Innholdsfortegnelse for November 17, 2021 i Autocar

Lotus will follow its fellow Geely Group sibling brands Volvo and Polestar in launching an electric SUV – and the firm has given the first official glimpse of it ahead of a reveal next year. The first in a family of Chinese-built Lotus EVs, the Type 132 will share Geely’s SEA platform with upcoming models from the two Swedish brands and will be offered with a choice of four-wheel-drive powertrains ranging in output from 600bhp to 750bhp. The first official preview image shows the distinctive hexagonal pattern of the SUV’s active grille shutter, which will serve to cool the drivetrain and reduce drag on the move. Lotus will drop more clues during the run-up to the EV’s full unveiling.…

Ferrari has turned to its seminal 1950s and 1960s coupés as inspiration for its latest one-off: the V12-powered BR20 two-seater. Based on the retired GTC4 Lusso, the coachbuilt special loses its rear seats and adopts a swooping rear deck that incorporates a new rear spoiler, diffuser and exhaust set-up. The front end gets a wider grille, slimmer lights and a bespoke carbonfibre trim piece across its width. The interior has been extensively reworked, too, with liberal use of leather and carbonfibre throughout and an oak-trimmed rear storage area.…

Conventionally fuelled superminis and city cars have long been tipped to become early casualties of the shift to all-out electrification. Their waning profit margins, near-incompatibility with hybridisation and negative impact on fleet emissions figures mean larger, more costly and increasingly electrified cars have been the priority for most major manufacturers in recent years. But Toyota has bucked the trend by introducing the new Aygo X, a higher-riding but still diminutive third-generation version of its consistently strong-selling city car. Although it has grown slightly, at 3700mm long and 1740mm wide, it will still be comfortably one of the smallest combustion cars on sale and it serves as proof that Toyota views the city car as a viable revenue stream for at least one more model cycle. Toyota Europe vicepresident Andrea Carlucci…

MONDAY This morning, I returned the Ford Mustang Mach-E I’ve been driving all week, dropping it back to a hallowed enclosure (in Brentford, outer London) known and loved by all muttering rotters: the much-loved Ford press garage. I climbed back into my usual Dacia Sandero Stepway and found – whoa! – a £15,000 car that steered and rode better than the £70,000 Ford. Don’t get me wrong: this electric ’Stang has many strengths, including size, price, refinement, equipment, performance and boldness of concept. But in the very places Fords usually excel, it’s pretty ordinary. Despite the weight, the ride is pitchy and lumpy, as if the front and rear suspensions come from different cars. The steering is curiously weighted and not at all intuitive. Driving along, I imagined myself sitting…

You might well wonder why Jeep chose 2021 to launch its first headbanging, V8-engined Wrangler in more than three decades. Today’s airwaves brim with debate about how best to reduce our carbon footprints, and Jeep already toes the environmental line to some extent: it currently offers a Wrangler plug-in hybrid, with a four-pot engine and 20 or so miles of electric range, and a Wrangler EV is expected to arrive soon. So surely the whole big-boned V8 thing is just a little passé? Perhaps. But sometimes one needs to discard the gloves, and for Jeep that meant announcing the flagship Wrangler Rubicon 392 (that number being 6.4 litres in cubic inches) on the same morning last year that Ford revealed its reinvented Bronco. This wasn’t so much stealing the limelight…

MG continues to home in on the EV market: around one in three cars it sells is now electric. The ZS EV has played a key role in this growth, and now it has been rewarded with some design changes and new infotainment. The ICE car-style front grille is replaced by a textured design, while a new bumper has been fitted at the rear. The charging port is now on the front of the car, instead of at the side, and the new range-topping Trophy Connect variant gains front and rear LEDs, a panoramic sunroof, wireless phone charging, parking sensors, a 360deg camera and vehicle-to-load capability (meaning the battery can supply external powered devices). The headline news, though, is the introduction of a Long Range variant, which has a 72.6kWh…

