Company Car & Van February 2019

COMPANY

Car and Van The motoring magazine for SME fleets

Hyundai Kona EV: Koreans steal a march with our EV Car of the Year

COMPANY CAR & VAN AWARDS

We announce our winners for 2019

EVOQUE

Baby Range Rover has just got better

TRANSIT CONNECT

Mid-sized Ford shows its versatility

February 2019

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16 22

Award winners take the spotlight Welcome to 2019! If, like me, you have more questions than answers as to what impact the UK leaving the EU will have on the fleet sector, I wouldn’t be in the least bit surprised.

At the time of writing the future was still very much in the air.

But we cannot control Brexit and its inevitable impact on fleets – so this issue we’re focusing on those things we can control, which for us includes announcing our Car and Van of the Year Awards. We have a special section inside.

On a positive note, we drive the best family electric car out there and our EV Car of the Year, the Hyundai Kona. We also take a look at the new Range Rover Evoque, which really is a cracker. Lexus is at the forefront when it comes to hybrids and its latest saloon, the ES, is featured this month. The BMW 530e shows its class as we drive the plug-in version of our Large Car of the Year. We’ve also got an electric Golf that, well, looks and feels just like a normal Golf, which is a real treat. We also heap praise on our Medium Car of the Year, the Volvo XC40, and review the Mazda6, KIA Sportage and Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross, among others.

Small vans are still the backbone of British business and one of the best is the Ford Transit Connect, which we took for a spin before Christmas. Ford has really upped the ante by building car-like vans, such as the Transit Custom, which is our Medium Van of the Year. That quality forced others to up their game – and our ‘joint’ Small Van of the Year, the cross-company collaboration that is the Citroen Berlingo, Peugeot Partner and Vauxhall Combo, is a great example of this. The siblings are crackers and deserved award winners.

Mercedes-Benz launched a new Sprinter in 2018 and we find out why it’s our Large Van of the Year. Electric vans are slowly emerging, with a new Renault Master ZE here shortly.

However, SAIC, owners of the LDV brand, has already got a ready-made electric van in place with a 120-mile range, the LDV EV80, which is why it’s our EV Van of the Year.

Pick-up sales show no signs of slowing down and in this issue we praise our Pick-Up of the Year the Toyota Hilux and test drive the Volkswagen Amarok, Fiat Professional Fullback and Nissan Navara.

Upwards and onwards.

Andrew Walker, Editor and Publisher

34 61

Contents Company Car & Van Awards See pages 4-13

The LDV team celebrates winning EV Van of the Year

Mercedes-Benz A-Class 14 DS7 Crossback 15 Suzuki Vitara 16 Kia Sportage 18 Rolec EV Charging 19 Range Rover Evoque 22 Hyundai Kona 24 Nissan Navara 27 Mazda6 28 Volkswagen e-Golf 31 Lexus ES 34 BMW 530e 36 Toyota Hilux 40 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross 46 Volvo XC40 47 Citroen Berlingo Van 48 Vauxhall Combo Cargo 50 Fiat Professional Fullback 53 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 55 Volkswagen Amarok 58 Iveco Daily 60 Ford Transit Connect 61

Company Car & Van is wholly owned and published by: Walker Advertising & Marketing Ltd 12 Oakwood Lane, Bowdon, Cheshire WA14 3DL t: 0161 941 4296 / 07734 264735 e: andrewwalker@uwclub.net w: www.companycarandvan.co.uk Follow us at twitter.com/andrewmaxwalker and www.linkedin.com/in/companycarandvan Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of material contained within this magazine, the publisher can accept no responsibility for omissions or inaccuracies in its editorial or advertising content. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. The carriage of adverts in this publication should not necessarily be viewed as an endorsement of the products or services advertised. All articles within this publication are copyright of Walker Advertising & Marketing Ltd. Editorial consent must be obtained before any are reproduced, either in printed form or electronically. www.companycarandvan.co.uk

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 03

COMPANY CAR & VAN AWARDS

Company Car & Van

Awards, 2019

To mark the start of 2019, Company Car & Van looked back at the new cars and vans we’ve tested over the previous 12 months and handed out our Awards to the best.

We’ve got 10 categories, five for cars, five for commercials, and in this special 10-page feature we reveal our winners.

TRANSIT CUSTOM: “Britain’s best selling van is also a brilliantly designed commercial vehicle. Comfortable, frugal, spacious and with the cleverest cabin in the sector. A plethora of in-cabin storage, packed with safety features and, best of all, drives like a car...”

Above, Andy Barrett, Chairman and Managing Director, Ford of Great Britain, receives the Company Car & Van Medium Van of the Year Award from publisher Andrew Walker

PEUGEOT PARTNER: “Along with its siblings the Berlingo and Combo, it’s perfect for city driving and urban work... backed by low emissions and great economy...”

Left, Martin Gurney, Director, Fleet & Used Vehicles, PSA Group Peugeot, receives the Small Van of the Year Award for the Peugeot Partner from Andrew Walker 04 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

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COMPANY CAR & VAN AWARDS

CITROEN BERLINGO: “Well built, well designed, drives beautifully on Euro6 engines ... there’s also storage space galore, a techfriendly cabin and the build quality puts some cars to shame”

Left, Martin Gurney, Director, Fleet & Used Vehicles, PSA Group Citroen, receives the Small Van of the Year Award for the Citroen Berlingo from Andrew Walker

Left, Derek Wilson, LCV Director, Vauxhall, receives the Small Van of the Year Award for the Combo Cargo from Andrew Walker

VAUXHALL COMBO CARGO: “Joins its siblings the Berlingo and Partner as our award winner... lower emissions and better fuel economy than most of the competition... best of all, versatile and your drivers will love it ... existing Vauxhall customers should be relaxed about the ‘French Connection... ”

06 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

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COMPANY CAR & VAN AWARDS

Mark Barratt, General Manager, LDV GB and Ireland, accepts CC&V’s EV Van of the Year Award from Andrew Walker

LDV EV80: “The LDV EV80 really is, at present, the only large electric van in plentiful supply that’s been tried and tested. With a real world range of 100-120 miles it will go further on a single charge than any other large electric van, including Renault’s new Master ZE. It’s also surprisingly well made and is available in chassis cab version, too...”

TOYOTA HILUX: “Bullet-proof build quality and excellent reliability. For anyone who wants a pick-up to do what a pick-up is supposed to do, the Hilux is hard to beat.”

Gareth Matthews, Toyota LCV Manager, with Andrew Walker

Sprinter: “Volkswagen’s Crafter threw down the gauntlet and Daimler responded, creating the first van ready for the technological changes ahead, a van that will change with the times while offering customers more of what they want.

“Futuristic dashboard coupled with the most comfortable seats in class make the Sprinter a deserved 2019 winner.”

Simon Neill, Sales Director, Mercedes-Benz Vans UK Limited, with Company Car & Van’s Large Van of the Year Award for the Sprinter

10 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

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COMPANY CAR & VAN AWARDS

Hyundai Kona EV: “A family car that offers a 250-mile WLTP range from a single charge in its highest, 64kWh specification has to be taken seriously. The first family car to offer an achievable electric range of 250 miles, the Hyundai Kona EV looks good, is competitively priced and offers families a viable alternative to fossil fuel. Simples.”

overs VW T-ROC: “Cross with d an er ov en tak have see to the T-Roc it’s easy s er m sto cu why. It offers r sie ea e, ac sp more cabin e access, a higher, mor comfortable driving ot and position, a larger bo a Golf. n tha h lis sty it’s more e m It comes with the sa the as ior bullet-proof inter r cto se V SU Golf ... the Bt bu , ed wd cro may be is currently, the T-Roc top of the pile...”

12 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

Tony Whitehorn, Chief Executive Officer, Hyundai UK, receives the EV Car of the Year Award from Andrew Walker

Product Marketing Manager for the T-Roc, Wesley Withey, with the Small Car of the Year Award

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VOLVO XC40: “Another SUV wins this category. The XC40 is stylish, clever, practical and with Volvo’s attention to detail, it’s a special car. Unlike the Audi Q3 & BMW X1, it’s not a compromise. The XC40 offers practicality coupled to a strikingly different interior, making it the best of any compact premium crossover that we have ever driven.”

Steve Beattie, Volvo Cars UK, with Andrew Walker and the Medium Car of the Year Award for the XC-40

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV: “While the original Outlander PHEV offered customers a 20-mile electric range, the 2018 version ups this to 30 miles. That may not seem much but trust me, it makes a big difference, especially if you can plug in at home or at work to recharge. It also comes with a reasonable asking price and better quality both inside and out than previously. The Outlander PHEV is a good bet for those not quite ready to go full-on electric...”

Above, Clive Messenger, Mitsubishi Motors’ Head of Corporate Sales, with the Plug-in Car of the Year Award

Fraser Kemp, BMW Corporate Business Development Manager, with the Large Car of the Year Award www.companycarandvan.co.uk

BMW 5 SERIES: “There is no other large saloon quite like it. Brilliantly engineered, spacious, exceedingly comfortable, loaded with tech and great to drive. If I had to choose one car and one car only to drive every day, it would unquestionably be the 5 Series.”

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 13

On test: MERCEDES BENZ A-CLASS n DS7 CROSSBACK

Change of tack puts A-Class back on top of the pack Andrew Walker puts the Mercedes-Benz A200d Sport through its paces – and reckons it has finally left its elk problems behind

I

t doesn’t feel that long ago that the MercedesBenz A-Class was having problems with elks – but the car itself has been revised and improved so much in recent years that perhaps it’s time to confine that particular story to the history books.

The Mark 1 was a compact people carrier that sold well to older customers. When Mercedes launched the new A-Class in 2012 it was completely different, however. Gone were the MPV looks to be replaced by a far more attractive small hatchback, a car to compete with the BMW 1 Series and Audi A3.

Backed by low finance deals the A-Class sold well to a much younger customer base, attracted by its great looks, equipment levels and clever design. Only criticism was that it felt a little pokey inside. So, when the designers at Daimler put pen to paper to set out the plans for the latest version, one of the goals was that it was to be more spacious – and the 2018 model most certainly is.

In a sector where millimetres make a difference the new A-Class is 14mm longer, offers +9mm of front and +22mm of rear shoulder room, + 35mm /36mm of elbow room and +7mm/+ 8mm of headroom. Access to the rears seats is easier and there’s an additional 29 litres in the boot, with 370 litres on offer.

Tech-wise, the latest A-Class is class leading. The interior borrows finishing touches from the S-Class, including a steering wheel with touchpad and a full digital cockpit display.

Standard equipment includes the all-new MBUX user experience with touchscreen interface with ‘Hey Mercedes’ intelligent voice recognition. A pair of 7” infotainment screens are standard, with one or two 10.5” screens options with the Executive, Premium or Premium Plus equipment lines.

Our test model was the relatively new to the range, A200d, which with the 220d is a recent addition to the range and complement the existing A180d and A250d. The A200d offers up a sizeable 148bhp with a 0-62mph time of 8.0 seconds and a top speed of 139mph.

Combined fuel economy is 53.3 mpg, CO2 emissions are 123g/km and all of this from a very driver friendly seven-speed auto box.

I was impressed by the A-Class dashboard 14 | February 2019 | Company Car and Van

which once you’ve worked out how to use head and shoulders above sector rivals. The screen in front of the driver shows driving info and data, while infotainment and SatNav is displayed in a second, central screen.

The driver’s seat and the cabin feels sporty.

The handbrake is now a push button to the right of the steering wheel, with the auto gear lever on the right hand side of the steering wheel, lights and wipers are accessed via the stalk on the left side of the wheel.

There’s definitely more room in the cabin too, especially in the rear where my six-foot tall son sat comfortably. The front seats though, do block out light in the back and the cabin can feel a little dark, especially in mid-December !

The boot is also an improvement over the one offered on the last model. It’s easier to

KEY DETAILS PRICE: £27,580 CO2:

123g/km

MPG:

Comb 53.3

BIK: 25% VERDICT: If you’re in the market for a premium hatchback, then the latest A-Class really should be top of your list.

CC&V RATING: NNNNN

access and the 370 litres on offer is supplemented by a small amount of underfloor storage. Fold the rear seats down, they come with a useful 40/20/40 split and the load space goes up to 1,210 litres. The load space though is not flush to the floor.

From a driver’s perspective the new A-Class is fun to drive. The Sport mode enhances the enjoyment, but even in Eco mode it’s still very good. Around town, the car is quiet, but the auto box can be a little fidgety in the way it delivers the gear changes in slow traffic, and fuel economy fell to 30.9mpg. On the motorway this rises to a more forgiving 44.3mpg, giving us an average of around 38 which I don’t think is bad at all, especially for such a driveable car.

Unsurprisingly it’s on the open road or motorway where it shines brightest. Tight bends are hugged and the Sport model features very, very good brakes. The cabin remains quiet on the motorway even in heavy rain and once on the move the driving seat is a relaxing place to spend a few hours travelling. Kudos as well for the sound system on board, which is brilliant!

Whether using DAB radio, Apple CarPlay or Bluetooth, the sound system is super-clear especially when hands-free on the telephone.

The A200d also featured three USB interfaces, one front, two rear, two-zone climate control and a keyless-go start function. On the exterior, the Sport features a diffuser low rear apron in chrome, a diamond grille in black and LED high performance headlights.

Take a quick glance at the latest A-Class and at first it may not look too dissimilar to the outgoing model. Don’t be fooled, though.

Mercedes has cleverly taken the best bits of the previous model – good looks, quality cabin – and added so much more than you’d expect, improving the space, the tech, which is miles better, the ride, more forgiving, and the quality.

This is easily the class leader. www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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Crossback’s refreshingly different alternative Citroen’s standalone brand, DS, has grown in stature since its break from the mother ship in 2014, and its latest offering, the DS7 Crossback, is certainly a car worthy of your attention.

Available as a petrol, a diesel and, coming soon, a plug-in-hybrid, CC&V has already driven the diesel, and liked it, so the opportunity to try out the petrol version was too good to miss.

