Innholdsfortegnelse for 23/05/2018 i Autocar

VOLVO’S DECISION TO equip the S60 with petrol and hybrid options only (p12) would have been unthinkable a couple of years ago given Europe’s addiction to diesel. We commend Volvo for backing its announcement last year to go diesel-free with actions so soon after. Yet diesel remains a logical, sensible and natural choice for many drivers who do big motorway miles. There are car makers who will rightly continue to support and develop this technology, which is increasingly becoming electrified itself, Kia being the latest to confirm diesel hybrid plans (p13). Investment budgets must now be weighted towards the development of electrified models. No major new car should now be launched without an electrified option. After all, unlike diesel, electric power is truly global. What is urgently needed is education…

Lamborghini is determined to stick with naturally aspirated engines for its super-sports models despite many of its rivals switching to turbocharging to enhance performance and reduce emissions. The company’s technical director, Maurizio Reggiani, also said that he is intent on resisting any pressure to reduce the number of cylinders in its next generation of supercars. “Every car has a mission, and based on that mission you have to choose the right engine,” Reggiani said. “For the [Urus SUV] the decision was turbo, but we will continue to choose natural aspiration for the super-sports cars. In the future, we will need to take account of fuel consumption and emissions. I am convinced the naturally aspirated engine coupled with a hybrid system can be the right answer.” The Huracán replacement, due in…

THE CONSISTENT FAMILY look Lexus has given its model range will help the company achieve its goal of breaking through the 100,000 sales barrier, according to new European boss Pascal Ruch. At the launch of the new UX compact SUV, Ruch said that Lexus now has a complete range of cars designed in the same style and suggested that the consistency would help broaden its appeal. “When we started the new era of Lexus – and especially Lexus design – in 2012, every new car became a milestone,” said Ruch. “Now we have a consistent line-up. We now have what we need.” Ruch has targeted growing European sales from 75,000 to at least 100,000 cars a year by 2020, but stressed that growth couldn’t come at the expense of traditional…

ROLLS-ROYCE BOSS Torsten Müller-Ötvös has said the firm’s model line-up is now complete following the launch of the Cullinan SUV. The British firm’s first off-roader is its fifth model, alongside the Phantom, Ghost, Wraith and Dawn. But while other manufacturers are expanding their range of SUVs, Müller-Ötvös said there was no demand among the brand’s ‘ultra-luxury’ buyers. Asked whether Rolls would consider swelling its line-up with an SUV smaller than the Cullinan, Müller-Ötvös told Autocar: “No, definitely not. You need to go with the flow, so for that reason, I’d never say never, never, never – but we don’t currently have any plans to expand our model line-up any further. “Our strategy is definitely to maintain our high-end price position and not move the brand just for volume sake into…

A new Porsche 911 Speedster model is due to be revealed this summer as a limited-production, high-performance run-out for the 991.2-generation sports car. Caught on camera under wraps during testing in Germany, the model will sport the distinctive shape of its spiritual predecessors and come with a performance package tuned by Porsche’s GT department. The fitment of centre-locking wheels on the test car suggests much of its running gear will be taken from the driver-focused GT3, which would mean that this will be the most hardcore 911 Speedster to date. The previous Speedster was based on the 997-generation car and came in Carrera S specification, but the new version is due to have the GT3’s naturally aspirated 4.0-litre flat six engine. That would give it 493bhp and 339lb ft and…

The taut, indigo form before you represents the end of the line for the F80-generation M3. It’s called the Club Sport, or CS, and it uses the clout of internal combustion alone to drive the rear wheels. That’s obvious, though, isn’t it? Since its conception in the late 1980s, every 3 Series breathed upon by BMW Motorsport GmbH has been the same: propelled mainly by six cylinders, but occasionally four or eight, and always pushing and not, heaven forfend, pulling. But that might soon change. When the G20-generation car arrives a couple of years from now, it could well employ an electrified powertrain to reliably take total output closer to 500bhp while allowing BMW’s red-hot junior saloon to more easily conform with a stricter new Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test…

