Innholdsfortegnelse for 1677 i Auto Express

Luke_Wilkinson@autovia.co.uk @LT_Wilkinson “Semi-autonomous driving tech can control the SUV at speeds of up to 130mph, providing the driver’s hands are on the wheel” • Facelifted SUV revealed • Facelifted SUV revealed VOLKSWAGEN has facelifted the Tiguan Allspace, giving the seven-seat version of its top-selling SUV the same round of updates that appeared on the five-seat Tiguan towards the end of 2020. There are new matrix LED headlights, a restyled front bumper and grille, plus new tail-lights. Inside, the updated model gets new seats, fresh door panels, an updated steering wheel and climate controls with touch-sensitive sliders in place of the old car’s buttons. Volkswagen’s latest MIB3 infotainment system is introduced, too, with either an eight-inch screen or the option of a 9.2-inch set-up. The facelift also introduces Travel Assist to…

Cupra turning up heat with new Leon engine CUPRA has added a new 2.0 TSI 245 petrol engine to its Leon hot hatchback line-up, making this the most affordable model in the Spanish brand’s range. The car (above) produces 242bhp and 370Nm of torque, sending power to the front wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission for a 0-62mph time of 6.4 seconds. The Leon is on sale now, priced from £31,460, and comes in VZ1 and VZ2 trim levels. London best for travel if you don’t have a car THE best and worst places to live in the UK without a car have been revealed. London is ranked the best city to get around by alternative means of transport, then Portsmouth, Southend, Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Leicester, Brighton &…

Luke_Wilkinson@autovia.co.uk @LT_Wilkinson • 812 Competizione revealed • Coupé and targa all sold out FERRARI has launched its new limitededition 812 Competizione, a pumped up, more powerful, lightweight variant of the Italian brand’s front-engined V12 berlinetta. It has also revealed the 812 Competizione A, an open-top targa version of the car. Production of the 812 Competizione is limited to 999 units for the hard-top and 599 of the Competizione A (the A stands for ‘Aperta’, or ‘open’ in Italian). Prices start from 499,000 Euros (or around £430,000) for the former and 578,000 Euros (almost £500,000) for the latter. All are sold out. The Competizione models use an 819bhp version of Ferrari’s 6.5-litre naturally aspirated V12 that revs to 9,500rpm. New titanium con-rods and pistons, a redesigned crankshaft and valve train, a…

READER Tim Roberts shared his experience of the semiconductor shortage, explaining he wanted a MINI Cooper Convertible and had chosen the specification, including the Digital Dashboard. Then, at the last minute, his dealer told him that MINI had changed the upgrade packages available, and instead of buying the £1,100 Navigation Pack to get the Digital Dashboard, he would have to spend £2,400 on the Navigation Plus Pack. MINI said the shortage has had “a limited impact on the availability of some equipment”, and the Digital Dash “is now only available with Navigation Plus”. The firm added the pack also includes wireless charging and a head-up display, but warned: “it’s possible that further changes will still be required.”…

mail@autoexpress.co.uk @AutoExpress HOT TOPIC Kia EV6 FROM: James Morley IT may not be cheap, but it’s a very desirable car and has some impressive charging capabilities. I imagine – and hope – that Kia will sell these in large numbers. Looks like a great product and would be good to see it succeed. FROM: CP I DON’T see why anyone would spend £40,000 on any brand-new EV, regardless of badge. Better to wait until these fancy new models are a few years old and have made their way through to the used market and become cheaper propositions. Join the debate at www.autoexpress.co.uk ▪ “A lot of EVs seem to sit around the £40k price point. I wish they were more affordable.” Stephen W ▪ “Sounds expensive, but with a long…

James_Brodie@autovia.co.uk @jimmybrods Performance 0-62mph/top speed 4.1 seconds/152mph Electric motor Power/range 523bhp/298 miles WOULD you have the new Audi e-tron GT or a Porsche Taycan? It’s the burning question in the premium electric car market, and that’s before you even bring the Tesla Model S into the equation. Our first encounter with Audi’s new electric model, a dead ringer for the stunning 2018 concept car, tells us it’s going to be a close fight. The e-tron GT is now on sale in Britain, and most buyers will plump for the entry-level GT quattro version. However, there’s little ‘entry-level’ about it, with a four-wheel-drive, all-electric drivetrain developing up to 523bhp on overboost (469bhp otherwise) and 800V technology enabling 270kW recharging. Prices start from £79,900, and Audi thinks that this will be the…

