June 20

#81 | JUNE ’20 | `200

NOW FEATURING FAST BIKES: DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S HONDA AFRICA TWIN

KAROQ DRIVEN Honey, I shrunk the Kodiaq

BREAKING FREE WITH MERCEDES-AMG C 63 COUPE

CRETA v SELTOS: Which one wins?

VW POLO TSI EVEN MORE FUN TO DRIVE

THE CHILL OF DRIVING

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#81

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Ed speak SIRISH CHANDRAN

I HOPE YOU ARE KEEPING WELL, STAYING positive, and that some semblance of normalcy has returned post the lockdown. We are in what they call the ‘new normal’ and the quicker we adapt, the faster we can rebuild and move forward — at least that’s the general mindset within the automotive industry. Sales figures have obviously been decimated and it is anybody’s guess when customers will walk back into showrooms.

But manufacturing activities have resumed, (sanitised) showrooms have opened up, and I attended two press conferences in my pyjamas!

The automotive industry is the largest contributor to India’s manufacturing GDP and there’s nothing like a new car to keep the gears turning. Launches are of course now all-digital, which does give you the freedom to dress as you please while sat on the couch. And I must say Skoda did a mighty fine job, not just with the slick virtual launch but getting conversations rolling with the Rapid TSI’s pricing. It might be stripped down but that Rider edition has created solid excitement and I, for one, would use the cash saved to slap on bigger wheels, a banging sound system, and take it to a tuner to bolt on go-faster parts. Of which plenty will be available; this engine is shared with the delightful Up GTI. In normal course we’d have a review of the Rapid but these aren’t normal times. Cars aren’t coming to us, we are going to wherever they are (if they can get out of the factory). Early morning wake-up calls have wound back to the middle of the night as we rustle up our breakfast and lunch before heading out to pick up and sanitise test cars.

And while we should be enjoying the empty roads, I must tell you it is spooky as hell.

But I can also tell you that we’ve enjoyed putting these stories together. And driven with a vengeance. Check out the C 63 AMG Coupe story, that’s what being locked up for 8 weeks can do — your right foot refuses to let go of the accelerator. With more time on our hands we are also pouring more love into the stories, and so the Polo TSI gets 6 pages and a 10-minute video. For the all-important Creta vs Seltos comparison test we’ve pored into the smallest details to find out what’s different with these identical cars.

The first rains couldn’t keep us away from the Skoda Karoq, which we discovered is truly excellent. And from this issue we start our new Fast Bikes section, headlined by the mental 205bhp Ducati Streetfighter V4 and the immensely desirable Honda Africa Twin.

Stay safe, stay positive and enjoy the issue. L @SirishChandran

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Contents

#81

REGULARS

008

031

144

160

IGNITION

CONNEC T

MOTORSPORT

DE A D ON A RRIVA L

Porsche’s new, insanely desirable 911 Targa, intelligent speed adaptors and how they will affect the driving experience, droolworthy watches and all the new cars launched last month

020 020 HYUNDAI CRETA DIESEL 024 BMW M235i GRAN COUPE

FAS T BIKES All the motorcycling news you need

128 DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S A superbike for the streets

136 HONDA AFRICA TWIN Mud-plugging with the heavily updated Africa Twin

028 COLUMNS

Bijoy Kumar, Richard Meaden & Richard Porter

evoindia.com

125 126 UPFRONT

FIRS T DRIV ES

Visit

The best reactions to our lockdown special issue on our social media platforms

evoindia.com for the latest news, reviews & videos

We dive into some of the most popular eSports championships around, give you insight on how to build your own eSports rig and look at the FMSCI’s plans to assist the motorsport community

All of Ferrari’s ‘special series’ V8 supercars in one epic story

E VO FLEE T

The Volkswagen Tiguan makes an out-of-town run, while the Kona Electric stays restricted to the city

156

What you need to do to hit the tracks post-lockdown

This month, we look at G-H

E VO ENCYCLOPEDI A

VIDEOS Sideways cars, bikes on one wheel and interesting people (YouTube.com/c/evoIndia)

161 NE X T MONTH

153

142 PREP TIME

NEWS The best resource online for the latest car, bike and motorsport news

In 2010, Lotus almost brought back the Esprit through an ambitious project but it never saw the light of day

162 GONE BUT NOT FORGOT TEN

The Mitsubishi Cedia had solid underpinnings, but a lacklustre engine. Still made a great rally car!

REVIEWS Full multi-page in-depth reviews of the cars and bikes that matter

SOCIAL Two-way Facebook, Twitter and Instragram policy. Talk to us now! (@evoIndia)

F E AT UR E S 034

056

076

100

BRE ATHE FIRE

SA ME, BUT DIFFERENT

SU V W

SA FE SPACES

The Mercedes-AMG C 63 Coupe may have lost two doors and some power, but it is still properly wild

VW’s new Polo with a 1-litre TSI engine and a manual gearbox driven!

Volkswagen has some properly desirable SUVs in the T-Roc and Tiguan

Hyundai dealerships are now sanitised for your safety

045

062

082

108

SKODA’S SURPRISE

M A NUA L S M AT TER

SPIRIT OF 66

S TILL OF THE NIGHT

048

068

092

FA MILY FEUD

ICON REBORN

BA BY BE A R

Skoda launched the all-new Karoq, but really surprised everyone with the aggressive pricing of the Rapid

The Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos are almost identical on paper. Can we pick one over the other?

The manual gearbox dials up the driving experience like nothing else and needs to be preserved

The Land Rover Defender has been revived in 2020 – we have a go in it in Africa

Scan the QR code to buy the on Amazon

The inside story of the modern Ford GT and getting behind the wheel of the racecar

A haunting drive in a ghostly white Porsche 718 Spyder

116

Skoda’s Kodiaq gets a younger sibling in the Karoq and it leaves us impressed

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PRECIOUS ME TA L The frighteningly expensive Aston Martin DB4 GT and Zagato Continuation cars

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N E WS , I NTERVI E WS , TEC H A N D E V ERY N E W C A R TH AT M AT TERS

Targa Fever The Targa has been reintroduced into the 911 family, and there’s a very special edition to celebrate it

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P O R S C H E 9 1 1 TA R G A 4 S H E R I TA G E D E S I G N E D I T I O N WORDS by KARAN SINGH

HE PORSCHE 911 FAMILY OFFERS something for everyone. Want to drive a sportscar on your grocery run?

Buy the Carrera. Want to humiliate a supercar on the Autobahn? Get yourself the Turbo S. Want a track weapon? Go splurge on the GT3 RS. But where does the Targa fit in?

The answer is simple — charm. While the rest of the 911 range has become faster than ever, in the hunt for ever quicker 0 to 100 times, the Targa has strayed away from that.

It aims to distil simple driving pleasure while

T

offering just enough power. Power that you can use on the road. Couple that with the iconic Targa roll bar, the brilliant roof mechanism and the huge glass area at the back, and you have a car that would be scintillating on a curvy road, and look just as good as a showpiece in your living room. Sure, the Targa doesn’t sell nearly as well as some of the other models in the 911 range but that makes the Targa all the more special, more exclusive.

This doesn’t mean the Targa is an old relic, quite the contrary. The part-glass,

part-canvas roofed convertible recently got updated for the 992 generation. This includes the new front bumpers, new headlights and taillights, and the new interior layout with the digital instrument cluster and a 10.9-inch infotainment display. Yes, the knobby gear selector has made it too. And when the sun is shining, you can put away the canvas roof at the flick of a switch in 19 seconds. In the back sits a three-litre twin-turbo six-cylinder boxer engine which produces 379bhp and 450Nm of torque in the Targa 4, or 444bhp and 530Nm

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IGNITION

IN TERMS OF DRIVETRAIN, THE TA R G A M O D E L S A R E I D E N T I C A L T O THE CARRERA 4 AND 4S

in the Targa 4S. The engine is mated to an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission which powers all four wheels. 0 to 100kmph takes 4.2 seconds in the Targa 4, while the Targa 4S can do it in a brisk 3.6 seconds. Keep your foot pinned in the Targa 4 and you’ll be able to hit a top speed of 289kmph, while the Targa 4S can go on till 304kmph. Just make sure your wig is glued on properly. In terms of drivetrain, the Targa models are identical to the Carrera 4 and 4S that were introduced earlier.

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Porsche took this idea of blending iconic design with modern technology and fashioned the car pictured here. The 911 Targa 4S Heritage Design Edition. It has been designed to pay homage to classic Porsches from the 50s and early 60s and comes peppered with references to the good ol’ days.

For starters, the ‘Cherry Metallic’ paintwork, which is exclusive to this edition, pays tribute to colours available on the Porsche 356. Not only does the paint look stunning, it adds an

almost liquid dimension to the curves of the 992. If you prefer a more sober look, you could have it in black, red, silver or grey too. The paintwork is complimented by the Heritage livery, resembling the one on the 911 Speedster.

It gets a competition number encircled in white on the side, the buyer can choose any number between 1-99, with ‘Porsche’ lettering along the lower half. There are also spear-shaped streaks above the headlights.

These nod to Porsche’s early motorsport

P O R S C H E 9 1 1 TA R G A 4 S H E R I TA G E D E S I G N E D I T I O N

history, where paint was first used to cover up scratches and dings, and later the spears became a sort of “warpaint” before entering a race.

It doesn’t stop there though. The modern Porsche crest makes way for one from the 60s, featuring an older typeface for the Porsche lettering and is finished in gold. In fact, all other badges on the outside, including the ‘Porsche’ lettering at the back, are coloured gold. The car also features a ‘Porsche Heritage’ badge on the rear deck lid, which was originally awarded to Porsche 356s back in the day when they covered more than one lakh kilometres. The Heritage Edition gets Fuchs-style rims, 20-inch ones in the front and 21-inches at the rear.

These pay homage to the Fuchs wheels that were first used on the 911 S in 1967.

The retro theme continues on the inside too. The red and beige ties in with the exterior colour and has been designed specifically for this edition. It also features corduroy inserts on the seats and door panels, a material that originally featured on the 356. Like the paintwork, you can have the interior trimmed in a more subtle colour scheme too. Like we saw with the 911 R, the dials and buttons all glow green instead of the usual white but here even the numbers on the digital instrument cluster are green! This Heritage Design Edition Targa will be limited to 992 examples. Buyers of this edition will exclusively be allowed to purchase the Chronograph 911 Targa 4S Heritage Design Edition which has been designed to match the car and will be limited to 992 units as well. The 911 Targa 4S Heritage Design Edition is the first of three other Heritage Editions that will follow and will be based on other variants of the 911. Each of these will try to bring the ethos of Porsches

From top to bottom: Analogue tacho flanked by configurable displays; cool looking Fuchs-style wheels; the stopwatch on the dash will measure laptimes; the Targa rollbar is an iconic touch

from the 50s to the 80s. For those who aren’t lucky enough to purchase the limited run models, some of the retro elements like the tachometer and the 60s Porsche crest will be available as off-the-shelf additions for buyers of regular 911s as part of the Pure Heritage Design package.

While we haven’t received the standard Targa in India yet, it is expected to cost `2.2 crore if it is launched in India. Being a limited run model, we estimate the Heritage Edition to cost more at around `2.9 crore, if someone is lucky enough to buy it. It is unlikely, since slots for limited edition Porsches are usually hard to come by. Maybe customers who’ve clocked more than one lakh kilometres on the odometers of their Porsches should be given preference. That would certainly allow it to find at least one home in our country.

S PECIFICATIO N Engine Transmission Power Torque Weight Power-to-weight 0-100kmph Top speed Price

Flat-six, 2981cc, t win -turbo 8-speed automatic 4 4 4bhp @ 6500rpm 530Nm @ 2300 -5000rpm 1675k g 265bhp/ton 3.6sec 304kmph ` 2.9 crore (e s timated)

IGNITION

One step forward‌

Intelligent speed adaptors will be fitted to all new cars from 2022, and their use may eventually become mandatory, but are they the best way to make our roads safer?

S P E E D A D A P TO R S WORDS by MARK McARTHUR-CHRISTIE

HO’S THE BEST PERSON TO control your throttle pedal? You, an engaged driver, checking for hazards and moderating your speed according to constantly changing road conditions, or your local corprator, who’s worried about getting re-elected and is under pressure to lower limits? Rhetorical? Sure. But it’s the reality of Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA).

All new car models launched from 2022 onwards in Europe will have ISA fitted, and by 2024 every new car sold must have it. In fact various forms of ISA already exist in current models from Fiat, Ford, Jaguar, Mercedes and Volvo sold in Europe.

ISA uses a camera at the front of a vehicle to ‘read’ speed limit signs and can cut power to the engine if the driver is above the limit, or remove throttle response so you can’t exceed it. The system won’t brake for you, but will instead restrict the fuel flow, and if the camera doesn’t spot the signs there’s a back-up database of speed limits linked to the car’s sat-nav. Because speedos over-read, ISA also usually allows you to set the limiter a little higher than the limit, but this will reset when you shut the car down at the end of the journey. Nudge theory in action.

At the moment, there are three flavours of ISA, each exercising progressively more control over the driver. The lowest level of interference comes from an ‘informing system’ that either beeps at you until you slow down or flashes a warning light, or both. ‘Half-open’ systems will warn you when you exceed a limit and also stop you doing it by taking away your throttle control – but you can still override it. Finally, ‘closed’ systems give you no choice – you stick, limpet-like, to the limit, with no ability to overrule the computer.

The systems already offered by the aforementioned brands are of the ‘informing’ or ‘half-open’ kind, the latter usually only active if the driver engages the cruise control or its related speed limiter function, and if they have also selected (or not deselected) the option for it to operate adaptively. The European Transport Safety Council has said it “Supports a full on/off switch” for ISA systems but only “To aid public acceptance at introduction”. The direction of travel is pretty clear.

Interestingly, car makers are selling ISA more as a way to avoid a fine than as a safety aid. Roelant de Waard, general manager of passenger vehicles at Ford of Europe, says:

W

IT ’ S PR E T T Y FAIR T O A S S U M E ISA IS BEING IMPOSED MORE IN H O P E T H A N U N D E R S TA N D I N G “Intelligent Speed Limiter is one of those technologies that people will wonder how they did without – not just because they avoid speeding fines, but because driving becomes that much less stressful.” And for many drivers – the less enthusiastic sort – that looks, at first glance, like a good shout. If you buy a domestic-appliance car and simply regard it as a way to get around that’s better than the bus, ISA will certainly stop you getting ticketed; simply let your car do the thinking for you.

But handing over control of your throttle pedal comes at a price. Even the European Commission – a big ISA fan – admits there are issues of diminished attention, overconfidence, and frustration, and says: “At present there is insufficient insight into the size of these possible negative side effects and their consequences.” That’s quite a gap for a system already being rolled out across Europe.

What we do know, from studies at the University of Leeds in the UK, is that contrary to de Waard’s claim that ISA makes driving less stressful, it in fact makes drivers more frustrated and anxious. Anyone who’s tried sticking to a limit with an aggressive tailgater will know the feeling, and it’s hardly conducive to safe driving. Worse, the ISA-generated anxiety and frustration are highest on motorways and in ‘20’ speed limit areas.

The studies also showed an increase in amber light running. Presumably drivers felt it was better to just keep rolling than stop – or perhaps they had just switched off from the task of driving. They also tailgated more before overtakes and “Cut in more aggressively when driving with an active mandatory ISA system” too. Surprisingly, the study also measured the effect of ISA on drivers’ ‘joy’. Unsurprisingly, the results showed a significant decrease in this emotion.

Given that the Commission and Leeds University’s transport academics aren’t exactly known for their love of the open road, it’s pretty fair to assume ISA is being imposed more in hope than understanding.

But perhaps the weakest link in the whole ISA chain is the way speed limits themselves

are set. For ISA to have credibility, the basis for speed limit setting needs to be scientific, evidence-backed and robust. In fact, limits are set by councillors, often with no road safety background, under pressure from residents who fear cars are travelling “Too fast” – even when there’s no history of accidents.

Perhaps the road safety industry is concentrating on what it can measure rather than what’s important. The European Transport Safety Council says, “Speed is the number-one killer on Europe’s roads” and that ISA will reduce crashes by 30 per cent and save 25,000 lives over 15 years. But on the other hand other reports like UK’s Department for Transport say, “Exceeding [the] speed limit” was a factor in just five per cent of crashes as opposed to “Failed to look properly” at 38 per cent and “Failed to judge other person’s path or speed” at 20 per cent. India is clamping down on speeding too with mandatory alarms in cars – beeping once at 80kmph and continuously after 120kmph.

But there is already evidence that the obsession with speed limits isn’t working.

Despite the millions spent on lower limits and their enforcement, fatalities and serious injuries on roads in developed countries like the UK have stopped falling – since 2010 they’ve flatlined. The UK government is so worried about the lack of improvement in road safety that it’s launching an inquiry as to why.

If one looks deeper, there are plenty of studies that, rather than forcing compliance with an increasingly arbitrary limit, emphasise the importance of developing drivers’ hazard perception abilities: trainable skills that enable drivers to spot dangerous situations and take the best action – whether that’s slowing down or simply anticipating and planning ahead.

Given the issues with ISA – and with increasingly hard-line speed limit enforcement as a whole – we might be better making ongoing driver training a condition of retaining a licence, perhaps linked to reduced insurance premiums from lower risks. It’s got to be better than letting a bloke behind a desk control your accelerator.

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WHY WE WEAR WATCHES WORDS by SHAMI KALRA

Autodromo Group B Series 2 ‘Safari’

Silver Snoopy

`74,000* autodromo.com Another striking variant for Autodromo’s Group B. This one is inspired by 1980s ParisDakar machines and gets a green dial and semimatte green plating for its case and bracelet.

Who knew a comic character would sit well on a watch

I

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with a solution to get the crew home safely.