Leon, a writer for a music paper in Tony Parsons’ novel Stories We Could Tell, is on his way to review a predictable band called Leni and the Riefenstahls, when he has to dodge a gang of punks who want to beat him up. In doing so, he misses the gig but, knowing there are pages to fill, files his story as if he was there anyway. Because he knows how it’ll go. How ‘Leni’ predictable is the new V60, you wonder? I know, fictional punk band/middle manager’s Volvo, but go with it: if you saw one, then, you might be in the market for the other, now. It’s another great-looking Volvo wagon, based on a big-Volvo platform, and it’ll go head to head with the BMW 3 Series and…

MODEL TESTED VANTAGE Price £120,900 • Power 503bhp • Torque 505lb ft • 0-60mph 3.7sec • 30-70mph in fourth 4.7sec • Fuel economy 17.5mpg • CO2 emissions 245g/km • 70-0mph 43.4m On the first working day of 2018, a press release landed at Autocar HQ to gladden the heart of anyone who has watched the challenging and often financially perilous history of Aston Martin. In the release, the Gaydon-based firm announced that 2017 had been its busiest and strongest calendar year for unit sales in almost a decade. It had sold more than 5000 cars for the first time since 2008 and was on course to declare that phenomenon which so few of the company’s proprietors have consistently known: profitability. Aston’s punishing outgoing tide of aggregated losses year after year…

I’m not a biker and never have been. I have known too many friends and family members whose lives have been changed by parting company with such devices. My father was an avid biker who avoided injury by mastering what he called the ‘elective dismount’. Three times he saved himself by bailing out on his own terms in advance. And I just don’t have that talent. But I love to watch bike racing in general, and the kind that happens on the Isle of Man in particular: even on YouTube, the TT course makes a modern Formula 1 track look like a toddler’s ball park. The route from Douglas towards Peel, up to Kirk Michael, on to Ramsey and then over the mountain back to base is surely the most…

–40°C That’s the temperature at the other extreme for which Kia tests its cars, an 80deg C swing from the Californian sun. Two hours north of Los Angeles, next to Edwards Air Force base and a working goldmine in the Mojave Desert, sits the place that inspires Kia’s seven-year warranty and the reason it regularly tops dependability surveys. Here, every single Kia component – steering wheels, dashboards, consoles, seat covers, headlights, bumpers, you name it – bakes in blistering 40deg C heat to see if they melt under the scorching Californian sun. The facility’s boss, Matt Seare, describes this extreme test facility as “a car’s worst nightmare”. Some parts are monitored in Nasa-like pods that track the sun. Others are just screwed to work benches and left outside in the…

Action-packed photographs of high-performance Italian cars used to line the walls of a small pizzeria in southern France. Hungry tourists ate while ogling the Lamborghini Countach, the Ferrari F50 and the Bugatti Veyron. Except, of course, the latter isn’t Italian. Founder Ettore Bugatti! was born in Milan, but every car he designed came to life in an Alsatian town named Molsheim. This tradition continues today with the Chiron, the latest torchbearer of the brand’s heritage. Bugatti calls its glass-walled factory ‘the Atelier’. The production process relies exclusively on human hands, not algorithms and software; there is not a single robot present inside the facility. It helps that the company doesn’t manufacture its own parts. It sources everything from European suppliers. The carbon fibre monocoque comes from Dallara, AP Racing supplies…

ON SALE 30 MAY COMPARISON New Aston Martin Vantage vs rivals Aston’s new sports car fights the Porsche 911 GTS and McLaren 540C. Matt Saunders oversees the triple test of the year DRIVEN Jaguar XE SV Project 8 We drive the fastest, most powerful, most exclusive Jag saloon ever BUYING GUIDE Cars to buy for their engines A great car means a great engine. These are the best you can buy EVERY WEEK USED BUYING GUIDE Bentley Arnage The last of the old-era Bentleys can be had for the price of a Fiesta ST ROAD TEST Vauxhall Insignia GSI Not just a sportier Insignia, but the Insignia made better. Eight pages await LONG TERMER Suzuki Swift Sport Say hello to our little friend. We’re never going to lose it in…

MILEAGE 2230 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To find out whether a big, separate chassis, part-time all-wheel-drive SUV still has a place in the world Confession time: I recently failed to spot a skip while reversing. This was in some ways a surprise at the time, because the skip was large, yellow and filled past its rim, making it decidedly visible. It was also in my drive, or to one side of it. Despite this, and driver aids that include a reversing camera and parking sensors, I caught the side of the Ssangyong on the side of the skip, at the point where a chain is attached for lifting. The result was a big, button-like steel hook can opening the offside rear wing to excruciatingly noisy effect. What made it worse…

