Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2021 i CAR UK

We’re on day two of our cross-country 208 test from Land’s End to Edinburgh, and day two means car two. This morning we stopped at Robins and Day, a busy Peugeot dealership south-west of Birmingham, to swap our e-208 for a diesel BlueHDi. The market’s drift from diesel means demand won’t be huge, but in keeping with its ‘a 208 for everyone’ mantra, Peugeot still reckons it’s important to offer one. And there is only one: a 1.5-litre turbo developing a fairly modest 99bhp, but more on that figure later. You can mate the diesel motor with any of the five trims from basic Active Premium to top-spec GT Premium. Our mid-spec Allure Premium lacks the 205 GTi-aping black wheelarch trims of yesterday’s e-208 GT, but the squat stance, wide…

It’s fast and free-flowing, cutting uninterrupted between hills like a river; I’m reminded of the Isle of Man TT course Sun, snow, storms and sea... the final leg of our British adventure has it all as we press on out of Scotland’s Central Belt and drive until the road runs out at John O’Groats. It’s a two-day jaunt that first takes us north and east into the breathtaking Cairngorms National Park, overnighting in Inverness, then following a leg of the North Coast 500 that largely traces Scotland’s rugged west and north. We’ll take in snow-covered mountains, perfect beaches, lochs like oceans and windswept wilderness. The new Peugeot 2008 should prove capable for the job with its raised ride height, spacious and well-appointed interior, and a three-cylinder petrol engine that’ll go…

Tell us about your first car ‘A Renault 4. An old, red fire brigade car with blue lights.’ What is your proudest achievement? ‘Aside from my family, we’ve taken the UK from last in profit to among the best in the group.’ Tell us about a time you screwed up ‘Renault asked me to adapt the marketing to launch Vel Satis and Avantime in France. But they were not a success.’ Best thing you’ve ever done in a car? ‘I won a Renault F1 day, with five laps of Circuit Paul Ricard in an F1 car – I must have used 25 per cent of its potential!’ Supercar or classic car? ‘I drive a “super” car – an Alpine A110S.’ Curveball… How many people watched the first broadcast of the…

THE INNOVATIONS TRANSFORMING OUR DRIVING WORLD Ayrton Senna’s fatal crash at Imola 1994 not only changed racecar safety forever, but also the process of designing a new track. Safety was thrust under the microscope like never before, and yet the tracks still had to be challenging for drivers and exciting for fans. Fortunately for companies such as Apex Circuit Design, recent digital developments have helped with the challenges involved in juggling these conflicting demands. Currently working on the Miami street circuit, which has an agreement in principle to join the 2021 F1 calendar and would race around the Miami Dolphins stadium, Apex is owned by engineer and racer Clive Bowen. His company has, since 2006, overseen the development of 26 new or upgraded circuits. Digital modelling plays a crucial role…

This is the greatest Porsche 911 ever made. Yes, 1 know we said that about the Carrera 2.7 RS in the November issue. And the 997 GT3 in August 2013 (it’s okay to change your mind). But, scientifically speaking, this is it. The most agile, the most brutal, the most gobsmackingly capable. Sadly, it’s not road-legal. The 911 RSR is a racing car built for Le Mans, or more specifically, the World Endurance Championship. And if we’re being specific, it’s barely a 911 at all, not least because it’s mid-engined (a playing-field leveller allowed by the regulations). We meet it in the pitlane at the fast, undulating Vallelunga circuit in Italy, being coaxed into life by the Le Mans-seasoned Manthey Racing squad – coaxed into life for us to drive.…

That is the first BMW that looks good with that ridiculous grille. Look at it: looks like a baddy’s car in a gangster movie. Electric too, so no one will realise they’re about to be shot in a drive-by until it’s too late. Daryl Cheetham That would look brutal in black. Reminds me of the ‘Senator’ in GTA. Saq Aziz Scooped? Doubt it will look like that. Most people on here disliked Bangle’s BMWs and yet sales went up... Ian Miles…

