TOPGEAR ME

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WORLD EXCLUSIVE

THE BIRTH OF TOPGEAR TV BY THE MAN WHO MADE IT HAPPEN

MAY 2015

PORSCHE CAYMAN GT4 • ARIEL NOMAD • MAD MAX • V-RAPTOR vs G-WAGEN • RANGE ROVER SPORT SVR • FERRARI FXXK • KEN BLOCK TALKS TO TG

ARIEL NOMAD STARS IN TG’S ...

Extreme WHO DARES WINS: CARS FROM THE SPECIAL OPS DIVISIONS ALSO FEATURING: RR SPORT SVR, CAYMAN GT4, V-RAPTOR, FERRARI FXXK, THE HOONICORN

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ISSUE 262 • MAY 2015

As I do from time to time, I’m going to share a message from Charlie Turner, Editor-in-Chief of BBC TopGear. We’ve all been waiting for news of changes in the TopGear eco system, and as Charlie is closest to the matters at hand, let’s hear from him here: “With the dust still settling from recent developments on planet TopGear,I have no doubt you’re wondering what it all means for your favourite magazine, and what the future holds. So here’s what we know: what’s next for the TV show will become clearer in the coming months, with the BBC committed to delivering a ‘renewed’ version of TopGear in 2016. As soon as we have more details, you, as part of the TopGear family, will be the first to know. In the meantime, we will continue to bring you the greatest car magazine in the world every month. The exclusive access, adventure, creativity and straight car knowledge you buy this magazine for is the very essence of what TopGear stands for, and will continue to be the driving force behind everything we do. You want TG? It’s here.” This month, BBC TopGear has an exclusive look at Ariel’s extraordinary Nomad, a radio-controlled off roader that really should (no news, but we can hope) feature in the new Mad Max reboot. We also bring you Tom Ford’s take on the Hennessey VelociRaptor and MercedesBenz G4x42, my own experience in the awesome Porsche Cayman GT4, Liam Nelson’s encounter with the 911 Targa 4 GTS at Ascari, Sid Saigal’s off-road extravaganza in Jeep Cherokee and Renegade, and an up close look at the Ferrari FXXK, a car that hybridises advanced mathematics with Ferrari’s aesthetic fairy dust to render a new take on Modena’s design DNA, all in a package that is essentially 1036bhp, track-only LaFerrari. And, of course, there’s more— loads of it. We’re working harder than ever to bring you the best car mag in the world; we just hope you find time to pick through every meaty page. Enjoy the issue,

ADEL HABIB

MANAGING DIRECTOR

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124 FEATURES

76 Cayman GT4

An urgent cover-star requirement means despatching Paul Horrell to Stuttgart to kidnap a GT4

86 Hoonigan alert!

TopGear gains access to the Kingdom of Ken Block. Expect much burning rubber and many stunts

Ariel Nomad 92 Arie

IIt’t’s th It the Atom’s country cousin! T To opG sends Ollie Marriage TopGear to dr drive the Nomad

Maximum madness 98 Ma This year there will be a new Mad Max film. With new Mad Maxx cars. First drive, anyone?

108 Raptor vs G-Wagen

Big American monster pickup takes on big German monster truck. There will be mud...

116 Range Rover Sport SVR

Immensely fast. Immensely macho. Immensely fun. The RRS is treated to a tickle from JLR’s customisation arm

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124 Ferrari FXXK

Ferrari feeds steroids to LaFerrari, turns it into the FXXK. Right then, who’s feeling brave?

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26 McLaren 570S

38 Go with the flow

32 Porsche Boxster Spyder

43 My other car...

33 Lincoln Continental

52 James May’s almanac

34 Horrellisation

50 From the archive

The new baby McLaren has arrived! Except it’s not really a baby at all. Um...

Boxster nicks styling from Cayman GT4 and engine from 911 Carrera S

Ford’s luxury arm’s New York show car gets rival car designers all hot and bothered

Choice. Is it really a good thing? Or is too much choice a cause of bad karma?

Dan Read investigates traffic. Why are there jams? And how can they be avoided?

...is the world’s biggest ship. For when you absolutely have to shift an oil rig

A brief history of the driving test and The Highway Code, and how to arrange your tools

Driven this month…

Mercedes-Benz F 015 Porsche Cayman GT4 Porsche 911 TargaGTS Discovery Sport BMW X3 Mazda CX-3 Zenos E10 S Agusta Turismo Veloce 800

58 60 64 68 68 69 70 72

Her Majesty features in TopGear’s pages. Whoever thought that would happen?

REGUL ARS

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LEAVE ROUTINE FAR BEHIND LEXUS IS F SPORT 3.5 L V6 312 HP ENGINE

Lexus.ae Call 800 LEXUS (53987)

267051

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CHARLIE TURNER ASSOCIATE EDITOR MOTORING EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR

CONSULTANT EDITOR EDITOR AT LARGE SENIOR ROAD TEST EDITOR SENIOR WRITER WRITER & SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR

TOM FORD OLIVER MARRIAGE ESTHER NEVE PAUL HORRELL JASON BARLOW PIERS WARD SAM PHILIP DAN READ

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS JEREMY CLARKSON, PAT DEVEREUX, RICHARD HAMMOND, JAMES MAY, RICHARD PORTER, ANDY WILMAN CREATIVE DIRECTOR iPAD ART DIRECTOR ART EDITOR SENIOR DESIGNER REPROGRAPHICS EXECUTIVE

IAN STEVENS OWEN NORRIS ELLIOTT WEBB PETER BARNES CHRIS ROWLES

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS WEBB BLAND, LEE BRIMBLE, JUSTIN LEIGHTON, RIPLEY & RIPLEY, ANTON WATTS, THOMAS WIELECKI, JOHN WYCHERLEY, JOE WINDSOR-WILLIAMS SUB-EDITOR FREELANCE SUB-EDITORS EDITORIAL ASSISTANT AND PA NEW MEDIA EDITOR NEW MEDIA TEAM DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL LICENSING AND SYNDICATION INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS MANAGER SYNDICATION MANAGER PUBLISHER GROUP PUBLISHING DIRECTOR CHAIRMAN, IMMEDIATE MEDIA CO. LTD DEPUTY CHAIRMAN, IMMEDIATE MEDIA CO. LTD CEO, IMMEDIATE MEDIA CO. LTD

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MANAGING DIRECTOR, TOPGEAR ADAM WADDELL BRAND STRATEGY MANAGER JULIA NOCCIOLINO © Immediate Media Company London Limited BBC TopGear Magazine is owned by BBC Worldwide and produced on its behalf by Immediate Media Company Limited. BBC Worldwide's profits are returned to the BBC and help fund new BBC programmes. BBC WORLDWIDE DIRECTOR OF PUBLISHING NICHOLAS BRETT HEAD OF PUBLISHING CHRIS KERWIN PUBLISHING COORDINATOR EVA ABRAMIK TOPGEAR MIDDLE EAST EDITION is published by GLOBAL MEDIA (UK) LIMITED In association with ORYX GULF MEDIA LLC AND OGLE MEDIA under license from BBC Worldwide Limited, Media Centre, 201 Wood Lane, London W12 7TQ. Top Gear and the BBC logo are trademarks of the British Broadcasting Corporation and are used under licence by Immediate Media Company London Limited. Copyright © Immediate Media Company London Limited All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part prohibited without permission.

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T W E E TS & S T U F F

@mdpoitras Apparently, The Stig likes to drive a reasonably priced car in Alberta on his days off

Whenever we get on the Interstate, my three-year-old proclaims from the back “Power!”

@SNOWRECK You guys keep showing cars that are over 100,000 pounds. Why are European cars so heavy?

@_MITCHMOSER F RO M TO P G E A R .CO M

I’ve watched so much TopGear, I’ve developed a British accent

The teasing is over. Official details of McLaren’s new 204mph, £144,000 570S are here Car doesn’t look bad, but McLaren really needs to differentiate model to model Gazzed The 650S is a facelifted 12C anyway Michael Fisher And the 570S is a face-lowered 650S KleanupGuy Funny thing, but I like the 570 considerably better than the 650, not sure why Hector Yague I feel it’s a car that will grow on you over time Ted Nimbé

Many people believe it looks too much like a P1... that’s like saying that someone looks too much like Brad Pitt Joe Gregory

@TYJAMIN

@TweetPetrol Medieval Stig had to race round the @BBC_TopGear test track on a horse

For some reason, it reminds me of the new Corsa. Too many curved lines make it look cute Don Barracuda I love it already! E A Phantomas Such a tough sector. I hope it takes it to the Germans Paul Cugnetto

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Great day off-road today @BBC_TopGear

@ScottArhart This looks like something that Mr May would build

Should my satnav really say this?

@RICHARDTIPPEY @Timmy Montoya13 Looks like the ultimate test is about to begin #legospeed

Such a big sign. Wow! @ThatMaeBae

@ELSONADRIAN

@DRIVEJAMES

G O O N L I N E A N D S U B M I T YO U R P I C T U R E S

Emergency service challenge? @smithyIain

RT to have Driving School’s Maureen Rees as the next presenter of @BBC_TopGear. Let the people decide #teammaureen

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Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson has written for TopGear magazine since 1993. Here’s a selection of the best of his opinion, wit and wisdom from the past 22 years

“Prolonging a boring life is worse than not starting it in the first place. This is why you must not drive a Toyota Corolla.” 1997 “Devising new ways to annoy people in cagoules should be on the school curriculum.” 2002 “In Britain, there are an estimated 2.4 million people who enjoy cleaning up manure and being kicked, and last weekend every single one of them was on the A423, desperately trying to reassure their endlessly nervous one-tonne bison that the discarded training shoe in the hedge was not a wolf.” 2009 “I try on opinions like I try on clothes, standing in front of a mirror and wondering if they really suit me.” 2006 “There are plenty of people over 50 who want their car to be as relaxing as lying in a bath listening to whale song. So why, in the name of all that’s holy, doesn’t Mercedes, s, or anyone for that matter, do a version with suspension made from honey and kapok, and a gearbox that takes several minutes to slide from third to fourth?” 2008 01 8

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“Last week, I flew in a jet that wentt outt of control at 42,000 feet. I emerged ed to o say that this was the worst thing I’d ever d done, one, onlyy to be told by a photographer, ‘No, o, your chat chhat show is the worst thing you’ve everr don done.’” ne.’” 22000 000 “I have been down the supercar road oad three threee times now, and I can assure you it’s t’s not no ot lined with girls and jelly. It’s mostlyy a forest fo orest of potholes, expense, frustration, terror teerrorr and dirty trousers.” 2009

“All new drivers should have a big crash as soon ass possible after passing theirr test. The aftershock of such an event will act as a giant psychological traction control system until full maturity is reached. In men, this is around 45 years later.” 2005

“I look at myself in the mirror and imagine that if I’d been made in heaven’s assembly plant, it must have been last thing on a Friday when they were running short of parts. ‘Oh, go on, God. Let’s just make one more before we knock off.’” 2013

“Making a hybrid to stave off disaster is like replacing a broken windowpane with a sheet of polythene. Yes, it makes the room feel all snug and warm again, but you’re still going to get burgled.” 2009 “Daihatsu used to make a car called the GTti. It was the first road car ever to generate 100 horsepower from one litre, and because it had three cylinders it sounded like it was demented. I loved it so much that, on the press launch in Japan, I did half a lap, crashed and flew home.” 2015

FOR THE FULL STORY ON HOW TOPGEAR STARTED, FROM THE MAN WHO STARTED IT, TURN TO PAGE 113 WHERE ANDY WILMAN SPEAKS

“The surface is smooth and grippy, the sightlines are good. The bends are designed to tickle the sausagey bits of the petrolhead. Driving slowly in Scotland is pretty much an affront to God, who plainly designed it as a nirvana for speed freaks.” 2013 “I’ve tried my hand at all sorts of hobbies. I collected stamps as a boy. I had a train set. I’ve attempted gardening, reading, chess, jigsaws, golf, tennis, painting, bird spotting and looking at pornography on the internet. And I’ve been extremely bad at all of them.” 2008 “I’ll happily watch a Grand Prix if I’m at home on a lazy Sunday afternoon. But I’m not going to go out of my way to see how far Pastor Maldonado got this time without crashing into someone.” 2014 “…on the electric-only front, we’ve gone from the G-Wiz to the i3 in one move. Which is a bit like Orville and Wilbur Wright landing at Kitty Hawk and saying: ‘OK. That sort of works. Now let’s build an F14.’” 2014 TOPGEAR.COM

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DOWNLOAD RUFOOF ON YOUR iPAD AND HAVE A FREE PREVIEW ISSUE TODAY.

A PURGE OF SOME WONDERFUL RUST BUCKETS FROM THE HAMMOND COLLECTION OF MOTOR VEHICLES MEANS SOME NEW ARRIVALS NEED TO BE MASTERED...

aving sworn never to get rid of my BMW R1200RT I have, inevitably, done just that. The thing had served me well for the regular trek between rural Herefordshire and the miseries of London. I swore eternal allegiance to it, praised its chunky power, defended its looks as “purposeful” and “form following function” rather than the perhaps more commonly held “ugly like a swamp donkey” and learnt to welcome its girth and bulk as one might the embrace of the heftier childhood aunt bearing sweeties and comics. And then I betrayed it. Unable to resist the siren call of another, I dumped it by the roadside, both metaphorically and actually. The new bike is not a massive step away from the old one. It’s another BMW R1200RT, in fact. But the new model is slimmer, better looking, better equipped and faster, and that, as it is for any middle-aged man looking to replace something up until recently close to his heart, was enough for me. It’s better in pretty much every single way. Most particularly how it integrates all the clever little technological doodahs that made the outgoing model such a rising star in its youth. While on board, I can change the suspension settings; change the radio channel; toggle through tracks on my iPod;

H

“RIDE AN OLD BIKE FOR LONG ENOUGH – IE MORE THAN THREE MILES – AND YOU WILL BREAK DOWN”

technology will reach a conclusion. There is only so adjust the traction control; answer the phone; set the far it can go. Once things have been miniaturised to satnav; lock the panniers; check the tyre pressures, an atomic level – and they have – then there isn’t a fuel range and temperature; turn up the seat and lot more fiddling and tweaking that mankind can do handlebar heaters and set phasers to stun. That last to stuff to make it work better for us. Otherwise the one is a lie. But the rest can be achieved quickly and stuff itself stops being stuff. The technological age easily, mostly through a single thumb wheel that has to be a finite thing. Not because we will all go works a bit like the iDrive system in BMW’s cars. out in one massive bang preceded by a slightly timid, The results of each adjustment can be monitored “Oops” from a scientist standing next to a Hadron via colour screens in the dash. The last bike did all Collider, but because there is a limit to how far we these things too, but the layout wasn’t as neat, the can go in the business of influencing, making and display wasn’t in colour and it all, suddenly, felt a bit using. And at that precise moment, the technological last-week. Given the pace of technological progress, age ends and something new replaces it. Probably it will be another couple of weeks before I am once the social or spiritual age, or the one where we really again lured away from my new ride by a younger, knuckle down and concentrate on nice clothes or friskier, faster model. And that, folks, is the way of it, flowers or music or preserving humankind or animals isn’t it? We live, we are told, in the technological age or, oh, I don’t know, someone else will decide what it’s and it is this tight matching between our desires and the age of. But before the technological age ends, it the abilities of the machine to meet them without shall, as a grand finale, have done something pretty even being told that best exemplifies this. awesome, and it will do it, I suspect, thanks to the car. My new bike is not my only one. I am a lucky man Driverless cars are hovering just on the horizon, and have access to a collection of them. Which their windscreens unblinking in the rising sun. And means as soon as I am not going to London, I reach when they arrive, they shall bring with them a pretty for the keys to something more characterful. Ride humongous problem. It’s already been discussed about on an old bike for long enough – ie more than widely and is going to become a hotter topic than, three miles – and several things will happen. You oh, y’know, anything else recently in the news. will break down. You will become covered in Wh What happens when a driverless car is oil and your trousers will be spoiled. And he heading towards an oncoming truck and, you will meet and talk with another tto avoid it, must swerve into a crowd on enthusiast of old, leaky motorcycles. the pavement? I’m not about to answer When that happens – and it WILL TOPGEAR IS ON that, but someone is going to have to happen – you will talk about your BBC2 AT 8PM b because it is going to happen; nobody bike, their bike and old bikes in EVERY SUNDAY NIGHT is going to want to be liable for the general. You will then talk about new wro wrong pre-ordained decision by a bikes. They are, you shall conclude, sterile comput computer or to be mown down by a driverless things: too efficient, too clean, too reliable car, so answer it they must. And when they do, they and too damned modern. “Where,” your shall have pinned down all that it is to be human – temporary best friend shall demand, “will it they shall have defined us. And we shall, at that all end? Riderless bikes?” Well, quite moment, understand ourselves better than ever possibly, yes. I mean, technology has before. And we shall be ready to go forward into gotten nearly there already. So when will it whatever the next age is. And that revelation, my end? friends, that moment of blinding, crystal clarity, shall The answer is probably quite soon. have been brought to us courtesy of the car. I don’t mean ‘end’ as in, ‘THE END’, I mean that

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ILLUSTRATION: MATTHEW BILLINGTON NGTON

IT’S A SAD DAY WHEN YOU REALISE THAT YOUR CHILDHOOD SUPERHERO ISN’T AS SUPER AS YOU IMAGINED...

nce, as a lad, I was riding along on my 10-speed racing bike when it literally snapped in half. One minute, I was riding along on a bike I’d built myself out of bits; the next, I was suspended in space in an absurd cycling attitude, preceded by the front half of a bike and pursued by the back half, like a man exposed by a pantomime horse bursting at the seams. For those of you of a technical persuasion, the problem was caused by a ‘stress raiser’ created where I’d clamped the gear-change levers to the frame downtube. All the forces that would normally be evenly distributed as a bit of light flexing in this piece of cheap Seventies steel tubing were concentrated in this one area, turning it into a sort of metallurgical liquorice. It’s why a piece of fuse wire eventually snaps rather limply if you bend it backwards and forwards, and why you can break a sheet of glass cleanly if you scratch a line on it. Anyway, it wasn’t actually a massive accident, but it did affect me very, very deeply. Even today,

O

“ALL THE FORCES WERE CONCENTRATED IN ONE AREA, TURNING IT INTO A SORT OF METALLURGICAL LIQUORICE”

this notion will enter my head, and I’ll have to 40 years on, I’m sometimes struck by the land somewhere until I’ve forgotten about it. fear that my bicycle will suddenly break in half, I hate the thought that this wonderful, rather especially on a nice downhill left-hander when spiritual relationship we have with a machine we I’m sticking my knee out and ‘gerrin it reet over’ know well and love could suddenly be shattered like Rocket Ron Haslam.* by some temporal material failing. It’s why I hated I mean, what if it did? I know it’s highly unlikely the last journey in my old Rolls-Royce Corniche. but we can’t rule it out entirely, because I can I mean, there I was, bowling along at night on offer confirmation, gained at first hand, that it’s the A303, when the left-hand headlights failed. possible. My bicycle could snap in half. So could It turned out to be a fuse, and mending the fuse yours. Been there, done that, went home on a in a Seventies Royce means unwinding a length bus with two halves of bike to prove it. of wire from a bobbin and binding it to a Bakelite And once that thought has entered my head, thingy that you push into a board full of copper cycling pleasure for the day is over, because I prongs. Strangely satisfying, but not if you have can’t shake it off. My bones are old and won’t to do it three times in one trip. bounce like they did in 1975. And then the fuse box itself, which pivots These days, I ride motorcycles as well, which down from under the steering column, pivoted go a lot faster than bicycles. But they don’t make down from under the steering column and hit my body any more resistant to impact. So what me on the shin, and it’s heavy. if the bolts holding one of the front brake And then I decided that the steering felt a bit calipers on suddenly sheared, and it went into vague. Of course, it feels vague; it’s a Seventies the wheel and stopped it dead? At 80mph? Rolls-Royce. But vaguer than it had been Can you imagine? last time I drove it. Or was it? Since then Once I’ve had that thought, plus I’vv driven two Ferraris, several I’ve the one about the gearbox seizing P Porsches, some modern hatchbacks up and maybe the one about the a a brand-new Transit van. So it and handlebars coming off, I have to TOPGEAR IS ON w probably just illusory. Or it was ride back home, slowly, and put the ATTOPGEAR 8PM FORBBC2 MORE c could have been coming apart. motorcycle away. EVERY SUNDAY TELLY GOODNESS, NIGHTON What if it did? The handle came I’ve just had another thought. CLICK T TOPG EAR.COM TOPGEAR.COM off my old desktop pencil sharpener off I sometimes fly a light aircraft as last week, and the Rolls is twice its age. well. Now what if, at 3,000 feet, mad from everyday materials, wrought It’s made that arrangement of pins and bolts by fallible men, and has been subjected to the holding the left wing on all came apart, and forces that nurture decay for almost half a century. the wing fell off? When you think of it like this – and I was I’ve never heard of this sort of thing doing, as I drove the remainder of the journey happening to anyone I’ve met. But it happened at 40mph – it’s a miracle any of us are still alive. on an early test flight of the Royal Aircraft Factory SE5 biplane (admittedly in 1916), so it could happen. So what if it did? I wish I hadn’t *Motorcycle racing legend roughly contemporary started writing this down, because next time I fly, with the original snapped-bike incident. TOPGEAR.COM

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D A P i R U O Y N O F O O F . Y U A R D D O A T O E L U N S W S I DO IEW V E R P E E R F A AND HAVE 024

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EDITED BY SAM PHILIP

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT NEW CARS THIS MONTH

BIG THIS MONTH

McLaren 570S

Who you calling baby? Meet the ‘entry-level’ Mac TURN OVER

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My first

SPOT THE MCDIFFERENCE

CHOOSE C HOOSE YOUR FLAVOUR OF MID-ENGINED McLAREN McLA AREN

MCLAREN 570S Twin-turbo V8. T V Carbon tub. 562bhp. ÂŁ144kk

MCLAREN 650S Twin-turbo Twin turbo V8. V Carbon tub. 641bhp, ÂŁ195k

MCLAREN 675LT Twin-turbo Twin turbo V V8. Carbon tub. 666bhp, ÂŁ260k

MCLAREN P1 V Carbon tub. 903bhp. ÂŁ866k Twin-turbo V8.

McLaren Not small. Not cheap. Not slow. Meet the he 570S, the so-called baby McLaren that’s anything but BY PAUL HORRELL

T

his car is McLaren spreading the supercar love. The new 570S contains much of what makes the company’s 650S so extraordinary, for threequarters of the price. In fact, the ]\dR_ a\_^bR N[Q ]R_S\_ZN[PR ÂźTb_R` \S the ÂŁ143,250 newcomer are within a whisker of matching the original MP4-12C’s. Which p it another way, y, it goes g means,, to put like a Lamborghini – that’s not just the HuracĂĄn HuracĂĄn but the Aventador. ‘Baby McLaren’, MccLaren’, eh? Clearly, the 570S S bears the McLaren fami m ly look, but it actually has entirely family QVĂ&#x;R_R _R[a O\Qf ]N[RY` ZNQR Q \ba \S QVĂ&#x;R_R[a QVĂ&#x;R_R[a O\Qf ]N[RY` ZNQR \ba \S QVĂ&#x;R_R[a `abĂ&#x; 6aÂľ` Âľ` aUR Âź_`a \S dUNa :PP9N_R[ PNYY` Va` `abĂ&#x; 6aÂľ` aUR Âź_`a \S dUNa :P9N_R[ PNYY` Va` Sports Serie ies – the 650S and 675 5LT belong Series 675LT to the Super Series, Serries, and the P1 and G TR are GTR

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es, see. Have you been the Ultimate Series, ¾` YNaR`a [NZV[T `PURZR, S\YY\dV[T aUR Ÿ_Z¾` YNaR`a [NZV[T `PURZR, h bl k at McLaren No? We forgive you. The bloke who devised the transition from the seemingly random formulation of MP4-12C told me it has been bugging him for two years. But if you have been keeping up, you’ll deduce that the 570S’s engine packs 570 horses (that’s metric horsepower, or 562 of p ) Soon there will be a our British bhps). slightly chea aper and less po cheaper powerful one, the 540S. And a cabriolet cabriolet as wel well as this coupe body. And, la ater again, a GT version, with later more domed d rear glass and a hatch to give more luggag ge space. luggage Strange, in a feature about abo a newly launched sup percar, to be talking tal supercar, about luggage spac ce so soon. But tthen, the Sports space Series are su upposed to be the th more usable of supposed

570S employs McLaren’s familiar seven-speed DSG

McLaren’s cars. The designers took tto ook care to carve out a roomier and more hab bitable habitable k than h in their h faster f h doors d cockpit cars. The give you more elbow room. The tub’s sills have been lowered and the doors’ arc of opening is amended, `\ TRaaV[T V[ N[Q \ba V` YR`` \S N SNĂ&#x; The interior is all-new, with a less bulky central console. The instruments are NYY A3A [\d `\ f\b PN[ P\[ÂźTb_R N track-style layout for your speed and rev counts, or more a road-biased design with a navigation readout in the main display. But don’t imagine it’s not a McLaren. It’s born to perform. Of all the cars in the increasingly congested ÂŁ150k bracket, it’s pitched more against the new Audi R8 V10 and 911 Turbo, rather than the Ferrari California or more mainstream spec of

“Don’t imagine the 570S is not a McLaren. It’s born to performâ€? Astons and AMG AMGs. Gs. McLaren’s engineering chief Mark Vinne Vinnels els says, “We have a serious hl h It’s the h h h llevell off philosophy. highest performance at this price. It’s not a soft car. The benchmark was the 911 GT3.â€? That’s the sound of a neck being stuck out. Says Vinnels, “When we start a project aUR Âź_`a Naa_VObaR` N_R NYdNf` ZRa_VP` ° ° X]U ° X]U aUR O_NTTV[T _VTUa` ÂźTb_R` /ba dR UNcR N `]VQR_ QVNT_NZ with 30 or 40 attributes in all: NVH [noise, vibration, harshness], package, feel, many more.â€? What McLaren has learned, [\a dVaU\ba ]NV[ `V[PR aUR RN_Yf 0 V` aUNa supercar buyers don’t just want the measurable or the rational. They want thunder and sensation. Vinnels again, “It’s also about increasing the emotional content ° \OWRPaVSfV[T aUR RZ\aV\[NY Âł <S P\b_`R

one thing that comes from Woking g’s history Woking’s of Grand Prix racing is the baked-in n desire ffor continuous improvement: “We’re a young [road-car] company and we have to run fast to catch up and overtake.� I ask Vinnels to list the ways the 570S saves money over its pricier relatives. First, he mentions the absence of the complex hydraulics in the suspension. Instead there

N_R P\[cR[aV\[NY N[aV _\YY ON_` ° ZV[Q f\b N_R P\[cR[aV\[NY N[aV _\YY ON_` ° ZV[Q f\b the dampers are adaptive and the brakes O ÂźO U U QY X Q U PN_O\[ ÂźO_R `\ aURfÂľcR UN_QYf `XVZ]RQ AUR powertrain and engine use fewer exotic materials, and actually the engine, although still N % YVa_R C% UN` ]R_ PR[a QVĂ&#x;R_R[a ]N_a` AUR_RÂľ` YR`` PN_O\[ ÂźO_R V[ the body, especially by having an allaluminium skin. There’s no airbrake or any other moving aero elements. The doors have simpler hinge and access mechanisms. Finally he mentions that there’s less equipment. AUR abO V` QVĂ&#x;R_R[a /N`VPNYYf `NZR ZNaR_VNY PN_O\[ ÂźO_R _RV[S\_PRQ composite) and process (resin-transfer Z\bYQV[T /ba Va` `VYY` N_R Y\dR_ Of N substantial 83mm. To regain lost strength

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027

Flying y g buttress curls air around the rear of the cabin

“Overall, the car is lighter than the 650S – and lighter by far than its rivalsâ€? “was a challengeâ€?, says Vinnels, and he admits it does make the tub slightly heavier. But overall the car is lighter than the 650S – and lighter by far than its rivals – because it UN` [N__\dR_ af_R` YR`` ½bVQ V[ aUR P\\YV[T system, smaller rads and no actuators for the aero and suspension. They’ve managed to get the aluminium panels’ weight down to little more than that of composites. Vinnels is proud of the ‘tendon’ doors, and not just because they look special. The tendon is that uppermost body-coloured panel that carries the mirror. It looks S_RR ½\NaV[T S_\Z aUR ZNV[ Q\\_ ]N[RY 6a QVcVQR` aUR NV_½\d S\_PV[T P\\Y NV_ a\ `dR_cR down into the radiators and a d up through the an YVSa XVYYV[T ½fV[T Obaa_R`` YV `R` aUNa d_N] aUR YVSa XVYYV[T ½fV[T Obaa_R``R` aUNa d_N] aUR rear ar of the cabin. It also carries car arries the hidden door release rel e ease button. Dynam mically, he says, Dynamically, “It has a fa faster steering ratio o [than the 650S] N[Q `aVĂ&#x; af_R` R` 6aÂľ` N[ RN`f PN_ N_ a\ aU_\d N[Q `aVĂ&#x; af_R` 6aÂľ` N[ RN`f PN_ a\ aU_\d ar rou o nd. There are are three t ree chassis modes, th m des, using mo around. adapti tive dampers, an and three powert rtra rain adaptive powertrain modes wh which include al lte tering the sound nd and and altering response. The The range from C omfort to Trackk Comfort

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settings is wider than the 650S.â€? Comfort matters in a car that will do big ually mileages. The original MP4-12C was actually y, a pretty transformative car in that quality, feeling amazingly relaxed on the several ope. occasions we schlepped them across Europe. aren Great all-round visibility is another McLaren speciality, reprised and emphasised in thee 570S. But in the end it’s got to be a car that can also give you a high-voltage jolt of driving sensation. And, claims McLaren’s chief development driver Chris Goodwin, at aVZR` Va PN[ SRRY RcR[ ORaaR_ aUN[ aUR Âź_ZÂľ` faster cars. The tyres are narrower and there e’s no downforce so the grip is less, but there’s at low wer e , more road-friendl lower, road-friendly cornering speeds s, the car talks to you more. And above speeds, that, says sayys Mark Vinnels, “It’s “It a true McLaren as a trackk car. We’ve gone af after every 10th.â€? He pausess and gets back to the emotion. “But it’s st tunning-looking aand people will stunning-looking buy it for that to oo. oâ€? too.â€? But are people peeople stunned? The chit-chat at

THE RIV RIVAL VAL

PORSCHE 911 TURBO S

A fraction less power, a chunk more torque, but nearly 300kg heavier. Oh, and 4WD. Fight!

launc launch had a veil of ennui, many opining that aUR "$ aUR "$ @ V`[Âľa QVĂ&#x;R_R[a R[\bTU S_\Z aUR 650S. That line of thinking probably doesn’t stem so s much from the fact Porsche is a SUV comp company with a sideline in 911s, but from a glance at Ferrari’s range: a 2+2 front-engined conve convertible, through a mid-engined supercar to front-engined fron V12s. Instead McLaren’s machines – across a 10-fold price multiple – all use a related carbon tub, related twin-turbo V8, related 7spd transmission, and a two-seat mid-engined layout. Surely if this is what people have against the 570S, they really are subjecting a donated pedigree equine to a forensic oral eexamination. xamination. McLaren is giving us supercar te echnology and performance at top-end technology sp ports-car price. If the 570S looks too much sports-car like ke a supercar for you, that can only be beca ause it iss much like a supercar. because

DBX is intended to appeal to women and new markets

The ÂŁ150k sports-car market just got a lot more orange

1

IIt’s t’s eevolved, vo l ve d , n not, ot, u m, revolved revolved um,

The first The first-gen s -g gen X XF, F, llaunched au unch hed in 2007 20 07, ha as be been en a q u et ui e ssuccess uccess 2007, has quiet stor st story o y for or fo or Jaguar, Jaagu Jagu uar, arr, so the the MkII MkI k I saloon s lo sa oon o does do doesn’t e n’ es n’tt mess m sss with me wit ith h the the formula. form fo rmula. Th hou ough gh a fraction fra ract ra ctio ct ion io on shorter sho sh or than its orter Though pred pr edec ed eces ec e so orr,, the the XF XF ga gain ns a couple predecessor, gains of inc inches nche hes in i tthe he w wheelbase, heel he elba el base, while th ba that hat a ffamilial fa fami amilililal d esig es ig gn masks m sk ma skss a slipperier design shap sh a e, iits ap ts d rag ra g co oeeffi fficiient falling g shape, drag coefficient ffrom fr om m 0.28 0.2 28 to to 0.26. 0..2 26. 6. It’s It’ t s rear-drive r ar-drive re ass standard, sta tand n ar nd ard, d, though tho h ug ugh h some som as-yett unsp un spec sp eccifi ified e m ed arke ar kets kets t w ill get 4W WD. D unspecified markets will 4WD.

2

It’s keeping p g tthings hings light

By employing e loying yet more emp alu lumin m ium in the XF’s aluminium con co construction, onstr struc uc ion uct i , Jag has ha managed to reduce red uce c we weight eigh i t further ffurther, h , claiming the new ew w ca ccarr has has los lostt aass much as 180kg, sp spe or spe spec. c. The ba ase diesel XF, specc ffor base we we’ we’re e ree tol told told, d, iss 80k d, 80kg g ligh llighter i ter t than its nea n ares est ccompetitor, est om eti omp etitor tor,, thou tthough hough g Jaguar nearest doesn’ doe s t spec sn’ sspecify pecify pe ify wh who o it it cons cconsiders onsiders doesn’t compet com p ito pe pet t rs (we to (we’re ’re as assum su ing BMW competitors assuming a Merc and Mercc rat rrather h r th her han, sa say, y Ariel than, and nd d Ca Cater erham er h …). ham ha …) Caterham…).

Cabin features es novel application n of ‘technology’ y’

D E E N U O Y S G N I H T 3 T U O B A W O N T O K JA G X F W E N E H T e new it u q y ll a e r , E X n ger than a ig b , J X n a n a th r Smalle

Next up: the Ariel MPV-convertible. Well, we can dream

4

It’s a whole lot cleverer

Against Germany’s big three, the XF has long lagged in the tech department. The new car aims to digitally stick it to the Deutschlanders: on the inside, there’s lofty talk of 60GB solid-state hard drives, WiFi hotspots and colour head-up displays. Outside – as well as the standard gamut of lane-keep assist, auto-braking and adaptive cruise control – the XF promises to ‘intelligently’ keep to local speed limits, monitoring signage and adapting the car’s speed accordingly.

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5

No N o V8... V8... yet ye t

Thee XF T Th XF’s ’s llaunch ’s aunc au nch h po powe powerplants w rplants centre cent ce ntree o on n JL J JLR’s R’s ne R’ new Ingenium modular engine i range, with ith a 2 2.0, 0 4cyl turbodiesel in two states of tune: 161 and 178bhp. The former promises CO2 emissions as low as 104g/km and economy as lofty as 71.7mpg, which Jag reckons is class-leading for non-hybrids. Less sensibly, you can opt for a 3.0 V6 in diesel or supercharged petrol flavour, the latter making a healthy 375bhp. No word on an XF-R armed with Jag’s trusty 5.0-litre V8, but fear not, it’ll be along soon enough.

It faces much competition

Until this year, the XF was Jaguar’s smallest saloon, with only the vast XJ for 4dr company. But now the XE is on the scene, Jag’s aluminium-clad answer to the BMW 3-Series saloon is aiming to undermine its big brother. Throw in same-size rivals from the Merc E-Class and BMW 5-Series – along with Audi’s soon-to-be-replaced A6, Infiniti Q70, Lexus GS, Maserati Ghibli and likely a few others – and the XF looks to have its work cut out.