Trying to design a mid-size Crossover that looks different to its competitors must be a thankless task, but the team behind the DS7 have at least tried to think outside the box.

Launched with four trim levels, Elegance, Performance Line, Prestige and Ultra Prestige, the Performance Line model we tested looked fantastic in Cumulus Grey and in this trim, will definitely appeal to business customers.

Climb aboard and you’ll notice nice touches in what is an interesting cabin. Triangle-shaped air vents are noticeably different, as is the location of the starter button, smack bang in the top centre of the dash, flanked by the two central air vents. The landscape touchscreen is also a highlight and the angular electric window switches set in the centre binnacle also add to ‘le difference’. Even the graphics on the PSA Group’s 12.3” digital instrument cluster in front of the driver can be configured with rhombus shaped graphics – very different!

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We tested the on-board tech and connecting your mobile phone to the car’s Bluetooth hands-free telephone is straightforward, as is linking to Apple Car Play. The built in SatNav works well, too.

The 1598cc petrol engine comes with 300Nm of torque compared to the diesel’s 400Nm, but it’s quicker, hitting 62 mph from zero in just 8.3 seconds, with a top speed of 141mph. It’s also quieter, both around town and on the motorway.

The steering is light and precise and as a motorway cruiser, it is very impressive.

The DS’s suspension makes for a comfortable ride and there is little or no body roll, even

around sharp bends. We mainly utilised the Eco driving mode, which increases fuel economy while making the steering a touch lighter.

The interior designers have made the DS7 Crossback more spacious than the Volvo XC40, BMW X1, Q3 or the Range Rover Evoque.

Combined fuel economy of 48.7mpg and emissions of 137g/km compare with the diesel version’s 128g/km and 57.6mpg, making it more expensive to run but given the uncertainty surrounding diesel at the moment, might be a good option.

A personal favourite among the cars that I’ve driven this year, petrol or diesel.

Company Car and Van | February 2019 | 15

NEW CAR: SUZUKI VITARA

Vitara upgrades push Suzuki’s stylish SUV into the limelight Most technically advanced Suzuki model to date Styling upgrades, advanced levels of safety technology and equipment introduced Three grade line-up of SZ4, SZ-T and SZ5 models First introduced in 2015, the Suzuki Vitara has earned high acclaim for its stylish, city-oriented design, compact and easy to manage dimensions, good on-road performance and genuine off-road capability. For 2019, the Vitara receives various styling upgrades, new engines and an even higher level of technology and safety features.

The Vitara expresses Suzuki’s SUV styling heritage in a strong looking design. The clamshell bonnet (a hallmark of Vitara models) gives the front end a look of solidity, and a

trapezoid front bumper indicates a powerful grip on the ground. The 2019 model incorporates a new, more elegant front face with redesigned grille and lower bumper and the rear lamps have now been redesigned with a distinctive LED display.

For the interior, a new seat trim design is utilised for the range and suede seat fabric is fitted on SZ5 models; the upper instrument panel is upgraded to a soft touch material and the instrument cluster now features a central colour information display.

Standard equipment for all models is comprehensive and the SZ4 model includes seven airbags, alloy wheels, USB and Bluetooth connectivity, cruise control with speed limiter, auto air conditioning and front and rear electric windows.

SZ-T adds new design 17-inch silver painted alloy wheels, rear privacy glass, white stitching for seat trim fabric, Smartphone link audio and navigation system.

Moving up to SZ5 adds LED Projector headlights, 17-inch polished alloy wheels, suede seat fabric, keyless entry with start button, Traffic Sign Recognition (also fitted on ALLGRIP models), blind spot monitor, Adaptive Cruise Control, Dual Sensor Brake Support and Panoramic sunroof. Two new dual-tone colours – Solar Yellow Pearl and Ice Greyish Blue – join 11 body colours available.

1.0-litre and 1.4-litre Boosterjet turbocharged engines.

After the debut of the 1.0-litre three cylinder

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Boosterjet in Baleno, S-Cross and Swift, this engine technology is now extended to the Vitara. Offering the same level of power and torque of a much larger capacity normally aspirated engine (1.7-1.8-litre), it delivers an effortless drive and genuine driving pleasure.

This unit has an output of 111PS and is also Direct Injection turbocharged (DITC).

Boosterjet technology is developed by Suzuki and is characterised by improved fuel efficiency and driving pleasure made possible by using a small displacement, high torque turbocharger.

The 1.0-litre engine offers strong benefits in performance too with 0-62mph acceleration time of 11.5 seconds with manual transmission and two wheel drive. Maximum speed, where permitted is 111mph for both manual and automatic transmission models.

1.4-litre Boosterjet engine Now available for SZ-T and SZ5 grades, the outgoing Vitara S model launched in 2016 was the first Suzuki to utilise the Boosterjet technology petrol engine which is a 140PS 1.4-litre Direct Injection turbocharged unit (DITC). This engine has compact dimensions and offers 220Nm of torque available from just 1,500rpm through to 4,000rpm.

Although a four cylinder unit, the 1.4-litre engine has similar technical characteristics to the 1.0-litre with its compact turbo charger and

cylinder head design. The 1.4-litre engine offers strong benefits in performance too with a 0-62mph acceleration time of 9.5 seconds (2WD models) for both manual and automatic transmissions and a maximum speed, where permitted, of 124mph.

CO2 emissions The Vitara’s CO2 emissions are low thanks to the use of high tensile steel and other weight saving measures in the body. This has resulted in the Vitara remaining one of the lightest SUV’s in it class at just 1,160kg for the 1.0-litre two wheel drive models with manual transmission.

Four-wheel drive is typically seen as detrimental to fuel economy and emissions performance. By contrast, Suzuki’s ALLGRIP system enables CO2 emissions that are remarkably low for a four-wheel drive SUV. CO2 emissions for the 1.0-litre Boosterjet petrol engine and manual transmission is 129g/km (NEDC test).

Safety features include Dual Sensor Brake Support (DSBS), Blind Spot Monitor, Lane Departure Warning / Prevention, Vehicle Sway Warning (ALLGRIP Models) and Rear Cross Traffic Alert.

Prices start from £16,999 for SZ4 1.0-litre Boosterjet model.

New cars & technology: KIA n ROLEC EV CHARGING

Softer looks add to Sportage appeal Kia updated its best-seller, the Sportage, last year, adding an improved infotainment system and a revised engine line-up, including the introduction of a mild-hybrid set-up in the 2.0-litre diesel.

The two petrol models have been tweaked as well, to allow them to pass the latest and more stringent emissions tests, and the diesel line-up is all new. A 1.6-litre diesel is available in two power outputs, taking the place of the old 1.7CRDi, while the new range-topping 2.0-litre diesel makes use of mild hybrid power and we got to drive this model recently, in its GT Line S, the top-spec available.

The first thing you notice about the new Sportage is its looks. The last model turned heads but this one is definitely prettier – though perhaps a little less rugged looking.

Gone is the elongated rear end and prominent hatchback to be replaced with an altogether softer looking, and more attractive, rear end.

It’s very well equipped, even for the entry model. The Sportage ‘1’ comes with 16” alloys, LED daytime running lights, air con, cruise control, a reversing camera and a 7” touchscreen, and by the time you’ve reached the GT Line S you’ve got SatNav, heated front seats, lane keeping assist and a speed limit warning system, panoramic roof, power tailgate, wireless smartphone charger and a

18 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

360-degree surround view monitor.

SME customers will want to know how frugal the new model is. Well, the 2.0, 8-speed auto that I drove for a week, offers CO2 emissions of 152g/km with a combined fuel economy of 48.7 mpg. This model comes equipped to perform proper 4WD manoeuvres and to my mind, is not the model I would choose for motorway or urban living. And, retailing at £34,545 it’s expensive for a Sportage.

The new 1.6 diesel is more frugal, offering (depending on spec) 49.6mpg and CO2 is 150g/km, and that will tick plenty of user chooser boxes next time they change their company vehicle.

My week in the 2.0 model gave me an average economy of just under 37mpg, so not actually that bad, but I’m confident that the 1.6 will hit the mid-forties mpg.

The new Sportage is bigger than the pre-

2016 model. It’s about the same height and width as its predecessor, but is 40mm longer, increasing the wheelbase and giving all five passengers more leg room. The boot, too, is 15 litres larger with a minimum capacity of 491 litres and with rear seats folded, a maximum of 1,492 litres. There’s a split-fold rear seat combo and the three rear seats can be adjusted fore and aft by up to 30 degrees.

The cabin is also quieter than before. KIA have gone to great lengths to insulate the cabin from both road and wind noise, with more body insulation and have even added foil to the front windscreen to achieve this.

How does it drive? With its 8- speed auto gear box and well-weighted steering, the Sportage performs well on the motorway and is also enjoyable to drive around town, even in stop/start traffic.

Many SME drivers may already be driving a Sportage, possibly the 1.7 CRDi diesel version. The upgrades made to the range, specifically with the new 1.6 diesel engine and improvements with the on board technology, make the 2018 version better still.

The Sportage was one of our top ten new cars for SMEs back in 2016 and the 2018 updates make it even better and it’s still one of the best in its sector.

CC&V RATING: N N N N

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On the charge!

Rolec EV charge points meet new regulations Rolec EV has confirmed that its entire range of electric vehicle charging points has been developed to meet and comply with the new IET 18th Edition Wiring Regulations which came into force on 1st January 2019.

Kieron Alsop, Rolec EV’s Managing Director, commented: “As the manufacturer of Europe’s largest range of EV charging points and solutions, the last six months has been a busy period for our engineering department.

“Our engineers have been designing a variety of new internal components for introduction into our EV charging range in order to comply with the forthcoming 18th Edition Wiring Regulations.

“These new components are designed in keeping with the traditional Rolec direction, whereby every component within our charging points can be easily removed and replaced onsite by a maintenance engineer – therefore keeping any potential downtime to a minimum.

“The regulation changes called for all charge points to now include specific levels of DC sensitive protection, as well as a facility to connect the charging point to a TT earthing system.”

Kieron continued: “After careful consideration, we decided that all Rolec EV charge points installed from 1st January 2019 would include the new DC sensitive device and TT earthing facility as standard. This means that anybody installing a Rolec EV charging point will have the peace of mind and confidence in knowing that it fully complies with all current regulations.

“A key benefit of including the regulation updates within our charging points is that the actual installation costs are kept to a minimum by

avoiding having to purchase and install expensive DC sensitive RCD protection at source.

“Another benefit with the design of the modular DC sensitive device is that it can be easily and quickly fitted to pre-18th edition EV charging points.”

For more information about the new regulations, or any of Rolec EV’s charging range and installing one at your business or home, please call 01205 724754 or email rolec@rolecserv.co.uk

NEW CARS: RANGE ROVER EVOQUE

Evoque: The original luxury compact Range Rover sets new standards of refinement, capability and sustainability

T

he original luxury compact SUV has got even better. At home both in the city and the country, the new Evoque joins the Range Rover family with a choice of hybrid-electric engines.

Having pioneered the luxury compact SUV market, with global sales of over 772,096 (20% sold in the UK) and more than 217 international awards, the new Range Rover Evoque is a sophisticated evolution of the original. Combining unrivalled Range Rover heritage with cutting-edge technology – designed, engineered and manufactured in Britain – it meets the needs of today’s customers.

Rawdon Glover, Managing Director, Jaguar Land Rover UK said: “The Range Rover

22 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

Evoque has been a phenomenal UK success over the past seven years. It’s proven very popular with customers from a broad range of segments with more than 60% of them being new to the Land Rover marque.

“With a fifth of global retails being in the UK, I am extremely confident this will be a great second album taking Evoque to a new level of refinement, luxury and sustainability while preserving all the charm of the first model which defined the compact SUV market back in 2011.”

Building on the original’s instantlyrecognisable design, the new Range Rover Evoque is a sophisticated evolution of the distinctive coupé-like silhouette, typified by its distinctive fast roofline and rising waist, which unmistakably identify the Range Rover family.

The outstanding volume and proportions are amplified by its pronounced shoulders and powerful wheelarches that, alongside new 21-inch wheels, combine to create a strong and dynamic attitude.

The introduction of jewel-like elements such as super-slim Matrix LED headlamps provide a more sophisticated front and rear lamp graphic. Flush door handles add to the

smooth, sculpted aesthetic, while sweeping directional indicators create a purposeful signature. Optional R-Dynamic details and burnished copper accents add to the unique appeal.

Inside, the finely crafted design integrates uncluttered surfaces and simple lines with carefully curated materials to create a luxurious, minimalist, digital cabin. Technical textiles that use recycled plastics are offered as premium alternatives to leather, such as a Kvadrat wool blend and Miko Dinamica® suedecloth, as well as Eucalyptus and Ultrafabrics™ options. The cabin is designed to be a calm and serene space, ensuring comfortable, healthy and happy occupants, with technologies such as the twin touchscreen Touch Pro Duo system, featuring new, faster software, 16-way seat controls and cabin air ionisation that complement the increased interior space.

Gerry McGovern, Land Rover Chief Design Officer, said: “When Range Rover Evoque made its debut back in 2010, it transformed the world of compact SUVs and the new model is set to continue that remarkable journey. This characterful vehicle combines www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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KEY DETAILS PRICE: £31,505 CO2:

154g/km

MPG:

48.7 (Comb)

Max speed: 113mph Cargo: 420li-1,445li Warranty: 3 years BIK: 35% Based on eD4 150hp SE 6Sp 2WD

“Underneath the skin is an engineering and technical revolution.

The architecture is all-new to accommodate both plug-in and mild hybrid systems, with only the door hinges remaining unchanged on the body. The chassis has been significantly reworked to make the most of the stiffer body, ensuring the characteristic ride comfort and refinement of a Range Rover...”

Nick Rogers, Executive Director, Product Engineering, Jaguar Land Rover

refinement and fun to create that all important emotional reaction that will turn heads and make people smile.”

