Innholdsfortegnelse for 17/08/2016 i Autocar

“Stadler describes the new electric saloon as being as high up as possible, in the A8 segment” Audi boss Rupert Stadler has given the go-ahead for a four-wheel-drive electric saloon to rival the Tesla Model S. The luxurious new four-door is expected to be called A9 e-tron and will share much of its technology with the upcoming Q6 e-tron SUV. The A9 e-tron name will position the advanced saloon at the top of the Audi line-up as a leader for a new range of electric vehicles, which will also include a successor to today’s A3 e-tron. The A9 e-tron will have a range of up to 500km (311 miles) between recharging. It is also due to have level four autonomous driving technology — one step up from that used in…

LAND ROVER’S UPDATED Range Rover Sport has been given new semi-autonomous tech, revised infotainment and a 2.0-litre Ingenium diesel engine — the smallest unit yet used in the model. The engine is already used in smaller models, such as the Jaguar XE and Range Rover Evoque. Land Rover claims a 0-60mph time of 8.0sec for the 2.0-litre Range Rover Sport, along with CO2 emissions of 164g/km and combined fuel economy of 45.6mpg. The Ingenium-engined Range Rover Sport, called SD4 HSE, replaces the 3.0 SDV6 as the entry-level model, lowering the starting price to £59,700. Land Rover has also added the supercharged 3.0-litre petrol V6 to the Range Rover Sport line-up, offering CO2 emissions of 243g/km and fuel economy of 40.4mpg combined. Outputs of 335bhp and 332lb ft and a 0-60mph…

MG WILL REVEAL its new Nissan Juke-rivalling small SUV at the London motor show next May, with a raft of new engines. MG’s head of sales and marketing, Matthew Cheyne, says the model will go on sale in the UK later next year but will not share engines with existing MGs. Instead, it will have its own range of engines, which will then be used in the next MG 3 supermini. Despite reports that call the car ZS, it has not been officially named yet. Cheyne confirmed that ZS is the internal engineering name for the car, but not the name the car will take into showrooms. However, the final car will have a two-letter name. Spy shots of a test mule don’t bear the car’s final design, he added.…

BMW HAS LAUNCHED a smartphone app that recognises personal mobility patterns, such as the daily commute, to offer notifications for traffic or disruptions ahead of a journey. The Connected app will first be available for iPhones and Apple Watches next month. It links with a car’s iDrive and ConnectedDrive systems to allow transfer of data. It will also be able to access an owner’s smartphone calendar to offer similar route guidance and predictions for events in a user’s diary. Owners will be able to use previous ConnectedDrive features on their smartphones, such as lock and unlock and headlight flash functions. The launch of the technology represents the first phase of BMW’s new software. But BMW says updates will be applied within the next two months via Connected SIM cards, which…

PORSCHE IS BLOCKING Jaguar Land Rover’s offer to buy Silverstone grand prix circuit for £33 million, according to media reports. A spokesman for the British Racing Drivers Club, which owns Silverstone, told The Telegraph that Porsche has stopped the purchase going through by using its powers as owner of a driving centre within the circuit grounds. It’s understood Porsche is unwilling to revoke a covenant in its lease that says no manufacturer can use the circuit for more than 45 days a year. JLR says discussions with the British Racing Drivers Club are on-going, “but there is no detail to share at this stage”. It added that all discussions remain commercially confidential. When Autocar contacted Porsche, it neither denied nor confirmed the claims, saying private contract matters are not discussed…

“The Nascar-redolent sound seems to be on fuller volume here when you want it to be” A couple of weeks ago on these pages, a Jaguar F-Type coupé found its way into a group test and rather impressed us. It was an entry-level V6, on modest wheels, and everyone who drove it came away thinking it made a rather lovely GT car. It was smooth, relaxed and relaxing, with a fine ride yet a cabin that set out to impress, and a raspy six-cylinder noise that meant to do the same. Its base price was a little over £50k. This is an F-Type that’s trying to be something else entirely. It’s the SVR, which is developed by Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations division, so SVO makes SVR, confusingly, and…

