BMW has announced the recently-introduced 2016 M6 will usher in an upgraded Competition Package that will bring more power and a few additional tech features.
Offered on all versions of the M6, the Competition Package bumps the twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8′s power output to 600 horsepower and 516 lb-ft. of torque from 1,500 all the way to 6,000 rpm. As a result, the 6 can sprint from zero to 62 mph in 3.9 seconds (4 seconds flat for the convertible), from zero to 124 mph in 11.8 seconds and it can reach a top speed of 189 mph when ordered with the optional M Driver’s Package.

The Package also adds a sportier suspension system with stiffer springs and roll bars, a sport exhaust system, an Active M Differential that improves traction, a more direct power steering and a less intrusive stability control system.

Visually, 6s ordered with the Competition Package are instantly recognizable thanks to 20-inch double-spoke light-alloy M wheels and four exhaust tips finished in black chrome.

The new Competition Package is scheduled to go on sale across the nation in July. We’ll have to wait until then to find out how much of a premium it will carry over last year’s package and whether the M5 will benefit from similar upgrades.

Volkswagen has introduced a new concept dubbed Golf GTI Dark Shine. Built by 13 young apprentices in Wolfsburg, Germany, the one-off GTI was presented to the public at the annual Wörthersee show in Austria.
Volkswagen explains the apprentices were tasked with designing a brand new concept from the ground up starting with a bare GTI shell. Built in nine months, the Dark Shine gets a two-tone yellow and black paint job, black concept-specific alloy wheels with yellow inserts and a tweaked body kit.

Inside, the GTI Dark Shine features leather-upholstered Recaro bucket seats, an Alcantara-wrapped multi-function steering wheel as well as yellow trim on the wheel, the center console and the instrument cluster. The apprentices have fitted it with a 3,500-watt eight-speaker sound system that can be controlled wirelessly using a tablet.

The Dark Shine boasts a tuned turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder TSI engine that churns out 388 horsepower – over twice the output of a stock GTI – and 359 lb-ft. of torque. The concept is equipped with a modified six-speed dual-clutch DSG gearbox, a hand-built exhaust system and a carbon fiber air box.

Volkswagen has traveled to the Wörthersee show to introduce a GTI-based concept built by its apprentices every year since 2008. The show cars have never been given the green light for production and there’s no reason to believe the GTI Dark Shine will be an exception.

As more manufacturers enter the EV space, the novelty of battery-powered automobiles is starting to fade. Successful efforts such as Tesla’s Model S have demonstrated that EVs can compete with conventional cars in performance, range and luxury, so long as price is of little concern.

So what of the lower end of the market? Hybrids thrive in this segment, boasting an ever-shrinking premium over their pure gasoline counterparts and having proven themselves over the past decade and a half as compelling alternatives to conventional cars and even SUVs. Can EVs offer enough of a value proposition to gain a meaningful foothold? We took the Soul EV into the suburbs for a week to find out.

What is it?

The Kia Soul EV is exactly what it sounds like–an electrified Kia Soul. It shares the same basic dimensions and specs with its gasoline counterpart, with some minor adjustments here and there to accommodate the electric powertrain.

In that sense, however, the Soul EV is noteworthy. While many of its electrified counterparts were noticeable compromised when re-engineered to include the large battery packs necessary for sufficient EV range and performance, the Soul’s packaging is essentially unchanged. Rather than installing the pack in the rear hatch area of the vehicle, which is a popular choice in this segment, Kia engineers opted instead to go with a mounting location under the floor. The result? Rear legroom is a bit tighter (while still being best-in-class for EVs), but the use of the Soul’s rear cargo area is uncompromised, which comes in handy when the electric hamster-wagon is away from home, as it presents useful storage for the Soul’s portable charger. More on that later.

The electric powertrain in the Soul EV is good for 109 horsepower and 210 lb-ft of torque, and since we’re talking about an electric motor rather than a gasoline engine, that torque is available instantly at any speed.

So what’s the downside? Simply put, it’s weight. At 3,289lbs, the Soul EV is by far the heaviest variant of Kia’s versatile hatch, whose gasoline variants range from 2,714lbs with the 1.6L engine and a six-speed manual to 2,837lbs with the 164-horsepower four-banger and six-speed automatic. Torque or no torque, the Soul EV’s powertrain makes it the weakest from a power-to-weight standpoint. And while it may be the most effortless to drive, it can only go so far on a charge.

Inside and out

Perhaps the most remarkable thing about modern EVs (the Soul included) is how little their EV-ness factors into the on-the-road experience. Older electric cars (which were really proof-of-concept trials more than they were real automobiles) surrounded you in their alternative-fuel cocoons. They weren’t cars that just happened to be battery-powered. They were electric drivetrains strapped to electronics and wheels. Now? Not so much.

The Soul EV, aside from its powertrain, is entirely conventional. Everything from the electric system readouts to the gear selector is simple and intuitive to use–far more so than anything you’d find in a Prius, for instance. Put your 90-year-old grandmother behind the wheel of a Soul EV and she could make it to and from her bridge club meeting with no drama, so long as it’s not too far away, of course.