The footprint is almost identical, yet built on Land Rover’s new mixed-material Premium Transverse Architecture, there is more interior space than before. A longer wheelbase yields 20mm extra rear kneeroom and an increase in small item stowage – the larger glove box and centre cubby can now fit tablets, handbags and bottles with ease. The luggage space is 10 per cent larger (591 litres) as well as much wider and easily fits a folded pram or set of golf clubs, with space increasing to 1,383 litres when the flexible 40:20:40 second-row seats are folded.

The new architecture has been developed for electrification, with a 48-volt mild-hybrid available at launch and a plug-in hybrid model offered around 12 months afterwards. The mild hybrid powertrain is a first for Land Rover and works by harvesting energy normally lost during deceleration thanks to the enginemounted belt-integrated starter generator, storing it in the under-floor battery. At speeds below 11mph (17km/h), the engine will shut off while the driver applies the brakes. When www.companycarandvan.co.uk

pulling away, the stored energy is redeployed to assist the engine under acceleration and reduce fuel consumption. The result is a refined, quiet and efficient drive in built-up traffic heavy areas, in addition to efficiency savings.

Available across the range (when specified with automatic gearbox) of four-cylinder Ingenium petrol and diesel engines, the mild hybrid delivers CO2 emissions from as low as 149g/km and fuel economy from 50.4mpg (based on the new NEDC Equivalent WLTP test procedure).

If the customer chooses the 150PS diesel engine with front wheel drive, Evoque only emits 143g/km. An even more efficient plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) model and three-cylinder petrol Ingenium engine will also join the range next year.

Every bit a Range Rover, the compact SUV combines all-terrain capability with all-weather assurance. New Evoque features All-Wheel Drive, as well as a second-generation Active Driveline with Driveline Disconnect to enhance efficiency and Adaptive Dynamics to deliver the optimum balance of comfort and agility. Terrain Response 2 – technology first found on

full-size Range Rover – automatically detects the surface being driven on a adjusts the set-up accordingly, while Evoque can now wade through water up to 600mm (previously 500mm).

The famed Range Rover command driving position has jumped into the digital age, with a segment-first ‘ClearSight rear-view mirror’ that transforms into an HD video screen. If rear visibility is compromised by passengers or bulky items, the driver simply flicks a switch on the underside of the mirror and a camera feed from the top of the car displays what is behind the vehicle in crisp high definition. The screen provides a wider (50-degree) field of vision and superior visibility in low light.

The new Range Rover Evoque is also the first in the world to feature Ground View technology, which effectively makes the bonnet invisible by projecting camera imagery onto the upper touchscreen to show the driver a 180-degree view under the front of the vehicle.

This is useful when negotiating difficult parking spaces, navigating high city centre kerbs or tackling rough terrain and is the realisation of the Transparent Bonnet technology previewed

by Land Rover in 2014.

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 23

On test: HYUNDAI KONA

Kona cracks the 200-mile conundrum Hyundai has the first affordable, stylish subcompact that can really deliver the 200-mile range drivers crave, says Andrew Walker

T

he first EV I ever drove was a Nissan Leaf back in 2012. The range was about 100 miles, although in the real world this was more likely to be around 65-70, and even then you needed to drive very conservatively, especially on the motorway, to achieve this. The Mk2 Leaf improved this, with a range of 125 miles, with about 100 miles being achievable, the same as its sister car, the Renault Zoe. Then along came Tesla. In the UK anyway, the cheapest Tesla is the Model S 75d, which costs £73,500. Although it looks good, offers amazing performance and comes with the best tech out there, 75k is an awful lot to pay for a family car, even if it will do 200 miles on a single charge.

What customers really want is an affordable family car, preferably one that looks like an SUV, with a decent EV range of between 200 and 300 miles.

Step forward, then, the humble Hyundai Kona EV, launched in late 2018, which is the first fully-electric subcompact SUV in Europe.

With a more realistic price point of £27,250 for the entry level SE with a 39kW battery, after

24 | February 2019 | Company Car and Van

the government grant of £3,500, could this be the diamond that breaks through and delivers what the people want, that so far illusive 200-mile range as a minimum?

As fleet customers are more likely to want a greater range than 200 miles, Hyundai loaned us the range topping Premium model, fitted with the larger capacity 64kW battery, which offers a claimed range of nearly 250+ miles and retails at £32,845, after the government grant of £3,500.

At first glance the Kona EV looks just as attractive from the outside as the petrol model.

It shares the same overall design, apart from the lack of a front grille on the electric version, where the charging plug is located. Inside the EV mirrors the rest of the family, with a functional, well laid out dashboard and on-trend connectivity and tech. There’s a reach and rake steering wheel and the electrically adjustable seats mean that there’s no reason you can’t get comfortable.

The dashboard fixtures and fittings are pleasantly finished, in a mix of hard and soft touch plastics, in a colour combination of silver and grey. The seats and steering wheel, are finished in light grey leather. The quality is good, as you’d expect from a Korean car, with the infotainment screen, steering wheel controls and general layout familiar to anyone who’s driven other Hyundai or KIA models before.

Howver, there are some notable differences in the cabin between the EV and petrol models. There’s no traditional gear selector, just four buttons located between the front seats, offering a choice of Drive, Reverse, Park or Neutral. There’s also three drive modes:

Eco, Comfort and Sport, which can be selected using a switch just behind the electric parking brake. The Kona EV also comes with clever steering-wheel mounted paddles to increase or decrease the braking regeneration.

This gives you a choice of four regenerative levels; 0, 1, 2 or 3. As we discovered, very much as with the Nissan Leaf, the lower settings work best on the motorway or open roads, the higher ones best in urban areas or slow-moving traffic.

As far as practicality in the cabin goes, the Kona EV offers a decent-sized glove box, an armrest box in the centre binnacle, a small push-shut cubby in front of the gear buttons, which hides the aux-in, USB and phone charger, as well as two smallish door pockets, big enough for one bottle of water each. In the rear the door pockets are slim, as are the storage nets on the rear of the front seats, so not a lot of useful storage is actually offered in the back.

The Premium model comes very well kitted out with a long list of goodies, including the battery-reducing heated front seats and a heated steering wheel. There’s also an Auto Hold function for the automatic hand brake.

The heating controls can be adjusted to just warm or cool the driver’s side of the car, which is an energy saver and a nice touch. In common with all EV cars, when it’s cold outside your EV warms up a lot faster than a petrol or diesel car. The inside of the driver’s door features buttons to control the electrically folding wing mirrors, four electric windows, window lock and the car lock/unlock button.

Continued on page 26 www.companycarandvan.co.uk

On test: HYUNDAI KONA

“The ev cabin shares the same basic design as the other models in the range but there are noticeable differences ...there’s no traditional gear selector, just four buttons located between the front seats, offering a choice of Drive, Reverse, Park or Neutral ... drive modes are selected using a switch just behind the electric parking brake... and clever steeringwheel mounted paddles increase or decrease the braking regeneration...”

Continued from page 24 The right of the dashboard houses a row of switches including Lane Departure Warning and Virtual Engine Sound System, which can be activated to allow your EV to emit a noise to make pedestrians aware that your car is near them – that’s how quiet it is without it!

There’s a 332-litre boot on offer which is split three ways. The larger load space, which sits close to the boot lip, hides a lift up floor, underneath which you’ll find a tray to store valuables. This too lifts up and underneath this you’ll discover the domestic three-pin charging cable and car tools.

Out and about there’s instant torque available from the get go. It feels rapid, the 0-62mph time is actually 7.6 seconds and on exiting a junction, that torque can lead to a bit of wheel spin on wet tarmac. At faster speeds the outside road noise from the low-rollingresistance tyres on 17” alloys does enter the cabin but it’s never overwhelming.

In town, the Kona EV is a pleasure to drive.

Quiet, nippy and small enough to park up on the side of the road. I really liked the simple button gear change selector. To conserve energy, we selected the Eco Drive mode for our week in the Kona.

Despite its weight (1685kg... after all, the EV version is fitted with a 204ps/150kW electric motor and a 64kWh lithium-ion battery) the Kona EV is comfortable to be in and offers okay driving dynamics. Certainly it’s no worse than many other cars out there. There is, thanks to the battery, reasonable body roll and you’ll also notice that the energy recuperation when braking makes smooth stops tricky.

Motorway cruising is best done at no more than 70 mph to retain battery range, but if required the Kona EV will happily push on from this.

I stopped off at Chester Services to check out the EV charging options there. The Kona EV has a CCS Combo port for 50kW public rapid charging, allowing it to charge up to 80% in 75 minutes. Chester, I’m pleased to say, does offer rapid charging. Charging at home on my Rolec 7kw home charger with the 26 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

7 pin Type 2 connector, from a range of 21 miles to a full range of 251 took 6.5 hours. If you don’t have a home EV charger, things are not so rosy. Using the supplied cable with a 3 Pin plug and a standard domestic electricity supply, it would take around 30 hours to charge to 95%.

Real world cost and range are probably the two things most potential EV customers want to know and of course, to confuse matters, it’s not an exact science. Looking at our week in the Kona EV, we drove 246 miles. The average cost of electricity per kW is 12.5p at the moment, so multiplying the size of our Kona’s battery, 64kW, by 12.5p, gives you a figure of 800 – or 800p / £8. That gives you the cost to charge the Kona EV fitted with a 64kW battery from zero to full, on a 7kW home charger, where electricity costs tend to be cheaper than at service stations. I think it’s excellent.

Using a public charger, such as the ones on

KEY DETAILS PRICE: £32,845 (based on

Premium 64kW model) CO2: 0g/km BIK:

13% (£5,017)

MPG:

No need! Try range – easily above 200 miles and near 300 if you drive conservatively and understand the tech

VERDICT: The conundrum has been well and truly cracked. Simply brilliant: a great car, at a great price that does unbelievable things to running costs. Thoroughly deserves a premium CC&V rating CC&V RATING: N N N N N

offer at Chester Services, will, surprise, surprise, cost you more than 12.5p kW. However, EV users can sign up to discount schemes which allow the use of public EV chargers at a reduced cost and are well worth considering if you buy or lease an EV. A cost of £8 to get a range of 246 miles in the Kona EV – and actually getting 202 miles on the single charge – still compares favourably with what it would cost to go the same distance in the 1.0 petrol Kona we tested last year. In that we averaged 42mpg. At current petrol prices of £1.31 per litre, the cost of going 202 miles in the petrol Kona would be close to £28, which is £20 more. If you’re more careful than I was and drive on the motorway at a constant 70 mph and utilise the regeneration on offer, I believe that 246 miles on a full charge is possible. Indeed, other motoring writers have got the Kona EV range close to 300 miles, which is, frankly, brilliant!

All sounds reasonable enough, doesn’t it?

But here’s the Kona Electric’s trump card: pricing. Factor in the UK grant for plug-in vehicles and the 39kW model in Premium trim will cost you £28,720. Compare this to the similarly priced Nissan Leaf and VW E-Golf, both with almost half of the Kona’s 200-mile range and it should be clear just how good the Kona EV is.

If you’ve read my review all the way through, hopefully, whether you are an SME fleet manager or an end user, you’ll feel more confident in considering an EV as your next company car.

In early 2019, the Kona EV is ahead of the pack. It’s well priced, very cheap to run and offers a battery range of 200 miles, on even the 39kW version. You really need a home EV socket – Rolec offers one for around £250 including the government grant – and if there’s a charger at work too, that’s a bonus.

What the Kona Electric has done is make the ownership of an electric car far more attractive than ever before. Hats off to Hyundai – though with sister brand KIA bringing its Niro EV to Europe shortly, they won’t be resting on their laurels. www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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Nissan pick-up takes no prisoners!

by Andrew Walker We all like a rugged off-roader – and the Nissan NP300 Navara is one that seems as happy in the role of off-roader as it is as an urban soft-roader.

Powered by the 2.3-litre diesel engine found in the NV400 van and available with outputs of 160PS and 190PS, it’s available in five trim levels: Visia, Acenta, Acenta+, N-Connecta and Tekna. Prices start from £19,998 for the Visia, rising to £26,863 for the Tekna.

As usual with modern pick-ups it’s packed with safety and comfort features. Expect Forward Emergency Braking, airbags all round, electronic Limited Slip Differential (eLSD) and Hill Start Assist and Hill Descent Control as well as manual air-con, Bluetooth, cruise control with speed limiter, steering wheel audio controls, an AUX socket, a USB port and three 12v sockets. Acenta adds 16” alloys, Nissan’s Intelligent Key System and a five-inch high-definition TFT flat screen on the dash.

But it is still a pick-up and payloads stay above the critical 1.0t mark which releases VAT liability. The highest payload is 1,203kg for the Visia king cab/chassis-cab variant, the Visia king cab 2WD is 1,136kg, the Visia/ Acenta double cabs, 1,062kg and the Acenta+,

www.companycarandvan.co.uk

N-Connecta and Tekna is 1,047kg for manual and 1,052kg with automatic transmission.

Towing capacity is 3.5t, matching both the Ford Ranger and Isuzu D-Max. A trip to the North East to a specialist off-road location gave me the chance to sample the Navara on road. On the winding North Yorkshire roads the Navara did feel almost SUV-like, with a well thought-out and comfortable cabin echoing other Nissan models such as the X-Trail in its car-like appearance.

Off-road it didn’t disappoint. On some challenging terrain we covered just 3.5 miles in 90 minutes across deeply rutted fields, two rivers, ascending and descending some

incredibly tight, boulder-covered roads. It showed off Navara’s true off-road capabilities, which were excellent.

The Navara is also surprisingly agile, enabling a turning circle of 12.4m. A central dial lets you select 4LO mode to tackle the toughest conditions – we used this and it is tremendous. Hill descent control can be activated by pressing a button on the central console to help control descents while Hill Start Assist stops the vehicle rolling backwards when starting on a slope.

The return journey was on B roads through Wensleydale, which further enhanced my feeling that currently, the Navara is one the best all round pick-ups out there. Its fuel economy – 40.3 mpg on the combined – and CO2 emissions of 183g/km are also attractive.