Yon can see why Ford is keen to insist that its first EV is part of the Mustang family. With us since 1964, it’s the badge on the world’s cumulatively best-selling sports coupe. But the heritage I’m more interested in is summed up in three words: Richard Parry-Jones. Now retired, the former chief technical officer didn’t just oversee a lot of Ford’s dynamically most impressive cars of the ’90s – Focus, Ka, Puma, Fiesta – he also nurtured a fantastic amount of engineering talent. One of his protégés is Matthias Tonn, who, after earning his spurs with Fiesta and Focus ST, and the Focus RS, got the job of making the Mustang Mach-E drive well. Because after the newcomer’s perhaps superficial resemblance to the long-running pony car has lost its…

2020: a rollercoaster of a year ‘The first quarter of 2020 was a sales and profit record, proving that the business changes we’d made were positive. We had another record quarter in Q2: the biggest loss we’ve ever made; big enough to wipe out that Q1 profit. But, where at one point we thought we might record a three-digit-million loss, it’s likely we can break even for 2020.’ Kicking on in 2021 ‘[2021] should be a good year. We’ve come through this crisis in good shape; stronger than we were when it started. We’re entering 2021 with all our re-structuring done, our range is less than two years old, our order bank is 50 per cent higher than it was before the crisis, and we have three derivatives and four…

Audi is a master of the high-tech interior that’s reduced to its essence yet sparkles with premium flash. I particularly like this car’s technical fabric trim. But the BMW has usefully more space in the rear seats and its infotainment and driving modes are easier to fathom. The A5’s touchscreen is a stretch, where you can twirl, touch or gesture at things in the 420i. BMW’s drive modes could be easier to glance at (they’re next to the gearlever) but they’re more intuitive to find and operate than Audi Drive Select, which is easily hidden by a drink in the cupholder.…

Back in the ʼ80s, I didn’t want to be Kevin Keegan or Nigel Mansell. I didn’t fantasise about being Luke Skywalker or Ozzy Osbourne or the man whose hand went up Basil Brush. No, I wanted to wear a flowery shirt, drive a Ferrari and live in Hawaii. I wanted to be Thomas Magnum, private investigator. Magnum P.I. arrived on British TV in 1981, which makes me feel old but also nostalgic and fuzzy inside. This show had a profound effect on me, a boy who was just deciding that cars were more interesting than dinosaurs. I loved the way it ‘normalised’ the 308 GTS – the way Magnum didn’t actually own the car, he only borrowed it; and he used it as his daily driver, which made the Ferrari…

BMW won’t make an M5 estate but is happy to facilitate the B5, which is very much an M5 estate Nothing changes at Alpina. There was a designer once, but he wasn’t replaced. No need. The look, the feel, everything was decided early on, and hasn’t needed to change because it was all spot-on from the start. Everything must change at Alpina. When all your products are derived from BMWs, and BMW is busy ditching diesel and embracing electrification, you have no choice but to follow suit. But how do you do that without losing what’s made the unchanging Alpina formula such a winner for 55 years? This is the big question I’ve come to Buchloe, 60 miles west of Munich, to ask Andreas Bovensiepen, son of founder Burkard Bovensiepen.…

After last month’s green laning I started imagining our next adventure: tackling the Makgadikgadi salt flats in Botswana, perhaps? In the end, we went for a bike ride near Corby. Land Rover offers a couple of bike-carriers as options: fit the £303 roof bars and you can attach a single-bike carrier on top for £149; Or there’s a two-bike ball-hitch rack for £599 and a three-bike for £719. Our car has the £1035 towbar. However, I’m a skinflint and I paid £100 for this Thule HangOn carrier, which is sturdy, easy to attach plus the colour matches our silver Disco Sport exactly. Nice! Land Rover Discovery Sport D240 HSE R Dynamic Month 5 The story so far Our Disco Sport settles down to humdrum domestic duties + From shopping trips…

