By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos Canada

Ever since the new, seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf went on-sale in overseas’ markets late last year, Canadian new car buyers have been wondering what the German automaker’s plans were for importing its compact hatchback to Canada. Wonder no more. During a recent media event in Germany, Volkswagen Canada confirmed some details about the forthcoming new-generation Golf heading to our shores for 2014.

By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos

The old adage of there never being such a thing as a pick-proof lock is being prooved once again by persistent car-thieves. According to this story from ABC News in California, a couple of people were caught on tape easily breaking into a number of vehicles using some sort of palm-sized gadget to disable the alarms and open the doors.

Police are stumped about what the possible technology could be although apparently the string of thefts stretching as far north as Illinois means it's more than just an isolated incident. The amount of development that goes into anti-theft technology by the automakers is pretty amazing, but nothing is foolproof.

Although some think the devices could be cloned key fobs that were duplicated illegally by dealership employees, that would seem difficult to believe since so many different kinds of vehicles were stolen at the same time. The video shows two Acuras getting nicked, while police say Mazdas and BMWs have also gone, but an older Cadillac and Ford Escape proved immune to the gadget.

One MSN Autos Canada editor believes that's what happened on her street last year when newer vehicles were burglarized while older ones weren't touched at all.

Have you heard about this phenomenon? Know anyone whose vehicle has been mysteriously stolen or burglarized in a similar manner? Let us know in the comments!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos Canada

According to BMW’s new naming gospel, some four-door models are odd-numbered, while coupés —whether they have two-doors or four— are even-numbered, which means what we used to know as the 3 Series Coupé is now called the 4 Series Coupé for 2014.

By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos

It didn't take long after the Ram 1500 Outdoorsman was exchanged for an Audi TT-RS for my young daughter to start asking questions: "Daddy, did Garry [Sowerby] bring us a racecar?" Well, given its big wing, loud exhaust and enormous wheels, her confusion is really easy to understand. We've done the kind of daddy-daughter drives in fun cars where she'll giggle and say, "faster, Daddy, faster!" It's great stuff!

Unfortunately, the back seat of the TT-RS might be too tight for me to install her carseat, and although she's getting taller, she's still three or four kilos too light to legally use a booster seat in New Brunswick. Although differing plans meant we couldn't try the matte silver Audi as a family yet, it's quite the machine and once the rain stops today I'll see if I can contort myself back there to secure it properly.

The TT-RS does turn plenty of heads and I already had a guy at a pizza shop tell me it was the 'cleanest TT' he's ever seen. I'll let you know how the rest of the week goes...

So how did you spend the Father's Day weekend? Anything car-related? Did you watch some racing? Hit up a cruise event? Take your favourite route to the cottage? Let us know in the comments.

By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos

Earlier this week, we previewed the inaugural Mazda Adventure Rally, a two-day two-state long-distance media event that served two purposes: a chance to put in tonnes of seat time in the new 2014 CX-5 and revised CX-9 SUVs and the opportunity to win up to $10,000 to be donated to the charity of our choice.

While the full write-up with more detailed stories will be forthcoming soon, we've put at least a few thoughts down here, along with a few photos to whet the appetite. 

The event started in Boulder, CO and ended in Sunshine, UT - home of the eponymous film festival - with an overnight in Telluride, CO splitting the two. In between were 10-hour driving days filled with some of the most entertaining and challenging roads and off-road trails we'd ever experienced, along with awe-inspiring scenery and locales that simply defy description.

Highlights on the first day included climbing to nearly 12,000 ft at the Loveland Pass along the continental divide, and the Ophir Pass, which although not quite as high was far more difficult to ascend. On the way up, the single-track is mainly gravel but was relatively tree-covered; the way down is called a shelf road, which is exactly what it sounds like - an extremely narrow shelf cut into the mountainside with thousand-foot drop-offs only a few centimeters away from the edge. Guardrails? Hah. No guardrails.

Once in Utah, the alien Mars-scape of the off-road trails around Moab proved tricky and challenging, and the Pucker Pass did live up to its name thanks to some poorly-located sand near the top of an incredibly steep ascent. And the unimpeded views of the state's majesty from the top of Dead Horse Point make any description inadequate.

