Innholdsfortegnelse for 18/04/2018 i Autocar

THE BREADTH OF ability displayed by the new BMW M5 (p32) is astonishing. Its complicated configurable driving modes and the dramatic alteration in character between them won’t be for all, but with them M has created a car that can be a sideways rear-wheel-drive hot rod one moment and a comfortable all-weather continent-crusher the next. All this technology, including the two extra driven wheels, results in a car that is still 15kg lighter than the one it replaces. That’s progress. There will be those craving something simpler, more straightforward, more like things used to be. And M has the answer for them too: the new BMW M2 (p6), which mixes what is perhaps the world’s finest front-engined, rear-drive compact car chassis with the engine of the larger M3 and M4,…

Car makers are ramping up their efforts to ensure they are ready for the roll-out of tougher new emissions tests, which must be undertaken by all new cars from 1 September. After that date, the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) will apply to all new type approvals for cars. The test is designed to be more reflective of real-world driving than the outgoing New European Driving Cycle (NEDC). It will be complemented by a second test called Real Driving Emissions (RDE), which will be compulsory by 2021 and include on-road driving, rather than solely relying on test laboratory assessments. Many car makers are already adjusting the stated CO2 figures of the models they sell to reflect WLTP. Also, since every model variant has to go through the WLTP…

“I can’t keep my eyes off enticing Conti GTs in trafic” MONDAY Thought a blast in a Ford Focus RS Red Edition, one of two end-of-line RS editions that clear the decks for the new Focus revealed last week, would be a riotous experience, so I was surprised by the Germanic seriousness of the car. It’s a while since I drove an RS in anger, but I felt I could live with one of these, even from the noise and ride comfort points of view I thought might disqualify it. The car rides very firmly, of course, but doesn’t crash into bumps the way your eyes tell you it’s about to. Ford has always seemed to know more about damping than others, and perhaps this is the evidence. There’s precious…

This Amarok is now the most powerful series-production pick-up truck available in the UK. With 255bhp, its 3.0-litre V6 diesel just edges out its nearest competitor, the forthcoming, similarly V6-engined 253bhp Mercedes-Benz X-Class, and there’s an overboost function that adds an additional 13bhp for as much as 20sec. Permanent all-wheel drive is standard, along with an eight-speed automatic transmission. The final-phase pre-production vehicle we drove in Oman was in Aventura trim, which is a special-edition launch model closely based on the otherwise top-ranking Highline. In addition to Highline specification, Aventura adds swathes of black in the interior, including the headlining, and nappa leather seats. On the outside are 20in wheels and the choice of a new limited-edition colour – metallic Peacock Green. Our test car had an air intake snorkel…

MODEL TESTED BMW M5 Price £89,645 Power 591bhp Torque 553lb ft 0-60mph 3.3sec 30-70mph in fourth 4.0sec Fuel economy 21.9mpg CO2 emissions 241g/km 70-0mph 50.3m Long histories are, by and large, eventful ones. The history of the BMW M5, arguably Germany’s founding example of the modern super-saloon, has certainly been both of those things, stretching back fully five model generations and almost 35 years. It has encompassed race-derived and race-inspired six and 10-cylinder engines, mould-breaking sequential transmissions and plenty of talking points besides. But it has never brought us greater controversy or a bolder departure from established convention than it has just now, in the shape of this week’s road test subject: the sixth-generation BMW M5 (F90). Partly in response to an identical move by rival Mercedes-AMG but mainly in…

The name says it all and aptly describes what this hardcore variant of the Ferrari 488 is all about. ‘Pista’ is the Italian word for ‘track’ and it’s on a track that the Ferrari 488 Pista has been developed to feel most at home. And it doesn’t get more at home than Ferrari’s very own Pista di Fiorano in Maranello, which is where I’m spending an afternoon finding out how sharp a track tool the 488 Pista really is. The Pista follows in the footsteps of its illustrious V8-powered predecessors, such as the 458 Speciale, 430 Scuderia and 360 Stradale, all developed and honed (at Fiorano) to be the finest driving machines of their day. The Pista, no doubt, has big shoes to fill and Ferrari isn’t holding back. For…