The new Mégane is less rounded than we expected, although it has evidently come a long way on material cabin sophistication, with the technological appeal of its infotainment, and is plainly more desirable than any of its predecessors. Renault may argue that, between its sports-suspended, higher-powered GT models and its more laid-back lower-rung variants, it has all tastes covered with the new Mégane. But it’s not enough for only the sporty models to be engaging to drive. We expect stronger and more flexible performance and broader-batted handling than this from a mature European hatchback. We expect handling panache as well as typically Gallic ride suppleness. And we don’t expect packaging compromises. Having at least addressed the prevailing standards on interior quality, richness and equipment level (and done a good job…

Quick classic? I purchased a Porsche Boxster S in 2013. The Boxster has since had an engine change which most reviewers consider less rewarding in performance and character. Does that mean that the short run of my model (from 2012 to 2016) will make it a ‘classic’ more quickly, with a corresponding increase in value? Clive Jacobs Aldenham These things are always difficult to predict, Clive. But it’s unlikely to be worth a premium just because it was one of the last six-cylinder naturally aspirated models. There probably won’t be a big enough market desperate for that model to bump the prices up. Limited-run Porsches are a different story. Cars such as the 911 R and 911 GT3 RS skyrocket after the first purchase – DR 5 Series steering responses…

The XC90’s ‘remaining range’ meter read nearly zero miles, but I wasn’t too worried when I parked it up for the night. I was off to the office the following morning, so I figured I’d stop at the nearest petrol station on the way. I didn’t plug it in, either, partly because the electric range is short (typically no more than 10 miles) but mostly because I’ve been trying to establish a worst-case fuel economy average on the part-petrol, part-electric Volvo. Which seems to have settled at about 31mpg. Then I was reminded I was meant to be somewhere 10 miles away in 20 minutes’ time. Ah well, never mind, I thought; cars tell you they’re going to run out of fuel way before they do. Turns out the XC90…

Steve Barnard is worried that some of the cars on this page aren’t that used. Here, he redresses the balance with his Peugeot 205 XL. “It was bought as a throwaway car for £180 in June 2000 at 138,775 miles,” he says. “It’s still here in 2016, with 239,644 on the clock. Maintenance costs are minimal, remaining trim is minimal, fuel consumption is minimal. It had paid for itself within six months but it just kept going. I’ve never particularly liked it, but I respect its perseverance. I think it keeps going just to spite me.” SEND YOUR USED CAR TALES TO james@bangernomics.com…

An expert’s view ROB MITCHELL, TDI NORTH, WARRINGTON “We raced a road-legal FN2. It was really successful because the cars came out of the box ready to play and can be tuned so easily. In fact, they’re so stiff they don’t need a rear anti-roll bar. Ignore the fact that it has a beam axle. It’s not an issue. The car is agile enough. The standard ride is a bit crashy, so progressive springs are a good idea. If you can afford it, get a 2008 facelifted one with the diff, Bluetooth and an iPod connection. A properly remapped engine should be smoother, more flexible and more economical. In short, it’s a great car that can really take its punishment.” Buyer beware… • A CREAKY CHASSIS Don’t worry: it’s probably…

“We had some revolutionary ideas that no one has yet dared to put into production” Bugatti is poised to resurrect production plans for a luxury saloon in the mould of its Galibier concept car, which was first shown at the 2009 Frankfurt motor show. The move is part of a long-term plan to secure the company’s future operations and financial independence in the wake of the diesel emissions scandal that has engulfed its parent company, the VW Group. The luxurious new four-seat saloon is one of four model proposals being looked at by Bugatti boss Wolfgang Dürheimer. It is intended to provide stiff competition for the upcoming replacement for the Rolls-Royce Phantom at a price comparable with the French car maker’s new £1.9 million Chiron, which will be delivered to…