New STI-spec suspension is stiffer, redder, yellower

WING NUT

BRuiZer: it’s the 450bhp STI coupe

Manual gearbox remains. Sensible power output doesn’t

GT86 twin gets kitted out with a full-fat race engine and much wing. Just build it, Subarut BY VIJAY PAT TNI

Y

\b dN[aRQ N ]_\]R_ Âť_R breathing Subaru BRZ STI? You got one. Only there’s one slight problem: it’s a \[R \Ăž P\[PR]a 3\_ [\d ARPU[VPNYYf aUV` @A6 =R_S\_ZN[PR 0\[PR]a V` N ZN_XRaV[T a\\Y a\ ORaaR_ NP^bNV[a aUR B@. dVaU the fabled Subaru tuning brand. But what a tool. The BRZ has been a_RNaRQ a\ Y\dR_ `aVĂžR_ @A6 `]RP `b`]R[`V\[ [Rd %V[ NYY\f` Pb`a\Z /_RZO\ QV`P` N[Q ]NQ` N Z\[`aR_ _RN_ dV[T N [Rd NR_\ ]NPXNTR V[PYbQV[T S_\[a N[Q _RN_ ObZ]R_` N[Q `VQR `XV_a` N ÂźReVOYR `a_ba O_NPR and a whopping great engine. Out goes the standard BRZ’s 2.0 [Na N`] RĂž\_a N[Q V[ P\ZR` aUR 27 YVa_R `V[TYR `P_\YY ab_O\ O\eR_ S_\Z @bON_b´` Z\[`aR_ 4A _NPR_ FR] Va´` N SbYYf ÂźRQTRQ _NPV[T R[TV[R =\dR_ V` \Ă&#x;PVNYYf ^b\aRQ Na !"OU] N[Q YO Sa \S a\_^bR Oba @bON_b´` 1\ZV[VPX 6[SN[aR aRYY` TG aUR P\[PR]a PN_ NPabNYYf ]_\QbPR` PY\`R_ a\ !" OU]

ÂąAURf ^b\aR Va Y\dR_ Oba aUNa´` just an agreement between the 7N]N[R`R ZN[bSNPab_R_` ² 6[SN[aR T_V[` Âą6[ aUR _NPR `R_VR` aURf downgrade their power, but in reality ÂŻ V[ aUV` P\[PR]a PN_ ÂŻ aUNa R[TV[R ZNXR` !" ² AUNa R[TV[R V` ZNaPURQ a\ N `a_\[TR_ `Ve `]RRQ TRN_O\e \S P\b_`R driving the rear wheels. The new O\Qfd\_X ZRN[dUVYR UN` ORR[ aU\_\bTUYf dV[Q ab[[RY aR`aRQ `\ \bTUa a\ XRR] f\b NR_\Qf[NZVPNYYf dRYQRQ a\ f\b_ Y\PNY a_NPX \S PU\VPR Here’s the bad news: this BRZ is `a_VPaYf N QR`VT[ `abQf N[Q [\a YVXRYf a\ _RNPU b` N[f aVZR `\\[ ÂąAUV` V` [\a N ]_\QbPaV\[ PN_( dR Q\ [\a V[aR[Q a\ O_V[T Va a\ ZN_XRa ² @bON_b´` :VPUNRY :P5NYR aRYY` b` 5\dRcR_ 6[SN[aR \ĂžR_` `\ZR hope. “If it is made, I would assume it d\bYQ P\ZR a\ aUR B8 ² UR `Nf` Âą6a d\bYQ OR RN`VR_ ORPNb`R Va´` NY_RNQf ?51 ² .[Q V[ aUR @aNaR`, Âą6[ aUR B@ ]R\]YR Q\[´a X[\d dU\ @A6 N_R ² .SaR_ aUV` dR `b`]RPa aURf dVYY

Blame wind tunnel testing for that front end

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THE KNOWLEDGE THIS MONTH’S IMPORTANT NEWS, IN BITE-SIZED MORSELS

1

Hot streak: it’s the Boxster Spyder

Jon Olsson has made a 1,000bhp RS6 Swedish pro skier treats Audi’s brutish family barge to a DTMinspired upgrade. Highlights include wide-arch bodywork, a carbon-fibre roofbox and Veyron-rivalling power. Fear nothing but width restrictors

Porsche’s run of need-it-now fast cars continues with this tent-roofed Boxster

P

orsche can’t stop itself, can it? Fresh from sponging up the drool from the recent unveil of the Cayman GT4 and 911 GT3 RS, it’s putting localised flood defences at risk again with this: a re-boot of 2010’s Boxster Spyder. What you’re looking at is a MkIII Boxster with a hand-cranked fabric roof that covers the open bit between the header rail and the new swoopy aerodynamic pods over the rear bodywork. Beneath that bodywork lurks the 375bhp, 3.8-litre flat-six from the 911 Carrera S, making this the most powerful Boxster yet. Front- and rear-end styling is lifted pretty much wholesale from the Cayman GT4, and although the Spyder weighs 30kg less than the Cayman GTS, Porsche engineers managed to

Camping just got a whole lot more fun...

lop 55kg from the Boxster, before replacing 25kg in the shape of extra mechanical hardware. It can be made fairly hardcore, too: aircon and a radio are both options, it’s manual-only, and the suspension is lowered 20mm. With more power and less weight than any other Boxster, it’s no surprise that the 0-62mph time stands at a healthy 4.5secs, while the top speed is 180mph. Given that Porsche knows a thing or two about making the already excellent chassis yield a little more magic, we can’t help but feel this might just be a bit of a peach. The last version became quite the collector’s item, and with an expensive-for-a-Boxster but reasonablefor-an-investment list price of £60,459, the new Spyder looks like yet another Porsche you wouldn’tt mind winning the lottery for. wouldn

2

3

You can now buy a £149k Range Rover

JLR’s Special Ops unit propels RR into Bentley Bentayga territory, through application of much leather, much wood and, more strangely, a pair of seats that emerge from the split tailgate. How the other half sit...

The Vantage GT3 is now Vantage GT12

Aston’s race-inspired, 600bhp Vantage V12 gets hasty rename, after Porsche claims ownership of ‘GT3’ badge for road cars. No word if that extra bootlid number will raise the original £250,000 asking price

MX-5 GETS SHARPER Club version of Mazda’s new roadster promises even fizzier fizz Mazda has turned mindreader in response to our thoughts on the new MX-5. Already on the way is a new MX-5 Club, complete with tighter Bilstein dampers, a proper limited-slip diff, strut brace and subtle bodykit. There’s a small ‘but’, mind: the kit is US-only at the moment, and limited to the 2.0-litre engine rather than the sweet 1.5 we like so much.

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Stiffer dampers and a proper LSD = the MX-5 we always wanted

4

Cadillac’s CT6 is quite, quite enormous

Grand, pointy exec barge is 518cm of all-American luxury. But there’s no V8 here: instead, the CT6 gets a twinturbo, 400bhp V6 driving all four wheels. And there’s a 2.0-litre on the way. What’s the USA coming to?

Is the Lincoln Continental a big copy-cat? Bentley’s designer reckons Ford’s luxury arm has been at his photocopier. Ollie Kew investigates

Left: Lincoln Continental. Right: Bentley Flying Spur. We think

One of these is the rear of the new Lincoln, and one is Audi’s A8-previewing Prolog Pro logue log ue concept from 2014. Er… Prologue

The 21 21-inch turbine-style wheels Th i ch tur urrbin bine-s e-s -ssty tyl ylee whee w heels hee ls are re gorgeous. And very Saab Aero-X-esque, to us. Also possibly inspired by Saab is the wraparound rear light unit

That big Lincoln looks… somewhat familiar. You’re not the only one Y w who thinks so. Desperate to rejuvenate its geriatric image, Ford’s luxury arm hit on the idea of a grand new limousine to steal the 2015 New York motor show, in the shape of the giant Continental concept. Unfortunately it wafted right into the cross hairs of Bentley’s chief designer, Luc Don Do n Donckerwolke. The Belgian saw sa aw too many similarities to his o ow own Flying Spur, and u unleashed a tirade of abuse in the traditional forum for iintellectual property theft. Ca ar Design Monthly? Car No, Facebook. “Do you want us to send you the product tooling?” Donckerwolke raged, posting a swiftly deleted

comment to Lincoln’s designer David Woodhouse. Donckerwolke, who also penned the Lamborghini Murciélago and Audi A2 in his time, continued: “I would have called it Flying Spur concept and kept the four round lights.” Ouch. It’s not often such seething anger boils over in the oh-so-corporate world of car design. But there are undeniable similarities between Bentley’s Continental-based four-door and Lincoln’s, um, four-door Continental. That kinked shoulderline, the stout glasshouse, and most [\aVPRNOYf aUR OYbÞ TN]V[T grille all echo Crewe’s £150,000 super-barge.

But all cars look pretty much the same nowadays. True. In a world of increasing regulation, it’s inherently QVßPbYa a\ ZNXR PN_` Y\\X Sb[QNZR[aNYYf QVÞR_R[a especially when the design briefs – a large, upright three-box saloon, in this case – are so similar. Some would say Bentley is no stranger to homage itself, Geneva’s lovely Speed 6 coupe concept N_TbNOYf \dV[T N Q\Þ \S aUR PN] to Jaguar’s F-Type. So everyone’s borrowing from everyone else? Well, if Bentley is spoiling for an art attack, Luc & Co might do well to team up with Audi and Saab (whatever’s left of it), both of which can lay claim to inspiring touches on Lincoln’s P_bPVNY _RcVcNY RÞ\_a©

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PAUL HORRELL ON…

THE MECHANICS OF CHOICE Is it possible to have too many options? PH thinks so

A

udi makes about 50 models, but says it’ll hit 60 by AUR QR»[VaV\[ \S ³Z\QRY´ ORV[T N O\Qf `afYR [\a Wb`a N ]\dR_a_NV[ B[YR`` Va´` N[ @ \_ ?@ V[ dUVPU PN`R Va Q\R` P\b[a `Nf` .bQV AUV` Re]N[`V\[ dVYY OR`a\d \[ b` N > N[Q >% N P\b]R V`U cR_`V\[ \S aUR >" N > `VgRQ P_\``\cR_ dVaU `\_a \S AA `afYV[T N OVT »cR `RNa ]b_R RYRPa_VP PN_ dVaU Va` \d[ QR`VT[ N `ZNaaR_V[T \S Rea_N @` N[Q ?@` .[Q R_ `\ZR \aUR_ aUV[T` :R_PRQR` /R[g UN` NQQRQ `\ ZN[f PN_` aUNa Va _N[ \ba \S YRaaR_ [NZR` N[Q UNQ a\ `aN_a NTNV[ N[Q /:D UN` Z\_R a\ P\ZR a\\ YVXR aUR `RcR[ `RNa 4_N[ A\b_R_ dUVPU d\bYQ[´a VZ]_R`` my 4_N[ dR_R `UR `aVYY dVaU b` /ba aUR R[Q ZVTUa Wb`a ZVTUa OR V[ `VTUa 6 N`XRQ 6N[ ?\OR_a`\[ /:D´` TY\ONY `NYR` N[Q ZN_XRaV[T PUVRS NO\ba aUV` ZNQ ]_\YVSR_NaV\[ ±AUR PUR``O\N_Q \S ]_\QbPa` V` ORP\ZV[T ^bVaR SbYY ² UR \]V[RQ aUR[ P\[»_ZRQ aUNa aUR :V[V _N[TR dVYY NPabNYYf Q_\] S_\Z `RcR[ a\ »cR DVYY aUR d\_YQ OR N ]\\_R_ ]YNPR dVaU\ba aUNa dRV_Q ad\ `RNa 0\b]R \_ aUR =NPRZN[, ;\a [\aVPRNOYf 6 ]ba Va a\ UV` \]]\`VaR [bZOR_ Na .bQV 9bPN QR :R\ aUNa RcR_f\[R V` TRaaV[T P\[Sb`RQ ±6 NT_RR ² UR `U\a ONPX ±/ba f\b W\b_[NYV`a` N`XRQ dUf dR QVQ[´a UNcR Z\_R @BC` ² .U `\ Va´` NYY Zf SNbYa ±@\ dR dVYY ZNXR Z\_R > Z\QRY` `aN_aV[T dVaU N `ZNYYR_ \[R DR QVQ aUR . `NY\\[ Z\`aYf S\_ aUR B@ N[Q 0UV[N ² 1R :R\ NQZVaaRQ Va´` PY\`R a\ O_RNXV[T ]\V[a ±AUR Pb`a\ZR_ V[ Q\R`[´a UNcR _\\Z V[ UV` URNQ S\_ aURZ NYY [\_ aUR `NYR`ZN[ V[ VS UV` `U\d_\\Z 1RNYR_` PN[ `U\d \[Yf NO\ba " PN_` ² ;\ b`R VS f aUR_R N_R # V[ aUR _N[TR AUR QRNYR_` N_R TRaaV[T `\ZR ]_Raaf [Q dUVgg\ cV_abNY _RNYVaf N[Q `VZbYNaV\[ a\\Y` `\ f\b PN[ ]_RaR[Q a\ f\b_`RYS f\b´cR NPabNYYf `RR[ aUV` VaRZ f\b´_R NO\ba a\ Q_\] aR[` \S aU\b`N[Q` \[ ?\OR_a`\[ `NVQ aUNa V[ ]_R dRO QNf` ]R\]YR dR[a a\ N QRNYR_ S\b_ \_ »cR aVZR` ORS\_R ObfV[T ;\d aURf Q\ aURV_ _R`RN_PU \[YV[R N[Q T\ Wb`a \[PR N[Q RcR[ Na aUR QRNYR_ aURf Z\`aYf Re]R_VR[PR aUR PN_ V[ aUR cV_abNY _RNYZ /ba UR `NVQ aUNa N aR`a Q_VcR V` `aVYY cVaNY ±6a´` N[ RZ\aV\[NY ]b_PUN`R N[Q f\b [RRQ ]Uf`VPNY V[aR_NPaV\[ ² /ba URPX a\\ ZbPU PU\VPR V` `VZ]Yf ]N_NYf`V[T 3NPRQ dVaU UNcV[T a\ ]VPX ORadRR[ N Ub[Q_RQ `VZVYN_ aUV[T`

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“Will the world be a poorer place without the Paceman?”

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News

MAXimization

Nissan unveils the new Maxima at the New York Auto Show BY ADEL HABIB hat’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.” It’s a decent question, albeit not one that keeps the automotive marketing gurus tasked with naming cars up at night— to their lot, names matter, and quite a bit. Unless you go with the old alphanumeric standby, which lacks something of the whimsy of say, er, the probably-not-to-be-announced Lotus Joie de Vivre. Would an R8 then, be any faster or dexterous if they dubbed it the Audi King Slayer (apologies, Game of Thrones has started up again). Anyway, it’s something I spend too much time thinking about— was the Ford Aspire meant to encourage aspiration towards a better car? Was the Mitsubishi Galant intended for persons with impeccable manners? Is the Nissan Altima an alternate or ultimate car? Or, is it somehow both? I require answers, but also suspect that they’re unlikely to be forthcoming. The good news is, the Nissan Maxima leaves very little to the imagination—the Max’ is Nissan’s range topping saloon and, honestly, it has to be given its name. By that metric, it’s not surprising

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that Nissan decided to roll out their greatest saloon in the greatest city on earth, New York. Nissan’s President and CEO Carlos Ghosn was on hand to show off the 2016 Maxima, which he described as their “4 Door Sports Car.” The Max makes 300hp out of its revised 3.5-liter VQseries V6 engine, which Nissan says retains about 40% of the parts from the outgoing model, making it more than half new. They’re also projecting better efficiency, with highway fuel economy bettering the outgoing car by 15%, although the official numbers aren’t in yet. Part of that efficiency is at the behest of Nissan’s new “Xtronic transmission featuring a wider ratio range, which allows for stronger acceleration from a standing start and an all-new D-Step shifting logic that provides rapid shifts at high throttle openings.” That all sounds pretty impressive and, no doubt, we’ll get a chance to try this apparently sporty CVT and let you know just what they’re on about. This curvaceous new Maxima looks a bit sleeker, and faster than the previous iteration owing to Nissan’s V-Motion design signature at the front end, kick-up C-pillars, requisite boomerang lights, and an almost floating roofline. The front

grille resists the oversized maws that are so trendy these days, opting for something that humbly borrows from, er, GT-R. Inside, the Maxima is comfy and full of technology, which is de rigueur for any full size saloon these days. The Max comes standard with Nissan Connect with navigation, featuring an 8.0-inch touch-screen display. There’s also a standard 7.0-inch driver display nestled in the instrument cluster covering the basics. There’s also a fair bit of safety tech on offer too, including Predictive Forward Collision Warning, Intelligent Cruise Control, Forward Emergency Braking, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and Blind Spot Warning, as wells as a Driver Attention Alert system that monitors steering input and watches for changes in activity levels that could indicate a drowsy or distracted driver— which is great, unless you are paying attention and it keeps pinging you to wake up (not that I’ve had that experience in a Nissan product). The new Maxima maximizes its good looks, fuel efficiency, an intriguing power plant, and a boatload of tech (not that the car is a boat). We’re still wondering about that CVT, but only time behind the wheel will tell.

Maxima is comfy and full of technology, which is de rigueur for any full size saloon these days.

The Max makes 300hp out of its revised 3.5-liter VQ-series V6 engine, which Nissan says retains about 40% of the parts from the outgoing model, making it more than half new. TOPGEAR.COM

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250,000 Length, in miles of roads in the UK

87%

of the total road length is made up of minor roads. Motorways and A-roads account for 1% and 12% respectively

20%

of the all road traffic is carried on motorways. Despite making up only 1% of total road length In general, 1% fewer cars equals

18%

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“Traffic flow even has an equation, expressed as Q = KV”

less congestion Even self-driving cars could bring about congestion

One man’s lost Twiglet. Many people’s misery...

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THE TFL MOTHERSHIP

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of London’s roads carry...

of London’s traffic...

5% 30%

Piccadilly Circus – not for nothing is it a synonym for busy

car trips per day in London

10,000,000

While motorway managers have three, maybe four lanes to play with, their urban counterparts are often stuck with narrow streets as dated as the Victorian sewers below. Some of the stress is relieved by underground railways and buses, but think about it: our streets are the only part of the transport network that runs 24/7, 365 days a year, no matter who’s on strike. At Transport for London’s command bunker in south 9\[Q\[ Va´` PUVRS \]R_NaV[T \Ă&#x;PR_ 4N__Raa 2ZZR_`\[´` W\O a\ ZNXR `b_R aUR PVaf´` a_NĂ&#x;P Âź\d` V[ N GR[ YVXR manner‌ like a stream trickling through a Japanese garden. That’s the idea, anyway. His team’s toolkit includes 5,000 CCTV cameras and # `Ra` \S a_NĂ&#x;P YVTUa` ÂŻ NYY Z\[Va\_RQ V[ aUR P\[a_\Y _\\Z dUVPU V` ONaURQ V[ `\Sa dUVaR YVTUa S_\Z dNYY a\ dNYY monitors. Also in here are bus controllers (the drivers act as eyes on the ground) and the Met Police’s road division (at any incident, cops are most likely to OR aUR Âť_`a O\\a` \[ aUR T_\b[Q /ba Va´` aUR a_NĂ&#x;P YVTUa` aUNa U\YQ aUR XRf a\ RcR_faUV[T ÂąAUV[X \S Va N` ORV[T YVXR aUR `RdR_` ² `Nf` 4N__Raa ÂąF\b Q\[´a dN[a RcR_faUV[T Sb[[RYYRQ a\ \[R ]YNPR \_ a\ Âź\\Q any of the pipes. So it’s about opening the taps at the right time.â€? AUR a_NĂ&#x;P YVTUa` aUR[ N_R aUR aN]` .[Q \cR_ UNYS are controlled automatically by a system called SCOOT: aUR @]YVa 0fPYR <Ăž`Ra <]aVZV`NaV\[ ARPU[V^bR B`V[T magnetometer detectors buried in the road, it senses how well vehicles are moving at a particular location and locations nearby. It then crunches this data to make PNYPbYNaV\[` \[ N `RP\[Q Of `RP\[Q ON`V` N[Q ORTV[` a\ _R ]UN`R YVTUa aVZV[T` N[Q b[PY\T aUR NĂžRPaRQ _\NQ And what of the CCTV? “Seeing everything is vital, so you know exactly what’s going on and which bit to b[OY\PX ² `Nf` 4N__Raa /ba f\b PN[´a Z\[Va\_ aU\b`N[Q` of cameras at once, which is why those magnetometers are so important. .` dRYY N` d\_XV[T YVcR aURf NY`\ SRRQ V[a\ ÂťcR TVN[a servers, which store a massive body of data collected from _RNY W\b_[Rf` \cR_ ZN[f fRN_` AUV` V` SRQ V[a\ a_NĂ&#x;P S\_RPN`aV[T Z\QRY` _RZRZOR_ aUNa Âź\d R^bNaV\[ S_\Z earlier?), which use the numbers to work out newer, better dNf` a\ ]UN`R aUR YVTUa` Na N[f TVcR[ aVZR ÂŻ N :\[QNf morning rush hour, for example. Of course, even the smartest algorithms can’t predict P\Z]YRaRYf _N[Q\Z RcR[a` dUVPU ÂŻ dUR[ Va P\ZR` a\ a_NĂ&#x;P ÂŻ N_R RcR[ UN_QR_ aUN[ ]_RQVPaV[T aUR dRNaUR_ /RPNb`R dUVYR aUR :Ra <Ă&#x;PR ZVTUa `RR N `a\_Z `dV_YV[T V[ S_\Z aUR .aYN[aVP ORS\_R Va UVa` U\d N_R a_NĂ&#x;P P\[a_\YYR_` supposed to know that Big Dave’s taxi V` NO\ba a\ O_RNX Q\d[ V[ aUR 2b`a\[ B[QR_]N``, In that event, or even when there’s an unexpected ÂŻ \SaR[ `aVYY Zf`aR_V\b` ÂŻ ]RNX V[ QRZN[Q Va´` aVZR S\_ humans to take control. First they’ll get eyes on the ]_\OYRZ dVaU aU\`R W\f`aVPX P\[a_\YYRQ 00AC PNZR_N` Next they’ll decide whether anything should be physically removed, be it a knackered lorry or a lost goose. Then comes the magic bit: overriding the lights to clear aUR ONPXY\T Âą2``R[aVNYYf aUR_R dVYY OR Z\_R T_RR[ YVTUa` on routes leading away from problem,â€? `Nf` 4N__Raa @\b[Q` `VZ]YR 6`[´a

This is all done by brainy people who watch lines of code roll up their screens, indicating light phases N[Q _RNY aVZR SRRQ` \S V[QVcVQbNY cRUVPYR` ]N``V[T over sensors, each represented by a series of digits. Sometimes they type a few numbers here, or a few letters there, each of which corresponds to a smidgen more or YR`` T_RR[ YVTUa aVZR `\ZRdUR_R V[ aUR _RNY d\_YQ 6a´` YVXR a cross between The Matrix and watching the football scores come up on the old videprinter. “Sometimes people say, ‘It’s gridlock out there,’â€? `Nf` 4N__Raa Âą/ba Va d\[´a OR ORPNb`R TR[R_NYYf aUR_R´` always some spare capacity somewhere on the network. 6a´` `VZ]Yf Q\d[ a\ aUR ]R\]YR N[Q `f`aRZ` a\ Âť[Q aUNa space when it’s needed. “The art of what’s possible is increasing all the time, with every day and every journey,â€? he says. “Thanks to SCOOT and those sensors, we have a more forensic understanding of how it works. But ultimately, the better aUR V[S\_ZNaV\[ f\b TRa a\ Pb`a\ZR_` aUR ORaaR_ aUR Âź\d² .[Q aUNa N` f\b´YY `RR V[ aUR [Rea `RPaV\[ V` dUR_R V[ PN_ gadgets come in‌

“Even the smartest algorithms can’t predict entirely random events�

TfL is like the Matrix. These people are digital

PLANET / THE SCIENCE OF TRAFFIC Nav maker collects your GPS data and feeds it back to you

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TOP 10 CONGESTED UK CITIES

Until the time comes when all cars talk directly to each other, the most reliable way to avoid jams is with a decent `Na[Nc :\`a [Nc ZNXR_` UNcR N YVcR a_NĂ&#x;P `R_cVPR N` Q\ map apps for smartphones. But how do they know where aUR a_NĂ&#x;P Yb_X`, .[Q U\d Q\ aURf aNXR f\b N_\b[Q Va, 9VXR Z\`a \aUR_ YVcR a_NĂ&#x;P `f`aRZ` A\ZA\Z ÂŻ dUVPU we’ll use as an example here – collects live data from three main sources: 1) individual satnav units, whether you’ve bought one from Halfords or if your car’s in-dash navigation uses a TomTom-based system, 2) commercial cN[ N[Q a_bPX ÂźRRa` N[Q `ZN_a]U\[R` dVaU aUR 4=@ function switched on. “They all send speed measurements back to our cloud cVN 4=@ ² `Nf` ;VPX 0\U[ aUR P\Z]N[f´` `R[V\_ a_NĂ&#x;P expert. “We put that all into a big data fusion machine that ÂťYaR_` N[Q PYRN[` aUR V[S\ N[Q ÂťTb_R` \ba dUVPU ]N_a` N_R reliable. It then updates the picture of the road network RcR_f `RP\[Q` ² AUR V[S\_ZNaV\[ V` aUR[ `R[a QV_RPaYf NTNV[ cVN N 4=@ signal, to individual satnav units. It takes the data and runs it through its internal routing calculation software. The routing algorithm always looks for the fastest route, but not necessarily via rat runs – in fact, it pushes you to the highest class of road available, but if that’s going to take half an hour longer, it will look at the next road class down, and so on. But doesn’t that just move the problem from one place to another? “We don’t actually see your route in the cloud,â€? says Nick, “because it lives in your individual unit and is

tailored to your route and destination. But let’s say you had a big lump of people with the same destination – a football match, for example – all travelling on the same motorway. 6[ aUR Âť_`a ZV[baR aURf ZVTUa NYY TRa aUR `NZR _\baR advice, but in the second minute, the software will spot the problem and the next people behind will be routed somewhere else.â€? So the information ripples backwards, allowing those further behind to divert before they reach the problem (unlike those poor souls we discussed earlier, who are unwittingly driving straight into trouble). There’s other information to consider, such as roadworks, planned closures and accident reports from local authorities. How does that feed in? “We collect information from wherever we can, for events like the London Marathon, and a special team puts those into our data feed manually,â€? says Nick. So that should keep Garrett happy over at TfL‌ And like Garrett’s giant database, TomTom has a similar load of research up its sleeve. Each unit’s navigation engine is based on years of measurements, dUVPU N_R RZORQQRQ V[ aUR ZN]` @]RRQ ]_\ÂťYR` T\ ONPX a\ 2007 and are split by time of the day, day of the week, where delays tend to occur and how long they take to clear. @\ RcR[ VS f\b Q\[´a `bO`P_VOR a\ YVcR a_NĂ&#x;P `R_cVPR` f\b_ nav still has some idea of what to avoid. But to really beat the jams, it’s probably worth spending N SRd ^bVQ \[ aUR YVcR `abĂž 6[ SNPa `abQVR` UNcR `U\d[ aUNa if just 10 per cent of drivers had access to good, real-time information, overall congestion would OR `VT[VÂťPN[aYf _RQbPRQ /ba aUV` QR]R[Q` \[ dURaUR_ there’s actually an alternative route on the network – you might not put a dent in a London rush hour, but if you went to a smaller city, where things aren’t so crammed, you could win back some lost travel time. “Ultimately, we could get a lot more out of our current road networks,â€? says Nick. “There are some routes that people just aren’t using.â€? This is good news for everyone, but especially for those of us who enjoy driving for the hell of it. And we’re not just talking about improving commute times: the tech could be easily adapted to notify you when your favourite road is empty. “In a sense, we already do that with live services,â€? says Nick. “The information ReV`a` DR Q\[´a UNcR N `]RPVÂťP ]_\QbPa S\_ T_RNa Q_VcV[T roads yet, but we could do something good based on driver preferences.â€? If it happens, that ‘fastest route’ option would take on an altogether more literal meaning. Just don’t tell the ants, OK?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

BELFAST LONDON EDINBURGH BRISTOL BRIGHTON & HOVE MANCHESTER LEEDS-BRADFORD SHEFFIELD LIVERPOOL NOTTINGHAM

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041

Ask

Uncle TopGear OUR MYSTERIOUS AGONY UNCLE TRIES TO SOLVE YOUR DILEMMAS. SORRY IF HE GETS A BIT GRUMPY PLANET / ASK UNCLE TOPGEAR When the zombies attack, all you’ll need is a Defender. Um

Dear Uncle TG I’ve got a Fiat 500 Twinair which I like very much, but I find it isn’t as economical as the brochures claimed. Is there anything I can do to use less petrol? Jan, by email Don’t drive as far.

Dear Uncle TG I’m very interested in the Nissan Leaf electric car. What do you think? RT, by email I’m very interested in Beckton Sewage Treatment Works, but that doesn’t mean I want to get inside it.

Dear Uncle TG

ILLUSTRATION: BILL M C CONKEY

I heard that they’re going to stop making the Land Rover Defender and so I started looking around at secondhand ones, but I can’t believe how expensive they are. Why are they so expensive? Ian, by email I believe it comes down to the Land Rover Defender’s air of toughness and unstoppability which has an enduring appeal for anyone who fears that at any moment the world could be brought to its knees by nuclear war or zombie attack and that, come the apocalypse, what they need to survive is a slow, leaky lorry. Personally, I believe that when the end is near, reliability will be the key to survival, which is why for the past 10 years I’ve been hoarding Toyota Corollas, Casio watches and the broadcaster Huw Edwards.

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EMAIL US YOUR QUERIES FOR UNCLE TG...

Dear Uncle TG

Dear Uncle TG

I was looking for a secondhand Volkswagen Golf automatic and I found one which apparently has a ‘DSG’ gearbox. Can you explain, what is DSG? Sam, by email

Is a Renault Megane Scenic a good buy? Peter, Handforth

askuncletopgear @bbctopgear magazine.com

You may be familiar with the flavour enhancer MSG. It’s like that, except it makes things more bland.

Dear Uncle TG

Dear Uncle TG Scenic: good for school runs, not so good if you’re p plummeting g to Earth

Help! My Alfa 159 has a rattle! Peter, London Trust me, Peter... the time to worry is when the rattling stops.

Not if you’re hungry. Or very urgently need a parachute.

I’m about to inspect a 1999 BMW 728i that I found for a tempting price online. What should I look out for? Tig, by email Badger wasps. Yes, they exist, they are out there, and they are swines. Please don’t ask me any more about them. I’ve said too much.

MY OTHER CAR IS...

THE ALLSEAS PIONEERING SPIRIT

TG TOP

FA C T

Pione er are w ing Spirit’s o bigge rking on a makers n eve r vers n io comp letion n, due for in 20 20

m 650ER

GOT AN OIL RIG TO SHIFT? YOU’LL NEED THE WORLD’S BIGGEST SHIP The perfect transportation for your evil lair?

SPEC SHEET MANUFACTURER Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering ENGINE 8x diesel generators PROPULSION 12x azimuth thrusters (propellers) POWER 127,404bhp TOP SPEED 16mph LENGTH 382 metres

How does it work?

First, the topside of the rig is emptied and the legs, which can stretch hundreds of feet to the seabed, are sliced. The ship then straddles the rig, placing it between the two hulls.

Sounds romantic…

Eight giant arms then grab the topside of the rig and hold it steady. They constantly adjust their tension like a car’s adaptive suspension, to compensate for the pitch of the waves.

Then what?

Ballast water is pumped out of the hulls to raise the decks, so the ship and rig bob free in a sort of floating cuddle, leaving the legs behind. It works a bit like a seagoing forklift.

What about the legs?

They’re pulled out of the water, vertically, by a winch and crane system on the ship’s stern. Once lifted, the crane frame – still carrying the legs – pivots backwards and lies flat on the deck.

WIDTH 124 metres

Won’t it drift on the tide?

The 12 propellers, made by Rolls-Royce, can spin through 360 degrees and act like thrusters, to constantly nudge the ship into a precise position in the water, determined by a GPS system.

