Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2025 i CAR UK

That damn clutch. For years I’ve searched high and low for a clutch bite point that’s as satisfying to use as the one in the second-generation Ford Focus I learned to drive in. I’ve now been driving for 14 years – and lucky in this job to test everything from Dacias to Rolls-Royces – and yet I don’t think I’ve ever found a clutch that was so spot-on. Hell, even the grotty Ferrari F355 GTS I nursed around a track aged 14 – thanks again, Mum – didn’t feel as sweet as that hard-working L-plated Ford. It’s become an embarrassing obsession. The Focus, throughout its history, has been a benchmark of handling prowess, accessible to all. It helped that the first generation in 1998 looked as wild as it did;…

The names may be unfamiliar, the styling occasionally challenging, and the EV tech is constantly evolving. But the buying experience couldn’t be more normal. It’s a crucial – and often ignored – element in how cleverly Chinese car makers are expanding into Europe and, especially, the UK. In June, one in 10 cars sold in the UK came from Chinese brands. Most were EVs. In the first six months of the year, the figure’s more than eight per cent – up from five per cent last year. That compares with 4.3 per cent across the EU. The UK is responsible for 30 per cent of all Chinese car sales in Europe. Thirty per cent of all EVs sold in the UK are Chinese. Why is it working so well in…

Warning bongs have become a part of life for every motorist driving a new car. They’re compulsory, so you have to put up with them, right? Except you then switch to a different new car and the scolds are different. What was worthy of a digital klaxon in one might go unnoticed in other. Hang on: if both cars conform to the same legislation, how come the warnings are different? It is – you won’t be surprised to learn – complicated. The requirement for warnings is down to a combination of laws and threats. The big one is GSR2 (General Safety Regulation, part two) mandated by the European Union and applicable since 2022 to all but small-selling niche models. It includes requirements to warn of drowsiness and distraction, as well…

It shares the 5’s fun feel in the bends, with well--weighted and quick steering You’ve got to feel a little sorry for the new Micra. While Nissan’s sixth-gen supermini technically improves on the Renault 5 formula – with steering-wheel paddles to easily tweak the multi-stage regen and a moderate increase in range thanks to more slippery aerodynamics – the Micra seems to be stuck in the 5’s shadow. On paper, it’s all good. You can have a 40 or 52kWh battery with up to 260 miles of WLTP-certified range and there’s a choice of three trim levels. Pricing ranges from just under £23k to nearly £30k – almost identical to the 5. However, unlike the 5 there are some optional extras available on the Micra, so you can enjoy heated…

Every editor wants a boss like Ian Fraser. One of the handful of men who ‘made’ CAR magazine, and thereby profoundly influenced modern motoring journalism, Ian died recently aged 89; Mel Nichols paid tribute in Agenda last month. I’d like to add a few words about Ian, who was proprietor for much of my time as editor (1987-’92). He was a quiet and gentle man who was fiercely supportive of his editorial team. He knew editorial integrity and quality were the keys to long-term success. CAR’s strident views meant disputes with the car industry or other advertisers were inevitable. After all, The Good, The Bad & The Ugly buyer’s guide at the back of the magazine listed about half of all the cars sold in the UK as ‘boring’. Ian…

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THAT ESCALATED FAST A decade ago, the mesmeric 458 Speciale made a little under 600bhp. The turbocharged 488 Pista bumped that to north of 700bhp in a single generation. And now the turbo hybrid 296 Speciale is good for 868bhp. Stop the world; it’s all a bit much. SIMILAR PLAYBOOK While the engine may be radically different to that of its V8 forebears (the V6 is related to the engines in both the new F80 hypercar and Ferrari’s Le Mans winner), the rationale is much the same – lose some weight (60kg), bump up the power and dial in more aero. GT3-SPEC CHASSIS Quicker lap times will come from Multimatic dampers, revised geometry, a 5mm drop in ride height and Cup 2 tyres. Downforce is up 20 per cent at…