Back at the tail end of the 1980s, the Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth was the ultimate touring car. Now, more than three decades later, it’s firmly back in fashion. It has taken a while for historic touring car racing to embrace the Group A era. For many years, period touring car racing ended at 1966; the action was all about Ford Mustangs, Mini Coopers and Lotus Cortinas, with later machinery largely ignored. But little by little, the times have been a-changin’. The creation of the Gerry Marshall Trophy races at Goodwood gave the Group 1 cars of the 1970s a new impetus, and now, over the past two or three seasons, fresh life has been given to the Group A cars that raced right through to 1990. It’s gathering momentum…

OF THE 10 drivers who have entered the most Formula 1 races, Riccardo Patrese stands out as the only one whose career was mostly in the 20th century, when the seasons were much shorter. He retired in 1993 as a well-respected veteran – something you never would have thought possible back in his first few seasons. In 1978, so frequent were his dangerous manoeuvres that, spurred into action by the tragic death of Ronnie Peterson in a Monza pile-up, senior drivers including Niki Lauda, Emerson Fittipaldi and James Hunt sent a telex to the organiser of the US Grand Prix East saying they wouldn’t race unless the Arrows driver were barred. This unprecedented move for a while looked set to strip the Watkins Glen race of its championship status or…

‘Leading from the front’ (20 October) was an interesting read, but I think amnesia may have set in at Autocar. The Renault R16 was arguably the first modern lifestyle car to combine utility (an easily lifted tailgate, seats that could be folded and removed without tools) with avant-garde styling, advanced technical innovation and refinement at a reasonable price, but it used the ‘system Citroën’ drivetrain layout, which wasn’t space-efficient. However, two years later (1967), Simca introduced the 1100. Like the R16, it sported a five-door body, but unlike the Renault its engine was transversely installed; and unlike rival BMC products, it had its transmission in line with its engine and used a separate oil supply. I believe this car was the first of what became the standard small/medium-car FWD layout.…

MILEAGE 7784 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To discover if this revamped crossover can excite in a congested class The arrival at my flat last week of a Nissan Juke triple auto for an online review made for an ideal impromptu twin test against our long-term Vauxhall Mokka triple auto (I would love to know what the neighbours suspect I do for a living). The Juke is one of the Mokka’s main rivals, having followed in the footsteps of the larger Qashqai by establishing a market niche that very quickly became the exact opposite – in this case, the compact crossover. The first thing that struck me was how both look much better than their predecessors – particularly the Juke, which no longer appears as a bloated frog (and will surely…

QUESTION I can’t install a home wallbox for my new Fiat 500 EV and the only fast chargers near me are Tesla ones. Have I made a mistake in going electric without prior research? Tom Lewis, via email ANSWER Preparation is key, I’m afraid, but there is hope. New EV chargers are popping up all the time and Tesla is trialling opening up its network to owners of other brands’ EVs. Technology is moving in other areas, too, with some companies trialling wireless EV charging and smartphone apps such as Co-Charger and Plug-Share enabling you to use (for a fair fee) the home chargers of other EV drivers. JE QUESTION My 17-year-old daughter is looking at driving lessons. Is there any point in her learning in a manual now? Joseph…

ALPINE A110 1400 Powered by a series of Renault engines over its 1961-1977 production run, the original Alpine A110 sports car rose to prominence by dominating the formative years of the World Rally Championship. This example was built in Spain in 1975 with a 1.4-litre electronically fuel-injected Gordini inline four and was brought to the UK in 1990. It had a full body refurbishment and engine rebuild last year, retaining several original features including its Moto-Lita Franco steering wheel. It has covered just 53,000 miles over its 47 years and sold at auction for £64,000. FUTURE CLASSIC Volkswagen Beetle 1.2 TSI Dune £18,998 Shortly before it was killed off, the Beetle received a limited-run special edition as a homage to the original Baja Bug. Its suspension was raised by 10mm,…