The Speedmaster stepped up. The mechanical chronograph was used to time a critical 14-second firing of the craft’s rocket engine to correct their homeward trajectory. The mission was a success. The 2015 release was limited to 1970 watches, a homage to the year in which Omega was presented with the award.

The rarity, demand and interest in these significant pieces has grown exponentially with a 2003 Snoopy hammering down at Sotheby’s for `17.75 lakh. But, these watches are not individually great solely because of the price or rarity, but for the way they make you feel and for the purpose they serve. The watch nurtures and pleases the childlike space exploration fantasy within all of us and has helped attract an audience to not only the Speedmaster but to Omega as a brand, acting as a gateway for most into their collections, aspiring one day to own the cartoon chronograph grail.

The innate sense of excitement at the prospect of owning a cartoon illustrated piece of history, an artefact cultivated from horological and scientific excellence that does not take itself too seriously but still holds the ability to time the launch of your rockets, lap-time or daily dog walk. That’s why we love these watches.

Tissot Heritage Navigator Chrono Auto 1973 `1.68 lakh* tissotwatches.com Hot on the heels of last year’s limited-edition 1973 model comes a non-limited take. With a white dial it’s virtually unchanged, but it’s now joined by new black and blue alternatives.

Hublot Big Bang Integral From `14.6 lakh* hublot.com Fifteen years after it launched, the Big Bang is now offered with an integrated bracelet for the first time. It’s available in titanium (pictured), black ceramic or gold.

*Prices excluding Indian duties and taxes

N 2003, FOLLOWING NASA’S successful Apollo 13 space programme, Omega released the incredibly significant limited-edition, Omega Silver Snoopy Speedmaster. Comic Snoopy came to adorn one of the most quintessential and recognisable chronographs in horological history as NASA sought to acknowledge employees, engineers and suppliers whose work was of exceptional value to the space programs. At this point, in 1968, the Silver Snoopy Award was born.

The first iteration of the Snoopy Speedmaster was released in 2003 with a limited production run of 5,441. This first edition featured a small emblem of Snoopy on the dial and caseback.

The second iteration and most recent edition was launched at Baselworld 2015 and featured both the Snoopy illustration as well as the inscription on the dial between zero and fourteen seconds which reads: “What could you do in 14 seconds?”, paying tribute to the duration of time that it took for Apollo 13 astronauts to perform the crucial midcourse corrections before re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. When a catastrophic explosion on board the spacecraft jeopardised the return home, the astronauts and ground team were forced into a position of having to come up

52,9 %

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IGNITION 

MERCEDES-AMG GT R

The AMG GT R been updated for 2020, with mildly redesigned exteriors, LED headlights and taillights, more sophisticated electronics, but stays mechanically unchanged. The analogue dials from the previous GT R are now a 12.3-inch digital unit, with an updated 10.25-inch central infotainment display. In the centre console, conventional buttons have been replaced by display buttons, which show icons corresponding to the function. Also on offer is a new steering wheel with touch-sensitive pads on either side to control the displays, and two dials at the bottom — one for the drive modes and the other split into two user-programmable buttons to control various settings.

New arrivals

The auto industry looks to be on the uptick, with launches from `7.49 lakh to `2.48 crore!

Variant Price AMG GT R

`2.4 8 cro re

Price ex-showro om , In d ia



MERCEDES-AMG C 63 COUPE

The M8 is BMW’s new flagship coupe, and gets all the right ingredients – a powerful motor (592bhp and 750Nm), luxurious cabin (Merino leather, bits of piano black trim on the dash, illuminated M headrest logos), cutting-edge tech (gesture control, headup display, wireless charging) and stunning design.

The C 63 AMG has dropped the S suffix, two rear doors, and a few horses. It now produces ‘just’ 469bhp and 650Nm with a 0-100kmph time of 4 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 250kmph. On the inside, there’s head-up display, a four-spoke AMG Performance steering wheel with touch capacitive buttons to toggle through the menus on the fully digital 12.3-inch instrument cluster (with three display styles; classic, sporty and aggressive) and the infotainment system and two tiny seats that aren’t big enough for adults.

Variant Price

Variant Price

Variant Price

M8 Cou p e

C 63 AMG

S MT (P) SX MT (P) SX IV T (P) SX (O) MT (P) SX (O) IV T (P) SX (O) TGDI S MT (D) SX MT (D) SX AT (D) SX (O) MT (D) SX (O) AT (D)

BMW M8 

`2.15 cro re

Price ex-showro om , In d ia



SKODA SUPERB

Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

For 2020, the Skoda Superb gets a new BS6-ready 1984cc turbo-petrol engine (187bhp /320Nm), a few cosmetic changes (a tweaked front bumper, new grille, all-LED matrix headlamps) and for the Sportline trim, a blacked-out grille and a contrast roof.

Variant Price Sp or tLine L aurin & Klem en t

`29.99 la k h `32.99 la k h

Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

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`1. 3 3 cro re

HYUNDAI VERNA



The Verna now gets a 1-litre turbo-petrol along with the NA 1.5-litre petrol and diesel siblings, and minor visual changes, like the sleek new LED headlamps with DRLs, front and rear skid plates, and for the Verna Turbo, a blacked-out grille.

Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

`9. 31 `10.70 `11.95 `12. 59 `13.84 ` 13.99 `10.65 `12.05 `13. 20 `13.94 `15.09

la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h

L AU N C H ES WORDS by SUDIPTO CHAUDHURY



JAGUAR F-TYPE

The 2020 F-Type gets a few visual changes with slimmer headlamps and J-shaped DRL elements, a larger mesh-like grille and a reworked clamshell bonnet. On the inside, there’s a new fully configurable 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It gets two engine options, both petrols. The smaller one, a 2-litre turbocharged inline-four, makes 296bhp and 400Nm, while the larger, supercharged 5-litre V8 comes in two variants: the P450 with 444bhp and 580Nm, giving it a 0-100kmph time of 4.6 seconds, and the P575 with 567bhp and 700Nm and, coupled with all-wheel drive, a 0-100kmph time of 3.7 seconds.

Variant Price

Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

SKODA KAROQ

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Cou p e P300 `95.12 la k h Cou p e R- D y namic P300 `98 .13 la k h Fir s t Edition P300 `1.01 cro re Convertible R-Dynamic P300 `1.06 crore Cou p e R- D y namic P4 50 `1. 26 cro re Cou p e Fir s t edition P4 50 `1. 29 cro re Convertible R-Dynamic P450 `1.35 crore Cou p e R AWD P 575 `2. 27 cro re Conver tib le R AWD P 575 `2.42 cro re

The Skoda Karoq is essentially a cousin of the Volkswagen T-Roc and gets the same 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine producing a slightly reduced 147bhp, but an identical 250Nm. The Karoq comes in a single, fullyloaded variant, and goes up against the Jeep Compass and Hyundai Tucson.

Variant Price Karo q

`24.99 la k h

Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

SKODA RAPID BMW 8 SERIES GRAN COUPE  The 8 Series Gran Coupe, a four-door version of the 8 Series, gets a 3-litre petrol engine making 335bhp and 500Nm. Available as a CBU, it gets two variants: the Gran Coupe and Gran Coupe M Sport. Both feature the characteristic kidney grille, while the M Sport Edition gets BMW Laser lights, chrome line BMW Individual high-gloss shadow line, and M Aerodynamic package with extralarge air intakes, side skirts and rear apron with diffuser inserts and 19-inch doublespoke M light alloy wheels.

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The big change for the almost identicallooking BS6 Rapid comes in the engine department. That’s because it has moved away from the previous 1.6-litre inline-four NA petrol and now runs a 1.0-litre turbopetrol inline-three which it shares with the new Volkswagen Polo and Vento.

Variant Price Rid er Am bition O ny x St yle Mon te C arlo Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

`7.49 `9.99 `10.19 `11.49 `11.79

la k h la k h la k h la k h la k h

NISSAN KICKS

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The new Nissan Kicks looks virtually identical to its predecessor but adds a powerful 1.3-litre turbocharged petrol engine (153bhp and 254Nm) to the lineup, which also includes the 1.5-litre NA petrol. The new Kicks also gets automatic headlamps, cornering lights, and rain sensing wipers. Within the cabin is Nissan’s connected car technology with smartwatch integration and remote start-stop, along with the usual connected car features.

Variant Price 1. 5 XL `9.49 la k h 1. 5 XV `9.99 la k h 1. 3 T XV `11.84 la k h 1. 3 T XV Prem iu m `12.64 la k h 1. 3 T XV Prem iu m (O) `13.69 la k h 1.3 T XV Pre (O) Dual Tone `13.89 lakh 1. 3 T XV CV T `13.4 4 la k h 1. 3 T XV Prem iu m `14.14 la k h Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

Variant Price 840i GC `1. 29 cro re 840i GC M Sp or t Edition `1. 55 cro re Prices ex-showro om , In d ia

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Keeping you inspired and enthused during the lockdown with

Scan the QR code & enjoy!

#evoC nversations PRESENTED BY

The lockdown means we have to stay home, but that hasn’t stopped evo India from striking up conversations with industry professionals. In our Instagram Live sessions we listen to the stories of automotive CEOs, ex-F1 racers, tuners and designers, learn from their professional experiences and ask them what the world will look like after the pandemic blows over. From inspirational to the educational, the #evoConversations series in partnership with Rowe Motor Oils makes for a tremendously engaging watch.

T

on the s o e id v e th ll a d n fi n a c u o Y @evoindia IGTV & even ast on the Thrill of Driving podc

BOOPESH REDDY BREN GARAGE

“It’s important to work for the dream — have a plan and set out.

And the plan has to be in the form of a 10-year plan, attack it phase by phase.” bren_garage

DILIP CHHABRIA FOUNDER, DC DESIGN

“If you love anything from the heart, you will make a success of it. I went to design college after my BCom because I didn’t know there was such a course.” dc2design

JATIN AHUJA

FOUNDER & MD, BIG BOY TOYZ

“When you buy a car from Big Boy Toyz, every single car goes through a stringent 151-point check. It’s about checking every aspect of the car and rectifying every aspect of it.” bigboytoyz_india

JOEL JOSEPH

FOUNDER, RACE CONCEPTS

“Race cars don’t just get built on the dyno. It’s a lot of homework and a lot of work on the racetrack, and the feedback you get from the driver is the most important thing.” raceconcepts

NARAIN KARTHIKEYAN

INDIA’S FIRST F1 DRIVER

“First time I felt I was driving a rocketship. It was phenomenally quick and 900 horsepower, with VTec, and 18,000rpm, it gives you a shock through the system, but you get used to it.” narainkarthikeyan

NAVEEN SONI

SENIOR VP, SALES AND SERVICE, TOYOTA KIRLOSKAR MOTOR

“Because of BS6 upgradation, many manufacturers have had to exit the diesel vehicle segment. This has come as an opportunity for us to capitalise on the market.” toyota.india

PARTHA DATTA

PRESIDENT AND MD, FCA INDIA

“We are actively working on a three-row SUV coming soon, and we are very actively investigating a sub-four metre SUV.” jeepindia

PRATAP BOSE

VP, GLOBAL DESIGN, TATA MOTORS

“You cannot sell a [CAD/CAM] picture or a poster to a customer. You’re selling a big 3-D full-size object. A clay model does not lie” tatamotorsgroup

RAJEEV CHABA

PRESIDENT & MD, MG MOTOR INDIA “We believe this vehicle (Gloster) will set the new norms in the segment in terms of technology and features. We’ve committed a launch around Diwali.” mgmotorin

SANJAY SHARMA

HEAD, JK TYRE MOTORSPORT “Like football or hockey, you can’t practice it on a back lane. You need to know the technology side of it. A man and a machine together win, and together lose.” jktyre_motorsport

SHASHANK SRIVASTAVA

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA “Maruti Suzuki is very positive about the long term prospects, both of the economy and automobile industry in India.” marutisuzukiofficial

STEFFEN KNAPP

DIRECTOR, VOLKSWAGEN INDIA “The more I look at the Taigun, the more I like it. It’s the first result of our India 2.0 strategy, where we’re going to focus a bit more on domestic in terms of higher localisation.” volkswagen_india

TARUN GARG

DIRECTOR, SALES AND MARKETING, HYUNDAI INDIA “Hyundai wants to be a technology leader here, and we are willing to invest and take the level up as far as the turbo game is considered.” hyundaiindia

UROS ROSA

CEO, AKRAPOVIC “In extreme conditions like Le Mans, racing at full throttle for 24 hours, there’s not a lot of compromises you can have.” akrapovic

VIVEK SRIVATSA

HEAD OF MARKETING, PASSENGER VEHICLES, TATA MOTORS “What will take us further in the next five years is doing things completely differently than what we have done so far.” tatamotorsgroup

ZAC HOLLIS

DIRECTOR, SKODA AUTO INDIA “I’ve spoken to many RS enthusiasts who meet up on weekends, driving the car… It’s fantastic to see that enthusiasm for the car. The RS as a brand in India is here to stay.” skodaindia

Driven

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HYUNDAI CRETA DIESEL // BMW M235i xDRIVE GRAN COUPE

H Y U N DA I C R ETA D I ES E L

Test location: Pune

Photography: Rohit G Mane

Hyundai Creta Diesel

While we were off the roads, we were bombarded with questions about the diesel-engined Creta. Well, here are your answers

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BVIOUSLY WE GOT OURSELVES the turbo-petrol first. The strap line of our magazine ain’t ‘The Thrill of Driving’ (and riding, as we oft remind you) for nothing. But turbopetrol review done and dusted, we spiralled into the nation-wide lockdown over the last two months. In that time, our social media inboxes were flooded with questions about how to win the merchandise we were giving away in the lockdown. And this is relevant, because the second most popular question was our opinion on the diesel Creta. So here we are. As soon as we were allowed to get back on the streets, we tracked down the closest

diesel Creta and demanded the keys, since you demanded a review.

Do I need to give you my opinion on how the Creta looks? I’m not sure. Enough people have said what they have to say, and all I have to add to that is it will sell regardless of whether it appeals to the tastes of us oh-so-sophisticated auto-journalists. What I will point out, though, are the differences from the turbo-petrol. Up front, the diesel has more chrome on the grille and the skid plate is silver where it is blacked out on the petrol. This blingy approach continues on the side — silver roof rails, silver C-pillar — again, where the turbo gets blacked out bits. The wheel design

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Above: The new Creta gets a digital screen in place of a traditional analogue instrument cluster

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is slightly different, while at the back, there’s a singe exhaust tip. There’s also the obvious lack of ‘Turbo’ badging on the grille and boot (though this is a turbo-charged diesel engine).

The insides are more of an obvious change.

The dual tone (replacing the — take a wild guess — all black) interiors are refreshing and does lend the cabin a little more airiness.

There’s none of that fancy red accenting either. In terms of the layout and functionality, it is all pretty much the same and for the only other difference you need to put your head in the footwell — different pedals. The layout of the dash is logical and everything is where you expect it, but there are hard plastics around for the most part. In terms of equipment, you still get the same 7-inch instrument cluster, 10.2-inch infotainment screen, all the creature comforts like wireless charging, panoramic sunroof, an air purifier and reclining seats in the back. The cushions on the rear headrests have to be the best thing about the interior of

this car though — soft, plush, comfortable — and they do wonders to elevate the backseat experience.

What is new for the Creta is the diesel engine — a BS6-compliant 1.5-litre engine that replaces the older 1.6 diesel. In terms of numbers on paper, the engine is actually a step backwards — it makes 13bhp and 10Nm less, but driving it tells another story. The Creta doesn’t feel sluggish despite the lower outputs and is more than willing to get the pace on. Refinement is really impressive, with vibes being negligible and not too much clatter entering the cabin. As for its characteristics it is a typically turbo-diesel engine. It has a strong mid-range that pulls cleanly and tapers off before the redline. It comes on to boost very predictably and smoothly too and won’t catch you out.

While it is available with an automatic, the Creta we had on test was a manual. The 6-speed manual will obviously be the more

H Y U N DA I C R ETA D I ES E L

The Creta doesn’t feel sluggish despite the lower outputs and is willing to get a move on

engaging car, but if someone was prioritising engagement, they would look at the turbopetrol. So let’s talk about convenience instead — the clutch is light and easy to operate, the shift quality is fairly good and rowing up and down the box isn’t cumbersome at all. I do wish it had slightly shorter throws though.

Also, the manual doesn’t get the drive modes and traction modes that the automatic variants of the Creta get, but it isn’t something you will particularly miss.

As for the ride and handling, the new Creta has a sophistication that the old one lacked.

It stays far more planted at speed — not bouncing around with undulations in the road and not compromising its bump absorption either. The steering weighs up at speed and overall you feel far more confident behind the wheel of the new Creta.

Does that answer all your questions? I certainly hope so! The new Creta diesel is a really capable all-round SUV. Refinement,

Top to bottom: Dual tone interiors keep cabin airy; the Creta has presence and draws eyeballs; our test car had the six-speed manual; new 1.5-litre engine is rather refined

performance, comfort, features — it delivers on all these fronts. If your priorities are more focussed towards practicality and comfort, the Creta diesel won’t put a wheel wrong. My only issue with it is it doesn’t light a fire within you; it feels a bit clinical. But again, that is something I can live with since there’s that blacked-out gangsta-spec one that we tested last month available as well. L Aatish Mishra (@whatesh)

HYUNDAI CRETA DIESEL Engine In-line 4-cyl, 1493cc, turbo-diesel Power 113bhp @ 4000rpm Torque 250Nm @ 1500-2750rpm Weight 1570kg (195bhp/ton) 0-100kmph NA Top speed NA Price `15.79 lakh (ex-showroom)

+ Refinement, comfort, ride quality - Doesn’t thrill

evo rating ;;;3B

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BMW M235i xDrive Gran Coupé 1 Series-based M235i offers a refined ride and decent cabin, but also a characterless engine and questionable styling

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CCASIONALLY A JOVIAL POST spreads throughout social media prompting you to come up with a line that, should you ever end up kidnapped or in some kind of trouble, would alert the outside world without drawing undue attention from those holding you hostage.