This is the roof that started it all. Before the SLK, you had to buy either a coupé or a convertible – but not any more. The SLK proved that the concept worked even if, with the roof down, boot space was at a premium. It was often criticised for not being a sports car, but that’s not the point. What is important is that it is a Mercedes without a roof (and sometimes with one). They can be very cheap now and we found a V-plate from a Mercedes specialist for £1295. Everything works but there is no warranty. SEND YOUR USED CAR TALES TO? james@bangernomics.com AND READERS' QUESTIONS TO? autocar@haymarket.com…

Tesla’s upcoming Model Y crossover could be the company’s most important model yet, finally propelling it into a long promised self-sustainable future, according to the latest information from the supply industry and hints from company boss Elon Musk. Although the Model Y is set to be based on the structure that underpins the existing Model 3 saloon, the fourth vehicle in Tesla’s range will be produced in a radically different way to its predecessors. Autocar understands that the Model Y could be built outside the US, is likely to feature a new electrical architecture and will be more thoroughly resolved from a manufacturing perspective. Perhaps most importantly, though, it will compete in a much bigger market segment than the troubled Model 3. Industry experts believe the demand for pure-electric crossovers…

CAR MANUFACTURING in Scotland has been resurrected after 37 years thanks to East Lothian-based Raptor Sports cars, which has launched the first of what will become a family of Caterham-like lightweights. Scotland has not had any significant car production since the Talbot plant in Linwood closed in 1981. Founder Andy Entwistle is a former electrical engineer who started building motorsport engines in 2001. He then diversified into producing kit cars that used chassis fabricated in Yorkshire, but the Raptor marks a new chapter. First, because it will be offered entirely built, but also because it has a chassis that is made in Scotland. Although there is a strong resemblance to the typical ‘Seven’ lightweight, the Raptor is considerably longer than the Caterham, a fact explained by Entwistle’s 6ft 7in height.…

The Lexus CT compact hatch could live on despite the introduction of the similarly sized UX SUV later this year, the firm’s European boss has said. Widespread reports had suggested that Lexus’s launch into the booming small SUV market would render the ageing CT redundant, but Pascal Ruch told Autocar: “The size of the segment the CT competes in is still very significant. “At the moment, I see the UX as delivering additional volume, not necessarily replacing the CT. We’ve just updated the CT, so we have at least two more years of sales to make an evaluation from. There is no rush to make a decision.” The CT is the oldest car in Lexus’s range, and accounts for 10,000 of its 75,000 annual sales in Europe. However, Ruch highlighted…

SALES OF NEW diesel engines have a future in the UK, a government minister has said, despite concerns that the energy-efficient powertrain will be banned from 2040. “There is a place for diesel,” business secretary Greg Clark told the FT Future of the Car Summit 2018. “City centres are a flashpoint. Driving diesel a long distance is a different question.” The government is currently working on a white paper dubbed Road to Zero, which will outline a policy framework for reducing road transport emissions towards zero by 2035/2040. Suggesting that diesels are not totally out of favour inside the government, Clark singled out the latest diesel technology as having a role in reducing greenhouse gases. “New-generation diesel can make a big contribution to reducing emissions,” he said. Leaks of drafts…

An updated Kia Sportage will arrive later this year and kick-start the Korean car maker’s electrification plans with the introduction of a new mild-hybrid diesel model to the line-up. The new mild-hybrid technology, called EcoDynamics+, uses a 48V electric motor and will be rolled out on the Kia Ceed hatchback next. The facelifted Sportage, which is Kia’s most important model in Europe, also gets subtle styling tweaks to its lights, grille and bumpers.…

Volkswagen is ramping up the development of its T-Roc R SUV, which has been spotted testing on German roads ahead of its launch later this year. It will be the second R model in VW’s range and use the Golf R’s 2.0-litre TSI engine, which means more than 300bhp and 280lb ft will be on tap. However, due to its extra weight, the T-Roc R’s 0-62mph time is likely to be slightly slower than the Golf R’s 4.6sec. A T-Roc convertible will be introduced in 2020. NEW CAR TECH TO CREATE 320K JOBS Cutting-edge technology will create 320,000 jobs in the UK’s automotive industry by 2030, the Institute of the Motor Industry has claimed. New high-demand jobs include analytic engineers, 3D printing technicians and cyber-security experts. EARLY LOOK AT AUDI’S…