An owner’s view MARK SUMPTER “I’ve always been an Audi fanatic, owning a 20-valve Coupé at the age of 20, later an 80 Sport and then another Coupé, followed by a couple of Cabriolets, including my current one. It’s a 2.8 Final Edition automatic with 130,000 miles on the clock. It looks and drives remarkably well. There’s a bit of scuttle shake, but older cabrios are like that. I love how old Audis’ lines are much cleaner than the latest models’, and with no roll hoop, the Cabriolet looks so elegant with the roof down. What I don’t understand is why prices for the model aren’t higher. People talk about it being a modern classic, but I don’t see values rising – at least not yet. Grab a bargain while…

MANY THANKS TO the anonymous reader who recently posted us a beautifully preserved example of our forebears’ work, as seen above. Produced in the early 1930s, The Autocar map for motorists of England and Wales (plus some of Scotland and the Isle of Man) was printed on 20 card sections – featuring contour colouring and mileage intervals, we boasted – at a scale of eight miles to an inch. It could be bought from “leading bookshops” or by post in 1931 for 15 shillings and sixpence (about £54 today), plus a “stout and attractive” leather envelope could be had for six and six (about £23). “Get your copy of this map to-day!” we enthused. “You will appreciate its usefulness for touring and week-end trips!” Today, it’s most fascinating to see…

Volvo’s third electric car will be the unconventionally shaped successor to the hugely popular XC90 SUV – and it will set the tone for a whole family of new EVs from the Swedish manufacturer. Due in 2022 as a production-ready version of the bold Concept Recharge shown earlier this year, the new arrival will provide Volvo with a long-awaited entry into the increasingly important full-sized electric SUV segment, into which most premium-oriented manufacturers have launched their debut EVs in recent years. Volvo’s existing pure EVs, the XC40 Recharge and coupé-backed C40 Recharge, sit a segment lower and use the same CMA platform as the conventionally fuelled XC40. Meanwhile, the XC90 successor, which will be given a name rather than a number in production form, will use Volvo’s new SPA2 platform.…

The Porsche Cayman GT4 RS is the new flagship of the mid-engined 718 range, shedding weight and gaining power over the existing GT4 in pursuit of quicker lap times. Engineers at Porsche’s motorsport division have liberated an extra 79bhp and 15lb ft from the Cayman’s naturally aspirated 4.0-litre flat six, which redlines at 9000rpm. That takes the total outputs to 493bhp and 332lb ft for a 0-62mph time of just 3.4sec and a top speed of 196mph. Power is sent to the rear axle through a seven-speed PDK automatic gearbox, which shifts “at lightning speed”, according to Porsche. Weight has been slashed by swapping the bonnet and front wings for carbonfibrereinforced plastic items, installing lightweight carpets, replacing the door handles with pull straps, reducing the amount of insulation and installing…

The new Solterra is the first electric production car from Subaru and is claimed to draw on the brand’s historic affinity with four-wheel drive to offer outstanding off-road potential. “Existing Subaru customers can feel it’s truly a Subaru,” the Japanese manufacturer said, confident that its core characteristics will shine through despite the SUV’s close relationship with the almost identical Toyota bZ4X. When Toyota and Subaru partnered to develop a new EV-dedicated architecture, Subaru’s historic success with 4x4 models was highlighted as a particular strength. Its input therefore extends to the twinmotor drivetrain – comprising a pair of 107bhp motors for a total output of 214bhp and a 0-62mph time of 7.7sec – which promises precise control of each wheel in turn and “flexible driving force distribution between front and rear”.…

2300 Size of the Renault Mobility vehicle fleet in Europe Fail fast, fail often’ is a start-up buzz phrase that could have been invented to describe car makers’ ventures into the world of mobility. Car sharing, car clubs, micromobility, ride-hailing buses, subscriptions: all have been tried by brands over the past few years and, with a few exceptions, most have been a financial failure. However, the same startup ethos dictates that you learn and move on, so the car industry has taken a different approach. Now all the different elements that fall under the umbrella term ‘mobility’ are being grouped together to offer a co-ordinated range of services that could reflect the changing way we use our cars. Seemingly disparate elements such as car-sharing, EV charging subscriptions, used car subscriptions,…

