Innholdsfortegnelse for 1476 i Auto Express

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for all the latest new cars news WELCOME to one of the most important issues of Auto Express this year, where we reveal the results of our Driver Power survey. We all know how much the cars we buy and the way we buy them is changing, which is why we’ve made changes to our survey to make it more in-depth and more relevant to car buyers than ever. The results we’re publishing first reflect owners’ satisfaction with new cars – models that are still currently on sale and are aged between two and 12 months. If you’re about to buy a new car, it’s unmissable reading with quite a few surprises – at the top and bottom of the chart. In our next issue, we’ll be counting…

VOLKSWAGEN has signalled its intent to expand the new Arteon line-up with a more practical shooting brake model. And bosses are also discussing the possibility of launching a new six-cylinder version. Dr. Elmar-Marius Licharz, head of product line for medium and full-size cars, told Auto Express: “I would like to make an [Arteon] shooting brake – these plans are under way, but it’s not yet final.” Speaking about the flexibility of the MQB architecture on which the Arteon is based, Licharz added: “If we build a six-cylinder engine – we have built one already in a prototype – it will be one you can also use in the Atlas [SUV] and vice versa.” PAGE 26: New VW Arteon saloon driven…

“Average car insurance prices have risen by £100 over the last year” OFFICIAL THE average cost of car insurance in the UK is expected to top £800 for the first time ever this month, according to new analysis. Average car insurance prices have risen by £100 over the last year – a rise of 14 per cent – and £200 in two years, analysis by comparethemarket.com has found. The increase in premiums is expected to continue following the third rise in Insurance Premium Tax (IPT) in less than two years. IPT went up from 10 to 12 per cent on 1 June, with cover providers passing the hikes on to buyers. Rising vehicle repair costs – up 32 per cent in three years – are also leading to pricier policies.…

“Search of owner forums revealed Alex wasn’t only person having problems with F-Pace’s leather” Julie Sinclair IF the leather upholstery on your new car’s seats starts wearing prematurely, your clothing is either excessively abrasive or it’s simply a dodgy batch of trim. Either way, if the dealer is happy to rectify the situation under warranty, it’s probably not worth losing sleep over. But what if it keeps happening? Surely the maker can’t claim it’s ‘just one of those things’? Reader Alex Christie said that was the response he got from Jaguar after his new F-Pace needed its fourth driver’s seat cover in only 10 months. Alex, of Eye, Suffolk, explained to Auto Express: “Six or seven weeks after collecting the car last May, I saw what I thought were dirty…

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for the latest new cars and drives Performance 0-62mph/top speed 6.5 seconds/152mph Running costs 47.8mpg (official) £77 fill-up @Jonathan_burn WHAT makes a car premium? There’s an argument that the badge, the price, the technology or even the way it looks can define whether a car is premium or not. But as a rule of thumb, a mix of all four often contributes to how it’s branded. Volkswagen is serious about upping its premium image to take on BMW and Audi, with bosses promising its cars will become more emotional and more interesting to look at in the not-too-distant future. VWs make a lot of sense to a lot of people, but very rarely does someone buy one because it makes them go weak at the knees. The all-new…

Performance 0-62mph/top speed 3.9 seconds/174mph Running costs 33.6mpg (official) £71 fill-up Stuart Gallagher THREE years into its model cycle, BMW has added to the M4 line-up with this: the lighter, more powerful and more expensive M4 CS. Available to order now, the CS sits between the Competition Pack car and the limited-run, stripped-out M4 GTS launched in 2016. While BMW isn’t limiting CS production, numbers are restricted by the factory’s capacity, which currently stands at 1,000 units per year. In developing the CS, BMW’s M division has spent the majority of its time on a laptop, remapping and tuning the car’s engine performance, suspension settings and steering calibration. This has resulted in the 3.0-litre twin-turbo straight-six developing an additional 10bhp and 50Nm of torque over the M4 Competition Pack, raising…