The gauge cluster is perhaps the one area where the Soul breaks with convention a bit, but only in name of conveying the information you need in order to get the most from your drive. The normal stuff is there–charge level (think gas gauge), range remaining (distance to empty), speedometer, and a multi-function display which has become commonplace. Setting it apart are a lack of tachometer and a rather prominent readout indicating how hard you’re working the Soul’s electric system, indicating “Eco,” “Power” and “Charge” modes, the last of which you enter whenever you brake or lift off the accelerator. If you want the car to charge more aggressively when you lift, you can put the Soul EV’s gear selector in “B” for maximum regenerative braking.

Does it go?

The Soul EV’s powertrain is a long list of compromises, but many of them shake out in the driver’s favor. Take the weight of the battery pack, for instance. Yes, the EV is the porker in the Soul lineup, but the weight is down low in the center of the chassis, giving it a particularly low center of gravity and thus negating a lot of the penalty with improved handling characteristics.

The wonderful thing about an electric powertrain is the true immediacy of available power. There’s no turbocharger to spool or power band to chase. Put your right foot down and the Soul EV will roast its tires from a stop or jump to passing speed on the highway. It’s a right-now sort of sensation that even the biggest, many-times-turbocharged German monsters and supercharged American iron can’t touch.

To a point, of course.

Enjoy the sensation of speed while you can, because reality sets in real quick. The responsive motor and ample torque can easily lull you into false sense of the Soul EV’s capabilities. It feels quick from a stop, but 0-60 is actually in the 10-second range. The top speed? 90 mph. And if you try to explore those limits, you’ll run into the EV’s biggest “gotcha” hard and fast–its 93-mile range.

And then what?

And then you wait. And if you’re unfortunate enough to be the borrower of a Soul EV and not the owner of it, you may be waiting a long time.

There are three ways to charge the Soul EV: a conventional, 120V household plug (with the included portable charger), a permanent, 240V household charging station (installed when you purchase the vehicle) or a Commercial fast-charging station. The speed of the charge goes in reverse order of those options. A commercial fast-charger will get you to 80% (limited to protect the battery pack) in roughly 30 minutes. The permanent household charger will get you a full, 93-mile charge in 4-6 hours.

The 120V, charge-anywhere option? 24 hours from zero to full, which means we spent far more time charging the Soul EV than we did driving it.

Leftlane’s bottom line

For those with short commutes and ready access to charging stations, the Soul EV can work just fine–likely better than others in its segment due to Kia’s focus on practicality and ease of access. In the select markets where Kia is launching it, the Soul will likely accommodate any buyer who is in need of a practical, fun city runabout. We just wish we could have spent more time on the road and less plugged into the wall.

2015 Kia Soul EV, base price, $35,700; Carpeted floor mats, $125; Destination, $800

Hyundai has added a new trim option for its 2016 Elantra, along with new standard equipment for existing packages.
The new Value Edition bundles the model’s most popular options including a sunroof, leather-wrapped steering wheel, heated seats, push-button start and 16-inch alloy wheels, among other upgrades. It only costs $550 more than the base price, but is claimed to represent a $1,000 savings compared to adding each item individually.

The higher-end Elantra Limited now ships with a proximity key for push-button start, along with dual automatic climate control, as part of its standard options. The package is said to bring a $600 value savings.

The Sport trim is now available with cloth seats, reducing the entry price by removing the standard leather seats and power sunroof.

The Korean automaker is set to unveil its next-generation Elantra later this year, with an unveiling scheduled for the Los Angeles auto show. Details remain scarce, but unconfirmed reports suggest the revamped sedan will be heavily inspired by the 2016 Elantra GT hatchback.

In the meantime, the 2016 Elantra keeps its entry price of $18,075 (including $825 freight).

After defending the autonomous safety record of its fleet of modified Lexus RX450h crossovers, Google has announced that its fully autonomous prototypes, designed in-house, are now ready for testing on public roads.
The diminutive two-seaters are powered solely by electric motors and outfitted with the same sensor and software suites that have been tested for more than a million miles in the Lexus crossovers. The test fleet has been involved in 11 accidents so far, but all are blamed on mistakes by human drivers.

“So the new prototypes already have lots of experience to draw on–in fact, it’s the equivalent of about 75 years of typical American adult driving experience,” project director Chris Urmson wrote in a blog post.

Safety drivers will initially be on board the EVs to take over if necessary, though the California government-mandated steering wheel, accelerator pedal and brake pedal are all removable. The prototypes will also be capped at a “neighborhood-friendly” speed of just 25 mph.

“We’re looking forward to learning how the community perceives and interacts with the vehicles, and to uncovering challenges that are unique to a fully self-driving vehicle–e.g., where it should stop if it can’t stop at its exact destination due to construction or congestion,” Urmson added.

The testing program will initially be limited to familiar roads around Google’s home town of Mountain View, California, where the Lexus fleet has logged most of its miles.