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Kia bared its Soul at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, and that's the last time we're going to make a pun on this car's model name, we swear. The Soul could be seen as a Scion xB rip-off, but we really like the look of this new little car. It has the same functionality as the xB, but with a fresh new look. Interior options are interesting, as well, including a mood lighting system for the stereo. iPod integration is standard.
Click here for photos of the new Kia Soul at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
Our favorite part of any car show are the concepts, design studies shown off by automakers to test audience reaction. At the 2008 Paris Motor Show, we've caught a wide variety of concept cars demonstrating everything from small, eco-friendly city cars to high-performance exotics. Some of these cars are merely a gleam in their designers' eyes, while others are already being slated for production. Take a look at the automotive future.
Click here for photos of concept cars from the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
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Mazda's Kiyora concept uses the Nagare styling theme.
(Credit: CBS Interactive)The Kiyora concept, shown at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, is another in Mazda's lineup of concept cars featuring Nagare styling. Mazda designers have built a new Nagare concept car for almost every major auto show. Nagare means flow in Japanese, and the cars built under this concept show styling cues that represent the way wind and water flow over earth and rock.
The design is intended to evoke water.
(Credit: CBS Interactive)Although previous cars in this design theme have been low and sporty, the Kiyora captures the strong trend at the Paris show for small city cars. As such, it is designed as a compact four seater with minimal cargo space.
Mazda specifies a 1.3-liter engine for the Kiyora, using similar variable valve timing tech and direct injection as the 2.3-liter engine found in the CX-7. Along with low displacement, the powertrain enhances its economy with an idle-stop system, a feature commonly found in hybrid cars. Although Mazda hasn't specified actual fuel economy numbers, it does tout CO2 emissions of just 90 grams per kilometer, a particularly good rating compared with current cars.
As the theme for the Kiyora, the notion of water gets carried throughout the interior and exterior styling, and even to one innovative feature. Large translucent panels in the doors evoke the clearness of water, while the front of the car looks like a bow wave. The driver interface uses a large, curved touch screen which, when the car is stopped, shows fixed icons. Turn the car on, and these control icons flow down to positions previously set by the driver.
Organic shapes define the interior.
(Credit: CBS Interactive)As a typically exotic feature for a concept car, but still within the water theme, the roof is designed to channel rain water to a carbon filter. The filtered water is caught in a bottle between the front seats so that passengers always have fresh water on hand. This is truly the car for a water-starved future.
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GM gives the Chevy Volt its first auto show exposure at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. With a game-changing powertrain, the Volt is as relevant in Europe as it is in the U.S. The Volt uses a series hybrid system, using an electric motor to drive the wheels with a gas engine to generate more electricity once the car's lithium ion battery pack is depleted.
Under electric power alone, the car has a 40-mile range and can be recharged at any AC outlet. For many people, that range will cover their daily commute, which will result in no actual gas usage during a typical work day.
Click here for photos of the 2011 Chevy Volt at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
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SHOW NOTES
• CNET's Paris Motor Show coverage
• Clarion MiND in-car computer thingie
• Lamborghini Estoque has four doors
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Senior Editor Wayne Cunningham reported earlier on Audi's A4 iPhone app and found that instead of being an innovative way to interface with your vehicle via iPhone, it was merely a game designed to market the newly updated A4 sedan. Recently, Audi updated the app with two new unlockable vehicles and some tweaks to the controls. Having recently purchased an iPod Touch, I decided to take Audi's app for a spin.
The Audi A4 Driving Challenge 2.0, which is a free download from the iTunes App Store, is played by holding the iPhone in landscape orientation. Thumbs are used to press the gas and brake buttons in the lower corners, while steering uses the iPhone's accelerometers and is handled by twisting the device like a car's steering wheel. Players race the Audi A4 2.0T Quattro against the clock in a time trial style on any of five courses of increasing difficulty. Once all five courses have been cleared in the allocated time, the player is given the option to upgrade to the 3.2 Quattro model and subsequently the R8.
The game's top-down view doesn't offer much in the way of scenery.
(Credit: Audi of America Inc.)Driving in the game isn't by any means realistic and every race can be completed without ever lifting off of the throttle or tapping the brakes. The top down view and horizontal screen orientation means that you won't be able see what's coming, resulting in more than a few frustrating off-track excursions. Additionally, every course is essentially a corridor of cones and the only scenery you'll get is gray asphalt whizzing past.
Here's a peek at the game's most difficult track.
(Credit: Audi of America Inc.)The odd thing was that in spite of the game's flaws, I couldn't stop playing. While it's no Gran Turismo, Audi's little iPhone app is a pretty fun distraction during a boring commute on the train. The steering is a little touchy, but once you get the hang of it, the game is quite easy to play. Ghost car data of your fastest lap adds replay value, allowing players to try to beat their best time. Couple that with the can't-be-beat price of free and we've got a winner.
Of course, at it's core, the game is a marketing app for Audi's vehicles, but it's not an overt one. At no point did Audi make me sit through a commercial or a sales pitch. The link to the iPhone optimized site sits quietly on the main menu screen for you to click or ignore. I think this minor amount of advertising is well worth being able to play a cool, free game.
In this new version, the player is able to unlock two vehicle upgrades, including the R8 halo car.
(Credit: Audi of America Inc.)For those wondering, I did eventually unlock the R8. While it was fun to drive on my iPod Touch, I'm fairly certain that driving on a twisty mountain road would be infinitely more fun.
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Lesley Stahl reports on the race between Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and Detroit auto executives to develop and produce a viable electric car. Check out this clip of Lesley getting a taste of what the Tesla Roadster can do, then check out 60 Minutes: The Race For The Electric Car this Sunday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
Audi had us drooling over the S-line cars at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, but of the three we cover here, only one will be available in the U.S. Audi showed off the new S4, based on the redesigned A4 launched last year, which has some very interesting changes over the previous S4 model. We also got a look at the S3 and RS6, the latter billed as the most powerful production sedan in the world.
Click here for photos of the Audi S3, S4, and RS6 at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
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Not wanting to be left out of the luxury hybrid market created by Lexus, BMW unveiled the ActiveHybrid 7 Series at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. A mild hybrid by definition, the electric motor exists only to assist the gasoline engine. We can't help but to wonder: how much electric assistance do you need with a 4.4 liter, twin-turbocharged V-8 under the hood?
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The Ferrari California, unveiled in Paris and available in your living room.
(Credit: Sony/Polyphony Digital)Polyphony has released an update for the driving simulator to include three new cars from recent automotive shows, along with a smattering of new features.
The GTbyCitroen concept was, in a way, reverse-digitized.
(Credit: Sony/Polyphony Digital)If ever there were a great example of "a life gone digital," it's the pixel-perfect digitization of popular and historic cars by Polyphony's team of digital gearheads. The GTbyCitroen concept takes the digitization process and flips it backwards. French automaker Citroen designed the concept exclusively to be featured in the game, and then built a one-off model for the Paris show. The Citroen is joined by the aforementioned Ferrari California and the Lotus Evora, from the 2008 British motor show. Of course, while the update is free, you'll still have to earn the vehicles in-game to unlock them.
This is probably as close as most of us will ever get to a Lotus Evora.
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