For urban warriors, Around View Monitor help you park better and for those serious off-roaders also helps you know where obstacles are when on the toughest terrain. A tick in both boxes.

So is the Navara a match for the urban SUV? Unquestionably, no. However, if you are looking for a practical family vehicle that will double as a work horse and go off-road over the toughest terrain, then the Navara is right up there. I can’t say fairer than that!

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 27

On test: MAZDA6

Refreshed 6 delivers more of the qualities Mazda lovers adore Andrew Walker As regular readers will know, I have a bit of a soft spot for Mazda. They’re not flash, nor are they expensive, but they are very good, reliable and get the job done with little fuss.

The latest model to whizz its way up to the north west for Company Car & Van to test was the Mazda6, in 2.0-litre petrol 165ps Sport Nav+ guise, and it wholly kept up that reputation. The current 6 may have been around for a long time in car years, six, but two refreshes later and it still looks and feels like one of the best cars in its class.

Squint hard and you may just about notice the updates on the latest model from its predecessor. There’s a new front grille with a different mesh, updated headlights, a refreshed rear bumper and a redesigned boot lid.

Most of the changes are actually in the cabin or under the bonnet, including new steering and suspension – something we spotted fairly quickly as we drove it, as it’s great to drive and

handles winding roads particularly well.

The interior updates are subtle. The centre console layout has been redesigned and now comes with a smaller panel of climate control buttons. Our Sport Nav+ test car feels more premium than its predecessor, with black leather upholstery and a real wood trim. The 8” colour display, an inch larger than before, allows access to the SatNav, telephone and entertainment functions – in the Sport Nav+ this is a premium Bose system with 11 speakers. In truth, it looks a bit dated when compared to newer rivals but, despite this, it works well and it’s really easy to use.

From a practical perspective you can adjust the settings using either the rotary wheel in the centre of the front seats, or you can touch the screen to select certain functions. The graphics, too, although clear and concise, are also starting to show their age.

Mazda has also improved the safety features in the latest 6, in line with the competition. Blind spot monitoring with rear cross traffic alert,

radar cruise control, lane keep assist and autonomous emergency braking are now fitted across the range. Our test car featured the addition of an £800 Safety Pack, which adds a 360 degree monitor, adaptive LED headlights, rear smart city brake support and driver attention alert.

The Mazda6 is not an upright SUV, it’s a saloon, but despite this, the interior space is excellent and you’ll comfortably seat four adults. There’s plenty of leg room in front and back and even a couple of six footers will get comfortable in the rear seats.

A common problem is found to the rear where the transmission tunnel takes up a fair amount of the rear footwell, meaning the fifth passenger will struggle for leg room.

Storage wise there’s a decent-sized glove box, four slim door pockets, two cup holders, a central arm rest/storage space and a small open cubby hole for your keys in the centre console. The boot offers a useful 480 litres of space and if required it’s really quick and simple to fold the rear seats down, creating a large more useful space.

Mazda offers customers the choice of petrol or diesel engines in the 6, with our test car featuring the smaller 2.0 litre petrol 165ps unit.

As I found out when driving the Mazda CX-5 last year, this petrol engine is fine, offering a top speed of 134mph and a 0-62mph time of 9.6 seconds. However, unlike the diesel which offers a lower 150ps, there’s no mid-range oomph and the lack of torque makes the petrol less enjoyable than it’s diesel brethren. Factor in our test car’s claimed combined economy of 44.1 mpg (we averaged just 37mpg in a week where we covered over 200 miles) and CO2 emissions of 146g/km from its Euro 6d engine, and the 2.2 diesel’s 72mpg claimed combined economy and 102g/km of CO2 emissions seems a far better bet, in spite of the anti-diesel rhetoric out there.

Still, the petrol 6 is happy enough on the motorway, with the well insulated cabin keeping both road and wind noise at bay. The seats are mega-comfortable and the seat adjustment works really well in helping to get that all important driving position just right.

Local B roads offered up the chance to push this large saloon out of its comfort zone, but the 6 did not waiver. The suspension isn’t the softest out there, but my does it take corners in it’s stride. With a more powerful engine you could really have some fun. I don’t think I’ve driven a more comfortable car all year, with Mazda taking Saab’s old mantle of most comfortable car seats.

Continued on page 30

28 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van www.companycarandvan.co.uk

On test: MAZDA6

KEY DETAILS PRICE: £25,995 CO2:

146g/km

MPG:

Comb 44.1 Urban 34.9 Extra Urban 52.3

BIK: 30% VERDICT: In the days when every other car is an SUV, it is comforting to find someone else producing top-class saloons other than the Germans. Mazda6 is a refined, comfortable drive CC&V RATING: NNNN Mazda6 Saloon 2.0 165ps Sport Nav+ Data courtesy Jato Dynamics

Continued from page 29 Compared to the opposition, and in this I’m including the Volkswagen Passat, Peugeot 508 and Ford Mondeo, from a driving perspective the Mazda6 holds it’s own. The Peugeot is newer and it’s nicer inside and out, while the Passat and Mondeo offer comfortable if not exciting driving. The Mazda6 sits somewhere between these as it’s a better car to drive than either the VW or Ford, but lacks the Peugeot’s new style in the sector, which is heavily borrowed from the German marques.

In what is fast becoming a ‘dinosaur’ sector, save for the German premium brands anyway, the saloon market has shrunk under the onslaught of a myriad of SUVs. There is an estate version of the Mazda6 and this is more

practical, but I’m guessing that as a brand, Mazda is now selling or supplying more CX-5s than Mazda 6s as the great SUV obsession shows no signs of abating.

In conclusion, then, if you really have to have a saloon car, then the Mazda6 is well worth your consideration. With contract hire rates of just £209 + vat per month on a 3 year, 6+35, 10,000 mile, non-maintained contract, the petrol Mazda6 SE-L is competitive, especially when the diesel SE-L comes in at a much higher £283 + VAT per month on an identical contract.

This equates to over £3,000 more for the diesel than the petrol, over three years, so perhaps the petrol engine does make sense after all?

Mazda bucks sales trend with stellar 2018 In a busy 2018 that saw updates to the majority of its product line-up, Mazda Motors UK recorded a 1.3 per cent increase in sales compared to the previous year – bucking the overall trend of a UK market that declined by 6.8 per cent compared to 2017.

With the launch of the 2019 Mazda MX-5 and the new Mazda6, plus updates to the CX-3, Mazda2 and Mazda CX-5 ranges, the Japanese manufacturer delivered sales improvements in both the retail and fleet sectors. With a retail rise of 0.7 per cent set against a market decline of 6.3 percent, Mazda’s long standing strong retail performance continued in a market described by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders as ‘highly turbulent’.

Mazda’s overall UK sales were also enhanced by a 2.5 per cent increase in fleet sales, which contrasts positively with an overall UK fleet market fall of 7.3 per cent in 2018. In a year where the industry has faced regulatory changes, altered demand for diesel engines and mixed consumer spending confidence, Mazda has delivered strong sales performance led by its award-winning 30 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

CX-3 and CX-5 SUVs. In a segment of the market awash with new arrivals, the updated Mazda CX-3 benefited from subtle styling updates and an enhanced cabin to deliver a strong 15.2 per cent increase in sales. Even more impressively, the award-winning Mazda CX-5 was up 36.3 per cent versus prior year volumes.

Commenting on the results, Mazda Motors UK Sales Director, Peter Allibon said: “I’m very happy with our sales volume in 2018 and it’s clear that our stylish, great to drive and high quality range continues to deliver for both fleet and retail customers. A great job by our dealer network has ensured we have had a strong performance in a tough consumer environment delivering the growth with a 65.8% retail mix of business.

Furthermore, our increased fleet sales are also very pleasing, in spite of continuing to limit engagement in high-cost fleet channels.

He added: “Our sales increases have come in spite of production challenges caused by the severe flooding in Hiroshima that affected our factory production.” www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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e-Golf offers a last hurrah before the electrics take over

by Andrew Walker In years to come we may look back on the current crop of electric cars with a fondness more associated with their petrol brethren.

Volkswagen is a case in point as, to my mind at least, its new e-Golf is the best of the bunch when it comes to the pure EVs available.

Its key is that it is so ordinarily Golf-like that your brain will tell you that you are driving a petrol Golf, not an EV. The interior is so Volkswagen as to be comforting with the usual dashboard, steering wheel, seat fabrics, soft touch plastics and excellent infotainment system that are so familiar to any Volkswagen driver. Yes, it is a bit bland, but that is the Volkswagen way, but what you get is nicer than the inside of a Nissan Leaf or Hyundai Kona.

Push the start button and the electric motor comes on. Total power on tap is 136 PS with 290 Nms of torque. The battery weight makes it feel slightly different than a petrol or diesel Golf but it glides along so peacefully that it’s an easy car to like, with a 0-62mph time of 9.6 seconds and a top speed of 93 mph – although I strongly suggest you drive the e-Golf no faster than 70mph. It’s not too dissimilar in handling to the traditional Golf, but the battery weight and location does make the car heavier in a sharp turn, while simultaneously making it feel faster in a straight line.

Volkswagen claims a realistic range for the e-Golf of 124 miles and after a week driving it, mostly locally with a couple of 60-mile round trips, that seems about right. 140 miles is an achievable target. With a Rolec EV charger at my disposal I let the car run down to as low as 20 miles of charge and by plugging it in to the Rolec, I was able to fully charge the battery to 154 miles in four hours.

To give you an example of the battery range, the e-Golf was delivered to us in Altrincham, Cheshire, from Milton Keynes, a distance of about 150 miles. My delivery driver collected the e-Golf with a full charge, stopped at Keele Services for 45 minutes to part-charge the car and then continued on to Altrincham, a distance of 35 miles. The car arrived with me with an electric range showing of 38 miles.

A week in the e-Golf turned up some battery range anomalies, which is to be expected. We had a couple of frosty mornings and on the first I turned on the ignition to see the range showing 38 miles, when I had charged it to full the night before. I went to the gym a couple of miles away and when I got back the range had gone back up to 151 miles. On the second morning I de-frosted the car using the heater rather than a scraper and the charge fell dramatically from 132 miles when I switched on the ignition to just 58 in just a few minutes. www.companycarandvan.co.uk

Ouch!

Range anxiety is most customers de-facto objection to owning an EV and Volkswagen has included some range-saving technology to help. It will automatically re-charge its batteries when the driver presses the brake. To enhance this function, you can move the gear selector backwards from ‘D’ to ‘B’ and the car will use a very high recuperating force.

You can also use ‘Eco’ or ‘Eco+’ mode by selecting it on the Mode button next to the gear selector. Eco reduces the maximum speed to 71mph and the climate control goes on to Eco mode. This was perfect for the motorway. Select ‘Eco+’ and things change again. The climate and heating is switched off and top speed goes down to 56mph. Be warned, however: I accidentally chose this function on the motorway in normal traffic and took a few seconds to realise why I couldn’t go any faster than 56mph. Suffice to say that this function works best in motorway road works and slow moving urban areas, not in the middle lane of fast-moving motorway!

As far as equipment goes, the e-Golf has the modern conveniences and safety features you would expect, including ABS, ESC, Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), driver crash alert, etc.

With a total RRP of £32,075, the e-Golf is not cheap. But, for company car drivers BIK is just 13% and driving 20 miles a day in the e-Golf would save you as much as £1,630 per year compared to 20 miles a day driven in a petrol powered car. Food for thought.

Volkswagen’s long-term strategy for EVs rests on its new vehicle, the I.D, which will be a purpose-built EV. Until the I.D arrives, Volkswagen customers will still have the e-Golf. Just like the Nissan Leaf, the e-Golf will

work for some as their car of choice, but not for all. Even the arrival of the Hyundai Kona EV, with a realistic range of 250 miles, is still some way shy of the 500-mile range many of us expect our cars to have. In reality, the e-Golf is perfect for those of us who don’t drive long distances and can utilise a home or work charger. I genuinely believe that if you can charge every day at home on at least a 3.kW charger, a regular 100-mile round trip is possible before range anxiety sets in.

I really liked the e-Golf and one day it could become a collectable classic. If you want the future, you’ll have to wait for the I.D. If you want the future now, then the e-Golf will give you one of the last tastes of an ordinary car, designed for a fossil-fuel engine, doubling up as an electric-eco-warrior.

VERDICT The industry is changing and the e-Golf will be the last Volkswagen built this way. With the new all-electric Volkswagen I.D. range coming, the e-Golf, in the short term, is still worth considering.

CC&V RATING: NNNN Company Car & Van | February 2019 |31

NEW CARS: LEXUS ES

Lexus ES takes big strides into the premium sector The all-new Lexus ES is set to forge a more ambitious path with its seventh generation model, with big strides made in terms of comfort, refinement and luxury.

It builds on its established strengths with an all-new chassis that allows for a more dynamic exterior design and better driving performance.

It stands as a further expression of Lexus’s design direction and commitment to crafting vehicles that provide more excitement, emotional connection and passion, helping bring its vision for its future to a wider audience. Traditional buyers will find the new ES more spacious, quieter and safer than ever before, while a new generation of customers will be introduced to a saloon with sharpened performance, class-leading safety technology and a level of craftsmanship rarely found in this market segment.

The seventh generation model is the first ES to be introduced to the UK and Western and Central Europe. Built on the all-new Global Architecture-K (GA-K) platform, it is longer (+65mm), lower (-5mm) and wider (+45mm) than its predecessor.

In a break with past generations, the design features a rearward-sloping fast roofline that emphasises the vehicle’s lower stance and slippery aerodynamics. The rear end is clean and sharply chiselled, with LED lamps that wrap around the quarter panels to generate a continuous styling line when viewed from any angle. F Sport models add a rear bootlid spoiler, badging and a dark lower rear bumper valance to add emphasis to the look. Three 17 and 18-inch alloy wheel designs are available across the ES and Takumi grades, with the F Sport version running on 19-inch wheels that are similar in appearance to those found on the Lexus LC coupe.