Toyota GR Yaris Mutant chassis, fizzy and boosty engine, rabid grip and World Rally DNA? This is the least Toyota-ish Toyota in ages. Celebrate! Page 139 Cupra Leon A PHEV for Brits, while some other markets also get a Golf R-powered Leon. Jealous? Not really - we’re happy with the Golf R Page 133 Hyundai Tucson Futuristic looks and tech, but still so-so to drive, and it gets expensive at the top end. But remember how basic the original was? It’s moved on a long way Page 134…

Another Place, The Lake, comes from the team behind the equally enticing Watergate Bay hotel in Cornwall. But, overlooking Ullswater in the Lake District, it’s got a slightly cosier, more intimate vibe. It’s the kind of getaway you can’t fully appreciate with a single night’s stay, so it’s a shame we had no time to try the wild swimming, or the fell walks suggested in the hallway. We did have time to indulge in other pursuits – like eating. Of the two restaurants at Another Place, Living Space is more informal, serving hearty favourites throughout the day, while Rampsbeck focuses on contemporary dining. But the atmosphere in both is as relaxed as you’d want after a hard day’s climbing – or just drifting in the pool. We tried several dishes, including duck…

Peugeot is democratising advanced safety tech once reserved for luxury cars. All 208s get one of two auto braking systems, and basic lane-keeping assist, which illuminates a warning in the dash when you’re drifting off course, adjusting the steering if necessary. Order a 208 GT Premium and you’ll also get the Driver Assist Pack Plus as standard, with full lane-centring guidance, plus Stop and Go adaptive cruise control to maintain a safe distance between you and the car in front all the way to a standstill and back up to speed. That same kit is a £300 option on the GT with an auto ‘box. Spec it on a manual GT and you lose the stop-and-go functionality, though adaptive cruise still works down to 18mph.…

Our first night’s stop was at Ness Walk, a lovely five-star hotel tucked away on the banks of the River Ness, and only a short walk from Inverness town centre. Based around a restored, Grade B-listed 19th century house, but updated with modern design and architecture, Ness Walk had a warm, lavish, welcoming feel after a long day’s adventuring. The three-course meal at the Torrish restaurant went down particularly well – hand-dived West Coast scallops with golden raisins, cauliflower puree and tiny chunks of black pudding for both of us to start, then the perfectly pink beef rump for me, soy-glazed duck with pink-pickled ginger for more adventurous Alex. Dessert sounded equally good, but generous portions (and jumping the gun with too much delicious sour-dough bread and home-made butter) meant…

Plug the e-208 into an ordinary household socket and it will take 24 hours to charge the 50kWh battery. But invest in a 7kW wall charger and that drops to 7.5 hours, which means it’ll be ready for the next day’s commute. Access to 50kW rapid DC chargers along your route is essential for longer trips like ours, allowing you to top up to 80 per cent (after which the charging rate slows markedly to protect the battery) in around 50 minutes. The e-208 can even charge at 100kW stations (to 80 per cent in 30 minutes) though they’re still rare. We didn’t see one between Land’s End and Birmingham. How far will that get you? Up to 217 miles according to the new, more realistic WLTP test figures, and…

► Running a premium car maker on a shoestring budget can’t be easy, but Tobias Moers and Lawrence Stroll are bullish about Aston Martin’s future. Encouraged by a slight recovery on the stock market, the team at the top recently said they were aiming to double sales by 2025, with a yearly profit target of £500m. Crucial to the plan is Aston’s agreement with Moers’ old employer, allowing access to Mercedes tech for all new models up to 2027. ► Progress will be slow for the first couple of years, with the real product fireworks starting in 2023. The new bosses are keen to make the most of the SUV craze by adding an even sportier five-door coupe to the DBX range. It will be up against rivals including the…

BUILD A ROLLERCOASTER Combine elevation changes with changes of direction and make corners elliptical rather than constant-radius – the drivers must deal with shifts in traction and weight transfer, and the corner profile allows for different driving lines. BUY LOCAL Using local aggregate is more sustainable, and gives engineers and drivers another variable to master. DO THE MATH The FIA mandates circuit designers take datalogger data and feed it into a simulation tool of their own design. This calculates the consequences when a driver loses control, even when the circuit is still in the virtual design stage. DRIVE IT VIRTUALLY Modern driver-in-loop simulators provide a lifelike experience before anyone’s so much as reached for a hi-vis vest, let alone broken ground. The pace of software development in the last five…