“I WAS a badge snob and would never have dreamed of looking at a Kia,” said Paul Mackintosh. “So when my son turned up in a three-door Pro_cee’d I laughed. But then he took me for a ride in it and I fell in love.” Looking for something sporty, Paul, from Darlington, Co Durham, whittled his choices down to a Ford Focus ST-3 and a Cee’d GT, which features a 201bhp 1.6-litre petrol turbo. “I’m a petrolhead so I’ve always liked sporty cars, and the Cee’d is more than quick enough,” he told us. “It’s very well equipped with a heated steering wheel and seats – although there’s no heated windscreen – and I love the part-leather, part-Alcantara seat trim.” So what swung his buying decision in favour of the…

THIS year, we asked new car owners to rate their vehicles in nine different categories that were made up of 31 various areas, ranging from engine refinement to the safety kit on board. This made Driver Power 2017 the most comprehensive survey Auto Express has ever carried out. As you read through the next five pages, you’ll find out the winners in each of the nine categories, as well as the areas that made up each of the categories. With more questions than ever, it meant that for a car to be crowned a category winner, it had to master multiple aspects of ownership. Several themes emerged this year. Firstly, it was clear how impressed owners were with electric cars and hybrids. It wasn’t only the low running costs that…

Used triple test BMW2 Series Gran Tourer BMW 2 Series Gran Tourer xDrive Sport auto Years: 2015 to date Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl, 197bhp ns group: 19 Official econ/CO2: 57.6mpg/128g/km Why? Fits needs of BMW buyers who want seven seats, yet is costly and less practical than rivals here. Prices from: £20,990 BUYING an upmarket MPV might seem fruitless, but BMW thinks it can muscle in on the patch with the 2 Series Gran Tourer. As with Ford’s S-MAX, it injects a little extra desirability. The BMW badge means sharp handling, excellent quality and a classy cabin. Unfortunately, the 2 Series isn’t as practical as the Citroen and Ford, with its cramped third row best suited to children. On the flipside, even with optional xDrive AWD it’s surprisingly efficient and can…

HAVING subbed for Fernando Alonso at last month’s Monaco Grand Prix, Jenson Button has now announced he’ll be taking on the Japanese Super GT championship’s Suzuka 1000km endurance race on 27 August this year, driving a Honda NSX. Button will join the #16 Motul and Mugen-backed entry for the event, sharing with the car’s regular full-season drivers Hideki Mutoh and Daisuke Nakajima. The 2009 Formula One champion said: “After driving the NSX GT at Honda Racing’s Thanks Day event last December, I became interested in one day racing in Super GT. “I spoke with Honda and they’ve given me a chance to race at the Suzuka 1000km. I’ll push to win. I’m really looking forward to racing in front of my Japanese fans again.” Sardinia next stop for WRC SEBASTIEN…

SPIED A NEW Dacia Duster is in the pipeline, and has been caught on camera for the first time – but the car isn’t expected in UK dealers until late summer 2018. These first pictures show that Renault’s budget sub-brand is still keen to keep the model under wraps. But the overall form of the upcoming second-generation Duster closely follows that of the current car, so we’re expecting an evolutionary look rather than a completely new design. As such, an emphasis will be placed on making the current shape more fashionable. Don’t expect a luxury makeover, though – it will still be a utilitarian vehicle with an affordable price tag, offering buyers lowfrills motoring on a budget. Basic versions will still get plastic bumpers, wheelarches and steel wheels, but plusher…

AE_Consumer MORE than 200 drivers a day were caught illegally using their mobile phone behind the wheel in the month after new, tougher laws for the offence were introduced. Police in Britain penalised nearly 6,000 drivers in March this year, as part of a major crackdown on the practice, according to figures obtained by the Press Association. From 1 March, the penalty for drivers illegally using their mobile phone was doubled from £100 to £200, and the licence endorsement also rose, from three penalty points to six. Of 44 forces, the Metropolitan Police in London registered the highest number of offenders, at 2,037. Thames Valley Police recorded the second highest total at 478, followed by Police Scotland at 339. The 5,997 drivers caught in March is a huge increase from…

