Kia has just announced that its first-ever electric auto, the 2015 Soul EV, will join the electron-powered automobile fray in California by the finish of October at pre-federal-rebate beginning rates of $ 34,500 for the base model and $ 36,500 for the Plus. (The rebate will slash $ 7500 from the sticker.)
Regular goodies include a rear camera, Bluetooth connectivity, energy windows, cruise manage, a 6.6-kW onboard charger, and a unique climate-handle program developed to minimize energy use. The value also includes 5 years of UVO EV services, which utilizes an embedded Verizon telematics technique and an attendant smartphone app to give owners real-time battery state of charge and range data, heat or cool the interior remotely, as nicely as support search for nearby charging stations. Oh yeah, and it tosses in a navigation method, too. The EV Plus model adds seats upholstered in leather—heated for all outboard seats and cooled as properly for front-seaters—plus fog lamps and power-folding exterior mirrors.
Compared to the present crop of EVs, the Soul is priced higher than the 2015 Nissan Leaf ($ 29,860) and the 2015 Fiat 500e ($ 32,650), but comes in beneath the 2015 Ford Concentrate Electric ($ 35,995) and VW’s new e-Golf ($ 36,265). Element in the federal tax credit and regional government incentives, which stay fairly generous in California, and the value for any EV can come down considerably. An introductory lease price tag of $ 249 per month with $ 1999 down is also an alternative for the Soul EV.
Kia promises to start promoting the Soul EV in other markets that it has identified as having increasingly robust EV infrastructures beginning next year, which could contain as New York, New Jersey, and Maryland, amongst other states.
Kia has just announced that its first-ever electric car, the 2015 Soul EV, will join the electron-powered vehicle fray in California by the end of October at pre-federal-rebate starting prices of $ 34,500 for the base model and $ 36,500 for the Plus. (The rebate will slash $ 7500 from the sticker.)
Standard goodies include a rear camera, Bluetooth connectivity, power windows, cruise control, a 6.6-kW onboard charger, and a unique climate-control system designed to minimize energy use. The price also includes 5 years of UVO EV services, which uses an embedded Verizon telematics system and an attendant smartphone app to give owners real-time battery state of charge and range information, heat or cool the interior remotely, as well as help search for nearby charging stations. Oh yeah, and it tosses in a navigation system, too. The EV Plus model adds seats upholstered in leather—heated for all outboard seats and cooled as well for front-seaters—plus fog lamps and power-folding exterior mirrors.
Compared to the current crop of EVs, the Soul is priced higher than the 2015 Nissan Leaf ($ 29,860) and the 2015 Fiat 500e ($ 32,650), but comes in below the 2015 Ford Focus Electric ($ 35,995) and VW’s new e-Golf ($ 36,265). Factor in the federal tax credit and regional government incentives, which remain pretty generous in California, and the price for any EV can come down considerably. An introductory lease price of $ 249 per month with $ 1999 down is also an option for the Soul EV.
Kia promises to start selling the Soul EV in other markets that it has identified as having increasingly robust EV infrastructures starting next year, which may include as New York, New Jersey, and Maryland, among other states.
Porsche’s guilty pleasure, the Cayenne SUV, is back and prepared to hold cash billowing into business coffers. Of course, the Cayenne never left, but for 2015 Porsche has offered its purist-infuriating higher-overall performance crossover a modest refresh and swapped in a few new powertrains for excellent measure. Let’s take a look.
The 2015 Cayenne’s modifications are about as serious as the 2014 Panamera sedan/hatchback’s tweaks . . . in that they aren’t really severe at all. The front fenders and fascia are new, the latter possessing turn into far sleeker and sexier than the existing Cayenne’s reduce maw. Porsche also sprinkled 918 Spyder–inspired touches over the SUV, like the now-normal 4-dot LED running lights embedded in every single headlight, far more-horizontal taillights, and even the steering wheel, which appears to have been snatched straight out of the hybrid supercar.
In what’s becoming some thing of a trend for Porsche, not each and every Cayenne iteration we know today is being relaunched as a 2015 model—at least, not initially. To start off, only the Cayenne S, Diesel, Turbo, and the all-new S E-Hybrid plug-in variation will be available. We anticipate the base (non-S), high-functionality GTS, even-greater-efficiency Turbo S, and possibly much more versions will trickle out over the next year or 2.
The Diesel carries over its 240-hp, turbocharged 3.-liter V-6 diesel engine, as does the Turbo with its twin-turbocharged 4.8-liter V-8, though that engine gains an added 20 horsepower, for a total of 520. The S, however, ditches its naturally aspirated 4.8-liter V-8 for Porsche’s new twin-turbocharged 3.6-liter V-6, which puts out 420 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque, the identical twist and 20 a lot more horsepower than it does in the smaller Macan Turbo. The S E-Hybrid, which replaces the old S Hybrid, characteristics the very same plug-in-hybrid powertrain employed in the Panamera S E-Hybrid. The new method also gets a much more effective electric motor—95 horsepower versus the S Hybrid’s 47-hp unit—but pairs it with the same 333-hp supercharged 3.-liter V-6. Total technique output rises to 416 horsepower and 435 lb-ft of torque, increases of 36 and 7. Final fuel-economy figures for all 4 models haven’t been finalized, but Porsche says improvements to its engine cease-begin function (normal on all new Cayennes), “optimized thermal management,” and new active grille shutters need to slightly lessen the SUV’s thirst
.On the more-enjoyable topic of overall performance, Porsche claims that the new twin-turbocharged S and the Turbo models are slightly quicker to 60 mph than the old versions, but we’ll wait for a suitable test to establish the veracity of those boasts. Each 2015 Cayenne once more gets an 8-speed automatic and all-wheel drive as standard, though we’re holding out hope that the base model returns and revives the manual-transmission choice that had been available final year.
Absent any standard- or optional-feature specifics, Porsche has released pricing for the 4 2015 Cayenne models. Prepare yourself—it’s a bitter pill to swallow. The Diesel’s cost jumps $ 5100 to $ 62,695, although the S’s bottom line balloons $ 7300 to $ 75,095. Provided its enormous infusion of plug-in technologies, the $ 77,395 S E-Hybrid’s $ 5500 improve more than the 2014 S Hybrid appears justified, whilst the $ 3200 bump for the $ 114,595 2015 Turbo is practically demure.
From our perspective, the Cayenne’s steep price hikes most likely have far more to do with the birth of the smaller Macan SUV than any genuine gains in standard equipment. When the Macan hit the marketplace, we noted that its splendiferous pricing fell appropriate on prime of the bigger and in some circumstances a lot more effective Cayenne. Porsche has apparently solved that issue. The Cayenne MSRP’s added fat must mean more profits for Porsche, so sports-vehicle purists need to quit their cries of “conflagration!” Soon after all, this updated behemoth is maintaining the lights on in Stuttgart.