It’s a good time to be an urbanite. With ultra-compact electric oddities such as the Reva G-Wiz and Mitsubishi i-MiEV thankfully now fading from our memories, upcoming cars such as the Kia EV2 and VW’s ID. Lupo/Up are ushering in a fresh era, one of well-designed, technologically advanced small EVs at relatively affordable prices. They should transform our cityscapes into clean, healthy, stylish utopias… assuming the potholes get fixed. The same could be said of the Renault Twingo, which we’ve only seen in concept form so far but is being revealed later this year and will be available to buy from 2026, the year before those Korean and German rivals. It comes at a time when Renault can seemingly do no wrong, the 5 and 4 having made a huge…

Although the European car industry is going through a rough time, Lamborghini can do no wrong; 2024 was a record year for the Italian manufacturer, with more than 10,500 cars delivered and a 27 per cent operating margin. Ferrari’s was better still, yes (28.3 per cent), but that number eclipses those of Bentley and Porsche. While Porsche is in a muddle, Lamborghini is going from strength to strength. The waiting list for the soughtafter true Revuelto stretches from Sant’Agata almost to the Adriatic coast, the brand new Temerario is fully spoken for through 2026, and the seven-year-old, finally-hybridised Urus continues to surpass even the most outlandish sales projections. Remember that the company was tentatively up for grabs under previous VW Group CEO Herbert Diess; what a mistake that would have…

Back when the 992.2 911 Carrera GTS launched in 2024, its innovative T-Hybrid system grabbed the headlines. Lighter than equivalent plug-in hybrids yet still delivering ludicrous performance (it’s only a tenth of a second slower to 62mph than a Ferrari 296 GTB), it raised some intriguing questions about what would happen when the tech inevitably made its way into faster models. Here’s the answer. The 992.2 Turbo S takes the T-Hybrid principle – a small battery, just 1.9kWh, an electric motor in the eight-speed PDK transmission, and an eTurbo on the flat-six – and pushes it even further by using two smaller eTurbos. Where the GTS gains 53bhp from the electrical assistance, the Turbo S notches this up to 83bhp. Combined output is 701bhp and 590lb ft of torque (60bhp…

BACK FROM THE BRINK Porsche’s battery-only sports cars got the nod when the EV future was more nailed on. After a heap of supply issues, they’re finally due. But boss Oliver Blume has seen the writing on the wall, citing ‘a clear drop in demand’ for EVs. So combustion 718s will come, too. POWER PLAY For the electric models, expect a big power jump – probably above 400bhp. All-wheel drive is likely, with a third e-motor up front providing superior traction and extreme regen under braking. GTS and GT4 versions are now expected to keep the flat-six. THE THRILL OF E-DRIVING Porsche is cutting itself no slack here – the EVs must move the game on and be fun to drive. Batteries are mounted low and around – rather than…

Car makers like privacy, but AI gets better the more data it can access Can artificial intelligence better – or even replace – human car designers? It’s being used by design teams across the car world, although their perspectives on its effectiveness and prospects vary significantly. Among those not shying away from exploring the possibilities is Simon Loasby, head of the Hyundai Design Centre. ‘I remember showing a colleague some images I created on [AI software] Midjourney, and they were blow away by the result,’ he says. ‘Truth be told, it took me the distance from one set of traffic lights to the next when I was [being driven] into Seoul: about 40 seconds.’ The ‘vehicle’ created in 40 seconds was not a car but a yacht he wanted to…

In January, a decade will have passed since Land Rover killed off the original Defender. But in that time, old-school off-roaders with ladder frames, live axles and diff locks have not been swept away by the rising tide of bland Chinese EVs, as some feared they might. Quite the opposite. BMW is the latest car maker to develop a proper mud-plugger, its first since the 1930s. Referred to internally as ‘Project Rugged’ or the G74, and likely to be badged X8 when it appears in 2029, the seven-seater is aimed between the Defender and the Mercedes G-Class. Power will come from an internal-combustion engine at first. An old-fashioned ladder frame would be too retrograde a step for a brand with no recent history of using them, so the X8 will…