One more thing…

GROSS TONNAGE 403,342 LIFT CAPACITY 48,000 tonnes CREW 571

Previously disposing of a rig would take months, but with the Pioneering Spirit it takes only a few days. With many North Sea wells running dry, it has a busy few years ahead…

PRICE £1.7 billion

PLANET TG / #003

SEA KINGS

1. Shell Prelude Essentially a giant, floating gas plant

2. Allure of the Seas The world’s joint-biggest cruise ships

PHOTOS: KEITH SKIPPER

THE WORLD’S LARGEST FLOATERS IN ONE HANDY PLACE 3. CSCL Globe The biggest container ship, from China TOPGEAR.COM

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A VOICE OF REASON IN THE LAND OF THE FREE

PART 10: DIESEL

P L A N E T / O N LY I N A M E R I C A hy doesn’t the US buy and drive more diesel-powered cars? Fine question. On the face of it they `U\bYQ OR aUR Âť_`a ]VPX S\_ B@ Z\a\_V`a` DVaU Q_VcV[T aUR_R ORV[T NYY NO\ba Y\d R[Q a\_^bR ÂŻ NPPRYR_NaV[T NdNf S_\Z aUR ZVYYV\[` \S Wb[PaV\[` ÂŻ N[Q P_bV`V[T Na YNbTUNOYf Y\d `]RRQ` \[ aUR S_RRdNf` \cR_ Y\[T QV`aN[PR` f\b´Q aUV[X aUNa aUR_R´Q OR N UbTR QRZN[Q S\_ aUR \VY Ob_[R_` So why isn’t there, then? AUR OVTTR`a _RN`\[ V` N YRTNPf V``bR /NPX V[ aUR YNaR @RcR[aVR` dUR[ aUR B@ dN` NeYR QRR] V[ N[ \VY `U\_aNTR PNb`RQ Of `\ZR O\aUR_ V[ aUR :VQQYR 2N`a ÂŻ N `VabNaV\[ aUNa R_ P\[aV[bR` a\QNf ÂŻ aUR Nba\ V[Qb`a_f dN` Y\\XV[T Na RcR_f dNf a\ ZNXR \VY T\ Sb_aUR_ 3V_`a aURf a_VRQ Wb`a PU\XV[T aUR YVSR \ba \S aUR OVT ]Ra_\Y R[TV[R` ÂŻ Wb`a Y\\X Na aUR ]NaURaVP ]\dR_ \ba]ba` \S `\ZR ZVQ @RcR[aVR` PN_` ÂŻ aUR[ <YQ`Z\OVYR QRPVQRQ a\ Âťa N QVR`RY V[ &$% I’m guessing that didn’t go well? FR` N[Q [\ DVaU aUR ]\]bYNaV\[ QR`]R_NaR S\_ N[f PN_ aUNa P\bYQ Q\ Z\_R aUN[ Y\d Q\bOYR QVTVa Z]T PN_` ÂťaaRQ dVaU aUR 93& " % YVa_R C% QVR`RY R[TV[R dUVPU V[PYbQRQ NYY aUR \aUR_ 4: O_N[Q`' 0NQVYYNP /bVPX 0URcf =\[aVNP N[Q 4:0 `\YQ _NaUR_ dRYY @NYR` \S aUR YbZ]` ]RNXRQ Na \cR_ V[ &% So what was the problem? AUR R[TV[R dN` N[ NO`\YbaR Q\T 6a `aN_aRQ YVSR V[ &$% dVaU OU] aUR[ dR[a down a\ "OU] V[ Va` YNaR_ V[PN_[NaV\[` AUV` S_\Z N " % YVa_R C% 0\Z]\b[QV[T aUR ]_\OYRZ 4: `U\cRQ \ba `RcR_NY \aUR_ NdSbY QVR`RY R[TV[R` Na aUR `NZR aVZR AUR 93$ dN` N ! YVa_R C% dURRgV[T \ba & OU]( aUR 9A# N[Q 9A$ ! YVa_R C#` P\bTURQ \ba %"OU] .[Q aUR YN`a cR_`V\[ aUR 9@ N [NQV_ \S R[TV[R QR`VT[ N[Q Sb[PaV\[ [\a ZbPU Z\_R V[ &%"

W

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Fast isn’t all; surely it was at least reliable? F\b´Q aUV[X d\bYQ[´a f\b, /ba f\b´Q OR d_\[T .]N_a S_\Z \ĂžR_V[T V[`bYaV[TYf Y\d ]R_S\_ZN[PR aUR R[TV[R` NY`\ UNQ aUR [R_cR a\ OR `aNTTR_V[TYf b[_RYVNOYR a\\ AURf SNVYRQ `\ \SaR[ aUNa _R]NV_ `U\]` QVQ N _\N_V[T a_NQR V[ RePUN[TV[T aUR \VY Ob_[R_` S\_ ]Ra_\Y ]\dR_RQ \[R` ÂŻ aUR QVR`RY dN` N UN`af ZNXR\cR_ \S N ]Ra_\Y b[Va `\ aURf `dN]]RQ RN`VYf Was it all the engine’s fault? ;\a R[aV_RYf 2cR[ aU\bTU aURf dR_R N `U\QQf QVR`RY ZNXR\cR_ aUR ^bNYVaf \S aUR QVR`RY SbRY V[ aUR B@ Na aUNa aVZR P\[a_VObaRQ a\ aUR ]_\OYRZ 6a dN` TR[R_NYYf `\ P\[aNZV[NaRQ dVaU dNaR_ N[Q _bOOV`U Va ]ba \ba N` ZN[f Âť_R` N` Va `aN_aRQ C\QXN d\bYQ UNcR ORR[ Z\_R _RYVNOYR

“Most people in the US think of diesel as a second-class fuelâ€? But that was all 30 years ago. Diesel technology has come on massively since then. 6a UN` /ba aUR `aNV[ aUR`R PN_` YRSa \[ aUR B@ Nba\Z\aVcR P\[`PV\b`[R`` `aVYY UN`[´a T\[R NdNf :\`a ]R\]YR UR_R `aVYY aUV[X \S Va N` N `RP\[Q PYN`` SbRY ÂŻ N[ VZ]_R``V\[ ONPXRQ b] Of Va` _RYNaVcR b[NcNVYNOVYVaf PUVPXR[ N[Q RTT ]_\OYRZ UR_R N[Q ]\`VaV\[V[T \S aUR ]bZ]` V[ N S\_RP\b_a TURaa\ NdNf S_\Z ZNV[ ]Ra_\Y ]bZ] N_RN =Yb` aUR ]_VPR \S QVR`RY V` N_\b[Q "ÂŻ ]R_ PR[a UVTUR_ aUN[ ]Ra_\Y `\ N[f RĂ&#x;PVR[Pf ]_VPR N_TbZR[a RcN]\_NaR` Surely it’s more than a PR problem? 6a V` @V[PR aUR V[a_\QbPaV\[ \S aUR =_Vb` a\ aUR B@ V[ aUR B@ UN` cVRdRQ UfO_VQ` ÂŻ N[Q [\d RYRPa_VP` ÂŻ N` aURV_ ]_RSR__RQ SbRY `NcV[T aRPU[\Y\Tf @\ N` T\\Q N` Z\QR_[ QVR`RY` N_R aURf N_R ÂťTUaV[T [\a \[Yf YRTNPf V``bR` Oba NY`\ UNcV[T a\ SR[Q \Ăž aUR `YVTUaYf `ZbT UfO_VQ Y\OOf =Yb` aUR [\[ UfO_VQ ]Ra_\Y R[TV[R` UNcR ORP\ZR `\ ZbPU Z\_R RĂ&#x;PVR[a V[ aUR YN`a QRPNQR So diesels don’t stand a chance in the US? F\b´Q UNcR a\ `Nf `\ =N_aVPbYN_Yf dVaU aUR _RT` \[ ]N_aVPbYNaR RZV``V\[` UR_R ÂŻ N[Q [\d aUR _R`a \S aUR d\_YQ AUR_R _RNYYf V`[´a N[f T_RNa `RYYV[T ]\V[a \aUR_ aUN[ [\a UNcV[T a\ _RSbRY ^bVaR `\ \SaR[ .[Q RcR[ aUNa´` NYZ\`a N ]_\OYRZ UR_R DVaU aUR NcR_NTR aN[X \S ]Ra_\Y YN`aV[T ZVYR` aUNa´` ^bVaR R[\bTU S\_ Z\`a ]R\]YR ORS\_R aURf UNcR a\ `a\] a\ _RSbRY N[Q dNaR_ aURZ`RYcR`

DREAM DRIVES

THE BEST ROADS IN THE WORLD BROUGHT TO YOU IN WORDS AND PICTURES

Portmagee

Ballinskelligs

RING OF SKELLIG CO. KERRY, IRELAND

WHICH BIT? The 28-mile loop through Portmagee and Ballinskelligs I STILL CAN’T FIND IT‌ Bash this into your satnav: 51.849518, -10.335393 WHEN SHOULD I GO? Summer, but wake early to dodge the tourists WHAT CAR SHOULD I TAKE? Roads are tight, g , so go g small. Fiesta ST

I APPEAR TO HAVE CRASHED‌ So much for luck of the Irish. Dial 112

PHOTO: GETTY, DR. JESSIE SSIE VOIGTS/WANDERING EDUCATORS EDUCAT

Pat Devereux

...and in other

SPUD ‘N’ GUTS

AA mechanic wins prestigious award after mending old Land Rover’s ignition system. With a potato

A MONTH OF NONSENSE ON ONE HANDY PAGE!

ANY RESEMBLANCE TO REAL-LIFE EVENTS IS ENTIRELY DELIBERATE

“It’s like a rollercoaster ride that flies off the track... You just have to wait to land and hope everything does its job for you.”

NUT CASE

Woman takes car to dealer complaining of power loss. Mechanics find hundreds of acorns in the air filter

FLYING FINN Millionaire Reima Kuisla is caught speeding at 64mph in a 50 zone. He is later fined £39,000 for his troubles

Top Fuel drag racer Larry Dixon walks away from a 280mph horror crash after his car splits in two

PLANET TG / #03

ICE-BREAKER

Russian man parks Lada in small ditch overnight. Ditch fills with water. Water freezes solid. Man buys new Lada.

JUDGEMENTAL

Brazilian judge is suspended from highprofile case after driving defendant’s confiscated Porsche home.

FEELING DOZY

US man builds kids a half-tonne, allmetal bulldozer, with 18.5bhp mower engine and a 5mph top speed.

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PROTECT AND SWERVE

Two Secret Service agents crash car into White House security barricade after night of “drinking and partying”.

DOG-EAT-DOG

Man kicks stray dog out of parking space. Parks car. Returns to find pack of dogs chewing it to pieces.

MANUAL LABOUR One of 20 manual Ferrari 599 GTBs sold in US goes for £462k – three times its estimate – at auction

“It’s too dangerous. You can’t have a person driving a twotonne death machine.” Tesla’s Elon Musk reckons autonomous cars can’t come soon enough

“There are certain drivers who don’t respect the traffic police. But with the robot it will be different. We should respect the robot.” Congolese cabbie on the giant traffic robots policing the capital’s streets

PHOTOS: GETTY, REX, SWNS, MARK J. REBILAS-USA TODAY SPORTS, EUROPICS, RYAN MUELLER

NEWS

This month:

Gordon Ramsay Car: Ferrari LaFerrari Verdict: Television’s most sweary chef has his favourite four-letter exclamation embossed on the steering wheel. (Fear not, foul-language prudes – it says ‘done’) TOPGEAR.COM

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GTB IN JBR FERRARI TROTS OUT A NEW PONY IN DUBAI

n the heels of its debut at the Geneva Motor Show, Ferrari hustled over to Dubai for an exclusive launch of the 488 GTB, deep in the heart of supercar country. Unveiled at the Ritz-Carlton some forty years NSaR_ aUR V[a_\QbPaV\[ \S 3R__N_VÂľ` Âź_`a RcR_ ZVQ _RN_ engined V8 Berlinetta, the storied 308, the new 488 GTB both harkens back and looks forward to the horizon line of motoring greatness, celebrating the form. With more than 660 hp on tap, the car is designed to be highly controllable at the outer limits thanks to intricate dynamic vehicle controls that should suit enthusiast and expert alike. Engine and command response times go by in the blink of an eye, or less, at 0.8 and 0.06 seconds respectively, helping keep the car both speedy and stable thanks to a number of proprietary solutions that Ferrari calls “revolutionary,â€? we hope to hear more on that later— like when we get our hands on the car. For the design, Ferrari says it “drew extensively too on its experience in both Formula One and endurance racing, bringing to the road the technology that delivered victory in two editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the title in the WEC (World Endurance Championship). Also pivotal was a programme in which Ferrari’s technicians have developed a unique knowledge of the dynamic behaviour of

O

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“Ferrari hustled over to Dubai for an exclusive launch of the 488 GTB, deep in the heart of supercar country.�

extreme cars driven by non-professional drivers.â€? GTB stands for Gran Turismo Berlinetta, which sound great whether or not you know what it means (a trait of the Italian language, no doubt). And 488 apparently represents displacement, although the V8 turbo is 3902 cc so, er, we’re confused. The car’s killer aesthetic comes courtesy of the Ferrari Styling Centre, and according to Ferrari the 488 GTB represents a completely new shape for Modena. They call it “classically clean, pure lines typical of Ferrari’s legendary styling‌ [interweaving] form and function [in] every detail,â€? and who are we to disagree with such poetry. Just look at the thing on the page. Better yet, go see one in person when you can. The power plant is paired with a seven-gear F1 dual-clutch gearbox with Ferrari’s Variable Boost Management on the job to optimally distribute torque, maxing out at 750 Nm in seventh gear. The 488 GTB boasts a blown rear spoiler, as well as the 458 GT-derived aerodynamic underbody with vortex generators. Downforce increases to 325 kg at 250 km/h thanks to a bit of tech magic. The 488 is loaded with Modena’s latest Side Slip Control System (SSC2) which integrates with the car’s F1-Trac, 2 1VĂ&#x; N[Q P\[a_\Y` aUR NPaVcR QNZ]R_` AUV` `U\bYQ URY] keep the car planted when you’re asking quite a lot of it, and \bTUa a\ \Ă&#x;R_ ^bVaR N Q_VcV[T Re]R_VR[PRÂą Oba S\_ [\d we’re just taking Ferrari’s word for it.

“The 488 GTB boasts a blown rear spoiler, as well as the 458 GT-derived aerodynamic underbody with vortex generators. ” TOPGEAR.COM

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THE MICHELIN MAN

TURNS 125

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CELEBRATING MICHELIN’S 125TH ANNIVERSARY AT YAS MARINA CIRCUIT

years ago the Michelin brothers founded the storied tyre maker in Clermont3R__N[Q RcR[abNYYf ORP\ZV[T N »eab_R in the motoring world. Somewhere along the road the company branched out into restaurant guides and maps, launching what is perhaps the gold standard in rating systems for dining establishments. AURf NY`\ QR`VT[RQ aUR »_`a RcR_ ][RbZNaVP af_R` dUVPU pioneered the use of compressed air to absorb some of the impact of uneven surfaces, making travelers more comfortable en route to what we can only hope will be a Michelin rated eatery. Recently, we helped celebrate Michelin’s 125th N[[VcR_`N_f Na FN` :N_V[N 0V_PbVa N »aaV[T a_VObaR `V[PR the Abu Dhabi F1 track sees its fair share of rubber through the race season. A few lucky souls were even treated as Michelin’s honoured guests after winning a contest on the company’s Michelin Arabia Facebook page. Nour Bouhassoun, Chairman and President of the Michelin Africa - India - Middle East Zone (AIM Zone), said: “It’s a proud moment for all those who are part of the Michelin story. We’ve achieved a remarkable milestone by reaching 125 years, giving us a sense of achievement for everybody involved. We are constantly developing as a P\Z]N[f N[Q Y\\XV[T a\ YRNQ aUR dNf S\_dN_Q S\_ aUR [Rea 125 years.” Michelin admits in their press materials that one key to their success is spending big on R&D, especially in this era of more and more technical tyre designs. The company allocates a whopping 600 million Euros to Research and Development each year, and you can thank Michelin’s commitment to improving tyre tech for the invention of the radial tyre, now the most popular tyre design in the world. Attendees were treated to a presentation on Michelin’s rich history, covering its origins in France, their modern commitment to sustainability, the great lengths to which the company goes to keep drivers safe on the road, and its long history in motor sports.

125

“We are constantly developing as a company and looking to lead the way forward for the next 125 years.”

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M AG I C B U S The Volkswagen Type 2 – more commonly known as the Camper, Kombi or Transporter – was originally conceived by a Dutch businessman by the name of Ben Pon. He’d seen VW’s post-war Plattenwagen shuttling about the Wolfsburg factory and ran the idea of a Beetle-based utility vehicle past the British armed forces, who had taken charge of the company.

A S H O RT D E F I N I T I O N O F I RO N Y

PLANET / PUB AMMO

In 1958 a Dutch rally driver invented a camera that measured and recorded his cornering speeds. Although TopGear approves of his intentions – he was trying to go as fast as possible – the device was later marketed to police forces as a means to catch speeding motorists. His name was Maurice Gatsonides, and he even donated half of his name to his product. Now, Maurice cameras are everywhere.

VOT E O F N O CO N F I D E N C E

A BANDOLIER OF TIDBITS TO KEEP FELLOW W DRINKERS S’ DRINKERS’ HEADS DOWN N

According to a recent poll, 8.1% of motorists would vote for the Greens, despite the party’s pledge to ban almost all cars, or at least those capable of exceeding the motorway speed limit. The party has since reconsidered its policy, due to the fact it “would probably prove unattractive with the electorate”.

Car Ban Polling Station Leave road

During the Apollo missions, NASA sent a total of three Lunar Rovers to the Moon, all of which were jointly constructed by Boeing and GM. Between them, they racked up 56 miles and hit a top speed of 11.2mph, achieved by Gene Cernan of Apollo 17. However, and despite having a whole Moon to himself, he still managed to damage it, tarnishing the reputation of Rover drivers for ever after.

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IMAGE: THE HENRY FORD MUSEUM

ROV E R S R E T U R N

S L I D E- BY-S L I D E The world record for ‘twin drifting’ – that is, when two cars drift beside each other for as long as possible without crashing – stands at 17.7 miles. The world’s longest single-car drift went on for 89.55 miles, while the fastest drift stands at 133.45mph.

1931 TESTING TIMES

TOPGEAR TOP TIP

How to... arrange the tools in your garage

The Highway Code is published

1934

Voluntary driving tests introduced

B LO O D H O U N D S SC S TAT O F T H E M O N T H As Bloodhound’s wheels rotate, they throw the air forwards at 1,000mph, a bit like a ball leaving a spin bowler’s hand. This meets air travelling over the car at 1,000mph in the opposite direction, but nobody knows for sure if this 2,000mph clash will create anything nasty until Andy Green actually tries it for real.

1935

Driving tests become compulsory

63% Pass rate during the first year

1939

Driving tests suspended for WWII

H I S ROYA L H I G H WAY N E S S The world’s first motorway – or, rather, autostrada – opened in 1924 in northern Italy. It’s believed that King Vittorio Emanuele III and his guests were the first to drive along its 26-mile length from Milan to Varese, and it still exists today, although it’s gained an extra lane in each direction and goes by the name A8.

There’s a lot of scorn heaped on people who keep their tools in order, but there’s a good reason for it. You’ll know where any tool is, instantly, instead of wasting time rooting around for it. And if the 12mm spanner is on its hook, it hasn’t been left inside the engine, waiting to wreck it. So:

1

Spanners on hooks, in size order

2

Sockets on rails, in size order

3

Screwdrivers in a rack. Make one from a simple shelf, with holes in it

4

Pliers, side cutters, circlip pliers, etc on pegs on a board. Draw around them so you know which one lives where

Drivers are no longer examined on arm signals

5

Nuts, bolts, washers, fuses, screws, etc in neat trays

1996

6

Group related things in separate toolboxes; eg electrical test stuff in one, Dremel and bits in another

7

Arranging your tools in order will not, however, stop your ‘friends’ from ‘borrowing’ them. So if your name is Colin and you’re reading this, you swine. I know you have the 10mm because you were the last person in there, and there is a gap at 10mm in the row of spanners. See? It works

1975

Theory test is introduced

46% Pass rate in 2009

HAS JAMES EARNED A PINT FOR THIS TOP TIP? TOPGEAR.COM

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051

Blink

& you’ll buy it

THIS MONTH’S TOP LOT

DuesenbergSJ Duesenberg SJ Town Car

From the TG archive

ep, that’s Her Majesty, Elizabeth the Second, Queen of England, Head of the Commonwealth and Defender of the Faith‌ up to her royal elbows in engine grease. It was 1945 and the 19-year-old Princess (as she was then), keen to do her bit, had joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service, WORDS: DAN READ IMAGE: GETTY the female branch of the Army. But this wasn’t some photo op to boost wartime morale – it was the real, oily deal. Women weren’t allowed into combat, so instead they ran things on the Home Front, and that included driving duties. Lorries, messenger bikes, troop trucks, ambulances, aURf `aRR_RQ aUR Y\a .[Q dUR[ `abĂž dR[a ON[T aURf´Q _\YY b] aURV_ `YRRcR` N[Q T_NO N spanner, as evidenced by Her Maj – pictured above at the Ministry of Transport Training Centre in Surrey. X 3_\Z aVYY ÂťcR RNPU QNf `UR´Q PUN[TR dURRY` aNXR R[TV[R` N]N_a N[Q ]ba aURZ ONPX g g g n together again. Against her wishes, she was asked to sleep at Windsor Castle rather than the camp, but – acc according to contemporary reports – she was careful not to wash her hands han too quickly, preferring to leave the oil stains in place as a mark of a hard day’s day’ work. On graduation day, each student was required to drive a truck from the barracks to o Buckingham Palace. Pala For security reasons, it was decided Elizabeth would be excused from this, so imagine the King’s surprise when he saw the Princess trundling up aUR :NYY U aUR :NYY UNcV[T ZNQR aUR W\b_[Rf \[ UR_ \d[ aU_\bTU aUVPX a_NĂ&#x;P N[Q adVPR around Piccadilly Pi Circus for good measure.

Y

HOW MANY FUTURE QUEENS HAVE WALLOWED IN AXLE GREASE? LIZ, WE SALUTE YOU... 1. WHO

The Queen

2. WHAT

Spannering

3. WHERE

Surrey

4. WHEN 1945

NEXT MONTH: A RACING MOTORCYLIST CALLED BERYL 052

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It isn’t a name you hear too often, Duesenberg. Founded by brothers Frank and August in 1913, the company lasted only until the late Thirties before ďŹ nancial strife brought production to an end. Duesenbergs were simply the most unapologetically opulent, extravagant, well-engineered things you could buy back then. Coachbuilder Bohman & Schwartz bodied this SJ ...in 1935 for the widow of Frank Mars – yep, the purveyor of chocolatey goods – at an estimated cost of $20,000. It has a supercharged, DOHC 6.9-litre straight-eight with 320bhp and a three-speed, unsynchronised manual transmission. An SJ-based Special with a lightly modiďŹ ed version of this engine set a 24-hour average speed record of 135mph. In 1935.

PHOTOS: GETTY, JEREMY CLIFF, COURTESY OF MECUM AUCTIONS A

H FIN ISTOR E Y RES ST STO ’S CUE R THE D FROIES, D COR UST M Y OURNERS O VAU F LT

PLANET / #014

Engine: 6.9-litre 8cyl Year: 1935 When: 2 May, RM Auctions Estimate: $3.4m–$4.5m

OUR CHOICE OF THIS MONTH’S TOP-SPEC STUFF

RECON JET REC In the old days, head-up displays were only for fighter pilots and RoboCop. Then Saab installed them in cars, which made everyone – or at least the few people driving a Saab – feel a bit like a fighter pilot or RoboCop. And now that we’ve arrived in the future, they have inevitably become wearable. Until now th though, having an HUD on your face was a) only for special ops, and b) a clunky business, sometimes requir requiring an entire facemask in which to house it. Not so with the Recon Jet, an American invention that turns a pair of classic, wraparound sunnies into a projection screen for all sorts of useful information. It has a speedo, maps with turn-by-turn nav, weather forecasts and a trip computer. It also displays text messages and caller ID while an earpiece lets you talk on your phone, connected by Bluetooth or via the integrated WiFi. Then there’s an HD camera for recording cycle rides and morning jogs or whatever else you’re doing while it’s attached to your bobbing head. $699; reconinstruments.com

LEGO SPEED CHAMPIONS

ENGINE COVER CHAIR

The Lego legend continues, this time with bricky versions of the LaFerrari, P1 and 918, plus entire motorsport setups from Ferrari, McLaren and Porsche. Sets feature cars, race trucks, mechanics, pit garages and tiny versions of tool sets. From £12.99; shop.lego.com

Each of the engine covers used to make these seats was attached to a Force India F1 car for at least one race during the 2012 season. Now they’re literally part of the furniture, attaching to a chair frame using the original bolt holes. £3,950; mementoexclusives.com

AUTODROME: THE LOST RACE CIRCUITS OF EUROPE The ghostly story of nine abandoned circuits accompanied by contemporary pictures, plus images of how they used to look. Grab a copy and take it all in, before these lovely old arenas are lost to nature or property sharks. £35.99; veloce.co.uk TOPGEAR.COM

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WATC H E S

Time travels fast

ORIS CALOBRA TED CHRONOGRAPH LIMITED EDITION II

Oris returns to the Spanish islandd of Mallorca this year as the title sponsor onsor of the Oris Rally Clásico. The independent ndent Swiss watch company has been involved ved with the classic car rally since 2012. To celebrate this his year’s event, Oris has created two limited-editionn Oris Calobra watches, inspired by the dashboards of sports orts cars from the 1960s and 1970s that take part in thee Rally. oris.ch/

ORIS THELONIOUS MONK LIMITED EDITION Oris is pleased to introduce the next in its historic line of watches honouring iconic figures from the world of jazz. The Oris Thelonious Monk Limited Edition celebrates the incomparable talents of one of America’s finest jazz pianists and Composers.

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ORIS AQUIS DEPTH GAUGE

ORIS 110 YEARS LIMITED EDITION

Renowned for producing specialist diving watches, Oris is proud to introduce the Oris Aquis Depth Gauge. At the forefront of mechanical watch innovation, Oris has harnessed its knowledge, expertise and craftsmanship to produce the first divers watch which measures depth by allowing water to enter the timepiece.

To mark its 110th anniversary, Oris announces the Oris Calibre 110, the first in-house developed movement after 35 years. A hand-wound calibre, it features a 10-day power reserve and a patented non-linear power reserve indication.

STYLE

Rental car chic

1

2

You’ve hired a banger.r. Now keep your cool 3

5

4

6 1 Ansomme Oxford jacket. jacket Bombers are back, back and so is blue – the colour, not the Nineties pop band. Thoughtfully somebody has combined these two ideas in one product, which keeps you warm during cloudy spells. £95; tedbaker.com 2 Speedway tee. A simple white tee with an oval speedway motif, inspired by NASCAR. £25; t-lab.eu 3 Cutler and Gross D-frame acetate sunglasses. Classic tortoiseshell pattern gets a blue twist, while the nose bridge is made of metal, to add a bit of flair. And why on earth not, eh? £310; mrporter.com 4 Green skinny chino shorts. These slimmish shorts are long enough to protect skin from hot leather car seats, but still short enough to be, well, shorts. £28; riverisland.com 5 Fred Perry Scotch grain flight bag. According to fashion people, vintage sports stuff is what you should wear this spring. This bag should do the trick, then, especially if you’re off on hols and need somewhere handy to keep your passport and whatnot. £55; asos.com 6 Mego lace red combi shoes. We’re keeping the retro-sporty theme going with these trainer-type things, which are light and airy to drive in. £60; clarks.co.uk

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FOR MORE TOPGEAR TELLY GOODNESS, click on t o p g e a r m e . c o m

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EDITED BY OLLIE MARRIAGE

THE CARS THAT MATTER. DRIVEN, TESTED AND RATED THE TOPGEAR WAY

DRIVE OF THE MONTH

MERCEDES F 015 No actual driving for the first time... TURN OVER

p68 PORSCHE CAYMAN GT4

Porsche’s lithe, mid-engined sports car comes through in the clutch.

p68 TWIN TEST

Discovery Sport takes on BMW X3

p69 TWIN TEST

A jacked-up supermini proves its worth

p70 ZENOS E10 S

Caterham-style fun in bright-blue paintwork TOPGEAR.COM

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M E R C E D E S - B E N Z F 01 5

Rise of the machine

The next-generation luxury car from Merc does it all for you BY PAT DE VEREUX

he Mercedes-Benz F 015’s self-driving journey into the future started back in 2011 on a blank piece of paper in Mercedes’s Tokyo design studio. The brief was not to create a production autonomous vehicle, rather to examine what is possible with the technology available “the day after tomorrow�. So it’s not a concept car presaging a watered-down version you’ll be able to buy at a dealership in a couple of years’ time. It’s a research vehicle, a $50m automotive lab rat designed to showcase and test the technologies – and our reactions to them – that could

PHOTOGRAPHY: MANUFACTURER

T

QRÂť[R dUNa N Ybeb_f cRUVPYR ZVTUa OR YVXR by the year 2030. Ad\ fRN_` NSaR_ aUR Âť[NY `XRaPU UNQ ORR[ `VT[RQ \Ăž ]_\WRPa 9RQ GR]]RYV[ – yes, really – started its two-year production process that ended with its debut at the CES electronics show V[ 9N` CRTN` aUV` 7N[bN_f 2cR[ aU\bTU Audi had staged a largely autonomous Q_VcR \S N ÂźRRa \S .$` S_\Z 0NYVS\_[VN a\ aUR `NZR `U\d aURf Y\\XRQ QV`aV[PaYf Y\ Âť [Rea a\ aUR `PV Âť 3 " It seems more than a coincidence that :R_P ]VPXRQ N` aUR 3 "´` ÂťPaV\[NY launch date. The year 2029 is the date ZNPUV[R YRN_[V[T O\Ă&#x;[ .YN[ Ab_V[T predicted – by projecting the rate of

SNAPSHOT

IN DETAIL

Smart grille changes colour to show drive mode

The two front seats rotate to face the rears

Rear grille displays road safety messages for others

SPECS

058

Hydrogen & electric hybrid, 268bhp, 295lb ft

M AY 2 01 5 �

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n/a mpg, 0g/km CO2

computer development – that a machine would be able to think like a human. Mercedes has either borrowed that thinking or, in a typically thorough Merc way, done its own calculations that have led it to the same conclusion. Either way, the F 015 is packed to the roof with technologies that try to understand and smooth the car–human interface, inside and outside the vehicle. Before we try to understand if any of it d\_X` N[Q ZNXR` `R[`R dR UNcR Âť_`a a\ understand what the world could be like 15 years from now. Mercedes’s futurologists say that, as the world’s population continues to explode, time and space are going to become more limited and valuable. Cars are therefore going to have to become more human-friendly and co-operate with their immediate environments more sensitively, as they are going to be in much closer proximity. This reinvention of shared space has several trends moving it along. The main one being a move away from an emphasis on vehicle speed, and a focus on giving back time. In other words, it’s the polar opposite \S N 9NZO\_TUV[V /ba Va´` NPabNYYf [\ YR`` exciting and has just as much theatre

0–62mph in 6.7secs, 124mph

1980kg

ÂŁn/a

Passenger arrives at destination never having needed to drive

4 1

5

3 2

LIFE INSIDE about it. You don’t walk up to the 5.22 metre – that’s bigger than an S-Class – F 015, it drives itself to you, summoned via an app on your phone. Likewise, when you get out \S Va Va PYRN_` \Þ N[Q [Q` N ]N_XV[T `]NPR all on its own. The vast, articulated doors open like the cabin is pressurised (it’s not) – moving out before swinging wide to reveal a Jetsons-style travel capsule. This will remind Captain Scarlet fans \S aUR @=C N PaV\[NY Z]U "Sa long armoured vehicle in which the occupants faced the rear and viewed the world through drop-down TV screens. To everyone else, it’ll just remind them the future of luxury cars V` T\V[T a\ Y\\X cR_f cR_f QVÞR_R[a In its resting setting, there are four Arne Jacobsen-style armchairs facing the front. They can be programmed to twist 30 degrees towards the doors to make

THE RIVAL

GOOGLE CAR As unappealing and scary as the F 015 is cool and comforting. No thanks

VERDICT If this is what self-driving cars are going to be like, sign us up now.

8/10

getting in easier. And the front ones can be whirred through 180 degrees to face aUR _RN_` 6a´` V[ aUV` P\[ÂťTb_NaV\[ aUNa dR start our journey. Any one of the four occupants can ‘drive’ the F 015 by selecting the required destination via the large touchscreen next to each seat. Once this is accepted, the fuel-cellpowered pod glides away on its narrow – to keep the turning circle reasonable and minimise turning force – 26-inch 225 wheels and, within a few seconds, it feels completely natural to be chatting while watching the scenery stream by through the windows and on the screens, like you are on a train. Speed can be adjusted by moving a slider on any of the screens – and the electrically driven F 015 responds instantly. There is a steering wheel that telescopes out of the front dash – a Mercedes will always have a wheel, they say – if you decide to go old school and drive yourself, but the rest of the dashboard is a smart screen. This monitors your eye and hand positions. You look at what you want to adjust – temperature, radio channel, etc – then move your hand accordingly. And it works surprisingly well. As does the autonomous tech outside the car. A range of sensors monitors the surroundings and adjusts the car’s course

1 2 3 4 5

All four doors open wide to reveal an unobstructed entrance to cabin F 015 can be ‘driven’ from any one of the four seats via the door screens Front seats can also face forward to drive using popout steering wheel Large glass areas all round make cabin feel like a luxury train carriage Dash uses eye-tracking to select function and handtracking to adjust

and speed accordingly. When it detects a pedestrian, it stops and projects a zebra crossing in front of the car. It then verbally invites the walker to cross, monitoring them as they move. If the pedestrian decides not to cross in front of the car, the car can be waved on. The laser can also project other messages onto the road – to warn other road users of what is happening near or around the vehicle. It doesn’t, however, answer the burning question: if the F 015 can think like a human, could it have emotions and moods, too? TOPGEAR.COM

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P O R SC H E C AY M A N GT 4

Big Baby Gator

Porsche’s lithe, mid-engined sports car comes through in the clutch. BY ADEL HABIB ho am I to tell you how to drive? As any Porsche `aNĂžR_ =? \_ \aUR_dV`R will tell you that their excellent dual clutch Nba\ZNaVP TRN_O\e =18 V` Of NYY ZRN`b_R` SN`aR_ aUN[ RcR[ aUR T_RNaR`a Q_VcR_ Na aUR P\[a_\Y` \S N ZN[bNY /ba aUR[ aUNa Q\R`[´a [RPR``N_VYf UNcR N[f bearing on what a driver might actually enjoy more– blipping through gears at aUR ÂźVPX \S aUR Âť[TR_` \_ [\a aUR paddles are yet another personal choice) \_ `YV[TV[T aUR `aVPX aU_\bTU aUR TNaR`

W

[\a V[ aUR `a_VPa `R[`R Oba f\b aNXR Zf ZRN[V[T 6 aNYX a\ \d[R_` W\b_[NYV`a` N[Q ]_\SR``V\[NY Q_VcR_` NYY aUR aVZR dU\ _RZNV[ [\`aNYTVP S\_ aUR T\YQR[ NTR \S aUR ZN[bNY a_N[`ZV``V\[ AUNa´` N aR_Z 6 b`R YVTUaYf `V[PR dUVYR aUR bOV^bVaf \S aUR `aN[QN_Q O\e UN` SNYYR[ \Ăž Va´` N_TbNOYR aUNa dR N_R `RRV[T `\ZR \S aUR best manual transmission ever built in this same era when they are becoming `PN_PR V[ aUR ZN_XRa]YNPR @\ dUR[ f\b aUV[X \S aUR 0NfZN[ 4A! f\b UNcR a\ _RZRZOR_ aUNa aUV` V` N PN_ dVaU N[ \]V[V\[ \_ Na YRN`a N PN_ S\_

SNAPSHOT

IN DETAIL

GT4 logos on the headrests help you remember what a nice ride your captaining

Colour coordinated brake pads are always a welcome sight on any Porsche

3.8-L at 6 produces a hearty 385bhp for your driving needs

SPECS

060

3.8-litre six-cylinder,Six-speed manual, RWD,385bhp @ 7,400rpm,420Nm @ 4,750rpm

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people with the opinion that manual a_N[`ZV``V\[` NQQ a\ aUR Re]R_VR[PR [\ ZNaaR_ U\d ZN[f aR[aU` \S N `RP\[Q aURf ZVTUa ]ba f\b \Ăž f\b_ OR`a aVZR .QQ a\ dUVPU \[R RePRYYR[a dNf a\ `a\XR aUR QR`V_R \S PN_Q PN__fV[T \YQ `PU\\YR_` V` a\ \[Yf \ĂžR_ aUR PN_ dVaU N ZN[bNY a_N[`ZV``V\[ N` =\_`PUR UN` Q\[R UR_R dVaU aUR ZVTUaf 0NfZN[ 4A! 3N[ O\f` N[Q SN[ TV_Y` aUR d\_YQ \cR_ UNcR ORR[ RNTR_Yf PURPXV[T aURV_ V[O\eR` S\_ [Rd` \S aUV` =18 YR`` 0NfZN[ dVaU Va` a_NQVaV\[NY `Ve `]RRQ ]RQNY YRcR_ PYbaPU UN_XR[V[T ONPX a\ Na YRN`a S\_ `\ZR aUR TY\_f QNf` \S =\_`PUR ;\a aUNa aUR Pb__R[a PN_` N_R[´a TY\_V\b` aURf _RNYYf N_R Oba aUR_R V` N PR_aNV[ NZ\b[a \S [\`aNYTVN ObVYa V[a\ Z\`a ]N``V\[` N[Q Z\a\_V[T V` [\ QVĂžR_R[a .[Q dUf [\a, Porsche has perhaps the very best `Ve `]RRQ ZN[bNY NcNVYNOYR N[fdUR_R .[Q dUVYR aUR Âą`aVPX² TVcR` aUR 0NfZN[ 4A! N ]NaV[N \S \YQ `PU\\Y `dNTTR_ Va´` d\_aU [\aV[T aUNa aUV` V` N thoroughly modern manual that rests on high tech active gearbox mounts to ZVaVTNaR Q_VcRYV[R _\PXV[T a\_^bR N[Q cVO_NaV\[ AUR Q_VcR_ NY`\ UN` aUR \]aV\[ a\ `dVaPU \[ \_ \Ăž NPaVcR _Rc ZNaPUV[T opening the throttle when you initiate a `UVSa V[ \_QR_ a\ UVa aUR VQRNY R[TV[R `]RRQ S\_ N `Z\\aU TRN_ PUN[TR

27.4 mpg 238g Co2/km

0–100ph in 4.4secs, 295kph AED 300,500

PHOTOGRAPHY: RIGHTLIGHTMEDIA GmBH & FRANK RATERING

It might seem contradictory to thing about legacy and Cayman in the same sentence, since the model only came on the scene a decade ago. But then, like 911 itself, Cayman is part of a long arc of ]_\QbPa QRcRY\]ZR[a OR[RaaV[T S_\Z all that the collective minds at Porsche have learned in almost eight decades of building cars, not to mention whatever they gleaned from the time building tanks. So if we forget about Cayman’s more famous sibling for a moment, the car might be and easy choice for a sporty Dubai run-about. No, not because our pals at Porsche have packed so much value into the sundry Cayman iterations that they dribble trails of 1 dirham coins ORUV[Q aURZ \[Yf Tb_NaVcRYf \S course) but because it’s the only hot whip I can think of that takes it’s name

from a prominent tax haven— and a beautiful one at that. According to Porsche, the Cayman is, well, an island unto itself. Sure it owes plenty to the Boxster, including engine, transmission variants, and a fair bit Z\_R Oba Va´` `aVĂžR_ Z\_R ]\dR_SbY N[Q (not surprisingly, given those other two things) sportier. The car marries Boxster DNA and 911 architecture, to wreak havoc on the indecisive, as an NY_RNQf QVĂ&#x;PbYa PU\VPR ORP\ZR` aUNa much more confusing: which Porsche is right for me? And sure, some people will be choosing from a wider consideration set, with no shortage of exotics popping up, but part of what makes the Cayman so fascinating is the implicit sibling rivalry that it conjures up. These days, the Cayman

(particularly the GTS) is such a well regarded ride that inevitably someone out there would actually rather have one than a 911. It’s not that the 911 isn’t an excellent proposition, it’s just that the 0NfZN[ N]]RNY` a\ N QVÞR_R[a `Ra \S precepts. Notably in the case of the new Cayman GT4, there’s the fact that it puts & ]\dR_ %" U] % YVaR_ ŸNa `Ve V[ the smaller, more nimble Cayman culminating in a car that is not entirely unlike a mid-engined 911 GT3, but with a little something (at least presently) GT3 owners can’t have. Inside the GT4 is pared down for track duty— there’s Alcantara all over the place and you can option the eRQ `URYY `RNa` S_\Z aUR & % @]fQR_ S\_ extra cred. The steering wheel is on the smaller side too. There are far fewer TOPGEAR.COM

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“With its sonorous voice, ample torque, and conďŹ dence-inspiring 6-speed, the Cayman GT4 is a joy to drive.â€?

bells and whistles here than in a Cayman GTS (for example) with just active suspension and a button that should be lableled “roarâ€? as it defeats the acoustical damping of the exhaust for maximum Wagnerian thunder. Both the sound system and the air-con are optional, not in the sense that hey cost extra but, but that you can simply say “noâ€? to them at no charge— hard to imagine ditching the cool bits in our region though. With its sonorous voice, ample a\_^bR N[Q P\[ÂťQR[PR V[`]V_V[T 6-speed, the Cayman GT4 is a joy to drive. The car does the 0-100kph romp in an impressive 4.2 seconds with the Sport Chrono package, and has posted a 7:40 at the Green Hell, making its Nurburgring run on par with the previous generation 911 GT3. Occasionally, one might miss the additional horsepower of the 911 (going up hill, for example) but the Cayman [RcR_ QV`N]]\V[a` N[Q \ĂžR_` N ]b_Vaf \S experience that harkens back to

062

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simpler, less technological sports cars (sort of, there’s still a lot of modernity underpinning the GT4). There’s a tech arms race brewing in the motoring world, as cars get smarter, faster and much more complex every year. The Cayman GT4 is that voice in the wilderness that questions how much dR `NP_VÂťPR N` dR Z\cR S\_dN_Q Displacement is trending downward and hybrid super cars are on the rise, yet the Cayman GT4 brings something new to the Porsche palette that makes this car both an alternative and a contender in it’s own right. The Cayman marries `PbY]ab_NY Pb_cR` N ÂźNa `Ve dNVY N[Q laser balance with a proper luddite’s transmission‌ well, except for rev matching which is computer aided. We can’t live in the past, and the Cayman GT4 certainly doesn’t either, but it’s great to also view the car as a nod to what so many love about the historic _VQR` aUNa URY]RQ QRÂť[R aUR ZN_^bR 6´Q nod knowingly behind the wheel of one all day long, if they’d let me.

