Airaid 451-328 Mustang Mxp Series Cai Red Synthamax Gt 2015-16 on 2040-parts.com

Demise of kei cars on the horizon?

The kei car has long been a staple of the Japanese automobile industry and its car culture. Too diminutive for Western markets, the tiny cars and trucks are a strong influencer of design in Japan. Now, as The New York Times reports, the Japanese government has hit kei cars with increases in sales tax, gasoline prices and has reduced the kei car tax break introduced to make the cars popular in the first place by 50 percent.

Toyota recalls 86,500 hybrids in the U.S, 250,000 cars total

Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 242,000 hybrid vehicles worldwide, including 86,500 Toyota Prius and Lexus HS 250h hybrids in the United States, to fix a braking glitch. The problem affects only model year 2010 Prius and HS 250h vehicles.

Kia Borrego

Kia has released photos of the Borrego, a full-size SUV for the North American market. The production model, which was originally previewed as the Mesa Concept at the 2005 Detroit Auto show, would have taken exactly three years to be transformed from a show car to a full production model when it makes its official debut at the NAIAS in 2008. Overall proportions and design details have been adjusted and toned-down noticeably from the Mesa concept, with details such as more realistically-sized alloy wheels, the body-To-DLO ratio, a no-frills interior and, perhaps most apparent, the more subtle greenhouse graphics.