MODELTESTED: Vauxhall Mokka 1.2 Elite Nav Premium Auto PRICE: £27,100 ENGINE: 1.2-litre 3cyl, 128bhp Running costs 38.6mpg (on test) £55 fill-up/£220 or 31% tax Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 350/1,105 litres Performance 0-62mph/top speed 9.2 seconds/124mph THE latest Mokka gives buyers a fresh look, new tech and, according to Vauxhall, a more modern driving experience than ever. The brand hopes that a wide range of engine and trim choices will enable the Mokka to secure a large share of the segment. Here we’re driving an Elite Nav model, with a 128bhp 1.2-litre turbo petrol linked to an eight-speed automatic gearbox. Priced at £27,100, it’s the most expensive car here, but not by much. Design & engineering NAME aside, the latest Vauxhall Mokka shares nothing with its predecessor. While the previous model…

Vauxhall Mokka Multimedia Navi Key features: Apple CarPlay THE Mokka’s infotainment is certainly the prettiest of the set-ups here, with a high-contrast white font on a black background working well in high and low light. While the Mokka has a large 10-inch display, it isn’t really used to its full potential. Black bars on either side show temperature settings at all times, despite physical knobs and dials located below, so the mapping screen in particular looks small and is a little fiddly to use. Another strange quirk of the Vauxhall interface is that there is no homepage as such, only a couple of physical shortcuts to each of the main functions located below the screen. When entering an address, the space bar doesn’t appear on the numbers page, meaning that…

Dawn_Grant@autovia.co.uk THE time has now come for me to say goodbye to my SEAT Mii electric, and it’s got me thinking. Despite my initial reservations over its relatively short range, living with the car required relatively few compromises over my time with it – even without a wallbox charger at my flat. This was evident as far back as October last year. Before the latest lockdown began (although rumours of it were swirling) my husband and I decided to grab a weekend break down on the Dorset coast with a stop off en route in the New Forest. By then I’d lived with the car for a little while, but I’d only tried it out on one longer motorway journey and wasn’t so confident of the range. However, the fully…

Q Considering a cover-up I AM looking into covering my concrete garage floor. In previous houses I have used paint, but while the cost is reasonable, the preparation is time-consuming and the ambient temperature critical for the paint to cure. Have you ever tested garage floor coverings in the magazine? Stephen Morrell, E-mail A WE did a mini test of floor tiles back in 2016, when those from Big Dug (above) were our pick. All three we tested worked well, but they will get marked if unprotected axle stands and the like are used on them for prolonged periods. They resisted typical harsh garage liquids like fuel and oil, though. A good option, if not the cheapest. Q Repair or replace my alloys? I HAVE a BMW with diamond-cut 19-inch…

IF you can’t garage your little-used car, it’s always being attacked by the sun and harmful substances like rain, sap, tree branches, dirt and bird lime, so an outdoor cover is a worthwhile investment. Our previous test-winner from Halfords is discontinued, so we’re putting the second and third-placed products – another from Halfords, plus one from Sealey – up against a new tailored cover from Richbrook. To test the vital breathability, we placed each cover over a steam-filled box with a moisture trap above, noting the results after five minutes. Each was also expected to resist 500ml of water for 10 minutes. Plus we assessed knock protection and looked for ease of use, tether straps, quality, security-cable mountings, mirror pockets and zipped door panels. Sealey sneaks the win here from…

Alex_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @AxleIngram ROMAIN Grosjean will make an appearance behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car when he drives the 2019 Mercedes-AMG W10 at Paul Ricard next month. Following on from his terrifying crash at the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, in which his Haas pierced the armco and burst into a fireball, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff promised the 35-year-old Frenchman that he would get the chance to sample one of his team’s world championship-winning cars. That meeting has now been confirmed for 29 June. Grosjean, who scored 10 F1 podiums during stints at Renault, Lotus and Haas, visited Mercedes’s Brackley facility for a seat fitting and simulator work last week, and is looking forward to the opportunity. “I am so excited to jump back in an F1 car!” said…