“The name has changed because Gazoo Racing has had a lead hand in the development, as it did for the GR Yaris and GR Supra” The Japanese have a particular phrase to describe the feeling of anticipation you get before doing something exciting. That might be performing on stage or jumping out of an aeroplane, but it’s also commonly associated with driving a great sports car. They call it ‘waku doki’: a sort of spine-tingling sense of the fun you’re about to have. Japan, like Britain, clearly remains a sports car-loving island, and the Toyota GT86 was – and remains – a waku doki kind of sports car. Toyota hopes we will get the same tingle from the GT86’s replacement, which will enter production at jointventure partner Subaru’s plant in…

Perhaps it’s a size thing – or, at the very least, a purpose thing. After all, we’re on board with gratuitously powerful sports cars of any variety, but driving a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 Audi A8 in 2021 (especially around Norway, where more cars are electric than are not) does feel like turning up to a bar mitzvah with a plate of pork chops. Still, the competition is also rife with chunky V8s (think Mercedes-Benz S-Class and BMW 7 Series); and yet more pertinent is the fact that this A8 will also offer a 3.0-litre petrol V6, a 3.0-litre diesel V6 and a plug-in hybrid system with a longer electric range than before, plus the sporty S8. This is a mild overhaul for the A8, with the significant new additions being…

MODEL TESTED 250 AMG LINE PREMIUM PLUS Price £51,995 Power 188bhp Torque 277lb ft 0-60mph 8.4sec 30-70mph in fourth na Fuel economy 3.0mpkWh CO2 emissions 0g/km 70-0mph 62.6m Mercedes-Benz’s electric car sub-brand, EQ, has suddenly exploded into a f lurry of life. Having given us the EQC midsized SUV more than two years ago, it went quiet for a while as the zero-emissions efforts of its rivals gathered momentum, but now it has found another gear. The EQV people carrier is with us, and both the EQB compact SUV and EQS limousine are on the cusp of appearing in righthand-drive form. And yet none of those cars has quite the potential to put bums on electrified seats and accelerate the adoption of electric cars of this week’s road test subject. The…

VERDICT The EQA feels like a rushed response to a problem that a company of Mercedes’ standing really ought to have dealt with better. Or perhaps it was a deliberate decision to invest initially in the luxury end of the emerging electric car market (with the EQS) and only to plough serious money into the more affordable end of it later, when ‘volume’ buying habits there are better established. Whatever explains it, this adapted EV can’t quite live with its latest clean-sheet rivals. It just about compares to some of them for outright performance, refinement and drivability, but it lacks the electric range, ride and handling sophistication and practicality of many of its serious opponents. On top of that, and despite the basis of its design and configuration, the EQA…

Richard Alexander Burns. Burnsie. RB. Richard. Or just mate, because that’s exactly what I had the honour of calling him, from when I met him back in 1994, when he was a young up-and-coming rally driver, through to when he died in 2005, a world champion and so much more. I spoke at his memorial service – a parting gift, so to speak. How I wish it had instead been returning a favour he did for me, giving the speech as his best man at what I know would have been the most amazing wedding to the love of his life, Zoe. It wasn’t to be, as Richard succumbed to a brain tumour aged just 34. My mate gone. As always, he put up a terrific fight, but even he…

WRITE TO autocar@haymarket.com Road-rage reminder We were driving in convoy with my daughter on a three-lane bypass near Farnham when I had to change lanes to keep up with her. I indicated right and started to move across when a big 20-reg SUV flashed past, not letting me into the lane. I tooted my horn, and immediately the SUV slammed on its brakes and I had to slam on mine to avoid hitting it. Next thing, the driver jumped out and literally screamed at us for about a minute. I opened the window to try to placate him, but he ranted on about not tooting at him etc. He eventually got back in his car and, after another minute of making us wait, drove off. I think we were lucky: anything…