It has to be something that sounds feasible in isolation, but out of character to people who know you. For me I reckon something along the lines of, ‘I’m really starting to go off Caterhams,’ or maybe, ‘Thinking about it, Pastor Maldonado was pretty underrated,’ would do the trick.

Anyway, I mention this because I’m beginning to think some of BMW’s junior designers are being held against their will.

Perhaps the recent spate of misshapen designs and George Foreman grilles isn’t simply misguided styling, as we’ve all suspected until now, but actually increasingly

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desperate pleas for outside assistance.

Something’s clearly wrong, and we should act fast.

Granted, aesthetic matters are rarely priority number one at evo, but ask someone whether they’d still want to live in their dream house if it looked like a 30ft-tall poo emoji and I suspect we’d all know the answer, so it’s fair to assume most of us here still appreciate a bit of style. That leads us, one way or another, to the car we have here – BMW’s new 2 Series Gran Coupé, available with a small selection of petrol and diesel engines, but most relevant to us in range-topping M235i form.

Just like the 2 Series coupe, the latest Gran Coupé is 1 Series based, this time putting it on the same transverse-engined platform shared with the larger Minis. The front-wheel-drive layout has given the 1 Series hatchback some awkward proportions, and in 2 Series Gran Coupé form you now get a rear end like that of BMW’s X4 and X6 into the bargain, which is a

Above: Rear design echoes that of BMW’s X4 and X6 SUVs; stiffer body than previous 2 Series helps put the ride quality over uneven surfaces up with the best in class

B M W M 2 3 5 i x D R I V E G RA N CO U P É

Below and left: Cabin build quality is an improvement and the driving position spot-on, but the digital dials are unintuitive to read

bit like receiving hate mail and then finding out you have to cover unpaid postage.

The cabin’s a much better effort. You don’t get the theatre of a Mercedes-Benz CLA, but the materials and construction feel superior.

Where the Mercedes creaks and rattles, the BMW remains silent, and there’s just a hint of the driver-focused BMW cabins of old, with the centre console and its attendant screen

– operated, as ever, by a rotary control on the centre console – angled subtly towards you.

The driving position is spot-on too, though I’m less convinced by the digital instruments ahead, which are a bit too reminiscent of something from a 1990s video game, and make the head-up display vital for imparting information at a glance.

Power is down on the outgoing six-cylinder, rear-wheel-drive models, but 302bhp from a 2-litre turbocharged four is still nothing to be sniffed at. Peak torque of 450Nm sounds healthy too, and is available from 1750rpm to 4500rpm, at which point the engine is spinning up towards its peak power output at 50006250rpm.

There’s just the one gearbox – an eightspeed torque-converter auto by Aisin – and power is sent to all four wheels through BMW’s xDrive all-wheel-drive set-up. It’s a front-biased system, but there’s a Torsen limited-slip diff at the front axle, ARB anti-slip

technology cribbed from the electric i3, and electronics that can quickly shuffle half the power rearwards when required. Other concessions to the M badging are quicker steering than conventional Gran Coupés, thicker anti-roll bars, and the same 10mm lower suspension available on M Sport models, though BMW says the Gran Coupé’s set-up is slightly softer than that of the 1 Series hatch.

There’s a lot to like about the M235i Gran Coupé on the road. Having recently driven an older, rear-drive M140i, the refinement benefits of the new car’s stiffer structure are instantly noticeable, and while I never had a particular problem with the old 2 Series’ cabin, and certainly prefer its traditional instruments, it’s hard not to imagine more casual buyers appreciating the extra space, higher quality and slick new tech. The more claustrophobic rear quarters might be a turnoff for family folks, but they’ll get a bigger boot as compensation.

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Like the hatchback, the Gran Coupé also rides uneven asphalt better than just about anything else in this class. It doesn’t exactly glide like a 7 Series, but it’s composed and quiet, with similarly little noise rustling around the door mirrors or emanating from the engine bay.

This last point is a little contentious though, because while mechanical refinement is appreciated, it also betrays this engine’s lack of character. Switch to one of the sportier drive modes and knock the gear selector over to manual and the M235i will clip along at a decent pace. Throttle response is good and the gearchanges satisfyingly brisk, but there’s no point at which the engine really comes alive; no exciting build-up of torque, no rampant top end, nor – piped-in parps aside – any aural reward for hanging on to revs. BMW uses the term ‘Efficient Dynamics’ as a catch-all for mixing parsimony and pleasure, but with this

The steering makes the next car you climb into feel strangely sluggish 26

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Above: Transverse four-cylinder makes 302bhp and feels potent, but is lacking in the sparkle department

drivetrain there’s a little too much efficiency and not enough dynamism.

The chassis is a better effort. Without driving Gran Coupé and hatch side-by-side it’s difficult to validate BMW’s claims of a softer set-up, but the M235i feels broadly as capable as the M135i does – with the same caveats.

It steers cleanly and quickly, with the kind of sharp off-centre response that takes a little time to get used to but makes the next car you climb into feel strangely sluggish. It’s backed up by strong brakes and useful front-end grip too, so what you lose in the old rear-drive cars’ natural balance you more than make up for with an ability to really lean on the front end.

You can drive it much like a traditional

hot hatch, using the quick steering and a lift of the throttle to hook it into a turn, and then squeeze the throttle to bring it straight again – and with the clever all-wheel-drive system, there’s no real understeer to deal with once you’re back on the power, though you can sometimes catch it napping and find yourself with a tug of front-drive torque-steer.

Unfortunately, just like the engine, the process is more efficient than it is fun, with little feedback to put you in tune with what’s clearly an agile chassis. We would rather sacrifice some of the BMW’s quality for the greater driver engagement, rowdier power plant and sharper styling of a Mercedes-AMG CLA35.

Now before I forget, could someone ready a fleet of E39 Tourings for the extraction, while I keep Adrian van Hooydonk busy with questions about expressive design and the Chinese market? L Antony Ingram

BMW M235i xDRIVE GRAN COUPÉ Engine In-line 4-cyl, 1998cc, turbo Power 302bhp @ 5000-6250rpm Torque 450Nm @ 1750-4500rpm Weight 1570kg (195bhp/ton) 0-100kmph 4.8sec Top speed 250kmph Price `45 lakh (estimated)

+ Strong performance, able chassis, quality cabin - Not that exciting to drive; come back Bangle, all is forgiven

evo rating ;;;BB

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BIJOY KUMAR Y

Bijoy contemplates his dependence on technology in the lockdown

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T HAS BEEN 53 MINUTES SINCE MY WIFE took my phone to get the screen changed. And I have reached out for my phone over twenty times only to realise that it has gone for repairs. As the clock moves on, I am getting anxious, worried and mad at the same time. Am I missing a very important office mail that wants me to do a dance sequence and send it back so that some busy brand manager can weave it into 40 other dance sequences? Did someone actually like the photograph I posted on Instagram? What is the terrible memory that Facebook puked back onto the screen so that I can share it again – since I have only a dance sequence to share. Did the creep who negates everything that I stand for, like smoking, drinking and riding fast, sneak in a post supporting spirituality in my beloved fourth grade Whatsapp group? This story is just 154 words old and I have looked for the solace of my phone another ten times. My hands are itching for it, my mind is going through withdrawal symptoms, my muscle memory is making my fingertips swipe the computer screen I am staring into. I wanted to

call my wife who drove out braving the lockdown – not because I was missing her, but I was missing my phone. But then I couldn’t, since my phone was with her.

It has been well over an hour since I checked how much more the Sensex has fallen and how much closer to bankrupt I have become.

Oh no, I forgot to PM good morning to my friend in Australia and it is already noon here. Facebook reminded me that sixteen people I know have their birthdays today and all sixteen will be waiting with bated breath and uncut cakes till they hear from me. And guess what, I forgot to congratulate my friend’s neighbour’s son who croaked a John Lennon song in Korean – my friend must think I am so inconsiderate. My batchmate who is an officer in the Navy was supposed to run a half marathon inside his house and all my other fauji friends would have cheered him! Should not forget to send a ‘you continue to be my inspiration’ message as soon as I get my phone back. Oh my god, my boss was supposed to do some lockdown cooking today and I haven’t sent a ‘you are a pro, you will rock it’ message which should make him pretty happy before he gets on with my online appraisal! L

My hands are itching for it, my mind is going through withdrawal symptoms

@bky911

Bijoy Kumar is the founding editor of BS Motoring magazine and now heads Mahindra Adventure

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RICHARD MEADEN

Lockdown reminds us how good it feels to get in a car – real or otherwise

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S I WRITE THIS WE’RE WELL INTO THE sixth (or is it the seventh?) week of UK lockdown.

There’s a faint glimmer of hope that by the time you read this we will have begun to regain a little of our old routines and freedoms, but for now life remains in a weird kind of stasis.

I’m thankful the virus has so far failed to affect anyone close to me and hope beyond hope this remains the case. Likewise, not having a pack of increasingly fractious kids to home school would seem an increasing blessing. Work is problematic insomuch as I’d be hardpushed to describe driving a supercar to Wales as essential travel.

Do I miss driving? Hell. Yes. Not just the silly work-related stuff either. If there’s an upside to being rationed to essential journeys it’s that I’ve been reminded how nice it is to just get in a car (any car), get out into the world and take control of your destiny. Even if it’s just for a few blissful miles.

As lockdown continues I think we’re all slowly coming to the realisation that not only will the exit be gradual, but that any re-emergence of the virus will probably lead to a return to some degree of confinement. It’s this open-ended uncertainty I find hardest to deal with, because it denies us the pleasure and distraction of making future plans or taking spontaneous trips out. Given all this, it’s hardly any wonder that beyond our own four walls strange things appear to be happening in the wider car community. I know social media means we have a tendency to live inside our own little bubbles, but from what I can tell, lockdown has proved to be a boom time for retailers of racing simulators, Tamiya R/C models and podcast recording equipment.

Of these I’ve never had the patience to build an R/C car, let alone wait for the batteries to recharge. As for podcasts, despite having more available time than I’ve ever had in my adult life I seem to have gone cold on lockdown listening, largely because I always settled into them on long drives. Still, at least this means there’ll be plenty to catch up with when we do get back in our cars.

What I have found myself drawn towards is online racing. Despite being an avid user of Gran Turismo throughout the late-’90s and noughties, as yet I haven’t returned to it as I’ve been in the very fortunate position of being able to gorge myself on driving real road and race cars. Denied the chance to do any meaningful road

miles, though, and with the increasing likelihood of all racing being cancelled this season, I’m really beginning to itch. Clearly I’m not alone. The rise and rise of e-sports was happening before Covid, but when everyone is shut indoors and all motorsport is on hold, it’s no wonder people start reaching for a virtual fix.

Current Formula 1 drivers can be found competing in the official F1 Virtual Grand Prix races, which are standing in for every postponed Grand Prix. They’re just for fun, and admittedly not everyone is taking part – I would imagine Kimi is spending lockdown playing the Withnail and I drinking game – but it exposes the majority of the present-day F1 grid as active gamers.

Part of me finds this a bit sad. Not least because I’m from a generation for whom racing heroes were untouchable, god-like characters to be placed on pedestals, not found lurking in online gaming lounges racing strangers with Vitamin D deficiencies and vaguely sinister gamertags. But part of me also acknowledges there’s something extraordinary about going wheel-to-wheel with Max Verstappen. I don’t yet have a home sim or gaming rig (hint, hint) so can’t claim to be an active participant in the e-sports scene.

However, I have been following professional and retired former pros ‘racing’ one another in ‘Legends Trophy’ invitation grids hosted by The Race as part of its All-Star Esports Battle series.

I have to say it was an entirely authentic spectacle. That’s to say it looked like a lot more fun to be racing rather than just watching. But there’s considerable novelty value in seeing famous names racing in DFV-powered F1 cars. Especially when you know from their social media feeds that most are actually deadly serious and some have just spent a bomb on a new home sim.

Highlights for me were seeing the ever-contrary Jacques Villeneuve race to an impressive sixth-place finish using nothing fancier than an Xbox hand controller and a laptop. Likewise Emanuele Pirro storming to a reverse-grid victory using an ancient gaming wheel and a TV balanced on a shoebox.

Whether the vaguely chaotic spectacle of revered F1, IndyCar, Le Mans and touring car legends shamelessly firing one another off, settling old scores and discovering they still can’t beat Jenson Button survives beyond lockdown remains to be seen. For now, though, it’s a bit of light relief and perhaps a pointer to how we engage with fast driving for the foreseeable future. L

Some famous names are deadly serious about e-sports and have spent a bomb on a new home sim

@DickieMeaden

Richard is a contributing editor to evo and one of the magazine’s founding team

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RICHARD PORTER

Unforgettable motoring moments, but what’s the common theme?

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HE DAY I PASSED MY DRIVING TEST. MY dad’s Peugeot 405, driving back alone from a mate’s house after dark. Not fast, not aggressive, just focusing on being smooth, being precise, feeling the wheels rolling beneath me and relishing the new thrill of being in charge of a car with no one along for the ride. Stereo down low, headlights picking out the trees and hedges that lined the lanes on the run down into the top end of town, feeling that I’d got what I always wanted.

Picking up my first car. About to make a life-changing move of job and home. I’d plundered my savings and bought a Ford Ka because all the mags said it was the best handling small car.

Even managed to find one without power steering, all because John Simister in Car magazine said it had better feel. He didn’t mention that PAS Kas got shorter transmission gearing so they felt more responsive to match the quicker powered rack, but non-PAS Kas were longer striding on the motorway and had a higher top speed. I couldn’t possibly say how often I verified that.

Terrorising the M6 in momentumconserving attempts to melt the pushrods were to come. The day I picked it up was different. A slower drive at first, revelling in the delight of knowing this belonged to me.

Spaghetti hoops on toast for dinner and a wilting credit card in my wallet for months to come, but this funny, kettle-shaped hunk of metal was bought and paid for. It was mine.

Taking the long way home from the dealer to the family home I’d soon move out of. Finding some favourite lanes, leaning on the skinny tyres a little harder, filled with a new-found sense of freedom that was simultaneously scary and exciting and seemed to fill my chest with something lighter than air. Then realising in the nick of time that the Ka didn’t have a low fuel light and the needle was now threatening to pop off the stop. That tenner for juice was one I’d been keeping for the pub later, but turning it into petrol for my very own car was well, well worth it just to keep that first drive going.

As a junior researcher for the BBC, driving out to meet the film crew for a night shoot just outside Los Angeles in some terrible borrowed pickup, one of those ones with a weird-sized engine, 4.1 litres or something, that managed to make a lot

of nasty V6 noises and about 110 horsepower. And neither of these things mattering a jot as I swooped down the Pacific Coast Highway in the early evening sun just as one of my favourite ever songs came on the radio.

Acting as one-man support crew for some mates doing a 24hour charity walk across the Brecon Beacons. Blagged Land Rover Defender 110 for the job, loaded with plasters, energy bars and a little stove to make sure every checkpoint intercept brought fresh flasks of tea.

Made the Saturday evening checkpoint, fuelled up my brave boys and waved them off into a warm Welsh evening. We wouldn’t meet again until 1am. Plenty of time to kill. Loaded up the Land Rover and set off down the mountains. Windows dropped, stereo up, a gorgeous May sunset bathing the grey rock in amber, the Defender flowing down those wonderful roads in the bouncy, jaunty way that they do, swooping down into Brecon where I parked up to buy some fish & chips that I ate off the bonnet as the lovable old bus ticked and clinked in the evening sunshine.

On the way to evo Car of the Year 2014.

Had taken our Merc CLS shooting brake. My first ‘sensible’ car, indicative of the first-born son I’d kissed softly goodbye before heading to Scotland. Off the trunk route and onto the glorious roads across the Borders just as the sun cracked through the cloud, switching on a warm fuzzy filter across the voluptuous countryside. Leaning on the Merc as best you can in a soft and hefty wafter with a narrow-rev-band diesel engine.

As the auto headlights decided it was officially dusk I got some unexpected company. Old boy in a last-shape 7 Series, and by crikey, he wasn’t hanging around. For the next half hour it’s just the two of us, firmly making progress in a soft-suspension convoy, maintaining sensible distances, keeping things brisk but not silly, rigorously observing lower limits through villages, but taking the chance when we could to drill a couple of holes through the inky evening. Eventually he peeled off, but not before giving a double flash of the hazards just to acknowledge that, despite our lardy rides, we’d had a wonderful giggle out here.

It’s funny, isn’t it, how the most memorable drives are rarely just about the car. L

Turning that tenner for the pub into petrol for my very own car was well, well worth it just to keep that first drive going

@sniffpetrol

Richard is evo’s longest-serving columnist, and an astronaut, stuntman and liar

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Special bits from the incredible conversations we have with our fans on social media

Empty roads

bky911 Beautiful cover!

Aditya Yeddanapally Awesome cover.

rajeshnairpsych Nice line on the cover.

T. Anand Mahesh Fantastic issue.

theabhikulkarni This is a kick-ass cover.

Pratap Jayaram Superb cover.

dhanvith_raj Brilliant cover! Will be memorable.

86_shrikant Firstly, damn!!! great cover.. and kudos to the person behind it. phat_biker One of the best auto mag India has got. Kudos to you and the team! mandeep_s_arora Such a fresh take and loved reading every bit of it. Loved the thought process that went into making this cover work.