When designing the look and feel of the ES’s cabin, Lexus’s starting point was the Lexus Future Interior concept, which blends a driver-centric cockpit with a spacious and comfortable area for the front passenger. The driver’s focus is kept on the road ahead by locating the centre display screen, instrument panel and, where fitted, head-up display in a tight cluster within their field of view. Lexus calls this concept ‘Seat in Control,’ a simple idea that says from the moment you get in, all the controls you need are within reach and all the information you want is in plain view. Arm rests slide comfortably under your elbows and buttons can be pushed without taking your hands off the wheel.

Rear passenger comfort has long been a hallmark of the ES and the new model upholds this quality, in spite of the sleeker, sloping 34 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

exterior roof line. A lower hip point and carefully configured headlining preserve headroom while the longer wheelbase ensures generous legroom.

The interior colour options include a new combination that reflects the ‘Provocative Elegance’ design theme. The Rich Cream option matches cream upholstery with a brown headlining to give the cabin a modern, yet warm look and feel. Other choices include Black, Chateau and Topaz Brown.

The introduction of the all-new Lexus ES is an important milestone for Lexus in the UK, being the first ES model to be made available to British customers. The model which will be offered exclusively a self-charging hybrid, with front-wheel drive.

The ES 300h is equipped with a new, fourth generation self-charging Lexus Hybrid Drive system which can deliver exceptional fuel efficiency, responsive performance and minimal emissions for a mid-size luxury saloon. It couples an ultra-efficient 2.5-litre Atkinson cycle four-cylinder petrol engine with a lighter, more compact and more power-dense electric motor. Total system power is 215hp/160kW and combined cycle fuel economy is from 48.49 to 53.55mpg (WLTP data).

The engine is all-new and incorporates fast-burn combustion technology that helps make it the most thermally efficient engine to feature in a production vehicle (with thermal efficiency as high as 41 per cent with a top-level specific output). The result is more power without increasing emissions or fuel consumption. Features that help achieve such results include straight intake ports, increased valve angles and laser-clad valve seats. A variable-capacity oil pump, multi-hole fuel injectors, VVT-iE electric intelligent variable

valve-timing on the intake valves and a variable cooling system also contribute to the engine’s heat and combustion management. No fewer than 60 prototypes were built to achieve the best possible performance and more than 10 million kilometres of road testing were carried out.

Designed specifically to work with the 2.5-litre engine, the new transaxle has a multi-axle arrangement of the electric motors in place of the previous coaxial set-up, which reduces the overall length of the package by nearly 30mm. The traditional planetary gear set has been replaced by a parallel shaft gear and a multi-function gear that incorporates a power split planetary ring gear, parking gear and counter drive gear into a single compact unit.

The nickel-metal hydride battery that powers the electric motor has been relocated from the boot to underneath the back seat. This was made possible by a 120mm reduction in the height of the battery and the adoption of a more compact cooling system. Moving the battery under the seat not only frees up extra boot space, it also improves the car’s front-to-rear weight distribution for better handling.

The ES 300h will make its debut in a range of three versions: the entry-level ES, the F Sport and the top-of-the range Takumi, a new grade which takes its name from the Japanese master craftsmanship that is applied to every Lexus vehicle.

The on-the-road prices are: • Lexus ES: £35,150 • Lexus ES F Sport: £38,150 • Lexus ES Takumi: £45,650 Maximum speed is 112mph while fuel consumption under the WLTP scale is 52.95 to 59.33. www.companycarandvan.co.uk

On test: BMW 530e

Hail the Teutonic tax saver Germans nicked your sun lounger? Don’t worry – drive this BMW and it will have paid for the holiday in the first place, says Andrew Walker

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n 2017 BMW shifted almost 100,000 plug-in or EV models, with the BMW 330e accounting for a quarter of all 3 Series sales.

Fast forward to 2018 and with the end of the old fuel economy lab test, called the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) imminent and the European Union’s newly developed test, called the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP), BMW has stopped selling the 330e, primarily because there is a new 3 Series due this year and BMW decided that it wasn’t worth the investment required to update the existing 330e engine to meet the new standards.

Luckily for BMW, they have the perfect replacement in the hybrid 5 Series 530e and one made it’s way north to Company Car Towers for us to review recently.

If you read the literature on the 530e, it’s easy to see why business users will be queuing up to have one. Higher rate tax payers pay just 9% in Benefit in Kind for a new 530e, 36 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

saving more than £3,000 a year over an equivalent 530d (or £2,000 against a 520d).

Factor in the 28-mile electric range, a £2,500 government plug-in grant off the asking price and claimed 141.2mpg fuel economy and surely a 530e is a no brainer. Or is it?

First and foremost, the 530e is virtually identical inside and out to its diesel brethren and as the 520d carried off our 2018 Car of the Year Award, that has to be a good thing.

It’s also priced at just £200 more than the equivalent 530d at £48,325, so that’s another tick in the box.

The only things that make you realise your are in the plug-in and not the diesel are the eDrive button by the gear lever and slightly different dials in the cabin. On the outside, the e badges, blue brake calipers and the extra charge port make it stand out even more and even when you drive it, especially up and down the motorway and on most A and B roads, you get the same excellent rear wheel drive and handling you’d expect in a 5 Series, and a bit of oomph when required.

It is only when you spend a bit more time in the 530e that you notice the subtle differences.

If you want a large boot a problem arises immediately because of the presence of the battery, which cuts boot capacity by 120 litres.

You also have to account for the two charging cables bagged up in the boot; one for domestic use, the other for fast socket charging.

And when you drive the plug-in hard on twisting roads, you can feel the extra weight of the battery, which reduces the fun factor ever so slightly. The battery makes this model’s weight a hefty 2,420kg, that’s a full 650kg heavier than the 530d, so is that any surprise?

Having said that, the 182bhp 2.0-litre petrol engine plus the 95bhp electric motor produce 249bhp and a total of 310lb ft of torque, so it’s no slouch. The 0-62mph time is almost identical to the 530d as well, at 6.2 seconds.

The auto box is also a delight to use. In Auto mode it will switch between electric a petrol power and you won’t even notice when it does.

Select the Max eDrive setting and the engine will select the battery and will allow you to use it all the way up to 87mph. You can also use the engine to charge the battery up for use later in your journey, although as with the VW Golf GTE, the petrol tank will empty alarmingly fast.

What BMW has also managed to do with the 530e, as with all its cars, is to keep them up to date and right-on-trend with their entertainment, information and safety technology. The latest i-Drive system is incredibly intuitive and a pleasure to use. If you have the time and inclination you can get very geeky with the amount of information on tap, but for me, with just a week in the car, I am happy to report that on long motorway journeys, where I like to utilise Bluetooth for my mobile phone, the BMW’s telephone system is www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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one of the best I’ve encountered, as it’s both easy to connect and extremely clear when making or receiving calls.

The SatNav is well balanced between its ease of use and concise display. Throw in an MP3 connection and a logical DAB radio set up and for me, it’s another class win for BMW. Some of the options fitted onto my test car are more gimmicky than practical. There’s the Display key, which costs £195 and let’s you start the car before you get into it, and Gesture Control, a £160 extra, which lets drivers or the front seat passenger move their fingers to control things like the audio system. Both beg the question why, but for me the real downside is that the key itself is as large as a mobile phone. When I go out I usually take my mobile phone, my wallet plus my car and house keys.

Usually I have room for these on my person, utilising coat and jacket pockets, but with the Display Key as well I was dangerously close to requiring a ‘man-bag’ for a trip to the supermarket, something that, as with eating quiche, real men just don’t do!

Front and rear seat passengers get excellent head and leg room. Only the rear centre passenger will struggle. Around the cabin there’s plenty of storage space including large door bins, a cubby hole hidden beneath the armrest between the front seats and space in the centre console to fit two bottles of water.

There’s also a space to wirelessly charge the Display Key or your mobile phone www.companycarandvan.co.uk

KEY DETAILS PRICE: £48,010 CO2:

46g/km

BIK: 13% VERDICT: The comfort and ride you expect from a BMW – but with big tax savings to boot from that electric option. Extra weight nicks a bit of the fun but the power unit still delivers plenty of oomph. Battery range is an issue, mind, but think of all the money you’re saving for your next holiday!

CC&V RATING: NNNN

I have gushed enough about the 530e. Now it’s time to look at the negatives. The biggest is that favourite of any article on e-cars, range.

BMW claims that the 530e’s total range is just over 400 miles. I spent a week driving on all types of roads, at varying speeds and over different distances. A 40-minute log-jam on the M6 sucked the life out of my electric range – and that after I’d spent five hours charging the 530e up at home on a domestic connection. Using a proper EV wall box will

reduce this time by almost half.

I drove the 530e for almost 330 miles during the week, at an average fuel economy of 33.4mpg (I only managed 37.8mpg in the 520d) and left 20 miles worth of petrol in it before BMW collected it, so the 400 miles range is more likely to be 350 miles.

But – and it is a big but – that is about it when it comes to negatives.

As with all plug-in models, it will be up to the driver to make the 530e a cost effective choice. You’ll need to charge the battery regularly, preferably from a fast charger socket at home or at work. Government support will reduce the cost of having a fast-charge plug fitted at home or at your office, to a reasonable £200, so this shouldn’t put buyers off.

Those who only travel short distances to and from work or who drive mostly around their local area will benefit the most from the 5 Series plug-in.

What we can most definitely say is that just like the diesel 5, the plug-in 5 is a wonderful car to drive or to be a passenger in. It offers the best handling of any plug-in that we’ve experienced as well.

Furthermore, those company car drivers who can persuade their fleet manager or director to let then have one, will benefit massively, by saving enough tax in a year to pay for their family Summer holiday.

And if that doesn’t convince you, nothing will!

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 37

On test: TOYOTA HILUX

Much copied, never beaten: Hilux is still the daddy The pick-up sector has ben transformed in recent years by new contenders... but all are still trailing the venerable Toyota Hilux, says Andrew Walker

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he world first discovered the Toyota Hilux in 1968. I was three, Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King jr were assassinated, The Beatles released the White Album and West Brom won the Cup at Wembley, in the first FA Cup final to be televised live in colour.

In the intervening years the Toyota Hilux has become renowned for its dependability, reliability and durability. Top Gear drove one to the North Pole and tried to destroy another,

40 | February 2019 | Company Car and Van

failed and strung it up at their studio in Dunsfold in a final act of defiance. I’m pretty sure that it started first time when they finally relented and brought it down.

Where Toyota succeeded, others have followed and in recent years the roads have become very crowded with pick-ups. The list isn’t endless but feels like it... Ford has its road friendly Ranger, Mercedes-Benz has the X-Class and that’s not forgetting Japan’s finest, the Nissan Navara, Mitsubishi L200 and Isuzu D-Max. Add the Fiat Fullback and you have an ultra-competitive market.

To my mind, however, despite the competition, there’s no doubting that the Hilux remains the ‘daddy’ of all pick ups. I’m not alone: it’s Europe’s top seller for a start and the seventh generation range topping Invincible, which I tested recently, is the cream of these.

Delivered to CC&V HQ in a fetching Avantgarde bronze, the latest Invincible gets distinctive styling; chrome side bar with steps,

18” alloys, scuff plates, rear privacy glass and full colour Sat Nav. Throw in a reversing camera, electric door mirrors, front fogs, vehicle stability control, trailer stability control, front side and curtain airbags and it’s as well equipped as many tarmac SUVs. The new model still looks like a Hilux. The addition of a chunky chrome grille with LED running lights at the front has perhaps softened the profile but the DNA is still clearly evident.

Most importantly, the new version is bigger in every dimension than before. The load bay is a full 130mm wider than the old Hilux and it can tow up to 3,200kg – another improvement but still a little behind the capacity of the latest Nissan Navara.

On the inside Toyota has improved and updated the interior in line with its passenger car models. Although the dash is a little bland to look it looks and feels durable and has been put together really well. The top is finished in leather, making one feel that you aren’t in a vehicle that far away from an urban SUV.

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Technology wise, the Sat/Nav touch screen media system is intuitive and I connected my phone to it first time, for example. The remainder of the interior, including the finishes on the seats, the carpets and the inside of the doors, are all first rate. There’s plenty of room for five as well.

This seventh generation is markedly nicer than Hiluxes of old, reflecting perhaps Toyota’s

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realisation that to be competitive in the pick-up sector today, your vehicle needs to appeal to a wider audience, especially when the tax benefits of running a commercial vehicle are considered.

Under the bonnet you’ll find the more fuel efficient Euro 5 powertrains, with the Invincible’s 2.4 litre D-4D diesel unit delivering 148 bhp, with an increased torque of 400Nm.

It reaches 62 mph in 12.8 seconds and goes on to a top speed of 106 mph. Efficiency is such that you can expect to achieve 36.2 mpg on the combined cycle, which thankfully, unlike many cars I could mention, I found to fairly accurate, as I managed 31.1 mpg in my week and 400 miles driving in it. CO2 emissions for the auto are 204g/km.

Continued on page 42

Company Car and Van | February 2019 | 41

On test: TOYOTA HILUX

Refined but Hilux still has old-school values Continued from page 41 Start the engine then pull away and the Hilux can’t hide it’s utilitarian routes. It’s quite noisy, the ride bouncy – Toyota still uses leaf springs – but the latest 2.4 engine does feels more refined than the old 3.0 litre unit and this is especially noticeable around town and when parking.

Drive out of town and off the B roads and onto the motorway and the Hilux cruises with the best of them, There’s a satisfyingly easy-to-use cruise control system and at a constant 75 mph the latest Invincible feels much more like a car than it’s predecessor, making for quieter more relaxing driving.

Although the old Hilux Invincible also came with a reversing camera, I still found it to tough to park. The rear view via the window was such that you could not see the end of the load deck. Thankfully, the new model’s rear window is deeper and I had no such problems this time.