4

2

1

5

3

VERDICT Cayman is always nipping at 911’s heals. This beefed up manual equipped whip is more rival than sibling.

8/10

LIFE INSIDE

1 2 3 4 5

Stick it to ya manual transmission for the (emotional) win Look sharp high-resolution 4.6-inch TFT colour display Leather and Alcantara on snug, sport ready seats Dual zone automatic air conditioning GT4 sport steering wheel feels empowering and weighty in your hands

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P O R SC H E 91 1 TA RG A 4 GTS

Right on Target

The 911 Targa 4 GTS offers a new vantage on one of 991’s best offerings. BY LIAM NELSON

ll told, I spent almost eight years of my academic life studying Spanish, albeit in California where utility dictates the use of a Mexican accent. So I know I should be comfortable with the fact that the occasional Spaniard will have absolutely no idea what I’m saying when I address them in Spanish (other aVZR` Va d\_X` ŸNdYR``Yf Oba 6 Zb`a admit that it stings my pride. There’s another language I’ve been learning over the past seven or so years I’ve spent

A

writing about cars, and that’s the glorious Porsche patois— not so much a native tongue, as a brand of driving that marries excitement and exactitude in a package that continues to be the baseline by which all sports cars are measured. Every language has its peculiarities R`]RPVNYYf 2[TYV`U N[Q VS aUR_R´` \[R consistent critique of Porsche that I hear \cR_ N[Q \cR_ NTNV[ Va V` a\ SbYÂťYY aUR metaphor, that Porsche isn’t a romance YN[TbNTR @\ZR P_VaVP` Âť[Q aURV_ PN_` a\\ clinical, or at least, not inspiring of the requisite emotions that any car costing

SNAPSHOT

IN DETAIL

GTS logo on the headrests so the back of your head always knows what a beast you’re driving

Sport Chrono Clock a very excellent way of keeping time

PDK or manual both of Porsche’s available transmissions are beyond reproach

SPECS

064

more then AED 300,000 should stir in its owner. Fine, but that type of thinking is of the most subjective sort, and if we’re going to delve into the realm of feelings allow me to say that people who think like that are wrong headed, and possibly insane. I suppose it makes you sound informed though, as in you’re clearly a connoisseur if you can turn your nose up at a 911. But then, you know, you can’t buy good taste— especially on a journalist’s salary. Which isn’t to say that the Targa 4 GTS is perfect— I expected the narrow slit of rear visibility common to the 911 CoupÊ and Cabriolet iterations would be expanded by the lovely curved glass from which Targa takes its name, but really you’re still gazing through an opening the size of Clint Eastwood’s squinting eye socket. Of course, unless you’re racing, you won’t be looking behind you all that much in any of the GTS line, not much worry of being overtaken. Placed somewhere between a GT3 and a Carrera S in the product mix, the various GTS models are among the purist expressions of the storied 911 on \ÞR_ a\QNf AUV` R^bNaV\[ ORTV[` dVaU copious power delivered to the rear axle at the behest of Porsche’s Powerkit, dUVPU b`R` S_RR_ Ÿ\dV[T V[aNXR _b[[R_`

3.8L Flat 6-cylinder, 430hp @7500rpm, 440 Nm @ 4300rpm, 7-spd Auto 9.2 l/100 km (combined), 214g Co2/km

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0–100ph in 4.3secs,301kph AED 518,800

PHOTOGRAPHY: RIGHTLIGHTMEDIA GmBH & FRANK RATERING

and higher-lifting valves that take the % YVaR_ ¼Na `Ve S_\Z ! U] a\ ! U] Na $ " _]Z F\b SRRY Va Z\`a b] NO\cR # " _]Z dUR_R aUV` [Nab_NYYf N`]V_NaRQ ORN`a UN` N ON[`URR `P_RNZ N[Q N OR_`R_XR_´` aN`aR S\_ NQ_R[NYV[R 6[ aUR 4A@ a\_^bR ]RNX` Na !! ;Z Oba " _]Z UVTUR_ aUN[ aUR @ Na " $" _]Z S\_ N `Z\\aUR_ a\_^bR Pb_cR .cNVYNOYR dVaU RVaUR_ aUR RePRYYR[a $ `]RRQ ZN[bNY \_ aUR YVTUaR[V[T SN`a $ `]RRQ =18 QbNY PYbaPU Nba\ZNaVP a_N[`ZV``V\[ aUR 4A@ PN[ ]YRN`R YbQQVaR` N[Q aRPUURNQ` NYVXR( Va Wb`a PN[´a URY] aURZ a\ b[QR_`aN[Q aURV_ ]R_`\[NY QVÞR_R[PR` AUV` PN_ aNXR` \[ ad\ YN[R dV[QV[T Z\b[aNV[ _\NQ` aUNa O\_QR_ @]NV[´` Y\[TR`a _NPRa_NPX dVaU P\[»QR[PR N[Q T_NPR .YdNf` P\\Y b[QR_ ]_R``b_R aUR PN_ _RNPa` a\ cN_V\b` _\NQ P\[QVaV\[`

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/V ER[\[ URNQYVTUa` aUNa d\_X dVaU =\_`PUR´` 1f[NZVP 9VTUaV[T @f`aRZ a\ `U\d f\b aUR dNf U\ZR RcR[ NQWb`aV[T S\_ \]aVZNY VYYbZV[NaV\[ N` f\b ZNXR f\b_ dNf N_\b[Q N OR[Q F\b dVYY [RRQ a\ OR N YVaaYR Z\_R cVTVYN[a N_\b[Q `YRR]V[T ]\YVPRZR[ N[Q ]\\_Yf ObVYa ]N_XV[T TN_NTR _NZ]` 6´Z Y\\XV[T Na f\b 7bZRV_NU A\d[ 0R[a_R N` aUR 4A@ V` Y\dR_ aUN[ aUR @ _VQV[T \[ V[PUR_` S\_ dUNa Zf =\_`PUR @]\_a 1_VcV[T @PU\\Y V[`a_bPa\_ PNYYRQ aUR ±]YN[aRQ =\_`PUR ]_R_\TNaVcR ² <_ `\ZRaUV[T YVXR aUNa UV` NPPR[a dN` XV[Q \S aUVPX AUR ]\V[a V` aUR AN_TN ! 4A@ R[W\f` N _\Ob`a ]b_PUN`R \[ aUR aN_ZNP aUNa dVYY UNcR f\b dUV]]V[T aU_\bTU aUR P\_[R_` YVXR ?\PXf 6C cVRdRQ \[ SN`a S\_dN_Q 9VXR N[f T\\Q `]\_a` PN_ aUR AN_TN ! 4A@ ZNXR` f\b dN[a a\ ]b`U TOPGEAR.COM

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If you’re a track lover, Ascari is the sort of private driving paradise you’ve only day dreamed about.

yourself and the limits of traction that much harder. Good job the GTS telegraphs the edge well in advance, keeping you on the road and out of trouble if you’re willing to listen to this fabulously feedback friendly whip. GTS Z\QRY` N_R QVÞR_R[aVNaRQ Of aUR Carrera 4’s wider rear track (36 millimetres more hip to love) but with standard PASM adaptive shocks and the Sport Chrono package with its active engine mounts, rounded out by the same capable suspension and brake hardware found in the Carrera S. You also get the centre-locking 20-inch multi-spoke wheels from the GT3 and the Turbo S for a little taste of the _N_RRQ `abÞ .[ RYRPa_\[VPNYYf deployed rear spoiler adds downforce on demand, keeping that silky 911 silhouette during less frenzied driving conditions. The PDK equipped Targa 4 GTS handles the 0-100kph sprint in just 4.3 `RP\[Q` dUVPU ]ba` Va NO\ba " aR[aU` \Þ

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the equivalent hard top Carrera GTS. The car red lines north of 7,800 RPM and there’s plenty of torque in the mid-tohigh rev range make passing slower a_NĂ&#x;P N _NaUR_ O_VRS N[Q `NaV`SfV[T process. You could take the car out of Sport+, but out here in the mountains it seems pointless except for when I’m stuck behind a big truck waiting for an opening to overtake. PDK keeps me in the right gear at all times, rev-matching during downshifts as I brake hard (and O_VRÂźf V[a\ N ab_[ AUR PN_ PUN[TR` gears with a satisfying thunk, but it’s never overbearing. Open the throttle in a `a_NVTUa N[Q aUR[ YRa SbYY \Ăž N[Q aUR exhaust will burble and snarl— good times. All good things come to an end, but luckily this stretch of road delivered us at the gates of Ascari Race Resort. If you’re a track lover, Ascari is the sort of private driving paradise you’ve only day dreamed about. If you’re not, it’s the Spanish mountain resort of your dreams regardless. After a quick break I’m lined

VERDICT One of the best all around sports cars available today, the Targa 4 GTS combines classic style with superb dynamics

9/10

up in a PDK equipped, four-wheel drive Targa, and the adrenaline is already pumping throughout my body in N[aVPV]NaV\[ 3V_`a YN] \ba 6´Z ÂźN]]V[T Na aUR ]NQQYR `UVSaR_` N` 6 `RR Âťa ON`V[T Zf shifts on the sound of the motor more than anything else, as it’s tough to even glance at the gauges meaningfully when you’re driving at the full extent of your abilities. Ask any racer how fast they were going on a hot lap and they’ll refer you to whatever ballistics package they’re using as they themselves have only a vague idea— the only number that ZNaaR_` V` YN] aVZR N[Q aUNa d\[´a OR[RÂťa S_\Z \TYV[T aUR `]RRQ\ .SaR_ aUNa Âť_`a lap it occurred to me that, in all likelihood, simply letting PDK shift would actually improve my performance— I don’t have the numbers to prove it, but I can tell you this is most certainly true. For one thing, I was short shifting a tad, as the 7,500 RPM (or so) whine of the GTS can seem a little wrong until you get used to it. It just sounds crazy, which had me shifting too soon on

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LIFE INSIDE my own. For my second lap I left the transmission in full auto, and it did not disappoint. The car ploughs through the gears in the straightaway with buttery precision, exploiting every last bit of torque right up to redline with far more nerve than I had managed on the paddles. In the corners, slalom, and wide arcing turns, Porsche Torque Vectoring (PTV), combined with Porsche Stablility Management, apply braking discriminately helping keep the car stable and agile while you run your heart out. The GTS is perhaps a tad less forgiving than the S in this regard, but that’s by design, as this car is meant to hold true to the tail happy tradition that is classic 911. According to Porsche, PTV improves the vehicle’s handling “by means of modulated braking interventions on the inside rear wheel when being driven in a highly dynamic style. [When] entering a corner‌ braking force is selectively applied to the inside rear wheel as the steering manoeuvre is begun. This imparts a greater drive torque to the outside rear wheel compared with the inside wheel.â€? It’s a nice trick and one that pays dividends both on the track and on the open road. 6 d\bYQ[´a `Nf 6´Z ÂźbR[a V[ =\_`PUR

1 2 3 4 5

Hear that? Porsche Sound Symposer mechanically transmits intake noise to the cabin Alcantara-trimmed SportDesign steering wheels, for laser sharp turn in and hanging on tight Aluminium trim as standard but carbon is on offer Paddle shifters and PDK will net your best lap time Touch here, 7-inch highresolution color touchscreenÂ

but I do know enough to say I’ll never get tired of practicing. And as I discovered with my Spanish, navigating my way to 1bONV cVN N Q\QTf .R_\Âź\a ÂźVTUa 6´Q booked out of MĂĄlaga— a language is never truly mastered... I could barely get a local Spaniard to reply to my inquiry about which line was for checking baggage. Learning curves aside, I look forward to a lifetime of practicing the Porsche parlance; if I ever stop writing about cars and lose access to the press ÂźRRa 6 TbR`` 6´YY Wb`a UNcR a\ `aRNY \[R

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QUICK TWIN TEST

Disco Sport vs BMW X3

Yummy mummies, take note – it’s the battle of the school-run SUV BY TOM HARRISON Somewhat tinier – and not much sportier – than the Disco 4, the Discovery Sport replaces the pensionable Freelander at the functional end of Land Rover’s range. It’s based on the Evoque, but a rear-suspension rejig and an 80mm stretch has made space for a pair of extra, albeit tiny, seats. It’s a bit of a Tardis, the Disco. The two rearmost seats (which are easy to erect) are fine for kids, and the sliding second row is Range Rover spacious. The dash runs the Evoque close, and is well made, well laid out and functional.

WHICH IS MORE PRACTICAL?

The X3 does without seven seats, even though it’s actually longer than the Sport. You’re saddled with five unless you step up to an X5. The X3’s interior is not small, but fold everything down, and you’re looking at a 98-litre deficit to the Disco.

No sign of JLR’s new ‘Ingenium’ 2.0-litre just yet, though it is coming. For now, the Sport makes do with the rattly old 2.2-litre diesel. And it’s the only engine available. It’s quick enough, but 46.3mpg isn’t really up to scratch. Spec with (hesitant at times) nine-speed auto for best experience.

LET ’S TALK ENGINES

The Beemer’s coup de grace. In this X3 20d is the familiar 2.0-litre diesel, mated to the equally familiar and just as excellent 8spd auto. In every area – economy, speed, tractability, refinement – the X3’s drivetrain is some way ahead of the Landie’s. And that gearbox really is first class.

Despite its well-weighted steering and excellent damping, the Disco never encourages spirited driving. But there’s a satisfying cadence to the way it covers ground, which makes it a purposeful, comfortable companion on the daily grind.

HOW DO THEY DRIVE?

The X3 is a more engaging drive than the Disco once the going gets twisty. But avoid the M-Sport model at all costs: the firmer suspension ruins the X3’s ride. It crashes through potholes, and the front end gets a little floaty over rough surfaces.

VERDICT VE CT

8/10

4355mm 4355 4 435 55 5 mm m

2179cc, 4cyl, 187bhp,p, 310lb ft 0–62mph in 8.9secs, cs, 117mph M AY 2 01 5 ←

46.3mpg, 162g/km CO2 1854kg £42,995

TOPGEAR.COM

FOR F FO OR R Excellent Exce E Exc xce ce engine and gearbox, drives drive d driv rive well considering its size. AGAINST A AG AGA GAI AIN NS ST T Un Uncomfo U Uncomfortable nccom mfo fo ride, no seven-seat option, op ptio ionn, less stylish than the Disco. VERDICT VER V VE ERD ER D Good effort, but X3 loses out to plush Disco.

1678mm 16 1678 6 7 8mm mm

1635 16 6 3 5mm mm m 1635mm

FOR Spacious, versatile interior, inter int erio or,r, relaxing re relaaxin xing ng to o drive. dr drive d ve. e. AGAINST That engine spoils sp poils ils what w what is otherwise o oth ther erw wise se a very compelling package. ge. e. VERDICT The best small a all SUV. Just wait for the new engine.

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THOSE LOOK BIG

Big as a MkI X5, more or less. And that’s no bad thing, particularly when you’ve bags of childbased detritus to stuff its cubbies with. The X3 is the 3-Series of BMW’s SUV line-up, having swollen in size to make room for the X1 beneath it. Like the Disco, it’s better than the car it replaces.

7/10

4657mm 4657 4 46 657 7 mm mm

1995cc, 4cyl, 187bhp, 295lb ft 54.3mpg, 138g/km CO2 0–62mph in 8.1secs, 130mph 1820kg £38,950 TOPGEAR.COM

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068

TG’S ONE MINUTE EXPERT Got 60 seconds spare? Read these

M A Z DA C X- 3

BMW 650i • Beloved of

Americans, Russians and Chinese, BMW’s GT has been in for its mid-life refresh. New bumpers, tweaked headlights and fresh alloys result.

• Beautifully

made though the 6er is, it’s a bit too generic BMW inside. For £78,000, we’d like a bit more pizzazz, ta.

• Though the diesel 640d matters most in Blighty, BMW’s squeezed 42bhp extra from the 650i’s biturbo V8. It goes like a train. Look out, M4 drivers. • While the powertrain goes devilishly, the twotonne 650i is no sports car, preferring a wafty, three-tenths approach. May as well have the cabrio, then.

Engine 4395cc, V8, RWD, 444bhp, 479lb ft Performance 31.0mpg, 213g/km CO2, 0–60mph in 4.6secs, 155mph Weight 2005kg Price £77,985

SEAT LEON X-PERIENCE • Seat’s first proper

SUV is still a year or so away, so this jackedup Leon ST – with its chunky bumpers and Haldex AWD system – will have to do for the moment.

• Prices begin

at £24,385 for the base SE, but the £26,370 SE Tech gets more goodies, like nav and big wheels. It’s the one people will buy.

• It’s a 2.0-litre diesel, with either 148bhp and a manual ’box, or 181bhp and an auto. Have the 148: £2.5k cheaper and not much slower. • The XP drives like a normal ST, which is to say fairly tidily. The extra ride height has added a (little) bit of body roll into the equation, but it’s easily dismissed.

Engine 1968cc, 4cyl TD, 4WD, 148bhp, 250lb ft Performance 57.6mpg, 129g/km CO2, 0–62mph in 8.7secs, 129mph Weight 1484kg Price £24,385

Rising above

A jacked-up supermini proves its worth BY OLLIE KEW

e didn’t benchmark rivals when we created the CX-3, because there were no rivals.” Yeah right, Michio Tomiyama. So, the project chief in charge of Mazda’s Juke rival reckons his new baby stands apart. Big surprise. “But we have been developing the CX-3 since 2009.” Ah. That’s a year ORS\_R ;V``N[´` ObT RfRQ TR[_R QR»[V[T sn’t crossover appeared. Maybe Mazda isn’t simply following the herd. That said, the recipe for Mazda’ss m new jacked-up supermini is far from revolutionary. Under the bodyworkk and nings below the bonnet sit the underpinnings ck-solid and engines from the Mazda2, a rock-solid base – lightweight, agile and very chuckable. UR 0E /R`VQR N ! ZZ _\\¼V[R `dRYY aUR 0E trumps the 2’s boot size by a useful 100 YVa_R` N[Q \ÞR_` \]aV\[NY NYY dURRY Q_VcR that fewer than 10 per cent of UK buyers will select. Adult-adequate rear space beats that of rivals Juke and Vauxhall :\XXN Oba aUR 0E `bÞR_` `VZVYN_Yf patchy rear visibility. The dashboard arrives wholesale from the 2, complete with bulbous air vents, crystalclear instruments and erect touchscreen that evoke the new MX-5. The design we like; the bad-habit Japanese textured plastics, less so. But we often forgive Mazda its fauxPN_O\[ »[V`UR` S\_ aUR Sb[ Va V[WRPa` V[a\ humdrum cars, and the CX-3 bears that standard with pride. The steering has a refreshing weightiness about its ideally sized, multi-adjustable wheel, and the

“W

1998cc 4cyl, FWD, 118bhp, 150 lb ft

Cabin: design is far better than the execution

THE RIVAL

NISSAN JUKE

Similar warm hatch vibe, equally potent engine, bit cheaper

VERDICT Yes, we’d e’d just havee the lighter, cheaper eaper Mazda2, but as crossovers vers X-3 go, the CX-3 ntly is a brilliantly sorted littlee car.

gearshift could cou teach several hot hatches a lesson in tactility. tact While you you’re obviously loftier in a CX-3 than in a 2, you yo still feel properly integral to the car. So at last l we have a crossover that’s as deft as a Juk Juke, but without the vampire bulldog bodyw bodywork. AUR ]Nf \ AUR ]Nf \Þ V` N _VQR aUNa´` »_Z _NaUR_ aUN[ ¼ _NaUR_ aUN[ ¼bR[a N[Q aUR ]Ra_\Y engines require a lot of driver input too. Having no turbos and a ‘rightsizing over downsizing’ 2.0-litre capacity means there’s no low-down stack of torque; and the SkyActiv four-pots are thrashy at high revs. Of course, you could spec the 199lb ft, 70.6mpg diesel instead… y orks, the After six years in the works, CX-3 is more than just decent. Michio Tomiyama’s dislike of benchmarks had better change, because his team has actually created one.

8/10

47.8mpg, 137g/km CO2

0–62mph in 9.0secs, 0–62mphin9 0secs 119mph TTOOPPGGEEAARR. .CCOOMM

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1155k 1155kg

£17,595 £17595

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Z E N OS E 1 0 S

New blood f you’re keen to throw hot-hatch money at something altogether shorter on practicality, and even a roof, you’ve never been lacking choice. A Caterham Seven provides heritage. An Ariel Atom promises a good dose of thrills. And if you want carpets and a stereo optional, the Lotus Elise hasn’t made its 20th birthday without good reason. But now there’s another way, and it’s a curious cocktail of those three, with a sprinkling of KTM X-Bow for good measure. Meet the Zenos E10, driven here in its sprightlier, turbocharged S form. AUR_R´` aUR _\\ÂźR`` ZVQ R[TV[R YNf\ba of the Atom – the men behind it have years of experience at both Caterham

I

and Lotus – and its construction centres around a carbon composite tub, not dissimilar to that X-Bow. 6a QVÞR_` Of `VaaV[T Na\] N[ NYbZV[VbZ spine, which houses the engine in its rear extrusion. It’s all designed to mix lightness with strength, and with a driver N[Q ŸbVQ` aUR 2 @ dRVTU` N_\b[Q %" XT Tasked with propelling that lot is the 247bhp 2.0-litre turbo engine from the Focus ST, driving the rear wheels through a regular, three-pedal manual ’box, also from Ford – the company’s six-speeder. And, just like the ST, value is a real GR[\` S\_aR a\\ AUR � & &&" aUNa Obf` aUR 247bhp E10 S can’t even snare you a 134bhp entry Elise, while the range starts Na � ! &&" S\_ N OU] [Nab_NYYf aspirated E10. An option the vast majority

SNAPSHOT

IN DETAIL

Two TFT screens as standard – legible in all light conditions

Tri-colour scheme a result of smaller (cheaper) panels

Scant kit means few buttons, but you can have heated seats

Pliable on the road. Flattering on the track

070

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of Zenos’s 100 or so customers thus far have overlooked in favour of its quicker sibling, we must add. With roughly 600 fewer kilos to shift than the already pretty rapid Focus, it should be no surprise to learn the E10 S is quick. Punch through the gears, and you’ll quickly build up a real lick of speed. But being turbocharged – unusual in a speciality sports car market known for its N/A and supercharged output – it doesn’t ask for big throttle inputs or furious revving to unleash the bulk of its power. The engine does seem rather boosty in its delivery at times, a feeling exacerbated by all the whooshes and hisses you hear, thanks to the thin barrier between the engine and your ears. And you’ll need to exert care if you’re keen to avoid upsetting the rear axle with too much torque upon corner exit on an inevitably cold and grimy British road. Equally, the E10 S encourages you to explore its balance. Feeling a world away from an Atom or a Seven with equivalent power, it’s a friendly and approachable car, despite its complete lack of electric nannies. And, when the road is dry, grip is abundant. For a punchy mid-engined car, the E10 S feels very cocooning, and allows you a\ ObVYQ b] f\b_ P\[QR[PR YRcRY` ¯ and therefore your pace – very swiftly.

PHOTOGRAPHY: MANUFACTURER

UK sports car industry gains heavyweight entrant BY STEPHEN DOBIE

Six-speed ’box from Ford Focus, along with engine

Your mettle will have strengthened the moment after you’ve awkwardly clambered over its side sills (no doors, see) N[Q `Ubà RQ Q\d[ V[a\ Va` ObPXRa `RNa though. The steering wheel is suedewrapped and sits in front of a simple, legible screen displaying speed and revs. You sit low enough not to feel exposed to the elements – particularly if you’ve optioned the £1,695 windscreen – but the driving position is not intimidatingly buried or horizontal. There’s even a rest for your clutch foot. The non-assisted steering is almost perfectly weighted and dripping in feel, and while the double-wishbone suspension can brutally telegraph low`]RRQ _ba` Va Ÿ\d` cR_f [VPRYf V[QRRQ \cR_ bumpy, twisting A- and B-roads. AUR 2 V` QR`VT[RQ N` N _\NQ PN_ _`a and foremost, and its do-all standard suspension stands up to scrutiny. A wealthy options list includes all manner of things, including track-biased

THE RIVAL

ARIEL ATOM More exposed, less friendly. But a whole dollop of zany fun

VERDICT Accessible talents, though you might ďŹ nd an Atom or Seven more fun.

8/10 SPECS

1999cc, 4cyl turbo, RWD, 247bhp, 295lb ft

steering and suspension set-ups and N YVZVaRQ `YV] QVĂžR_R[aVNY DUVYR Z\`a customers have eschewed complication and gone for ’screen-equipped, roadorientated cars, it seems important to assess the E10’s track-day prowess given the rivals in its sights. On Britain’s second-best-known NV_ÂťRYQ PV_PbVa /_b[aV[TaU\_]R Va SRRY` strong, majoring on stability, with P\[ÂťQR[PR YRcRY` RcR[ UVTUR_ aUN[ \[ aUR _\NQ \[PR `bĂ&#x;PVR[a dN_ZaU V` V[ aUR tyres. The frivolity of a Caterham, which dances around corners without much provocation, is missing. But then the Zenos appears proud to be something else: a car with track talents and cornering speeds that doesn’t require oodles of skill, bravery or silliness to extract them.

N/A mpg, 155g/km CO2

.` N Âť_`a ]_\QbPa aUR 2 ORa_Nf` the sports car know-how that Zenos has poured into it and the experienced hands it has on deck. It doesn’t make us giggle quite like some of its better R`aNOYV`URQ _VcNY` Oba aUR ÂźV]`VQR V` it’s not immediately lairy and scary. And with Ford’s EcoBoost engine at its core, you can always call Mountune, should you feel you’ve mastered the E10 S a little too quickly. DUNa´` NY`\ ]YRN`V[T N_R aUR foundations it lays down. More habitable models (with actual doors!) will follow, an E11 convertible and E12 coupe due by 2018. Zenos may be a new name in the British sports-car industry, but our hunch is that it will be sticking around for some time yet.

0–62mph in 4.0secs (est), 145mph (est)

850kg

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2015 MV AGUSTA TURISMO VELOCE 800

Two Wheel Tourer

We travel all the way to South of France to check out this ground-up designed touring machine BY CHANDAN B MALLIK

irst revealed at EICMA in 2014, the production version of the all-new MV Agusta Turismo Veloce 800 is ready to hit the road. We travel all the way to South of France to check out this ground-up designed touring machine Milan-based MV Agusta Motor SpA is now on a new level and a new high. It plans to have at least 18-19 models in its line-up based on its three-cylinder and four-cylinder powertrains. The last model using the current three-cylinder

PHOTOGRAPHY: MANUFACTURER

F

architecture is the Turismo Veloce 800 and its variants Turismo Veloce 800 Lusso and limited production Edition 1. This development comes at a time when the motorcycle brand is looking forward to increase its global footprint with distribution expertise from Daimler. The Daimler connection came in 2014 after the latter purchased 25 per cent stake in MV Agusta. Both have indicated future plans about combining marketing MV Agusta motorcycles with their own range of AMG performance models and sports cars.

SNAPSHOT

IN DETAIL

Nuvo Garmin Satnav/GPS comes as standard

Trademarked shaped LED ďŹ red DRL embedded in fairing

ABS braking can be controlled by rider

SPECS

072

The Turismo Veloce 800 was designed ground-up as a luxury touring model and each and every component has been meticulously crafted with form and functionality in mind. The chassis is based on the tried and tested Stradale 800’s, but the steering geometry has ORR[ Z\QVÂťRQ @aRR_V[T _NXR UN` ORR[ V[P_RN`RQ Of Ă˜ a\ # "Ă˜ AUR PUN``V` structure is a mix of trellis, with bolt on forged aluminium castings as subframe which houses the seats. Plastic composites have been used in the body, panels, mudguards andother trim. The compactness in which all the components are packaged as a single b[VÂťRQ V` ^bVaR _RZN_XNOYR dUR_R nothing appears as being excessively done. The wheelbase now stands at 1,424mm and overall length is 2,084mm. The single-sided swingarm comes directly from the Stradale 800 unchanged. Frontgets inverted Marzocchi cartridge shocks which can a_NcRY b] a\ # ZZ .a aUR _RN_ aUR mono shock is from Sachs and is set `YVTUaYf \Ăž`Ra AUR Q_f dRVTUa \S aUR OVXR has been kept at 191kg. Despite of the forward re-positioning of the front wheel, the weight distribution remains correct because of the forward repositioning of a larger battery and of the

800cc in line three cylinder engine, 110 HP @10,000 RPM, 83Nm @ 8,000 RPM, Six speed cassette style transmission, 0-100 TBD, 230 km/h, AED TBD

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weight added by the fairing. The fairing V` dRYY ]_\ÂťYRQ `UN_] Oba NQR^bNaRYf ]_\aRPaVcR N[Q U\b`R` aUR SNZVYVN_ `UN]RQ 921 1?9 AUR UN[Q TbN_Q` UNcR QV_RPaV\[NY `VT[NY` V[aRT_NaRQ dUVYR Na the rear the horn-shape LED signal PYb`aR_ UN[T \[ RVaUR_ `VQR \S aUR [bZOR_ ]YNaR 3bRY aN[X PN]NPVaf V` YVa_R` 3Va N[Q Âť[V`U N_R P\ZZR[QNOYR .` N TY\ONY a\b_V[T OVXR `RcR_NY RYRZR[a` N_R OR`]\XR N[Q SNPa\_f ÂťaaRQ Ad\ P\Y\b_ `PURZR` N_R \ĂžR_RQ ÂŻ `VYcR_ _RQ S\_ aUR ]N[[VR_RQ Z\QRY` N[Q `VYcR_ S\_ [\[ ]N[[VR_RQ cR_`V\[` AUR S_NZR Z\b[aRQ SNV_V[T S\_ V[`aN[PR V` \ĂžR_RQ dVaU ad\ QVĂžR_R[a `P_RR[ URVTUa` N` \]aV\[ AUR _VQR URVTUa V` ÂťeRQ Na %" ZZ N[Q V` `bVaNOYR S\_ aNYYR_ _VQR_` \[Yf AUR handle bar is straight and the width is _RQbPRQ V[ XRR]V[T aUR _RN_ dVQaU HdVaU

]N[[VR_`J AUR Y\PXNOYR ]N[[VR_` dVYY NPP\ZZ\QNaR YVa_R` d\_aU \S PN_T\ dUVPU ZRN[` ad\ SbYY SNPR URYZRa` ]Yb` Rea_N TRN_ .` N QbNY `RNaR_ aUR ]VYYV\[ _VQR_ OR[Ra` S_\Z `aNQVbZ cVRd ;\ ]_\cV`V\[ S\_ a\] O\e aU\bTU N` \S [\d Most of the controls on the handlebar N_R SNZVYVN_ Oba aUR_R´` N[ Rea_N a\TTYR dUVPU URY]` aUR _VQR_ [NcVTNaR aU_\bTU aUR ReaR[`VcR ZR[b .[Q QR]R[QV[T \[ cR_`V\[ \S aUR OVXR aUR _VQR_ PN[ cV_abNYYf QVNY V[ ]N_NZRaR_` _N[TV[T S_\Z R[TV[R ZN]]V[T aU_\aaYR _R`]\[`R R[TV[R O_NXV[T O_NXR S\_PR a_NPaV\[ P\[a_\Y aUR ^bVPX`UVSaR_ b] N[Q Q\d[ N[Q aUR UfQ_NbYVPNYYf NPabNaRQ `YV]]R_ PYbaPU N[Q V[ Z\QRY` dVaU RYRPa_\[VP `b`]R[`V\[ H9b``\J ¯ `\Sa \_ UN_Q `RaaV[T` AUR R[TV[R V` ON`RQ \[ aUR /_baNYR´` $&%PP aU_RR PfYV[QR_ 1<50 S\b_ `a_\XR

YV^bVQ P\\YRQ R[TV[R Oba UN` ORR[ _Rd\_XRQ V[ cVRd \S aURa\b_V[T [Nab_R dUR_R a\_^bR QRYVcR_f V` Z\_R VZ]\_aN[a than horsepower. It also gets newly designed pistons and MotoGP inspired P\b[aR_`UNSa N__N[TRZR[a S\_ `Z\\aU _b[[V[T R`]RPVNYYf Na UVTUR_ _Rc` 6[ aUV` `Ra b] Va ]_\QbPR` U] Na _]Z Hc` /_baNYR´` "U]J N[Q % ;Z \S a\_^bR Na % _]Z =\dR_ V` `R[a aU_\bTU N `Ve `]RRQ TRN_O\e N[Q Âť[NY Q_VcR V` PUNV[ :C .Tb`aN PYNVZ` aUNa aUR R[TV[R ZN[NTRZR[a UN` ORR[ aNVY\_RQ a\ \ĂžR_ Rea_RZRYf UVTU YRcRY` \S ÂźReVOVYVaf V[ cVRd \S aUR YVXRYf d\_XV[T `PR[N_V\` N[Q hence incorporates a highly advanced RYRPa_\[VP` ]NPXNTR dVaU adV[ 20B` 6[ SNPa aUR 2YQ\_ 2: R[TV[R ZN[NTRZR[a `f`aRZ V` ]N_a \S N[ NQcN[PRQ RYRPa_\[VP` `bVaR dUVPU V` TOPGEAR.COM

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“The balance of the bike is one of its strongest points as the front end is quite light and doesn’t tire the rider.�

capable of comparing data and rider inputs before acting—in a millionth of a second. The ignition system includes the latest pencil-type coils capable of monitoring combustion in each cylinder and at every cycle. This arrangement prevents engine knocking at low speeds. Three exhaust tips with OVTTR_ QVNZRaR_ aV]` `VT[` \Þ aUR `Ra b] nicely. Top speed is restricted to 230km/h. In terms of modcons, the bike comes dVaU SNPa\_f aaRQ 4N_ZV[ 4=@ N /YbRa\\aU OVXR _VQR_ V[aR_SNPR ad\ B@/ charging ports up front located near the top of the fuel tank, 12v power socket for pillion and hydraulic clutch for the rider. The bike’s instrumentation and information display are all integrated into a TFT screen. Dashboard information relayedincludes speed, rpm, gear, mileage, trip, fuel level, riding mode but information like travel distance to empty/reserve, consumption rate, average

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consumption etc are not available. In terms of stopping power the bike P\ZR` \baÂťaaRQ dVaU ZZ Q\bOYR Âź\NaV[T QV`P dVaU /_RZO\ _NQVNY af]R four piston calipers and smaller 220mm `V[TYR QV`P dVaU ad\ ]V`a\[ PNYV]R_ ./@ `f`aRZ b`RQ P\ZR` S_\Z /\`PU H& =Yb`J and the bike also features rear wheel lift-up mitigation. The tyre set-up is surprising in the sense that it uses smaller 17in asymmetric width rim shod dVaU $ G? $ : 0 H"%DJ N[Q & "" G? $ : 0 H$"DJ af_R` S_\[a N[Q _RN_ respectively. In this set up, the minimum ground clearance is 140mm.

