They are controversial, as a lot of motorheads (including too many auto journalists that I never hang with) hate them, for they find the concept of fuel efficiency and amazingly low emissions boring and prefer raw power and big, brawny styling. Hybrids are weenie little cars that should be ground beneath the wheels of Power Wagons and Raptors, for fuel mileage and low emissions mean nothing. Right? Torque is everything, and climate change concerns are for Al Gore and his liberal weenie followers.
I do not grok these sad, punk-ass ignorant thoughts. I am quite found of pretty much every production hybrid I’ve driven (with the exception of some early GM efforts that were really hybrids in name only), and enough time and mileage has gone by that the public has discovered these are amazingly reliable vehicles. Toyota gets the credit for really mainstreaming the hybrid automobile and establishing a huge base of satisfied customers, and now they are expanding hybrid technology to all corners of their extensive product offerings, including their top-shelf Lexus line. I was able to score a Lexus HS250h sedan, which is really interesting in that unlike a lot of US Lexus models it’s not a car that resembles an existing Toyota model that gets luxuriated to the Lexus standard. This sedan, which is unique in the family, does seem familiar in that it’s kind of like if you blended a Prius and Camry (sorry, ES350) together. Toyota calls it, “Lexus’ first dedicated hybrid model,” meaning here in the states there is no non-hybrid version of this car, like the Prius but unlike the Camry. An Inline Four engine is mated to an electric motor and a CVT gearbox, and there are different modes you can use to tune the performance of the front-drive drivetrain to perform at different levels (like eco or power). There’s also an EV mode, where you can purr along engineless at low speed for a mile or two like a ‘lectric lion. The handling is considerably sharper than the Camry, as it’s sprung a bit firmer. The cabin is narrow, but very comfy and loaded with high tech geekology. Too much, in my view, when we discuss the Remote Touch Controller which is very much like a computer mouse and resembles Audi’s Multi Media Interface and BMW’s iDrive. I will be candid, as I can on this lovely little site: I hate all of these things. They require you to literally go through more motions than is necessary for a variety of simple actions; the kinds of things (like tamper with the radio) that are much more easily accomplished with a more traditional array of intelligently-designed controls. But they look really slick and cool, and while I expect such over-engineered technoscheiss from BMW and Audi I’m disappointed that Lexus ran with this goofology.
But there is other ubertech that is most welcome. Adaptive cruise control that works well (the radar sensor is in the middle of the grill), a very advanced Pre-Collision System, the lane wandering light goober, and other goodies too numerous to mention (there’s at least ten airbags, too). Oh, then there’s a favorite, a bit of simple but brilliant engineering called an Exhaust Heat Recovery System. In the words of Lexus, the bit of exhaust output scavenging “captures the heat of spent exhaust gases to speed engine coolant warm-up and allow the hybrid system to stop the engine earlier and more often in the driving cycle when it’s not needed, for example in low power demand conditions in city driving.”

I love the fact that we’re finally trying to capture what used to be waste and make it work for us, just like regenerative braking takes the kinetic energy of the hybrid you’re driving and use it to recharge the battery. Simple. Elegant.
And speaking of elegant, this is a very classy sedan. A very solid, satisfying Lexus that returned 34 MPG, in a certain silence. A good way to go, overall, if the room suits you.

Well, what have we here? What we have is the Kia Forte Koup, which is a two-door sibling to the Kia Forte sedan (which is actually quite interesting its ownself). I actually met this chap at an excellent party thrown during the NYC Internat’l Auto Show, like, two years ago. The car was parked in a small and very cool little art gallery, and shrouded (except for a portion of the front bumper and one headlight) in a fashionable wrap. It was a pretty clever way to tease the sportiest Kia we’ve ever seen, although it did take a pretty long time for it to appear in showrooms.

Anyway, it’s finally on the road and very different than what I expected. First, it’s very affordable. From a styling standpoint, I think it’s pretty outstanding. The overall form is well proportioned; with fast, swoopy lines that are familiar yet manages to have a look all its own. Inside, there are some pleasant surprises. The seats are pleasingly supportive with great lateral bolsters and the big thing is this tight little Coup (Sorry. Koup) has more room than you would expect. Even the rear seat can handle actual humans, and it’s pretty comfy which is unusual in this class. They have done a nice job with this creature in all the things that will please folks who want something that says “hey, lookit me,” and yet you can take a few folks along without excessive bitching, as long as they aren’t Ents. There’s a decent-sized trunk, too, and 60/40 foldable seatbacks so there is some practicality in this K-Car.

Where I was disappointed was the performance, for while it wasn’t a slug (and I had the larger of the two Inline Fours but a 4-Speed Automatic) you just wanted more given the look and atmosphere of the cockpit. Handling is reasonably crisp, with decent suspension compliance. Brakes were a high point, with really short stopping distances and excellent feedback.

But hey, the price of admission is such that it’s not hard to realize why this is a front-drive inline Four instead a Rear-drive V6 or V8-powered Road Warrior in a tux. Once I got around that, I say well done. I just was completely seduced when I first saw the thing and was thinking it might be a Kia-ized Genesis coup (Hyundai owns Kia) but they decided to go their own way and keep it affordable and economical. Because of this, it sort of occupies its own niche which can be a very good thing as long as said niche appeals to enough customers. We shall see, but I think it might do well.