I don’t, as a rule, look at any test vehicle’s price until I’ve driven it for a week and I have to say that I thought the Hilux 6-speed manual double-cab would be more expensive than its OTR commercial price of £27,825. Not only is it much better than the previous model in every way, it’s also more car-like to drive which has to be a good thing.

Even with the current crop of pick-up

competitors to challenge it, the seventh generation Hilux is still one of the best. It doesn’t quite pull as great a load as the Navara, nor is it as flexible as the smaller L200, but it’s very well put together and, being a Toyota, will undoubtedly last you a very long time.

If you’re going Pole to Pole, fighting insurgents in a far away place or want to cross the Kalahari Desert, the Hilux is for you.

Don’t worry, though, if you’re just driving around our cities and the shires; it will do just as well navigating the more humble urban and rural locations of the UK. As a bonus, if you need to drive up and down the country on our motorways, the more refined 2.4 D4D engine performs admirably as a long-distance cruiser.

KEY DETAILS Price: £27,825 CO2: 204g/km BIK: 10% Combined mpg: 36.2mpg Load length: 1525mm Based on Invincible 2.4d VERDICT: An Aztec Camera, High Land, Hard Rain of a pick-up, one that’s ready to work for you, whatever the task.

Still the daddy CC&V RATING: NNNN

42 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

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On test: MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE CROSS n VOLVO XC40

Eclipse Cross puts many rivals in the shade If the Outlander PHEV has revealed Mitsubishi to you for the first time, the Eclipse Cross could be the car that fully converts you, says Andrew Walker

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he success of the Outlander PHEV has boosted Mitsubishi’s profile in recent years., but what else does the manufacturer have to offer?

If you want your mid-range SUV to stand out, then its Eclipse Cross will tick that box.

The front features Mitsubishi’s wide chrome grille and badge, wrap-around headlights, deep indented indicator lights with fog lights, looking not too dissimilar to a Lexus NX. The sides have a tapered sloping line that runs from front to back, finishing at the rear light cluster. A split rear screen looks different, but does affect rear vision, plus there’s a chrome skid plate and twin roof bars.

Inside, the Eclipse Cross feels the most grown-up Mitsubishi yet, with better build quality than elsewhere in the segment. It takes a leaf out of the Lexus in style and lay out, too.

The materials used are very Japanese, that is high quality and long lasting but a bit bland.

Most are soft to the touch, with only a few cheaper looking plastics lower down, on the door pockets, glove box and centre armrest.

Sitting on top of the dash is Mitsubishi’s 7” touchscreen display, which is easy to use and responds quickly when instructed. There’s a trackpad lap-top-like controller located between the front seats, but it’s a bit fiddly to work and it’s much easier to use the touchscreen itself. From this you control the apps, including Apple Car Play and Android Auto, the DAB and FM radios, phone functions and Bluetooth connectivity. There is no SatNav but if you connect using Apple Car Play you can utilise Google Maps instead.

Good news is that there are heater and air-con controls as separate buttons, so there’s no eyes-off-the-road adjustment required in the touchscreen to adjust these.

Entry level Eclipse Cross 2 models come with 16” alloys, Smartphone audio with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, DAB, 6 speakers, a rear view camera, Bluetooth, projection halogen headlamps, cruise control, climate control, Lane Departure Warning, privacy

46 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

glass, 7 airbags, LED DRL’s and interior lighting.

Despite the sloping roof line it’s actually quite spacious inside. Eclipse Cross measures 4,405mm long, 1,805mm wide and 1,685mm high and comes only as a five-seater. The rear seats slide back and forth offering extra legroom or more boot space as required.

The driver sits quite high with a good view of the road ahead as well as to the left and to the right. The split rear windscreen does take a bit of getting used to and visibility out of it isn’t great, especially if there are passengers in the rear. Storage includes a glove box, door pockets and cup holders. Front seat passenger and drive get plenty of head and legroom and in the rear legroom is good, although taller rear passengers may find that sloping roof a little too close for comfort.

With the seats all the way back there’s 341 litres of space in the boot. Slide them forward all the way and this increases to 448 litres, which is useful, but not class leading. The boot itself is quite narrow, but the floor is flat and the rear seats fold down neatly.

Our test model, the Eclipse Cross 4, was powered by an all new manual 1.5 four cylinder petrol. While this won’t set the world on fire it does give the driver a bit of oomph as you change up through the gears and reaches 62mph in 10.2 seconds, with a top speed of 127mph.

The Eclipse Cross handles pretty well both on the motorway and on smaller country roads, being both quiet and relaxing to drive. It even coped with local pot holes. The leather seats are a little firm especially in the rear. Overall it’s not that far behind the excellent SEAT Ateca or Peugeot 3008 to drive and is more than a

match for the Nissan Qashqai, Renault Kadjar and KIA Sportage, especially on the motorway.

The 1.5 manual petrol engine claims a combined mpg of 42.8 with emissions of 151g/km, both hardly earth shattering.

However, my week in the Eclipse Cross left me with an average combined figure of 38.7mpg, which equates to just 10% below the claimed.

With WLTP replacing NEDC, meaning that most cars will see their official fuel economy drop by 20%, Mitsubishi should feel confident that its claimed figure shouldn’t fall by more than 10%. While this may not put the Eclipse Cross at the top for economy in the sector, it does at least give Mitsubishi a seat at the table.

With prices starting at £21,275 for the Eclipse Cross 2 manual, rising to £29,750 for the First Edition 4WD Auto, there should be a model to suit everyone. We would suggest looking at the 3 manual, costing £22,575 which offers a good mix of spec and safety for a

COMPANY Car and Van VERDICT

A different look, top-end safety features, good quality interior and decent price list, the Eclipse Cross deserves to do well. A step below the SEAT Ateca and Peugeot 3008 but a refreshing change from the Nissan-Renault-KIA-Hyundai axis.

Rating: N N N N www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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Volvo’s practically perfect option Andrew Walker It’s fitting that, in the year the classic film Mary Poppins was being re-made, Swedish pioneers Volvo launched the XC40, a car that is ‘practically perfect’ in every way – just like Mary.

At first sight, the XC40 looks like a baby brother to the XC90 and XC60. Like them, it is offered with three and four-cylinder petrol and four-cylinder diesels only, with a plug-in hybrid option. Petrol versions are the T3, T4 and T5, all turbocharged and producing 154bhp, 188bhp and 247bhp respectively. The T3 is available with front-wheel drive mated to a manual gearbox only, while the T4 and T5 are both AWD eight-speed automatics. For company car drivers the diesel options are the 148bhp D3 and the 188bhp D4. Momentum, R-Design and Inscription are the available specs.

It’s hard to differentiate the exterior of most compact SUVs and the XC40 is no different.

The rear boomerang lights and front Thor headlights make it recognisably a Volvo but at a distance it’s hard to tell it apart from the JEEP Compass, Skoda Karoq and SEAT Ateca. Inside though, things get much better with a typically Swedish take on de-cluttering on offer, coupled with first-class build quality.

The infotainment screen and Volvo Sensus system are carried over from the larger XCs, the

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air vents are narrower and sharper looking than those found on its larger siblings and the cabin itself comes with a plethora of clever touches that make this a truly practical family car.

Front seat passengers have great head and legroom and legroom in the rear is good, too.

We tested the First Edition which comes with a panoramic sunroof and in this version head room is hampered in the back by the glass roof with anyone over 5.10” finding it a little tight in there. We guess that the solid roof will add an extra couple of inches.

For those who require a practical boot, the 460-litre in the XC40 is not class leading.

However, it does come with a useful flat floor and the bonus of having no lip at the front edge, making loading and unloading easier. There’s also useful extra space underneath the flat floor as well.

We drove the D4 190bhp diesel 8 speed auto

AWD First Edition, which costs £39,905 OTR. The shortish wheel base makes for sharp handling and in the mid-range of 1,500-3,000 rpm it’s really good fun to drive. The 19” wheels soak up the bumps in the road quote nicely and the suspension is not too firm. We’d expect the smaller 18” wheels to fare even better.

We had a play with the car’s drive mode, selecting Eco on the motorway to save fuel and Dynamic on the smaller roads, which added a bit of tightness to the engine and made the steering a little heavier.

While the First Edition offers the retail customer exceptional value, it is the entry level diesel D3 which ticks the company car driver box. With front-wheel-drive and manual-gearbox, it emits a competitive 127g/km of CO2 and comes with a claimed combined fuel economy of 58.9mpg. Lower CO2 figures come from the plug-in hybrid. It also offers the lowest BIK in the range, at least for now, at 27% meaning a higher rate tax payer will be asked to pay £259 per month for the privilege of driving one.

Diesels still offer business users the best fuel economy and in SUVs it’s by quite some way.

Volvo’s Twin Engine petrol models do offer a tax-breaking alternative, so at least the Volvo customer will be able to choose, but if you do big miles, diesel should still be your choice.

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 47

On test: CITROEN BERLINGO

Berlingo: The sign says it all Andrew Walker

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ans come and vans go, but in 2019 they are most definitely light years ahead of those from a decade ago.

Take the new Citroen Berlingo. CC&V got to drive it recently and the first thing you notice is that it now offers the same safety and technology that can be found in the Citroen passenger car range, such as Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, as well as a choice of safety packs that include speed limit and road sign recognition. The materials used in the cabin are also a step up from vans of old and unladen the Berlingo drives very much like a five-door family hatchback.

New Berlingo comes to market at a good time, alongside sister vans the Vauxhall Combo Cargo and Peugeot Partner. Existing small vans from Ford, with the Courier and Volkswagen, with the Caddy, are the main competition, whereas such rivals as the Renault, Kangoo, Mercedes-Benz Citan and Fiat Professional’s Doblo Cargo look a bit long in the tooth in comparison, especially from an engine range and tech perspective.

Citroen has kept it simple with Berlingo offered in two lengths, M and XL. These models offer cargo space of 3.3 and 3.8 cubic metres respectively. All models bar the entry level X feature the clever Extenso pack, which adds a through-loading bulkhead and an extra half a cubic metre of load space.

There are four trim levels. Entry level is the Berlingo X, then the Worker, the Enterprise and, finally, the Driver. M vans get a single sliding side door, featured on our Enterprise test model, while XL versions get double sliding doors. Both models get asymmetric 48 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

double doors at the rear.

Climb aboard and you’ll find that the cabin is a comfortable place to be, with decent seat adjustment on offer and plenty of storage. A reach and rake adjustable steering wheel, makes it easy to get the right driving position and all fixtures and fittings look good quality.

A week behind the wheel gave me plenty of scope to drive the Berlingo locally on a mixture of motorway, A, B and urban roads. At no point was the Berlingo driven laden, save for a fairly light load of toilet paper, tissues, washing powder and dishwasher tabs on our quarterly run to and from our local Makro. I was also driving alone in the main, so how the van performed is based on this.

What’s really appealing about Berlingo is that it drives like a small family car. Steering is light and the five-speed manual gear box and clutch are very light and easy to engage. On the motorway I selected cruise control, adjusted this to 70mph and the Berlingo sat comfortably in lanes one and two as I journeyed across the Pennines to Leeds and back. For those of you who want a small van that works well on the motorway, the Berlingo ticks that box. It’s quiet in the cab, the seats are comfortable, the full steel bulkhead keeps the heat in the cab and the load space noise at bay and when utilising the Bluetooth handsfree phone and the DAB radio, outside wind and road noise are not an issue.

On smaller roads it sits quietly in traffic, with the light clutch a real bonus in stop-start traffic.

On more winding country roads the handling impressed. Point it into a corner and it does what’s required and there is little or no rolling encountered on entry or exit from these.

The only negatives I could find were that

whoever gets to sit in the middle seat of three up front will find legroom a challenge, while the five-speed gearbox in our 100 SandS model, can be found wanting at higher speeds.

Economy and emissions are worth noting.

For the Enterprise M 1.6 Blue HDi we tested these are 67.3mpg on the combined cycle with CO2 emissions of 109g/km. We tested the Berlingo unladen and seven days of mixed driving resulted in an economy figure of 50.5 mpg, which isn’t half bad Overall, the Berlingo delivers. The new version looks and feels tough, comes very well equipped with good tech and safety features and it’s attractively priced, with the Berlingo range starting at £19,995 for the X panel van, M 75 Blue HDi 650X. Our test model, the Enterprise M 100 Blue HDi 1000 retailed at £23,205. I have a gut feeling that this could well be the most popular model or, the slightly lower priced Worker with the same capacity, which is £22,077.

COMPANY Car and Van VERDICT More than matches the Vauxhall Combo Cargo and Peugeot Partner.

All three are excellent and compete on an even keel with the Transit Connect and beat the Volkswagen Caddy. Best Berlingo yet NNNN www.companycarandvan.co.uk

On test: VAUXHALL COMBO

Vauxhall embraces its latest ‘French Connection’ Cross-company alliances in the motoring world are nothing new, and the latest Vauxhall-PSA CV collaboration highlights the benefits they generate, says Andrew Walker

T

he first Vauxhall to emerge from the new Peugeot-Citroen-Vauxhall shared platform is the Combo van, launched in late 2018. It’s off to a good start, as it’s already been named as the International Van of the Year for 2019.

The Combo Cargo is based on an all-new architecture and shares much with its stablemates the Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner. It is offered in a selection of variants, including short wheelbase, long wheelbase and crew van, with a load volume of up to 4.4m3 and a payload of up to a tonne. Longer items up to 3,440mm can be stored safely and securely, thanks to the rear swing doors and FlexCargo load-through hatch. It can also transport payloads up to 1,000kg and will take up to two Euro pallets thanks to the increased distance between the wheel arches. With a low loading edge of just 548mm, rear access is excellent too.

Long items, such as wooden planks can be stowed at an angle via the optional roof hatch and an optional Construction Pack includes an improved under ride protection thanks to a sump guard and Michelin Latitude Tour Mud and Snow tyres for added grip. The chassis height is also increased by 30mm.

In crew van body style, up to five occupants can be accommodated, while the load is safely stowed behind a partition wall. In addition, the rear bench can be folded down and the partition moved behind the front seats if required.