Dreaming of great roads to drive on once lockdown lifts WIN! COOL MERCEDES -BENZ MERCHANDISE IN OUR CONTEST MAY ’20 LOCKDOWN SPECIAL DIGITAL M AGAZI NE

The lockdown special issue that we created received appreciation from all quarters and most importantly it was very well received by our enthusiastic readers who applauded the effort all over social media.

theabhikulkarni This is such a thoughtful cover. mohapatradidul Yes truly depicts the current situation of the environment. Those lonely roads are so tempting. casparnova101 This condition of roads is a dream but has been made a nightmare.

iam_rt Intriguing to read the thought process that goes behind the scenes. sadiqabdulkhayoom I guess the whole idea behind @ evoindia is being radical right, taking a more dynamic and distinct route than others. sadiqabdulkhayoom Absolutely love it.

RAJARSHI@RBarui Thanks to @evoIndia @SirishChandran for making this happen. Finally, I have something to control my adrenaline rush. #StayAtHomeAndStaySafe.

Swaroop Kaimal Your covers were always super cool.

Can easily recollect your famous love for Ferraris, captions featuring son and dad etc. [ Son of Thunder, Who’s Your Daddy, and Like Father Like Son — which I think got repeated twice. Or was it thrice?]. Keep up the thrills, guys. Cheers.

Ananth Kamath@AnanthK88 Daily online stuff can never beat a well put together monthly magazine. Besides the main content, there is joy in going through the various familiar sections and the design/ layout. @nik9in Fitting cover of our emptiness. Better be the last no-car mag cover ever! nikhil bhagwat Awesome one Sirish.. here’s to open roads, soon.

John Sarkar Nice cover.

Bobo Dutta Love this. Awesome.

Sudhakaran No.1 automobile mag. Really supper.

Kurt Morris Flatten the curve EVO style.

evo.editorial@gtopublishing.com

evoIndia

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M E R C E D ES -A M G C 6 3 CO U P E

R I O T WO R D S b y S I R I S H C H A N D R A N

P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

M AC H I N E Celebrating the lifting of the lockdown with the hooligan that is the C 63 AMG Coupe

IGHT WEEKS! IT’S EIGHT WEEKS SINCE I tested a new car. Drove a fast car. Drove… not to the shops or the office… but drove to put a smile on my face. It’s eight weeks since the lockdown kicked in and we’ve been forced to live like social media influencers, abusing the #stayhome #staysafe hashtags, as this dastardly virus turns our lives upside down. It’s eight weeks since I experienced The Thrill of Driving. And what better car to get back to work with than an AMG, this particular example being one of my absolute favourites.

Which begs the question, if it’s so familiar why is it on the cover of this magazine?

The C 63 isn’t new to India. Neither is the AMG Coupe new to India. But this particular car, the C 63 AMG Coupe is new. Up until now we had the C 63 in its very practical fourdoor guise. And early last year we got the AMG Coupe in the C 43 spec with all-wheel drive to save you from your lack of talent and a V6 motor to not probe the outer limits of your talent.

Obviously there was demand for something less practical and more demanding to play the hooligan with and that’s what we have here, the C 63 AMG Coupe.

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Which prompts the second important question. Will we miss the S on the boot lid? We need empty roads, plenty of corners and my bottle of brave pills to find out.

WELCOME BACK TO THE TEMPLE RUN. UNTIL OTHER media houses discovered it — and pissed off the locals who then kicked everybody out — we used to get our kicks on this closedoff hill climb. Discovered eight years ago, incidentally when I was driving back from Mercedes-Benz after introducing this magazine prior to its launch, it is a dozen corners that wriggle their way up the hill to a solitary temple at the top. It’s a mix of tight and wide hairpins, short straights, some esses and kinks, and a drop that gets steeper as we go higher. No villages, no huts, no tea shops, no side roads, nothing to interrupt your flow.

And with all places of worship shut right now, there’s nobody to come and ask us the hundred questions every uncle thinks is his God-given right to spit out.

But first, stealth mode. I’m up at 4am, catch up with the (masked) crew at 5 and head out for the Mercedes-Benz factory in two cars (social distancing!). In normal circumstances I’d be euphoric at the lack of traffic but eight weeks under lockdown can put a dramatic twist to your perspective. Now, you want the

M E R C E D ES -A M G C 6 3 CO U P E

I’M WEARING MY EXTRA LARGE B O X E R S T O L E AV E R O O M FOR THE AFTER EFFECTS OF T H E B R AV E P I L L S I ’ V E B E E N POPPING ALL MORNING

Top: AMG touches abound including the IWC clock, meaty flatbottom steering wheel and lashings of carbonfibre. Left: Seats are super-supportive but it’s best to try it on for size before buying, in case it is too snug

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M E RC E D ES -A M G C 6 3 CO U P E

AN AMG ISN’T A C U D D LY T O Y AND THE C63 COUPE LOOKS EVE RY IN CH THE IRONPUMPING U N D E R TA K E R

wheels of the economy to start turning. You want more people up and about, not a game of cricket being played in the Bus Rapid Transit lane. We dispense with the drive from Pune to the industrial hub of Chakan in less than half an hour, and I’m not even attempting a 40th anniversary remake of Rendezvous (doesn’t ring a bell? Check it out on YouTube). Waiting at the factory gates is a sanitised C 63 AMG Coupe, and that’s as close as we will get to the factory what with all the Covid-19 precautions being vigorously implemented. No lunch at the canteen this time.

Under the soft morning light the AMG looks fantastic. The C 63 Coupe now sheds two doors and the S badge. The latter addresses the dim wits of the casual observer who used to dismiss the 4-door C 63 as a surprisingly noisy C-Class. Up front is the snarly Panamericana grille from the AMG GT that, to some eyes, is too much while to my eye is appropriately threatening.

An AMG isn’t a cuddly toy and the C 63 Coupe looks every inch the iron-pumping undertaker. Just look at the bonnet bulges!

The wheelarches are heavily blistered, especially evident at the rear where they are flamboyantly flared to accommodate the Coupe’s widened track (50mm more than the saloon).

The swoopy roof-line received its fair share of praise on the C 43 AMG Coupe and it looks even better when married to the pumped up wheelarches and then festooned with all the optional carbon bits including that boot spoiler. And finally the wheels. 18-inchers are standard, this car is upsized to the max and even gets the wheel hub cover that does a great impression of a centre-lock nut. The 19s up front are shod with 255/35 rubber while the gigantic 20s on the rear get super-wide and super-low 285/30 rubber. This is seriously low profile and it raises two troubling questions. One: will it last on Indian roads?

Two: the C 63 S AMG rode hard as nails, will my tooth fillings shake loose at the end of the day? And oh, the most important question, will deleting the S badge take away its mojo?

Top: Optionally, you can spec the C 63 Coupe with 19-inch fronts and 20-inch rears. Facing page: No question of casual observers mistaking the AMG Coupe for a regular C-Class

Less of a hooligan?

Deleting the S badge means the C 63 AMG Coupe loses 34bhp to now put out 476bhp of power. Torque is down 50Nm to 650Nm. The 0-100kmph time goes up by a tenth of a second to 4 seconds.

And the roads at Temple Run are rather shabby. It’s bloody amazing that we make roads and only return ten years later to effect repairs or maintenance. Anyway, on the plus side we have this private road all to ourselves, and don’t have to deal with the uncles who want to know who you are, what you’re doing, who gave you permission, even the size of your underwear.

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M E RC E D ES -A M G C 6 3 CO U P E

I’m wearing my extra large boxers to leave room for the after effects of the brave pills I’ve been popping all morning. There is, after all, no other way to drive the C 63 than with everything off. In fact, there is no other reason to buy a C 63 if you don’t want to switch everything off and abuse the brave pills.

Now along with the 34 horses, the C 63 AMG also loses Race Mode, launch control and dynamic engine mounts. But with this facelift (effect two years ago), it does not lose the electronically actuated limited slip rear differential. In the past it got a mechanically actuated LSD that reacted to inputs and situations, making the transition from grip to slip rather sudden. The electronic diff is almost predictive, and makes the switch from open to closed quicker, thus making it easier to apply the necessary steering correction to catch the slide. The LSD is crucial in making the C 63 a riot machine, sending power to both the rear tyres and allowing them to keeping spinning and sliding. In contrast, an open differential would feed more power to the tyre with less grip thus leading to the other tyre regaining traction and killing the slide.

That’s the theory. In practice, well, it all works like a bomb.

When you have 476bhp, 34bhp makes no difference whatsoever.

Not once did I feel the C 63 lacking in power compared to what I remember of the C 63 S AMG. And the Coupe slides like a beauty. Let’s be honest, I did spin it a couple of times as my right foot struggled to wake up from the eight weeks lock down, but once I figured out that full gas only resulted in a spin (and pussyfooting made it corner like on rails), I began playing with the throttle. Kick the tail out in second, short shift to third, feed the torque — not too much, not too little — and ride the wave to keep the rear spinning, sliding, and oversteering like a demon.

With its tyres alight, that’s the only way to drive the C 63. And I’m happy to report there is no toning down, no diminishing, no dilution of the core strength of the C 63. Its ability to play the hooligan.

Below, left to right: Three layouts available for the digital cockpit; this one is unique to AMG; drive mode controllers on the steering wheel are new; handbuilt M177 AMG motor; you have race tracks mapped out, but none from India

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MERCEDES-AMG C 63 COUPE Engine V8, 3982cc, twin-turbo petrol Power 476bhp @ 5500-6250rpm Torque 650Nm @ 1750-4500rpm Weight NA 0-100kmph 4.0sec (claimed) Top speed 250kmph (claimed) Price `1.39 crore (ex-showroom, India)

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M E RC E D ES -A M G C 6 3 CO U P E

CLICK TO WATCH

THE YOUTUBE VIDEO

THE WIDE R REAR TRACK INCLUDE S A D D I T I O N A L B R A C I N G T H AT I M P R O V E S STEERING RESPONSE 42

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All the talk of drifting and sliding might lull you into thinking the C 63 cannot handle all its power. That’s far from the truth.

Considering this is only rear-wheel drive, the C 63 actually does deliver more grip and more composed handling than you’d think possible. You really have to be aggressive with the throttle to kick the tail out, otherwise in all other situations the C 63 handles tenaciously with very little body movement and next to no roll.

In fact, the Coupe is a (slightly) better handler than the 4-door. The wider rear track of the Coupe includes additional strengthening that makes this 2-door heavier than the 4-door (weird as it might sound) but that bracing improves steering response, giving you the confidence to lean on the outside tyres that much harder.

Of course in Sport+ mode it offers next to no suspension compliance either. Already a stiff car, the 19/20 wheel combo with low-pro tyres make the C 63 hard. Very hard. Sport+ is

good only for a smooth race track like the BIC. For the MMRT and every other road, Comfort is the best, adding much-needed compliance to deal with the bumps that you hit at speed when motoring along enthusiastically. Comfort, though, should be labelled Just About Adequate. The C 63 is a hooligan and that extends to its ride quality. That said, I must clarify that we had no trouble with the tyres despite driving it very enthusiastically during the test and over a mix of roads.

I must mention the gearbox, something that has improved over the C 63 S. Where earlier it would hesitate a fraction, now the revised mapping delivers crisp, sharp, immediate shifts, especially going down the gears. And on the way up, as the V8 rushes headlong to its 7000rpm redline, the change-up lights on the 12.3-inch digital cockpit flash furiously, a strobe effect that makes you drive even more like a hooligan.

Elsewhere on the inside, you get massively bolstered AMG seats. The IWC clock. Carbon trimming everywhere. A higher

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resolution 10.5-inch infotainment that finally gets Apple CarPlay but still isn’t a touchscreen. And that ferociously fat steering wheel that has gorgeous metal trimmings and inserts mated to horribly plasticky protrusions on the steering wheel.

This is AMG’s version of Ferrari’s Manettino. The protrusion on the right is to toggle from Slippery all the way to Sport+ while punching the button takes you to your pre-configured Individual mode. The two buttons on the left let you activate the sport exhaust, engage manual mode on the gearbox, and get you access to that new AMG Dynamic mode. This is an electronic safety net that’s similar to Ferrari’s Side Slip Control in that it allows you a certain degree of leeway, or slip, before intervening when a crash is imminent. Three modes are on offer, Basic, Pro and Advanced and that makes the C 63 progressively more frisky, playful and unhinged (without the worry of biting you in the arse). And much like how Ferrari’s system works in the background, so too does AMG’s, flattering the driver and making him look and feel far better than s/he is in reality.

There is a fourth mode, Master, in the AMG Dynamics that then turns the right knob on the steering wheel into a 9-stage traction control knob. Similar to the big yellow knob on the centre console of the AMG GT R, you can adjust the level of traction control. This mode lets you drift with a measure of safety provided by the electronic net, however this mode is only available on the C 63 S. Do I miss the C 63 S? Not really because the AMG motor remains utterly, intoxicatingly EPIC. Now when this hot-vee twin-turbo V8 replaced the 6.2-litre naturally aspirated V8 in the earlier C 63, we all cried blue bloody murder. Now that there is talk of the next C 63 downsizing to four cylinders, we’re again crying blue bloody murder and — rightfully — placing this M177 motor on a high pedestal. It’s a beauty. There’s a wave of forced induction power and torque flinging you towards the horizon at a furious pace. And it sounds the part. Potent.

Explosive. A wall of thunder.

It gets the juices flowing after eight weeks under lockdown.

And it makes you feel alive. L

A M G DY N A M I C MODE IS SIMILAR TO FERRARI’S SIDE SLIP CONTROL

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S P EC S PI EC A L I AF EL AT F EUAT R EU:RSEKO : SDA KO DA RA PKIADRO TSQI

HREE SKODAS ARE MAKING headlines. Along with the Rapid there's the Superb and this, the all-new Skoda Karoq. This follows in the wake of the excellent reaction to the Kodiaq while offering a more compact package. The Karoq has styling that draws plenty from the Kodiaq but manages to look distinct in its own right.

It has been launched in India at `24.99 lakh ex-showroom.

In terms of the way it looks, there is a lot to like on the Karoq. The face is familiar, but there are small tweaks to the LED headlamps, LED fog lamps and grille to give it its own identity. The 17-inch wheels give it a nice stance. It looks like an expensive car and that story continues on the inside.

Virtual Cockpit makes an appearance here along with a 12-way adjustable driver’s seat, automatic wipers, a tyre pressure monitoring system, fatigue alert system and all the connectivity you want from the 8-inch Amundsen infotainment system. The interiors are dual tone and there’s a panoramic sunroof — both of which do well to improve the sense of space in the cabin. Ist is extremely practical too and gets a large boot that can be expanded by folding down the rear seats by

P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

POWER MOVE Skoda’s Karoq brings familiar European luxury and build quality in a compact package

pulling two levers. But features and practicality aside, the Karoq feels like a solid, well-built European car. The materials used in the cabin and the way they are put together make it feel like it's from a segment above.

The Karoq comes packing a 1.5-litre TSI engine under the hood. This engine is punchy, making 148bhp and 250Nm, mated to a 7-speed DSG gearbox and powers the front wheels. It highlights Skoda’s commitment to punchy but refined engines that are low on emissions as well.

Safety is a big priority with nine airbags including a knee airbag for the driver. It gets a suite of electronic aids including ABS, EBD, ESC, brake-assist, traction control and an electronic differential lock. The Karoq comes in one variant so there’s no scanning through brochures to spot the differences — and it is a very well kitted out variant at that. L www.

Top: The Karoq gets an imposing face.

Above: 7-speed DSG enhances the driving experience

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P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

POWER TO THE PEOPLE Turbo-petrol cars were always an indulgence, demanding enthusiasts stretch their budgets to experience The Thrill of Driving. No longer

S P EC I A L F E AT U R E : S KO DA RA P I D TS I

Here’s the pricing of the Skoda Rapid Rider: `7,49,000 Ambition: `9,99,000 Onyx: `10,19,000 Style: `11,49,000 Monte Carlo: `11,79,000

SEVEN AND A HALF LAKH RUPEES. THAT was the headline announcement at Skoda India’s first ever virtual press conference. If these were normal circumstances there would have been a collective gasp, even a round of applause, when Zac Hollis, director of Skoda Auto India, announced the Rapid TSI’s starting price. As things stand, that gasp went off in the living rooms of the automotive media, and enthusiasts across the country who were tuned in to Skoda India’s live feed. Seven and a half lakh rupees makes the Rapid TSI The Most Affordable direct-injection turbo-petrol car you can buy today — and this, remember, is a 4.4 metre long sedan with a spacious rear seat and a full 460-litre boot, not a compact sedan and most definitely not a hatchback with a back seat fit only for children. It in fact undercuts its direct rivals by `80,000 to `2,40,000 and makes a great case for somebody wanting to upgrade from a hatchback to a sedan without breaking the bank.

The `7.49 lakh variant of the Skoda Rapid TSI is the Rider edition — a model than goes back to the very start of their innings in India. If you look back, Skoda was the first manufacturer to introduce a turbo-petrol engine in India with the Octavia RS, and catering to demand from enthusiasts, the 1.8 motor was then offered in the regular Octavia including the Rider edition. The latter’s claim to fame, being The Most Affordable turbo-petrol car you could buy and it was a huge hit with enthusiasts.

And now the Rapid Rider follows in the same vein.

The 1.0 TSI engine in the Rapid is a brand-new engine for India and will be heavily localised ensuring very affordable parts and will also be entered into motorsport events to prove both its performance and reliability. Displacing 999cc from three cylinders, the turbocharged and direct-injection motor offers a 5 per cent jump in power over the old 1.6 naturally-aspirated unit to deliver 108.5bhp. Torque, a major plus point with all turbo engines, jumps up by a huge 14 per cent to 175Nm. And this doesn’t come at the cost of economy

POWER IS UP BY 5% , TORQUE BY 14% & EFFICIENCY BY 22% with fuel efficiency jumping up by a whopping 22 per cent to a claimed 18.97kmpl.

