Alleged Hyundai Sonata YF Sudden Acceleration Crash at 117km/h

No doubt, you have all heard about the sudden acceleration problems that plagued the Toyota Group, mainly in North America, for a couple of years. Now, a driver is putting the blame of a car crash that occurred this past Sunday, May 6, 2012, in the South Korean city of Daegu, on a sticky accelerator. The said car is the latest generation Hyundai Sonata YF sedan. What makes this incident of particular interest is that it was captured on film by a dashboard mounted camera in the Sonata, which is something we don't remember seeing before in crashes relating or alleged to be related to sticky accelerator pedals.
The 30-second long clip shows the Korean sedan stopped at a light with a previous generation Hyundai standing in front when the Sonata appears to accelerate. At this point, we hear a conversation from the driver and passengers as well as a sound that may or may not be from the handbrake being lifted.
From there on, the Korean sedan appears to accelerate uncontrollably with the driver passing several red lights, narrowly avoiding a couple of crashes only to end up rear-ending a stopped car at a speed of 117km/h (72mph) - at least according to the GPS data displayed on the video.
Korean news sites said that the Daegu Nambu Police is investigating the accident and has asked the National Institute of Scientific Investigation for help.
Any assistance from our Korean readers to translate what is being said in the video, would be appreciated.

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Kia Elan Roadster is a Lotus for the Masses

Back in the late 1980s, two automakers with very different values and historical backgrounds each set out to build a roadster model for mainstream enthusiasts. The two brands were Mazda with its MX-5, also known as Miata in North America and Eunos Roadster in Japan, and Lotus, then owned by General Motors, with the Elan M100. Both two-seater models were presented in 1989, but only one managed to become a phenomenal sales success, and that was the MX-5.
Ironically, Mazda's goal was to create a direct descendant of the original Lotus Elan from the 1960s, with a nostalgic feel in terms of styling, lightweight philosophy and rear-wheel drive setup, adapted of course, to the times.
On the other hand, the British automaker purposely designed a futuristic successor that maintained the handling and nimbleness of the original Elan, but instead of RWD, opted for a FWD layout, the first and last time Lotus tried it on a production model.
Even though the modern Elan was praised for its handling and forward looking styling, it ultimately fell victim to its high price having to compete with the cheaper and more reliable MX-5, and the fact that it was not as entertaining on the road as a rear-wheel driven model.
The Lotus Elan remained in production from 1989 to 1995 being offered with a choice of two modified 1.6-liter four-cylinder engines sourced from Isuzu, which was then also controlled by GM. The base, naturally aspirated version produced 130hp (132PS), while the Lotus-developed turbo variant was good for 162hp (164PS).
After ending production of the Elan in 1995, Lotus sold the car's rights to Kia Motors, which at the time, was an independently run automaker. Kia built the Elan in South Korea for three years from 1996 until 1999 (in 1997, Kia went bankrupt with Hyundai stepping in to take a controlling stake of 51 percent in the company the following year).
Visually, Kia's version of the Elan, was almost identical to the original Lotus model sans some negligible differences such as the badges, the goofy looking tail lamps and some interior parts such as the steering wheel, gear shifter knob and instrument panel graphics.
The most important modification to the design, however, was the replacement of the original Elan's 1.6-liter engine with one of Kia's own motors, a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 152hp (154PS).
Needless to say, the Kia flavored Elan is a much rarer automobile than the original Lotus model, but we did manage to find two examples up for sale in Germany.
The first one, featured in a black finish, has covered 75,000km (46,600 miles) and is priced at €7,700 (US$10,170), while the yellow colored model with 65,000km (40,400 miles) could be yours for €9,600 (US$12,700).

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First Official Photos of Kia's New K9 RWD Sedan

Only hours after we shared with you a video showing the Kia K9 without any camouflage whatsoever, the South Korean automaker revealed the first official photographs of its all-new flagship sedan that will be launched in its home market this summer. Initially referred to by its codename 'KH', Kia confirmed that the Korean market version of the car will be named 'K9' adding that the name for export markets, as well as overseas launch timings, will be announced later this year.
With the new K9, Kia completes its domestic range of "K" sedans, which also include the K5 (Optima in overseas markets) and K7 (Cadenza in overseas markets).
We'll start with the first thing we noticed about the K9 and that has to do with its design. What started out as a hunch when Kia showed us a handful of teaser sketches of its first ever rear-wheel drive saloon has now became more of a certainty. And yes, as many of you also noticed, the K9 appears to borrow one too many styling elements from BMW and especially its 7-Series flagship.
We could go on and on, but some of the things that stand out are the headlamp "eyebrow" accents, the low forward bend in the C-pillar and the rear end design as a whole – notice for example, the reverse lights incorporated into the chrome trim on the boot.
That doesn't mean the K9 isn't a good looking car, in fact, we wouldn't be surprised if some may find it more handsome than the 7-Series.
Soon-Nam Lee, Kia's Director of the Overseas Marketing Group, commented on presentation of the firm's new flagship : "K9 is our first rear-wheel drive large sedan, created without compromise in its design, driving performance and new technologies. K9 sets a whole new level of standards and values in the large sedan segment, and its design will be another Kia demonstration of our brand's power to surprise the world."
Kia did not release any additional information on the K9, but as we previously noted, it most likely shares its platform and engine range with the Hyundai Genesis, meaning it could be offered with the same 3.8-liter V6, and 4.6-liter and 5.0-liter V8 units.

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Ssangyong Introduces New Korando Sports in South Korea

The South Korean maker known for building some of the ugliest production cars in recent times, Ssangyong, has launched the production version of the SUT 1 Concept model that premiered in Geneva last year in its home market. The new Korando Sports, which replaces the Actyon Sports – one of Ssangyong's "lookers" we told you about, is a four-door SUV with a pickup truck bed described by the Korean company as a leisure utility vehicle (LUV).
While more conventional looking than both the 2002 Musso Sports and the 2006 Actyon Sports, the Korando Sports won't be winning any beauty contests anytime soon.
Power for the Korando Sports comes courtesy of a 2.0-liter e-XDi200 diesel engine that churns out 155-horses and 36.7kgm of peak torque returning a combined fuel economy of 15.6km/lt (36.7mpg US or 6.4lt/100km). It is available with both rear- and all-wheel drive.
Ssangyong, which was recently acquired by Indian industrial giant Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said that the diesel engine meets the Euro5 norms.

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