FIRST REPORT WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT Can a Bentley be affordable to run and still be a Bentley at the same time? It’s a sign of the times that I’m even writing this. Ten years ago, the very idea of a Bentley SUV would have seemed hard to imagine, although I’m not entirely sure why, given that the brand built its name on huge, heavy, do-anything, goany-where cars. But the thought that Bentley might not only build such a car but then equip it with the smallest engine ever fitted to a Bentley, the first with six cylinders since the 1950s and the least powerful in the modern history of the brand? That would have been closer to unthinkable. But we must move with the times, whether we like the…

Okay, so its looks won’t set your heart on fire and its badges won’t turn the neighbours green with envy, but the Skoda Scala is a nicely judged and decently competent family hatchback, and now it’s a useful second-hand purchase, too. The Scala offers a choice of two turbo petrol engines and one diesel. The 1.0-litre triple with 94bhp is perky enough, but the 113bhp version has a bit more overtaking urge, along with a six-speed gearbox for more refined motorway cruising. This was replaced by a 109bhp 1.0-litre unit in 2020. The 148bhp 1.5-litre four-pot is pretty swift and very refined, while the 113bhp 1.6-litre diesel is good for those who cover an annual mileage that would put a taxi firm to shame. There are five trim levels to…

BRIEF May I have a vehicle with a winch for less than £20,000? OLIVER YOUNG For an eminently reasonable amount of money, you can have one very special 4x4. It’s a Land Rover Discovery that has undergone a transformative Dakar Rally conversion. Now, to call this off-road beast ‘extremely rugged and capable’ is an understatement. It’s the ultimate go-anywhere machine, complete with a mega 4.0-litre petrol V8 and, as requested, a winch (which can deal with a mighty 2250kg of weight). Beat that, Mark. MARK PEARSON Good grief! Well, I think I can beat that old heap. I see you your lumpen old Discovery and its dodgy bodywork and raise the (winch) bar with this beautiful Range Rover, the proper off-road and on-road tool and undeniable best car in the world.…

A road test in any other magazine might well be a short, subjective summary of a new car produced under almost any circumstances, but the Autocar road test is different. Specific, rigorous and detailed, it’s the closest examination we can give of any new model. It appears over at least eight pages and is close to 50 man-hours in the making every week. Most of what the road test process entails is designed to be strictly repeatable and fair. We benchmark standing-start and in-gear acceleration at a purpose-built test facility every week. We carry out both subjective and objective handling tests on both road and track, on the latter up to and beyond the limit of grip, so as to fully assess stability, drivability and limit handling appeal. And while…

After the launch of the XC90 successor and the 3, Volvo and Polestar will each turn their attention to introducing new entry-level electric SUVs in the coming years. Volvo is understood to be working on a premiumoriented compact crossover in the vein of the Mercedes-Benz EQA and DS 3 Crossback E-Tense. The model will play a key role in the brand’s ambition for EVs to account for 50% of its global sales by 2025. Previously tipped to take either the XC20 or C20 moniker into production, it has now been confirmed to follow the XC90 replacement in adopting a new name and, like that car, will sit high off the ground but feature a streamlined silhouette to maximise efficiency. It will be the first Volvo model to sit on Geely’s…

PORSCHE HAS EXPANDED its Taycan line-up with the introduction of the new Sport Turismo – which combines the estate-style body of the Cross Turismo with the lower ride height of the saloon. It is aimed at customers who want the “everyday practicality” of the Cross Turismo but don’t want to “miss out on the on-road performance” of the saloon. The Sport Turismo drops the 4x4-inspired off-road cladding of the higher-riding variant but keeps its 1200-litre boot and 45mm of extra head room over the saloon. The Sport Turismo is at the LA motor show this week in new GTS trim, which has been added to the Taycan line-up to serve as the “sporty sweet spot” of the range, between the 4S and Turbo. Due in dealerships in spring 2022, the…