On the styling front, the Rapid remains familiarly good-looking with crisp, elegant and timeless lines accentuated by the strong colours. Keeping pricing in mind, the Rider edition gets halogen headlamps, no fog lamps or chrome garnishes, 15-inch steel wheels and a 2-DIN stereo but there’s no compromise on safety with all variants getting 2 airbags while comfort is guaranteed with the automatic climate control. Step up to the Style variant and you get 4 airbags as standard along with 16-inch alloy wheels, LED daytime running lamps, chrome embellishments on the inside and outside and an 8-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Speaking of colours, the Onyx edition gets a striking Lapiz Blue shade that contrasts handsomely with blacked out alloys, wing mirrors and side mouldings while the Monte Carlo gets a flashy shade of red, appropriately named Flash Red. Both these variants get an all-black dash mated to dual-tone interiors with leatherette seats and a flat-bottom multifunction SuperSport steering wheel to accentuate the sporty credentials of the Rapid TSI. All the show is backed by go!

Not only is the Rapid priced very attractively, for just `29,999 you can upgrade to the Skoda 4-Year Service Care program that includes 4 years of warranty, roadside assistance and an optional maintenance package. And for ultimate peace of mind there’s the 6-year Skoda Shield Plus that incorporates motor insurance, 24x7 roadside assistance and an extended warranty. This is all in addition to the Skoda App that we have spoken about in the past where you can not only book the car in for a service but also check out parts and service prices to ensure a transparent aftersales experience. Which means you can now enjoy a very rapid, err, Rapid with complete peace of mind and significant savings in your pocket.

The Rider represents a great VFM package. You get a proper sedan, turbo-petrol engine, engaging dynamics and solid safety — all at a price undercutting most hatchbacks and compact sedans. Our review is coming up next month, do not miss it! L Left: Style edition in the Toffee Brown shade; gets 16-inch ‘Clubber’ alloy wheels. Facing page, clockwise from top: 1.0 TSI engine makes the Rapid rather rapid; dual tone interiors on the Style; 6-year Skoda Shield Plus extended warranty

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H Y U N DA I C R ETA v s K I A S E LTO S

WO R D S b y S I R I S H C H A N D R A N P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

IT’S ALL IN

T H E FA M I LY How do you pick a winner between two almost identical cars? Our job is getting harder and harder!

COMPARISON TESTS USED TO BE SIMPLE. YOU had seven clear buckets to rate the cars on. Styling, interiors, build quality, powertrain, comfort, dynamics and of course price — add up the points, and you had a winner. And then came the Hyundai Motor Group to make our lives difficult.

What you are looking at are two identical cars. And it’s a testament to the smarts of the engineers and planners at the aforementioned Group that, while identical, they look as different as apples from oranges! How can two cars that evoke such markedly different reactions to their styling look, feel and drive the same? Therein lies the rub.

A platform that has no name I called the engineers. I, obviously, Googled it. I called the communication guys. And I got no answer. No, wait. I did get an answer. “It has got no name.”

Unlike the VW Group who make a solid song and dance about their platforms — who hasn’t heard of MQB? — the Hyundai Motor Group doesn’t talk platform sharing. In fact they make every effort to not mention the sharing of anything, either within brands or among brands. There is nothing wrong with that, it’s just their strategy, but what I can tell you is that their platforms, their architectures, are

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Top: Creta cabin is more conventional with the hooded instrument binnacle. Above: Seltos gets a rectangular dash that integrates the touchscreen. Both get flat-bottom ’wheels

H Y U N DA I C R E TA vs K I A S E LTOS

THE NEW C R E TA TIGHTENS EVE RY THIN G U P. I T R I D E S WITH A EUROPEAN FIRMNESS

constantly evolving. I’ll use Hyundai here as an example because they go back 20 years in India. Everybody remembers what early Accents and Vernas were like but, starting with the i20, and really moving ahead with the first Creta, Hyundai turned things around remarkably.

Every single new car got better to drive, and I don’t mean 5 or 10 per cent — the differences were night and day. And so it is with the new Creta. Where the earlier Creta’s PBunderpinnings had more in common with the Elite i20 this new Creta’s third generation K2 architecture is shared with the Verna, Elantra… and of course, the Seltos!

To drive then this new Creta is nothing like the old Creta.

For its time, the Creta was a big jump for the segment — lighter, nimbler, easier to drive and more sophisticated than rivals, but it was still soft and a bit squishy. The new Creta tightens everything up. It rides with a European firmness. There is no pitch or float at the nose and no sogginess on the rear axle. Over bad patches of road the Creta rides almost flat. It feels a bit firm but with passengers not getting thrown around, they’re more comfortable. At slower speeds in the city, it has a firmer edge than before but it is never uncomfortable. And it is round corners that the biggest differences are evident with significantly more cornering grip, less body roll (it isn’t eliminated altogether) and noticeably less tyre squeal and understeer.

You even have more steering feel though it still falls under the lifeless category of electric power steering.

Above: Unique to the Creta are the cushions on the rear headrest and the paddleshifters for the DCT gearbox

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H Y U N DA I C R E TA v K I A S E LTOS

And all of this is absolutely no different to the Kia Seltos.

The Seltos set the benchmark for ride and handling in this segment and the Creta matches it. It drives exactly the same — planted, stable, confident. It corners the same — with authority and an element of fun. It feels the same — sophisticated and like good money has been spent on engineering the body shell. The only real difference between the Seltos and Creta (at least on the cars we have here on test) is the former gets Goodyear tyres while the latter has Nexen rubber. And that makes the Creta understeer and squeal its tyres earlier than the Seltos. Moral of the story? Check with your dealer what tyres your mid-size SUV will be delivered with.

B E AUT Y IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER AND I’LL L E AV E I T AT T H AT

Below: Both the Creta and Seltos (middle) get the drive mode selector knob. Left top: Creta dials and (below) Seltos dials. Bottom left: Creta has the large panoramic sunroof while (right) Seltos has a regular sized one

Sportiness or sensuous sportiness?

Let’s talk about styling. The Seltos is classically handsome, pleasing to the eye and appealing to every single person.

Like really, what is there to complain about on the Seltos?

It’s getting close to a year since it hit the roads and even now it turns heads, particularly (to my eyes) the GTX in black. Talk about hitting the nail on the head!

As for this new Creta… it’s a case of styling being a very personal subject. All of us in the team have some rather strong words for the Creta’s styling and the first time I saw it, I baulked. But then, for the two months of the lockdown, the Creta was parked under my window and I got used to it. This is something that will grow on you. And this is something that you definitely will not miss when it passes you by. In that sense, Hyundai’s designers have done their

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H Y U N DA I C R ETA v s K I A S E LTO S

uses the screen for the MFD and flanks it with the analogue dials while the Creta uses the screen for a digital speedo (that has jazzy effects and changes colour in Sport mode) and flanks it with analogue dials for the tacho, fuel gauge and temperature.

Both the cars get flat-bottom steering wheels but where the Creta scores is in terms of equipment, the most noticeable of which is the panoramic sunroof (as opposed to the Seltos’ regular-sized affair) that makes the cabin seem more spacious than it is. It also gets paddleshifters for the DCT and a cushion for the rear headrest, while features unique to Seltos remain the blind spot monitor that pops up on the 7-inch screen, head up display and the front parking sensors and camera.

Both the Seltos and Creta also get smart connectivity features and voice commands. Kia calls it UVO Connect, Hyundai calls it Blue Link but both work the same way, call the concierge via the button on the rear-view mirror, are serviced via the same call centre, have an in-built e-SIM, and use the mobile app to start the car remotely, cool it, geo-fence it, locate it if stolen and more. The only difference is, you can start the Creta remotely even if you’ve bought the manual transmission, unlike the Seltos (and even the Venue) which works only on the automatic.

Head to head Finally the powertrain and, I know it is getting tiresome, but things are again identical. In both you get the 1.5 diesel, 1.5 naturally aspirated petrol and, what we have here, the job in making an unmissable SUV and I also must say they’ve been very, very brave. Going by Hyundai’s past form it would have been easy to make a traditionally-styled SUV. Here they’ve transitioned to a whole new design language and turned out an SUV that is polarising (to say the least). Ultimately though, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I’ll leave it at that. What I can appreciate are the Creta’s twin exhaust tips while the Seltos hides away the exhaust.

As for the interiors, here (at least to my eye!) the tables are turned. The Seltos has this rectangular dash in a glossy black whereas the Creta has a more traditional dash with a separate hooded binnacle for the dials, which I think looks nicer. What the designers have achieved is to make the cabin look completely different, though in reality there’s an incredible amount of commonality, down to the chime of the air purifier under the centre armrest when you start up the car. What else is common? The drive mode selector dial is the same, so too is the 10.25-inch touchscreen, Bose sound system on the top end variants, window switches, even the (cooled) seats, window line and of course space.

Heck, even the pedals are the same! The instrument panel uses the same 7-inch display but the layout is different. Kia

Top: Gear lever for the DCT on the Creta and (below) Seltos. Right: 10.25-inch touchscreens on the Seltos and (above it) Creta. Facing page: The engine cover is identical on the Creta (above) and Seltos

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KIA SELTOS 1.4 T-GDI DCT GTX + Engine 1353cc, in-line 4-cyl, turbo-petrol Transmission 7-speed DCT Power 138bhp @ 6000rpm Torque 242Nm @ 1500-3200rpm Weight NA 0-100kmph 9.7sec Top speed NA Price `17.29 lakh (ex-showroom)

CHOOSE EITHER AND THERE’S NO QUESTION YO U W I L L H AV E T H E MOST FUNTO -DRIVE SUV IN THIS SEGMENT

HYUNDAI CRETA 1.4 TURBO GDI DCT SX(O) Engine 1353cc, in-line 4-cyl, turbo-petrol Transmission 7-speed DCT Power 138bhp @ 6000rpm Torque 242Nm @ 1500-3200rpm Weight NA 0-100kmph 9.7sec Top speed NA Price `17.20 lakh (ex-showroom)

1.4 turbo-petrol with the DCT twin-clutch automatic. In the Seltos you also get the turbo-petrol with the manual gearbox while on the Creta it’s only offered with the DCT. As for the performance… identical and pleasing. The 138bhp engine is quick, does 0-100kmph in under ten seconds, makes a nice exhaust note when pushed, is silent when pottering around, has strong bottom end for easy performance and overall puts a smile on your face. The DCT gearbox, while not as quick as a VW DSG, is responsive to your needs and inputs and adds to the driving pleasure. And you will have fun. Both also have very good brakes courtesy disc brakes all round. Choose either, the Seltos or the Creta, and there’s no question you will have the most fun-to-drive SUV in this segment.

Is a verdict even possible?

Tough one, but we’re not the kind to shirk away from a verdict. For those who have strong opinions on the styling the verdict is a foregone conclusion. But keeping personal tastes aside we must deliver a verdict and for that I must wind back to my verdict on the Kia Seltos — where I couldn’t find anything to fault, save for the lack of steering wheel paddles for the DCT. The Creta, it now gets those steering wheel paddles. Sounds like a very facile argument to crown it the winner but fact is, among the identically priced twins, the Creta has more relevant features. And of course Hyundai’s network is stronger and wider. Fact also remains that whichever way you go, you will have picked the best mid-size SUV in the country right now. L www.

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WO R D S b y S I R I S H C H A N D R A N P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

TEN YEARS YOUNG

Does a new engine in a decade-old car justify the level of interest the new(ish) Polo has been receiving?

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HAT YOU ARE LOOKING AT IS A ten-year-old car. That’s the brutal truth and you are fully justified in griping about being saddled with a car first seen in 2010, while the rest of the world got a completely new Polo two years ago. And to continue with the real talk, we are unlikely to get a new Polo for at least another two years. This is it. Like it or lump it.

I like it!

Oh no, not the fact that we have an old car. There’s nothing anybody can say to sugarcoat that fact. But I do have a soft corner for the Polo, particularly since the editors of this magazine were the first to build and rally it in India, and I took the small VW to its first INRC victory. We’ve raced it, rallied it, lived with it, taken it on some crazy adventures, and it has always put a big smile on my face.

That smiley theme continues with this new engine.

To meet the new BS6 engine norms, the old 1.2-litre TSI engine has been laid to rest and in comes a new 1-litre unit that continues to get direct petrol-injection and turbocharging. This is an all-new engine, now with three cylinders, displacing exactly 999cc, and is from the same

family that won the International Engine of the Year award in 2018. Going forward it will be the mainstay of the Skoda-VW Group in India and will be fully localised by the time the SUVs on the MQB-A0-IN platform (VW’s Taigun and Skoda’s Vision IN) are ready to roll out. In fact, the first time I experienced this motor was in the lovely little Up GTI, and that means the bar is already raised rather high for this (kinda) new Polo.

IN WHAT IS FAST BECOMING THE NEW NORMAL, we present ourselves at the dealership at the crack of dawn to take possession of our test car. First impressions from the crew are quizzical looks and, “this is new?” questions.

Visually there really isn’t anything that you haven’t seen before. The nose is very mildly tweaked with the GTI-effect black honeycomb grille with a chrome strip at the bottom, there are new side skirts and a mock diffuser effect on the rear bumper. In fact the most obvious visual cue is the TSI Power sticker on the rear door and a honeycomb sticker above it — which brings to mind the good old Hero Honda days when a new sticker on a Splendor would make it allnew. That said, it’s a testament to the inherent rightness of the Polo’s design that 10 years later it still looks handsome.

VO L KSWAG E N P O LO 1 .0 TS I

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VO L KSWAG E N P O LO 1 . 0 TS I

Clean, uncluttered, unfussy and elegant lines mean you slap on a new colour on the Polo and photographers insist on positioning it in the centre of a group shot because it enhances the picture.

What you see here is the TSI Edition, priced at 7.89 lakh rupees. That’s very good pricing! To put that into perspective the Nios Turbo (with less power) is `7.7 lakh while the top end Swift (with much less power!) is `7.58 lakh. It is only the Skoda Rapid TSI that undercuts the Polo TSI on price, and that is the Rider variant with considerably less equipment. Makes you wonder, had VW got the pricing right from day one, we’d have a new Polo already… but the past is the past. This is the new VW and they’ve realised pricing is mega-important, and on that front this new Polo is sorted.

The stickers I mentioned are unique to the TSI Edition (if I were you I’d rip it out forthwith) along with a blackedout roof, spoiler, and wing mirrors. On the inside it gets allblack interiors that are as familiar as the heat in summer but, and again a testament to the inherent rightness of this car, aren’t an eyesore. In fact, the flat-bottom steering wheel is the nicest you will find on any car at this price, both a tactile and visual delight. Of course it gets Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and though the 6.5-inch screen is small by today’s standards, it does do its job rather well.

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The seat is height adjustable, the steering adjusts for reach and rake (which, surprisingly, most cars in this segment do not offer!), the ergonomics are spot on and there’s no sunroof — VW’s chassis engineers refusing to compromise torsional rigidity and safety to pander to this sunroof obsession that we have. And, oh, I’d forgotten how horribly cramped the back seat is! Basically, on the outside and inside nothing has changed. But get going and this (sorta) new Polo moves!

Now the Polo GT TSI was no slow-poke, not by a long shot. The new 1.0 TSI engine makes 5bhp more to put out 108.5bhp and the torque remains the same at 175Nm. The main difference, with this manual gearbox, is that you can launch it properly. To ensure longevity, the electronics on the GT’s DSG gearbox didn’t let you make full-bore standing starts, taking off lazily till the turbo spooled up at 2000rpm and got a proper move on. With the manual you can rev it to 4000rpm, slip the clutch, spin up the front tyres and launch it with full energy — and that is what cuts nearly a second off the 0-100kmph time, to now dip just under 10 seconds. The engine revs happily to 6700rpm but it does its best work in the mid-range and it’s best to shift around 5500rpm. As for the crucial low- and mid-range, this new engine is on par with the old 1.2, which is a good thing indeed. With the engine on the boil above 2000rpm

there is a strong rush of turbo-torque, and mashing the throttle tips your head back into the headrest (eliciting grumbles from your passengers). Below that? Well, turbo lag is not massive but you don’t really have much on offer and won’t be making swift progress. In terms of the funto-drive factor, if the GT TSI was an 8 on 10, this new TSI is a 9 on 10.

This new engine is an exemplar of downsizing. You don’t lose out on power, you get better efficiency (claimed 18.24kmpl), power delivery remains as strong, and it delivers more smiles. What it doesn’t improve upon is refinement. The 1.2 4-cylinder motor was smooth and lovely. This 3-cylinder is, how do I put this, 3-cylinder-y.

There is that typical irregular idle that you can feel through the seat of your pants and the motor is no paragon of silence. Unlike Japanese engines that are so silent while idling that you think they’re switched off, this motor is audible and gets progressively more vocal as you go up the revs. There’s only a hint of turbo whistle and barely any blow-off noise but overall I like the engine noise. In normal course I’d slam it as being gruff but the crucial difference here is that the increase in noise is accompanied by a proportional increase in speed — which means your brain equates it to a sporty noise. This is unlike, say, the Polo’s naturally aspirated 3-cylinder that is similarly noisy when

WITH THE ENGINE ON THE B OIL AB OVE 2000RPM THERE IS A STRONG RUSH OF TURBOTORQUE

Top to bottom: 16-inch alloys on the top-end variants; flat-bottom steering wheel remains a tactile delight; stickers on the flanks for the TSI Edition; back seat continues to remain cramped www.

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V W P O LO VO L KSWAG E N P O LO 1 . 0 TS I

THERE’S AN ABSOLUTE REFUSAL TO DO ANYTHING FUNNY U N L E S S Y O U YA N K THE HANDBRAKE revved hard but hardly moves and thus gets grating. So all of your wondering about the refinement, don’t worry, more than anything you will enjoy the noise.