Versatility is at the heart of the all-new Audi A6 executive saloon. As an A6, the company says, this car simultaneously needs to purvey outstanding comfort for an old-school core of white-collared Europeans and be a ‘sporty sedan’ for the Americans. The colossal Chinese market, meanwhile, sees it as a technological status symbol. So its fight is on three fronts, two of which are already heavily fortified by the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class. This car follows in the tyre tracks of the recently overhauled A8 luxury saloon and swooping A7 Sportback, and as with those model ranges, every variant now features mild hybridisation. At its core lies a more rigid hybrid aluminium chassis than before, with suspension of five-link design. You can specify an A6 with passive or…

The Vantage offers Sport, Sport+ and Track modes for both its powertrain and suspension, and you’ll likely enjoy dabbling with Sport+ and Track on a circuit; as well as with the TrackDSC and ‘off’ settings for the stability control. Track mode shows how great a dynamic departure this car is from its immediate forebears, because although the more sporting Astons have long been ready to indulge in big, smokey slides, they’ve never had the first-order grip or handling precision of the new Vantage, or its ability to carry speed so purposefully. The sheer stability of the rear axle on turn-in can be breathtakingly good. In Sport+, your options are expanded to include a very lurid cornering style, should you want one. Even here, though, the Vantage isn’t willing to be…

This is not the first time Autocar has visited the island. Back in 2008, we turned up mob-handed with five sports cars and supercars as the finale to that year’s contest to find Britain’s Best Driver’s Car. Except we’d already kind of done that over two days at the Bedford Autodrome, so when it became clear that the Isle of Man Department of Tourism was prepared to close a section of mountain road for Autocar, the test became a flat-out race to see which was quickest. The five cars taking part were a Lotus Elise SC, KTM X-Bow, Audi R8, Lamborghini Gallardo and Nissan GT-R. Strange to think that a decade later three of the five are still in production… Anyway, it soon became clear that if the entire section…

Kia’s 4300-acre complex also includes 10 test tracks. There’s a billiard-smooth, 6.4-mile, high-speed oval; a twisty 2.4-mile circuit for handling; and an off-road track for SUVs. But most surprising is the ‘special surface’ loop replicating the world’s worst roads. There’s a cobbled section, concrete blocks, pot holes, speed humps, a rail crossing, salt baths, chassis twists, grit troughs and something called Choppy Road (LA Freeway) with teeth-gritting hops in it. “If you’re a test driver here, you’ll be best friends with a chiropractor,” says facility boss Matt Seare. “It’s pretty brutal – like a horror movie for cars.”…

FIRST REPORT WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To find out why UK drivers are turning to pick-ups in increasing numbers, and to determine whether the X-Class is as refined to live with as Merc’s cars It’s supposed to be about money. The reason you see the population of four-door, extended-cab, one-tonne pick-ups on our roads swelling so fast is widely claimed to be because they’re as cheap to run, from a benefit-in-kind (BIK) point of view, as company vehicles. However, the underlying reason seems to be that they look pretty cool, at least to some of us, and I’m among the supporters. That, and a curiosity to find out about this new vehicle breed, currently being ever more enthusiastically touted by Ford, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Volkswagen, Ssangyong and now Mercedes, is behind…

QUESTION I currently own a diesel Mercedes CLS and am wondering whether I should chop it in for a petrol version. What do you think? Jon Purves, Exeter ANSWER While diesel values have fallen on cheaper cars where economical petrol alternatives are available, they’ve held up rather better at the top end where the petrol options are thirsty. A CLS is best served in diesel form, so I’d stick with what you’ve got. AR QUESTION What’s the best time of year to buy a convertible? Lydia Speen, Stamford ANSWER Aim to buy towards the end of the summer and into the autumn, when there’s a good choice of cars still available but prices are on the slide. Winter’s the best time for prices but pickings are slim, while high demand…