James_Brodie@autovia.co.uk @jimmybrods • Large SUV will break budget brand into a new market • Value is still a strong point, but hybrid tech will also appear DACIA is planning to reveal three new models by 2025, with the first coming next year in the form of a bigger brother for the Duster SUV, called Bigster. The new car will catapult the budget brand into a more lucrative market, but it will still deliver on the brand’s core principle of catering to budget-conscious new-car buyers. It’s also part of an important rebranding exercise for the firm, which has recently been incorporated into a new business structure within the Renault Group. The Bigster will be one of the first Dacias to wear the brand’s new, more minimalist badging, which it says is…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy GORDON Murray has started work on the follow-up to his T.50 supercar – along with a revolutionary small SUV that will showcase his firm’s expansion into pure-electric powertrains and platforms. Referred to by Murray as ‘Project Two’, the new supercar will retain the T.50’s high-revving, normally aspirated V12 engine and its Xtrac gearbox. But as Murray revealed to Auto Express, the car will be more conventional than the three-seat, fan-assisted T.50. It should also be slightly cheaper, even though production will be limited to no more than 100 units. “The T.50’s powertrain feeds back into Project Two,” Murray told us. “But it is a brand-new platform. The T.50 was a unique monocoque because of the fan and the central driving position, and it’s very difficult to adapt that…

DESPITE the onset of turbocharging and now electrification, Ferrari’s famous V12 might still have some life left in it. The brand has revealed it is working on solutions to keep its iconic engine configuration alive and maintain this pillar of its business. At the unveiling of the 812 Competizione (above), Enrico Galliera, Ferrari’s chief marketing and commercial officer, said, “The V12 is part of the history of the company and the heart of Ferrari. We are trying to identify ways to keep it alive. We are working with other technologies; we know how to make a V12, a turbo engine, a hybrid engine, so we have the technology to decide what will be the best option for the future.”…

Bristol Cars plots 2025 return with new EV BRISTOL Cars is making a comeback with an all-new electric vehicle, called the Buccaneer, due for production in 2025. In the intervening period the firm will produce remastered versions of its Fighter (above), Speedster and 411 Series 8, fitting each with a modern 6.4-litre Chrysler Hemi V8 and an eightspeed automatic gearbox. Eight cars, costing £495,000 plus VAT, will be built. Reopened dealers see huge rise in car sales THE new-car market witnessed a massive 3,177-per-cent year-on-year growth last month with 141,483 vehicles finding homes. That’s up from just 4,321 in April 2020 when dealerships were closed due to the first national lockdown. Registrations were down 12.9 per cent across the 10-year average for the month, although dealers only fully reopened their…

GOVERNMENTS could consider stockpiling the rareearth metals necessary for the batteries and motors of EVs, according to a report on the materials used in clean energy from the International Energy Agency (IEA). The IEA warns that the carbon-neutrality targets held by many nations, including Britain, bring risks linked to the supply of materials like lithium, copper and cobalt. The IEA says countries could consider “strategic stockpiles” to offset this, while robust supply chains, better international relations and battery recycling are also recommended. The IEA says China has a “significant presence” in clean energy, refining 50-70 per cent of the world’s lithium and cobalt, and holding a 90 per cent share in some areas.…