EXCLUSIVE IMAGE EVERY version of the new Audi A8 will get some kind of hybrid technology, bosses have confirmed. The car will debut in the coming months, and will hit back at the Mercedes S-Class by using more lightweight materials and cutting-edge tech than ever. Audi’s V-engine design chief Andreas Frohlich told Auto Express: “The new Audi A8 will have a 48-volt electrical system across petrol and diesel models. Every A8 will be electrified.” Previously, very little information about the new model’s engines had been revealed, but we now know the limousine will feature six, eight and 12-cylinder units. Every model will feature hybrid tech, and engineers suggest it could save as much as 0.7 litres of fuel per 100km – allowing silent coasting at speeds of up to 99mph.…

IT’S time to pick a winner of the 2017 Auto Express Design Award – and we need your help. The Auto Express team has put together a shortlist of the best new car designs we’ve seen in the past 12 months, and now you can choose your favourite. Our picks include the new Alpine A110 (right), the McLaren 720S and the Kia Stinger, but it’s not all about sports cars. The new Range Rover Velar is also vying for the crown this year, along with the BMW X2, Peugeot Instinct and Jaguar I-Pace concepts. More attainable cars on our shortlist include the new Honda Civic Type R, the latest SEAT Ibiza and the Volkswagen Arteon. With our picks all lined up, it’s now just down to you to pick a winner.…

Essentials Performance 0-62mph/top speed 5.4 seconds/155mph Running costs 34.0mpg (official) £83 fill-up @rsp_ingram THE original Audi Q5 SUV was a huge success for dealers and brand bosses here in the UK. More than 60,000 found homes in Britain between 2008 and 2016, but perhaps surprisingly, since launching in 2013, the fiery SQ5 has accounted for as many as one in five of those sales – despite its hefty price and high running costs. Now in its second generation, Audi has turned the hot Q5 formula on its head by revealing its range-topper with a turbo petrol engine instead of a tried and tested diesel. A TDI version will join the range later in the year, but it’s the 349bhp TFSI model we’re trying here for the first time. From the…

@JRRBatchelor Performance 0-62mph/top speed 3.2 seconds/204mph ALTHOUGH technically not a separate model, the new McLaren 570S Track Pack will understandably appeal to those wanting to take their 570S to the circuit. But this is no stripped-out, compromised version of the standard car. Instead, it’s a raft of lightweight features designed to maximise the McLaren’s performance. There’s a set of super-lightweight alloy wheels, dark-finish roof paint, a new sports exhaust system and a rear wing that now sits 12mm higher. Inside, swathes of lightweight Alcantara cover the dash, steering wheel and carbon-fibre racing seats, while McLaren’s Telemetry System gives real-time lap data and logging. And the price? A considerable £16,500 boost. The car is 25kg lighter, while the wing offers an extra 29kg of downforce at 150mph. Slip inside and that…

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for the latest new cars and drives Golf GTI vs 308 GTi Road tests THE performance hatch sector has evolved to the point where family cars are now putting nearly 400bhp to the road through clever and complex four-wheel-drive systems. However, this continuous progress means cars such as the new Volkswagen Golf GTI are more relevant than ever. This Mk7.5 GTI still offers plenty of performance, but in a usable and more affordable package compared with fire-breathing models such as the Mercedes-AMG A 45. The latest incarnation is a mild facelift rather than a radical rethink of the recipe, but it faces a serious challenge from the Peugeot 308 GTi. In such a tight and competitive sector, this will be a tough test for the VW. VOLKSWAGEN GOLF GTI…