VERDICT With the genes derived from a sports bike, this groubd-up designed luxury touring machine offers the best of both worlds — sporty performance and comfort besides long driving range

Riding impressions The bike is tall, as are all bikes of this niche segment, but the seat does provide a reasonable reach to the ground for tall _VQR_` @U\_a _VQR_` Hb[QR_ "´ #²J dVYY Âť[Q aUR _RNPU QVĂ&#x;PbYa RcR[ dVaU aUR softest chassis setting which allows the ride height to be lowered. Fire the engine N[Q Va `aN_a` \Ăž _NaUR_ [\V`VYf N` aUR_R´` N

8/10

lot of mechanical chatter in idling which seems to settle down when the clutch is R[TNTRQ HRcR[ ]N_aYf V[ [Rba_NYJ N[Q TRN_ V`R[TNTRQ 4RN_ `UVSa _R`]\[`R RcR[ V[ default mode is quite responsive and so is throttle feedback. In the higher revs, the machine shows its eagerness to please and moves forward with a complementing exhaust growl. The bike’s acceleration is progressive, fast and wind protection is very good due to `b]R_O NR_\Qf[NZVP ]_\ÂťYV[T \S aUR front faring and screen. The balance of the bike is one of its strongest points as the front end is quite YVTUa N[Q Q\R`[´a aV_R aUR _VQR_ @aRR_V[T and turn-in are good and we ncountered no issues in manoeuevring the countless hairpin bends, fast corners and long stretches during our 230km plus sojourn in and around the country side and spectacular mountain roads of Cote Azur in southern France. As a dual purpose bike, this machine has the capability of keeping its riders

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LIFE INSIDE thoroughly entertained and engaged. While output is 15hp less than that of the /_baNYR Va V` aUR ŸNa a\_^bR QRYVcR_f which makes up for that performance Tb_R AUR`b]R_V\_ ]R_S\_ZN[PR \S aUR ZNPUV[R V` NY`\ N QV_RPa OR[Ra \S aUR upgraded electronics it use which also manages the Bosch Cornering ABS SRNab_R ]_RcR[a` aUR /_RZO\ O_NXR` S_\Z Y\PXV[T N dURRY RcR[ dUR[ dRYY YRN[RQ \cR_ 2[Q \S aUR QNf dR [RRQ a\ remember that the Veloce 800 has a naked sports bike’s fundamental hardware under its skin and this aspect PN[ R[`b_R Va` \cR_NYY YVXRNOVYVaf RcR[ N` N medium to long distance tourer. One thing for sure which can be said about aUR [Rd " :C .Tb`aN CRY\PR Ab_V`Z\ 800 is that despite its sophisticated software it doesn’t appear complicated. Rather, it’s a pleasant machine to be on all day. AUR " :C .Tb`aN Ab_V`Z\ CRY\PR 800 when compared to the stalwarts in the segment may appear slightly under kitted, but when it comes to comfort and cR_`NaVYVaf aUV` ZNPUV[R Q\R` \ÞR_ N Y\a for its price. Global buyers will appreciate the larger capacity fuel tank, range, wind protection, comfortable `RNa UN[QYRON_` N[Q N``\PVNaRQ OR[Ra`

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Rider can program throttle response and engine mapping 5V DC USB charging and 12V power points available Chassis settings can be adjusted to suit riding conditions Rider can program throttle response and engine mapping 3-cylinder 800cc engine offers 110hp and is punchy via fast shifting

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CAYMAN GT4

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...to pick up a Cayman GT4 from Stuttgart and take it to the only race track that matters: ours WORDS: PAUL HORRELL / PICTURES: ROWAN HORNCASTLE

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TWELVE HOURS. BRIEF ENOUGH THAT YOU COULD WASTE IT AND NOT FEEL TOO REGRETFUL. LONG ENOUGH THAT YOU COULD SPEND IT WELL AND BANK MEMORIES TO LAST A LIFETIME. WHICH I INTEND TO DO NOW. The grey Porsche factory in Stuttgart glows shades of peach under the sun’s evening rays as the security guard hands me the key to a Cayman GT4. My 12-hour clock starts ticking. An all-nighter will see us across to England via autobahns, back roads, forested hills and open plains. Tomorrow morning, the gates to the TopGear track will unlock, and with them, this car’s Porsche Motorsport soul will open wide. It lurks with intent by the gatehouse, its stance squatter and wider than the regular Cayman’s to a drastic extent. Its body is emphatically reshaped and augmented and pierced, for cajoling the air into holding it to the road and cooling its workings. Indoors are seatbelts in Racing Yellow (a colour that’s worth a second a lap, obvs) which hold you V[ N ]NV_ \S SRNaUR_dRVTUa PN_O\[ ÂťO_R `URYYRQ `RNa` from the 918. Also for lightness’ sake, the radionav-phone unit has been replaced by a Porsche Motorsport-approved blend of nitrogen and oxygen. A Cayman S is a wonderful sports car, a Cayman 4A@ N aNbaR[RQ cR_`V\[ \S `NZR /ba V[ aUR Âť_`a few hundred yards, out the gate and round by the Porsche Museum, it’s abundantly clear a Cayman GT4 really is something else entirely. The reduced essence of a track-focused supercar: smaller, less powerful, but exhibiting all the same behaviours and sensations. Start it and the engine shimmies with a hollow metallic bellow. The pedals act without an atom of slack or indecision. The steering, too, brooks no [\[`R[`R 1_VcR \Ăž N[Q aUR a_N[`ZV``V\[´` aRRaU ZR`U dVaU N dUV[R( Q_VcR \Ăž dVaU `\ZR Y\PX \[ N[Q aUR QVĂž judders. The ceramic brakes grind slightly, the tyres slap, the suspension conveys every nuance of what’s passing beneath. You accept these small privations as the prerequisites of a transcendentally engaging fast car, a car that will talk to you as clearly as glass and react to you as sharply as a shard. And they’re making my whole nervous system tingle in anticipation as I nudge it gently out through the Stuttgart suburbs. Reaching the autobahn, I go for it. The evening a_NĂ&#x;P V` aUV[[V[T Oba [\a fRa aUV[[RQ . TN] \]R[` N[Q aUR ÂźNa `Ve `VZ]Yf ÂťYY` Va` O\\a` T\_TV[T Va` dNf through the mid-revs the instant my foot moves, climbing on the cam between 3,500 and 4,500 and then howling into sixes and sevens, its red line at 7,800. Change up and it drops things right onto the peak of the wave. And again, until the 100mph I was

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Driving out the gates of Zuffenhausen, down the road to the Porsche Museum and then further. Much, much further

`UN_V[T dVaU \aUR_ \ba`VQR YN[R a_NĂ&#x;P UN` `dVSaYf Z\_]URQ V[a\ ! " aUR PUN``V` P\[ÂťQR[aYf tucked down by its aerodynamics and iron-willed damping. Suddenly, the yellow streak has hoovered aUR [Rea X[\a \S a_NĂ&#x;P ONPX a\dN_Q` Va`RYS N[Q aUR carbon-ceramic brakes must do their thing. Which they do with ridiculous ease. =RRYV[T \Ăž `\baU \S =S\_gURVZ dR´_R V[ aUR /YNPX Forest as the light in the sky sighs its last. These are superb roads, carving their path through the dense trees in busy combinations of sweepers and hairpins. No car is faster than its headlights, and the GT4’s NQN]aVcR ]NV_ `dV[T aURV_ OYNgR \S eR[\[ dVaU f\b_ RfR` as you turn the wheel. There follows a whole lot of that as we climb out of successive valleys, across the ridges and plunge down again, building and releasing forces in every direction. The GT4’s front suspension and brakes come almost unadulterated from the 911 GT3. At the back, it keeps the usual Cayman design, but solid ball joints replace certain rubberised bushes. Here in the Forest it comes out to play. All my actions bring a high]_RPV`V\[ gR_\ QRYNf _R`]\[`R aUR PN_ V[`aV[PaVcRYf alive to my intentions. It feeds back to me, too – the steering full of feel in a way none of the Caymans and Boxsters have managed since the hydraulic-assist days, but with much more sharpness. My hands are kept busy, too, by another throwback I’m cherishing: a manual gearbox. Now, in the matter of powertrain, it’s true the Porsche Motorsport engineers were forced to bend to the mundane forces of commerce. A special engine or

“ON THE AUTOBAHN, I GO FOR IT. THE FLAT-SIX FILLS ITS BOOTS�

CAYMAN GT4 The pit straight at Reims: period advertising hoardings bTc ^á cWT 2Ph\P] Ydbc b^

A man on a mission – Paul Horrell gets into the zone

GT4 blitzes the miles between Stuttgart and Calais. Then there’s a brief break to let the Shuttle take the strain across the Channel before tackling Britain’s noisy road network

New badge for Porsche. Welcome to the clan GT4, h^dµ[[ ½c X] Ydbc ½]T

TTOOPPGGEEAARR. .CCOOMM

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Chunnel or Autoroute toll booth? Hard to tell when the fog rolls in

These numbers tell their own story. Epic European road trip. Done

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gearbox were ruled out by their expense. Instead it’s the % YVa_R ÂźNa `Ve \ba \S N 0N__R_N @ T\\Q S\_ % OU] @\ Va Q\R`[´a aNXR f\b a\ aUR `a_Na\`]UR_VP _Rc` \S aUR a_bR :\a\_`]\_a R[TV[R` /ba Va` V[`aN[a _RNPaV\[` `a_\[T torque and charismatic noise – gingered up by the special ReUNb`a N[Q aUR SNPa aUR dU\YR Y\a `Va` f\b_ `VQR \S aUR _RN_ dV[Q`P_RR[ ÂŻ ZRN[ Va P\bYQ UN_QYf OR N[f YR`` \S N YRaQ\d[ . `YVTUaYf OVTTR_ V__VaN[a V` aUR SNPa aUNa aUR 4A! XRR]` aUR `aN[QN_Q 0NfZN[ TRN_ _NaV\` @RP\[Q N[Q aUV_Q N_R a\\ UVTU S\_ aUR`R aVTUaR_ `RPaV\[` \S S\_R`a /ba NTNV[ aUR_R´` N P\Z]R[`NaV\[ AUR `UVSa a_NcRY V` `U\_aR[RQ N[Q aUR YRcR_ Âť[Q` Va` `Y\a` dVaU `a_\[TYf QRaR[aRQ `aRRYf PR_aNV[af 9VXR N =\_`PUR `UVSa \[Yf =\_`PUVR_ .[Q URPX aUR NPabNY ]R_S\_ZN[PR [\[PUNYN[aYf bats away any cavils: Va´` b] S\_ # Z]U V[ ! ! `RP\[Q` # V[ ! N[Q dVYY a_NcRY \[dN_Q a\ % Z]U =\_`PUR Q\R`[´a ZNXR N OVT QRNY \S weight saving versus the `aN[QN_Q 0NfZN[ Oba ! XT dVaU ÂźbVQ` V` UN_QYf ÂźNOOf @\ UR_R V[ aUR d\\Q` N[Q UVYY` 6´Z QRR] V[a\ N d\_YQ \S Zf \d[ `bOZR_TRQ V[ aUR V[Xf aReab_R \S a_RR` dUVggV[T Of PUN`V[T aUR [N__\d ]\\Y \S YVTUa N[Q aN_ZNP RN_` SbYY \S aUR ÂźNa `Ve P\[PR_a SRRa N[Q UN[Q` N[Q URNQ baaR_Yf absorbed in this three-way dance between them and the PN_´` ZRPUN[V`Z` N[Q aUR _\NQ Va`RYS AUV` PN__VR` b` ZbPU \S aUR dNf a\ aUR ?UV[R =VPXV[T N O_VQTR a\ 3_N[PR dR´_R P\[[RPaRQ a\ aUR Nba\_\baR` 6S dR´_R a\ ZNXR aUR TopGear a_NPX `Y\a Va´` aVZR a\ ]ba \[ `\ZR `aRNQf O_V`X ZVYR` ;\ \[R T\R` SN`a \[ 3_R[PU Z\a\_dNf` aUR`R QNf`( X]U V` a\\ `a_VPaYf R[S\_PRQ AUR 4A! Q\R`[´a UNcR P_bV`R P\[a_\Y a\ XRR] Va S_\Z Q\V[T aUR `]RRQ Va `\ ONQYf dN[a` a\ Q\ =Yb` aUR TRN_ dUV[R N[Q Q_bOOV[T \S aUR ReUNb`a T_NQbNYYf TRa a\ f\b @\ aUR`R N_R[´a _RYNeV[T U\b_` N` dR ]N`` :Rag N[Q URNQ \[ [\_aU dR`a @\ZRaVZR QRR] V[ aUR `ZNYY U\b_` ]U\a\T_N]UR_ ?\dN[ UN` N O_VTUa VQRN' YRa´` T\ `RR aUR UV`a\_VP 4_N[Q =_Ve ]Va` [RN_ ?RVZ` 6´cR [RcR_ ORR[ aU\bTU 6´Z ]R``VZV`aVP dR´YY `RR ZbPU V[ aUR QRNQ \S [VTUa /ba Va´` N SbYY Z\\[ `\ d\_aU N a_f F\b P\ZR \Ăž aUR Z\a\_dNf Wb`a `\baU \S aUR PVaf N[Q aUR_R Of 4bRbe \[ N QRNQ `a_NVTUa 1 _\NQ aURf Y\\Z b] Na f\b . UbTR RZ]af T_N[Q`aN[Q \[R `VQR \S aUR _\NQ aUR ]Va O\eR` N[Q a\dR_ \[ aUR \aUR_ NYY XR]a ]NV[aRQ V[ ]R_V\Q NQcR_aV`V[T S\_ af_R N[Q \VY N[Q `]N_X ]YbT P\Z]N[VR` ZN[f \S aURZ Y\[T QRPRN`RQ AUR`R N_R `PN_f ^bVPX _\NQ`' aUR YN`a 3_R[PU 4= UR_R

CAYMAN GT4 Dunsfold: the natural home of the truly great Cayman GT4

in 1966, was won by Jack Brabham in a car of his own making at a 137mph average. At a deserted 3am in the cold hard lunar rays, the silence broken only by the distant autoroute and the cooling ticks of our Porsche, the ghosts of those heroes swirl benignly around. They surely approve of our manic little yellow car. Rowan is driving now, and I drift to sleep, lulled by the apparent stasis of engine hum behind, darkness to the side, hypnotically pinging lane markers fading into the forward distance. Some time later, I wake, in a mental and actual fog, as he stops for fuel. A thick mist is blanketing the plains of Picardy, and we’re reduced to 50mph or so. I drive again, peering into indistinct mercury-grey. It’s a struggle, not helped by the taunting, haunting moon hanging clearly above, so shallow is the stratum of mist. But the darkest hour really is just before the dawn: to the east, the subtle indigo watercolours \S _`a YVTUa O_V[T ZR Wb`a R[\bTU R[R_Tf a\ aNXR b` a\ aUR Ab[[RY 6` Va ]\``VOYR a\ `YRR] V[ N eRQ ONPX _NPV[T seat? Absolutely. The moment the train wheels start rolling, my eyelids clap shut like guillotines. At the other end, the Porsche and its driver emerge blinking into a beautiful gauzy Kent morning. I’ve been

“THE NOISE IS LIKE BEING IN A FILING CABINET IN A JET-WASHâ€? wondering how its suspension will cope with the bumps of an English B-road, and whether its tyres will, as per usual with hot Porsches, kick up a racket on our coarse-surface motorways. They sure do. Up the ridged concrete section of the M20, the noise is like being stuck V[`VQR N ÂťYV[T PNOV[Ra V[ N WRa dN`U 0\[cR_`NaV\[ ZNXR` ZR U\N_`R 2[TV[R \Ăž V[ aUR Ab[[RY 6´Q [\aVPRQ aUR PY\PX actually does tick. In no way is it, at 60mph, the loudest [\V`R V[ aUR 4A! 6 ab_[ \Ăž V[a\ aUR P\b[a_f`VQR P_NcV[T N Âťe \S 0NfZN[ Qf[NZVP` Looking at those slammed wheelarches, you’d think they’d rule out any sensible vertical wheel travel. Yet here’s a curious and wonderful thing: give the suspension some TOPGEAR.COM

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CAYMAN GT4

PORSCHE CAYMAN GT4 Price: £64,451 Engine: 3800cc 6cyl, 380bhp @ 7400rpm, 310lb ft @ 4750rpm Performance: 0–62mph in 4.4secs, 183mph vmax Transmission: 6spd manual, RWD Economy: 27.4mpg, 238g/km CO2 Weight: 1340kg

Engage The Stig. Watch and learn, readers. Watch and learn...

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Paul passes the tyres. Clearly yet to realise he’s driving the wrong way...

No radio. No satnav. Decidedly sporty seats. But amazing to drive

d\_X a\ Q\ N[Q d\_X Va Q\R` 6a aNXR` aUR RQTR` \Þ OVT ObZ]` N[Q NYY\d` aUR O\Qf a\ O_RNaUR N OVa F\b´_R [\a b[P\ZS\_aNOYR N[Q ZVQ P\_[R_ ObZ]` PN[´a ]ba Va \Þ .QN]aVcR QNZ]R_` N[Q a_N[`ZV``V\[ Z\b[a` Q\ aURV_ OVa a\\ .` \SaR[ UN]]R[` dVaU `b]R_PN_ `b`]R[`V\[` aUR UN_Q[R`` V` NYY V[ f\b_ ZV[Q 6a´` `b_]_V`V[TYf ¼bR[a /ba [\d aUR _RNY aR`a \S aUV` PUN``V` DR _\YY b] Na aUR 1b[`S\YQ TNaR` N ZV[baR NSaR_ aURf \]R[ 6´Q PYNVZ V[ NYY Z\QR`af aUNa aUV` dN` =\_`PUR YRcRY` \S ]_RPV`V\[ aVZV[T TVcR[ 6´cR P_\``RQ aU_RR P\b[a_VR` N[Q N `RNdNf 2cR[ NSaR_ N `PN[a UNYS YN] Na dN_Z b] `]RRQ` aUR 4A! V` ZNXV[T Va`RYS R[aV_RYf Na U\ZR . SRd ^bVPXR_ YN]` `U\d Va a\ OR `U\PXV[TYf T\\Q DUR_R Q\ 6 `aN_a, .a aUR `aN_a 6 TbR`` :VQ R[TV[RQ dRVTUa QV`a_VObaV\[ N[Q &" `RPaV\[ af_R` Q_\]XVPX Va \Þ aUR YV[R 6a` V[aVZNaR SRRY Re]YNV[` U\d DVYY`\[´` \Þ PNZOR_ `RPaV\[ dN[a` a\ _\YY Z\`a PN_`´ aNVY` Y\\`R fRa aUR 4A! Va`RYS _RZNV[` SN_ a\\ P\Z]\`RQ a\ Q\ N[faUV[T \S aUR `\_a .` aUR S_\[a dURRY` Y\NQ b] S\_ aUR »_`a ]N_a \S 0UVPNT\ aUR YVaaYR `aRR_V[T dURRY ]\`a` ZR SbY`\ZR Y\cR [\aR` 4_V] aU_\bTU aUR N]Re V` P\Y\``NY N[Q `\´` aUR `RPb_Vaf N` Va OYN`a` \ba AU_\bTU aUR TRN_` aUR R[TV[R´` dVYYV[T[R`` N[Q ]\aR[Pf O_V[T b] 5NZZR_URNQ V[ cR_f `U\_a \_QR_ Oba aUR_R´` [\ [RRQ a\ O_NXR aVYY Va´` »YYV[T aUR ´`P_RR[ ORPNb`R aUR PR_NZVP` dVYY UN]]VYf QRS\_Z f\b_ _VOPNTR 6a Q\R` N`X S\_ N YVaaYR ]NaVR[PR V[ aUR aVTUa »_`a ]N_a \S aUR 5NZZR_URNQ ¯ N :P9N_R[´` O_NXR `aRR_ QRcVPR _RQbPR` b[QR_`aRR_ a\ gR_\ N `aNaR \S T_NPR aUR 4A! Q\R`[´a ^bVaR NaaNV[ /ba ONPX \[ aUR aU_\aaYR 6´Z cN`aYf _RN``b_RQ Of aUR O_VYYVN[a NQN]aVcR QNZ]V[T N` Va `bZZN_VYf QR`]NaPUR` aUNa b]`RaaV[T ObZ] NSaR_ aUR N]Re ;Nab_NY N`]V_NaV\[´` V[`aN[a ]\dR_ QRYVcR_f ZNXR` N Y\cRYf W\O \S holding things together on aUNa Y\[T ReVa . `U\_a dURRYON`R ZRN[` aUV` V`[´a N PN_ S\_ RN`f Y\[T OVT `VQRdNf` `Z\XV[T Oba aUR a_N[`]N_R[Pf N[Q ReNPa[R`` \S NYY Va` N[`dR_` ZRN[ f\b´_R UNcV[T UbTR Sb[ Na `bOaYR N[TYR` ;Rea b] U\dRcR_ O\YQ 6 a_f a\ OR S\_ aUR _VQVPbY\b`Yf SN`a 3\YY\d AU_\bTU Q\d[S\_PR aRYY` ZR 6´cR dVZ]RQ Va .[Q aUR[ Na @RP\[Q a\ 9N`a dUVPU 6 [RcR_ TRa _VTUa Va` S\_TVcR[R`` V` aUR TVSa aUNa XRR]` \[ TVcV[T 6 ]VYSR_ Z\_R YN]` aUN[ 6 `U\bYQ b[aVY aUR U\b_ _bYR V` O_RNPURQ =\_`PUR :\a\_`]\_a UN` ObVYa `\ZRaUV[T a_bYf `]RPVNY UR_R RcR[ NZ\[T aUR R]VP YV[R \S PN_` Va´` ObVYa ORS\_R 6 Q\[´a YVXR aUR ]N_R[a P\Z]N[f´` `NYR` aNPaVP ZV[Q' aURf dR_R `aVYY \ßPVNYYf QR[fV[T aUR PN_ d\bYQ RcR_ ReV`a dRRX` NSaR_ aURV_ QRNYR_` UNQ `\YQ aURZ NYY \ba @\ f\b PN[´a UNcR \[R( aUR #! !" ]_VPR ZRN[` [\aUV[T /ba YRa´` VZNTV[R Va QVQ AUV` d\bYQ OR N ON_TNV[ . ZVQ R[TV[RQ `b]R_PN_ Oba YR`` 6[ N T\\Q dNf 6a` O\Qf V` `ZNYYR_ N[Q UN[QVR_ N[Q Va` `UN]R Z\_R SNZVYVN_ `\ YR`` \`aR[aNaV\b` 6a` R[TV[R V` Wb`a N` RePVaV[T Oba Va` Y\dR_ ]\dR_ UN[Q` f\b aUR W\f \S ReaR[QV[T Va Z\_R 0U\\`R N T_RNa PN_ S\b_ aVZR` aUV` ]_VPR' aUR 4A! V` Va` QV`aVYYNaR 6a` RcR_f Z\cR TRa` _VTUa a\ aUR ]\V[a .[Q a\ aUR QR]aU` \S Zf ORV[T

“GRIP THROUGH THE APEX AT CHICAGO IS COLOSSAL”

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with d e l l fi , r i a l n w our o y g n i v a h f o t eam r d y s a e n Ever dream a ’s t i ell, W ? s r e d n o w d e n gift e v i g d o customis g a e v ou ha y d e d i v o r ... p a , r e e s m a c o e to reali d i v ate a r e p o n a c d n a for driving

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KEN BLOCK

NAME: KEN BLOCK AGE: 47 PROFESSION: DRIVING GOD

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SO, MR BLOCK, OCK, W WHY HY Y DO D YO YOU O TH T THINK YOU’RE FO TG HERO? A SUITABLE CANDIDATE FOR

1993

Starts DC Shoes

2004

Sells DC Shoes to Quiksilver. Attends rally school

2005

Wins Rally of America Rookie of the Year driving a Subaru WRX STi

2006

Drives his Subaru WRX STi to third in the American National Championship. Releases Gymkhana 1. Breaks internet

2007

Second in the X Games X111 rally event. Third again in American National Rally Championship. Internet still broken

2008

Does the NZ round of the World Rally Championship. Internet almost repaired

2009

Appears on TopGear and releases Gymkhana 2. Internet breaks again

2010

Swaps to a Ford Focus RS in WRC. First US driver to enter and drive in the WRC. Also does Rally America Championship, X Games. Also releases three-part Gymkhana 3. Are there two Ken Blocks?

2011

Swaps Focus for Fiesta RS in WRC. Lots of spectacular drifting and crashing occurs. Gets six points for the season. Gymkhana 4 emerges. Internet quakes

2012

Block wins silver medal in Rallycross at X Games. Beaten by an on-form SĂŠbastien Loeb. Internet takes extra vitamins as Gymkhana 5 released

2013

Second in Rally America. Seventh overall in WRC Mexican rally. Gymkhana 6 shows its face

2014

Internet back in bits again as Gymkhana 7 is released and gets 10 million views in 52 hours. Competes in Global Rallycross, World Rallycross, Rally America, WRC, Monza Rally Sprints. Maybe there are three KBs?

2015

Focusing on Global Rallycross win after missing by ďŹ ve points the year before, plus a couple of domestic WRC events in New Zealand. Readying Gymkhana 8

MONSTER ENERGY, ESPN IMAGES

tanding next to his mud-splattered black Ford Raptor pickup, the snow-capped BaNU Z\b[aNV[` _RÂźRPaV[T V[ UV` _NV[O\d lensed sunglasses, Ken Block, boss at Hoonigan Racing Division, Gymkhana star – and now Ford Focus RS drift co-ordinator – presses the mental rewind and starts to tell us how he got where he is today. With most successful people, there is usually a long back story of hard times and harder work to get to the top. But not Ken. He just exploded, in his trademark style, onto the rallying scene in 2004 and has been raising his and everyone else’s pulse ever since. “I’ve been a fan of motor sports and rallies since I was a young kid,â€? he says. “But I always thought it was just a European sport. Then, in 2004, Travis Pastrana did some rallies here in the States that got some press. That woke me up to the fact that rally actually existed here. Âą6 dN` aUR PUVRS O_N[Q \Ă&#x;PR_ Na 10 H@U\R`J Na aUR aVZR N[Q Travis was one of our athletes. So I called his agent and said, ‘Hey, I _RNYYf dN[a a\ T\ ÂťTb_R \ba U\d A_NcV` QVQ aUV` 1\ f\b X[\d dU\ was running the car and what school did he go to and all that sort of thing? I want to go race with him if possible.’ “So Travis’s agent, who is now my agent, hooked me up with all that information, and I went out and did a school just for fun, just to try it out. Turns out I had some natural talent for it, so I went and started racing that next year.â€? Ken saying he has some natural talent for rallying is like most of us saying we have a natural talent for breathing. In 2005, he became Rookie of the Year and beat Travis in the process. But it wasn’t the dirt rallying that propelled Ken into the world’s consciousness. It was his tyre-murdering Gymkhanas exploding all over the internet in 2006 that really caught the world’s attention. How did that come about? “Rallies around the world compete on gravel, tarmac, snow and sand,â€? he says. “But here in the States, we really only have gravel rallies. I wanted to learn to slide the car on tarmac like they do in aUR :\[aR 0N_Y\ \_ 0\_`VPN RcR[a` @\ 4fZXUN[N dN` N dNf S\_ ZR to acquire those skills in a cheap way in the States. Âą6 YVXRQ Va `\ ZbPU 6 ObVYa N PN_ HUV` @bON_b 6Z]_RgNJ a\ Q\ Va .[Q as soon as that car was built, the guy who was organising those 4fZXUN[N RcR[a` V[ @\baUR_[ 0NYVS\_[VN ^bVa Q\V[T aURZ @\ 6 UNQ aUV` NZNgV[T PN_ Oba [\dUR_R [\d a\ T\ _NPR Va “So I took it to one of the places where I competed in a 4fZXUN[N RcR[a aUR 2Y A\_\ .V_ÂťRYQ V[ <_N[TR 0\b[af 0. N[Q dR Wb`a ÂťYZRQ ad\ QNf` \S aR`aV[T N[Q ]_NPaV`V[T dVaU aUR PN_ N[Q having fun. I didn’t really think much of it. I thought it was some cool footage, but because I’d seen tarmac rallies and guys like David Higgins and Mark Higgins doing donuts at the end of stages in the ZVQQYR \S N aN_ZNP _\NQ 6 dN` b`RQ a\ `RRV[T aUNa `abĂž ² He and a few others might have been. But we weren’t. The reason Ken thinks it went so huge was down to packaging. “I really think that no one had showcased it and put it in a packaged way for the average person to see,â€? he says modestly. “Because it’s not like I was doing something out of the ordinary in terms of rally talent.â€? Really? “Well, there were a couple moments in there, like with aUR @RTdNf aUNa dR_R SNV_Yf Q_NZNaVP .[Q cR_f b[b`bNY ÂŻ 6 aUV[X 6´Z _RNYYf aUR Âť_`a N[Q \[Yf ]R_`\[ a\ Q\ Q\[ba` N_\b[Q Z\cV[T objects. So I think that sort of thing really made it a big pass-along. But the response that we got from that was really quite beyond anything that we expected.â€? .a aUR YN`a P\b[a aUR `RcR[ R]V`\QR Gymkhana series has notched up over 300 million views and counting. So they are not

KEN BLOCK Meet the ’65 Mustangbased Hoonicorn – star of Gymkhana 7

“HE EXPLODED ONTO THE RALLYING SCENE IN 2004 AND HAS BEEN RAISING EVERYONE’S PULSE SINCE”

Gymkhana = many spare body panels for any necessary transplants

Wild horse for a wild driver. This pony gives it the full carrots... No people allowed in here: makes it look too untidy

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KEN BLOCK

Just one of Block’s many camera-pleasing Ford Fiestas. Smile

A Ford Raptor. On tracks. Well, why the hell not?

Ken’s brown bear impersonation almost as good as his driving

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ever trying to drive a rear-wheel car in a rally. And I Wb`a `bPXRQ Na Va 6 P\bYQ[´a ORYVRcR U\d QVĂ&#x;PbYa Va dN` Âą2cR_ `V[PR aUR[ 6 dN[aRQ a\ TRa ORaaR_ Na Va N[Q dN[aRQ a\ own one myself. So I bought a light tarmac build a couple years ago, and I broke it in the two [gravel] rallies I tried to race it in. So we decided to make it into an all-tarmac car, and for me, that meant making it a Gymkhana car. So that car will be done in a couple of months, and we’ll probably put out photos of it and start testing it in May or June or July. Âą/ba \[PR NTNV[ Va´` Wb`a N[\aUR_ Sb[ ]_\WRPa PN_ aNXV[T N ]N_a of Ford’s history and making it work with what I do and how 6 Q\ aUV[T` ² <aUR_ PN_` V[ 8R[´` P_\`` UNV_` V[PYbQR aUR @VR__N ?@" N[Q aUR 2`P\_a 0\`d\_aU `\ aUR_R N_R ]YR[af \S PN_` a\ XRR] UVZ Ob`f S\_ N dUVYR fRa dUVPU V` Wb`a N` dRYY 2cR[ aU\bTU aUR_R´` [\ d\_Q fRa \[ dUR_R \_ RcR[ dUR[ Gymkhana 8 will be, don’t expect anything less radical from Block. .a !$ fRN_` \YQ dVaU aU_RR XVQ` f\b ZVTUa aUV[X 8R[ would be starting to slow and settle down, but you get the `R[`R aUNa UR´` _RNYYf \[Yf Wb`a TRaaV[T `aN_aRQ ÂąA\ OR NOYR a\ T\ \ba N[Q Q_VcR NYY aUR`R PN_` V` Wb`a V[P_RQVOYR ² UR `Nf` “It is a real dream-come-true type of thing.â€?

getting any less popular. How does he keep them fresh? “It’s really important to make each one unique, and the car has to be quite dramatic in some way, shape or form,â€? he says. Luckily he has an endless supply of cartoonish, camera-pleasing Ford Fiestas, thanks to his other rallying and rallycross duties. “The performance of the car and what it can do is incredible. The rallycross car that I race – the Gymkhana car is very similar, only slightly detuned – does 0–60 in 1.9 seconds.â€? That doesn’t need much explanation, but the star of Gymkhana 7, the 1965 Mustang-based Hoonicorn, does. Âą.SaR_ aUR ad\ @bON_b N[Q S\b_ 3VR`aN ÂťYZ` 6 Wb`a SRYa YVXR 6 [RRQRQ a\ Q\ `\ZRaUV[T QVĂžR_R[a N[Q Sb[ V[ N dNf aUNa _RNYYf caught people’s attention,â€? he says. “I’m not really a Mustang guy, but I really appreciate the original design. Taking something like that, that’s known as a rear-wheel-drive muscle car, and making it all-wheel drive. It’s really the only performance AWD Mustang in aUR d\_YQ @\ aUNa dU\YR P\[PR]a dN` Wb`a _RNYYf `a_\[T ² The work for the car was done by RTR, fellow drift star Vaughn 4VaaV[ 7_´` P\Z]N[f 1R`]VaR Va NYY ORV[T ÂťR[QV`UYf QVĂ&#x;PbYa P\Z]YVPNaRQ N[Q \[R \Ăž aUR_R dN` cR_f YVaaYR 8R[ UNQ a\ Q\ \[PR Va dN` QRYVcR_RQ ÂąAUR Âť_`a aVZR 6 Q_\cR Va aUR `Ra b] dN` almost perfect,â€? he says. Âą6a´` N OVa `\Sa Oba dUR[ 6´Z Q\V[T 4fZXUN[N af]R `abĂž 6 dN[a the car to slide and handle like it’s on gravel, so I leave the front end soft. That way, the front end dives and the rear really wants to \cR_`aRR_ ;\_ZNYYf dVaU aUR :b`aN[T 6 d\bYQ UNcR `aVĂžR[RQ Va b] N little bit, but being soft is what makes it look really dramatic on camera, when I’m on the brakes and the front splitter’s scraping on the ground, you know?â€?