First car in the ample FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) empire of brands in Europe to go plug-in hybrid? That’d be the Jeep Renegade, in defiance of Jeep’s reputation of being a bit analogue and low-tech. The 4xe (pronounced ‘four by E’) powers its rear wheels with a 59bhp electric motor and its fronts with a 1.3-litre turbocharged petrol engine aided by a smaller e-motor which also acts as a generator. In the hardy Trailhawk spec tested here, the combined output of 23ybhp makes the 4xe the most powerful all-wheel- drive system ever fitted to a Renegade. One that’s genuinely capable off-road, too. Even if the battery were to run flat while tackling ruts and rocks, the engine stokes the generator fires to keep the rear axle in play at all…

The sad thing is, nobody will care. I guess the more sanguine, level-headed and self-assured members of Land Rover’s engineering team will consider that evidence of a job well done. If a new technology’s invisible, that’s quiet confirmation that you’ve done a good job, right? Call me insecure and needy, then, but if 1 were them I’d want every P300e Evoque and Disco Sport buyer (for the PHEV powertrain is available in both) to get an in-depth briefing on the quite brilliant package I’d put together, and to give a signature before they leave to say yes, they understand its splendour, and yes, they’re impressed and grateful. Under the P300e’s bonnet you’ll find – if you bother to look – a three-cylinder petrol engine. Lighter than a four (to help…

Illustration by Peter Strain We’re lucky to have lived when we have, says Gordon Murray, creator of the Senna and Prost GP McLarens, the McLaren F1 road car and now the new T.50, last of the analogue supercars. The subject turns to engines. He may be better known for his lightweight sports cars, but Gordon Murray started his career designing engines. The new T.50 has a Cosworth engine and it’s very much to Gordon’s spec. It will be the lightest and highest revving (to 12,100rpm) V12 ever and doubtless the last all-new V12. By 2030, no new V12s can be sold in the UK, and no other petrol cars either, unless they’re part-electric PHEVs, available until 2035. Gordon, like me, loves engines that have pistons and valves and camshafts and…

Handsome, well-dressed, charming, humorous, cultivated and talented ? Certainly. But to prove God has a sense of humour, and of proportion, Flavio Manzoni also has an extremely difficult job: capo of design at Ferrari. Charged with projecting the unique I’idea Ferrari into the future, Manzoni faces several creative problems. If he respects a glorious past, he stands accused of unimaginative historicism. If he is boldly innovative, he will be censured for disrespecting Ferrari’s unrivalled back catalogue. No other concern has contributed so much to the history of mechanical beauty as Ferrari. But Manzoni’s Maranello is not the same as Enzo’s. It is no longer a collective of local artisans agitated into activity by a capricious and uncompromising boss with a personal vision, but a huge industrial undertaking which is edging…

SKODA ENYAQ iV Skoda’s first EV is going straight for the mainstream. Just shorter than a Kodiaq, the Enyaq looks like every Skoda SUV and will be priced from a little over £30k (after the grant), with 300-plus miles of range. VOLKSWAGEN ID.4 The world hasn’t fallen in love with the ID.3, but its roomier, classier, betterriding crossover cousin should hit the spot. First version has 310-mile range and rear-drive, with many variations to follow. NISSAN ARIYA Late ’21’s Ariya is not a swankier Leaf or an electric Qashqai – it’s on a new Nissan-Renault platform and has Nissan’s best cabin ever. Take your pick from front-or all-wheel drive, and single or twin motors. AUDI e-TRON Q4 Not unrelated to the Enyaq and ID.4, the e-Tron Q4 skips the more…