Running costs 42.6mpg (on test) £48 fill-up @LobAllan IF she wins the General Election, Conservative Party leader Theresa May plans to have a vote in the Commons on repealing the foxhunting ban, so now might not be the best time to bear a resemblance to the bushy-tailed mammal. The latest small car to arrive on our fleet, the new Nissan Micra, seems to have just that problem. Friends and family alike have begun to nickname it ‘the fox’, on account of the pointy, angular face paired with its £575 optional Energy Orange paint scheme. I’m only a few weeks into running the supermini, and it seems like the nickname has already stuck fast. Whether you think the looks are foxy or not, the Nissan has certainly grown in size, with…

Thanks to Shire Car Sales in Leicester for the loan of the Ford Ka Mk2 pictured. Contact 01527 272903 www.shirecarsalesworcestershire.co.uk Richard Dredge FORD has just introduced a new city car called the Ka+ and we suspect this latest model will prove a hit, just as its predecessors did. That’s because if there’s one thing that’s key to making a small car succeed, it’s keen pricing – something at which Ford has always excelled. But buyers don’t choose Fords just because they’re cheap; they tend to be desirable for a whole host of reasons, such as being good value, practical, cheap to run and reliable. While the second take on the Ka formula didn’t have the cheekiness of the original, it was good enough for us to declare it a class…

EXCLUSIVE IMAGE @LobAllan “Project One will be the first production car in history to use a contemporary F1 engine” MERCEDES-AMG’s F1-engined hypercar, codenamed Project One, will use a plug-in hybrid powertrain and develop upwards of 986bhp (1,000hp) from a 1.6- litre V6 engine and four electric motors, the German manufacturer has announced. It’s the first time in history an engine from a contemporary Formula One car has appeared in a production vehicle. The debut of Project One is scheduled for the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, while first customers will take delivery in 2019. Our exclusive main image shows what they can expect. Tobias Moers, CEO of Mercedes-AMG, told Auto Express at the recent Nürburgring 24 Hour race, where Project One’s hi-tech powertrain was unveiled, that this would be “the…

OFFICIAL THE Nissan X-Trail has been given a mid-life facelift, gaining a subtle new look, extra kit and fresh tech. It will go on sale in August. It follows a similar update to the Qashqai earlier this year, and the design alterations are subtle. Changes at the front include a wider grille, plus a revised front apron with gloss black inserts and new rectangular foglamps. In addition, the headlight clusters have been revised, with the LED units now boasting adaptive functions for the first time, too. Changes around the back include a new chrome strip in the bumper, plus upgraded LED tail-lights. Two new wheel designs feature, alongside four fresh paint colours. Inside, Nissan has fitted a new steering wheel, as well as gloss black trim on the air vents.…

OFFICIAL FUTURE DS Performance models will use hybrid power to deliver greater speed and driving fun, according to the brand’s CEO Yves Bonnefont. Bonnefont told Auto Express: “I would like my performance versions in the future to be hybrids, because of the link with our Formula E racing and also the ability to get torque from zero revs with electric motors. I’m a believer in high-performance electric and hybrid cars. I’m not so much interested in small city cars, which make no sense for a brand like DS.” Bonnefont continued: “I’m a strong believer in torque rather than power; we try to have all of our powertrains in the top two or three in terms of torque in their category, which is the case for two-thirds of our powertrain range…

FIRST RIDE Kyle Fortune IT’S hardly the best-kept secret, but Porsche can no longer deny the existence of its forthcoming 911 GT2 RS. We’ve sat alongside GT man Andreas Preuninger in a prototype car, ahead of its launch later this year. It promises to be the most extreme 911 ever, both in looks and performance. To achieve that, Porsche’s wildest 911 again crosses boundaries. It mixes elements of the purist’s GT3 with the pugilistic Turbo. The result is, in Preuninger’s words “brutal power, that’s a joy to drive on track because it’s so precise and so agile”. A conservative 641bhp and 750Nm are the numbers Porsche is willing to reveal prior to the car’s actual homologation later this year, but in the tradition of the GT2 RS, the final numbers…