THE following provide help with motoring problems. Some services are free, others charge a fee or operate on premium-rate lines (p), while some offer advice for members only (m) Legal AA: 0345 850 1130 (m) RAC: 0330 159 1446 (m) Citizens Advice Consumer helpline: 03454 040506 Local Trading Standards Local Citizens Advice Bureau Used car inspections AA: 0800 056 8040 RAC: 0330 159 0720 Technical advice AA: 0370 142 0002 (m) Driving licences DVLA: 0300 790 6801 Car registration/history HPI: 0113 222 2010 AA: 0800 316 3564 DVLA: 0300 790 6802 RAC: 0808 164 1923 Traffic information AA: 0906 888 4322 RAC: 09003 444999 (p) Problems with dealers The Motor Ombudsman: 0345 241 3008 Consumer Ombudsman: www.consumerombudsman.org RMIF: 0845 305 4230 Scottish Motor Trade Assoc. 0131 331 5510 Problems with…

mail@autoexpress.co.uk THERE will only ever be 500 Alfa GTAs and GTAms, each of which will cost a cool 176,500 and 181,500 Euros respectively, so call it around £155,000 for the latter that we’re driving at today’s exchange rate. But for that you get a sports saloon like no other. For starters, the GTA looks quite different to the regular Giulia Quadrifoglio on which it is based. There is a new adjustable carbonfibre wing and splitter front and rear, with extra aerodynamic addenda all the way down the sides and along most of the underside of the vehicle as well. The whole car sits lower to the ground and is wider, while it rides on new 20-inch alloy wheels, behind which nestle a quartet of vast carbon-ceramic brake discs. The tyres…

sean_carson@autovia.co.uk THIS could well be the most appealing version of the Mk8 Volkswagen Golf yet – and for a number of reasons. The first is the powertrain. We’ve tried the latest Golf in more powerful 1.5-litre eTSI mild-hybrid form before, but this latest 1.0 eTSI is new, offers less power at 108bhp, but is also more affordable, priced from £25,250 in base-spec Life trim that we’re testing here. It comes with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic DSG gearbox only, due to the 48-volt mild-hybrid tech. This allows the 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbocharged engine to go into ‘coast’ mode, where the revs drop to idle when you’re off the throttle to improve efficiency. The system’s party piece, though, is that it can also switch the combustion engine off altogether. Mild hybrids can’t run…

Running costs 53.6mpg (on test) £47 fill-up/£170 or 26% tax Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 374/1,156 litres Performance 0-62mph/top speed 8.9 seconds/130mph MODELTESTED: Hyundai Kona Hybrid 1.6 GDi Premium PRICE: £26,755 ENGINE: 1.6-litre 4cyl, 141bhp AE WHILE the Vauxhall Mokka is the newcomer to the class, this is also the road-test debut of the Hyundai Kona since its mid-life facelift at the start of 2021. The updates introduced revised styling, improved infotainment and a mild-hybrid powertrain. We’re driving the full-hybrid version here, which costs from £26,530 in Premium trim. Design & engineering DESPITE its compact SUV positioning, the Kona’s platform is actually derived from the larger i30 hatchback. Electrification has always been offered to some degree through the range, but now all three powertrains covering the regular Kona line-up feature at…

Ford Puma ST-Line X mHEV Auto PRICE: £25,895 ENGINE: 1.0-litre 3cyl, 123bhp CROSSOVER buyers who want to be entertained should look no further than the Ford Puma. But it’s not all about how much fun it is to drive; the Puma is also practical and competitively priced, and its mild-hybrid engine is quite frugal, too. Renault Captur S Edition TCe 140 Auto PRICE: £25,400 ENGINE: 1.3-litre 4cyl, 138bhp THE Captur is one of our favourites in this class and it’s easy to see why. Despite sharing the Juke’s underpinnings, the Renault is much better in almost every area. Beside any of its rivals here, the Captur is more spacious, more comfy and cheaper to buy.…

NEW PRODUCT Ultenic U10 cordless vacuum Price: £189 Contact: www.amazon.co.uk HOT in the wheel tracks of its impressive test debut (Issue 1,675), Ultenic has revealed another cordless vacuum: the U10. Unlike the U11, which comes with a freestanding floor mount, the U10 is designed to be kept on a wall. It has infrared dust-detection sensors in the brush head, which assess the amount of debris on the ground, alert the user and automatically adjust the power level to suit via the built-in auto-boost function. Performance is similar to the U11’s, with 23,000Pa-rated suction from its 250W 26V motor, which boasts a 40-minute run time in eco mode, and 15 minutes at max power from its 2200mAh lithium-ion battery. That performance is achieved by what Ultenic calls an ‘optimal straight line wind…

