New BMW 3-Series, Hyundai i30, Mazda CX-5 and Peugeot 208 Shine in Euro NCAP Crash Tests

The new BMW 3-Series sedan, Hyundai i30 compact hatchback, Mazda CX-5 crossover and Peugeot 208 supermini are the latest cars to be evaluated by Euro NCAP, the organization charged with crash-testing Europe's vehicles.

All four models achieved a maximum five-star rating with Euro NCAP officials pointing out that carmakers have made significant improvements in the area of pedestrian protection.

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Hyundai gets into Some Monkey Business to Test the Quality of the New i30 Hatchback

While there are surely many ways to test the build quality of a car, you will have to admit that Hyundai's decision to let loose a horde of more than 40 playful monkeys on a new i30 hatchback, known as the 2013 Elantra GT in North America, has the added benefit of drawing a lot of attention from consumers.

In the first endurance test of the sort in Britain, Hyundai brought a silver i30 at the Knowsley Safari Park, which is home to several dozen baboons that are renowned for their love of destroying visitors’ cars, such as Wayne Rooney’s vehicle when he visited the Merseyside attraction last year.

Together with the park officials, Hyundai's people sat and watched more than 40 baboons having their way with the i30 hatch for 10 hours.

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Hyundai Defies European Economic Crisis, Records Best Ever First Quarter Sales

Whereas many carmakers are seeing their sales shrink in Europe due to the financial crisis, Hyundai managed to register a record number of new cars between January and March 2012 with 114,571 units. This represents an increase of 12.5 percent over the same period 12 months ago.

In contrast, the overall European new car market declined by 7.3 percent in the first quarter of the year. The Korean automaker now holds a 3.3 percent share of the market.

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Hyundai Employs Hypnotist to Make Viewers Love the New i30 Hatch

Over the years, we've seen automakers and their sales people using all kind of tactics and gimmicks to sell us their products, but we can't say we remember hypnosis being one of them.

Truth to be told, Hyundai is trying out hypnosis to create some internet buzz around its new i30 hatchback (to be sold as the Elantra GT in North America) rather than to actually directly sell its cars to European buyers, and from what we can tell, it's succeeding in its mission.

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Hyundai gets Practical with New i30 Station Wagon that Makes its World Premiere in Geneva

This is the new generation of the Hyundai i30 Wagon and it was revealed at this week's 82nd Geneva International Motor Show.

It's a C-segment model that competes against the Ford Focus Estate and it is based on the five-door hatchback version of the i30 series, which will be sold as the Elantra GT in North America. The previous generation of the i30 Wagon continues to be marketed under the Elantra Touring nameplate in the States.

The wagon is 30mm taller and 185mm longer than the hatchback, which translates into more space for passengers and their luggage despite the fact that the wheelbase remains the same as the five-door model, at 2.650 mm.

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