LAST WEEK, WE reported that Renault won’t rush to introduce solid-state batteries, but it isn’t putting all its eggs in the lithium ion basket. Engineering boss Gilles Le Borgne told Autocar that FCEVs will also play a role, but mainly in the commercial vehicle sector: “When you’re talking about large CVs, you have to use hydrogen, otherwise you have too many batteries. It’s not an easy balance.” THE AUDI A8 has just been refreshed (driven on p30), but there’s still no RS8. A product spokesman told us “there are no plans in the pipeline” as “an RS is very expressive and thus appeals to customers who would love that, while the A8 customers prefer a bit more understatement”. What’s not subtle about the RS Q8’s 592bhp V8 and 23in alloys?…

THE DEVELOPMENT OF hydrogen engines that to all intents and purposes are free of both toxic and CO2 emissions at the tailpipe continues to make progress. The latest news is that Mahle, alongside Swiss firm Liebherr Machines Bulle, has devised a new method of injecting and combusting hydrogen into a piston engine that dodges the usual problem of unstable combustion causing pre-ignition and detonation. Hydrogen contains no carbon and no hydrocarbons, so the only unwanted emissions it can produce is NOx, which occurs when nitrogen in the air is oxidised at high temperatures. For hydrogen to produce enough power, the engine must run at a very high compression ratio, but to avoid those high combustion temperatures, the hydrogen must also be diluted with large amounts of air. The combination of…

BMW’s claim that the new 2 Series Coupé occupies a “defiantly niche position” in the brand’s portfolio might make fans of the brilliant original model nervous. After all, global car giants in the business of selling as many cars as possible don’t tend to focus resources on small niches. In this case, “defiantly niche” means that after the 1 Series hatchback switched to a front-driven platform (also used by the 2 Series Gran Coupé), the 2 Series Coupé is the sole compact BMW left with rear-wheel drive. That sounds like a recipe for a lack of investment, given that the car’s sales will be dwarfed by every one of the roughly 374 different SUVs that BMW now sells. But in reality, it has served as a liberation. With the link…

This early example of the new Peugeot 308 is in the UK but still left-hand drive. It’s a range-topping plug-in hybrid with 222bhp overall, 178bhp of that coming from a turbocharged 1.6-litre petrol engine and the rest an electric motor, both driving the front wheels through an eight-speed auto gearbox. There’s a 12.4kWh battery at the back that gives 36 miles of electriconly range. It charges at 3.7kW max, with 7.4kW capability a £300 option. A fully electric 308 will come in 2023, while for now there’s also a 128bhp 1.2-litre turbo petrol and a 128bhp 1.5-litre diesel, plus a 178bhp PHEV. The new 308 feels plush from the driving seat. It uses good materials and is strikingly designed, with Peugeot’s trademark small and low-set steering wheel, squared off at…

Iremember this. Playing on the beach under Paignton Pier. Granny had retired to Torquay and my mother got to offload her idiot offspring on her mother for one excruciating weekend per year for all concerned. We were never allowed onto the pier, of course, for it was a place for the down at heel, the dissolute and practitioners of all seven known deadly sins and a few more besides. So of course getting onto Paignton Pier became not so much an ambition as a life goal. And we made it. It was here I played my first arcade game, an early version of Forza Motorsport, otherwise known as an unwound coat hanger with a model car on one end and a steering rack on the other, allowing the driver (in…

Max pushes to the max in Mexico Max Verstappen said that he was “really on the edge” in braking for his turn-one move to pass the Mercedes-AMGs of Sir Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas from third on the grid at the recent Mexican Grand Prix. He went on to dominate the race, extending his points lead over Hamilton. The rivals led home Red Bull’s other driver, Sergio Pérez, who became the first Mexican to achieve a home podium in Formula 1. Conway and co win WEC title for Toyota Toyota GR010 Hybrid trio Kazuki Nakajima, Brendon Hartley and Sébastien Buemi dominated the World Endurance Championship season-closing Bahrain 8 Hours, but second place was enough for their team-mates Kamui Kobayashi, José María López and Mike Conway to secure the title for…

The day after winning the 2001 WRC title, Richard was in London doing some PR stuff with Subaru. I caught up with him in the evening at his house, where he asked if I would go with him to Wales the next day. He was going to test the Peugeot 206 WRC “in case I never get to drive it again”. A bizarre contract situation meant that Subaru had the right to keep Richard if he became world champion in 2001 – a situation that had looked unlikely in the summer, when he had signed the contract with Peugeot. Two days later, he was due in court to find his way out of his Subaru contract. So we went to Wales, on a pea-souper of a November morning, in a…