You will also enjoy using the manual gearbox. This, too, is no exemplar of slickness and has a typical Volkswagen shift action in that it is a bit beefy, and takes a little more effort than the (cliche alert!) hot-knife-through-butter Japanese ’boxes. But it is precise, direct and encourages you to row through the gears. Is it better than the DSG? Are apples better than oranges? If you want an automatic you will definitely miss the DSG since the new GT will

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now get a 6-speed torque converter and I cannot imagine it coming close to the DSG’s benchmarks. On the other hand, enthusiasts have always cried about the omission of a manual gearbox in the TSI Polo — and this now answers their prayers. I asked Alameen, our filmmaker, for his opinion as a keen driver and owner of a GT TSI, and he says this new Polo with the manual is 15 per cent more fun to drive (he’s a very precise chap, our Alameen). And going forward you will have plenty of go-faster parts to play with as the Polo TSI will be rallied, the engine will find its way into race cars, tuners in India will go to work extracting more horses from the engine, and in any case there’s no dearth of parts in the global tuner market.

In terms of the ride and handling, again nothing has changed. The ride remains planted and rock steady, capable of maxxing out the speedo on the expressway

VOLKSWAGEN POLO TSI Engine 999cc, in-line 3-cyl, turbo-petrol Power 108.5bhp @ 5000-5500rpm Torque 175Nm @ 1750-4000rpm Weight 1072kg 0-100kmph 9.9sec Top speed NA Price `7.89 lakh (ex-showroom, India)

and not turning your hair or knuckles white. It is the most planted and stable hatchback on sale today and that’s thanks to the very high torsional rigidity of the body shell.

It is the reason why it is so heavy (190kg more than the Swift for perspective) but also feels (and is!) so safe. It delivers surefooted handling with plenty of front-end bite, and an absolute refusal to do anything funny unless you yank the handbrake (no traction control or ESP any more).

The steering remains lifeless and there is body roll but the chassis grips tenaciously, there’s a determined resistance to understeer and aided by the Goodyear tyres on our test car (195/65 R 16), the Polo can be flung into corners at surprisingly high velocities. It makes you smile, like no tenyear-old car should.

Truth be told, a ten-year-old car has no business getting me out of bed at 4 in the morning, particularly in these times when, bleary-eyed, you have to rustle up breakfast and lunch, head to the dealership, worry about whether the car has been properly sanitised, douse it in your own sanitiser, breathe through a mask, and all that rigmarole.

A ten-year-old car should not take more than a page of this magazine. But this is a magazine dedicated to The Thrill of Driving, and the Polo, ten years on, is still the best driver’s car in this segment. L Facing page, top: 6.5-inch touchscreen seems dated but works very well. Left: Visual representation of the tenacious grip of the Polo’s front end – body roll is evident but the cornering speeds are high!

W H Y M A N UA L S ST I L L M AT T E R

WHY Automated gearboxes have their place,

MANUALS but nothing can beat a great manual

STILL shift for ultimate car and driver interaction

MATTER WO R D S b y H E N RY C AT C H P O L E

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IS ‘SNICKETY’ THE MOST DESIRABLE ADJECTIVE? ‘Slick’ and ‘positive’ are oft-used, but I think ‘snickety’ is reserved for special occasions. Is ‘sloppy’ less desirable than ‘agricultural’ or ‘obstructive’? If I said ‘knuckly’, which manufacturer would you think of? ‘Click-clack’ used to instantly summon images of Ferraris until Audi realised there was no copyright.

The manual gearbox has a very definite language. You can still select a gear with a paddle, but you can’t ‘slot’ second or ‘punch’ into third. The exploratory waggle to check for neutral is only available with a stick. Resorting to first while moving is always worthy of mention. ‘Heel-and-toe’, ‘power shift’, ‘dog-leg’… all things that are banished from write-ups on twopedal cars.

Why mention this? Well, I think it shows just how much a manual shift brings to the driving experience in a car.

I don’t want this to be seen as an article that is negative towards paddles. A world without the theatre of a Ferrari 812 Superfast’s rapid-fire downshifts would be a much poorer place. And if you’re trying to set a lap time then there is no question that PDK, DCT, DSG and their ilk allow you to shave crucial tenths and will help get most of us closer to mimicking the sort of metronomic precision that is desirable lap after lap.

They’re easier in traffic too.

But as good as paddleshifts are, manuals still matter. They are the vinyl to music’s Spotify. The log fire to the electric radiator. The mechanical instead of the quartz watch. The magazine feature to the online article. It’s about more than the end result of a changed gear, music heard, heat produced, time told or information imparted.

When you ponder what the simple pull of a paddle is replacing, it’s quite astounding. The actual movement of a gearstick from one gear to another is only a small part of the feel and dance of a shift. For a start, there is the way that you dip the clutch. Is that left-hand pedal hefty enough to require gym visits or so light that you stamp the carpet first time out?

Does the clutch have a high or low biting point? Engagement like a light switch or worryingly slurry? And how much pedal travel do you have to play with?

Then there is the throttle pedal that requires lifting and reapplying (or perhaps doesn’t if you’re a road tester trying to shave another tenth from a 0-10kmph run). Right foot timed, of course, with the action of left foot, while speed and aggression are appropriately matched with the swiftness of the lever across the gate. Different shifts will require different lengths of time and consequently this might have an impact on your decision to even make them. Last gasp into a corner while braking hard you might think that slamming forward from fourth to third in a six-speed ’box is possible, whereas pulling back and across from third to second with the need to change vertical plane is not.

The specific car and ’box will have a bearing on this too – some shifts can be flashed through, some need patience and care. Adjusting to each individual shift pattern and the associated springing is always interesting. Third to fourth is arguably marginally easier or slicker in a six-speed layout than in a four-speed, because the lever is naturally centred.

And it’s the addition of an extra plane further away from the centre point that can make seven-speed ’boxes tricky.

Each shift in each ’box has a movement and pressure pattern all its own. Something that certainly can’t be said for paddles.

My favourite shifts are generally a second to third or fourth to third in a six-speed box. Third to second is generally more enjoyable in a left-hand-drive car as the lever is being pulled towards you rather than pushed away. Sometimes there’s the more fundamental question of how many gears there are at your disposal. That moment not long after picking up a hire car when you are flat out in fifth and wondering if a pull back will find sixth or reverse…

Talking of being flat out in fifth, the manual gearbox can certainly heighten your awareness of speed. I’ve been lucky enough to experience both a 991 GT3 RS and 991 911 R at high speed on the autobahn. Differing aerodynamics aside, it feels like a considerably more considered moment when you take one hand off the wheel to change from fifth to sixth at over 8000rpm and 260kmph than when you extend a finger to flick a paddle.

Of course, a good manual gearbox is also a delight when you’re not going quickly. A simple blip to match the revs on a downchange, or a slow but perfectly smooth upchange are things that can be enjoyed at any speed and leave you feeling more connected to the engine. However, the low-speed heeland-toe must be one of the trickiest actions to perform in a car and I think it’s why it can be off-putting to learn. It’s much easier when you are leaning hard on the brake pedal and have a relatively firm platform from which to articulate your foot across to the throttle pedal.

At slow speed a knob can also remain a delight to fondle (please do stop sniggering at the back). Many different shapes and sizes (seriously now, just pack it in) have been tried over the years, but the simple sphere is still the benchmark in many people’s palms. Part of the reason must be that no matter what the direction of the lever’s travel or how it is held, the ergonomics of the knob are identical.

Now, this article wouldn’t be complete without a few specifics. Some case studies. A little idle contemplation of the best manual shifts evo has experienced. My personal highlights begin with the short, tight throw of a Honda S2000.

The Japanese brand has had many excellent shifts, but this always sticks out for me. Snickability through and through.

Sticking with Honda, the latest Ariel Atom has a tremendously quick, precise shift. In fact, for pure speed around the gate it is probably only bettered by Prodrive’s masterpiece of a H-pattern dog ’box in its Impreza rally cars. The N2009 iteration was just sensational in the way it could be flicked around a gate that felt no bigger than a small box of matches.

It was as though the lever knew as soon as you put pressure on it where you were trying to send it and then flew across to the next ratio.

PRICING NEEDN’T I N H I B I T A N E N J OYA B L E ’ B OX , A S T H E F O R D SPORTK A SHOWED www.

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The six-speed from a 997 911 and various Boxsters has been praised on numerous occasions and is an absolute cracker.

It has the most wonderfully smooth and perfectly spaced throw. It’s just a shame it’s a little tall in the actual gearing.

The Boxster’s bigger mid-engined cousin, the Carrera GT, often gets cited as having one of the best shifts, and while it is perfectly placed – easily to hand, high up near the wheel – I think it is arguably a little light in its action. However, what is brilliant is that this lightness, while not as tactile as even in the aforementioned Boxster, suits the drivetrain it is attached to perfectly. The lack of inertia in the way the V10 revs requires a shift that is almost ethereally light and the birch-topped lever delivers.

To that extent an old Land Rover with revs that rise and fall in time with the passing of the seasons also has the perfect gearbox, in the sense that it requires long pauses and much patience to snag a clean shift. The long pudding stirrer of a gearlever which has the vagueness of a late-night cocktail recipe is perfectly befitting of the machine it’s in and the mien of the journeys you expect to undertake.

Anyway, back to some more conventional praise. A V8 Audi R8’s gearchange is wonderful for the sense that you are drawing a sword from a scabbard and then sliding it into another. The diamond-knurled lever is pleasing too and the weighting is satisfying, although it isn’t a shift to rush across the gate. Price needn’t inhibit an enjoyable gearbox either, as the Ford SportKa showed. The five-speed in the early R50 Mini Cooper is a peach too, and a Mk1 MX-5 provides a lovely shift for not a lot of money.

My top two gearshifts, however, are both in Ferraris. The first is the F50’s. Like the Boxster, it gets the weighting of both pedal and shift absolutely right, while the sphere on top of the lever is classically perfect in the way it sits in the palm. There is the added thrill of the open gate too, but with a touch more creaminess than in the R8. It is just sublime.

The other Ferrari is emblazoned on my mind really on the basis of a single shift. A 250 Testa Rossa is all about the drivetrain, and the gearshift has the mechanical tactility of turning a big, well oiled key in an old church door. Why one particular shift? Well, you need to double de-clutch for most of them, but from first straight back to second is just a dip of the clutch and brief lift of the centre throttle(!) as you pull firmly back on the tall, straight lever. It’s a short action and an abrupt stop, like a sequential shift but without the return.

The fact that it is changing the pitch of the most fabulous 3-litre V12 soundtrack certainly helps it stick in the mind, but the positivity and sense of connection to the meshing cogs is unrivalled in my experience.

Of course, all this praise is in danger of becoming a wistful reminiscence before too long, because the manual is rather an endangered species amongst new cars. However, the fact that Aston Martin still sees fit to produce a manual for the Vantage, the fact that the biggest criticism of the brilliant Alpine A110 is the lack of an H-pattern, and the fact that Porsche decided to reintroduce a manual option to the GT3, surely shows that the importance of three pedals is still felt strongly. May that feeling last as long as it takes to get second gear in a cold Ferrari 348. L

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W H Y M A N UA L S ST I L L M AT T E R

THERE ARE SIGNS T H AT T H E I M P O R TA N C E OF THREE PE DAL S IS S T I L L F E LT S T R O N G LY

L A N D R OV E R D E F E N D E R

RETURN

WORDS by H E N RY C AT C H P O L E

DEFENDER Land Rover’s Defender can trace its roots back to the 1940s. Now there’s a new one, built for the 21st century, but is it an evo car?

We head to Africa to find out

L A N D R OV E R D E F E N D E R

Below: Like the old Defender, the new one is built to go places most other vehicles can’t.

Below right: Cabin is still workmanlike, but more comfortable too

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I CAN SENSE THE HACKLES RISING. AN OFFroader in evo. For some it will be like Conor McGregor stepping into a boxing ring. Or people claiming to enjoy both cars and bicycles. Some readers will feel the world is out of joint, the Thrill of Driving tilted on its axis. The new Defender does not belong here. But, respectfully, I disagree. It just depends how you use it. A Defender on the road? Not so interesting. A Defender used to access Kaokoland and the world’s oldest desert? That’s a different story…

The colour of the sand beneath the 110’s tyres changes from a rich, rusty red to a coffee crème caramel and then to a Caribbean white. Almost in harmony the speed climbs past legal limits, then pushes past 130 and on towards 150kmph. The steering is light, partly because that’s how the EPAS has been tuned, partly because of the speed and the shifting surface that we’re on. But there is more than enough accuracy through the wheel to be confident in letting the Defender drift surprisingly deftly through the turns. All two-and-ahalf tons of it.

It’s not just a brief foray into this sort of driving either. We will be kicking up dust like this for hours today. The Marienfluss valley in the very north-west corner of Namibia, up by Angola, is enormous (namib, as in the Namib desert, actually means vast place in the local Nama language) and even after we have crossed it there is still plenty of distance left to cover until we reach our stop for the night. It feels like driving on a completely different scale to anything I have

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C R U C I A L LY, THE DEFENDER H A S R E TA I N E D ITS ABILITY TO M A K E YO U F E E L ADVE NTUROUS experienced before. It might be as close as I ever get to realising a dream of doing the Dakar, driving flat out across what is essentially wilderness (Kaokoland, after Mongolia, is the second least densely populated region in the world) with a sense of freedom but also endless concentration.

This morning the mental focus was amped up just as high but we were moving much more slowly. At times I was inching the Defender forward with all the pace of someone looking for a lost dust cap on a gravel driveway. Van Zyl’s Pass, which leads down to the Marienfluss, is the most technical trail in this part of Africa, something attested to by occasional vehicular carcasses representing a lack of care or capability.

At the top of its steepest, rockiest section, I had the same pit-of-the-stomach feeling that an average skier might possess upon finding themselves at the top of an ungroomed black run with no other way down. Aided by hand signals from outside the car, I became very well acquainted with the feel of the brake pedal and its ability to let minuscule amounts of disc slip slowly, oh so slowly, between the pads. The Defender, with centre and rear diffs locked in Rock Crawl mode, low ratio engaged and suspension extended to the full 291mm of ride height, negotiated the descent (sometimes with only two tyres in contact with the ground) with far more calm than me.

To be honest, that sort of off-road driving is not really my bag. There is a satisfaction to it and it is every bit as

ON DUS T Y ROADS IT DRIVES MUCH MORE LIKE A BIG H O T H AT C H T H A N A LUMBERING 4x4

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Below: 394bhp mildhybrid turbocharged V6 enables 0-62mph in 6.4sec on tarmac – just remember to keep a look out for wildlife

hold-your-breath engaging as taking Fordwater flat. But creeping along with painstaking precision is not, for me, exciting. In golfing terms, it’s putting versus driving.

However, I can also see that it is a Defender’s bread and butter, one of the areas where it has to perform in order for it to accrue its kudos and attain its fundamental level of engineering-based desirability. And if you need to get the ball in the hole to get to the next tee, then so be it. The contrast of the slow and steady also arguably makes you appreciate the faster and flowing stuff, such as the Marienfluss, even more.

Given the opportunity, this P400 model is quick too.

Certainly quicker than I was expecting a new Defender to be. Under the bonnet is a 394bhp turbocharged 3-litre straight-six with mild hybrid assistance through an electric supercharger. This results in very impressive throttle response (unless you’re in a Terrain mode that dictates such a thing is undesirable) and the claimed 0-100kmph time is a hot hatch-worrying 6.4sec.

In terms of the independent suspension, every model other than a base 90 gets air rather than steel springs and the ride is commensurately cosseting. Even allowing for the tyres being run at just over 30psi to help with traction off-road, the sense of isolation and comfort while travelling at 100kmph over rough roads is incredible. This is partly due to the adoption of a unibody design rather than a body-on-frame like the old Defender. Then there is the fact that the interior, while still possessing a nicely utilitarian vibe, is much more ergonomic, no longer requiring you to rub shoulders with the windows.

And this brings me to the rather thorny issue of character. There is no denying that travelling in an

old Defender would put you more in touch with the landscape you’re travelling over, both through the seat of your shorts and the kickback through the steering wheel. You would feel less detached from the country you’re moving through because the fluctuations in temperature would be more apparent, sounds would be less damped and the smells would permeate more freely. Detachment was not a facet of driving the old Defender.

And for some people that character is integral to the driving experience of a Defender. I understand that. I love old cars. I love manual gearboxes. I love being intimately involved in the driving experience.

However, I also appreciate that this new one is meant to be a Defender for the 21st century and those who want to use it as a tool do not really look for character, they look for capability.

Also, crucially, what I think the Defender has retained is its ability to make you feel adventurous. Rather as the new (BMW) Mini was nothing like the old one but still instilled a spritely sense of fun like its forebear, so the Defender still has a rugged character that makes you look for off-road opportunities more than an SUV would. Particularly with the Explorer Pack fitted, because regardless of any real use for it, the ability to unhitch a ladder and climb onto the roof of your vehicle surely brings out the excitable, tree-climbing innerchild in everyone.

This sort of demeanour is largely what sets Defender apart from Discovery. Having said that, while the Disco can do most of what the Defender does, it can’t quite do it all. The approach and departure angles are much better in the Defender and the general robustness of www.

Opposite page, middle: 394bhp mild-hybrid turbocharged straight-six enables 0-100kmph in 6.4sec on tarmac – just keep a look out for local wildlife

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its D7x chassis (the Discovery has a D7u chassis) is a step up, meaning that it can take more of a sustained pounding. It is probably akin to the improvement in a GT3 RS’s track chops when compared to a GT3.

