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I CAN remember back in the eighties the furore when Ford decided to can the Cortina and replace it with the ‘jelly mould’ Sierra. It was out with the old family-favourite, three-box saloon and in with the new, aerodynamic five-door hatch. Now it’s the turn of the Mondeo to make way, although Ford says it has no plans to directly replace it. So it’s not only farewell to a big-selling and much-loved nameplate, but it’s also farewell to a whole breed of car – one that can trace its roots back to the good old Cortina. Today’s families and fleet managers don’t want low-riding hatchbacks and saloons – it’s all about SUVs. And Ford’s excellent Kuga is doing a fine job of offering those who might have bought a Mondeo…

sean_carson@dennis.co.uk THE Hyundai i20 N hot hatch is the Korean firm’s follow-up to the scorching i30 N. Could it be a difficult second album for the Korean firm’s N sub-brand? Think again, because Hyundai has applied what it learned from its first project to great effect here. This is a small, sophisticated, hardcore machine, and it’s the details that make it, so let’s take a quick re-cap: the i20 N is powered by a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces 201bhp and 275Nm of torque. There’s a six-speed manual transmission with a rev-matching downshift function that sends power to the front axle, where a mechanical limited-slip differential improves traction. Launch control helps the i20 N sprint from 0-62mph in 6.7 seconds and on to a top speed of…

THE i20 N’s vital figures put it right in the firing line of the car that’s had the hot supermini class sewn up for years now, the Ford Fiesta ST. The Hyundai outdoes the Ford for power, by 4bhp, although it’s 15Nm down on torque. Of course, the i20 N’s relatively light kerbweight undercuts even the compact Fiesta’s figure. Pricing for the i20 N is a factor that’s still unknown, and at this level of the market it’s key. However, a price tag a shade under £25,000 is highly likely, so given the level of standard kit the i20 N gets – coming loaded with clever chassis features, the latest infotainment and strong safety tech – itputs it on a good footing when compared with the £24,975 Ford Fiesta ST-3…

Hyundai i20 N Price: £24,990 Engine: 1.6-litre 4cyl turbo petrol Power/torque: 201bhp/275Nm 0-62mph/top speed: 6.7 seconds/143mph + FOR Thanks to lots of advanced hardware the chassis is tenacious in its approach – plus there are lots of great mechanical and electronic features to improve performance. It’s fun - AGAINST i20 N’s engine isn’t a great, but it is effective. Exhaust drones, while quality in some areas of the cabin is lacking Ford Fiesta ST-3 5dr Price: £24,975 Engine: 1.5-litre 3cyl turbo petrol Power/torque: 197bhp/290Nm 0-62mph/top speed: 6.5 seconds/144mph + FOR Fiesta ST is a hardcore hatch that puts driving fun and thrills above all else – and there’s plenty of talent to back it up. Three-cylinder engine is grunty and characterful; chassis is sharp and playful - AGAINST Practicality is…

NOT content with the launch of one N performance model this year, Hyundai is gearing up for the reveal of its rapid new Kona N SUV – and our spies have given us our best look yet at the upcoming hot crossover. These shots tally with what we know from a series of teaser images revealed by Hyundai last month, and we can see N badging on the sporty grille, plus a line of three air intakes to help cool the 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine under the bonnet. This unit is carried over from the i30 N hot hatchback, with potential for 247bhp or a Performance variant with as much as 271bhp. The Kona N will use a dual-clutch gearbox only, while chassis tweaks including a lower ride height, a…

John_McIlroy@dennis.co.uk @johnmcilroy “Urban EV is key to SEAT because it could generate enormous sales volumes – and it needs to” SEAT is planning to launch an all-electric “urban EV” in 2025, with a price tag between £17,000 and £22,000. Talks on whether the new car will be a SEAT or a Cupra are ongoing, with company President Wayne Griffiths outlining at its annual results conference that a decision on this had not yet been made. Griffiths did confirm that the new compact EV “will be the first car for an entry platform for different brands of the VW Group.” This likely refers to the MEB Entry architecture, an electric-only platform for more compact, supermini-sized cars that will sit beneath the MEB-based Cupra Born and Tavascan models in the…