Road Test: 2014 Mazda Mazda2

Story and photos by John LeBlanc Perhaps you’ve noticed the glut of subcompacts popping up on the Canadian new car market lately. Despite the continuing popularity of the next-size-up compact cars and crossovers, the desire to attract buyers who would normally shop used car lots and offer a vehicle to lower their corporate fleet fuel-consumption […]

First Drive: 2014 Ford Fiesta

Story and photos by John LeBlanc OTTAWA — After being re-introduced to Canada for 2011, the Ford Fiesta family of four-door subcompact hatchbacks and sedans is getting a mid-cycle refresh for 2014. As usual, you’ll find the typical exterior styling tweaks and interior refinements. The big news, however, for Ford’s smallest car is a pair […]

First Drive: 2014 Ford Fiesta 1.0 EcoBoost

Story by John LeBlanc SANTA MONICA, California – Do you know anyone that orders half an enchilada? Of course not. But that was the consensus when Ford brought back its Fiesta subcompact to North America three years ago. While lauded for offering both four-door sedan and hatchback models, good (if not great) fuel economy, “big” […]

Road Test: 2012 Kia Rio EX Sedan

Story and photos by John LeBlanc If you’ve jumped into the new-car market for the first time in a few years, you’ll have discovered that small cars aren’t that small anymore. And a good example of this paradigm shift in tiny wheels is the new-for-2012 Kia Rio sedan. Unlike its bottom-of-the-class forebearer, though, the second-generation […]

The Crank: Are today’s “subcompacts” yesterday’s “compacts”?

By John LeBlanc LAS VEGAS, Nevada – You can’t judge a book by its cover. And you can’t judge a car by its segment name. At least not anymore. That’s the conclusion I’ve come to after spending a day driving Hyundai’s new 2012 Accent,  a so-called “subcompact” that, for all intents and purposes, offers the […]

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