Aiways ESTABLISHED 2017 Aiways plans to reveal a luxury sports car concept based on the company’s MAS electric vehicle platform at the 2018 Beijing motor show ahead of 2019 sales. It has a claimed $2.2 billion (£1.55bn) in initial funding and is partnering with Bosch and Siemens, among others. Byton ESTABLISHED 2017 Byton is headed by the former boss of BMW’s i division, Carsten Breitfeld, and has attracted substantial funding from a number of prominent Chinese companies. Its first model is a large SUV due in 2019. Ex-Alpine chief engineer David Twohig is leading the car’s development. Faraday Future ESTABLISHED 2014 Having burst onto the scene in a blaze of publicity in 2014, Faraday has endured a troubled start to life owing to financing difficulties. The company has scrapped plans…

FINAL REPORT MILEAGE 23,348 WHY WE RAN IT To find out how well this high-tech exec blends luxury and sporting traits in a practical body Last summer, editor-at-large Matt Prior introduced our Mercedes-Benz E220d 4Matic AMG Line estate by listing the things he didn’t like about it – all two of ’em, namely the four-wheel drive system binding on full steering lock, and a minor issue relating to using the sat-nav and Apple CarPlay at the same time. After 22,000 miles and three seasons in the car, I reckon we can add only one or two similarly trifling quibbles to that list, which speaks volumes about its immense appeal. This is a consummate all-rounder. Consider the picture above of our E220d together with its E-Class range-mates at Brooklands: you can…

QUESTION I’m attracted to a second-hand Kia that has three years of its seven-year warranty left to run. Does the warranty pass directly to me, are there any catches and does it add value to the car? John Sutherland, via email ANSWER Yes, the warranty will pass directly to you, although you should keep in mind that the level of cover starts to diminish once the third year is up. It’s worth reading the small print to see what’s included. As to whether it adds to the value of the car, it’s hard to say – I’m sure the additional warranty has helped improve Kia values as a whole, but they’re still not really any more valuable second-hand than rivals that don’t get the long warranty. AR QUESTION Will a…

Alfa Romeo SZ £49,950 Zagato: was there ever a firm as capable of designing some of the most achingly beautiful cars and, at the same time, others that were so contentious? There has always been a wonderful uncertainty to its bounteous talents – a terrible beauty, as WB Yeats would have had it. So what to make of this, the Alfa Romeo SZ? Sprint Zagato. Il Monstro. Well, if it’s divisive you want, this little sports coupé serves it up in spades. But wait: this isn’t actually a Zagato design. It was Zagato built, yes, but the initial sketching was by Robert Opron, a man whose CV is fit to rival anyone’s – think Citroën SM, GS and CX – and the finishing work was done by a talented young…

“The new 404bhp engine enables a sharper 0-62mph time of 4.2sec with the optional dual-clutch ’box” BMW’s M division has ramped up the performance potential of the M2 with the introduction of a heavily upgraded version of the rear-wheel-drive coupé. The 2018 model, which is called the M2 Competition, replaces the standard M2. It packs a new 404bhp version of the twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre six-cylinder engine that powers the M3 and M4. This enables a sharper 0-62mph time of 4.2sec in combination with an optional seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. The top speed is governed at 155mph. The new M2 has been conceived to enhance the standing of the two-year-old performance coupé against rivals such as the Porsche Cayman GTS and Audi TT RS. As a result, the M2 Competition not only receives…

Alfa Romeo is expected to announce a new range of performance hybrid models, as well as a new large SUV, in June. The plans will be announced at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Balocco test track by Sergio Marchionne, 14 years to the day after he became FCA’s boss. Besides the new SUV, a vital model for Alfa’s US ambitions, Marchionne is expected to detail plans for a Giulia coupé, as exclusively revealed by Autocar (28 February). The Giulia coupé will be offered with high-performance hybrid drivetrains as well as the conventional engine options provided by the Giulia saloon on which it is based. The large SUV will be offered with a mild hybrid and an electric turbo using a 48V electrical system. These power boosters will be sufficient to overcome the…

The steady rise in the car industry of Croatian firm Rimac is illustrated not only by some of its clients – Aston Martin and Koenigsegg for starters – but also by its own ambitious hypercar plans. Its new C_Two electric hypercar has astonishing performance – 0-60mph in 1.85sec, outdoing the already crazy figures of its predecessor, the Concept One – and it’s upping production numbers by 1775%. Only eight Concept Ones were made but there will be 150 C_Twos. Head of sales Kreso Coric told Autocar the C_Two had almost sold out just weeks after being revealed at the Geneva motor show in March and the remaining few are being held back for some of its 12 dealers worldwide, which are not yet fully established. Reaction to the £1.5 million…

