Fuel Economy Comparo: Kia Optima Hybrid vs. Toyota Camry Hybrid

Story by John LeBlanc Feel free to thank the rising price of fuel and stricter government-mandated fuel economy ratings for today’s variety of new gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles. Once limited to being quirky or small when they arrived in the late 1990s, hybrids now come in all shapes and sizes.

2011 in Review: The best car I drove for <$40k

By John LeBlanc Korean cars aren’t the punch line to a bad joke anymore. Rising from their former positioning as backwater makers of bottom-feeder cars with lowball sticker prices and extra-long warranties, the Hyundai and Kia sister brands have turned into builders of some of the most reliable, safe, smartly-styled, technically advanced and value priced […]

The Crank: Can Kia transcend beyond its price-point marketing?

  Arguably—and even with no new cars to present—Kia’s presser at last week’s L.A. show was the best in a long day’s worth of corporate droning on.   For starters, Kia promised 15 salient points in a media-friendly 15 minutes, getting us all up-to-date on the tsunami of new models, the progress of its recently-opened […]

Best 2011 Family Car between $21k and $30k

By John LeBlanc As the new 2012 models start to infiltrate new car showrooms, here are my top picks of remaining 2011 models that may still be lingering on dealer lots:

Third annual Canadian Automotive Jury’s Best of the Best Finalists announced

By John LeBlanc Reflecting the wide variety Canadian new car buyers are faced with, the third annual Canadian Automotive Jury’s Best of the Best Finalists range from entry-level compacts to luxury-sport sedans.

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