An expert’s view MARK BLOOMFIELD, FOUNDER OF FUDGE SMART “I’ve been messing around with Smart Roadsters for 20 years and owned more than I care to remember. They’re tough little things and great fun but, if you’re thinking of buying one, you need to be able to park it under cover. If you park it outside, sooner or later water ingress will become a problem. I’d value mechanical over cosmetic condition every time. My top buy is the rare but expensive RCR.” Buyer beware… ■ ENGINE Oil changes should be 7000 miles. The B service requires replacement of all six spark plugs but often only three plugs are changed. Bore wear is not unknown. Sundry misfires could be the coil packs, perished HT insulators or a holed exhaust valve. ■…

Lamborghini will continue to offer rear-wheel-drive versions of the Huracán and Gallardo even though technical chief Maurizio Reggiani admits that such models only appeal to a minority of customers. “There are people who are expert [drivers] and they love a car that oversteers much more,” he said. “If you have all-wheel drive, you must really put the car into an extreme condition if you want to oversteer. There are some who enjoy the drifting. Two-wheel drive is for some created with MIT, which showcased next-generation energy storage systems and innovative materials. Reggiani also said that an electrical drivetrain may help to civilise a version of the current Aventador’s sometimes aggressive single clutch transmission: “You could use the electric motor to ensure that you don’t have torque interruption.” As well as…

The latest automatic emergency braking (AEB) and forward collision warning systems fitted to some new cars may not be as effective in the real world as their performance in laboratory tests suggests, according to a leading industry expert. Last week, the European Commission set out proposals to update the minimum safety standards for all new vehicles sold on the EU market. Among these suggestions, which are expected to come into force from 2021, is that AEB should be mandatory. Steve Boyle, boss of automotive testing consultancy Moshon Data, believes that while some manufacturers are embracing the technology, others are just “ticking boxes” in order to pass Euro NCAP crash tests. “Volvo takes it really seriously, while some other manufacturers just want a five-star-rated car with minimum effort,” said Boyle. “Subaru’s…

The upcoming Volvo S60, to be revealed next month, will be the first model from the Swedish car maker to ditch diesel powertrains. It’s the first step in Volvo’s electrification plans, outlined last year, in which it said that all models launched from 2019 will be only mild-hybrid petrol, plug-in hybrid petrol or fully electric. Volvo boss Håkan Samuelsson said the announcement “represents the next step in that commitment”. He added: “Our future is electric and we will no longer develop a new generation of diesel engines.” Although diesel is a popular choice for saloons, diesel versions of the outgoing S60 saloon account for only 5000 sales annually, so the move will have little effect on Volvo’s overall volume. The new S60 will be built in Volvo’s new US plant…

The Hyundai i30 N has been designed to deliver a driving experience that is fun and engaging on the road, and absolutely thrilling when you’re on the no-holds-barred expanse of a race track. With a 2.0-litre turbo engine that delivers up to 275PS and 353Nm of torque, Electronically Controlled Suspension, and an advanced Electronic Limited Slip Differential that was specially engineered by Hyundai for N Performance models, the i30 N certainly has the performance credentials that matter. Inside, lots of track-friendly features add the fun factor – including a five-LED shift indicator, launch control, rev-matching for smoother downshifts, and an active variable exhaust on N Performance models that lets you hear every crackle and pop from the twin-pipe exhaust. All these features – plus throttle response and steering weight –…

Back in 2007, Porsche showed how it could incorporate hybrid technology into the first-generation Cayenne. More than a decade later, the mission of this latest Cayenne E-Hybrid is to steal sales from Audi’s Q7 e-tron and the Range Rover Sport P400e. Power comes from a 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine mated to an electric motor, giving a combined 456bhp and 516lb ft. Other figures are equally impressive: you can travel for up to 27 miles on electric power alone, hit a top speed of 84mph without engaging the petrol engine and cover the 0-60mph sprint in 4.7sec. Another head-turning number is 88mpg, which is what Porsche claims this Cayenne can achieve according to the outgoing NEDC economy tests. The Cayenne E-Hybrid defaults to its electric-only driving mode on start-up, but anything…