“It’s the most comfortable, luxurious and sophisticated family hatch the world has seen” Although the C-Class remains Mercedes-Benz’s biggestselling car, you could argue that it’s actually the A-Class and those derivatives which live with it on the lowest rung of the Mercedes ownership ladder that are now the most important products in the portfolio of the world’s largest premium car maker. Which means the success of each new generation is simply essential, and nowhere more than in the UK, the world’s biggest market for the A-Class. So forgive Mercedes for not much varying the formula for this fourth-generation A-Class. The first two hit their sales targets but internally are now perceived also to have damaged the brand with their awkward looks, curious dynamics and sub-optimal quality. However, the last one…

For anyone whose last drive in a four-wheel-drive performance car came a decade or so ago, the handling of the M5 will be little short of a revelation. Even after the likes of the Ford Focus RS, Audi R8 and Nissan GT-R, the M5’s agility, balance and playfulness seem remarkable for a car that can also o­er all the traction and stability you’d expect of a two-tonne, four-wheel-drive super-saloon. The car’s outright damping authority and body control, meanwhile, are truly unequalled among its direct rivals. So how could we deny it the ringing endorsement of a five-star score? Only because of a handful of shortcomings: slightly irksome steering weight, inconsistent brake pedal feel, that synthesised engine noise and an occasionally restless ride. However, the M5 has a dynamic versatility and…

Sticking to tradition, the 488 Pista draws heavily from Ferrari’s motorsport experience and uses lots of aerodynamic ideas from the 488 Challenge and 488 GTE race cars. Ferrari claims a 20% improvement in aerodynamic efficiency over the 488 GTB thanks to a plethora of vortex generators, redesigned ducts, diffusers and spoilers that finely control the airflow across every millimetre of the Pista. The most noticeable aero change is at the front, where the scooped-out bonnet houses the Formula 1-inspired S-duct. It is so called because the air passing through the intake on the nose is routed through an S-shaped aerodynamic duct before it exits via a big vent on the bonnet. The whole idea behind routing air through the curved S-duct is to accelerate airflow, which creates a low-pressure area…

“The vast torque and four-wheel-drive traction provide explosive acceleration” The new pure electric coupé you see here started life as a computer-generated design, just one of 20 or so created by Audi’s in-house design team over the past two years. The original idea was to use the car as a purely virtual entity to boost Audi’s presence in the latest version of the Gran Turismo video game on the Sony PlayStation 4. However, Audi bosses liked the e-tron Vision Gran Turismo so much they decided to build it as a rolling prototype to star at Formula E races as part of a marketing campaign surrounding the new e-tron electric car sub-brand. I first see the new coupé up close at the end of a row of garages at Audi’s Neuburg…

Pity the Sportage shortage Although I enjoyed reading your ‘20 banger heroes’ feature (21 March) and was delighted to see you featured a 4x4 from Kia’s parent company, Hyundai, I would have replaced the Honda H-RV with a Kia Sportage Mk1. I bought one in 2014 for £595 – James Ruppert featured it in Reader’s Ride in your 14 October 2015 edition – and it is still passing MOTs with no advisories, despite the fact they are now getting quite rare (howmanyleft.co.uk says fewer than 165 left on the road). I still use it as a daily driver. The only faults I have is replacing 23-year-old parts and it is only at 96,000 miles. Via email WIN Letter of the week wins this ValetPRO exterior protection and maintenance kit worth…

MILEAGE 3249 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To determine whether Hyundai’s first stab at a hot hatch can stand up to its more established foes in everyday life Before I get into this, I just want to state that I love our Hyundai i30 N. It’s fun, packed with kit, looks great and more in my kind of price range than a few other notable hot hatches. But I’ve been thinking: I wish the Hyundai had the engine from my old Peugeot 308 GTi. I’m not saying the Hyundai’s unit is bad and my criticism almost certainly stems from the fact that most of my weekday driving is at low speeds around town, but the Peugeot’s 1.6-litre turbo was smoother and had more punch low down in the rev range. It’s…

THE HIGH PRIEST OF BANGERNOMICS I am indebted to an Autocar reader for inspiring another column. Chris reckons that there is a fairly conscious bias generally against Alfa Romeos in Autocar. That’s used Alfas, of course. His experience has been pretty good. “I have had four 147s,” he tells me. “The last two I ran for 40,000 miles before swapping them, with one needing only a new radiator apart from service items. The one I run now has done 8000 miles without a fault. My Brera 2.2 I have had from new. It has racked up 72,000 miles and has only needed a battery, apart from service items.” Actually, I’ve given used Alfas a fair crack of the action in recent used car articles in these pages. What I like…