The Four-Wheeler’s Bible Jim Allen and James J Weber (Motorbooks, www.quartoknows.com) Price: £25.99 Rating: THIS is an American title, so for British mud-pluggers better resources are available. However, there’s plenty of useful tips that transcend the continental divide: planning tools, the basics and more advanced techniques of off-roading, and how to find your way out of a sticky situation. BMW M3/M4 Graham Robson (Veloce Publishing, www.veloce.co.uk) Price: £40 Rating: WITH a new chapter added on the very latest M3 and M4, this book covers BMW’s smaller M cars in plenty of detail with spec sheets, cutaway drawings and full racing records for each model. A good reference title and relatively broad, with detail on other M cars as well as the titular models, plus plenty of good-quality colour photos throughout.…

Q Can I get help with engine failure outside of warranty? I HAVE had my 2016, 57,000-mile car from new, and am facing a bill for a new engine due to a broken crankshaft, which an engineer says had a manufacturing defect. The manufacturer won’t help because the car is out of warranty. Is there anything I can do? Name withheld, E-mail A YOUR car is out of warranty, but the Consumer Rights Act 2015 theoretically offers six years’ protection if it can be proven that there was a manufacturing defect present when you bought the car. Given the size of the repair bill you’re facing, it may well be worth paying for specialist legal advice before weighing up where you stand, what your rights are, and what your next…

PORSCHE will re-enter the top level of endurance racing by resuming a former collaboration with US team Penske. The pairing will enter an LMDh class contender that will see Porsche fight in both the World Endurance Championship and the US-based IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship from 2023 onwards. Porsche and Penske have worked together to great success in the past, most recently with the RS Spyder that scored three consecutive American Le Mans LMP2 titles from 2006-2008. This confirmation comes following news that Porsche will collaborate with fellow VW Group brand Audi, which will enter its own LMDh challenger.…

WHATEVER happened to market research, gauging the mood of drivers before dumping stuff on them, asking motorists what they do and don’t need? We hear much noise from movers and shakers in the motor, eco, safety and political industries. They tell us what they think is right for us, whether we like what they’re peddling or not. But never do I hear such professionals sounding us out, asking how they can make our driving lives better, safer, less congested, more pleasant and affordable. Instead, stuff like this happens: on a dark day in recent UK Government history, a politician, civil servant or adviser came up with the not-so-bright idea of ‘smart’ and ‘safe’ roads – aka motorways without hard shoulders. Smart and safe? Er, no. Daft and dangerous. Who says?…

Steve_Fowler@autovia.co.uk @stevefowler • Facelifts and electrification • Supercars to get Merc power NEW Aston Martin CEO Tobias Moers has laid bare his turnaround project for the company, dubbed Project Horizon. Aston only last week announced its first-quarter results, with trading “in line with expectations”, just as Auto Express met with Moers for the first time since his appointment in August 2020. His plan includes ditching an in-house-developed hybrid V6 in favour of Mercedes-AMG-sourced engines, radical facelifts for the Vantage, DB11 and DBS, electrification for the next generation of Aston Martins due from the middle of the decade, and an expansion of the DBX SUV range. Moers also confirmed that there would be no more lucrative continuation models like the DB5 Goldfinger, although specials like the V12 Speedster will continue, while…

Hugo_Griffiths@autovia.co.uk @hugo_griffiths • Spec changes on new cars • Worst may still be to come A GLOBAL shortage of semiconductor chips is leading car makers to scale back production, limiting the options and vehicles available for new-car buyers. Semiconductors form the basis of the integrated chips and circuit boards used in electronic equipment like computers and mobile phones, and they’re crucial for cars, helping run everything from digital displays to stability control systems. Some makers are reported to be pulling advertising due to expected shortages of new vehicles, while others are limiting options, prioritising essential features over extras. Experts predict the issue may take as long as two years to resolve, and while car showrooms were in reasonably rude health last month (see page 15), factory shutdowns now may take…

