Auto Express 1433

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for all the latest new cars news WE all love a bargain – and the car industry knows it. That’s why Britain has, for many years, been used by manufacturers as a bit of a dumping ground for cars that they want to get off their hands. The strong pound has allowed salesmen in UK dealerships to dish out keen discounts and finance offers, while still returning a tidy profit and allowing the production lines around the world to keep rolling merrily along. The most extreme example of this has been ‘pre-registrations’, where dealerships themselves have become the owners of vehicles, secured their bonuses for hitting their monthly and quarterly targets, and then sold on the car, often with only a handful of miles, at a huge saving.…

Jonathan_Burn@dennis.co.uk @Jonathan_Burn “New Type R could become world’s most powerful frontdrive hot hatch” HONDA will be looking to hog the limelight at October’s Paris Motor Show as it rolls out an all-new, more powerful and even faster version of its legendary Civic Type R, Auto Express can exclusively reveal. Even though the current model – limited to 2,500 models in the UK – only launched last year, the manufacturer will preview the next Type R with a concept in France, and the production version will then make its way into showrooms next September, senior executives at the company have stated. The concept will make its debut on the show stand alongside the standard version of the all-new 10th-generation hatch. One of the key areas the new Type R will address…

“You can make out sweeping roofline, long bonnet and tiger-nose grille in our spy shots” Sam_Naylor@dennis.co.uk @SamNaylor_AE “Unlike previous Kia saloons, the new GT model is focused on being great to drive” And Rio SUV is set to rival Nissan Juke Kia is also planning a new crossover to rival the Nissan Juke, and it could get plug-in hybrid power. The manufacturer has put out teasers of a baby SUV before, with 2013’s Niro concept (above). But now insiders claim a production model, based on the next-generation Rio, is due soon after that car’s launch in 2017. Western Europe boss John Kim said: “Kia is launching some new products next year, such as a new Rio, with an SUV as well.” Thanks to a higher driving position and a bigger…

Martin_Saarinen@dennis.co.uk @AE_Consumer nearly £400million has been generated in the first two years of the Government’s HGV Levy, according to exclusive Auto Express figures. Foreign-registered lorries generated £96.2million – a quarter of the £390million total – with the extra cash used to cover road maintenance and repairs. Meanwhile, UK-registered HGVs – which generated the other £293.8m – saw their vehicle excise duty reduced to offset the outlay. The Department for Transport (DfT) introduced the HGV Levy in April 2014 for all lorries above 12 tonnes using UK roads, as a way to “create a level playing field across Europe”. The Levy aims to remove the inequality UK hauliers faced when paying for tolls on foreign roads in Europe. Yearly, monthly, weekly and daily tickets are available. Daily tickets, which vary in…

CITROEN is moving into the future by looking at its past – reviving the Mehari legend as an all-electric, open-top beach buggy. The newcomer is called the E-Mehari. It’s powered by a 68bhp electric motor giving a 124-mile range; that trails a Tesla by some way, but this car is designed for the quiet life on the coast, so we headed to the German North Sea island of Sylt to take the wheel. You can see similarities with the original – like grandmother and granddaughter – because the ribbed door pattern and undulating lines of the E-Mehari are a nod to the design of the late sixties Mehari. But the differences are more striking; Citroen’s family face has been grafted on to the front, while the hose-down interior and digital…

New Special Cactus is a bit of all White AS the new E-Mehari hits the road (left), Citroen has added a new W Special Edition to the C4 Cactus range. Priced from £18,890, and on sale now, the Cactus W (above) is based on the existing top-spec Flair. It has a Pearl White Body, white door mirrors, colourcoded Airbumps and 17-inch white alloys. Standard kit includes sat-nav, aircon and a reversing camera. Engine options comprise the 109bhp 1.2-litre turbo petrol and 99bhp 1.6-litre diesel. BMW engines to get greener and meaner BMW has revealed its next generation of modular petrol and diesel engines, which promise improved efficiency and performance. The new three and fourcylinder units, developing from 95bhp to 231bhp, won’t arrive until late 2017. They are likely to debut…