Rumours that Porsche is developing a new Flachbau or slant-nose 911 got my mind racing. The original 911 Flachbau was inspired by the 935 racing car of the late 1970s, and the first roadgoing examples were bodykits from the German tuner Kremer. Then, in 1982, TAG owner Mansour Ojjeh asked Porsche for a ‘real’ roadgoing 935, which became the one-off 935 Street, a kind of 911/935 road-race hybrid, with flared arches and a wild rear wing. Tapping into the zeitgeist, Porsche then started offering official flat-nose conversions for regular 911 Turbos, through its Sonderwunsch (or ‘special request’) department. Most automotive terms sound great in German (like Kraftfahrzeugsinnenausstattungsneugeruchsgenuss – or ‘new car smell’) but Sonderwunsch sounds like a kind of Bavarian hot dog. Anyway, those factory flat-nose 911s cost a fortune…

Renault was surely rubbing its hands together with glee when Ford announced the Fiesta would retire. For decades both superminis were well designed, dynamically enjoyable, affordably priced and big sellers. And then there was one. ‘Clio needs no introduction,’ said Renault CEO François Provost at the Munich motor show reveal of the Clio Mk6, just a couple of months into his new job. ‘It’s one of our emblems of the group and a core part of our identity, as well as one of our greatest commercial successes.’ It’s topped 17 million sales since 1990. The new car needs to have enough continuity to please the faithful while also feeling like it belongs in the second half of the 2020s, and it must look distinctive enough to avoid being lost amid…

It looks bigger than it should, but this Concept Three from Hyundai shows off an all-new electric supermini named Ioniq 3. It’s being described as an ‘aero hatch,’ and it’s got its sights set on the Renault 5. The Concept Three has spawned from Hyundai’s latest design language, named ‘Art of Steel’ (fun fact: Hyundai Group is the only car maker to produce its own steel). It’s not the first time this design language has been shown as it debuted on last year’s Initium Concept, which evolved into the chunky second-generation Hyundai Nexo hydrogen fuel cell car. ‘I was having an 11pm phone call at home [with our designers], curving pieces of steel and this is what generated this design language’ says Simon Loasby, head of Hyundai’s design centre, describing…

Alpine has a delicate few years ahead. Its distinctive style of zippy, blue-hued performance will be applied to a broader range of models than we’ve been used to. For a long time, of course, Alpine was one car: the agile and adorable A110. Now, though, Alpine is in the middle of a product offensive, with the R5-based A290 hatch on sale and the A390 due soon. But the one we’re most excited about is due in 2026: an electric replacement for the A110. That presents multiple challenges to Alpine, whose reputation is built on lightweight engineering. The A390, for example, weighs 2.1 tonnes – and that’s one of the sleekest, lowest cars in the segment. The problem is one faced by all car manufacturers: how to reduce weight without reducing…

We should probably deal with the elephant in the room – l’elefante nella stanza, if you will. Ferrari’s new Testarossa looks nothing like a Testarossa. Anyone expecting Ferrari’s equivalent of Lamborghini’s divine Sian-based Countach reboot may require counselling to get through the heartbreak – heartbreak that could have been avoided simply by not using one of the most emotive names in Maranello’s big box of highly emotive names. Let’s deal with the easy bit of the name first: 849. There are eight cylinders, and if you divide the engine’s displacement by eight you get something like 49 decilitres. Done. Testarossa? First used in the ’50s on ⊲ racers like the 1956 500 TR, it came to be synonymous with Ferrari’s most powerful engines – and the new car’s powertrain is certainly…

‘It’s a country fair masquerading as a world championship event.’ That’s how Bernie Ecclestone described Silverstone, the so-called ‘Home of British Motor Sport’, in 2002. Back then, ‘Future of British GP in doubt’ was a copy-and-paste headline for newspaper editors as Silverstone faced sustained (and often legitimate) shelling over its tattiness and the gridlocked state of its tardy traffic management on race days. Compared to the bright, shiny, state-funded mega-venues sprouting up in the Middle and Far East, Formula 1’s original circuit based on an old Second World War airfield in the centre of rural England was considered a sorry anachronism – and a running joke in Formula 1 circles. But no one is laughing at Silverstone now. In this post-Ecclestone F1 era peppered by crowd-pleasing Netflix documentaries and a…