Talking of robustness, I’m relieved and not a little amazed to report that there isn’t a single squeak or rattle, let alone a warning light, in our Defender during three days of almost constant abuse. I would have expected the washboard nature of the tracks, let alone the bigger impacts on the rougher stuff, to shake something loose, but no.

While pausing for breath at one point, probably to let some giraffe nibble on a leaf or an elephant frolic around a muddy hole, I enquired what would happen if something did go wrong out in the wilderness.

Obviously the new car needs its computers in order to meet emissions standards around the world and generally feel like a modern vehicle, but that surely brings complications that could leave you high and dry? The answer was that it’s capable of over-the-air software updates and diagnostics (you may need a sat phone…) but, in extremis, the ‘limp home’ modes have been specially developed so that you should be able to extricate yourself from extreme situations. The elephant looked impressed.

One thing that will stop you in your tracks is a puncture. A bit like (apparently) not hearing the bullet that kills you, you generally never see the rock that deflates a tyre, because you can guarantee it will appear the moment you take your eyes off the track. I have three such lapses, which might be some sort of record (in mitigation, I think the 19-inch wheels on our P400 mean the sidewalls are more susceptible than on the 18-inch items; or maybe it’s just me). And one of those punctures comes in the Hoarasib River, during possibly the most intense non-competitive driving I have ever done…

Even though the Defender in front is running with fog lights on, the dust cloud is so thick that it instantly obscures everything. I back off but try to keep moving blindly forward to avoid bogging down in the soft sand.

Gradually the particles clear. Which way did they go?

Over there. Four hundred yards away, rounding a bend in the river. But which route did they take to get there? A quick scan of the surroundings suggests some tracks to follow. We drop down off a sandy shelf, then accelerate hard to get through a muddy section, slithering this

way and that, wheels spinning. Slow again to traverse some rocks nearer the bank, then plunge across the river, remembering to turn the windscreen wipers on and look out of the side windows to avoid becoming disorientated.

A big bank, in fact more of a small wall, rears up.

Raise the suspension, but don’t stop. Scrabble for grip and the diffs automatically lock. Clear ground on top and it’s back up to speed. Hundred and ten kilometres per hour just as I spot the depression; the straights don’t mean you can stay off the brakes.

And it keeps coming. Rocks, sand, river, mud, river, rocks, mud, sand, mud, river and on and on and on.

By the time we reach the rough, unsealed road, I am mentally exhausted. I don’t feel like I’ve blinked for hours.

Even as we travel on the dusty D3707 there is still entertainment (and the occasional threat to sidewalls) to be found. One sequence of corners sticks in the mind particularly vividly. A dozen or so bends, speed about 100kmph, loosely linked together so that you can get into a real flow. It’s clear for miles ahead and the Defender is soon drifting one way then the other. There are no big heroic angles of lock, it’s just a lift to get the nose in and then let the momentum carry the tail of the 110 round so that all four tyres are straight but sliding as you angle towards the apex. Then you smoothly pick up the throttle, drive through the second half of the corner and do it all again the other way.

From my experiences of driving and even competing in old Defenders, this is not something you would have done in the past. Sure, it would be even more fun in an Ariel Nomad, no question, but a Nomad wouldn’t have been able to tackle everything that the Defender has on its way here, and the latest Land Rover is surprisingly responsive to inputs and willing to play. On this surface it drives much more like a big hot hatch than a lumbering 4x4.

In isolation the Defender won’t be to every evo reader’s taste, and I completely understand that. But an Aventador SVJ or a BAC Mono won’t tickle everyone’s fancy either. However, driving enjoyment is so often as much about context as the specific machinery you’re in, so it pays to be open-minded. And if your driving daydreams usually consist of circuits and spectacular mountain passes, I’d suggest you add tenuous tracks and no roads at all to the list. L

LAND ROVER DEFENDER 110 (P400) Engine In-line 6-cyl, 2996cc, turbocharger, plus 7kW electric supercharger Power 394bhp (combined) @ 5500rpm Torque 550Nm (combined) @ 2000rpm Weight 2388kg Power-to-weight 168bhp/ton 0-100kmph 6.4sec Top speed 208kmph Price `87 lakh (for the P300, on sale in India)

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D R IVI N G E N J OY M E N T I S S O OFTEN AS MUCH ABOUT CONTEXT AS THE SPECIFIC M AC H I N E RY YO U ’ R E I N

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S P EC I A L F E AT U R E : V W T- RO C

THIRD Just like the family in that eponymous series, the T-Roc is a world apart from the regular SUVs on our roads. But unlike that family, the T-Roc makes no effort to blend in, cutting a striking shape that turns heads from here, all the way to Mars

ON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU BUT THE lockdown has given us plenty of time to think, ponder, daydream, and make lists.

Of relevance to this magazine is the list of cars that we’re itching to get into as soon as things open up and we hit the roads.

And at the very top of that list is the funky Volkswagen T-Roc. The big selling point of the T-Roc has to be its styling. Have you seen a cooler-looking SUV in recent times? If we had to put it into perspective, this is kind of like the Beetle of the SUV world. A style statement.

Funky. Vibrant. Fun. And it puts a big wide smile on your face. The LED DRLs in the bumper deliver a distinctive light signature while the low and wide grille visually ties it in with the rest of the Volkswagen range, including the Tiguan Allspace. Speaking of being tied-in to the range, T stands for SUV in Volkswagen-speak, linking the T-Cross to its big brothers the Touraeg and Tiguan, and also its younger brother the Taigun, that is coming next year. The

T-Cross actually gives us a good sense of what to expect from the Taigun, since this is the first VW SUV in India to be based on the MQB platform — a platform that in A0-IN spec is being engineered and localised for India.

In terms of dimensions, the T-Roc is a good 4.2 metres in length, which delivers strong street presence while also being compact and sporty. Point to note is that despite the funkiness, the T-Roc doesn’t abandon VW’s crisp, elegant, tightly pinched and timeless lines — lines that deliver design longevity and don’t age as quickly as other radical designs. The curving roofline and sloping C-pillars give it a coupe-like profile while the wide and long-slung stance adds further meat to the sporty credentials. And all the show is backed up by go!

The T-Roc will debut the 1.5-litre TSI EVO engine in India, a direct-injection turbocharged motor that will soon proliferate across the Group. Kicking out 148bhp of power and 250Nm of torque and mated to the DSG twin-clutch automatic, the T-Roc will deliver enthusiastic performance. And as the editor discovered when he drove

Below: High quality fittings mated to techy details and high-resolution wide-screens deliver a great interior ambience

DESPITE THE FUNKINESS, THE T- R O C D O E S N ’ T ABANDON VW’S C R I S P, E L E G A N T A N D TIMELESS LINES

the T-Roc in Amsterdam last year, the handling is equally exciting. “The underlying sense that all these MQB cars deliver is a very Germanic stability that lets you max it out on motorways without a shake or wiggle while also being very accomplished round corners,” said the editor after his drive.

“T-Roc’s setup is more sporty than what you would associate with a traditional SUV, a shift that VW points out is part of its move towards more emotional cars.”

We must also mention that the engine will set new benchmarks for efficiency what with Active Cylinder Technology that cuts out two cylinders when the power is not required, thus improving on efficiency. And as for the cabin, the T-Roc’s exterior funkiness continues to the insides with body-coloured or contrasting interior panels to brighten up the cabin, strips of ambient lighting and plenty of techy details. Facing the driver is VW’s 10.3-inch secondgeneration Active Info Display that replaces traditional dials and is similar to what we have seen on the Tiguan Allspace.

The infotainment is via an 8-inch touchscreen that enables a reduction in button count, all of which makes the T-Roc feel more modern. India-spec cars will get a panoramic sunroof that adds light and air into the cabin without impacting head room especially of rear passengers. And sporty vibes are delivered by the chunky flat-bottomed steering wheel. As the editor concluded, “It’s a happy place, that’s for sure.”

What distinguishes the T-Roc is the completeness of the package. It doesn’t sacrifice practicality at the altar of style.

It delivers both a polished ride and enthusiastic handling that brings to mind hot hatches, not SUVs. It has a peppy TSI engine that makes the chassis work for its lunch. And it has a cabin that keeps in step with the funky exteriors. Priced at `19.99 lakh, it’s no surprise Volkswagen already have orders in the bag with deliveries to kick off in line with the opening up of businesses. And that means our test car is also on the way. Cannot wait to get behind the wheel. L

S P EC I A L F E AT U R E : V W T I GUA N

P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

STEP UP The Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace is a proper step up on the 5-seater Tiguan it replaces, with more space, features and power

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Above: The second row of seats slide on rails to make more room for the third row.

Left: The cabin of the Tiguan Allspace is familiar

OLKSWAGEN’S HUGE PUSH WITH SUVs is not much of a surprise and like the T-Roc, the highly exciting Taigun is on its way too. But the archetype of the Volkswagen SUV is the Tiguan.

The Tiguan, ever since its launch in India, has been in a league of its own — espousing its German build quality, safety and driving dynamics. Earlier this year, the Tiguan got an update — it is now bigger, has more features and gets a more powerful engine. It also got a new name and is now called the Tiguan Allspace. The best just got better!

When it comes to SUVs, bigger is better and the Allspace is a fair bit bigger than the Tiguan it replaces. It is built on the same MQB platform, but has a wheelbase that is 110mm longer, and is a total of 215mm longer overall. This is complimented by enhanced styling — the headlamps get new DRL signatures, the sides don’t have plastic cladding but instead get a stylish chrome strip and the 4Motion badge, while the rear remains familiar. The new Tiguan looks visibly larger than the older one and has a far more sophisticated stance. The biggest change on the outside has to be the colour palette with an unmissable Habanero Orange and Ruby Red being added to the seven shades while on the inside you can get sporty all-black interiors

S P EC I A L F E AT U R E : V W T I GUA N

with the orange and red or a two-tone Storm Grey theme on the others!

The larger size of the Tiguan Allspace has contributed to an enhanced cabin experience. The most obvious change is the addition of the third row of seats. But apart from that too, there are smaller changes that enhance practicality. The second row, for example, is now on rails so it can slide forward and backward to increase the space in the third row. The third row has a 50:50 split while the second row has a 40:20:40 split, if you need more boot space. This flexibility is exactly what makes the Tiguan Allspace live up to its name. Up front, the dash is pretty much unchanged from before but with the added benefit of a digital instrument cluster.

The big update for the Tiguan is under the hood.

Volkswagen has put the 2-litre TSI engine under the hood of this SUV, making it far more powerful than before. It makes 187.7bhp and 320Nm of torque, and brings the refinement and urgency that is so typical of these direct injection turbo-petrol engines. We drove the Tiguan Allspace with this engine not too long ago and were all praise for it. In our review, we said that ‘the updated engine finally feels like it does justice to the Tiguan’s chassis’. The Tiguan has always

been a good handling SUV — one of the best in its class, and now the added punch from the TSI engine will allow you to push those dynamics further. But in addition to the added punch, the engine is BS6-compliant and meets some of the highest emission standards worldwide.

At evo India, we have driven the Tiguan a whole lot, all across the country. We took it as a support vehicle on our attempt to scale the highest road in the Eastern Himalayas.

We took the Tiguan up to the unexplored reaches of the snow-bound Shingo La pass in Ladakh. And the toughest test that it aced is being the editor’s long term test car — taking him on his daily commute, his frequent runs to Mumbai and back, to his farm loaded with supplies, as a back up car on our shoots; it has done everything and the editor loves it. Every single journey in this SUV has brought to the fore its comfort, the high-quality cabin, impeccable highway manners, the ability to traverse long distances with ease and its ability to face tricky terrain and come out on top. Now with more space, added practicality and a better engine, the Tiguan Allspace delivers a package that is impossible to fault. With the lockdown easing up, it is time we attempted another epic adventure to really put it to the test! L

I T I S B I G G E R , H A S M O R E F E AT U R E S A N D GETS A MORE POWERFUL TSI ENGINE .

THE BEST JUST GOT BET TER!

WORDS by R I C H A R D M E A D E N P H O T O G R A P H Y by D R E W G I B S O N

SPIRIT OF ’66 After just four years, Ford’s GT has retired from endurance racing. We get the inside story on the car and its 50th-anniversary triumph at Le Mans from the mastermind behind it, then try the GTLM-spec machine for ourselves

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OLLYWOOD COULDN’T HAVE WRITTEN it better. Ford – that most American of automotive behemoths – makes a triumphant return to the Le Mans 24 Hours with a pure-bred, low-slung, mid-engined racer a full half-century after Henry Ford avenged Enzo Ferrari’s snub to score an outright victory in the world’s most prestigious endurance race.

OK, so the 2016 sequel was a class win, but when said conquest also came after a race-long (and ultimately acrimonious) battle with Ferrari, the symmetry with that historic weekend in 1966 is utterly intoxicating.

Unfortunately, what the Blue Oval giveth it also taketh away, so while Ferrari (and the other pure-bred sports car brands) are obliged to plug away season after season, decade after decade, Ford preferred to mount a brilliant smashand-grab raid. History made, lucrative run of supercars sold and halo polished, Ford Performance pulled the pin on its endurance racing adventure after a scant four seasons.

It all looked so easy. And so predictable. But this ignores the fact that the entire Ford GT programme was one of the best-kept secrets in the automotive industry. Until it was announced at the 2015 Detroit motor show nobody knew much about it at all, though this is perhaps due to the fact that a return to Le Mans hadn’t been discussed internally at Ford until mid-2013.

Like all the best road or race car programmes, the genesis of the latest Ford GT was the brainchild of true enthusiasts empowered by the financial and engineering might of a vast corporation. Those two characters were Raj Nair, Ford’s then head of product development, and Larry Holt, vice president at Canadian engineering giant Right: The no. 67 Ford Multimatic. For Nair, Holt and indeed GTLM at Fuji Speedway, Ford it was the perfect storm. Riding where it took WEC class the wave created by his overseeing honours in 2016. Below of the alloy-frame F-150 pickup and left: Straight-talking all-new ‘world’ Mustang, Nair was Larry Holt of Multimatic

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W H I L E O T H E R S P L U G A W AY SEASON AFTER SEASON, FORD MOUNTED A BRILLIANT SMASH-AND - GRAB RAID

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T H E R E W E R E A C C U S AT I O N S OF SANDBAG GING AND L A S T- M I N U T E B O P ADJUSTMENTS TO HOBBLE T H E F LY I N G F O R D S

GT L M F O R D GT

arguably the most powerful man at Ford. As for Holt, well, as Multimatic had been responsible for a series of successful Ford motorsport programmes (not to mention myriad supercar programmes for other big automotive names) he knew the company inside out, and his exceptional engineering brain and instinctive racer’s mindset made him a legend within the highest echelons of the paddock. If you want to understand the Ford GT programme you speak to Holt, for he’s one of those rare characters who gives it to you straight, even if it means catching you off guard or going off-message.

‘When Raj and I first spoke about a programme [in 2013] he wanted to go to Le Mans with a kind of Super Mustang in the GTLM class,’ says Holt. ‘I said it couldn’t be done, he said he wanted to do it anyway. Long story short, Raj is a data-driven guy, so I went away and did the analysis and produced some renderings. What we ended up with was a weird looking thing that didn’t really look like a Mustang. We both knew he’d need to build and sell a bunch of them, and so things went quiet for a few months.

‘I thought that was that, but he calls again and basically says, “OK, the Mustang idea doesn’t fly, so what does it need to be?” I said it needed to be a better Ferrari 488 with its design focused on winning Le Mans. In mid-2014 we went out for a few beers and did a million napkin sketches where we roughed-out the design of the car and laid out the business case for building 1200 road cars that would effectively pay for the race car programme.

‘Going racing was totally Raj’s vision, and it was his drive that got Ford to buy into the dream. The kicker was the 50th anniversary was in 2016, so we knew we were expected to win first time out. It took three years for the GT40s to win…’

It was the kind of opportunity every race car designer dreams of. A big bucks effort by one of the world’s largest car companies.

The challenge to deliver was colossal, but the prize irresistible.

For Holt, the real beauty of it was he could build a clean-sheet race car, an opportunity he grabbed with both hands.

‘We developed the road and race cars in parallel. That meant a ton of work, but it also meant any compromise was built into the road car to advantage the race car. To give you an example, I was obsessed with minimising frontal area, so I benchmarked

mid-engined cars that were worst Below left: Ford opened its 2017 WEC in class for occupant space! I think account with victory at we’re within half a millimetre of the Silverstone; it would also Lotus Elise in terms of where you sit finish ahead of the field in relation to the car’s centre line. at Shanghai that year When you sit two people in the road car things get a bit snug, but the upside was a car that’s as slippery as hell yet produces terrific downforce.’

Remarkably, not only was the road car unveiled to a totally unsuspecting audience at the Detroit show at the beginning of 2015, but by mid-2015 the race car was being shaken down at Multimatic’s home circuit of Calabogie Motorsports Park in Ontario. Development continued rapidly, as it had to if the cars were to be ready for the Daytona 24 Hours in January 2016. It was an epic effort by all concerned.

Ford took the GT racing with two teams in two top-tier endurance championships. In the US, Chip Ganassi Racing would contest the IMSA series with a pair of cars, while Multimatic (under Holt and George Howard-Chappell) would field another pair in the World Endurance Championship. All four cars would race at Le Mans under the Ganassi banner.

After experiencing gearbox issues at Daytona the pressure really was on as Le Mans loomed. There were a few WEC and IMSA events to get the car dialled in before Le Mans, but with LM24 the primary objective there was no room for a faltering start to the season.

There was another spectre to contend with, too. Namely the Balance of Performance, or BoP, in which cars of disparate design have their performance manipulated in order to achieve lap-time parity. It’s a perennial bone of contention amongst teams and fans, but it’s also a fundamental part of the game, albeit one that often threatens to overshadow the result.