In this age of smart diffs, let’s hear it for the Mk5 Astra VXR, a 237bhp hooligan with muscle-building torque steer. In 2008, former Le Mans 24 Hours winner Manuel Reuter piloted a production example around the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 8min 35sec, at the time a record for a hot hatch. Given how popular the car is with tuners today (specialists Courtenay Sport once showed off a VXR producing 560bhp), one has probably since lapped the M25 in the same time. It was launched in 2005 in much the same form as it bowed out in five years later, save for a mid-life tweak in 2007 that brought a redesigned front and rear lights, a new front bumper and keyless entry. During its life it kept the same 237bhp 2.0-litre…

The 914 is a low-slung, undersung and overlooked beauty. It’s a mid-engined, Targa-topped and notably rigid roadster with agile handling and some notably advanced features, such as fuel injection, fully independent suspension, disc brakes on all four wheels and a five-speed gearbox. Unfortunately tainted sales-wise by its Volkswagen associations, it enjoyed neither the development nor the success it deserved. At auction this prime example made £13,500, a thoroughly respectable price for a car that has had a lot of work done and looks good to go.…

The new M2 Competition takes the hot BMW coupé on to a higher performance plane than the original M2, launched in 2016. But it’s not the definitive upgrade for the M2. An even hotter M2 CSL is already under development for a 2021 launch. The M2 CSL is part of a plan instigated by BMW M division boss Frank van Meel to better leverage the sales potential of M models throughout their entire model cycle. The M2 CSL will receive similar modifications to those made on the recently introduced M3 CS and year-old M4 CS. The track-focused model will get an enhanced aerodynamic package offering greater downforce as well as a pared-down cabin, among other changes. Its launch in 2021 will be 18 months before the end of the model…

THE NEW VAUXHALL Corsa “will not be compromised in any way” despite being developed in less than two years by PSA Group after a signed-off design based on previous owner GM’s architecture was axed. A revised Corsa was set to be launched this year, sitting on a modified version of GM’s Astra platform. However, PSA took the decision to re-engineer the car on its own small car platform, called EMP1, as it took control of the company, to save on licence costs to GM. As such, the new Corsa will be launched in 2019, and will share its underpinnings with rivals including the Peugeot 208 and Citroën C3. However, global Opel and Vauxhall boss Michael Lohscheller insisted that the compressed development time would not be a hindrance to the car’s…

VW IN CHINA 330,000 Dealer employees 100,000 Employees 3000 Dealers 30 Production sites Volkswagen sold 208,462 cars in the UK in 2017. In China, it sold 341,888… in December alone. Across last year, VW’s three Chinese operations – its own brand and two joint ventures – delivered 3,177,000 cars, accounting for just over half the company’s 6.23m global sales. That total, equating to 8704 sales per day, or one every 10sec, makes VW the best-selling car firm in China and explains why boss Herbert Diess says “China will have a decisive effect on the success of our future strategy”. Both the sheer size of the Chinese car market – 24.2m cars were sold there last year – and its potential for further growth explain why it is a priority not…

It’s not so easy saying goodbye to a performance hatchback as special and as inspirational as the Ford Focus RS, especially as the company’s previous practice was to wait several years before replacing its icon. But the matter has become urgent, now that a newer Focus range has been revealed. Ford has chosen to launch two special editions to bid farewell to its quickest hatchback, a car whose performance, if not its price, has positioned it just short of a true supercar level. The 300-off, £36,295 Race Red edition announced late last year comes in only the one colour, rolls on standard black wheels and gets a standard Quaife mechanical limited-slip differential between its front wheels. An even rarer Heritage Edition in Tief Orange, of which there will only ever…

The Porsche is the more economical cruiser, managing around 32mpg on the motorway to the Alfa’s 28mpg. With a 75-litre tank, it means the Macan has a cruising range of more than 500 miles. “The Alfa emboldens you to drive in a wrist-flicking style and lean on the rear axle” Fifteen years ago, we’d have stood on a Welsh hillside waiting to compare two low-slung cars of purely sporting pretensions. Today, it’s sports utility vehicles that need to tick numerous ownership boxes beyond merely that of being a decent steer. How times have changed, eh? And yet the fact that we’re here shows change is still upon us – and for the better. We’ve sought worthy Tarmac for this test because we know these particular beasts of high-riding automotive leisure…