“THE FIRST TIME I DROVE A RWD CAR IN A RALLY, I JUST SUCKED AT ITâ€? Yes, we know. But despite looking like he had been driving it for 10,000 hours before turning on the hundreds of cameras for the ÂťcR QNf `U\\a 8R[ UNQ \[Yf Q_VcR[ Va S\_ N a\aNY \S " ZV[baR` ORS\_R aUR 9. NPaV\[ `aN_aRQ Âą6a´` Wb`a `\ Y\\`R N[Q dVYQ N[Q RN`f a\ drive, but hard to drive at the same time,â€? he says. “But when I tell it to do something, it does it, and does it in a really good way.â€? Peak output of the naturally aspirated V8 Hoonicorn is 845bhp, which translates to around 600bhp or 150bhp per wheel. Does he prefer it to his Fiesta? “I hate to say it, but it’s genuinely the funnest car I’ve ever driven,â€? he says. /ba UR ZNf UNcR a\ RNa UV` d\_Q` `\\[ N` 8R[ UN` N P\b]YR \S \aUR_ `]RPVNY 3\_Q` V[ QRcRY\]ZR[a ANYXV[T NO\ba aUR Âť_`a \[R ZNXR` RcR[ 8R[ T\ N OVa `aN__f RfRQ ÂŻ N[ % OU] 4_\b] / ?@ “I didn’t want to take a classic restored car or one that’s in original condition and then make my own version of it – that’s kind \S `NP_VYRTR a\ ZR @\ 6 R[QRQ b] Âť[QV[T \[R aUNa UNQ NY_RNQf ORR[ Z\QVÂťRQ b] V[ ;\_dNf ² 8R[ V`[´a ]YN[[V[T a\ 4fZXUN[N V`R aUNa \[R Wb`a b`R Va N` N[ V[`]V_NaV\[ S\_ N [Rd 10 @U\R YV[R N[Q a\ `PN_R aUR ORWR`b` \ba \S UVZ`RYS Na dRRXR[Q` The second car, which was supposed to be a secret but which 8R[ P\bYQ[´a _R`V`a `U\dV[T b` NSaR_ ÂťcR `RP\[Q` V` N @RcR[aVR` :N_X 3\_Q 2`P\_a V[ _NQVPNY aN_ZNP _NYYf a_VZ .YY a_VPX QVĂž` N[Q massively oversized, cutaway wheelarches. “First time I ever drove \[R dN` V[ aUR 0\YV[ :P?NR :RZ\_VNY ?NYYf AUNa dN` Zf Âť_`a aVZR

Ken always writes his location on his shoes, in case he gets lost. Fact

1 ENTRANCE 2 KITCHEN 3 MARKETING 4 OFFICE 5 LOGISTICS 6 PING-PONG TABLE 7 BEAR 8 TOP-SECRET FACILITY

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What’s a natural progression for the company that makes an insane track-day wasp called the Atom? Create an insane off-roader that nails tracks of a different kind... WORDS: OLLIE MARRIAGE / PICTURES: ROWAN HORNCASTLE

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ARIEL NOMAD

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ARIEL NOMAD

The Nomad Almost nothing of the Atom is carried over to the Nomad, except for some of the ancillaries such as the front lights and dashboard. The chassis structure may look similar but has been designed speciďŹ cally for the Nomad.

Suspension Ariel will offer the Nomad with four different damper choices, starting with a standard Bilstein set-up, through to this Ă–hlins system, likely to be priced at around ÂŁ5,000. All have remote reservoirs and twin springs.

uilt, that’s what I’m feeling now. Mud is arcing into the cockpit. To be fair, there’s not a lot to keep it out. Great globs of it are spattering against the seats, cage, pedals, belts, me, and, well, that’s about all there is in here. This is a car built of nothing but nooks and crannies – it’ll never be as clean again as it was yesterday. Because yesterday I watched this Ariel Nomad being built. And this is it, currently the only one, the one they’re keeping for best. And now it has grime where the sun don’t shine. So yes, guilt is occurring. /ba N` aUR dURRY` `]V[ N[Q aUR Tf_\`P\]VP S\_PR` ŸV[T yet more Salisbury Plain clag into my face, it’s hard not to get carried away. I mean, come on, what’s not to love about a car that’s part special forces

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all-terrain fast attack vehicle, part latterday beach buggy, with a light dusting of quad bike and the spirit of Baja oozing from every pore? It’s Tamiya made real, and it’s mega. AUR \Þ _\NQ .a\Z 6[ aR_Z` \S QR`VT[ ]UVY\`\]Uf and execution, the lineage is clear, but there’s more to the Nomad than taking an Atom, raising the suspension and bolting on a set of knobblies. Although that is exactly where they started. They tested it, they liked it, so they decided to do it. Nevertheless, if this sounds like a bit of a leap for a company that until now has created nothing but hardcore track weaponry, there’s something you should know about the men who run Ariel. Between them, Simon Saunders and his two sons, Tom and Henry, own four Defenders. Tom has a penchant for motocross, and when I asked Henry why there were

Options Customisation options are endless. The chassis and heavy-duty rally wheels come in a choice of nine colours; the plastic body panels, in eight more. You don’t need to have the winch, and other bar lights are likely to be available.

“ALL THE ‘BODYWORK’ IS MADE FROM TRAFFICCONE PLASTIC�

Nomad lines up next to Atoms in the build bays

Despite knobbly tyres, Nomad is easy to drive on road

half a dozen dirty mountain bikes lined up in the yard outside, I learned that a 20-minute tea break is not enough to scratch the surface of Henry’s passion for charging about on bikes. Also, Ariel is based in rural Somerset. I can’t imagine there’s much demand for Atoms locally, but Nomads on the other hand... So, the Nomad takes the lessons learned from the .a\Z N[Q URNQ` V[ N[ R[aV_RYf QVĂžR_R[a QV_RPaV\[ About the only thing that’s carried over is the digital dash and switchgear. The chassis is all new, not merely an Atom with an extra top section, but redesigned from the ground up, and it only weighs 15–20kg more, too. All the ‘bodywork’ is made S_\Z a_NĂ&#x;P P\[R ]YN`aVP ÂŻ cV_abNYYf V[QR`a_bPaVOYR The engine is a 2.4-litre K24 Honda powerplant, the extra capacity giving better torque and low-rev

The team With a small team, people tend to double up on jobs. Clockwise from above: Sam Overton, wiring, engine and build; Henry Siebert, project leader; Kelvin Marshall, build chief and mechanic; Martin Hole, clay modelling and build.

Here’s one they drew earlier. Nomad has been four years in development

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ARIEL NOMAD

Some of those clods of mud are destined for Ollie’s face

drivability. It drives the rear wheels only through a six-speed gearbox. You’ll be able to choose from a wide range of tyres and suspension, with these BFGoodrich Mud Terrains being about the most gnarly, and the spangly remote-reservoired Öhlins dampers the topmost of a four-tier range. Oh, and you can add a light bar and a winch and aerials and ŸNT` N[Q N dU\YR Y\a Z\_R The idea is that the Nomad is a platform that, with the right spec, can turn its hand to everything from \Þ _\NQ _NPV[T a\ T_RR[ YN[V[T a\ ORNPU ObTTfV[T a\ well, Ariel will admit the military has already come knocking. We arrive in time for lunch. In addition to the `Ve .a\Z ObVYQ ONf` V[ aUR N``RZOYf _\\Z ONf cR V` currently being used to build the Nomad), there are three workstations for the Ace motorbike and two trestle tables. This is where they have lunch. Jerry cans are pulled up, lunchboxes fetched and a sandwich van draws up outside. They’re the last but one stop on the van’s route out of Crewkerne, so there’s often not much left. Despite that, it’s a happy scene, the sort of industrious, friendly, close-knit place you’d want to work. Successful, too. Around 1,400 Atoms have been produced in the last 15 years, demand is still strong and when they announced the Nomad back in January, they had 20 QR]\`Va` V[ aUR _`a dRRX

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DUNa `a_VXR` f\b _`a NO\ba aUR ;\ZNQ V` Va` `VgR It’s tiny. Shorter than a city car, but with around 300mm of ground clearance and an attitude of b[`a\]]NOVYVaf <Þ _\NQ af]R` YVXR a\ `]RNX \S approach and departure angles, but here there aren’t any. In basic trim, it weighs about 650kg, but this one with the winch and extra lights and huge 235/75 R15 tyres is probably a little over 700kg. Still, that’s not much for a car pushed along by 235bhp and 221lb ft. Not much at all. So the next most surprising thing about the Nomad is how fast it is. 0–60mph? 3.4 seconds. 0–100mph? 8.7 seconds. It’s blistering, this little thing. Naturally Ariel is considering garnishing the four-cylinder with a supercharger‌ /ba aUR _`a aUV[T f\b UNcR a\ ZN`aR_ V` getting in and out. Yep, the aperture is about the right `VgR N[Q aUR `aRR_V[T dURRY _RZ\cR` Oba a_f aUR left-leg-then-arse-then-right-leg technique and you’ll be left with a stranded limb. Two hands on the roll cage, both feet in, then slither down. Dukes of Hazzard-style, that’s where it’s at. Despite the open-lattice framework, it feels cosy – the Atom’s single twin-seat mould has been replaced by two separate seats, which improves seat rigidity and has allowed the handbrake to be moved to the centre console, where it’s at less risk of getting gunged up. It’s a bit weird to be looking through

a full windscreen, weirder still to notice it has wipers, but apart from that, it’s very familiar, with a near-perfect driving position. AUR [Nab_NYYf N`]V_NaRQ ! _R` b] N` `Z\\aUYf and benignly as you’d hope from a Honda, and getting it rolling is simplicity itself when you have a gearbox as dexterous as this. We head up to Salisbury Plain. There are familiar Atom traits: gales up your right trouser leg, delicious induction noise by your left ear; and others that are new, principally `VT[VPN[a af_R _\N_ NO\cR " Z]U N[Q N SRRYV[T \S almost total point-and-shoot invulnerability. It’s fun on the road, though. Not quite the whipcrack that the Atom is, but still properly amusing, with a fast steering rack and good balance. The front wheels carry 1.5 degrees of camber to help turn-in, while the rears are bolt upright for maximum traction. The Nomad also has a twinspring set-up. Each coilover damper has a chunky long spring and a shorter, softer secondary spring. AUV[X \S aURZ N` aUR \Þ _\NQ N[Q _\NQ `]_V[T` respectively. The soft one helps the Nomad deal with potholes, speed bumps and the usual detritus of black-top driving, while the long one is there for the, er, bigger impacts. Total wheel travel is roughly the same as a full-house WRC rally car. The big tyres build momentum and don’t particularly like to be deviated from their course.

“0–60MPH? 3.4SECS. 0–100MPH? 8.7 SECS. IT’S BLISTERING”

Crouched in the long grass, Nomad waits for its chance to pounce

Ruts? Slopes? Rutty slopes? None holds any fear for the Nomad

TORQUE DIRTY “It’s had a long gestation, the Nomad” Ariel’s boss Simon Saunders tells me, “In fact, we were first approached by a US customer about 10 or 12 years ago who wanted us to maximise the suspension travel on an Atom and fit off-road tyres. When we eventually did have a go at it, we were surprised

at how good it felt right away. It gave us confidence that there was something in the concept.” Work started properly four years ago, but it hasn’t all been smooth running. “About 18 months ago, it nearly went tits up,” Simon continues, “We’d been tinkering around with

designs for the bodywork, and there was just too much of it. The lights were being faired in, it was starting to look like a Peugeot. So I had a toys-out-of-the-pram moment and said that if we can’t get it right, we’re not going to do it. So we basically stripped it back and started again.” TOPGEAR.COM

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There’s resistance through the steering, quite a bit of lean on the soft springs and, soon after, the rear tyres will start to slide. Tyres with a tread pattern that’s all tall, narrow blocks and deep avenues fundamentally `a_bTTYR a\ XRf V[a\ ÂźNa UN_Q aN_ZNP @aNOVYVaf V` strong, though, and the ride comfort is superb – it TYVQR` dUR_R aUR .a\Z ÂťQTRa` @aVYY a\ `RR Va V[ Va` OR`a YVTUa dR [RRQ a\ URNQ \Ăž _\NQ @NYV`Ob_f =YNV[ aUR /_VaV`U ._Zf´` T\ a\ place for a spot of light practice warfare, isn’t short of places to do this, and today, as it’s Good Friday, aURf´_R UNcV[T aUR QNf \Ăž DR´cR T\a aUR _b[ \S aUR ]YNPR DR URNQ V[ S_\Z AVY`URNQ \[ ZbPXf Of dNf` dUVPU `\\[ UVTUYVTUa` aUR ;\ZNQ´` OVTTR`a issue. Mud ingress. At 8mph, those towering tread OY\PX` N_R NY_RNQf cR_f RĂžRPaVcR Na NPaV[T YVXR `U\cRY` scooping up material and sending it straight through

Nomad is supple and bcPQ[T ^ĂĄ a^PS 8STP[ for grea sy commute

Ollie attempts to take the Nomad for a walk. Winch had other ideas

ARIEL NOMAD Price: £30,000 est Engine: 2354cc 4cyl, 235bhp @ 7200rpm, 221lb ft @ 4300rpm Performance: 0–62mph in 3.4secs, 136mph vmax Transmission: 6spd manual, RWD Economy: n/a mpg, n/a g/km CO2 Weight: 650kg plus optional spec

Bonus uses for an Ariel Nomad #31: agricultural muck spreader

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ARIEL NOMAD

“THE PLACES THE NOMAD WILL GET YOU TO ARE ASTONISHING”

aUR ;\ZNQ´` dVQR \]R[ ¼N[X` B[`b_]_V`V[TYf \[R \S aUR \]aV\[` dVYY OR N `Ra \S P\cR_ ]N[RY` a\ `a\] aUV` UN]]R[V[T 5NcR aURZ 3_\Z QN[X T_RR[ YN[R` dR RZR_TR \[a\ UVTU T_N``f ]YNV[` ;\ZNQ ]YNfT_\b[Q ;\d aUR `b`]R[`V\[ TRa` N PUN[PR a\ `U\d dUNa Va PN[ _RNYYf Q\ N` aUR ;\ZNQ Ub_aYR` ZR__VYf a\ N[Q S_\ `bPXV[T b] ]b[V`UZR[a N[Q `XV]]V[T N[Q `XVZZV[T NO\ba 6a´` T_RNa a\ OR NOYR a\ Y\\X Q\d[ aUR \]R[ S\\adRYY N[Q `RR aU\`R `ab[[V[T T\YQ qUYV[` QNZ]R_` P\Z]_R`` N[Q Re]N[Q dURRY` QN[PV[T a\ aURV_ ab[R DVaU #" ]R_ PR[a \S dRVTUa \[ aUR _RN_ NeYR a_NPaV\[ V`[´a N ]_\OYRZ b[YR`` f\b PU\\`R a\ ZNXR Va \[R N[Q `\ NQWb`aNOYR V` aUR `b`]R[`V\[ aUNa f\b PN[ aV[XR_ dVaU aUR `Ra b] a\ PUN[TR aUR Q_VcV[T PUN_NPaR_V`aVP` /ba aUNa´` \[Yf VS f\b dN[a a\ TRa TRRXf ¯ N` Va `aN[Q` aUR ;\ZNQ V` aR__V»P 6 »[Q Zf`RYS VZNTV[V[T 6´Z `\ZR TVN[a _RZ\aR P\[a_\Y /NWN ObTTf N[Q Va´` YVXR 6´Z _RYVcV[T Zf PUVYQU\\Q NYY \cR_ NTNV[ 6 Q_RNZa \S aUV` dUR[ 6 dN` YVaaYR \S ORV[T NOYR a\ V[`R_a Zf`RYS V[a\ N ANZVfN 3_\T _RZ\aR P\[a_\YYRQ _NPR_( [\d UR_R 6 NZ 6a´` ZNTVP

6´Q N``bZRQ d_\[TYf N` Va ab_[` \ba aUNa aUR ;\ZNQ d\bYQ \[Yf OR ]_\]R_ Sb[ dUR[ T\V[T ONYY` \ba Oba dUR[ dR »[Q `\ZR T[N_YVR_ aR__NV[ NYY `aRR] `Y\]R` N[Q QRR] _ba` Va´` N _RcRYNaV\[ 6a´` Y\cRYf a\ Wb`a P_NdY `Y\dYf NO\ba a\ YRa aUR PN_ SRRY Va` dNf \cR_ \O`aNPYR` a\ OR `ZNYY N[Q [RNa N[Q NTVYR a\ OR `\ V[ a\bPU dVaU f\b_ `b__\b[QV[T` AUR_R´` [\ Y\d _N[TR TRN_O\e \S P\b_`R N[Q aUR_R N_R \PPN`V\[NY UVPP\bTU` V[ aUR aU_\aaYR P\[a_\Y \[ YVTUa \]R[V[T` Oba dUR[ NYY´` `NVQ N[Q Q\[R aUR ]YNPR` aUR ;\ZNQ PN[ TRa a\ dVYY N`a\[V`U f\b N` dVYY aUR ZN[[R_ V[ dUVPU Va Q\R` Va 6a´` d\[QR_SbYYf `b]]YR N[Q P\[»QR[PR V[`]V_V[T 6 Y\cR Va 6 Y\cR aUR SNPa Va´` `\ZRaUV[T `\ QVÞR_R[a fRa SRRY` `\ b`NOYR N[Q dRYY _RYRcN[a @b_R Va´` N a\f N ]YNfaUV[T Oba Va´` `\ `VZ]Yf N[Q Y\TVPNYYf aU\bTUa aU_\bTU `\ dRYY ReRPbaRQ f\b d\[QR_ dUf [\ \[R UN` Q\[R Va ORS\_R 5\[R`aYf 6´Q UNcR \[R \S aUR`R \cR_ N[ .a\Z \_ N 0NaR_UNZ \_ N[f \aUR_ a_NPX QNf ZNPUV[R 6´Q YVXR a\ aNXR \[R \[ N a_NPX QNf NPabNYYf Wb`a a\ `U\d aURZ .[Q 6´Q SN_ _NaUR_ Q_VcR Va \Þ _\NQ aUN[ N 1RSR[QR_ a\\ @abÞ TbVYa 6´cR T\a a\ TRa ZR \[R \S aUR`R

TOPGEAR.COM

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No less than 36 years on from the original movie,

WORDS: OLLIE KEW / PICTURES: WILSON HENNESSEY

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MAD MAX

Mad Max is back. And with new toys, too...

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M

Mad Max’s faithful Ford Falcon XB. Af]RPN`a V[ aUR 2VTUaVR` N` ÂťR_PRYf N` Marty McFly’s De Lorean, it’s the Pursuit Special, the Interceptor, rolled to oblivion and incinerated part-way through Mad Max 2. And it’s back. Out of the Outback, and skulking around deepest Lincolnshire, with a hellish rat-rod enemy on its heels. Mad Max is returning. And its post-apocalyptic muscle car supporting cast is back too. “We call it Mad Max Two and a Half,â€? laughs Fury Road´` RĂž\_aYR``Yf NĂžNOYR production designer Colin Gibson (no relation to Mel), who prefers to be known as a ‘salvage artist’. “We’re all too young a\ UNcR d\_XRQ \[ aUR Âť_`a Mad Max, but a few of us worked on 2 and even on 3, though they won’t admit it. We don’t talk about 3.â€? The 2015 feature is a Tina Turner-free zone, and is set between the second and third instalments. Brit Tom Hardy assumes the title role, and you can thank Gibson’s salvage N_aV`a` S\_ aUR ÂťR[QV`U ZNPUV[R` aUNa _\NZ Australia’s parched deserts in search of food, fuel and blood. Naturally, Max’s Interceptor is scarred. Its moleskin-like bodywork is tacky to the touch where rust hasn’t yet chewed through the steel. Both yellowed headlight lenses are punctured and have long since been robbed of illumination. The raggedy fabric pinned a\ aUR PRVYV[T V` ÂźN]]V[T V[ aUR O_RRgR permitted by the total absence of glass.

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Inside, atop the remaining squashy chair, it’s not the al fresco feel, shell casings littering the gritted dash or butch shift lever that dominate your view. That supercharger punching clean out of the bonnet is the headline act: it towers above the Concorde nose, still spins, and still is nothing more than a dummy, driven from the fanbelt. It’s one of the few concessions to fakery in a movie car that’s otherwise ready to roll. Gibson explains how the location caused more issues than the rugged, reliable Falcon. “In Namibia, the biggest problem they had was building a road to get it to the set! Unfortunately I chose a location that had a beautiful view, but there were no roads to the mountain top. I could’ve shot it in a car park in Essex and had CGI put the background in, but it was much more fun to do it for real. I Q_\cR b] Va aUR Âť_`a Z\_[V[T N[Q Va dN` R_ quite exciting. But the stuntman who drove it

Q\d[ aUR PYVĂž` N[Q _\YYRQ Va RYRcR[ aVZR` UNQ the most fun.â€? Yeah, eleven times. Got to be a record, right? “Stuntmen always think it’s a recordâ€?, says Gibson. “But I reserve judgment. My mum was a pretty bad driver: she got about seven rolls once, so she probably held the record.â€? Mrs Gibson probably didn’t have the OR[RÂťa \S N [Va_\TR[ PN[[\[ a\ PNaN]bYa aUR car over, however. Gibson glumly admits the Fury Road Interceptor’s one is a relatively new addition. “In the old days, we used to put a telegraph pole in and detonate it with Tb[]\dQR_ a\ S\_PR aUR PN_ a\ ÂźV] 6a aR[QRQ a\ leave the stuntmen full of splinters.â€? Though unassisted by forced induction, the Interceptor’s original 5.75-litre V8 has ORR[ O\_RQ \ba a\ \Ăž`Ra `N[Q V[TR`aV\[ sullying its paltry 280bhp. It sounds like ten times that. The crackling, industrial idle is pure Funny Car, and not only can you just

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD

Burnt-out ex-cop and nomadic warrior Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) meets Furiosa (Charlize Theron), on the run from a violent gang. Cue guns and pointy-ended vehicle warfare as the villains give unrelenting chase

MAD MAX

Nux woz ere. You’d better watch out, as he’s not very nice

Supercharger spins around, but isn’t functional. Boo

After the Apocalypse, Kwik Fit will have gone out of business...

Always keep your tools in an orderly fashion – it makes life simpler

Mad Max’s Interceptor has 280bhp. Sounds a lot more than that

Hero cars are for promotional purposes ^][h =^c dbTS X] ½[\

MAD MAX

NO\ba URN_ RcR_f PfYV[QR_ Âť_V[T Oba NYY RVTUa b]`dR]a ReUNb`a` `]baaR_ N[ V[QVcVQbNY ]bĂž of fume in rhythmic time. Blip the throttle ]RQNY´` _RZNV[V[T ZRaNY PN_PN`` N[Q aUR \_TN[ ]V]R`´ Q\d[Q_NSa a_VR` a\ d_R[PU aUR aN_[V`URQ N``RZOYf S_RR \S aUR _\PXV[T PUN``V` 3\_TRa Cars´ 9VTUa[V[T :P>bRR[ ÂŻ aUV` V` N Z\cVR PN_ aUNa N]]RN_` a\ OR P\ZV[T a\ YVSR .[Q Va´` d\XR[ b] N[T_f Its movie nemesis was once a 1932 Chevy ÂťcR dV[Q\d P\b]R [\d Q_VcR[ Of ;VPU\YN` 5\bYa´` QRZ\[VP aRR[NTR PUN_NPaR_ ;be .` N f\b[T´b[ VT[\_N[a \S N d\_YQ ORS\_R SbRY dN_` ;be _RcRY` V[ aUR U\]RYR`` O_baNYVaf Âą5V` PN_ V` UV` PUb_PU ² `Nf` 0\YV[ ÂąDR wanted the ultimate hot rodder’s car. Once I found one in the US that had bullet holes V[ aUR dV[Q`P_RR[ 6 X[Rd dR´Q S\b[Q Va ² 3\b_ dR_R ZNQR S\_ aUR Z\cVR ÂŻ ad\ dVaU SbYYf Âť[V`URQ UN[Q ObVYa V[aR_V\_` SR`a\\[RQ with macabre trinkets like a baby’s mobile

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SN`UV\[RQ S_\Z UbZN[ RN_` N[ RfRONYY a\]]RQ TRN_YRcR_ N[Q N TN` ZN`X R^bV]]RQ Q\YY´` URNQ `a_N]]RQ a\ aUR `aRR_V[T dURRY B[YVXR :Ne´` 6[aR_PR]a\_ ;be´` PN_ V`[´a littered with spent ammo or battleworn. AUR ÂźNZR RZO\``RQ ReUNb`a a_bZ]Ra` N_R immaculate; the stretched chassis rails _b`a S_RR .[Q aUR Re]\`RQ R[TV[R ÂŻ dVaU SbYYf Sb[PaV\[NY `b]R_PUN_TR_ aUV` aVZR ÂŻ V` Re^bV`VaRYf Âť[V`URQ DUf, Âą.]\PNYf]aVP PN_` UNcR a\ OR a\bTU Oba NY`\ d\_aU `NcV[T ² `Nf` 0\YV[ Âą;\O\Qf dN[a` a\ `NcR N 0\_\YYN 5bZN[ ORV[T` SRaV`UV`R aUV[T` ² AUNa Z\a\_ V` N `ZNYY OY\PX 0URcf C% _b[[V[T ad\ 5\YYRf PN_O` aUNa PY\bQ Va` local atmosphere with acrid petrol. Gibson estimates its output is north of 520bhp. 6a` `\b[Qa_NPX V` b[V^bR a\\ ÂŻ dVaU aUR ZVP_\dNcR `VgRQ DRVN[Q OY\dR_ `U_VRXV[T ZN[VPNYYf \cR_ aUR Sb_V\b` C% ORYY\dV[T \ba \S RVTUa b[`VYR[PRQ ]V]R` DUNa N Z\[`aR_ 6a´` `\ ]\dR_SbY aUNa V[ _RURN_`NY N `ab[a driver lauded by Colin as “one of the world’s OR`a Q_VSaR_`² Y\`a P\[a_\Y \S aUR ;be PN_ V[ _RcR_`R N[Q ÂźV]]RQ Va ÂąDR´Q QRPVQRQ _\YY PNTR` dR_R S\_ dVZ]` Oba aUR `ab[a Tbf` YVXR aURZ `\ dR _RObVYa aUR PN_` DR R[QRQ b] `RaaV[T \[R PN_ `]RPVÂťPNYYf a\ T\ V[ _RcR_`R ² @ZNYY d\[QR_ aUR `NYcNTR N_aV`a` UNQ a\ ObVYQ 150 cars in total for the movie. DVaU Fury Road d_N]]RQ 4VO`\[´` ZV[Q V` NY_RNQf P\[P\PaV[T VQRN` S\_ Va` `R^bRY` Âą6´Q YVXR a\ Q\ `\ZRaUV[T dVaU N AR`YN ?\NQ`aR_ ² UR `Nf` Âą6a´` & ]R_ PR[a ONaaR_f `Ve ]R_ PR[a PN_O\[ N[Q S\b_ ]R_ PR[a aR__\_ ² ;\a aRZ]aRQ Of Z\_R C% SR_\PVaf, Âą6 Q_VcR N 0Va_\R[ 0E ! 2`aNaR ÂŻ 6 dN`[´a N U\a _\QQR_ b[aVY 6 `aN_aRQ aUV` W\O 5NcV[T Zf ]R_SRPa d\_X`U\] dN` YVXR ORV[T $ NTNV[ ²

Mad Max rocking the Bedouin look c^ Ud[[ TĂĄTRc

Bullet holes in a 1932 Chevy proved it was the ^]T c^ dbT U^a cWT ½[\

THE STORY OF TGTV

W O RD S:

TTOOPPGGEEAARR. .CCOOMM

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aVZR UR dNYXRQ aU_\bTU aUR ]bO Q\\_ And as I sit here now in April 2015, 2015 V[ N P\Z]YRaRYf RZ]af \Ă&#x;PR 6 aUV[X aUNa faraway lunch absolutely encapsulates the tragedy of what the BBC has lost in getting _VQ \S 7R_RZf 6a UN`[´a Wb`a Y\`a N ZN[ dU\ can hold viewers’ attention in front of a PNZR_N Va´` Y\`a N W\b_[NYV`a dU\ P\bYQ use the discipline of print training to focus on what mattered and what didn’t; it’s lost an editorial genius who could look at an existing structure and then smash it up and _R`UN]R Va V[ N OYNgR \S YVTUa ObYO Z\ZR[a` 7b`a N` N `ZNYY ReNZ]YR \S aUNa YNaaR_ ]\V[a 6 _RZRZOR_ 7R_RZf V[`V`aV[T Qb_V[T aUNa lunch that the new TopGear should not d\__f NO\ba ORV[T aUR Âť_`a a\ Q_VcR N [Rd PN_ RcR[ VS Va dR_R aUR 3R__N_V 2[g\ A\ ZR as a producer, this logic was madness, ORPNb`R ORV[T Âť_`a ZRN[a ORV[T RePYb`VcR Oba UR `NVQ' Âą;\ aUV[X NO\ba Va A\ OR Âť_`a with a new car, you have to go on the car launch, drive it abroad in left-hand drive, three or four months before it goes on sale, and it means nothing to a punter Na U\ZR 9Ra´` dNVa 9Ra´` ÂťYZ N PN_ dUR[ Va´` actually on sale here, posters on the high street, in the showroom window, so that what we’re doing actually means `\ZRaUV[T a\ cVRdR_` ² 6 `aVYY aU\bTUa UR was talking absolute bollocks, but I couldn’t have been more wrong – in the end, we didn’t lose a single viewer because we were two years later than everybody RY`R dVaU \b_ 2[g\ ÂťYZ All we needed now was a name for our new TopGear, and, after a few more drinks, we decided on “New TopGearâ€?. DVaU aUNa sorted, we wen went and p pitched our idea to 7N[R aUR //0 P\[a_\YYR_ dU\ NSaR_ N SRd ZV[baR` `bĂžR_V[T \b_ ONOOYV[T `a_RNZ of consciousness, told us to get out of UR_ \Ă&#x;PR N[Q TRRaa \[ dVaU ZNXV[T Va 6a´YY UR_ \Ă&#x;PR N[Q TRa \[ dVaU ZNXV[T Va 6a´YY eco com ome me aapparent ppar pp a ent as you read hopefully be become her erre’ e’s no od ou ubt bt in my mind this on, but th there’s doubt `U\d d\b bYQ YQ[´a UN UNcR cRR ReV e V`aRQ dVaU\ba 7N[R `U\d d\bYQ[´a UNcR ReV`aRQ dVaU\ba 7N[R us the t e freedom th frreeeedo dom to cock up and d ttry ryy She gave us

SHUTTERSTOCK S SHUT TERSTOCK (2)

She’d watched the show plod on, each series looking more and more dated alongside new and fresh factual shows like Ground Force and that one where Handy Andy did houses up, and no attempt at perking up the dear old PN_ `U\d dN` UNcV[T N[f RĂžRPa ;Rd` \S aUR show’s demise was met with sadness by a SRd V[QVĂžR_R[PR Of ZN[f Z\_R Oba dVaU intense interest from a tall curly-haired man who’d quit that very show a couple \S fRN_` RN_YVR_ DUR[ 7R_RZf _N[T ZR and we met in the pub that lunchtime, he dN` NY_RNQf O\b[PV[T \Ăž aUR PRVYV[T dVaU R[aUb`VN`Z S\_ _R`b`PVaNaV[T aUR \YQ P\_]`R In fact, he’d already mapped out some of the key elements: the new TopGear would be anchored from a central place, with an audience, so that the presenters could talk to each other instead of presenting one item NSaR_ N[\aUR_ V[ V`\YNaV\[ This studio base would also allow us to do a news section, so that important cars could be discussed without us being forced a\ `U\\a N ÂťYZ NO\ba aURZ 7R_RZf YVXR most 40-something chaps, had devoured ;VPX 5\_[Of´` High Fidelity, and, if you too have read it, you’ll know how beautifully it illustrates the male brain’s Y\cR \S YV`a` N[Q A\] 3VcR` 3_\Z aUR_R Va was only a small mental leap to having a lap board, which in turn would require a track, dUVPU V[ ab_[ ZRN[a dR P\bYQ ÂťYZ 6aNYVN[ supercars actually giving it what for instead of dithering N_\b[Q 0\a`d\YQ` P\_[R_` Na %Z]U .[Q since we had a track and a studio, why not get guests on and make them do a lap? One of us – we’d had a few by now, no , so I can’t remember who – then had this vision o off a black-tie-clad Bryan Ferry hammering ngg n round in a small Hyundai or somethingg eequally eq quallyy un-B Brryyyan a Ferryish, and when un-Bryan dR´Q Âť[V [VV`U `UR URQ YNb bTUV[T Na aUNa aUR @aNN _ dR´Q Âť[V`URQ YNbTUV[T Na aUNa aUR @aN_ 6[ N ?RN`\ \[NNOYff =_VPRQ 0N_ dN` O\_[ 6[ N ?RN`\[NOYf =_VPRQ 0N_ dN` O\_[ I contributed co ont ntri r bu ri uteed bits and bobs as we went went we nt NY Y\[ \ T T Oba V[ [ a_b _ baU 7R_RZf UNQ NY_RNNQ Qff Ob bVVYa NY\[T Oba V[ a_baU 7R_RZf UNQ NY_RNQf ObVYa th he structure off the the new TopGearr b tthe he the byy th

THE STORY OF TGTV

again, she pushed us when we were timid, and she had real TV nous. I remember, for instance, sitting in an early meeting with her and some BBC execs, discussing what sort of stories this new TopGear d\bYQ »YZ and I mentioned an item Jeremy and I had once made on old TopGear about Siamese Banger Racing, where the drivers race in two cars chained together. Naturally, being a BBC meeting, somebody then erupted at me for having said “Siamese”, and as I was busy trying

“JEREMY WAS ALREADY BOUNCING OFF THE CEILING WITH ENTHUSIASM” to work out how we could announce: “On tonight’s show, Conjoined Banger Racing”, Jane called everyone to order and said the point was we should forget about reporting on other people’s car events. “Make your own world,” was her advice, which when you think about it, was precisely what we ended up doing – James, Jeremy and Richard lived in their little juvenile bubble, just doing their thing. But I digress. Back then, in 2002, the »_`a W\O dN` a\ »[Q `\ZR [Rd ]_R`R[aR_` `\ we rented a small studio in Acton and started to screen test the long list of hopefuls, with the audition involving them standing next to a Renault Avantime and talking about it for a bit, and then doing some news items with Jeremy. Quite early \[ N SNa OY\XR dVaU N @UNXV[´ @aRcR[` ^bVÞ called Jason Dawe walked in, cracked us up with his wit and bowled us over with his ability to make secondhand car news sound exciting. James May then rocked up. Jeremy and I had known James for years as a motoring W\b_[NYV`a N[Q UR´Q ORR[ UV_RQ O_VR¼f aUR[ »_RQ ^bVPXYf S_\Z \YQ TopGear. This audition, then, was important if he was to get another shot at the prize. So, James, being James, took one look at the Avantime, dismissed it as marketing