Toyota aims to sell 3000 fuel cell Mirais worldwide annually from 2017 to 2020, up from 2000 this year. From 2021, a 10-fold increase is planned to 30,000, according to Toyota GB CEO Paul van der Burgh. Fuel cell cars are a key part of Toyota’s plan to reduce fleet CO2 emissions by 90% by 2050. “Fuel cells are fundamental to what we’re doing,” said van der Burgh. “It’s there for the long term for us.” He said Toyota sees EVs as viable only for city use. The UK currently has 21 Mirais on the road.…

“The requirement for autonomous vehicles to have a steering wheel and pedals was a major setback” The much-hyped self-driving Google Car may have reached the end of the road, with its technology boss Chris Urmson, who led the project for seven years, resigning at the beginning of August. The departure comes amid a move from Google to team up with the automotive industry, rather than challenge it, in the race for autonomy. According to a note sent out by auto analysts at investment bank Evercore ISI, the Google car project was clearly in trouble. “The Google driverless project is likely not as advanced as many believe,” it said. Speaking at Austin’s South-by-Southwest conference earlier this year about the timing of the project, Urmson said: “How quickly can we get this…

The all-new Mercedes-Benz E-Class range continues to grow apace, but it’s well worth pausing here to take a look at one of the more intriguing models as it arrives in the UK: the V6 diesel-powered E350d. Such is the importance of company car tax rates and CO2 emissions in this world that the executive saloon is not alone in being unable to escape the downsizing trend; around 80% of buyers of the new E-Class will choose cars powered by four cylinders. That’s no great shock or revelation, of course, but for the most ‘executive’ experience in an executive car, we must still turn to six cylinders. In the E-Class’s case, the V6 is a familiar one, the 255bhp/457lb ft 3.0-litre unit being carried over from the previous E350d. The fact…

MORVEN FRASER’S PLACEMENT at Toyota is an entirely new experience for the University of Glasgow student. In her first month of work experience, with McLaren in Woking, Morven had a glimpse of life in a small-scale British supercar manufacturer. When we catch up with the Autocar-Courland Next Generation Award winner in her second placement, she is clad in protective gear and a high-vis jacket while being shown around Toyota’s mammoth Burnaston factory in Derbyshire. “I’ve been getting an in-depth tour of the factory, following a car through its production process,” Morven explains. “You can walk around here for days!” Morven is doing a mechanical engineering degree at the University of Glasgow and believes seeing a car in its final phases of production is a great asset to her knowledge. Although…

“The record-breaking GT-R has masses of steering lock and monstrous power” Go and drive the world’s fastest drift car and write a story around the headline ‘How to Drift’, they said. I thought there might be a problem with that. Drifting a road car is one thing, but drifting a 1390bhp Nissan GT-R capable of going sideways at 190mph, which it recently did to set a new world record, is something else entirely. Only – not for the first time – I was wrong. The GT-R you see smoking its tyres here is one of the easiest cars in which I’ve ever tried drifting. Perhaps that should be no surprise, but it was to me. Turns out a car that can drift at 190mph requires the same set of attributes…

Cayman calling I COULDN’T agree more: you do need a used Porsche Cayman in your life (‘The Inbetweener’, 3 August). I ran a 57-plate, Atlas Grey S manual from 2012 until 2015; it will surely be the best car I will ever own. That spring day in 2012 will live long in my mind: I took a spin in a Cayman S and it was love at first bite. It was lithe, lively, sharp and flexible. Despite your commendable devilish detail that any Cayman buyer should be aware of, I had no issue worth mentioning in those years of cherished ownership. Justin Stanton via email WIN Letter of the week wins this ValetPRO exterior protection and maintenance kit worth £58.95…

FIRST ORDER OF business with the Navara was making the load bed more suitable for accommodating my camera kit. It’s my workhorse, after all. The optional tool box is a real boon for this. It’s huge and bolted down, keeping everything secure. It’s important to note the trade-off in floor length when you have the casket, but you still accrue 1.5 metres of width internally, so it easily swallows golf bags and bulky bits. However, the bed liner option isn’t as suitable for my purposes. The first time I knelt down on the corrugated ruts, I nearly popped my knee cap out and the plastic compound is rather slippery – not ideal for keeping expensive camera equipment secure. For a tradesman, it’s worth protecting the metal for the £360 that…