Steve_Fowler@autovia.co.uk @stevefowler ROLLS-Royce can rightly claim to make some of the finest cars in the world – models that offer the very best comfort and quality you can find on four wheels – and its cars also offer near silence for their occupants. But what if you want that silence broken by your favourite sounds, from rock to rap, or Strauss to Stormzy. Surely the best car in the world has to have the best stereo system, too? Auto Express decided to put that to the test with our own editor-in-chief – a former editor of What Hi-Fi – plus the help of a very special expert (see panel overleaf). And what better car to test an audio system in than the Rolls-Royce Phantom – all £446,000-worth in the commission…

Steve_Fowler@autovia.co.uk @stevefowler Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 367/N/A litres IF anyone has had a head start when it comes to full electrification, you’d think it would be Lexus. The brand has sold nearly two million electrified hybrid models since 2005 (self-charging hybrids, in Lexus-speak), with more than 130,000 of them in the UK. So we have high hopes for this, the firm’s first ever fully electric model based on its smallest SUV, the UX. There’s always a lot to like about a Lexus, and that’s true of the UX. Build quality is impeccable, there’s more of a focus on comfort than with some rivals, and Lexus consistently tops our Driver Power owner satisfaction survey. This UX 300e has a 54kWh battery under the floor and rear seats, while a 201bhp electric…

Running costs 34.7mpg (on test) £57 fill-up/£220 or 33% tax Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 422/1,305 litres Performance 0-62mph/top speed 11.8 seconds/112mph MODELTESTED: Nissan Juke 1.0 DIG-T 114 Tekna + PRICE: £26,600 ENGINE: 1.0-litre 3cyl, 112bhp SINCE the original Juke hit showrooms a decade ago, roughly 1.5 million have found homes with buyers. Can the second-generation model, which we’re testing here in range-topping Tekna + auto form, priced from £26,600, stand up to some of the newest challengers in the class? Design & engineering THE Mk2 Juke was developed under the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, and is mechanically very similar to one of our favourite cars in the class, the Renault Captur. Both ride on the same CMF-B platform, which makes use of high-strength steel in its construction. As a result, the latest…

Nextbase branches out into insurance MANY insurers will consider a cursory discount for dash cam users, but Nextbase has gone a step further by launching its own insurance offering. With partner Cornmarket Insurance Services, Nextbase promises dash cam users ‘significant discounts’, with telematics data showing 68 per cent of people drive better with a cam fitted. Cover will start at less than £200, and Nextbase says it will look to beat any quote for ‘experienced drivers with a clean licence’. For more information or a quote, visit www.nextbase.com/en-gb/insurance, or call 0330 100 4969. Halfords 4Life offer breaks new ground HALFORDS Autocentres has launched a new Brakes4Life guarantee. This offers anyone who buys brake pads or shoes through a Halfords Autocentre replacement parts for free – for as long as they…

THE past year has changed the way we shop. Whether you need Weetabix or wheel nuts, more of us are heading to the Internet rather than the high street. For car parts and accessories, this has meant the growth of online firms that can source commonly needed components from massive warehouses, rather than the store room at the back of a shop. Having access to this stock means you have more chance of finding elusive parts if your car is a little less mainstream, while prices are usually keen, too. You can also compare costs in comfort, so you’ll spend more time working on your car, rather than traipsing around parts departments and motor factors. But there are a huge number of online sellers battling for your business, ranging from…

Search more than 60,000 cars with competitive finance Order online, delivered to your door, 14 day money-back guarantee CO2/tax 153-168g/km £155-£490 Running costs 44-47mpg (3.0 TDI 272) £97 fill-up Performance 0-62mph/top speed 6.5 seconds/145mph WITH many car makers now offering SUVs in all shapes and sizes, it would be hard to imagine a world in which the Audi Q7 didn’t exist. Ever since the original was launched in 2005, this generously proportioned seven-seat SUV has been one of the most desirable in its segment. The first-generation Q7’s success led to Audi expanding its SUV portfolio significantly, with the Q5, Q3 and Q2 all following, each one proving to be a smash hit. By the time the second-generation Q7 arrived six years ago, Audi had perfected the formula with a car…