BMW M3 No hybrids here, but the M3 (and two-door M4 twin) will now offer optional all-wheel-drive for the first time and, later, a Touring body. No manual in the UK. Boo. Plenty of reasons to be cheerful, including 503bhp under the controversial bonnet in Competition guise. ALFA ROMEO GIULIA GTA Quadrifoglio special gets carbon bodywork from front doors forwards, new engine internals, carbon brakes (saving 17kg) and hand-painted decals (saving a few grams). Only 300 will be built, split between £160k GTA and £165k GTAm (bigger wing, smaller kerbweight) versions. BMW i4 First fully electric BMW saloon won’t be tepid. More than 520bhp will be on tap for performance to keep an M car honest. Expect a show-stopping interior and a 373-mile WLTP range. There’ll be another hot BMW…

Neither the A5 40 TFSI nor the 420i is offered with all-wheel drive. The BMW copes just fine in greasy conditions due to its modest power and because heavy acceleration squashes the driven wheels into the surface. To be fair the front-drive Audi manages well, partly thanks to nicely calibrated traction control that balances rather than kills power during slip. But it is the scrabble champion here, so quattro would improve refinement – yet you have to step up to a 45 TFSI to get it. The 420i’s adaptive suspension also provides a cushier ride.…

► Why is it here? The new 4-series is, like every BMW coupe before it, a driver-focused product that assumes balance, poise and precision are at the top of your list of priorities. But perhaps they’re not. Maybe you’d prefer a beautiful cockpit, less divisive styling and the easygoing efficiency of front-wheel drive. The A5 offers all of the above. ► Any clever stuff? The engine is nothing more or less than a state-of-the-art petrol four-cylinder with direct injection and turbocharging, promising 187bhp and 236lb ft (the latter from a diesel-like 1450rpm). TFSI combines direct injection (fuel/ air mix into the chambers, rather than a manifold) and ultra-high-pressure fuel injection to deliver a stratified charge – instead of filling the whole cylinder with a mixture rich enough to burn, the…

Know vour 308s The GTB launched in 1975 with a dry-sump V8 and a glassfibre body, though structural elements are steel (so rust still very much an issue...) and bonnet aluminium. Ferrari switches to steel in ’76, adding weight. GTS is the Spider, from ’77, and fuel injection comes in from ’80, though power actually drops. Italy and New Zealand get the tax-dodging 1990cc V8. Don’t get hung up on an early glassfibre car Yes, they’re ‘pure’ and rare, but the steel underneath can still corrode and the glassfibre gelcoat can craze which isn’t a cheap fix. The later 308 QV is better value, and its steel body is easy to repair. The most affordable 308 is the GTSi at around £60k. Be prepared to spend... Servicing, while not cheap,…

While still an engineering student in 1962, Burkard Bovensiepen (pictured) makes a Weber dual-carb conversion for the BMW 1500; it’s so good it gets BMW’s blessing. In 1965, Alpina is established as a BMW tuner in a back room of the family typewriter business in Kaufbeuren, Bavaria. Alpina’s first foray into racing, in 1968, goes well. By 1970 it’s scooped wins in the European Touring Car Championship, Spa 24 Hours and German hillclimb championship; drivers include James Hunt, Niki Lauda, Jacky Ickx... In 1970, now with a staff of 70, Alpina has outgrown its base and moves 12 miles up the road to Buchloe, where – in a much-expanded site – it still is. Bovensiepen founds a wine importing business in 1979 to run alongside the car operation. It’s still…

Mazda 3 GT Sport Skyactiv-X Month 5 The story so far Drilling down on the details of our pretty family hatch + A family hatch for drivers – great chassis to exploit - Damp legs when the cupholders lose to g-force Logbook Price £26,675 (£27,465 as tested) Performance 1998cc four-cylinder, 178bhp, 8.2sec 0-62mph, 134mph Efficiency 48.7mpg (official), 39.2mpg (tested), 131g/km CO2 Energy cost 14.3p per mile Miles this month 963 Total miles 4678…