1 Ford Focus ST (2005-2011) One of the best hot hatches around. It’s powered by a sweet 2.5-litre five-pot petrol engine that develops 222bhp, which is enough to beat the Civic Type R from zero to 60mph.The ST’s steering is responsive and well weighted and, with a balanced chassis, it’s a joy to drive. A 2007 example with 76,000 miles could be yours for £5000. 2 Skoda Octavia vRS (2005-2013) The Octavia vRS has stacks of space and is quick enough, with 0-60mph dispatched in less than seven seconds. As for dynamics, the car has a softer set-up than its Volkswagen Golf GTI sibling. We found a 2011 vRS with 36,000 miles for £10,600. 3 Renault Mégane RS 250 (2008-2016) The Renault Sport Mégane is the king of the hot…

Bugatti hasn’t ruled out boosting the performance of its new Chiron hypercar with a hybrid system, according to company chief Wolfgang Dürheimer. During the development of the 1479bhp Chiron, hybridisation was considered as a way to enhance the performance of the V16 engine compared with the version of the same engine in its predecessor, the Veyron. The Chiron will challenge the Veyron’s 268mph production car world speed record in 2018. “We examined what ingredients we needed to defend our position and to raise the bar,” Dürheimer said. “We designed this engine 13 years ago to 986bhp. Then we brought it up to 1184bhp and now to 1479bhp. You cannot just shake out this additional 493bhp from the same components, so it was a dedicated design process and 95% of the…

Nissan’s Infiniti brand will become the world’s first car maker to sell an engine with a variable compression ratio when the VC-T unit goes on sale in 2018. The all-new 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol unit promises “diesel economy and V6 power and smoothness”. It will, in effect, replace a 3.5-litre V6 in future Infiniti transverse-engined models. It’s expected to make its debut in the upcoming GX80, a global mid-sized seven-seat crossover. In time, the engine could also be fitted to the compact Q30 and QX30 models. The engine will be shown in public at the Paris motor show in October. Infiniti engineers say the production turbocharged unit develops around 270bhp and 288lb ft of torque while being around 27% more economical than an equivalent conventional petrol engine. That makes it roughly…

Mercedes-Benz will create a new sub-brand for a range of electric vehicles — and the first one will be an SUV concept at the Paris motor show in October. The sub-brand is expected to be called EQ after Mercedes’ parent company, Daimler, filed numerous UK trademark applications with those letters. They include EQA, EQC, EQE, EQG and EQS, suggesting electric versions of Merc’s mainstream line-up are coming. However, sources have also suggested that it could retain the Mercedes name, such as with Mercedes-AMG. The new sub-brand will be set up in a similar manner to the company’s existing AMG and Smart divisions, with its own management and accounting structure. It is being created to provide Mercedes’ upcoming range of electric vehicles with what one high-ranking insider described as “its own,…

Porsche is testing a new SUV-coupé, understood to be a second electric model to sit alongside a production version of the Mission E saloon concept. The testing appears to confirm an internal road map, leaked last year, that identified an electric SUV-like model as the second zero-emissions car in the brand’s electric line-up. The project hasn’t yet been given the official go-ahead, according to Autocar sources, but economies of scale achieved with the Mission E mean there is a strong chance it will be approved — and soon. The new SUV is expected to make production early next decade. It’s likely it will first manifest itself publicly as the Mission E-SUV concept. However, that concept is unlikely until at least 2018. Some reports have called it a Cayenne coupé, but…

What do a bottle of wine and this car have in common? An odd question, perhaps, but to Andreas Bovensiepen, the CEO of Alpina, an apt one. Of course, you’ll be aware of Alpina’s car production, but did you know there’s an Alpina wine business, too? And to Bovensiepen, the esoteric art of blending and creating complex reds and whites has similarities to creating his bespoke cars, such as this new Alpina B7 Biturbo. So swap the raw ingredients of a Malbec or Grenache grape for the latest, G11/G12 BMW 7 Series. And instead of vintners’ refining taste, charge the 250-strong team of engineers and craftsmen and women at Alpina’s Buchloe base with delivering the ultimate automotive experience. But what kind of experience is that, exactly? The 7 Series is…

