Things are shaping out pretty well for Korean automaker Hyundai. After introducing its first engine about seventeen years ago, Hyundai now makes a variety of 4-clyinders, 6-cylinders, all the up to the Tau V8 that it will offer as an option on new Hyundai Genesis sedan.

Until 1991, Hyundai relied on Mitsubishi for engine technology, now, according to Dr. Hyun-Soon Lee, President of the R&D and Corporate Product Planning of Hyundai-Kia Motors, the automaker can build anything it wants.

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You would think with all the hype surrounded around the Dodge Challenger, Chrysler has no intentions of going green. However, if you remember Jim Press recently said that Chrysler will offer a hybrid variant of every model in its lineup. We have no idea if that’s every going to become reality, but the auto maker is now quickly looking to add small and mid-sized cars to its lineup.

“The bottom line is to shift the portfolio into mid- and small cars as fast as we can and balance the portfolio and the technology,” said Tom LaSorda.

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Fisker says that it has already sold 99 units of its upcoming Fisker Karma hybrid, deliveries of which will begin in the fourth-quarter of 2009. Fisker will only produce 15,000 units of the Karma with pricing to start at $80,000.

When Fisker unveiled the Karma at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show, it never said anything about the powertrain. All we were told is that the Q-Drive plug-in hybrid technology allows the Fisker Karma to drive the first 50 miles on battery alone. We were also told that the car does 0-60 in 5.8 seconds.

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Being under pressure to produce more fuel-efficient models, GM may be forced to change the way it’s been building SUVs for the past seven-decades. The General is now looking for ways to design a lighter replacement for its biggest SUVs without relying on a heavier pickup-truck frame.

While nothing is certain as of yet, engineers are looking to shift to a car-like construction in 2012 for successors to the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade.

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Toyota, the world’s largest automaker which outsold the General for the first time this year, is not all smiles. The Japanese automaker reported that fourth-quarter earnings fell 28 percent to $3 billion. Toyota also forecasted its first annual profit decline in seven years.

For the next fiscal year, Toyota expects to earnings to decline by 27 percent to $12 billion. Global sales are expected to rise only 1.6 percent to 9.06 million.

The Japanese automaker faces a weak dollar that has fallen more than 10 percent against the yen as well as rising prices for raw materials. Not to mention the North American market is facing slow auto sales and an economic downturn.

Click through for the video.

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Ever since Hyundai started teasing us with the Hyundai Genesis sedan, it was thought that Hyundai would pull a Toyota/Lexus move and offer the Genesis nameplate as its luxury division. Hyundai even admitted at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show, during the U.S. premiere of the Genesis sedan, that it was testing the market by unveiling two Genesis Sedans, one with the Hyundai logo and one without.

With the sedan hitting the market later this summer followed by the Genesis Coupe later next year, the Genesis could be launched as a Lexus like brand. According to MotorTrend, the decision to make the move on a premium brand could be three to fours years away.

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Prototypes of McLarens anticipated second supercar have begun testing mid-April. Known as the P11, the car is expected to arrive in dealerships in March 2010 after it makes its debut in autumn 2009.

Insides have told AutoCar, that the car will be pitched as a rival for the Ferrari F430 and will be available in both, coupe and convertible variants. The soft-top convertible version will make its debut in March of 2011.

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Toyota is shining with pride in the UK. In a recent J.D. Power survey, Lexus was ranked as the leader in customer satisfaction while the Toyota Prius retained its position as the top-ranked model in the UK.

The results were based on interviews of more than 16,000 UK car owners after they had owned the vehicles for more than two years. Owners were surveyed about quality, reliability, appeal, dealership service and ownership costs.

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So if you remember back in October there was a huge controversy over hybrids being too quiet for blind people to hear. The U.S. National Federation of the Blind Committee even ran tests to see if it would be an issue for blind people crossing the street that couldn’t hear a hybrid passing by. Well after reading this, blind people wouldn’t be the only ones worried about getting run over by a hybrid.

Eight-year-old, Owen Erickson, was hit by a Toyota Prius while biking with a friend that he supposedly didn’t hear passing by. Although little Owen wasn’t injured, he did end up on the hood of the car.

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Bill Ford Jr, FoMoCo Executive Chairman gave a huge shout-out to CEO Alan Mulally and his efforts in restructuring and resurrecting the struggling Dearborn automaker.

“Alan Mulally has done a fantastic job, and you’ve seen the results every quarter,” he said. “He’s done it quicker than I thought he would.”

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This is the kind of news that usually folks like Reuters and Automotive News report, but our friend Ray Wert from Jalopnik is out hanging out with the Koreans this week for the Hyundai Genesis launch in Korea. Here are the latest details about the upcoming Kia pickup we told you about back in March. Simply put, there won’t be one.

Dr. Dong Jin Kim, Vice Chairman and CEO of Hyundai, said that the automaker has interest in the pickup market, however high-gas prices are killing the truck market.

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Republican Bill Maze was appalled when he saw saw a woman driving with three dogs in her lap.  So much so, that he decided to propose a bill that punishes drivers driving around with their pet in their laps.

Basically anyone caught driving with a dog or any other pet on their lap while driving can get a $35 fine. The bill has passed the Assembly on a 44-11 vote and is now headed to the senate.

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There are a lot of other things to be concerned with in GTA IV rather than drunk driving but MADD, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, is speaking about about the drunk-driving content in the most anticipated game of 2008.

In a statement release on April 30th, MADD said that nearly 13,500 people die in drunk driving crashes and another half a million are injured due to alcohol-related accidents.

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