Clever touches can be found everywhere. A sensor-based overload indicator allows the driver to check the vehicle is not overloaded while a connectable protection bag can be fixed to the hatch opening to protect longer loads from damaging the van’s interior.

Other innovations available include a Rear View Camera that acts as a ‘digital’ rear view mirror, while a second camera in the passenger side door mirror gives the driver has an additional blind spot detection aid.

Modern-day vans are very car-like and the new Combo Cargo is no different. The layout is ergonomically designed, with all controls

50 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

falling easily to hand. The instrumentation will be familiar to Peugeot and Citroen customers and in the Combo Cargo, it all looks and feels good. The seating position is more upright while the compact, flat-bottomed steering wheel allows for easier access to the cabin.

There’s good storage space too, with two glove boxes and two large door pockets, plus a body-wide shelf above your head.

There’s a versatile seating configuration, with either a four-way adjustable seat for both driver and front passenger or a six-way adjustable driver seat with adjustable lumbar support, integrated armrest and under seat storage compartment. Three occupants can sit abreast in the front although the centre front passenger will find leg room tight.

There are three Combo Cargo models.

Entry level Edition, then Sportive, plus a limited edition NAV model. Customers can choose from three diesel engines. A 1.6 litre with either 75PS or 100PS and a 1.5 130PS, which is available as a manual or auto. There are also two 1.2 petrol engines offering either 110PS or 130PS. Fuel economy has been improved by at least 16% over the old Combo with CO2 emissions at least 17% better than the outgoing model.

The entry level 1.6 75PS diesel has combined economy of 65.6mpg with CO2 emissions of 111g/km, the 1.6 100PS comes with a combined figure of 65.6mpg and 111g/km of CO2, while the range topping 1.5 diesel 130PS, offers combined fuel economy of 64.2mpg, with CO2 emissions of 116g/km. All are impressive.

Entry level Edition starts from £15,630 ex-VAT, which is £800 less than the current Combo Cargo entry price and features under

seat storage, a fixed steel bulkhead, a nearside sliding door, overhead storage, a 5” display radio with Bluetooth and DAB, one-touch windows and electric and heated exterior mirrors.

Sportive and the launch special LE NAV cost more but take the spec up a bit further, adding items such as body colour exterior mirrors and side protection mouldings and front bumper with skid plate, 16” alloy wheels and an 8” touchscreen with SatNav. Smart driver assistance and safety features available include Lane Keep Assist, Forward Collision Alert with Pedestrian Detection, Drowsiness Indicator, Traffic Sign Recognition and Automotive Emergency Braking.

You can also specify Surround Rear Vision, providing a digital rear-view mirror and Flank Guard, helping to prevent side damage from low-level obstructions.

The first model I tested was a mid-range Combo Sportive L1H 1.6 100PS diesel start/ stop model, with two front seats, which I drove laden with 300kg. The test allowed me to appreciate just how much good stuff is now incorporated into a modern day van. The build quality is excellent. Bash the top of the dash or the doors with your hand and they are solid and soft-touch plastics on the front and top of the dashboard and glove box lid and door pockets are solid and built to last. The seat fabric feels hard wearing and overall, the cabin is bright and airy with plenty of room.

Equipment levels are generous and the touch screen tablet style infotainment system was pleasing to the eye and easy to navigate.

It’s large enough to see and the graphics are clear and easy to understand.

Continued on page 52 www.companycarandvan.co.uk

On test: VAUXHALL COMBO n FIAT PROFESSIONAL FULLBACK

Continued from page 50 Downsides are few: the heating controls are fiddly and I couldn’t get the system to the right temperature – but that was about it.

For load access, the twin rear doors open wide and the near-side sliding door opens and closes with a reassuring clunk.

My co-driver played rugby in the front row, coming in at 100kg. Add his weight to my 65kg, plus the 300kg load fixed to a pallet in the back, meant that we were driving around with 465kg’s on board. This meant that the 100ps engine felt a little underpowered when trying to overtake on the motorway and also when travelling cross country over undulating roads. For most van users, the 100PS will do just fine, but it did make me think that the 75PS version would feel decidedly slow.

After lunch, we returned in an identical van, but with the three-seat front bench. Unladen and with just two of us on board, the 100PS diesel was much more fun to drive, especially when our route back took us cross country on some winding B roads. I took the chance to sit in the middle seat and there is definitely more room for your legs on offer than in some competitors small vans centre seats. We also spent 30 minutes on the M1 and the full bulkhead kept noise from the cargo space at bay, as we drove along at 70mph. The five-speed gearbox worked well, although a sixth gear would definitely be useful on the motorway. Both the steering and the clutch

52 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

were light and the Combo Cargo handles well.

Only pot holes disturbed our peace as the 16” wheels and suspension struggled to keep the bumpy road surface at bay. We were, however, driving a new van with only 40 miles on the clock, so we can assume that the suspension will soften over time.

What we can safely say about the new Combo Cargo is that it’s well built, well designed, drives well on Euro6 engines and comes at a lower price with lower emissions and better fuel economy than most of the competition. Existing Vauxhall customers should be relaxed about this particular ‘French Connection.’

COMPANY Car and Van VERDICT We loved the Citroen Dispatch and Peugeot Expert enough for them to be our joint Van of the Year in 2017, and this is another collaboration that works well. Vauxhall has a head start with the Combo NNNN

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Fullback puts Fiat into the CV spotlight Andrew Walker Fiat Professional’s pick-up option, the Fullback, is, in essence, a Mitsubishi L200 but cleverly rebadged to give the Italians a crack at the ever-increasing global pick-up market for the first time.

The range is simple, with three models: the 2.4 150hp SX, 2.4 180hp LX and the 2.4 180hp LX automatic. Prices start from £20,995 excluding VAT and OTR charges.

The front adopts the upmarket appearance of a sports SUV with its swept-back fascia, chunky front bumper and roomy cab-forward layout.

Distinctive swage lines along the flanks tie the front of the pick-up truck to the rear and along with the sweeping shape of the front and rear lamps, help fully integrate the load bed into the vehicle’s overall design.

Detailing is tasteful and restrained, with two strips of satin silver trim used to frame the front grille on the entry-level SX, while LX versions also have a subtle satin silver trim around sump protector, as well as chrome-finished door

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mirrors, door handles and side steps.

The interior is light years away from pick-ups of old. Standard equipment on the SX includes remote central locking, electric windows and mirrors, Bluetooth connectivity (phone calling and music streaming) and DAB digital radio, as well as leather trimmings.

Powered comes from a 2.4-litre diesel engine with a variable-geometry turbo charger which

produces 150hp and 380Nm of torque, yet its official combined-cycle fuel economy figure is just 44.2mpg (6.4L/100km) and its CO2 emissions are 169g/km.

The standard SX transmission comprises a six-speed manual gearbox with on demand four-wheel drive system with three electricallyselected settings: 2H, 4H and 4L. Continued on page 54

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 53

On test: FIAT PROFESSIONAL FULLBACK

Continued from page 53 The power and torque outputs of LX version are increased to 180hp and 430Nm, while the full-time four-wheel drive system has four electrically-controlled settings: 2H, 4H plus 4HLc and 4LLc with a locking central differential for improved traction.

Its official combined-cycle fuel economy figure is 42.2MPG (6.6L/100km) and its CO2 emission figure is 173g/km.

Technical highlights across all Fiat Professional Fullback models include a one-tonne payload with a bed length of up to 1.52m, 3,100kg un-braked towing capacity (2,700kg for the SX model), best-in-class turning circle. Sophisticated double wishbone front suspension and a solid axle with leaf springs for maximum reliability and sturdiness.

It’s an impressive package. On a test-drive near Fiat’s Turin factory I drove a Fullback with a hay bale in the back to highlight its handling under working conditions and on road and off the Fullback drives extremely well. Remove the rear load – perhaps unsurprisingly – and the ride gets far more bouncy, especially over undulating terrain and this is perhaps the only negative with the pick-up sector as a whole. In this the Fullback is no different.

Although Fiat describes the Fullback as a ‘leisure vehicle’ it Fullback is very much a working pick-up, and as far as leisure time is concerned, it will not in most cases be a

54 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

replacement for your SUV soft roader. But the Fullback drives just fine in 2WD, although on our very steep and bendy test drive first gear was required on a number of occasions. On the off-road section the Fullback performed admirably, although just like the L200, it’s shorter wheelbase and size makes it noticeably less able to handle the biggest craters as well as the larger Nissan Navara or VW Amarok.

On the plus size, there is very little in the way of diesel clatter inside the Fullback’s cabin and once up and running, the engine soon settles into a smooth idle. Put your foot down and the thrust of 317lb ft of torque increases the decibels pretty quickly and you really get a feel for the power on tap that the Fullback

offers. The real bonus of this is that on the road you’ve got plenty of overtaking power.

Add in a nicely balanced clutch and the gear-change feels smooth too, certainly compared to what pick-ups used to offer.

Goodies such as SatNav, Bluetooth and a rear view camera are fitted to the LX model, which I tested. Trust me, those of you who want toys in the cabin, will not be disappointed. Just don’t expect the dashboard and fittings to be made of top-notch plastics or feel soft to the touch.

Dimensions show are an overall length of 5,285mm and width of 1,815mm, and it can take a payload of 1,045kg.

A cracking workhorse: n n n n

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Hi-tech Sprinter leaves the rest standing Andrew Walker The third generation of the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is an evolution of the van that came before it. It adds Pro Connect advanced technology, accessed from a new centrally located 10.25” touchscreen, which brings a level of connectivity never before seen in a CV. The interior features a new touch-capable multi-function steering wheel, natural voice control, a clearly laid-out uncluttered instrument panel, wireless charging for smartphones and some features from the Mercedes-Benz car range. It all gives this new Sprinter the most car-like interior of any van to date.

The tech has reduced the need for traditional switchgear which at first is a little disconcerting. The touchscreen and functions take a little while to get used to but after a while everything clicks into place, with the toggle heating controls, for example, becoming second nature to adjust.

Everything you need is within easy reach from the driver’s seat as well.

From the outside, it is still unmistakably a Sprinter. Subtle updates include slender headlights, with LED bulbs on higher spec vans, a more upright windscreen, blistered wheel arches and a softer profile.

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The engine range hasn’t changed but for the first time the Sprinter comes with Front Wheel Drive, powered by a 2.1-litre four-cylinder unit offered in three power outputs; 114hp, 143hp and 177hp, with the most powerful version exclusively reserved for the camper van.

Rear-Wheel-Drive versions also feature the 2.1-litre unit and offer power outputs of 114hp, 143hp or 163hp. And, if you need one, a 3.0-litre V6 diesel FWD version is now offered for the first time. A six-speed manual gearbox is standard, while the rear-drive model has the option of a 7Gtronic auto.

There are believed to be 1,700 variants once you start ploughing through the list - panel van, tourer, dropside, chassis, bus or tractor head.

Maximum load capacity is 17 m3 and up to 5.5

tonnes, with the wheel arches able to take load, thanks to robust cladding. The addition of FWD increases payload by 50 kg and this model is also available with a nine-speed auto transmission. FWD also offers 80 mm lower loading sill to make loading/unloading and access/exit more convenient.

The panel van comes in a variety of sizes, with four wheelbases and six body styles. The FWD version comes in two wheelbases (3,259mm or 3,924mm) and is offered in panel van, chassis cab or tractor head guises, the latter being for camper van conversions.

The panel van has a load area that features a large, flat, plastic-trimmed floor, plus a plywood lining, which is now standard across the range.

The box wheelarches have been strengthened and are able to carry as much weight as the load floor itself, while standard and high-roof variants are also offered.

Depending on body type, wheelbase, roof height, drive configuration and engine variant, the fuel consumption figures vary between 41.5 and 29.1 mpg, with CO2 of between 178 and 253 g/km.

It all starts from £24,350 exc VAT. That may not be cheap but by our reckoning, it’s well worth the extra investment.

Rating: N N N N N

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 55

On test: VOLKSWAGEN AMAROK

An Amarok adventure In a pick-up world where the competition has never been as fierce, Andrew Walker reckons the Volkswagen Amarok is a cut above the rest

I

first drove the Amarok when it was launched way back in 2011. UK models were all built in Argentina and although they looked and felt like Volkswagens, the interior and ride comfort felt a little inferior to the models I had driven which had been manufactured here in Europe.

Fast forward a few years and that legacy has been left behind, thankfully. Volkswagen now offers a heavily updated Amarok with a more muscular profile, higher specification and a new 3.0-litre V6 engine which is altogether more ‘Volkswagen’, backed by interior fixtures and fittings similar to VW’s car ranges.

There are three trims available: the basic Startline, the mid range Trendline and the top of the range Highline. There’s also a special edition the Aventura on offer.

The Amarok offers three power units: 161bhp, 201bhp and 221bhp versions of its 58 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

3.0 V6, with a choice of 8-speed automatic or 6-speed manual gearboxes. Positioned at the upper end of the UK pick-up market, the latest version comes with a far more powerful engine than previously, not only to help maintain its position in its sector but also to challenge for high-end pick-up customers that are the targets of Mercedes and its X-Class.

Currently, the Amarok’s main competition struggle to match it for power and certainly don’t match it for quality, with the upgraded dashboard, seat and door materials and switchgear a definite best in class.

I was lucky enough to test the special edition Aventura, which is offered in Ravenna Blue Metallic, a colour not that dissimilar to the blue of the ‘Azzuri’, the Italian national football team. Bi-xenon headlights with separate LED daytime lights and a large VW logo in the centre of the radiator grille give the front some character, while the colour-coded door handles blend seamlessly into the sides. The chrome rear bumper comes with a built in step and the taillight assemblies feature dark coloured lenses. Compared to the Ranger and L200 it’s a fairly conservative effort, however, with just the small Aventura badge adorning the rear sides of the vehicle.

Although you know you’re in a pick-up, the interior has a distinctly car-like ambience, with much of the design and layout familiar from

other Volkswagen products.