A couple of niggles about the Zoe. I’ve tackled the towering ride height, but running a close second is the inexplicably brittle and harsh secondary ride quality. On smooth, fast roads, the Zoe feels calm and composed. But here in West Sussex, most of the roads are rather more challenging, and I wish Renault’s ride and handling engineers had experienced the feeling of their fillings coming loose before deciding that the Zoe Mk3 was ready to meet its public. I appreciate it’s not easy to make a chubby 1502kg supermini glide like a Phantom, but it’s a shame when so much about this car is so good. Renault Zoe GT Line R135 Z.E. 50 Month 3 The story so far Third-generation Zoe now up against a lot more rivals +…

1 SKODA SUPERB One of the most well-rounded and useful PHEVs on the market. Comfort, space, clean looks and useful tech, along with up to 34 miles of zero-emission range. From £33,590 for the hatch or £34,870 for the estate. 2 BMW 330e A middle manager’s dream company car: BMW badge, sharper to drive than anything else in its class, low running costs. Loses out to Skoda for being less spacious and more expensive — saloon prices start at £40 k. 3 PORSCHE PANAMERA 4S E-HYBRID The facelifted four-seat Panam’ PHEV is capable of 33 miles of e-range and a 3.7sec sprint (if not at the same time). Great handling, mature looks, and road presence like nowt else here for a smidge under £102k. 4 LAND ROVER DISCOVERY SPORT P300E…

While the Cabriolet has too much of a humpback for some, the latest Targa - the other convertible 992 - looks dreamy. We’ve built one that can cruise long distances, thrill at the right moment and take advantage of summer weather. Ours is a 4S with 444bhp and all-wheel drive, and we’ve picked the eight-speed PDK for more versatility on those continental cruises. Starting price: £109,725 Gentian Blue paint (£876), RS Spyder Design wheels (£1650) and graphite blue leather upholstery with crayon grey stitching complete the basic look. We’ve deleted the model badging for a cleaner rear end, while trimming the panels and pedals in aluminium (£1003) and adding the 18-way adjustable electric sports seats (£2315) and heated steering wheel (£383). Running total: £115,952 We’ve stuck to some of the…

ALFA STELVIO SPRINT £561 Sharpest steering on the market Spec 2.0-litre, all-wheel drive, 197bhp, 160g/km CO2 List price £44,255 Initial payment £3750; then £561/month for 36 months Mileage allowance 10,000 Via zen.auto PORSCHE MACAN S £683 So well-rounded Spec 3.0-litre V6, all-wheel drive, 349bhp, 251g/km CO2 List price £49,420 Initial payment £4750; then £683/month for 36 months Mileage allowance 10,000 Via zen.auto CUPRA FORMENTOR VZ2 £453 New brand, new hot SUV Spec 2.0-litre, all-wheel drive, 306bhp, 193g/km CO2 List price £39,830 Initial payment £3250; then £453/month for 36 months Mileage allowance 10,000 Via zen.auto FORD PUMA ST £434 A baby hooligan, just like the Fiesta Spec 1.5-litre, front-wheel drive, 148bhp, 134g/km CO2 List price £28,495 Initial payment £3000; then £434/month for 36 months Mileage allowance 10,000 Via zen.auto All prices…

1923 1923 BMW R32 BMW spends the Great War making great aero engines, and knocks up the M2B15 twin when peace breaks out. Motorcycle makers lap it up, which gets BMW thinking - its first bike, the R32, is launched in ’23. The 494cc flat-twin makes a whole load of sense: recirculating lubrication system instead of grubby total-loss, cylinders nice and cool out in the breeze and, with its longitudinal crankshaft, perfect for shaft final drive. 1948 1948 Une bonne idée When the French grow too lazy to cycle, an ultra-cheap people’s car is required. Citroën likes the look of a flat-twin for its 2CV, and who can blame it? The boxer (with the motion of one piston cancelling out the forces generated by the other) brings excellent primary balance,…

