many aging Scion fans there are, and secondly comes the need…

Sporty Scion iM Concept gets us speculating ahead of LA auto show reveal

Are you ready for the iM? With Scion's biggest seller being its 2+2 FR-S sports coupe (which is never the way it's supposed to work) it's about time the Toyota tuner brand at least teased us with another future model. So what's in store? We haven't a clue, because Scion's teaser image of the new iM Concept doesn't show us much more than its vague press release tells us.

All Scion is willing to reveal is that its new iM Concept boasts a "distinctively sporty front end" and that "the iM Concept car reflects the evolution of Scion as the needs and desires of its youthful customers also evolve."

Well hold on, that does tell us something. Should we expect a sporty car for young families? A small wagon possibly? All we're left with are questions without even enough answers for semi-educated conjecture, but don't worry, we'll do our best to speculate.

On that note, the tiny image shown looks a lot like the front grille and headlight of Toyota's Auris, which is basically Read Full Story
Today on CarCostCanada, automotive journalist Trevor Hofmann reviews the 2014 428i xDrive Cabriolet, the replacement for the old 3 Series drop-top. The name isn’t the only change for 2014: styling gets…

2014 BMW 428i xDrive Cabriolet Road Test Review

The summer certainly has been tailing off this past week. The leaves of scattered deciduous trees in our mostly evergreen left coast are changing from bright greens to golden yellows, deep reds and myriad other tones in between, while much shorter days that don't include at least a sprinkling of rainfall are fewer and farther between. Yes, it's the perfect time go for a drive in a convertible.

Say what? Well, I didn't say with the top down. Fortunately for me this week, my test car has been the elegant new 2014 BMW 428i xDrive Cabriolet, so I'm ready for rain, shine, more rain or even snow. If the heavens were to open and dump down a blanket of fluffy white stuff I have confidence that BMW's advanced xDrive all-wheel drive, new on the convertible model this year, combined with its ultra-effective electronic traction and stability control systems would keep me pointed in the right direction, while its retractable hardtop makes it the ideal all-season sport coupe. And don't worry, Read Full Story
Remember back in the good old days when American car companies gave their cars mild updates every year or so just to keep them fashionable? It appears that the good old days are here again, at least with…

2014 Chevrolet Malibu LTZ Road Test Review

Given that the eighth-generation Chevrolet Malibu was only just launched in 2013 as an all-new model, one might have expected that it would enter 2014 relatively unchanged. Instead, faced with softer-than-forecast sales, Chevrolet's mid-size family sedan was trotted back to the design studio to get a bit of a refresh for its sophomore year.

It's not that the new Malibu hit the market with any significant faults, mind you: It's a thoroughly competent machine, based on Chevrolet's Epsilon II platform and sold as a global car across six continents and over 100 countries. In my review of the 2013 Malibu Eco I called it "conservative, yet handsome and capable looking," and I was impressed with the interior and the infotainment system. The problem is that the Malibu sells in a crowded and extremely competitive market, and being conservative and capable wasn't getting it noticed. So for 2014 Chevrolet set out to fix that.

The changes include a new front fascia with a wider upper Read Full Story
Alas, the Mini Cooper Clubman we know it will soon be gone as, but before the five-door wonder wagon gets replaced by an all-new six-door version, auto journalist Trevor Hofmann gives it a worthy send-off…

2014 Mini Cooper Clubman Road Test Review

Let me make one point very clear before I delve too deeply into this review: If you've always wanted to buy a Mini Clubman but have never gotten around to it, now's the time. The Clubman, as we know it, is no more after 2014, and the Cooper Clubman I recently drove is one of the last of its kind available anywhere. Don't get me wrong, the Clubman name will likely resurface soon, something we can feel confident about since Mini showed the Clubman Concept at last year's Geneva motor show, but in Mini's quest to pull in yet more buyers by "unquirkying" itself, the new Clubman will get four regular side doors instead of this outgoing model's three-door layout.

Yes, if you hadn't noticed, the current 2014 Mini Cooper Clubman has a second rear-hinged "club" door on its passenger side that opens up clamshell-like in the same fashion as some four-door pickup trucks and a small number of high-end luxury cars, such as the Rolls-Royce Ghost and Phantom. Before Mini came to market with its Read Full Story