Martin Saarinen EUROPEAN vehicle safety standards are in urgent need of review, after new figures show that road fatalities have not fallen in three years. The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) has called for the European Commission to “urgently bring forward new minimum safety standards for new cars, vans and trucks after years of delays”. Last year, 25,500 people died on European roads, a figure that’s barely changed in three years. Fatalities in the UK have failed to significantly drop during the same period, with 1,780 people dying here last year. And while Euro NCAP safety standards were toughened in 2017, the minimum safety requirements that manufacturers have to meet to pass type-approval tests have not been updated in eight years. The ETSC is calling for the Commission to make…

@LobAllan WITH the fashionable Fiat 500X and the ever-popular 500 city car continuing to sell in droves, the 500L – unchanged since 2013 – has been looking a bit neglected of late. It’s unloved no more, however, because the retro-styled mini-MPV has finally received a selection of mid-life nips and tucks, with the aim of bringing it into line with the rest of the 500 family. Fiat says 40 per cent of the existing 500L’s components have been revised for this facelift, but as is often the case you’d have a hard time squaring that claim simply by looking at the newcomer. Exterior tweaks to the love-it-or-hate-it design require pointing out, because they’re limited to extra chrome at the front, LED daytime running lights, reprofiled grilles and bumpers plus a…

@AE_Consumer IT’S that time of the year again where we reveal the best cars to own as voted by you, our readers. As you read through the next 36 pages, you’ll see that much has changed with Driver Power this year. We’ve made our survey bigger and better, asking new, more detailed questions to highlight the ownership experience in an even more comprehensive way. This year, we kick off by listing the top 75 best new cars to own, covering everything from city runabouts to sevenseat MPV and SUVs, based on the results of our poll. We asked owners with vehicles less than 12 months old to rate their cars in 31 different areas. Our questions didn’t just focus on elements like performance, comfort, practicality and tech, but delved deep into each…

AS secretary of the Sussex Golf Union, Lexus RX owner Anup Vasant from Hove travels all over the southern counties following the sport, and reckons his Lexus RX 450h hybrid is the perfect car for the job. It’s his third petrol-electric RX, and he bought it new to replace an ex-dealer car. “I absolutely love it,” he told us. “It’s so relaxing to drive, and everyone who gets in the car with me is impressed at how comfortable it is as well. “I really like all the safety features and the extras, and I find all the technology very useful – especially on the motorway, where the blind spot monitors help you know what’s around you. The cameras and speed limit warnings are really helpful, too.” Anup isn’t too worried…

Second opinion “Johnny has not yet felt the effects of the xDrive system. There are a few reasons for that. Firstly, the set-up works subtly when it engages, so you rarely sense a loss of grip. Instead, you get an impressive feeling of relentless traction. Exiting a wet roundabout, the four-wheeldrive car would have the edge over its rear-drive stablemate. Secondly, the 5 Series has so much grip and the chassis is so composed on the road that at normal speeds you rarely trouble what it can do.” James Disdale Chief reviewer @Jonathan_burn CO2/tax 124g/km £450 or 26% Practicality Boot 530 litres Running costs 39.5mpg (on test) £81 fill-up THIS new king of the corporate car park is the latest model to join the Auto Express fleet. The BMW 5…

Kim Adams AS the weather improves, thoughts turn to weekend breaks and holidays, and for many of us that will involve the car. Whether you’re planning a touring holiday or just transport to your summer break destination, there’s plenty you can do to ensure you arrive refreshed and ready to relax. So what should you pack to ensure your downtime goes smoothly? Here’s our guide to the top 10 items you should invest in before leaving home. Dash cam Nextbase 512G Ultra Price: £129.95 Contact: www.nextbase.co.uk DRIVING on busy roads that you don’t know, particularly abroad, increases the risk of having an accident. So it makes sense to have back-up from a dash cam if an incident wasn’t your fault or you were the victim of an insurance scam. Our…