Watch the track battle video at peugeotroadtrips.carmagazine.co.uk Peugeot’s superminis defined small car dynamics in the ’80s and ’90s, but which of the three power sources available in the latest 208 delivers the best blend of fast and fun? After driving electric, diesel and petrol 208s from Land’s End to Edinburgh, we’ve journeyed a little further north across the Firth of Forth to Knockhill Race Circuit for a final showdown to find out more. The compact 1.27-mile layout and thrilling elevation changes will be familiar to anyone who’s watched BTCC on TV, but some things have definitely changed since Gabriele Tarquini’s famous barrel-roll. There definitely wasn’t a charging point for electric cars back in 1994, but there is now. After charging our e-208 we’re ready to try them all on track.…

Our 2008 was fitted with the Full Park Assist option, a £250 extra that’s available with the auto gearbox. Activate the system via the central touchscreen and the next step is to choose from either a parallel park on the left- or right side of the road, or a perpendicular park, say if you’re looking for a space in a supermarket car park. Make that choice, drive along at no more than 19mph between half a metre and 1.5 metres from the parked cars, and the 2008 will flash up a green ‘P’ and steering wheel alert when it spots a space large enough to fit the compact SUV (ie 60cm longer than the car in parallel spaces, or 70cm for perpendicular spaces). Then just slot the 2008 into reverse…

‘New cars 2021? I can’t wait for the AMG and the new Fiat Panda’ The 2021 new cars I’m most looking forward to? Tough question: 2021 is set to deliver an embarrassment of riches, from an all-new, all-wheel-drive BMW M3 to a McLaren hybrid much more affordable than the last two. (Not all that difficult, admittedly, when you consider that Woking’s first two hybrids were the £866k-in-2014 P1 and the £2.1m Speedtail… The Artura will cost around £200k.) But for me the big two are AMG’s One and Fiat’s new Panda. (A balanced diet is key to lasting health and happiness, as we know.) AMG’s One – like Aston’s Valkyrie and the Lotus Evija – is in danger of feeling both irrelevant and nonsensical at the same time. Like owning…

Air (very) apparent No windscreen means countless scoops and vents in the all-carbon bodywork to deflect as much air as possible away from the occupants’ vulnerable faces. Wind in your hair? Like sitting on the nose of an A380. Get your tools out Side scoops from the Essenza SCV12, a massive rear splitter and Sian-inspired rear lights and exhausts are all well and good, but the party piece is the manually adjustable three-level rear wing. Material overload Machined aluminium door handles. 3D-printed vents. Carbonfibre all over the wheel, dashboard and centre console. Even the seats are carbon – composite shells upholstered in leather and alcantara. Old at heart SC20 will sing a familiar tune – Lambo’s epic 7.5-litre V12 lives under the engine cover, making 760bhp and 531lb ft. The…

Illustration by Peter Strain Let’s not even get into the debate about whether sandwiches should be cut into triangles or rectangles: personally I prefer triangles, but I don’t want to go down that rabbit hole right now – we simply don’t have the time. Let’s focus instead on the most important factor in making a good sandwich: the bread-to-filling ratio. If you have two pieces of bread and an egg mayonnaise filling that’s the same thickness as a bread slice, your ratio is 2:1. If the filling is thinner – perhaps a delicate slice of ham with English mustard – you’d have something like a 4:1 sandwich ratio. Yummy. However, some people (mostly Americans) seem to think you need the same amount of filling as bread, giving you a ratio…

Cupra’s first non-Seat model, the Formentor, is due to get a five-cylinder engine from the Audi TT RS, with 400bhp and all-wheel drive. Alfa Romeo’s glorious Stelvio will be joined by the smaller – and, Alfa hopes, bigger selling – Tonale. Sharing a platform with the Jeep Renegade, the line-up should include a Q4 plug-in hybrid with the engine driving the front wheels and an e-motor for the rears. The same family will also offer the Maserati Grecale, a straight rival for the Porsche Macan, with the MC20’s 3.0-litre V6 engine, plus a hybrid, and a pure-electric version expected in 2023. Volvo looks very likely to introduce a coupe version of the XC40, with hybrids and an EV offered, replacing the V40. Nissan’s new Qashqai promises to move slightly upmarket,…

