#EconomyCar

Audi has once again won the Silvretta Electric Car Rally in Austria’s Montafon region. Last year, the R8 e-tron won the competition, and this year, a Q5 also competed finishing sixth place out of 32 vehicles.

Toyota’s new Yaris is built on the strengths the Yaris has become known for including its durability, versatility, efficient engines and easy to drive nature. Toyota has now taken these key aspects into the new model and gone further to offer a sharper, more agile, more contemporary looking vehicle.

Mitsubishi is becoming much more aggressive regarding future EV sales in its home market of Japan. Currently Mitsubishi’s i-MiEV sells for 3.98 million yen which equals $49,200. Government subsidies bring the price down a million yen equalling $36,900. The i-MiEV’s chief rival, the  Nissan Leaf costs 3.76 million yen which equals $46,500 before subsidies and is the more popular choice compared to the Mitsubishi.

Fiat North America is ready to launch its first national ad campaign. The new campaign will kick off with a special event on July 4, the 54th anniversary of the original Fiat 500, said Laura Soave, head of Fiat North America.

The next generation Mercedes-Benz B-Class will make its debut at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show in September, however photos have been leaked, and we have them.

The all new stylish 2012 Toyota Vitz model, sold here as the Yaris, appears to have new photos, that is if these pics from a Hungarian Toyota dealership’s Facebook page are anything to go by.

In light of post-earthquake supply disruptions, Honda Civics may be a bit scarce where you are, but in Canada where the Civic has been the number-one selling car for 13 years straight, they now come in giant cereal boxes – or so a Vancouver ad agency would have you believe.

Honda is already marketing the car to a younger audience with fantastical themes, but this takes it to a new level, and may become a trend in trying to get peoples’ attention in an age where many think we’ve seen just about everything.

A similarly larger-than-life ad was a facade for a recent tall Hot Wheels ad on a real highway made to look like a car could do a quick loop along its way.

[Source: Adweek]

See video after the jump.

The U.S National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has closed its investigation into the power steering system in the 2009-2010 Toyota Corolla with no defects found.

Lincoln may show an updated version of its Concept C small car at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show, as automakers of all stripes begin rolling out their new smaller, fuel efficient cars that feature much of the same equipment as more upscale models.

Hyundai‘s Veloster sports coupe will have its North American introduction delayed by two months due to a labor dispute involving a union at its South Korean factory.

The 2012 Honda Civic is a crucial product for Honda. As the competition gets better and better, Honda will have to fight to retain customers in the compact car segment, an area where they were the undisputed champions for decades. But with the new Chevrolet Cruze, Hyundai Elantra and Ford Focus nipping at its heels, Honda has been forced to double down its efforts and ensure that the Civic is a winner.

Despite being written off as a failure in both critical acclaim and unit sales, the Honda Insight has seen sales explode as higher gas prices, a promotional blitz and a general upward trend in sales resulted in a 62.2 percent improvement in year-over-year sales numbers for Honda’s hybrid hatchback.

While Hyundai‘s undoubtedly been on a roll lately, they haven’t quite managed to bend the laws of physics, despite what their newest stunt may suggest.

Hyundai’s Malaysian arm suspended a 2012 Accent from the vertical face of a building, and had a driver wearing some futuristic garb descend towards the Accent. Through the use of some trick 3D projection and properly spinning wheels, the Accent really looks like it’s driving. Check out the video below.

General Motors will recall 2,100 Chevrolet Cruze sedans after a steering wheel came loose from the car’s steering column recently. General Motors claims that no injuries resulted from the problem, and a bolt that was not properly installed was the culprit.

The initial slow start to the Chevrolet Volt rollout sped up in March with sales of more than twice the number than were sold in January and February combined.