I test drove both, and its not that bad. Being a 6spd automatic, it makes the ride around town hassle free, but I never got the hang of their shift-tronic pattern and I guess it burned me that a manual was available elsewhere. I drove almost 300 miles from home to get the manual, and am glad I did. The skyactiv is…

Which is also the best model as far as fuel economy goes. I know, because that is why I bought mine :-)

Press play on Initial D theme,
Press play on glow-in-the-dark Leaf vid (and watch on mute).
Instant slow-mo Initial D animation lolol

There is no possible, practical reason for an overpowered mini-SUV like this to exist... but I want one!

Having owned one, I came here to see the Toyota Hilux on the list; am not disappointed!

Thanks for your service. Semper Paratus!

Wishful thinking, but I like your spirit. One star for you.

"We'd do an SUV that is very light, very fast on the track and has outstanding handling," he said. "I'm a bit torn between an SUV and a four-door sports car — but in the end I can see that the SUV has the bigger market."

On the contrary, there was beauty in its simplicity!

we didn't get any of those body styles in the USA, so its new to us.

Only if there is no other choice. I wanted a wagon because I go fishing and kayaking on weekends but drive 50 miles roundtrip during a work day so pickup truck would be too costly in gas, and I actually enjoy driving hatchbacks. Anyway, my choices were so limited for manual wagons that I settled on a Mazda CX5 with…

I lol'd so I would say success!

I used to think the worst drivers existed in Los Angeles when I lived there. Now I live in South Florida and realized that things can always get worse. I am shocked that neither LA nor Miami topped the "naughty list" cited in the study.

I didn't think I would ever say this about a KIA, but...

Can you give us a REAL-WORLD mpg figure? Set a trip meter at your next fill-up, then at the next fill-up let us know how many gallons, how many miles, and what kind of driving was done please!

good question!

Actually that's interesting. Outside the US, I think I noticed the same as true for the Toyota Hilux. The order of ascending desirability/trim-level was small gas engine, small Diesel, Turbo-Diesel, Larger engine sizes. The non-turbo diesel and small gas engine variants were the cheap options.

Actually, that doesn't sound too bad. Count me among that market niche in 2+ years: Future dad with high mileage requirements during the work week and kayaking/fishing on the weekends when wife/kid allows it. Salty/sandy/wet equipment can be thrown in the truckbed, but don't need excessive towing capacity.

I was thinking the same thing! Too bad most of these would be heavy to the point of cumbersome to clean, polish and/or modify for said coolant lines. Especially if you went to a junk yard to find one to work on and its an old cast iron block :-/