After a frenetic reshuffle in recent months in which some of the more flamboyant and rule-busting automotive CEOs have been ousted or left of their own accord, the ones chosen to replace them are all about preventing disruption, not creating it. Bosses like Antonio Filosa at Stellantis (replacing Carlos Tavares), François Provost at Renault (stepping into Luca de Meo’s designer shoes), Håkan Samuelsson at Volvo (taking over from Jim Rowan), Ivan Espinosa at Nissan (the new Makoto Uchida) and PB Balaji at JLR (about to take over from Adrian Mardell) have all been promoted from within. Porsche is also rumoured to be looking for a new CEO after Oliver Blume’s combined role, also overseeing the VW Group parent company, was put into question by Porsche’s recent poor performance. ‘The business…

Hurrah! After a few years of doing very un-Smart things – mainly by launching a glut of SUVs – Smart has officially confirmed the return of a chic, two-seat city car to its line-up. We’ll have to put up with another hashtag name, however, as Smart is choosing the #2 designation over resurrecting the ForTwo name. If that seems odd, given that the #1 is bigger than the #2, there is a reason: Smart’s European boss Dirk Adelmann tells us the brand will keep naming its SUVs with odd numbers – currently #1, #3 and #5 – and had ‘reserved the even ones in between for something non-SUV.’ Adelmann adds that the new #2 ‘will shape a new era of individual urban automobility, especially in classic smart cities like Rome,…

THE SPECIAL ONE GMA’s cars all stick closely to the principles behind the McLaren F1, but the S1 LM goes further in its echoes of Gordon Murray’s most famous car. Every surface of the S1 (short for ‘special one’) is completely new, but with strong resemblance to the F1. A TOUCH OF MIDAS Plenty of design nods to the F1 LM, like a central driving position, but the S1 drops the GMA T.50’s fan assistance to make space for a new 690bhp 4.3-litre V12. It has an Inconel exhaust, revs to 12,100rpm, and the cover is lined with 18-carat gold foil. SELF SHIFTER No dual-clutch or sequential ’box in this first car from Gordon Murray Special Vehicles – just good old-fashioned muscle required. GMA’s manual transmission uses elements of the…

Two is usually better than one. But 2, as it turns out, isn’t as good as Polo. So, when VW’s next small electric car launches, it will be called not ID. 2 but ID. Polo. Fret not – this isn’t going to replace the perennial combustion-powered model, it’s just providing an electric alternative. ‘Naming has always been a live wire. When I showed the ID. Polo at the plant general meeting – they were the first to see the name plate – the whole place broke out,’ says VW brand boss Thomas Schäfer. ‘Now we’re going to roll this out whenever there’s a new product change or new model – it’ll be new names from here on, and names we’re familiar with.’ VW design chief Andreas Mindt is, as ever,…

We’re not out of old names yet, it seems, as JLR looks to its Chinese business partner Chery to resurrect a badge we thought was properly dead. Just as Dr Frankenstein screamed ‘It’s alive!’ after flipping the switch, the reborn Land Rover Freelander will be a mish-mash of Land Rover design and Chery technology under the skin. The original idea was floated in 2024 as the two automotive giants announced closer ties for the next era of electrification. At the time, then-CEO of Jaguar Land Rover Adrian Mardell said: ‘We believe that working together to develop new models of collaboration for the world’s largest and fastest‑growing electric vehicle market, combined with the appeal of the Freelander brand, promises a very exciting future.’ All very businessy, and more than a little…

You can see why BMW’s pioneering its ‘Neue Klasse’ era with the SUV, the recently unveiled iX3. It’ll surely sell in greater numbers and make more money. But its appeal is more cerebral than emotional. You don’t look at it and dream of driving it. Not so the saloon. A more comfortable fit with BMW’s new design language and truer to its heritage, the electric Neue Klasse 3-series – confirmed to use the name i3 – works. You can imagine it as an efficient mile-muncher, fast-charging and motorway grinding. And you can imagine it as an M3, with an e-motor on each wheel, re-writing all known laws of physics and one or two we’ve not yet found. Given much of the BMW legend is built on great engines, it’s worth…