Innholdsfortegnelse for 04/05/2016 i Autocar

THE NURBURGRING Nordschleife isn’t playing ball for Volkswagen’s record attempt in mid-March. The air is cold, the clouds are dark and the track is greasy. Today is not the day for sub-eight-minute laps of the 13-mile track. Still, an opportunity to experience a 306bhp Golf GTI, even from the passenger seat on a dank day, isn’t one to pass up. At the wheel is Benny Leuchter, Volkswagen’s driver for the record attempt and something of a ’Ring veteran, with various VLN and Nürburgring 24-hour successes to his name. He apologises for what will be a comparatively tame lap, tightens his harnesses and fires us out of the pit lane. Key to a quick lap here, says Leuchter, is to use as much kerb as possible, to straighten the corners and…

An increasingly digital future is vital for Mercedes-Benz if the brand is to remain a leading force in the motor industry, according to sales and marketing boss Ola Källenius, talking to Autocar at the recent New York show. “Almost all businesses in all industries are going digital, so you have to stay ahead,” he said. “If you visit the CES [Consumer Electronics Show] in Las Vegas, a few years ago there were no cars there. Now there are lots of cars, and even the tech companies have cars on their stands. There will be tremendous development over the next five to 10 years.” Källenius explained that as part of Mercedes’ big push for digitalisation, it created Mercedes Me, an online portal and app designed to make it easier for customers…

SPYKER CEO VICTOR Muller has said his company will develop combustion-engined, manual sports cars long into the future, despite pressure from regulators to switch to greener powertrains. In an exclusive interview with Autocar, Muller said he disliked the idea of an all-electric sports car because “electric engines are not very exciting to drive”. He said: “If I take away the sensation of a V8 or a V12 from a super or sports car, I think it will be very hard to sell. [With electric cars], we’re not yet able to replicate the feeling you get when you switch the ESP off in a manual gearbox car.” Muller’s beliefs are mirrored in the sales figures of the recently unveiled Spyker C8 Preliator, which has been ordered in manual guise by 86%…

The M4 GTS, a very expensive, very rare and very fast evolution of the BMW M4 coupé, follows a lineage of M3 special editions such as the E30 M3 Sport Evolution, E46 M3 CSL and previous-shape E90 M3 GTS. These are all now highly sought-after cars, and BMW hopes this new GTS will join them among the highest echelons of M rarities. To that end, a £120,500 price and a production run limited to just 700 cars – 30 of which are for the UK – ensure that only the keenest of the keen will have the pleasure. And if the fixed rear wing, jutting front splitter, extra vents and roll cage don’t tell you enough about its track pretentions, the technical spec will. Thanks to an innovative water injection…

Watching the ups and downs of the UK car market is relatively easy, but getting an understanding of wider global car markets is not so simple. So with the expert help of IHS Global, whose international network of car industry analysts mine deep into market data, Autocar has put together some key findings. Although China dominates the global auto market for volume of sales, India will be the global stand-out for growth in 2016, with its new car market expanding at twice the rate of China’s. But who would also have predicted that growth in the Italian market would exceed China’s? Compact crossovers and SUVs are also shaping up as the success story of 2016, bucking the total market trend in four of the seven major regions. One place not…

Mileage 5654 As I spend more time in the Tivoli — including a few long trips which have pushed the mileage beyond the 5000 mark — I notice more handy little features that make life easier. Handiest of all is the sat-nav, which is quick to respond, easy to use and even pings when there’s a speed camera coming up. The ‘Map’ button, which takes you straight to your location, is particularly handy. Tiny urban parking spaces are a doddle, too. Front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera are welcome luxuries which, now I’m somewhat used to them, would be a struggle to do without. The Tivoli has decent enough all-round visibility, but its dimensions can be a little deceptive and it can be hard to judge where…