TWIN TEST Alpina B8 Gran Coupé vs Porsche Taycan Petrol or electric? Two very different takes on the all-season performance saloon face off FEATURE Climate change How seriously are car makers taking the crisis and what are they doing about it? DRIVEN The £3500 EV Chinese firm Wuling has made the world’s cheapest electric car. We drive it EVERY WEEK MOTORSPORT Honda leaves Formula 1 The Japanese firm’s latest F1 stint is ROAD TEST Honda HR-V Small SUV has greatly matured and gone hybrid-only. Just how good is it? SUBSCRIBE autocar.co.uk/subscribe or see p28…

MILEAGE 4125 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To see if the Ford stalwart is still fit for purpose in its final year of production As well as eating into boot space, the addition of a hybrid drivetrain into the existing Mondeo bodyshell has meant a reduction in fuel-tank capacity to fit it all in. The drop from the 62 litres of diesel versions to the 51 litres of my petrol hybrid might not seem like much but, given that an MPG figure in the mid-50s should be easily achievable in the oil-burner, it has a significant effect on the car’s real-world range. Chuck in that my average economy has been dropping – now down to less than 45mpg overall – due to the number of town miles I cover, and that…

MILEAGE 133,767 LAND ROVER SERIES 3 The Lorry is back from the garage, and it really does seem to be running better than ever before. I got them to do an oil change while it was there to save me the bother. I did buy some tins of mineral oil this year but not any supporting filters, so I must remedy that. Pleasingly, there’s nothing else to report, because it’s operating as it should do. I would quite like to find an alternative to petrol, mind you, as the tiny tank empties far too often. If there’s a pattern emerging among all the occupants of my personal Bangernomics-tinged garage, it’s the very welcome lack of MOT advisories. Long may that continue. A TO Z BANGERPEDIA E is for Seat Exeo…

American performance cars make no sense in the UK, what with our expensive fuel prices and narrow country roads, but that doesn’t make them any less desirable. The Ford Mustang is one of the most recognisable, and it’s today’s Mk6 car that we’ve taken a liking to on the used market. It was launched in 2013 as the first ’Stang to be sold globally and to offer right-hand drive. Coming with a fastback or slightly pricier convertible body, it offered a few engines. The 300bhp 3.7-litre V6 continued from the Mk5, joined by a new 435bhp 5.0-litre Coyote V8. But the headline-grabber was a new, more planet-friendly turbocharged four-cylinder unit with 310bhp. This provided a 0-62mph time of 5.5sec when mated to the six-speed manual gearbox (a six-speed automatic was…

Before we get too carried away with the famous fact that Princess Diana had an Audi Cabriolet, it’s worth noting that it was a dealer loan car. Even so, you would think her tenuous connection with the elegant Audi would be enough to secure it a place at today’s table of rising modern classics, but – happily for us – not so. If you’re looking for a classy bargain, then, you’ve just found it. Prices start at about £1000 for project cars, but just £4000 buys you a tidy example and £8000 the very best. Why so? It’s hard to say, especially since the model has so much going for it. It looks super-cool, with its elegant roof-down lines unspoiled by the presence of a roll-over bar (the strengthened windscreen…

ould Subaru be on its way back in Britain? Yes. C Very modestly speaking, I mean. By its own admission, the Japanese brand put in an “embarrassing” performance here last year, selling just 951 cars. It has decided against bringing its next BRZ sports coupé to the UK and no longer sells the WRX here, while the estates and 4x4s it does specialise in – and for which it’s known among the rural private buyers that have traditionally been its heartland – aren’t exactly fuel efficient. Which is why the new Solterra, an electric SUV similar to Toyota’s bZ4x (see p11), gives me some hope. In rural areas, buyers are more likely than townies to have space to charge a car, so as to make it warm and ready for…