MODEL TESTED 1.5 DCI 110 DYNAMIQUE S NAV Price £20,400 Power 108bhp Torque 192lb ft 0-60mph 11.1sec 30-70mph in fourth 15.1sec Fuel economy 47.2mpg CO2 emissions 96g/km 70-0mph 46.1m Difficult though it is to believe, the Renault Mégane is now more than 20 years old and its nameplate actually predates the Ford Focus. Somewhat less impressive than its longevity is the sales volume, an area in which – the occasional spike in popularity notwithstanding – the model has consistently trailed Ford’s global champion. It’s a similar story when compared with the longterm success of the Volkswagen Golf and Vauxhall Astra, highlighting just how difficult it is to break out of the also-ran mould in a segment well stocked with household names. Renault has occasionally been guilty of not helping itself.…

The most enjoyable motor museum going must surely be the kind where the prize exhibits – at least some of them – can actually be bought and driven away by new owners. As well as having much more buzz than conventional museums, as cars, customers, new stock and money flow in and out, a place like this also gives non-buying visitors more hope. Maybe one day, they think, I’ll own a car like these. This new kind of car collection is exactly what Paul Michaels, one of the UK’s best and most experienced classic car experts, has just opened in his familiar stamping ground of Highgate, north London, right next door to a Lotus dealership he also owns on a surprisingly quiet and leafy part of the Great North Road.…

“I’m faintly disturbed at how quickly I’ve formed an emotional bond with the car” If a fortune teller had told me at the beginning of the year that I would own a Mustang 5.0 GT inside six months, I’d have suggested a new brand of tea leaves. Then I drove one in April, only because Ford was holding a press event near my home and I was curious to see what it was like. I expected Ford’s latest version of the iconic Pony Car to be oversized, over-hyped and over here, but what I found was a revelation. I knew straight away it was my kind of car. First, there’s that glorious V8 engine, pumping out 410bhp and 391lb ft torque. It’s got independent rear suspension, a sophisticated integral link…

The Kadjar took me and my daughter on something approximating a holiday recently. Well, more of an expedition, really, to look for fossils and bad weather. It was a partial success. The Renault, though, did a fine job – not that it was overly taxed. The drive along the M4, A34 and A303 towards the Dorset coast was wet and dreary for the most part (at least outside the car), although the final 12 miles or so along the B3165 from Crewkerne to Lyme Regis were actually quite entertaining. Who says you can’t have fun in a 1.5-litre diesel-engined crossover with a dual-clutch automatic gearbox and no steering wheel-mounted shift paddles? Once down by the coast, all that nadgery back-and-forth driving you often end up doing on holiday – to…

We’re still doing the introductions, so here’s another Ruppert family long-termer in the shape of a Land Rover Series 3. It dates from 1984, is one of the last of its kind and still drives like a pre-war (1914-1918 war, that is) lorry. It has been around the clock and now reads 26,000 miles. Landie fanboys tell me it has 90 lights, plus there are freewheel hubs and overdrive, although they don’t do much for the dismal economy. It is, however, extremely reliable, plus everything is fixable. I use it most days, too. It remains the vehicle for which I get the most unsolicited offers, but it will be with me until the bitter end.…

“Costing a cool £35,299, the Mugen packed an additional 39bhp and an 8600rpm redline” 6.8sec This Civic Type R’s 0-62mph time is the same as its predecessor’s Time has been kind to the Mk2 Honda Civic Type R (2007 to 2012). At launch and throughout much of its life, it suffered comparisons with its celebrated predecessor, critics bemoaning its low-tech torsion beam rear suspension, greater weight and token power increase. Today, as the miles have rolled by and prices have fallen to as little as £5000 for a tidy, privately sold, 2007 car, the model’s finer qualities – linear performance, impressive grip and improved steering – have moved to the fore. It can take no end of relatively inexpensive tuning, too. The FN2, as it is known, is powered by…