The Vauxhall Meriva is one of the best micro-MPVs out there According to one of those price guide companies (CAP in this case), those small city centre assault vehicles that you thought cost buttons to run actually don’t. CAP reckons that the tiny tots suffer higher overall depreciation than the market average, taking into account running costs and monthly finance payments. On that basis, the Smart Forfour Night Sky has the highest total service and maintenance costs at £1251 per year, so don’t buy one of those when the rather more practical Toyota Aygo costs just £441 to run. CAP’s total cost of ownership table makes interesting reading, but the trouble is that brand new cars are always going to lose money. If you want a city car and want…

Family saloons 1 Ford Mondeo From £18,000 Still the saloon king. Practical, well priced, dynamically gifted and now very refined and pretty. All hail. 2 Volkswagen Passat From £19,000 Good enough to run the Mondeo close, but for all its quality and refinement, it doesn’t appeal like the talented Ford. 3 Mazda 6 From £19,000 A huge wheelbase and Skyactiv diesel engine make the 6 look like a steal. Shame interior quality hasn’t caught up. 4 Skoda Octavia From £16,000 A lengthened wheelbase helps the Octavia to go from also-ran to title contender. Price growth understandable. 5 Vauxhall Insignia From £17,000 The Insignia will finish its life cycle a fundamentally better car than when it started. Latest Whisper diesel the best. Visit autocar.co.uk for all of our Top Fives…

What did you think of the preproduction Golf GTI Clubsport S when you first drove it at the Nürburgring? “Straight from the beginning I could sense the potential. It wasn’t like other road cars here; it was much more stable at speed. I could take the kerbs and it was smooth over the bumps. The engineers had already done a very good job.” What were the key areas that needed changing at that early stage? “Although the car felt good already, there was a little bit too much understeer, so we fixed that with more front camber. At the beginning it was not possible, but the engineers worked hard to make it fit. “A big secret for me as a race driver was at the rear. Usually in front-wheel-drive race…

OLA KÄLLENIUS BELIEVES Mercedes could consider creating an eco-focused sub-brand to rival the likes of BMW’s i division, but he thinks the company should first continue to focus on expanding its fleet of plug-in hybrid and zero-emissions models. “What we’re going to do in terms of the road to zero emissions is invest heavily in alternative drivelines and electrification,” he said. “That’s a very wide strategy, but it means that by the end of next year we will have 10 plug-in hybrid models, which, I think, is the widest portfolio of any luxury manufacturer. “By the end of this year, we will have three electric cars, with the B-Class and the two Smarts. And at the end of next year we will launch a next-generation fuel cell vehicle, which is…

The DB11 is the most powerful model yet to bear the initials Right now, our Aston Martin DB11 prototype is canted over at 45deg or more. Under the bonnet, the engine is howling a single, steady note, pregnant with anticipation. We’re in the fifth of its eight gears, holding a steady 130mph right on the adhesion limit of its purpose-built Bridgestone S007 tyres. The test track banking is levelling out now, so I can let the Aston go. Down goes the foot, up goes the engine note as my ears fill with a classic, unfettered V12 shriek while the DB11 cannons down the straight, flashing through 140mph, 150mph and on to 160mph and the menacing curve at the end. Through it all, one thought prevails: this thing is meant to…

Remember how the G-Wiz, the tiny, Indian-built electric city car, made headlines by making friends and enemies at the same time? Its maker, Reva, was able to set up a healthy business because its machine was able to take advantage of early financial concessions to electric cars while dodging the safety measures required of others by being officially called a quadricycle. Well, now the G-Wiz has a successor, the e2o, but it has a new design and an entirely new maker. Mahindra, the huge Indian car maker, acquired the Reva factory and set about making a city car for similar duties to those of the G-Wiz while meeting the same safety standards as a Ford or a Bentley. It won’t be sold like any other car, though. First contact is…

People who visit country pubs in the evening usually expect to stay a few hours. On the night we called in, most patrons at The Olde Coach House, Ashby St Legers, near Rugby, did precisely that. It’s doubtful they even noticed the arrival of ‘enthusiast’ cars in the adjacent parking area, most vaguely rally-oriented with extra lights, decals, mudflaps and chunky tyre treads. For us, on this late winter evening, the pub was the meeting point and start of a 12-car night navigation rally staged by the Loughborough Car Club – and Autocar’s own Vauxhall Astra was to be one of the entrants. Nav rallying, new to me, is an accessible but highly competitive form of road-oriented competition whereby a dozen two-person crews (driver and navigator) are provided with cryptic…