Mercedes-AMG One It’s had a difficult birth but AMG’s road-legal F1-powered hypercar is finally set to hit the streets. It’s definitely got pedigree Mercedes-AMG GT 73 4 Door The ultimate version of AMG’s four-door coupe: a plug-in hybrid with 800bhp+, due for launch in the spring Mercedes C-Class C63 won’t appear until winter returns but the regular C-Class is on the way in the first half of the year to challenge a4 and 3-series EQA This is imminent: a premium all-electric version of the GLA. The seven-seat EQB will follow, targeting ID.4 and Model Y EQS Electric limo flagship launches by summer, with EQE later in the year, and SUV variants of both following in 2022…

KITT KNIGHT RIDER The crime-fighting Trans Am with backchat Specs: Turbojet, AI, oil jets, grappling hook... Semi-autonomous cars that talk are common now (Golf, anyone?), but the ’Hoff’s sentient Pontiac was bleeding-edge sci-fi in 1982. Still the standard for voice recognition. LEXUS IS300 ALAN PARTRIDGE The Japanese Mercedes, no less Specs: ‘Women’s whiplash’-causing airbag Just as Bond eschews an obvious Rolex for a knowing Omega, so Partridge’s Lexus speaks volumes about the man (and Toyota’s spin-off brand is still recovering). FORD F250 TRUE DETECTIVE The ponytailed philosopher’s truth truck Specs: 7.5-litre V8, 245bhp, hallucinations HBO’s detective epic jumps time, and when we meet Matthew McConaughey’s Rust Cohle in later years he’s busy: busy drinking (hard) and pursuing the truth in his ’97 Ford. GMC VANDURA THE A-TEAM Stripes! Spoilers! Erm,…

B3 Bring on the bi-turbo Like the D3 but with a burbly bi-turbo 3.0-litre petrol straight-six. Just as much torque as the diesel but with an extra 106bhp. D5 S The performance diesel The 5-series saloon with a 538lb ft diesel straight-six heart transplant. Touring is only marginally slower. XB7 The seven-seater Regular X7 not in-your-face enough? Air dam balances out those grilles a bit. D3S The 350bhp entry model The 3-series with a 3.0-litre straight-six diesel and a tug-o-war-tastic 538lb ft of torque. Pick from saloon or Touring estate versions. XD3 The Alpina for the Alps An X3 it’s okay to like. B5 Our car’s saloon sibling The petrol Alpina 5-series is perhaps the optimal blend of comfort, poise and pace. Deeply satisfying to drive. B7 The low-flying private…

It’s a grown-up, smooth, relaxed car, not one that encourages you to push it hard. Do that, and the steering can feel numb. Selecting Power mode tightens the steering feel a little, but also tightens up throttle response and hangs onto the gears, neither of which feels entirely appropriate. Given that I’m driving smoothly and steadily, it’s surprising that at just 2400 miles the XC40 was asking me for oil. I’m assuming it’s just a one-off, as the mechanicals bed in. It’s also proving quite thirsty for petrol, but that’s at least in part down to me rarely plugging it in to charge the battery. Volvo XC40 Recharge Plug-in Hybrid T5 FWD Inscription Pro Month 3 The story so far Plug-in hybrid in front-drive, top-spec form + Wonderful cabin -…

ABARTH 595 ★★★☆☆ > Pricey pocket rocket with divine details, dodgy dynamics and a choice of 1.4-litre turbocharged engines in various stages of steroidal overcompensation > VERDICT Like a small yappy dog: noisy, excitable and likely to give you a headache ALFA ROMEO GIULIETTA ★★★☆☆ > Looked like a credible Golf rival for a while but now the game has moved on. Keen prices, but several alternatives are roomier, classier and more fun to drive > VERDICT Miles better than a Mito. Miles better than a 4C, even. But, unfortunately, miles behind a Golf – the old one, let alone Mk8 GIULIA ★★★★☆ > Good grief – an Alfa Romeo we can finally recommend that you buy. Auto-only 3-series rival has sharp steering, sultry looks, great driving position and a…