South Korean

Under BMW’s stewardship, the Mini brand has garnered a reputation for being playful and not taking itself too seriously. The nameplate took that reputation to new heights recently when its president of American operations, Jim McDowell, invited his former employer, Porsche, to race a 911 Carrera S against a Mini Cooper S at Road Atlanta this coming Monday.

Audacious? Most definitely. But Mini was dead serious about wanting to face the storied Stuttgart sports car builder at the track near their U.S. headquarters. Dead serious, that is, while still being cute and clever, as the video past the jump illustrates. What’s the hold up? To paraphrase Jim Morrison, click on through to the other side.

When you think of well-known performance models, pair those up with car companies and put together a list; any way you cut it, Hyundai ends up somewhere between last and second to last. After all, this Korean powerhouse is best known for making cheap daily drivers with warranties that smack every other automaker across the face. So, it was a big risk they took going after a market dominated by the likes of Mustang, Camaro, 370Z and G37. Not only did they have to deliver a compelling sports car but they had to keep within the brand's design aesthetic and maintain their value proposition (yes, I went to business school). At this point in the story, we all know they succeeded. Whether you are talking the Four P's or the Three C's, these guys executed flawlessly. 

We've all heard the tremendous hype as well as the unflattering barbs directed at this vehicle but, like most things, the truth falls somewhere in the middle. A few weeks ago, we had the opportunity to road test the Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0T Track edition and walked away extremely impressed though not totally blown-away (due to some minor quirks). So, we were really looking forward to seeing how the supposed Mustang slayer, the Genesis Coupe 3.8, performed in the wild with its bigger engine and beefier guts. And so the journey begins...

The 2010 New York Auto Show has seen plenty of new vehicles make their public debuts, but which ones are worthy of more than just cursory glances? In the interest of saving you time, whether you happen to plan on attending the show (which runs through this Sunday) in person, or you just want to know what’s hot, here is Sub5Zero’s unordered list of the 10 hottest rides to premiere in the Big Apple. Check out the rundown after the jump. 

After a year or so of public contemplation, Hyundai has officially pulled the trigger on bringing its heretofore Korea-market-only full-size luxury sedan, the Equus, to the U.S. The wraps came off the V8, rear-drive flagship Thursday the New York Auto Show (though we can confirm it’s no April Fool’s joke), and it looks quite similar to the domestic market version, with the notable exception of the upright hood ornament, though a cottage industry for importing the genuine article and other bonnet bling (Birds? Jungle cats? Nekkid ladies preparing to throw hand grenades?) will surely spring up by the time you finish reading this sentence.

At its heart, the Equus is a stretched (by 7.2 inches if you’re into semantics) and restyled Genesis Sedan, though the Equus’ 4.6L DOHC Tau V8 is expected to punch out 385hp as opposed to 375hp for little brother. Other notable features on the Equus will include adaptive air suspension, a 17-speaker 608-watt Lexicon sound system, adaptive cruise control, and even optional two-across rear seating with a small refrigerator in the console.

Finding an affordable sports car with rear-wheel drive, a six-speed manual, performance aspirations and tuning potential has seemed like a Herculean task of late. The Nissan 370Z and Honda S2000 are solid sports coupes but break the $30k ceiling, making gear-heads on a budget frown. Scion has been producing fun and exciting cars that capture the tuning spirit for under $20k, but exhilaration from the driving experience there is not. It's taken an unlikely contender, Hyundai Motors from Korea, to bring to market a sport compact at a compelling price point which also serves as a launching pad for all kinds of modification possibilities.

Hyundai didn't just slip the Genesis Coupe into the mix as a replacement for the discontinued Tiburon, they hurled it into the product lineup while doing a power slide complete with smoking tires. You have to look no further than the press pictures taken at a track, as opposed to the typical scenic park (like ours), to see that there is no doubt that this model is aimed at 18 to 35 year old males looking to cause some havoc.

Here is a solid stop-motion video short done by the folks at Kia Motors to showcase the new Kia Soul. The car arrived on our shores in March as a 2010 model. Kia Soul Rock is a great ode to their newest MPV-style vehicle. The North American version of the car comes outfitted with either a 1.6-liter inline four-cylinder engine producing 122 hp and operated by a five-speed manual transmission or the 2.0-litre unit producing 142 hp mated to a 5-speed manual transmission with a four-speed automatic optional. The video shows a nice display of dozens of 2010 Kia Soul vehicles engaged in synchronized stunt driving with a few power slides here and there. Check it out after the jump.