Only five years ago, the typical home-grown Chinese car resembled a 1980s Honda Civic but built to the standards of British Leyland at its worst. And to drive? Pfft. Yet the rate of progression in the Chinese car industry has been quite extraordinary, to the point where many of the major brands are creating cars with truly attractive styling and solid build quality. The dynamics? Still so-so. Ultimately, nailing this part of the holy trinity will be key to just how great export appeal of the average Chinese car has. So, last year, we travelled to a tiny rural kart track a couple of hours outside of the sprawling metropolis of Guangzhou to test some of the latest cars China has to offer. They represented an interesting mix of electric,…

FIRST DRIVE Lamborghini Urus – the verdict Lamborghini has made its first SUV of the modern era, the Urus. Matt Prior delivers the verdict on this most controversial of cars COMPARISON Leon Cupra R vs Civic Type R Seat’s hottest hatch yet against our current favourite. Which wins? FEATURE Stirling Moss celebrated Andrew Frankel takes a road trip to the great’s most famous haunts EVERY WEEK FIRST DRIVE Suzuki Swift Sport Is it as good as a VW Up GTI? Our first UK drive in the Swift Sport reveals all ROAD TEST Kia Stinger 2.0 T The Stinger isn’t only available as a V6 muscle saloon: there’s a 2.0 version too USED BUYING GUIDE Jaguar FType Jag’s sports car of the moment now makes for a compelling used buy SUBSCRIBE…

MILEAGE 7637 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To see if the most hardcore TT is preferable to the cooking versions and a genuine alternative to a BMW M2 Not before time, the TT RS has really started doing the rounds among the Autocar staff. Its popularity with the usual suspects was never seriously in doubt – it has too much power and prestige to spend much time standing idle – but the car seems to have been all over the place recently, and with nary a Cackett crisp packet in sight. Handing over the keys to a long-term test car is always good value for the ‘fresh pair of eyes’ comments it garners, but it has proven doubly so with the TT RS because it underlines what a divisive car it…

It is nice to have ‘the Lorry’ back after its recent visit to the menders. When I took it in for a restoration almost a year ago, I did say that changing all the consumable parts would perhaps be a good idea, but at the time they wanted to leave it all alone. So after my recent misfiring and stalling nightmares, what did they replace? Yep, a set of brand new spark plugs and high-tension leads cured it. The engine still feels more gutless than I remember it from the pre-restoration days but, on the whole, the performance is 110%, as footballers say. C is for Corolla Here is a reliable domestic appliance. If all you want to do is go about your daily business, as economically and efficiently as…

An expert’s view GARY CONWAY, OWNER, GCAP PERFORMANCE “The Astra VXR Mk5 is a great hot hatch: cheap, quick and a bit unruly. It’s a great basis for a tuning project, too. Almost everything on the car can be uprated. We’ve just finished a £16,000 upgrade on a £2500 VXR that arrived a month or so ago. It came with a bent con rod, and after we quoted for repair, the owner said he might as well go the full distance. You don’t have to spend that, though. A stage one remap to 270bhp is around £400, and that plus a full exhaust system is £1500. Add an uprated intercooler and you’re looking at £2000.” Buyer beware… ▪ENGINE Valve stem seals are a weak spot so check for smoke on…

GET IT WHILE YOU CAN Converts to the benefits of electric car motoring know all about the Nissan Leaf Mk1, a visually challenged car with zero exhaust emissions. Now, it appears, Nissan has turned over a new Leaf, and the Mk2 is much more pleasing to the eye and noticeably better to drive, too. However, that does mean you can pick up a delivery-miles version of the old one for around £5500 less, once the government’s plug-in car grant has been factored in.…

TESTER’S NOTES How we work, part one: above is a shot taken at what looks like a million miles an hour, for an upcoming car versus bike story. And below is how it was actually taken: with photographer Luc Lacey secured in the rear of a Vauxhall while I (in the Audi) and tester Neil Winn (on the Ducati) hold station behind the car as steadily as possible. The speed is less than 20mph. If you’re interested in these things, Luc says the shutter speed is 1/15th, the aperture was around F/11, he’s used a polarising filter and in post-processing pretty much all he’s done is boosted the contrast. How we work, part two: one or two car makers have declined to support awards ceremonies, reckoning they’re not all equal…