One of the hottest of hot hatchbacks in recent years was the Audi RS3, a fire-breathing five-door stuffed with turbocharged inline-five and all-wheel-drive goodness. It never came here to the U.S. (though its drivetrain did...
Tag Archives: Compact
While the Scion iQ and FR-S are fresh and interesting products with few (if any) direct competitors, the brand’s more conventional core models – xD, xB and tC – are facing more and more competition...
Model bloat – the name given to the phenomenon whereby a particular car in a company’s portfolio gets bigger and heavier with each successive generation – has reached pandemic status within the auto industry. In...
![LEGO Classic Mini Cooper Thinks Smaller [w/ video]](https://www.sub5zero.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/001legomini-md-335x256.jpg)
There are many great things about LEGO, but perhaps the greatest of all is the only limiting factor for what you can build with it is your imagination. The Internet is pretty much crawling with...
The turbocharged 2.0L inline-four engine (codenamed M133)that powers the Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG, CLA45 AMG and upcoming GLA45 AMGmight be AMG’s first production turbocharged four-banger, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at its output figures....
![Sunny-Side Up: Stancing Up Japan in a Classic Nissan B110 [Video]](https://www.sub5zero.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/video_still_133.jpg)
When you think of iconic Japanese classic cars, there are quite a few obvious choices. The early Datsun 510 and Z cars, the Toyota 2000GT and early Celica, and the Mazda RX-3 all spring readily...
![Love is a Mini-Splendored Thing: Picking the Brain of Heritage Garage Founder Graham Reid [Video]](https://www.sub5zero.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/video_still_124.jpg)
Automotive history is filled with “Eureka!” moments, but few have had as much of an impact on what we drive today as Alec Issigonis designing the original BMC Mini. By turning the engine sideways to...
![Tank You Very Much: Roadkill Compares a Toyota Prius to an AMC Gremlin…with a Twist [Video]](https://www.sub5zero.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/video_still_110.jpg)
The Toyota Prius may be quite popular (at least here in SoCal), but that doesn’t necessarily make it desirable. Okay, a lot of people do find the car that has become synonymous with hybrids and...
The all-new CLA-Class represents a sizable philosophical shift for Mercedes-Benz. It’s an extension of the company’s “four-door coupe” portfolio, and it’s the first front-wheel-drive Mercedes-Benz offered in the United States. But it also represents an...
![Speed of Sunshine: Cruising in a Slow-but-Cute Fiat 500D [Video]](https://www.sub5zero.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/video_still_071.jpg)
There’s just something about a Fiat 500 – be it an old one or the current one – that forces you to smile. Perhaps it’s the miniscule size. Maybe it’s the impossibly playful styling. Or...