It features the ultimate specification list that combines striking design features with a host of creature comforts and safety systems.

Building on the handsome and rugged looks of the standard Amarok, the Aventura has 20-inch Talca alloy wheels, body coloured sports bar with Aventura badging and chrome-plated side bars with step and LED spot lighting. Like all Amarok models, the Aventura is built to work and also features styling for under-body cladding, power folding mirrors and a protective coating for the load compartment.

Inside, the Aventura is positively bristling with equipment. ErgoComfort seats with 14-way adjustment are fitted as standard, and ensure that even the longest of journeys can be completed in total comfort. The seats are faced in soft Nappa leather, while the multi-function steering wheel is also leatherwrapped and is fitted with paddle shifts as standard.

Volkswagen’s acclaimed Discover Media Navigation system dominates the dashboard layout while special Aventura mats further enhance the feeling of exclusivity. To help keep drivers safe and secure in all conditions, the Aventura features a Lights and Vision package (automatic headlights with separate daytime running lights, Coming Home feature and windscreen wiper intermittent control with rain www.companycarandvan.co.uk

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sensor) along with front fog lights with cornering function as standard.

Powering the new Amarok Aventura is the Amarok’s most powerful 3.0-litre TDI V6 with 258 PS in normal driving and 272 PS when using the overboost function. The engine generates a thumping 580 Nm of torque between 1,400 and 3,000 rpm, while permanent 4MOTION all-wheel drive and an 8-speed automatic gearbox ensure that the Amarok can go where others fear to tread.

The new, more powerful engine is very responsive and enjoyable to use. Put your foot down and the Aventura will hit 62mph in just 8 seconds. Despite its size, the Amarok handles surprisingly well, with the handling and ride issues I had experienced six years ago almost ironed out in the new model. The rear is mounted on leaf springs, but it’s not as comfortable in the back when compared to the multi-link suspension used on the Navara NP300.

Acceleration is smooth and surprisingly quiet, coming as it does from the permanent 8-speed auto-box fitted to my test model. The ride too is improved. Where the original could be described as the ‘Maradona’ version –a bit brutal and unforgiving – the new one is more ‘Messi’ – more comfortable and aesthetically pleasing all round.

Certainly my wife and family found it www.companycarandvan.co.uk

perfectly acceptable and almost as comfortable as an average family car. This is helped by the easy access into the cab itself and excellent head and leg room in the rear.

Safety is also paramount on this latest Amarok. My test vehicle came with, among others, ESP, ABS, TCS, EDL, Hill Hold Assist, which I love, Hill Descent Control and Trailer Stability Control. Security includes a Thatcham 1 alarm, remote central locking, driver and front passenger air bags, front, side and curtain airbags and a seatbelt reminder.

Aventura also offers front fog lights, a trip computer, electric front and rear windows, electrically adjusted and heated wing mirrors.

Also fitted is the Discover Media navigation system with a 6.33” touchscreen and voice enhancer. DAB radio and Bluetooth connectivity are also part of the system, which graphically, was clear and concise as well as simple to use. My i-Phone connected first time through Bluetooth, which is always a good sign.

For serious pick-up aficionados, the Amarok offers an increased payload of 1,114 kg. I used the load bed just once, for a trip to the tip with an old filing cabinet away and was able to easily secure this to the four lashing rings located in the rear. Aventura also features a rolling hardtop tonneau cover to secure the load bed. As a bonus, the sturdy tailgate was simple to lower and raise and it also made a useful seat for my son to change into/out of his rugby boots without getting the interior of the truck dirty.

Talking of the load bed, in the Amarok it is one of the largest of any double-cab pick-ups available in the UK, with a volume of 2.5 square metres and because the double-cab offers 1.22 metres between the wheel arches, you can fit a Euro pallet in sideways. All versions now carry in excess of one tonne, so customers can reclaim VAT if they’re registered. The Ford Ranger beats this with its 1,240kg carrying capacity.

All versions will also tow a 3,000kg trailer, with the top-spec versions, including my test version Aventura with permanent 4Motion, capable of pulling up to 3,100kg. It does lag behind the pulling power of the Toyota Hilux, however, which will tow 3,200kg, as well as the 3,500kg towing output which you’ll get if

COMPANY Car and Van VERDICT Step up in quality in this sector. The Amarok takes the workhorse image and condemns it to the waste bin with fittings straight out of the premium car catalogue. Like watching the Lord of the manor build a brickwall to professional standards NNNN you buy an Isuzu D-Max, Nissan Navara or Ford Ranger.

The Amarok is protected by a three-year 60,000 mile warranty, three-year paint and 12-year body protection and includes UK and European road side assistance. The engine is fitted with LongLife synthetic oil, aimed at reducing servicing from 12,500 mile to up to 25,000 miles, which has to be a good thing.

Sensors in the vehicle work out when a service is due and VW maintain that using LongLife oil will increase fuel economy by an average of 2.7%.

After a really fun on-road week in the Amarok, I believe that the latest model has raised the bar even further in the UK pick-upsector, particularly with its car-like driveability, high spec equipment and much-improved build quality. The new one puts it back on top with the best pick-ups in the UK, based on handling and driver comforts.

Although it’s more expensive than most of its competitors – the Aventura will set you back £32,865 + vat OTR – you get what you pay for in life and with the Amarok you do get an awful lot. To my mind it’s the most comfortable pick-up and comes with best-in-class build quality and creature comfort, even beating the Mercedes-Benz X-Class! While lagging slightly behind the Ranger’s carrying capacity as well as the pulling power on the Hilux, D-Max, Navara and Ranger, pulling 3,100kg is still impressive and if I was choosing a pick-up just to drive on road, I would choose the Amarok.

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 59

CV REVIEW: IVECO DAILY HI-MATIC n TRANSIT CONNECT

Hi-Matic gearbox is a smooth hit with the urban deliverers Andrew Walker

I

got to grips with a 35s13 4100 wb H2 roof Daily at Northern Commercials in Irlam, who kindly leant CC&V the van for a test drive for a couple of hours. The Daily has been the van of choice for businesses who require a serious workhorse for many years now and with the new model range makes it a van for all seasons. My test model was fitted with IVECO’S Hi-Matic gearbox, basically making the vehicle an automatic, which for this LWB model I promise you is a Godsend, particularly around town where one less thing to worry about makes for more relaxed and sensible driving, at least from me anyway!

First of all I think that its important to explain exactly what Hi-Matic is and what it offers van users over and above a manual gear box.

There are three different versions of Hi-Matic to choose from – Urban, Regional and International – dependent on operator duty cycles. Urban is aimed at those who have to face town and city centre traffic on a daily basis, delivering excellent drive ability and comfort thanks to a self-adaptive shifting

60 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

strategy which adjusts the gear changing control logic, choosing between 20 different programs.

Regional offers outstanding performance thanks to two driving modes. Eco provides smooth and low speed gearchanges to keep fuel consumption at a minimum while Power mode carries out ’changes at higher speeds for enhanced performance. There is also a third option, Manual mode, which permits sequential shifting via the gearstick.

Completing the line-up is International, featuring a double overdrive gear ratio and turbine-torsional-damper torque converter to

maximise fuel efficiency on long journeys at high average speeds.

Iveco Daily Hi-Matic can be specified on Daily van and chassis cab models from 3.3 to 7 tonne, and with 9 engine options from 106hp to 205 hp . As with the automated manual Agile ’box it replaces, variants fitted with Hi-Matic can tow braked trailers up to 3.5t and can operate with up to a 10.5t gross combination weight.

There are some other major improvements to the Daily range which we should tell you about as well. The capacity of the van has been strongly enhanced by revising the ratio between wheelbase, total length and the carrying length: this led to the creation of the new 18 and 20 m3 models and the 10.8 m3 version.

GVW of the van models range from 3.3 to 7 tonnes with vehicle loadspace volumes ranging from 7.3 to 19.6 m3. The van comes in heights of up to 2,100 mm, so that even tall users can stand upright in the loading compartment.

External lengths range between 5,040 to 7,500 mm, while the load compartment starts from 2,600 mm up to 5,100 mm.

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Transit Connect keeps Ford on the road to CV perfection

I

f Ford had a mantra for its current commercial range it could very well be ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’ Having upgraded the Transit Custom earlier this year, it has recently followed this up with the introduction of the new improved Transit Connect light van, which CC&V got its hands on recently.

Improving a van that won an International Van of the Year award might be a daunting prospect for some, but Ford made a number of improvements to bring the new Transit Connect right up to date. The latest version introduces a new front-end that adopts the latest Ford design DNA, featuring three-bar Transit grille combined with slimmer headlamps with a more aerodynamic lower fascia and front spoiler.

Inside, the cabin features a revised instrument panel with a new central control area that incorporates a floating, tablet-inspired 6″ colour touchscreen on high series models.

This features Ford’s SYNC 3 communications and entertainment system. New trim materials have also been introduced.

A new powertrain line-up provides enhanced fuel-efficiency, while achieving Euro 6.2 emissions standards. Ford’s all-new 1.5-litre

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EcoBlue diesel engine combines the latest fuel injection, turbocharging and emission-control technologies with a low-friction engine design to deliver improved performance alongside reduced fuel-consumption.

There’s also a petrol option, with a version of the multi-award-winning 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine available.

An upgraded six-speed manual transmission is now fitted to all engines as standard. The

1.5litre EcoBlue engine can also be specified with an advanced new eight-speed automatic transmission.

To minimise overall cost of ownership, service intervals have been extended on both diesel and petrol variants, with manual diesel vehicles now offering variable intervals of up to 2 years/40,000 km (25,000 miles).

Continued on page 62

Company Car & Van | February 2019 | 61

On test: FORD TRANSIT CONNECT

KEY DETAILS PRICE: £22,278 otr CO2:

130g/km

MPG:

Comb 56.5 Urban 53.3 Motorway 61.4

Volume: 3600 li Based on 210 L2 1.5 120PS EcoBlue VERDICT: A safe-as-houses purchase: does what Ford CVs have done well for decades.

Hardy, reliable, versatile and great to drive CC&V RATING: NNNN

Continued from page 61 The new Connect introduces a range of segment-first driver assistance features, including Intelligent Speed Limiter, PreCollision Assist with Pedestrian Detection emergency braking system, Side Wind Stabilisation and Active Park Assist, which will hopefully help your drivers not to reverse your van into a wall!

New Connect is available in single, double cab and combi bodystyles with shortwheelbase (L1) and long-wheelbase (L2) versions. It’s spacious and offers load volumes of up to 3.6m3 with a full bulkhead and a payload capacity ranging from 520-890 kg.

Spec wise, customers can choose from entry level Base, Base HP, Trend, Trend HP and the range topping Limited and Sport models.

My test model was the L2 Limited fitted with the 1.5 EcoBlue 120PS engine, with six-speed manual gearbox. From the outside, the new Connect looks more attractive, with nicely rounded edges both at the front and the rear.

Inside, the Limited’s dashboard is ... well ... just like one you’d find a in a Ford car. The buttons and knobs are nicely finished and the dash layout is easy to navigate with a pleasing driving position, thanks to the multi-adjustable eight-way driver’s seat.

All models get a reach and rake adjustable steering wheel. Limited is a new addition to the range and features power folded heated mirrors, rear parking sensors, heated driver and passenger seats, cruise control with adjustable speed limiter, auto wipers and headlamps, a quick clear heated windscreen, a 62 | February 2019 | Company Car & Van

perimeter alarm and keyless start.

Convenience wise, Limited comes with DAB, USB, Bluetooth, steering wheel-mounted audio controls, load compartment lights, six DIN cargo tie downs, dual fold flat passenger seat with storage box and a full steel bulkhead.

Options fitted to my test model included metallic paint £300, Ford’s DAB SatNav system, £780, a wireless charging pad £95 and a blind spot information system £350.

Cabin storage includes a full width overhead shelf, a lockable glove box, twin cup holders and deep door pockets. Limited comes with a very useful load-through hatch in the bulkhead which enables in the larger L2, a load length up to 3.4m to be carried. The rear load space is up to 3.2m3 with the full bulkhead, increasing to 4.4m3 including the front load space and a payload of 675kg.

Emissions on my test van were 130g/km, with a claimed combined mpg of 56.5 in my EcoBlue diesel model. Some European cities already have a diesel ban in place at certain times of the day and by offering a Connect fitted with Ford’s 1.0 litre petrol EcoBoost, Ford are covering all bases.

What’s it like to drive? Pleasantly car-like.

What Ford has managed to achieve with the Custom and now the Connect is a cabin which matches in some cases the interior of a small car. Steering is light and precise, it handles both winding country roads and the motorway trawl with aplomb and I would definitely take the 120PS version if you want to make decent progress.

I’m sure the 75PS model will do a job for you, but it will struggle with a full compliment

of load and two passengers, especially on the motorway. I had no such problems though.

At motorway speeds, the full bulkhead keeps road noise down, enough to listen clearly to your favourite radio station or answer your phone using the simple steering wheel and dash board Bluetooth controls.

A van with cruise control may seem too much for some, but if like me, you have to do a lot of motorway travel, there are so many 50mph speed limited road works currently on all English Motorways as the Smart Motorway System is introduced, that setting the cruise to 50 mph allows you to relax, with no fear of exceeding the limit and an unwanted 3 points.

All small businesses need to stay connected and the six-colour touchscreen featuring Ford’s SYNC 3 communications and entertainment system, works seamlessly. Before I set off, I set up my i-Phone and connected to the Bluetooth hands-free phone system, which enabled me too make and receive calls while keeping my eyes firmly on the road.

The number of white van drivers I see daily using their mobile, one hand on the steering wheel as they take a corner, is frankly ridiculous, so my advice to ANY company is to invest in a van or vans with Bluetooth capability.

It’s a no brainer for your company and for your drivers.

Like the new Transit Custom, the new Transit Connect is a very good van indeed.

Attractive, comfortable, easy to use as well as practical, with build quality right up there with the best. Ford has yet another success on its hands. www.companycarandvan.co.uk