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Jason Dawe talks secondhand news to Clarkson in Series One. Harry Enfield was the first ‘proper’ guest on new TopGear. Original Stig

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“WE KNEW BLOKE BANTER WAS GOING TO BECOME AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE SHOW” aUR_R dR_R[´a R[\bTU »YZ` V[ aUR U\b_ a\ T\ _\b[Q N[Q O N]N_a S_\Z aUR \QQ \[R` `bPU N` AVÞ N[Q 7N`\[ =YNa\ _NPV[T Q_VcR_` N_R[´a X[\d[ S\_ aURV_ PNZR_N PUN_V`ZN <[R RcR[V[T 6 dN` d_R`aYV[T dVaU aUV` ]_\OYRZ V[ aUR \ßPR a_fV[T NYY `\_a` \S ]_R`R[aR_ ]R_ZbaNaV\[` \[ \b_ ZN``VcR dUVaRO\N_Q b[aVY Va Y\\XRQ YVXR N `PR[R S_\Z The Theory of Everything AUR[ 7R_RZf _\PXRQ b] ±F\b X[\d dUNa 6 PN[ [\d NPabNYYf Q\ aUR `YVQRf aNVY \ba Q_VcV[T YVXR AVÞ QVQ \[ \YQ TopGear ² UR `NVQ ±/ba dUNa 6 PN[´a Q\ V` ]_RPV`R YN]` aUR XV`` aUR N]Re `abÞ dR [RRQ a\ TRa aUR YN] aVZR` S\_ aUR O\N_Q DR `aVYY [RRQ N _NPV[T Q_VcR_ S\_ aUNa ² ±FRNU Oba aUR[ dR `aVYY [RRQ N _NPV[T Q_VcR_ dU\ aUR[ [RRQ` a\ OR NOYR a\ `]RNX N[Q dR´_R ONPX dUR_R dR `aN_aRQ ² 6 _R]YVRQ . ZV[baR \_ ad\ YNaR_ \[R \S 7R_RZf´` YVTUa ObYO` YVa b]' ±5N[T \[ dUf Q\R` UR [RRQ a\ `]RNX,² UR `NVQ ±5R P\bYQ Wb`a OR N OY\XR V[ N `bVa N[Q URYZRa N[Q UR Q\R` aUR YN] aVZR` N[Q UR [RcR_ `]RNX`© N[Q dR [RcR_ RcR[ UNcR a\ `RR UVZ \_ X[\d dU\ UR V` 5R´YY OR YVXR N aUV[T \[ aUR `U\d ² 0YN_X`\[ dN` Of [\d cR_f RePVaRQ ±5R P\bYQ OR YVXR AUR 4VZ] V[ Pulp Fiction( dR P\bYQ PNYY UVZ AUR 4VZ] ² UR RePYNVZRQ .[Q aUb` AUR 4VZ] dN` O\_[ .YY dR [RRQRQ [\d dN` N _NPV[T Q_VcR_ a\ »YY aUR _\YR ]_RSR_NOYf `\ZR\[R dU\ dN` QV`P_RRa

THE STORY OF TGTV

a shrinking violet who didn’t like to talk too much, and so, for reasons I still don’t understand, we chose Perry McCarthy, the only man whose mouth works faster than most of the cars he’s driven. Perry also told us exactly where we could stick our notion of calling him The Gimp, so we settled on The Stig. With the line-up now complete, it dN` aVZR a\ ÂťYZ N ]VY\a dUVPU V` N `\_a \S dress rehearsal where you iron out your mistakes. Full of ambition and good cheer, we had a set built that looked like the core reactor on the Death Star, and only a tiny bit smaller and somehow crammed it into the hangar we’d hired. Then, when the lighting technician said, “How many lights would you like?â€?, we replied, “Er‌ give us lots,â€? dUVPU UR QVQ ;Rea dR `abĂžRQ V[ an audience of several hundred, shut the doors on our metal hangar, switched on NYY aUR YVTUa` N[Q ORTN[ ÂťYZV[T \b_ Âť_`a show‌ in the middle of July. I can’t remember exactly when, but it wasn’t long before people started fainting, and, two hours in, most of the audience was in a coma. Our guest, David Ginola, not an b[Âťa ZN[ Wb`a `Na TYbZYf V[ N lake of his own sweat, silently praying for death as we watched Jason, who by now resembled a bucket of water wearing a shirt, go gamely for his 18th stab at recording Used Car News. The recording was supposed to take a few hours but, dUNa SRYa YVXR aU_RR QNf` YNaR_ dR Âť[NYYf wrapped and edited together the results, which were, well, abysmal. Jane Root watched it silently as we edged [RN_R_ aUR dV[Q\d YRQTR \S UR_ `VeaU Âź\\_ \Ă&#x;PR N[Q aUR[ `UR `NVQ' Âą4bf` Wb`a _RYNe 6 Re]RPaRQ a\ `RR PNZR_N cables in shot and people walking about with cups of tea.â€? Taking her advice very literally, we then shot a second pilot, which was so relaxed the presenters started performing before the cameras were even `dVaPURQ \[ .[Q dUR[ aURf Âť[NYYf dR_R Âť_RQ b] aUR ]YNPR dN` V[ `bPU N[N_PUf aURf couldn’t actually pick out the presenters in among the crowd. I remember Jason demonstrating the build quality on a car and, in his enthusiasm, O_RNXV[T aUR PR[a_R P\[`\YR \Ăž Va dUVPU dR P\bYQ[´a ÂťYZ N[fdNf ORPNb`R aUR PNZR_N YR[` was blocked by a man in a Subaru T-shirt. At this point, Brian the Director stormed out of his special truck and told me he’d never seen such a shambles in 20 years of making top television. But, in truth, there was no time for tantrums and tears, because October 2002 was fast approaching, and in a matter of days we’d be going on air for real‌

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What do you do when an Aventador isn’t Buy a Mercedes G-Wagen 4x42 or a WORDS : TOM FORD / PICTUR ES: JUSTIN LEIGHT ON

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RAPTOR

vs G4x42

powerful, noisy or aggressive enough? Hennessey VelociRaptor, of course... TOPGEAR.COM

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light. Brief and terrifying, but for two long and silent seconds, this three-tonne truck leaves the Earth’s embrace and mimics one of the graceful and deadly avians whose name it carries. It soars, whooping supercharged V8 dying away \Þ aU_\aaYR ]RNPRSbY V[ Va` b[YVXRYf TYVQR]NaU strangely, disturbingly beautiful. Unfortunately, even after the cognitive whiplash you get from seeing it get elegantly airborne, it still lands like a three-tonne truck. Which is the reason I now know what lungs taste like. Long-travel but butter-soft suspension compresses, then compresses a good deal Z\_R _RT_RaaNOYf NYY\dV[T " V[PU \Þ _\NQ af_R` a\ PURd V[a\ aUR arches, and the skid-plate under the plutonium-density girder of a front bumper to take the rest of the impact. My shins smash into the bottom of the dash, my teeth clack together like porcelain maracas and the noise is like slamming a door six inches in front \S Zf SNPR 6 aUV[X S\_ N `RP\[Q aUNa aUR NV_ONT` UNcR T\[R \Þ Eventually reminded to hit the brakes by the sight of photographer Leighton arthritically throwing himself into a bush in order to avoid being comprehensively run over, I’m convinced that I’ve just destroyed the front suspension of TG’s Hennessey VelociRaptor – the very car that studiously avoided rescuing Richard Hammond from the top of a freezing mountain. A fact made worse by the sight of a mutant Mercedes G-Wagen completing the same jump

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and landing like a ballerina en pointe, double-damped suspension ON_RYf QRS\_ZV[T .[Q fRa aUR ?N]a\_ NSaR_ URNQObaaV[T aUR Ÿ\\_ YVXR N P\[Sb`RQ ObYY `VZ]Yf `aNTTR_` N OVa UbÞ` `YVTUaYf N[Q aUR[ PN__VR` on as if nothing has happened. If ever you needed convincing that big trucks are awesome, these two are pretty hefty arguments in favour. Now, the psychology of trucks and full-sized SUVs is not particularly complicated. They give the impression of being big and useful and functional. Their USPs chime with the hormonal imperatives of testosterone, or with anyone of either sex who values practicality and a feeling of imperious safety, even if that safety is at the expense of whomever you happen to inadvertently squash. The natural extension of this phenomenon being that the bigger or more powerful the truck, the better. The two trucks we have here are very big and very powerful. That makes them very much better. Than anything I can reliably think of. The yellow one is probably familiar. Basically it’s a Ford F-150, America’s bestselling pickup for the past 42 years, in what can only be described as superhero spec. First, it has been upgraded by Ford itself to create the Raptor, adding a considerably wider track than standard (now 6ft 1in between the wheels at either end), Baja-spec Fox Racing long-travel suspension and a couple of upgrades to the 6.2-litre V8 to produce 411bhp. It’s one of the most sought-after trucks in the US, a potent combination of power, presence, utility and the ability to lollop across a desert at 90mph without prolapsing a transmission. The one we have here is a version fettled by Hennessey Performance from Texas (something you can do via your local Ford dealer in the States – a bit like Mountune in the UK) and sports a nice Whipple supercharger, extra-large fuel injectors and a smidgen of extra intercooling. What you get, therefore, is a Raptor with no less than 623bhp and 627lb ft. And it’s called the VelociRaptor. Which immediately gives it the kind of macho cachet only usually achieved by a long career as a hirsute backwoods lumberjack. Of course it’s utterly ridiculous – a truck this size that can do 0–62mph in less than 5.5 seconds is silly, and even though in the USA a width of more than eight feet and combined average mpg

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RAPTOR vs G4x42

“THE FORD IS THE USA’S BESTSELLING PICKUP IN SUPERHERO SPEC” VRaptor is about 18.5 feet long. A little bit rubbish for town work

TOPGEAR.COM

Apart from a few extra switches, this could be a ‘normal’ G63 111 → M AY 2 01 5

RAPTOR vs G4x42 VelociRaptor can run as RWD with a locked rear SXá D][XZT[h SaXUcTa

The big Ford could aTP[[h S^ fXcW WPaSTa front damping...

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It’s the ultimate fourwheeled G-Wagen. And it’s a bit of a handful

THE NEW VELOCIRAPTOR ... THAT ISN’T The new F-150 is already on sale, but seeing as the Raptor – complete with 3.5litre V6 EcoBoost – isn’t on sale yet, Hennessey will make you a VelociRaptor from the current ‘2016’ 5.0-litre V8 F-150

HENNESSEY VELOCIRAPTOR 600 Price: $95,000 (£60,000) Engine: 6210cc supercharged V8, 623bhp @ 5700rpm, 627 lb ft @ 3800rpm Performance: 0–62mph in 5.2secs, 110mph vmax Transmission: 6spd auto, 4WD Economy: 14.3mpg, 428g/km CO2 Weight: 2748kg

VelociRaptor has largely Ford F-150 cabin: not pretty but functional

of about 12 is probably seen as acceptable, nobody needs a vehicle like this. But it’s also completely self-aware and happy to be a caricature. Which makes it utterly brilliant. The black Mercedes G-Wagen, on the other hand, is a more serious and considered – and considerably more expensive – proposition. It’s called the G-Wagen G500 4x4 2, and is essentially a four-wheeled version of the mighty Mercedes 6x6. That means adV[ `b`]R[`V\[ S\_ RNPU dURRY N``RZOYf ]\_aNY NeYR` N[Q Z\_R QVĂž locks than you can shake an input shaft at. It’s also got a reworked, wet-sumped version of the new 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 from the AMG GT sports car under the bonnet, making a notinconsiderable 416bhp. An engine whose technology makes the PN`a V_\[ # YVa_R Âł/\``´ YbTTR_ V[ aUR ?N]a\_ Y\\X YVXR N P\NY Âť_RQ power station in comparison. It’s well over a foot narrower than the HVR, but the track width between the wheels is only four inches less. It’s also a couple of feet shorter than the Ford’s 18 and a half feet, but still 6ft 8in wide and 7ft 4in high – which means it doesn’t half look chunky. And most of that visual heft is simply due to that suspension system. A portal axle basically has a little gearbox on the backside of the wheelhub that transfers torque from an axle tube some way above the centreline of the wheels. Which is good for all sorts of things, not YRN`a T_\b[Q PYRN_N[PR ORPNb`R aUR QVĂž PN`V[T N[Q NeYR V` Z\cRQ b] and away from inconvenient pointy rocks/ruts/small villages. It also reduces stress on driveshafts because each mini ’box acts as a set of reduction gears, meaning that you can get more torque down through the hubs, where it counts. The other bits are a bit more obvious, but no less delicious: monster rims (325/55 R22s) and

“THE G4x42 IS LIKE AN OFF-ROADING DEATH STARâ€? PN_O\[ ÂťO_R dURRYN_PU ÂźN_R` aUR `VgR \S S_bVa O\eR` Controlling it all is a parallel twin-damper arrangement per dURRY ÂŻ YVXR aUR `abĂž b`RQ \[ aUR _RNYYf `R_V\b` QR`R_a _NPV[T weapons – one with set damping characteristics, the other RYRPa_\[VPNYYf P\[a_\YYRQ dUVPU TVcR` aUR XV[Q \S ÂźReVOVYVaf N cRUVPYR YVXR aUV` _RNYYf `U\bYQ [\a UNcR O\aU \[ N[Q \Ăž _\NQ 6a NY`\ TRa` aU_RR Y\PXV[T QVĂžR_R[aVNY` a\\ ZN[f :R_PRQR` NP_\[fZ` a\ ZR[aV\[ and side pipes. And everyone loves side pipes. It even comes with a ]_\]R_ `Ra \S ORNQY\PX \Ăž _\NQ af_R` Oba a\ OR U\[R`a Va Q\R`[´a really need them. Because it would take the DariĂŠn Gap to stop this aUV[T 6a´` YVXR N[ \Ăž _\NQV[T 1RNaU @aN_ Honestly, driving the G4x4 2 V` ]\``VOYf aUR Z\`a OVgN__R experience this side of conscious brain surgery. Inside – and bar a few extra switches – it’s just like being in a ‘normal’ super-league, super-plush G. Lots of leather and silver things, the normal amount of shoulder room and glasshouse. But you’re sitting very high. And you can’t really see the 10 inches of extra wheelarch sticking out from each corner. But it doesn’t drive like it’s on stilts. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that it might actually be better than N `a\PX 4 DNTR[ O\aU \[ _\NQ N[Q \Ăž Va It feels expensive. Where the Raptor with its huge leaf-sprung rear axle shudders and thumps, the G-Wagen smothers. Where the lower-slung, wider-feeling Ford tips and rolls hard into a corner, the TOPGEAR.COM

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RAPTOR vs G4x42 Another successful Sa^_ ^á Pc cWT bRW^^[ of extreme driving

MERCEDES-BENZ ME M ERCED RCED RC EDEESS-B -BEENNZ GG5500 G500 00 4x4 4x4 2 Price: P Pr Pri rriice: e: £2 £250k £25 50k 0k approx ap app pprox pp prroxx Engine: Eng E ng gin ine: 3982cc ine 398 982 98 2cc cccc bi-tur bi-turbo turbo bo V8, 8,, 416bhp 416bhp 41 416 bhp @ 5250rpm, 525 50 0rrp 0rp pm m,, 450 45 4 450lb 0lb ft @ 225 0lb 2 2250rpm 250rp 50 5 0rrpm rp pm p m Per P Performance: erfor fo m man nce: e: 0––62mp 0–62mph ph in in 8.0secs 8.0 8.0 0sec secss aapprox, pprox ppr pp oxx,, 130mph 130mp ph vm ph vmax max ax Transm mis iiss ssssi sion iio on: 7spd on on: 7sspd 7 sp pd d Transmission: aauut aut uto, o, 4WD 4WD 4W WD auto, Eco Ec E cco on nom no om o my: y: n/a nn//a /a mpg, mp m pg, g, Economy: n/a g/km n/ g//km g m CO CO2 n/a Wei W Weight: eeiight gh g ht: 3000kg ht 30 3 300 00 0 00kg 0kkg 0k g

Ultimate power meets ultimate sophistication. Which to choose?

Compare the standard G-Wagen to the 4x4 2, stand back and clap

You want ground clearance? The G4x4 2 can wade one metre

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“HEARING THAT V8 BLARE MAKES YOU WANT TO GARGLE NEAT UNLEADED�

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4" `aNf` ÂźNa N[Q YRcRY TR[R_NaV[T P\]V\b` NZ\b[a` \S _RNY d\_YQ grip. And where the Raptor always requires you to remember the geometry of approach, breakover and departure, the Merc will drive over anything short of a four-foot brick wall. Admittedly the Raptor doesn’t really care, seeing as what it can’t drive over it just drives through, but you get the idea. You also can’t make the G rear-wheel Q_VcR Y\PX aUR _RN_ QVĂž N[Q Q_VSa N_\b[Q ]_RaR[QV[T aUNa f\b´_R V[ N A_\]Uf A_bPX Oba aUR`R ad\ UNcR QVĂžR_R[a `R[`VOVYVaVR` d_N]]RQ b] in the same infectious sense of damns-not-given. .[Q aUNa´` [\a a\ `Nf aUNa aUR 5C? V` V[ N[f dNf ONQ \Ăž _\NQ ÂŻ that very soft suspension allows for surprising axle articulation, and if you’re careful about where you put the wheels, the Raptor is actually decidedly capable. The wide track helps you stay out \S _ba` aUR \Ăž _\NQ Z\QR `dVaPUNOYR !e! N[Q Y\d ´O\e XRR]V[T momentum when all would normally be lost. For a semi Pre-Runner desert racer, it certainly copes with mud. And that grumbly V8 just thumps along at low revs, even without the supercharger adding any `VT[VÂťPN[a ]b`U But following the Mercedes is a lesson. Watching the G-Wagen meter torque through the wheels and the suspension at work over really quite silly bumps is pure engineering joy. And hearing that V8 blare through those side pipes makes you want to go and gargle neat b[YRNQRQ ÂŻ Va Y\\X` N[Q `\b[Q` YVXR N `a_RRa YRTNY 1NXN_ dN__V\_ <[ aUR _\NQ Va´` ZbPU aUR `NZR ÂŻ aUR 3\_Q SRRY` UbTR and soft and heavy. It squeaks a bit. The Mercedes feels taut and P\[a_\YYRQ N[Q ÂŻ f\b´YY UNcR a\ a_b`a ZR \[ aUV` ÂŻ SNV[aYf `]\_af /ba aUR ?N]a\_ UN` \[R OVT a_VPX ÂŻ N[Q aUNa´` `URR_ `ab]VQ OVT hearted speed. Really press the accelerator of the Hennessey to aUR Âź\\_ N[Q YRa aUR C% _Rc \ba N[Q aUR fRYY\d a_bPX T\R` V[a\

Monster trucks versus cWT ½]Tbc 6T^aVXP] c^f] X] cWT D:

full mindwarp. The supercharger whines like a jet turbine starter motor, the exhaust chunters like a wounded NASCAR and the whole beautiful yellow houseboat just legs it into the distance. Yes, the quality of changes from the Raptor’s six-speed auto are slurred to the point of comedy and they can’t match the precision of the Mercedes paddleshift gearbox, but, crikey, the VelociRaptor can move. The Mercedes will destroy the Ford in the corners, but in a straight line, good old-fashioned horsepower has advantages. But realistically, this isn’t a competition at all. Hennessey’s VelociRaptor can be purchased for under ÂŁ70k with the fun options included, and even though the G500 4x4 2 V` \Ă&#x;PVNYYf N Âł[RN_ `R_VR`´ concept car, the word from Mercedes is that if you want one, they’ll build it. Albeit from somewhere around the quarter-of-a-millionpound mark. But really these two are more of a pointer to where we’re headed. These vehicles represent a subculture that’s got bored of performance cars you can’t really use without renting a racetrack or going to prison. The new supercars. Supercars you can UNcR Sb[ dVaU Na Z]U \[ N[ \Ăž _\NQ a_NPX @b]R_PN_` f\b PN[ ]ba the family in, do practical things with and still make sure that every single person on any given street is looking at you. High performance replaced by high utility. They’re exciting, bombastic, noisy and a bit silly. Everything a supercar needs to be. And yet they’re also remarkably useful. In fact, the only thing aURf PN[´a Q\ cR_f dRYY V` Âźf

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JLR: SVO

WORDS: JASON BARLOW / PICTURES: LEE BRIMBLE

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N Land Rover joins the move to create halo cars, in a redefinition of the boundaries of luxury and utility

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t’s not the obvious analogy, and Range Rover’s marketing people almost certainly won’t approve. But after a day behind the wheel of the Sport SVR, I decide that this car is like one of those buskers you occasionally see with cymbals on their knees, a drum kit on their back, strumming a guitar while alternating between a kazoo and a UN_Z\[VPN 6a` NOVYVaf a\ Q\ ZN[f QVĂ&#x;R_R[a aUV[T` \SaR[ simultaneously, is very impressive. Unlike our busker friend, it’s also surprisingly tuneful. Dial up a decent chunk of revs, and the Sport SVR makes N [\V`R YVXR N `XfSbY \S ZN_NbQV[T @]VaÂź_R` DD66 ÂźTUaR_ plane, not pox-prone BMC roadster). It works by using a two-stage active exhaust, with larger-diameter pipes than the standard car. Electronically controlled bypass valves keep everything discreet until around 3,000rpm, at which point things get `R_V\b`Yf Y\bQ AUR Âź_`a aVZR Va UN]]R[` V` N TR[bV[RYf shocking, nape-prickling moment. After that, it’s just funny. And if that all sounds a bit too gratuitous, the driver can `RYRPa N ^bVRa Z\QR \_ `VZ]Yf YNf \Ă&#x; aUR aU_\aaYR AUV` V` clever automotive genetic engineering. It doesn’t disguise a few tricky basic questions, though, gratuitousness being one of them. In the Land Rover scheme \S aUV[T` 6ÂľZ Âź_ZYf V[ aUR 1V`P\cR_f PNZ] 6aÂľ` OVT O_VYYVN[aYf QR`VT[RQ N[Q N[ b[`a\]]NOYf cR_`NaVYR YbZ] \S N aUV[T DUNa it’s not is fast, nor a particularly adroit handler. But who wants an SUV that really handles, or can outrun a supercar? Stupid question. Lots of people, apparently, and not NYY \S aURZ PNYYRQ CVXa\_ \_ CYNQVZV_ 6[ ÂźcR fRN_`Âľ aVZR industry experts expect 20 million SUVs to be sold globally, ZN[f \S aURZ Na aUR a\] R[Q dUR_R aUR ]_\Âźa ZN_TV[` N_R N` WbVPf N` N ]VRPR \S DNTfb ORRS AUV` V` dUf aU\`R d\_YQ _R[\d[RQ \Ă&#x; _\NQV[T Re]R_a` .`a\[ :N_aV[ /R[aYRf Maserati and Rolls-Royce are all getting involved. There’s also the small matter of the cottage industry Land Rover’s V[P_RN`V[TYf ]_\ÂźPVR[a ]_\QbPa` V` `b]]\_aV[T DUf YRa aUR YVXR` \S 8NU[ <cR_Âź[PU N[Q AdV`aRQ TRa NYY aUR YbP_NaVcR tuned aftermarket action? In other words, forgive us if we raise a slightly arched eyebrow at the arrival of the Sport SVR. It costs ÂŁ93,450, uses a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 that pumps out just shy of 550bhp, 502lb ft, and despite its size and weight can rip to 62mph in 4.5 seconds and onto a top speed of 162mph. 6a P\bYQ T\ RcR[ SN`aR_ VS Va dR_R QR_R`a_VPaRQ .[Q NYaU\bTU glad we weren’t actually in the SVR when the stopwatch was

I

A tunnel. A sports exhaust. Well, it’d be rude not to...

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“ THE SPORT SVR MAKES A NOISE LIKE A SKYFUL OF MARAUDING SPITFIRES�

One small badge, but one giant leap in horsepower

JLR: SVO

When SVO took the SVR for a spin around the Nürburgring, it posted a time of eight minutes and 14 seconds. Which is impressive, considering Honda recorded a lap time of seven minutes and

50.63 seconds in a not-very-stock, prototype version of the 306bhp Civic Type R. But then Porsche came along in a Cayenne Turbo and beat the SVR time by 15 seconds. Game on, SVR...

<^d[STS bTPcb ^áTa more support. For which you’ll be grateful

Controls look similar to the normal car’s. But this is no normal car

JLR: SVO

“ THE SVR THROWS ITSELF DOWN THE ROAD WITH ALMOST APOCALYPTIC ABANDON” Subtle visual upgrades include a new front bumper with repositioned foglights to make way for air intakes. There’s also extra ducts for the brakes and another air scoop. And that Estoril blue paint – exclusive to SVR

JLR parent gave up sewing in labels and welded them in instead

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Expensive, quick SUV in dodgy back street. Just hanging around...

RANGE ROVER SVR Price: £93,450 Engine: 5000cc V8, 542bhp, 502lb ft Performance: 0–62mph in 4.5secs, 162mph vmax Transmission: 8pd automatic, 4WD Economy: 21.7 mpg, 298g/km CO2 Weight: 2335kg

running, its NĂźrburgring lap time of 8mins 14secs is illuminating. A new record, in fact, until Porsche ruined things by hammering a Cayenne Turbo S around in a frankly daft 7mins 59secs. Although the SVR is scarcely anyone’s idea of a shrinking violet, it’s also not quite as visually lairy as it could have been. This is surely a good thing, and an indication that the chaps at JLR’s cool-hunting Special Vehicle Operations division have their heads screwed \[ aUR @C? V` aUR Âź_`a @C< ]_\QbPa a\ UVa aUR _\NQ ° see separate story on the next page). Its technical wing is headed up by former Williams Advanced Engineering guy Paul Newsome, and he’s recruited a bunch of ex-F1 dudes to make sure the Sport SVR actually functions properly, rather than just looking nice rolling up outside the Bellagio or Burj Khalifa. Check out the new front bumper, whose intakes UNcR QV`]YNPRQ aUR S\T YNZ]` a\ VZ]_\cR NV_½\d a\ aUR charge air coolers. There are extra ducts for the brakes, and a scoop to funnel air into the brake pads, too. The rear spoiler reduces lift and drag. It’s available in seven colours, including an SVR-exclusive Estoril blue, none of which is screechingly TOWIE-esque, although a couple of aURZ UNcR QRÂź[VaRYf Q\[R aVZR \[ PR_aNV[ ZVQ ;V[RaVR` U\a hatches. What you notice most, though, are the wheels, all 22 inches of them, which are so huge the designers needed to add spats to the arches to accommodate them and the 295/40 section rubber around them. Continental QRcRY\]RQ aUR af_R` `]RPVÂźPNYYf S\_ aUV` PN_ N[Q ZbPU P_RQVa they deserve, too, as we’re about to discover. The 22-inchers are a ÂŁ2,400 option (21in is standard), but ticking that particular box is a no-brainer. Although your initial impressions are dominated by the palpably `aVĂ&#x;R_ SRRY \S aUR @C? ° aUR RYRPa_VP ]\dR_ `aRR_V[T UN` ORR[ ab[RQ a\ QRYVcR_ b[SN`UV\[NOYf URSaf _R`]\[`R` ° VaÂľ` aUR composure of the ride and the sense of a body, NYY "XT \S Va XR]a Âź_ZYf V[ PURPX aUNa `RR]` aU_\bTU a\ aUR Q_VcR_Âľ` ½R`Uf a\bPU]\V[a` Yes, it throws itself down the road with almost apocalyptic abandon, and its superb eight-speed ZF ’box smears through its ratios 50 per cent faster than the standard car manages, but what use is all that grunt if the chassis can’t cope? The regular Sport’s aluminium structure is obviously a great place to start, and there’s an ally in the trick multi-link suspension, too. Air-sprung with adaptive, magnetic dampers, the Sport SVR patters a little on the coarser bits of the British patchwork we spend most of our time on, but elsewhere it

magics up an amazing blend of comfort and grip. The bushing in the rear subframe has been beefed up, and there’s also a software upgrade for Range Rover’s ActiveRoll Control, whose actuators respond to body movements up to 1,000 times per second. The SVR can, should the circumstances present themselves and everyone on-board is familiar with the concept of informed consent, pull 1.3g in peak cornering, which gives you some idea how well SVO has dealt with centre-of-gravity issues akin to those of a small building. It also stops properly, too, although it’s the cooling on its Brembos (380mm diameter upfront) that has been upgraded, rather than the brakes themselves. Harnessed to the SVR’s stability control and a bunch of yaw sensors, the braking system has also been tuned to deliver torque-vectoring. Amusingly, the roll control algorithms automatically defer to the standard map if the system detects that aUR PN_ V` \Ă&#x; _\NQ /f dUVPU dR ZRN[ NPabNYYf \Ă&#x; _\NQ N[Q not exiting through a hedge backwards. Yes, those same 0\[aV[R[aNY` ° @]\_a0\[aNPa "` ° aUNa QRYVcR_ unimpeachable grip on bumpy British B-roads and can turn in that daft ’Ring lap time are also capable of scaling a boggy hillside. The SVR’s wading depth is 850mm, the same as the regular car, and its approach, breakover and departure angles are only slightly compromised by the extra bits it wears. Having recently tried something similar in a BMW X6, and got stuck, I found the Sport SVR’s P\ZOV[NaV\[ \S \[ N[Q \Ă&#x; _\NQ NOVYVaf `\ZRaUV[T a\ behold. It’s that, as well as its soulful qualities, that give it an edge over its almost exclusively German rivals. Philosophically, I don’t really approve of this car, as you may have gathered. Its emissions and fuel consumption aren’t bad, but nothing worth writing home about. It can do 160-odd mph and climb muddy mountains, yet will spend approximately none of its time doing either. The problem is, it’s really bloody T\\Q Na NYY aUR \aUR_ `abĂ&#x; V[ ORadRR[ N[Q PN[ `Ub¤R `RNZYR``Yf ORadRR[ dUV`]R_f _RÂź[RZR[a N[Q `U\baf high performance. This SVO lot clearly knows its onions, although the SVR’s fancy seats look a bit Halfords and, like the rest of the RRS range, the touchscreen V[S\aNV[ZR[a `f`aRZ V` NO\ba N` RĂ&#x;RPaVcR as a sundial compared with some of the latest hardware. 6[ \aUR_ d\_Q` aUR @C? V` Z\_R \S N Âź[RYf ab[RQ symphony orchestra than a terminally over-optimistic \[R ZN[ ON[Q dVaU N[ RePR`` \S ]R_Pb``VcR RĂ&#x;RPa`

Like a big, hefty rat up a commodious drainpipe

Impressive in every way except the infotainment system

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JLR: SVO

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Making tailored versions of cars has always been an easy win, but the game has moved on... WORDS: JASON BARLOW

SPECIAL OPS ORDERING

Here’s the pattern book of SVO

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aguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations division isn’t a new idea. ETO – engineered to order – has been knocking around for years, and the back catalogue is full of random commissions, many of them royal in bloodline, British or otherwise. What is new is a determination to streamline the operation while expanding it with an ambition that’ll have JLR lifers old enough to remember Red Robbo spluttering into their Typhoo. So much so, in fact, that to describe SVO as a skunkworks – guilty, m’lord – is doing it a disservice. These guys have outgrown their Brummie outbuildings and are thinking BIG. In fact, a 20,000m2 HQ with Formula One-inspired, surgically clean workshops, a state-of-the-art paint facility and a lavish VIP area is close to completion on the site of the old Peugeot factory near Coventry. Fast forward 18 months or so, and Land Rover will have Disco Sport, new Discovery and new Defender ready to go, along with Range Rover Sport and the globe-slaying RR itself. Jaguar, the perennial bridesmaid, will

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be touting XE, XF, F-Type, F-Pace and revised XJ, minty fresh (or fresh-ish) world class cars all. Now imagine SVO as a home-grown version of AMG and you’ll have some idea of how spangly the prize is. The Range Rover Sport SVR is the first special ops car to hit the road. The next production car to wear the badge will be a Jaguar, almost certainly an XE. In between, we’ll drive the finished version of last year’s D-type-referencing Project 7 F-Type concept, and might finagle a go in the ghostly lightweight E (six of which are being manufactured wearing the VIN numbers of cars that never saw the light of day back in 1963). On top of which is the recently announced £148,900 Range Rover SV Autobiography, complete with duo-tone paint, exotically trimmed foldout seats and hanging foot rests. Yes, a £150k Range Rover. Add merchandising and licensing to the special vehicles, personalisation and heritage matrix, and you’re looking at a projected annual revenue of around £900m from four separate pillars. The only thing missing from

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SVO is a helipad to land the chosen ones on, but Birmingham airport accepts private jets. Former Land Rover global marketing boss John Edwards is the man in charge. “I think of it in terms of a triangle,” he says, drawing an appropriately triangular motif on a piece of paper. “Ultimate luxury, ultimate performance and ultimate all-terrain capability. Apply that formula throughout the line-up, and it’s clear we’re nowhere near the full potential of what we can do.” The SVR badge will likely be joined by an SVX one for the off-road iterations (forget the wackily glazed early Nineties Subaru coupe), with nomenclature for the luxury line still tbc. He concedes that it’ll take time for the strategy to become fully transparent, but denies that SVO is an overdue response to an increasingly lucrative aftermarket. “There isn’t a huge amount of product integrity in that area,” he says. “It’s quite easy to play the style game, but building the engineering integrity into it is more difficult. Which is why I went after Paul Newsome.” Newsome is SVO’s technical boss, and formerly chief technology officer at the

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advanced engineering division of the Williams F1 operation. (He was a vital conduit between Williams and Jag during the co-development of the C-X75 hybrid hypercar, shortly to enjoy an afterglow as the Bond villain Oberhauser’s car in Spectre). Although the regular Sport is an excellent platform on which to tune a 542bhp SVR version, and JLR is hardly lacking in ride and handling experts, the finished article still has an impressive depth to it. It bodes well. “Paul’s input into the next SVR will be even greater than it has been on RR Sport,” Edwards insists. “Before he’d even started here, I’d talked to him about putting Project 7 into production. We quickly decided we’d do it. Then Paul equally quickly discovered it needed a lot of work to make it credible, as well as pretty. A lot of time has been spent re-engineering it, time in the wind tunnel, and getting it to work as a track car has taken a huge amount of effort. We can talk about the physics underpinning the cars we do. And Paul is great at that.” Although there were dissenting voices – internally and externally – all of the 250

There’s more to bespoke than rather silly rear seats...

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Project 7s were spoken for in the wake of an appearance at Goodwood. “It’s reinforced my instincts about special ops,” Edwards says happily. “There’s an increasing appetite for special cars, with a special story, from a special brand. Initially I wasn’t 100 per cent sure, but it didn’t take long for the doubts to disappear.” Will there be one-offs? “We’re quite interested, but the significant business opportunity is in largervolume projects,” Edwards confirms. “I’m not saying we won’t do them, but we’d prefer to push the boundaries of the existing product rather than completely re-engineering a car. One-offs also tend to be one-off business opportunities.” Besides, SVO has its hands full. While Edwards admits that the limited-run collectors’ cars obviously get everyone juiced up, the halo derivatives are the priority. The RR Sport SVR is apparently running ahead of all sales projections, so SVO is off to a strong start. “I’m really enjoying this idea of not being able to build enough cars,” he smiles.