PICK-UP SOME TIPS Ford has cracked a great business model with one vehicle, to spectacular effect. The F-150 is not only the best-selling vehicle in the US, but it also reputedly makes over $13,000 [£9000] per unit. This isn’t a one-year fluke, either; the F-150 has defined its class for years. Clearly pick-up trucks aren’t going to be a killer category over here, but isn’t there a lesson to be learned? Don’t try and play BMW and the rest at their own game; make something that people will pay for because it’s a Ford. Robert Green Via email THE I OF THE TIGER Looking at the Peugeot i-Cockpit (News, 20 April), I wonder if this configuration would look out of place in a BMW i8. Donald McKay Inverness, Scotland SEEING…

Nearly all of my 2000 Leaf miles have come so far from shortish, sub-100-mile journeys, well within our new 30kWh car’s realistic range of about 110 miles. It has been easy: there are cosseting semi-fast chargers at home in the Cotswolds, at my weekday London base and at the office in Twickenham. The Nissan has been universally useful, refined and enjoyable. However, I’ve been secretly berating myself for not manning up and attempting The Big One, whereby you lay an elementary plan then set a course for the far horizon, trusting the facilities on the way and when you get there. The chance came a couple of days ago. I had an appointment in Sheffield in the late morning and some more business back in London in the evening. That…

VOLKSWAGEN POLO GTI Volkswagen fan and motoring writer Richard Gooding bought this 66,000-mile 2001 Polo GTI in 2011. It has now covered just under 120,000 miles. “Back then, £2400 bought a lot of used Polo,” he says. “Spec highlights included xenon headlights, front fogs, a 125bhp 1.6-litre engine and climate control. I’ve spent a fair amount on maintenance and servicing since, but it still seems like good value. I tend to build relationships with my cars, and the GTI and I are pretty much inseparable.” WHAT CAUGHT MY EYE THIS WEEK: CONNECTIVITY Old cars aren’t very connected, are they? I rather like that. Now, though, smartdriverclub.co.uk  makes it easy. You just plug a device into your OBD (on-board diagnostics) port and you’re off. USED CAR DILEMMA: MERCEDES-BENZ CL…

The adaptive dampers are calibrated to include a ‘Nürburgring setting’ Volkswagen has claimed the Nürburgring lap record for front-wheel-drive cars with its hottest Golf GTI ever, the 306bhp Clubsport S, ahead of the car’s unveiling at the Wörthersee VW enthusiast event this week. The Clubsport S, which is more powerful than even the four-wheel-drive Golf R and is VW’s most track-focused Golf GTI yet, recorded a 7min 49.21sec lap around the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Prior to the model’s official unveiling, Autocar was granted exclusive access to the car and its engineers during final testing at the German circuit. As can be seen in these images, a few key identifiers mark the Clubsport S out from regular Golf GTIs and the standard Clubsport model. Although the aero package is unchanged from that…

In the nine months since Takahiro Hachigo, 55-year-old Honda ‘lifer’ and senior engineer, was unexpectedly appointed president and CEO, good fortune and tough challenges have crowded his agenda in equal measure. In Europe, Honda is doing better than for many years as new models (which Hachigo oversaw as R&D boss in Europe) promise to drive 2016 volume past 160,000 cars and towards a 200,000 target. In January and February, sales in Europe climbed by a third. Farther afield, quality issues, some poorly resolved US models and inward-looking management mean Honda has failed to capitalise on Toyota’s recent troubles and is in danger of conceding sixth place among world car makers to Nissan. Through it all, Hachigo, with his engineer’s eye, looks to a day 30 years from now when Honda’s…