Through it all, the CX-5 and CX-9 proved near-perfect travel companions, although the altitude did mean both were left gasping for breath in the thin air. Using some quick math, the 184-horsepower 2.5-litre SKYACTIV four-cylinder in the former is only able to produce about 120 of them at that level of elevation. The 3.7-litre V6 in the larger CX-9 proved equally handicapped, but since we used it during the second day in Utah where the peak altitude was closer to 7,000 ft, it was less noticeable. 

Although we'll get into a better explanation of the hows and whys, after the first day, we were sitting dead-last amongst 10 teams. Never an ideal situation, although it mainly had to do with time penalties taken while trying to 'go-big-or-go-home' during the second challenge regarding hitting the highest and lowest altitude along the route... Day 2 saw us knuckle down with a pretty simple goal: not to finish dead-last. And that's pretty much what we did, with an official result of eighth place, along with the 'Sir Edmund Hillary' award for our attempted climb into the stratosphere.

The winners were a team from Vancouver that included Alexandra Straub and Zac Spencer of Driving Television, netting the full $10,000 for Kidsport. Mazda also surprised everyone by also including awards for second- and third-place ($2,000 and $1,000 respectively), which went to teams from Carpages.ca and AutoGuide.com.

Congrats to everyone involved, and another big thanks to Mazda Canada and their partners at Vehicle Dynamics Group who organized the whole event. If we're invited back for next year, you can bet we'll be shooting for gold!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos Canada

Japan’s Toyota seems serious about changing its image as an appliance maker. After last year’s compact Toyota FT 86/Scion FRS/Subaru BRZ rear-wheel-drive triplets were so well received by driving enthusiasts and the media, a second, larger Toyota sports car now seems imminent. And the automaker’s incoming chairmen, Takeshi Uchiyamada, is pushing hard for that car to be reminiscent of Toyota’s iconic Supra from the 1990s.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos Canada

With almost five months of inventory sitting on its U.S. dealer lots — more than double the supply analysts’ say is normal — General Motors’ Chevrolet brand has started offering up to $5,000 U.S. dollars (USD) in purchase incentives on its Volt plug-in electric gas electric hybrid.

By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos

As the old marketing axiom goes, it costs a lot less to keep a customer than win a new one, and America’s Ford continues to lead in keeping its customers coming back to its showrooms.

According to the U.S.-based Polk research firm, for the fist three months of 2013, Ford continues to win back customers with a brand loyalty rate of 65.1 per cent among new vehicle owners — the best in the industry. Toyota ranked second at 58.5 per cent, with Honda coming in third spot with a 57 per cent score. Chevrolet (56.2 per cent), and Mercedes-Benz and Nissan (tied at 55.9 per cent) rounded out the top six brands.

There always has to be losers in these types of reports. And sitting at the bottom of the surveyed brands was Mazda at 37 per cent. However, that’s a 7.8 per cent improvement from Polk’s rating from the first quarter of 2012.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos Canada

OTTAWA – As our own Mark Atkinson has already written, Toyota is taking some bold steps with its new 2014 Toyota Corolla compact sedan to keep it relevant in a segment chock-a-block with competition from rival top-sellers like the Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra.

By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos

Well, the waiting is over. Toyota has taken the wraps off its all-new 2014 Corolla early and at least in certain trims levels and angles, the car is much better looking than we were expecting. The car benefits from a 10-cm stretch in overall length and an equal increase in wheelbase, but thankfully Toyota worked to keep its curb-weight down to just over 1,300 kg.

The sporty S package gets a deeper front grille, 17-inch wheels and foglights, but remains mechanically identical to the rest. That means a 132-horsepower 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine powering the front wheels. Transmission choices are eight a six-speed manual or all-new  'intelligent' CVT that replaces the ancient four-speed automatic of old. There's also a new LE Eco model, which - bizarrely - gets a more powerful version of the same engine (140-hp vs. 132), along with aerodynamic tweaks and low-rolling-resistance tires.

he interior looks to be a complete revelation from the previous generation thanks to more expensive materials and a design that didn't originate in the late '90s. Standard features like Bluetooth handsfree and eight airbags will certainly help in this incredibly tight and competitive market...

We'll have a first-drive article up on the main MSN Autos Canada site reasonably soon, which should give more details regarding how the car drives, along with pricing and fuel-economy expectations.

But just glancing at the pictures, do you think Toyota's done enough with the latest Corolla? Can it start taking bigger chunks of sales away from the Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra and Mazda3? Let us know in the comments.