2015

2015

2015

Range Rover Sport R SVR

Range Rover SVA

JJaguar C-X75 C

LaFerrari not man enough for you? Ferrari thought the same and created the FXXK... WORDS: JASON BARLOW / PICTURES: ALEX HOWE

FERRARI FXXK

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e’ve discussed carbon »O_R( [\d dR´_R aNYXV[T P\[P_RaR AUV` V`[´a N dU\YYf b[Re]RPaRQ P\[cR_`NaV\[NY B ab_[ S_\Z 3YNcV\ :N[g\[V TVcR[ aUNa 3R__N_V´` @N_QV[VN[ QR`VT[ QV_RPa\_ a_NV[RQ N` N[ N_PUVaRPa V[ 3Y\_R[PR 5R´` [\a N[ NO`a_NPa aUV[XR_ N[Q f\b d\[´a »[Q 3YNcV\ Na aUR ¼bßR_ R[Q \S aUR QR`VT[ `]RPa_bZ DUR[ Va P\ZR` a\ PN_` YVXR 3R__N_V´` 3EE8 aUV` V` N T\\Q aUV[T ±3_N[X 4RU_f N[Q @N[aVNT\ 0NYNa_NcN ² UR `Nf` PVaV[T ad\ Z\QR_[ N_PUVaRPab_NY ZN`aR_` ±=VR_ 9bVTV ;R_cV dU\ 6aNYVN[` _RSR_ a\ N` N[ ingegnere edile HObVYQV[T R[TV[RR_J QVQ NZNgV[T aUV[T` dVaU _RV[S\_PRQ P\[P_RaR 5V` d\_X QRZ\[`a_NaR` N `a_\[T P\ZOV[NaV\[ \S `PbY]ab_R N[Q R[TV[RR_V[T 6 YVXR aUNa ² AUR_R´` [\ ORaaR_ dNf a\ `bZ b] :N[g\[V´` N]]_\NPU 3VcR fRN_` NT\ 3R__N_V d_R`aRQ P\[a_\Y \S Va` cV`bNY P_RNaVcR ONPX S_\Z =V[V[SN_V[N :N_N[RYY\´` PU\`R[ P\bab_VR_ `V[PR N PRYRO_NaRQ ZRRaV[T ORadRR[ 2[g\ 3R__N_V N[Q /NaaV`aN 3N_V[N V[ &" N[Q `Ra b] Va` \d[ 0R[a_\ @aVYR b[QR_ :N[g\[V @V[PR aUR[ UR´` d\[ aUR SNZ\b` 0\Z]N``\ Q´<_\ S\_ aUR 3 /R_YV[RaaN N[Q UV` aRNZ UN` TR[RaVPNYYf Z\QV»RQ 3R__N_V´` Uf]R_PN_ OY\\QYV[R a\ `ab[[V[T RÞRPa dVaU aUR 9N3R__N_V /ba RcR[ aUNa `\ZRU\d ]NYR` V[ P\Z]N_V`\[ dVaU aUR Z\[`aR_ f\b `RR UR_R aUR 3EE8 aUR PN_ aUNa :N[g\[V ^bVRaYf _RTN_Q` N` 0@´` T_RNaR`a NPUVRcRZR[a `\ SN_ AUV` V` `PbY]ab_R N[Q R[TV[RR_V[T \[ N[ b[VZNTV[NOYR `PNYR 9Ra´` _RPN] AUR 3EE8 V` aUR YNaR`a ]_\QbPa \S 3R__N_V´` 0\_`R 0YVR[aV QVcV`V\[ N YVZVaRQ _b[ a_NPX \[Yf Z\OVYR YNO\_Na\_f S\_ aUR `b]R_ _VPU `a_NaN \S aUR P\Z]N[f´` Pb`a\ZR_ ON`R aUNa ]_RSR_` a\ \]R_NaR Na aUR OYRRQV[T RQTR \S UVTU ]R_S\_ZN[PR _NaUR_ aUN[ P\ZZV``V\[ N \[R \Þ @= `]RPVNY ]_\WRPa` PN_ \_ _b[ N QRP\ZZV``V\[RQ 3\_ZbYN <[R ZNPUV[R DUR[ 3R__N_V N[[\b[PRQ aUR 3EE ]_\T_NZZR N QRPNQR NT\ `\ZR `P\ÞRQ Na aUR [\aV\[ \S N Z

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No leccy windows but still space to pass the Big Mac through...

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]Yb` a_NPX PN_ `a\_RQ Of 3R__N_V N[Q SR__VRQ a\ QVÞR_R[a PV_PbVa` N_\b[Q aUR d\_YQ [RcR_ ZV[Q aUR VQRN \S b`V[T \d[R_` N` TbV[RN ]VT` S\_ [Rd aRPU[\Y\Tf /ba VS VZVaNaV\[ V` aUR `V[PR_R`a S\_Z \S ¼NaaR_f 3R__N_V \bTUa a\ OR cR_f ¼NaaR_RQ V[QRRQ Of :P9N_R[´` = 4A? N[Q .`a\[ :N_aV[´` CbYPN[ Af]VPNYYf aUR 3EE8 UN` aUR WbZ] \[ aURZ . ]\dR_ \ba]ba \S "OU] ]_\c\XR` ZRZ\_VR` \S V[`N[R 2VTUaVR` ab_O\ R_N 3 PN_` N[Q VS aUNa »Tb_R SNYY` `U\_a \S aUR CRf_\[ V[ `URR_ Top Trumps aR_Z` _RZRZOR_ aUNa aUR /bTNaaV V` YbTTV[T aUR R^bVcNYR[a \S N[ .YSN !0 V[ RePR`` ONTTNTR AUR 3EE8 UN` OU] Z\_R aUN[ aUR _RTbYN_ 9N3 dVaU %!%OU] TR[R_NaRQ Of aUR # YVa_R C N[Q aUR _RZNV[V[T %$OU] ]\[VRQ b] Of aUR RYRPa_VP Z\a\_ AUR P\ZOb`aV\[ R[TV[R UN` [Rd PNZ`UNSa` _Rd\_XRQ V[aNXR ZN[VS\YQ` N[Q N[ ReUNb`a `f`aRZ aUNa Wb[X` aUR `VYR[PR_` DNaPU aUR cVQR\ \[YV[R \S aUR PN_´` QROba Na 3R__N_V´` d\_YQ »[NY` YN`a ;\cRZOR_ V[ .Ob 1UNOV N[Q f\b d\[´a [RRQ a\ d\__f NO\ba QV`Y\QTV[T N[f _RPNYPVa_N[a RN_ dNe ;\ d\_Q fRa \[ U\d ^bVPXYf Va TRa` N_\b[Q FN` :N_V[N \_ ReNPaYf U\d ZbPU UN_QR_ N[Q SN`aR_ Va NPPRYR_NaR` Oba dR Q\ X[\d aUNa Va aNXR` N[ R[\_Z\b` PUb[X \ba \S aUR 9N3´` YN] Na 3V\_N[\ ¯ »cR `RP\[Q` V[ SNPa a\ _RP\_Q N ' ! aVZR /R`]\XR =V_RYYV `YVPX _bOOR_ N[Q OU] ]Yb` PN[ Q\ aUNa a\ N ]YNPR 6[`VQR S\b_ [Rd ZN[RaaV[\ `RaaV[T` >bNYVSf 9\[T ?b[ :N[bNY /\\`a N[Q 3N`a 0UN_TR UN_[R`` P\[cR[aV\[NY N[Q UfO_VQ ]\dR_ `\b_PR` a\ \]aVZV`R ]R_S\_ZN[PR \cR_ `U\_a \_ Y\[TR_ ]R_V\Q` .[ Rea_N »cR ]\`VaV\[ ZN[RaaV[\ T\cR_[` aUR 2 QVÞ a_NPaV\[ P\[a_\Y N[Q @VQR @YV] .[TYR 0\[a_\Y `f`aRZ ¯ NYaU\bTU @RON`aVN[ CRaaRY N]]RN_RQ a\ ^bVPXYf QV`]R[`R dVaU aUR `\SadN_R `NSRaf [Ra Qb_V[T UV` _b[ V[ aUR PN_ RN_YVR_ aUV` fRN_ ±6 QVQ N UNYS `]V[ ² UR NQZVaaRQ `URR]V`UYf /ba Va´` aUR 3EE8´` _RZN_XNOYR O\Qf N[Q NR_\ Qf[NZV`Z aUNa Z\`a P\ZZN[Q` f\b_ NaaR[aV\[ <[ TG´` cV`Va a\ 3R__N_V´` QR`VT[

FXXK generates 540kg of downforce at 125mph. Mighty

FERRARI FXXK

“IN LOW-DRAG MODE, IT HAS DOUBLE THE DOWNFORCE OF THE LAFERRARI”

Front splitter is now 30mm closer to the ground

FERRARI FXXK

FERRARI FXXK Price: €2.5m (plus local taxes) Engine: 6259cc V12, 1035bhp (848bhp @ 9250rpm plus Hy-KERS electric motor and lithiumion batteries equating to 187bhp) Performance: 0–62mph in 2.7secs approx, 220mph vmax Transmission: 7spd dual-clutch auto, RWD Weight: 1339kg

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hangar, in the heart of the Maranello citadel, a full-size clay model of something new was being hurriedly covered up in the background. So comprehensively does the FXXK hoover up your eyeballs that they really needn’t have bothered. 6a` NR_\ P\[ÂťTb_NaV\[ V` dUR_R 3R__N_V´` Formula One learning and a decade of FXX QRcRY\]ZR[a YRNQ a\ N OVT ]Nf \Ăž B]S_\[a a beautifully complex splitter sits 30mm closer to the ground. End plates and vertical Âť[` URY] PUN[[RY NV_ NY\[T aUR `VQR \S aUR PN_ FRa Z\_R Âť[` \[ aUR `VQR `XV_a` VZ]_\cR aUR NV_Âź\d a\dN_Q` N[Q \cR_ aUR _RN_ dURRY` At the rear is arguably the car’s most innovative and eye-catching feature: N ]NV_ \S b[b`bNYYf NOO_RcVNaRQ _RN_ Âť[` that work in harness with the LaFerrari’s ingenious active rear spoiler. In low-drag mode, the FXXK has double the downforce of what we must laughably refer to as the standard car. When it’s in maximum-attack, full-aero mode, it generates another 30 per cent. Tellingly, Manzoni cites the mid-Sixties 330 P3/4 racing car as his favourite Ferrari – “an amazing beast, my God‌ and a car consistent with the importance of synergy between functionality and beautyâ€? – but, even so, surely the FXXK is too much of a weapon to qualify as beautiful, as all Ferraris are required by international law to be.

Manettino has Qualify, Long Run, Manual Boost and Fast Charge modes

At rest in Fiorano pit box. Lapped it 5secs faster than LaFerrari

“1,036BHP PROVOKES MEMORIES OF INSANE TURBO-ERA F1 CARS�

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Fixed seat now features somewhere to rest your g-force-pummelled head

398mm carbon discs up front. Huge 345/20 Pirelli slicks at rear

“THE FINS WORK ALMOST AS A WALL, KEEPING THE AIRFLOW CONCENTRATED”

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FERRARI FXXK

FXXK boosts LaF’s V12 hybrid to 1,036bhp. No CO2 ½VdaTb hTc

VETTEL PROVES SOME METAL A long-time fan and F40 owner, not to mention possessor of four F1 world championships, Scuderia new boy Seb Vettel still had his work cut out in the FXXK. True to form, he turned all safety aids off then managed to have a slight moment...

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Manzoni disagrees. “This is my favourite 3R__N_V \S aUR ]N`a ÂťcR fRN_` ² UR `Nf` Âť_ZYf “It’s very complex, but at the same time very pure. It’s exactly how I wanted it to OR AUR R[TV[RR_V[T RĂž\_a \[ aUV` PN_ V` considerable, but there was a lot of room to transform it into a beauty by working very closely with the aerodynamicists. Everyone thinks a track car has to be brutal because it’s functional, and nobody really believes that a car like this can be beautiful. So this was the major achievement.â€? Manzoni admits that he’s not just a car fanatic like many automotive designers – “I tend to have a multi-disciplinary approach.â€? Start a debate with him about the distinction between styling and design, and you’ll spot aUR Âť_`a _V]]YR` V[ aUR VZ]R_ab_ONOYR ReaR_V\_ “There’s a temptation to create something because it is nice, purely because it looks good,â€? he concedes. “So it’s partly my job to N`X ÂłDUf V` Va YVXR aUV` N[Q [\a QVĂžR_R[a, 6` aUR_R N _NaV\[NY Re]YN[NaV\[ S\_ Va,´ <aUR_dV`R it could become pointless. If everything stays respectful of the technical principles, that’s better. We would not feature bulges or scallops on the bonnet where they are not needed.â€? Crucially, though, Manzoni wasn’t ÂťTUaV[T N `a_NVaWNPXRa \S NR_\ V[aR[`VcR data-dictated hardware. “Aerodynamics is a huge opportunity for designers,â€? he insists, pointing to the front end of the FXXK. “What I say to my team is always the same: ‘If you can learn and understand how a device works, then you can interpret it in a very organic way through the overall design of the car, and create something truly new.’ “It’s impossible to think of a modern car like this without understanding the engineering principles. We must know them, digest them, metabolise them and translate them in a way that is artistic. The co-operation [with the aero department] was so great that we found many promising and inspiring ideas. The more we could process these ideas, the closer we got to aUR Âť[NY `UN]R \S aUR PN_ ²

Centro Stile also designed the LaFerrari with the track version in mind, a process made easier by the suspicion that such a car was almost inevitable. Its predecessor, the FXX, was the unplanned spawn of the Enzo, and evolved in a very ad hoc way. Hugely dramatic, yes, but still something of a Frankenstein’s creature. The 599XX aUNa S\YY\dRQ ÂťcR fRN_` YNaR_ dN` NY`\ largely improvised. This time, things d\bYQ OR QVĂžR_R[a “I thought the LaFerrari was ready to be interpreted in a more radical way,â€? Manzoni smiles, citing its arrow-shaped prow as one of the highlights. “During the development of the LaFerrari, I wanted to change the archetype. The FXXK provided the perfect opportunity to revisit the lights, for example, so that the expression is totally QVĂžR_R[a 6a UN` cR_f `ZNYY cR_f Re]_R``VcR headlights, like closed eyes. This is a track car, so it gave us the prospect of reimagining the car’s graphic elements.â€? But the story reaches its apogee with the rear end. “The aero treatment at the back of the FXX became quite well known, and we didn’t really want to repeat it. The aero guys said that they didn’t need a double spoiler, so we began considering two smaller spoilers PN[aVYRcR_RQ \[ N Âť[ AUR Âť[` N_R T_RNa S\_ maximising the downforce on aUR NPaVcR _RN_ `]\VYR_ dUR[ Va V` \]R[ AUR Âť[` on either side work like boundaries, almost like a wall, and they keep the NV_Âź\d P\[PR[a_NaRQ \[ aUR _VTUa ]NaU ² There’s more sculpture in the rear QVĂžb`R_ N[Q 921` ÂťYY aUR `\PXRa` aUNa U\b`R the lights on the LaFerrari. It’s all 100 per cent functional, yet utterly bewitching at the same time. Aston Martin expects at least a handful of Vulcan owners to treat their cars as static works of art. It’s not something you can imagine Ferrari tolerating. “There are always things I’d like to change on a new car,â€? Manzoni concludes. “I don’t want to sound presumptuous, but I think the whole team did a pretty good job on this car.â€? TOPGEAR.COM

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HELLCAT

A S E D A G E N E R WORD

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S: SID

IC T U L / P SAIGA

UPPL RES: S

IED

JEEP SUVs

S E E K O R E H C ND ep e J o w t Testing

rse u o c f o , -road ff o — t r y dese a f a g A co’s c o r o M SUVs in

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orgeous, crumbling, and craggy Morocco is a place that will seem at least a little familiar to anyone who has spent time in the Arab world. It’s QVĂžR_R[a( a\ OR `b_R f\b d\[´a Âť[Q N medina full of artisans like these in Dubai, although f\b PN[ Âť[Q aUR `NZR af]R \S dN_R` Na :NQV[Na Jumeirah. In Marrakesh I visited a ceramics factory, where I was interested to see how the ornate tile mosaics for which Morocco is known are fabricated (I still don’t really understand it). At the end of the tour we came to the gift shop, where I bought a small bowl. Shopping, which is generally my favourite hobby, would be a common theme as I toured the medina. Over and over again I would be led to some shop or workshop, where I would see someone making something in a particularly low tech and interesting fashion, and then they’d want me to buy something. It was fascinating, but ultimately I proved a disappointing consumer— the only things that really caught my eye in Morocco, were made not in the medina, but outside Detroit in a Jeep factory. Just 40km beyond Marrakech, the Agafay desert is virtually unpopulated due to its arid conditions. But here, like in our desert in the GCC, a smattering of intrepid souls venture out for a variety of reasons, S_\Z aUR `UR]UR_Q TNaUR_V[T UV` Âź\PX a\ aUR `ZNYY T_\b]` \S \Ăž _\NQ R[aUb`VN`a dU\ X[\d dUNa a\ Q\ with this kind of terrain. In any event, I suspect either would have been surprised to see our long motorcade of Jeeps trekking into the North African dVYQR_[R`` NZVQ aUR ONPXQ_\] \S aUR dUVaR aV]]RQ Atlas Mountains. It’s a stunning, almost lunar landscape, one that’s contrasted by the superb

G

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comfort of my ride. Where the Cherokee (more on that later) is the OVT \]aV\[ YNQR[ T\ N[fdUR_R P\ZS\_a 7RR] aUR Renegade is the, er, slightly smaller option laden T\ N[fdUR_R V[ P\ZS\_a 7RR] 6[`VQR aUR ?R[RTNQR is every bit as full of personality as the Cherokee, but with an aesthetic that is more on the rugged Wrangler end of the spectrum. Either way, they’re keen to make sure you remember you’re in a Jeep, with styling cues that reference the SUV’s grille, a famous trail in the American west, and more. As we’ve noted in these pages before, Detroit has upped it’s game tremendously in the interior department (or should that be department of the interior?) and the Renegade is, while not luxurious, a well thought \ba N[Q ReRPbaRQ `]NPR dUR_R aUV[T` N_R dRYY ÂťaaRQ together and the plastics manage to feel, if not Re]R[`VcR aUR[ R_ b[ PURN] I was pleased to get my hands on the impressive Renegade Trailhawk, which was perfect for the :\_\PPN[ QR`R_a dVaU Va` a_VZ YRcRY `]RPVÂťP S_\[a and rear bumpers, which provide the best approach and departure angles in the Renegade range at 30 degrees and 34 degrees, respectively. The Trailhawk has the best ground clearance in the bunch (for \Ăž _\NQV[T \OcV\b`Yf ORNaV[T \ba aUR \aUR_ Renegades by 15mm at 210mm. The Trailhawk is ÂťaaRQ dVaU `XVQ ]YNaR` a\\ dUVPU V` [VPR VS f\b Q\[´a want to tear through your oil pan, and a tow hook as well. And by the way, it’s the only Renegade that Jeep has bestowed with the esteemed “trail ratedâ€? moniker. .[Q Va QRÂť[VaRYf QR`R_cR` aUNa ONQTR° aUR Renegade Trailhawk has the most advanced 4x4

JEEP SUVs

JEEP CHEROKEE

Price: : AED 150,000 Engine: 3.2-L V6, 271hp, 316 nm @ 4,400 RPM, Performance: 0-100 in 7.7 secs, 200kph, Transmission: 9-Speed Auto, Economy: 2mpg, 218 g CO2/km, Weight: 1712kg,

THERE’S EVEN MORE STORAGE INSIDE THE JEEP CHEROKEE, WHICH HAS ONE OF THE NICEST INTERIORS IN ITS CLASS

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“GORGEOUS, CRUMBLING, AND CRAGGY MOROCCO IS A PLACE THAT WILL SEEM AT LEAST A LITTLE FAMILIAR TO ANYONE WHO HAS SPENT TIME IN THE ARAB WORLD.”

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JEEP SUVs

tech of its cohort, which adds a low ratio option and ?\PX Z\QR a\ aUR `aN[QN_Q \ÞR_V[T´` .PaVcR 1_VcR dVaU @RYRPAR__NV[ . ! YVa_R S\b_ PfYV[QR_ R[TV[R T\\Q S\_ %!OU] N[Q ! ;Z QRYVcR_` ]\dR_ a\ aUR dURRY` cVN N [V[R `]RRQ Nba\ZNaVP TRN_O\e .[Q VS f\b´_R XRR]V[T `P\_R [\aR aUNa \b_ _RTV\[ TRa` aUR OVTTR`a S\b_ ]\a \[ \ÞR_ `\ f\b PN[ P\b[a \[ f\b_ S_VR[Q` V[ 2b_\]R a\ OR WRNY\b` <ba V[ aUR .TNSNf aUR ?R[RTNQR UN[QYRQ `N[Q QRR] _ba` a\dR_V[T V[PYV[R` N[Q NYY ZN[[R_ \S \Þ _\NQ PUNYYR[TR` dVaU RN`R NYdNf` ZNaPUV[T a\_^bR a\ a_NPaV\[ a\ ]bYY b` \ba \S N[f QVßPbYa `]\a F\b d\bYQ[´a aNXR Va O\bYQR_V[T \[ aUR ?bOVP\[ a_NVY aUR dNf N[ R_ ?bOVP\[ d\bYQ° Oba aUR ?R[RTNQR A_NVYUNdX V` ^bVaR UN]]f \Þ _\NQ \[ N cN_VRaf \S `b_SNPR` :RN[dUVYR RcR[ N` f\b´_R a_b[QYV[T \cR_ `\ZR _baaRQ dNQV aUR V[`VQR \S aUR ?R[RTNQR _RZNV[` a_N[^bVY N[Q _RYNaVcRYf ^bVRa F\b PN[ RcR[ QVNY V[ f\b_ SNc\b_VaR ab[R` \[ f\b_ ]U\[R aUN[X` a\ aUR UN[Qf b0\[[RPa V[S\aNV[ZR[a `f`aRZ dVaU /RNa` `]RNXR_` =R_`\[NYYf 6´Q _NaUR_ OR b] S_\[a dUR_R aUR cVRd V` OR`a N[Q aUR dURRY V` b`bNYYf V[ Zf UN[Q` Oba aUR _RN_ \S aUR PN_ V` _R]baRQ a\ U\YQ aU_RR UbZN[` N[Q aUR_R´` " YVa_R` \S `a\_NTR V[ ONPX AUR_R´` RcR[ Z\_R `a\_NTR V[`VQR aUR 7RR] 0UR_\XRR dUVPU UN` \[R \S aUR [VPR`a V[aR_V\_` V[ Va` PYN``°aUR 0UR_\XRR cR_`V\[ V` Sb_aUR_ R[UN[PRQ Of ]_RZVbZ PY\aU \_ YRNaUR_ QR]R[QV[T \[ a_VZ \]aV\[NY URNaRQ N[Q cR[aVYNaRQ ]\dR_ NQWb`aNOYR S_\[a `RNa` dVaU ZRZ\_f `\Sa a\bPU ]YN`aVP` N[Q `\ZRaUV[T aUR [\d QRSb[Pa 9VOR_af YNPXRQ V[`VQR' N ]R_`\[NYVaf # ! `]YVa S\YQV[T _RN_ `RNa NQWb`a` UN[QVYf S\_ PN_T\ \_ ]R_`\[[RY QbaVR` N[Q RcR[ NÞ\_Q` QRPR[a YRT_\\Z S\_ ]R_`\[` \S NcR_NTR URVTUa 6 QVQ[´a ZV`` aUR ?R[RTNQR dUR[ 6 T\a V[ N 0UR_\XRR Oba Of aUR `NZR a\XR[ 6 dN` ]R_SRPaYf Na U\ZR dUR[ 6 RcR[abNYYf T\a ONPX V[ N ?R[RTNQR a\ P\Z]N_R° RNPU V` N cVNOYR \]aV\[ S\_ P\[`bZR_` <S P\b_`R 0UR_\XRR V` Z\_R OYV[TRQ \ba( aUR_R´` N URNaRQ `aRR_V[T dURRY f\b d\[´a b`R Oba 6 VZNTV[R Z\`a QR[VgR[´` \S aUV` Z\OVYR ]U\[R \O`R``RQ P\_[R_ \S aUR d\_YQ dVYY R[W\f :\]N_´` [Rd dV_RYR`` `ZN_a]U\[R PUN_TV[T `aNaV\[° `VZ]Yf ]YNPR f\b_ ]U\[R \[ aUR ZNaa N[Q Va dVYY Nba\ZNaVPNYYf PUN_TR _VTUa b] RcR[ dUVYR f\b UNcR Va ]NV_RQ cVN /YbRa\\aU

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JEEP SUVs

to the available U-connect infotainment system. Chrysler is trying to wrestle the mantle of quality away from the Europeans, and nowhere is that more elegantly executed than inside the new Cherokee, a model that has always been known for comfort, especially at the top trim level. The Cherokee comes standard with dual-zone automatic climate control, keyless entry with push-button start. With Jeep’s optional Uconnect infotainment system, you get a six-speaker stereo, a USB port, Bluetooth, an SD card slot and a 8.4-inch touchscreen display— it’s one of the most intuitive systems out there, much to the chagrin of Ford and Microsoft, I’d imagine. AUR 0UR_\XRR V` \ĂžR_RQ dVaU N YVaR_ =R[aN`aN_ C # ]_\QbPV[T $ U\_`R]\dR_ # [Z a\_^bR N[Q a\dV[T PN]NPVaf \S ! XT 6S f\b´_R Y\\XV[T a\ `NcR Na aUR ]bZ] aUR_R´` NY`\ aUR %! U] ! YVaR_ “Tigersharkâ€? four-cylinder engine. From Chrylser/

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36.A´` ZbYaV NV_ YV[R aUV` S\b_ ON[TR_ ZNXR` ![Z of torque. In either iteration you’ll be captaining Jeep’s ZF licensed 9-speed auto. AUR @]\_a 9NaVabQR N[Q 9VZVaRQ RQVaV\[` \ĂžR_ front-wheel drive at the base level, but there are plenty of options for owner’s who want there Jeep to act like an, er, Jeep. These three models are upgradable to Jeep Active Drive; single poweraNXR\Ăž b[Va =AB `f`aRZ aUNa V` N SbYYf Nba\ZNaVP and, according to Jeep, improves under- and \cR_`aRR_ P\[QVaV\[` dUVYR \ĂžR_V[T ONYN[PRQ a\_^bR distribution via the braking system. Or, spend up for 7RR] .PaVcR 1_VcR 66 N[Q f\b TRa N ad\ `]RRQ =AB with low range. In 4-Low mode the front and rear Q_VcR`UNSa` Y\PX b] N[Q ]_\cVQV[T N & ' TRN_ reduction for better torque and pulling power. Then with the top trim Trailhawk edition, Cherokee drivers are treated to Jeep Active Jeep Drive Lock, dUVPU NQQ` N Y\PXV[T _RN_ QVĂžR_R[aVNY a\ .PaVcR 1_VcR

II for better low-speed traction, making it the most Jeep-like Cherokee. The Cherokee is an exceedingly able, yet comfortable vehicle. It can do nearly as much as a D_N[TYR_ PN[ \Ăž _\NQ Oba S\_ Zf Z\[Rf Va´` PYRN_Yf the friendlier daily driver. Given the choice, I’d _NaUR_ _R`VQR V[ N 0UR_\XRR aUN[ N D_N[TYR_ \_ N ?R[RTNQR° QbR V[ ]N_a a\ `VgR Oba YbPXVYf Va QVQ[´a come to that as Jeep had us bivouacked in the Agafay is real style. You may have heard the term “glampingâ€?? Well, for all of Jeep’s ruggedness as a brand, whenever I’ve been out in the wilderness with them they go to great lengths to make their guests very comfortable, and this trip was no exception. Cherokee and Renegade themselves might be a YVaaYR Z\_R T_bĂž aUN[ TYNZ R`]RPVNYYf ?R[RTNQR Oba 6 have to say; it’s a mixture I could get very used to.

“THE RENEGADE TRAILHAWK HAS THE MOST ADVANCED 4X4 TECH OF ITS COHORT.”

JEEP RENEGADE

Price: : AED110,900 Engine: 2.4-litre four-cyl 184bhp @ 6,400rpm 240Nm @ 4,400rpm Transmission: Nine-speed auto, AWD Performance: TBD 0-100kph: TBD Economy: TBD Weight: 1,583kg

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EDITED BY LIAM NELSON

TOPGEAR MIDDLE EAST’S LONG-TERM CAR. TESTED AND VERIFIED

TEST OF THE MONTH

TOYOTA FJ CRUISER We spend more quality time in Toyota’s popular retro themed SUV TURN OVER

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REPORT2: TOYOTA FJ CRUISER

Sand Cruiser

4.0-liter V-6 petrol, 4WD, 260hp, 380 Nm

18 mpg combined, 267 g CO2/km

0–100kph in 7.6 secs, 170kph

1,948kg

AED119,500

Start mileage4,400 km Driver Liam Nelson Why it’s here A Desert Classic, with looks to thrill. This is an SUV that has Middle East written all over it. It’s been a while since I’ve driven down Beach Road, but whenever I do the sporadic occurrence of dentist’s offices reminds me of a story my friend Jane once told me—one that is partly about taking care of your teeth, but also about what makes Dubai, Dubai. Jane was overdue for a check up, so she booked a dentist, had a set of x-rays and was told she needed treatment for several cavities and, did she want to go ahead and make an appointment for that right now? She did not. Something seemed off about the diagnosis— she couldn’t put her finger on it, but she trusted her instinct and made an appointment with another dentist. “It’s funny,” she told the new doc, “but I was told I needed to have four teeth drilled, and I just can’t seem to credit that recommendation.” The new dentist re-examined her and told her she needed four fillings. Jane is a former Safari guide, an intrepid soul who has always enjoyed colouring outside the lines. Even after the second opinion she still trusted her own internal compass better than this professional’s recommendation and, based on a referral from a co-worker, she made a third appointment. This time Jane said nothing about the two previous visits. “Your teeth look good,” the new practitioner

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IN DETAIL

explained. “I want to keep an eye on these four darker spots, but there’s nothing to be done now.” Ex-pats, all three dentists included, come to Dubai for a better life and, make no mistake, a better life is expensive. Part of that better life, more often than not, includes a better car— and thank goodness for that, we spend enough time in them here. I’m not suggesting that the two dentists were lying, per se, but that they suffered from a malady that few of us can fully resist: expectation bias. I doubt there’s a lack of cavities to be filled in the Emirate, and while it might not be their primary motivation, each cavity is a little more dosh for school fees, mortgage, or maybe a car payment on toothsome beast like the Toyota FJ Cruiser TRD edition. I had my own expectations (and biases) as I climbed into the cockpit of the gleaming white FJ, which someone had crammed into a crowded Deira pay lot. Here again, someone’s expectation of income had meddled with the rational availability of service and the car park was so overburdened with vehicles that they’d have done better to hire a couple valets and just fill the place up with a tad more strategy. I was glad of the FJ’s back up cam (although the screen feels a bit small in that big-boy interior) as it helped me wind me way out of a few tight spots without

incident. I expected the FJ to feel like a big ol’ brick of an SUV and it did, but one that has a bit more grunt off the line than I might of expected. The FJ offers plenty of low to mid torque but falls off quickly after that. That might sound like a harsh assessment, but keep in mind that I’d just stepped off the plane from testing the 911 Targa GTS. The FJ’s not meant to be driven fast per se (just look at it) but it’s enjoyable to pilot nonetheless. Back in Dubai and back on Beach Road the FJ was in constant company of other FJs— it’s like a club for people who want the utility of an SUV with the kind of stylized, almost retro looks that you might find on a modern pony car, albeit an aesthetic that is more classic Japan than Motown. Still, I was reminded of Sid’s comment last month that the FJ reminded him slightly of Hummer in the way it’s laid out inside. I have to say, a light bulb went off on pondering the exterior of the FJ, which I think is more akin to the H3, except for people with better taste. See, I like the FJ, it’s cool in an unexpected kind of way and the TRD version

MILEAGE AND MPG THIS MONTH

0 0 0 5 9 0 0 1

18.0

PHOTOS: MALEK FAYOUMI

“The FJ’s 260-horspower, 4.0-liter V-6 gave me enough push to work around the sundry oblivious and/or catatonic drivers that sometimes litter the road.”

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elevates that feeling, albeit cosmetically. I still had my suitcase with me when I first took possession of the car and, out of sheer laziness I set it on the passenger seat next to me. This was a great plan, until I went to shift into reverse and realized that the handle of my luggage was abutting the shifter, leaving me little choice but to relocate it to the back of the car. There’s ample storage space back there, and the seats fold down quite easily to maximize hauling capacity— so much so that I felt like an idiot for shoehorning my belongings into the front seat. In my defence, I was a bit jet lagged. The next day the sand was upon Dubai like a thick fog, keeping visibility to a minimum while traffic seemed as bad as ever. The FJ’s 260-horspower, 4.0-liter V-6 gave me enough push to work around the sundry oblivious and/ or catatonic drivers that sometimes litter the road. There’s 380Nm on tap here and, as I mentioned before, you blow through the best of it early in the rev band. I suppose you could man handle the 5-speed auto a bit, as the shift points are likely set for fuel efficiency, but the FJ feels alright just doing it’s own thing so I didn’t

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“Back in Dubai and back on Beach Road the FJ was in constant company of other FJs— it’s like a club for people who want the utility of an SUV with the kind of stylized, almost retro looks that you might find on a modern pony car.”

bother. With it’s large frame, and high riding perspective, the 0-100kph sprint feels faster than 7.6 seconds, but who am I to question Toyota’s measurements? Having spent a bit more quality time in the FJ I can see the appeal. I might be more of a Highlander man at heart, but then I’m not much of a dune basher anyway. Still, the FJ is, despite all odds, quirky in an enjoyable way and I was sad to see it go.

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Exhaust No. 983

CAR POLO

CELEBRATING HISTORY’S FINEST WORST IDEAS WE WISH THEY WERE MADE UP. THEY REALLY AREN’T

“A

one that would naturally avoid headbutting another pony – a Ford Model T had no such instinct. It did, however, have planetary gears, which made it easier to move about than other early cars. It’s thought the first properly organised game took place in 1912 in Wichita, when the Red Devils faced the Gray Ghosts. Each side had two cars containing a driver and malletman. They played with a basketball, and the mallets had heavy, three-pound heads to prevent ‘backfiring’ when striking the ball at speed. Crowds couldn’t get enough and, over the next decade or so, auto polo leagues sprang up all over America. Games were held on Coney Island and in Madison Square Garden. In the Twenties, some teams even toured Europe.

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THE BRAINWAVE

By then, cars had gained primitive steel rollover hoops and were less likely to squish the competitors. But although they were now less likely to be pinned beneath their steeds, the risks were still high. As another newspaper reported in 1924, the damage tally for one team alone was “1,564 broken wheels, 538 burst tires, 66 broken axles, 10 cracked engines and six cars completely destroyed.” And if you thought the players had it tough, spare a thought for the referee. As one competitor put it, “The referee must be alert at every moment, or he may be run over. It is a man-killing game.” Vive la différence!

Before radios, drivers and their navigators could communicate only by shouting above the noise of the engine. At the 1914 Corona road race, Eddie Rickenbacker and Fred McCarty solved this problem by talking into rubber tubes strapped between one man’s mouth and the other’s ear, and vice versa.

THE PROBLEM

If a Stormtrooper had mated with a tiny elephant, the resulting babies might have looked like this. And in the Californian sunshine, leather facemasks became rather uncomfortable. In Rickenbacker’s words, their device became “unbearably hot and sticky”, and the idea was binned.

PICTURES: MANUFACTURER

uto polo: costly and hazardous”. That’s how an American newspaper summed up the sport of car polo in 1925. By that time, the game had existed for more than 10 years, but the idea was very much the same. Like its horsey equivalent, players would whack a ball around a field with a mallet. But rather than being saddled on a horse, they would be sat in the front two seats of a Ford Model T or something similar. They would then drive after the ball, chased by other men in other cars, who would often arrive in the same spot at the same time. There would then be a mangled, steaming heap of men and cars and the game would be over. Because unlike a pony –

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