The Vantage’s rivals may have more or less a common price but they’re designed to be used in subtly different ways and to appeal quite differently. But the Vantage brings real breadth to the super-sports car class and covers a lot of territory. It’s a car you could drive every day if you chose to, and probably more easily, comfortably and widely than anything with a mid-mounted engine. It can perform at close to supercar pace and now has fully formed track handling credentials, but it is also more characterful and fun at everyday speeds than plenty of its opponents. It has the kerbside desirability, interior richness and sense of occasion to rank as a genuinely exotic luxury-brand product, too. That’s a pretty complete array of qualities for any £120,000…

WIN Letter of the week wins this ValetPRO exterior protection and maintenance kit worth £48 Your first drive of the Ford Fiesta ST (9 May) is the sort of thing I want to read about, not some 500bhpplus SUV weighing more than two tonnes. I agree with Esler Crawford’s sentiments in that issue: Ford is to be congratulated on producing such a machine. I’m sure you have to be much cleverer to turn this out at £19,000 than shoving 500bhp into something costing 10 times as much. The force-vectoring ‘bent’ rear springs seem such a simple idea, you wonder why it’s not been used before. A three-cylinder engine capable of running on two – wow! Keep up the good work, Ford, you are producing cars relevant to most of us,…

GOLF GTI MILEAGE 9111 i30 N MILEAGE 4100 WHY WE’RE RUNNING THEM To see if Volkswagen still makes the best all-round hot hatch – or if Hyundai has topped it at its first attempt We’ve got two of the hot hatches of the moment on our fleet right now. So which is the best to live with? Rachel Burgess and Mark Tisshaw argue it out. RB: Do you reckon the Golf GTI still rules the hot hatch roost, then? MT: Now there’s an opener… The Golf GTI is unique not in the clichéd sense, but because nothing else has really replicated its formula, the i30 N included. You’d be mad to launch a new hot hatch with the GTI’s low power figure, but its appeal has always been in its…

You may have noticed the recent arrival of the ‘Flying Pig’ and it is so far, so good. Not so good has been the damp dog smell. When we bought it, the temperature was sub-zero. So until it got a bit warmer, the essence of hound was not noticeable. I had trouble sniffing it out at first, but it soon became the first thing that hits you. The boot was scrubbed with industrial fluids and – you know what? – in the cabin it went away. However, after shopping trips, the boot still contained the muggy aroma. More scrubbing is therefore required.…

Just £2450 will get you behind the wheel of one of the most interesting small sports cars of the past 15 years – a Smart Roadster Light coupé. The 2005-registered £2450 car we found has done almost 90,000 miles. It has only seven service stamps in the book – not ideal given the tiny engine’s fondness for fresh oil (every 7000 miles). However, assuming it’s sound, it’s worth a blast up the road if only to sample a Light’s sweet ride, courtesy of its tall, skinny 185/15 tyres, compared with the meatier 225s fitted to standard Roadsters. The Light, so-called because Smart stripped out some features, including alloy wheels, from the standard car to create it, retailed at just shy of £12,000 when launched in 2004, around £1500 less than…

UPMARKET LEFT-FIELD COUPE The keener-eyed among you may remember that, a few weeks back, we had a question from a reader as to whether a Volvo C30 would be a suitable commuting vessel for his partner. And he was right to be getting interested in this little Swedish coupé. The C30 has always been a little different from the norm, with looks that have aged very well and Ford Focus underpinnings that make it surprisingly good to drive. These days, early examples are going for considerably less than, say, a Volkswagen Scirocco, and manage to be a little more left-field, which gives them an appeal all of their own. The one downside is that most of them are diesels, and today’s air of opprobrium toward oil-burners means the smart money…

The owner of this Carlton must have been particularly chuffed after it sold at H&H’s 25 April sale. The guide price was £3500-£4000 but it went for £7000, as near as dammit. That sounds like strong money for a Carlton GSi, especially one that isn’t even a 24v. Mind you, it had done just 26,800 miles from new and had had just two keepers. And although it’s no Lotus, the Carlton GSi was still a formidable sports saloon in its day, with a powerful straight six, deft rear-wheel-drive handling and a ton of toys. It’s a tempting neo-classic, then, even if it’s an expensive one. GET IT WHILE YOU CAN Kia Cee’d Price new £22,380. Price now £13,871 Late Cee’ds with Kia’s decent 1.0-litre turbo engine are few and far…