A SHORTAGE OF production engineers and designers is most likely to prevent the UK car industry from hitting its all-time manufacturing record by 2020 — although the latest figures suggest it remains on track to hit that target if an estimated 38,000 extra workers can be found to deliver the necessary growth. Official Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) figures reveal that 10.3% more cars were made in the first three months of this year than in the same period last year. A total of 443,581 cars were built between January and the end of March, equating to around one car every 16 seconds. Home market demand for UK cars was up by 8% and exports rose by 11.1%. The leading manufacturers were Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan, Honda and…

NextEV, the Chinese-backed electric vehicle start-up headed by former president of Ford of Europe Martin Leach, is planning to reveal its first car, a battery-powered hypercar, “somewhere in Europe” before the end of the year. The car is expected to have performance similar to the McLaren P1 and LaFerrari and to rival both cars on price. It has been under development at the company’s Munich design centre for the past two years, but it will be built at a new UK location. NextEV was founded “on a handshake” during the 2014 Paris motor show by Chinese internet billionaire William Li and Martin Leach, who, before becoming Ford of Europe’s boss, was its head of product development. The firm has since hired Cisco Systems’ former chief technology officer, Padmasree Warrior, to…

The steering is glorious above walking pace, and there’s still that beautiful feedback Just how track-optimised is the new Lotus Elise Cup 250? Consider this for an opener: beyond the dramatic new aero and gorgeous forged wheels, you don’t even get a roof as standard. Sure, it can be optioned in at no extra cost, but it shows most clearly Lotus’s intent with this car. If you want an Elise to drive hard on road and track, this is the car you need. Beyond those that are clear to see, there are myriad detail tweaks to make the Cup 250 a significantly faster car than the Cup 220 that it replaces. Perhaps most notable are the new, wider front tyres, the super-sticky Yokohama A048s measuring 195/50 now, as opposed to…

The Ferrari’s gearshifts are braps that puncture the air with more brutality How’s this for a foregone conclusion? Ferrari’s 488 GTB won our Britain’s Best Driver’s Car contest last autumn. There was no McLaren at that event, but the 650S didn’t win it when it did make an appearance in 2014. And supercar group tests aren’t meant to be like top-flight sporting competitions; a car that wins once should only ever win again. Cars don’t have good and bad days or give the impossible 110% that sports stars insist they need to find in order to beat a good team on a good day. Assessments of cars are objective and final; the 488 came, saw, conquered and left. Game over. The end. Supposedly, at least. But? But a few things.…

Electric vehicles will become popular once issues with range, charging times and infrastructure have been resolved, but other issues need to be considered. No government can afford to lose the revenue of around £30 billion that is brought in by tax on fuel. This will lead to an equivalent tax on electricity for EVs. And would the British electricity generating capacity cope with the demand for power for EVs? Also, what will happen to the global economy as demand for petrol and diesel dries up? Perhaps if scientists can come up with a clean way of generating electricity from oil, we may be able to solve two issues at the same time. Alan Colgate Via email WIN Letter of the week wins a ValetPRO exterior protection and maintenance kit worth…

My cousin is thinking about replacing her well-used Peugeot 308 SW with a new seven-seater, and the Land Rover Discovery Sport is on her shopping list. To help with the decision-making process, I trundled out to Oxford in our Discovery Sport and filled it up with their family of five, plus me. That’s about as full as it’s ever going to get in my hands, but the car proved even better than expected at carrying that number of people. The Discovery Sport may have a relatively compact footprint, but it never ceases to amaze me how much room there is inside. The sliding and reclining middle row of seats provide generous leg room for occupants, particularly in their rearmost position, and moving them forwards frees up a surprising amount of…

1 BMW 5 Series GT (2009-present) Just when it seemed as if the major car makers had filled every possible niche, BMW released this mash-up of 5-Series, X5 and 7-Series. Broadly speaking, the 5 GT was meant to combine a road presence similar to that of the high-riding X SUVs with the versatility of a hatchback and the space of a full-size saloon. But BMW ended up with an ungainly model with looks not dissimilar to those of a pygmy rhino. If you can live with the design, though, there’s a case to be made for a used 5 GT. The cabin is superb, but don’t expect the ultimate driving experience, and look out for air suspension and spring failures and electrical issues. We found a 2009 530d SE for…