Unfortunately for Ford the 2016 race is perhaps the messiest example, with accusations of sandbagging and last-minute BoP adjustments to hobble the flying Fords.

It’s an area most teams prefer to shy away from discussing, but Holt is typically forthright: ‘Honestly, the GT was a mistake.

Or at least it was once you factor-in the BoP. The car I conceived was all about that low frontal area for a high top speed – it was

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GT L M F O R D GT

a car built to win Le Mans. What I should have done was build a car the size of my house with the engine in the wrong place, then have BoP hand me a ton of power to push the stupid thing down the road.

‘The thing you need to understand about BoP is everyone sandbagged. Even when the Le Mans BoP was later switched to so-called Auto BoP, all the teams figured it out by using software that analyses pace relative to rival cars. BoP demeans the efforts of drivers and engineers. I hate it, but it’s the way things are.

‘In 2016 everyone was looking after the pace of their cars leading up to Le Mans. When we eventually got to the big race we had a decision to make. Raj and I reckoned you can’t guarantee you’re going to win your first Le Mans, but you can get pole…’

As it transpired, you can also get whacked with a last-minute BoP adjustment, but Holt is philosophical: ‘I don’t think the BoP situation took anything away from the win. If anything I think it made it all the more impressive. Think about it: the road car is circa 650bhp, but we’re having to strangle the EcoBoost motor back to 495bhp in the GTLM cars. That’s why they had that flat and kinda farty engine note. They just couldn’t breathe.

‘Because the car was so slippery we’d still be hitting a high V-max, but we just didn’t have any punch out of the corners, so the draggier cars left us for dead. We’d only see them again in the braking areas, which made racing extremely tough. We suffered from that and it certainly took the fun out of the next three years, but it achieved a pretty strong win record and can definitely hold its head up.’

As a racer and race fan I find it hard to begrudge Ford – builder of a bazillion blue-collar pickups and bread-and-butter hatchbacks – its success. It might seem a foregone conclusion now, but there are no dead certs in top-level endurance racing.

That Ford seized the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build an all-new car to compete against the world’s greatest sports car brands, with the added pressure of marking the 50th anniversary of its historic Le Mans win, speaks volumes for the company’s corporate courage and racer’s guile.

Modern endurance racing may be very different to those heady days of the 1960s, but there’s a reassuring symmetry to the two history-making campaigns. Having set its mind to the task, Ford’s cars and drivers still went like hell.

DRIVING THE GTLM FORD GT

Perhaps the only good thing about Ford calling time on its most recent endurance racing adventure is the fact I’m standing on the pit apron at Virginia International Raceway (VIR), staring with lust and wonder at the no. 67 Ford GT (Chassis 005). A veteran of all four seasons, no. 67 finished 2nd at Le Mans in 2017 and 4th in 2019, and scored WEC victories at Fuji and Shanghai in 2016, and Silverstone and Shanghai in 2017. It’s a real warhorse.

Above right: Harry I ‘drove’ the car and circuit in a Tincknell recorded four stuffy simulator room at the secretive WEC victories in the Ford Performance HQ less than no. 67 car for Ford Chip 24 hours ago. As I was shamefully Ganassi Racing, as well as a 2nd place at Le Mans ignorant of VIR – a magnificent circuit

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which will soar straight into my top three favourites before my stint in the GT is over – the virtual laps are welcome, but still I don’t feel like I have much more than a passing acquaintance with either VIR or the GT. Thankfully, prior to testing the GT we get some warm-up laps in one of Multimatic’s Mustang GT4s – a car I know well having raced it in a round of the British GT Championship last year – but I’m painfully aware the GT’s cornering and braking capabilities are of a different magnitude. VIR will look like a very different place through its windscreen. Fortunately Multimatic’s crew comprises largely super-chilled Canadians, so there’s no pressure other than that which I put on myself – which is more than enough to have me pacing around in my race suit before I’m finally given the nod to climb aboard.

The GT is a big car, but the aperture to get into it isn’t, so there’s a bit of huffing and puffing before legs are threaded down into the footwell and buttocks eased into the moulded seat. Even by contemporary standards the steering wheel is busy. And pretty ugly. The grips are tactile enough, but the huge slab of carbonfibre that bridges them clearly paid no attention to aesthetics and everything to Opposite: The now-retired ergonomics. I won’t be fiddling no. 67 GTLM at Virginia with many of the brightly coloured International Raceway (map and clearly labelled switches above), with evo’s Richard during my six-lap run. In fact, I’ll Meaden (above right) only be keeping a watching brief behind the wheel

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on the LCD screen, just in case it throws an alarm that might require me to kill the engine before I, er, kill the engine.

Not that this is likely, because thanks to the dreaded BoP the raspy Roush Yates-built 3.5-litre V6 EcoBoost motor is effectively breathing through a mask and dosed with diazepam, restricting power from the road car’s 647bhp or track-only Mk II’s 700bhp to somewhere between 490 and 520bhp. I’m sure this will be enough to hold my attention, but there’s a sad inevitability to the lack of omigawd straight-line shove. Still, just like the road car, this GT racer induces a degree of intimidation thanks to a reverse Tardis effect. Its footprint covers a fair old acreage of track, yet the cockpit is confined. Not quite the space-capsule feeling you get in an LMP1 car, but more snug than the Ford’s class rivals.

Handily I don’t have a crash helmet with built-in comms, which means once I leave the pitlane I’m on my own. My reckoning is that so long as I remember to de-latch the pitlane speed limiter there won’t be much need for chit-chat. And if I crash this precious wedge of Ford motorsport history I’ll have popped my harness and run for the Virginian hills before anyone realises I’ve binned it.

Ford Performance Chip Ganassi factory racer Ryan Briscoe is on hand to talk me through the basics of the car, which he does once I’ve slotted – or rather squeezed – myself into the shrink-wrapped driver’s seat. Paddleshifters mean it’s pretty much point and squirt once you’ve pulled away, but unlike GT3 cars there’s no ABS on GTLM machines, so it is possible to lock a wheel – though this is unlikely as I’m 99 per cent certain my spindly left leg doesn’t have the muscle to hit the pedal hard enough, at least not into the really big braking areas.

One thing Briscoe mentions is switching the engine map from 11 to 12, freeing the motor from its BoP strangulation. Sounds like fun to me, though he’s at pains to ensure I head out with the switch set to 11, so I’ll need the presence of mind to go to 12 during my stint. Given I regularly forget what I’ve gone upstairs for, this could be an issue.

Whatever. Once Briscoe slams the big forward-hinged door and I’ve pulled away, all extraneous thoughts melt away, leaving me and the GT alone to explore VIR. Unlike cars that require you to pump a clutch pedal and shift gears with a stick, there’s really nothing to driving this Ford. You do need to show it a bit of commitment so you’re within the window for the clutch, transmission and ignition-cut calibration. If not, it just gets all raggedy and impatient. You also need to get some temperature into the tyres and brakes for much the same reason, but in terms of operation it’s no more taxing than the road car.

Like any brief track test in an unfamiliar car, it’s a case of rapidly feeling your way around a far larger performance envelope than you’re used to. Six laps isn’t a lot, but VIR’s full course is generous and packs pretty much everything you could wish for into each 5.26km, 18-turn lap. Inevitably it’s the last three laps when things begin to make sense. As predicted, the GT isn’t explosively accelerative, but its slippery shape pulls plenty of downforce from the air. However, it doesn’t seem to drive into an invisible brick wall like GT3 cars or more bluffnosed GTE cars do.

Around VIR this means a prodigious sense of speed down the

front and back straights, which then focuses you on just how effective the GT is in the braking zones. It doesn’t communicate like a road car – it’s too flat and too well within itself to offer signs a civilian would recognise – but as you summon the nerve to take leap after leap beyond the points at which your head questions whether a car really can make repeated direction changes at this speed, or indeed shed so much speed in so few metres, everything begins to gel.

My favourite section of VIR comes early in the lap, the fizz of anticipation kicking in as you power out of Turn 3 and point the Ford’s nose towards the fearsome uphill esses. It was scary enough on the sim, but when you’re gunning towards them flat in fifth, knowing that you’re supposed to hold a steady nerve – and right foot – as you zigzag your way over the trio of whoops at upwards of 240kmph, it has to rank as one of the mightiest sections of any racetrack in the world.

Do I remember to switch the engine map to 12 and pop the EcoBoost’s cork? Do I heck, which is a bit deflating as I’d love to have felt how the Ford fired out of the tighter corners and down the long straights with a good deal more fire in its belly.

Of course, this means I have the perfect excuse for not being anywhere near as close to Briscoe’s data trace as I’d have hoped, but it does mean I’ve got a very clear image of the scenario Larry Holt described at Le Mans.

Six laps is just a taste of what this car can do, but it’s more than enough to appreciate the might of the machine and scale of its achievement. It’s a great shame these fabulous cars won’t be racing in 2020, but their legacy is assured. L www.

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WO R D S b y A AT I S H M I S H R A P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

SIZE M AT T E R S ?

The Skoda Karoq has finally made its way to India.

Was it worth the long wait?

IT WAS A DAMP, CHILLY MORNING WHEN I CLIMBED into the driver’s seat of the Skoda Karoq. Up here in the hills outside Pune, the temperature is a few degrees lower than in the city and with Cyclone Nisarga brewing off the western coast of India not too far away, the wind whipping at us wasn’t making the outdoors any more welcoming. Come to think of it, the weather wasn’t too different from the last time I drove the Skoda Karoq — a year ago, almost to the day — in the Czech Republic. Gloomy. Rainy. Cold. The kind of weather where you leave the photography to the pros, and sit tight inside the climate-controlled cabin. The ‘Gram can wait.

A year ago seems like a lifetime, to be honest. Back then we were travelling halfway across the world to drive a new car, and now I need permission to take my scooter to the corner store. The world is different place. We don’t step out of the house without face-condoms, have discovered a (healthy) fascination for alcohol we can’t drink, and coughing will get you ostracised more than telling people you fondle goats. The car industry is vastly different too. Who knew the VW Group would give up on diesels entirely in India and make this huge push with TSI engines. When presented with a fleet of Karoqs in Prague, I dived for the keys of the diesel, feeling half bad for the journalists who drove the petrol and had to tell their editors they got a story that was only semi-relevant. I was convinced that just like the Kodiaq, only the TDI would make it to our shores. Looking back now, what a fool was I.

WHO KNEW THE VW GROUP WOULD GIVE UP ON DIESELS IN INDIA AND MAKE A PUSH WITH TSI ENGINES 94

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Facing page, bottom: It is easy to find a comfortable driving position in the Karoq. Above: 8-inch screen has a crisp display and is intuitive.

Left: The Karoq gets dual zone climate control.

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I WA S S H OV E D I N T O T H E B AC K O F M Y S E AT W I T H A P I N T - S I Z E D F E R O C I T Y SO UNIQUE TO THESE SMALL TURBOPETROL ENGINES

That oversight of mine had built up a lot of anticipation for today. I was excited to experience the 1.5-litre TSI Evo engine — not only because it shares a name with this magazine, but also because this is an engine that is going to become the mainstay for Skoda-VW’s bigger cars in India, one step above the 1-litre TSI for the mass-market vehicles. It’s already here in the T-Roc and now the Karoq, and will also make an appearance on the more powerful variants of the Taigun and Vision IN, as well as other cars from the India 2.0 Project. But I was also excited to experience the Karoq on familiar roads. Skoda just launched three new cars and while enthusiasts have been clamouring for a review of the Rapid Rider, the Karoq deserves as much attention too. It is an all-new SUV, and will keep people walking in to Skoda dealers until the Vision IN, or whatever that midsize SUV will be called, arrives.

Before setting off, I recalled what my verdict of the Karoq was from the last time I drove it. “The Karoq screams like a shrunken Kodiaq, and that can only be a good thing,” I wrote. The dash layout draws heavily from the Kodiaq — it gets the same layout on the centre console, same gear selector, Virtual Cockpit and

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steering wheel. The Kodiaq feels a little more regal with the large wood (or piano black, depending on the variant) inlays in the dash, while the Karoq does away with that for a cleaner, simpler, and dare I say it, more youthful design. But, like the Kodiaq, it feels solidly put together and infused with really high quality.

The Virtual Cockpit is a breeze to use, as is the infotainment screen and the rest of the controls around the dash.

The Karoq bears resemblance to the Kodiaq on the outside as well. Unless you’re really clued in to cars, you’d be hard pressed to tell the face apart at first glance. We were at the Garve Skoda dealership three days earlier shooting a walkaround of the Karoq, and even Rohit, who literally looks at cars for a living, says it looked exactly like the Kodiaq. There are subtle differences — the headlamps, fog lamps and the DRL elements are of a slightly different shape. The SUV doesn’t look as imposing because it isn’t as big, obviously, and the rear looks sharper. That rear end is actually my favourite angle of the Karoq — Skoda has replaced the badge with lettering stretched across the width of the tailgate and the taillamps look sharp, and purposeful.

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Fire her up though, and the Karoq idles in near-silence.

Before I even went near the accelerator pedal, the refinement of the engine made itself apparent. Ten seconds later, I was rolling down the road with nothing but the noise of the tyres filtering in to the cabin. Another 10 seconds later, I was shoved into the back of my seat with a pint-sized ferocity so unique to these small turbo-petrol engines. And that sort of encapsulates everything you need to know about this engine — it is refined, but it packs a proper punch. 148bhp and 250Nm are reasonable figures and they are deployed through the 7-speed DSG rather effectively. The engine revs freely and doesn’t feel throttled by the strict BS6 emission norms it complies with. The mid-range is punchy, but there is very apparent lag before it gets on to boost. The DSG, for the most part, ensures that you’re not left hanging. It has tiny plasticky paddleshifters behind the steering wheel too, and while I wish they were more prominent and a little more expensive-feeling, I’m honestly just happy they exist.

What really drew me in to the Karoq, was how the chassis compliments this engine. Yes, we’re constantly singing praises of these MQB-underpinned SUVs, but the Karoq manages to push the bar even higher. The shorter wheelbase and more compact dimensions lend it agility that the larger SUVs simply cannot manage. It feels quick to turn, reacts very predictably to inputs and has very good body control for a car so tall. The ride quality is impressive in the sense that it feels tied down while you’re at speed, absorbing smaller humps and bumps in a manner that you barely notice in the cabin. And at lower speeds, it will take on bad roads with ease. It isn’t what I would call plush, but it is well set up for someone who enjoys spirited

Bottom: The layout of the dash is familiar – inspired by the Kodiaq; 17-inch wheels give the Karoq a good stance; Virtual Cockpit enhances the driving experience

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driving, the compliance actually soaking in mid-corner bumps to deliver even better handling with very little body roll. One grouse I do have is the steering is far too light. This will be great for pottering around town but it feels a bit disconnected and vague at speed. The Karoq, unlike the Kodiaq, doesn’t get drive modes that help weigh it up a little more so you’re stuck with it in one default setting. The combination of the zingy engine and enthu chassis makes the Karoq proper fun in the corners.

I was nowhere close to its limits with how wet the roads were, but even the editor commented that the grip in the wet, despite lacking four-wheel drive that would have made a difference in this weather, was super-impressive and that can only bode well for the dry-weather handling.

We need to talk about the space and practicality of this SUV too — it is a genuine concern, so allow me to give you some sensible advice. Space inside the cabin is adequate, but not great. The Karoq isn’t too wide and it gets apparent with how close your passenger sits to you. This means three abreast in the back is a squeeze. As for the rear bench, you get just about enough knee room though thigh support is a bit lacking. But the light interiors and the massive panoramic sunroof do give you a sense of space. The cabin is sensibly designed — bottle holders, cup holders, cubby holes are all within reach. There’s a large boot as well, but there’s no electrical opening and closing.

I must point out though, that if space is of concern, an SUV like the Hyundai Tucson provides far more room inside the cabin.

The question I saw myself asking as the day went on was this — do I stick to my original verdict about the Karoq being a mini Kodiaq? Yes, and no. The Karoq borrows parts of the Kodiaq that we love — its build quality, styling, sophisticated ride quality.

But the Karoq also carves out its own identity, and separates itself from the pre-conceived notions you may have built of it from the Kodiaq. The simplified interior design, it gives you the sense that the Karoq takes itself less seriously. The compact dimension make it fun to chuck around. And the engine is what really transforms its character. The Kodiaq felt slightly ponderous — the diesel engine felt a bit underwhelming when you wanted to hustle it. The new TSI engine, coupled with the lighter, more nimble chassis of the Karoq, gives it a sprightliness that the Kodiaq cannot come near.

The elephant in the room though is the pricing. `25 lakh isn’t particularly affordable. You need to remember that this is a CBU, which explains why it costs so much. Does it justify the price? Well you do get a fantastic driving experience, an excellent ambience and a terrific sense of build quality and in those respects it is highly recommended. But, you will also find SUVs that give you nearly everything you get here at a more affordable price and you will also find SUVs that give you a lot more at this price point.

Belting up and down that cold, wet mountain, the Karoq managed to put a smile on my face. And that’s more than can be said for most SUVs in this range. L

Left, from top to bottom: The back seat has just about enough knee room and adequate headroom; panoramic sunroof enhances the sense of space; the 1.5-litre TSI engine is good fun to wring

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FERRARI PORTOFINO Engine V6, 3855cc, twin-turbo petrol Power 591bhp @ 7500rpm Torque 760Nm @ 3000-5250rpm Weight 1664kg 0-100kmph 3.5sec (claimed) Top speed >320kmph (claimed) Price `3.54 crore (ex-showroom, India)

SKODA KAROQ Engine 1498cc, in-line 4-cyl, turbo-petrol Transmission 7-speed DCT Power 148bhp @ 5000-6000rpm Torque 250Nm @ 1500-3500rpm Weight 1320kg 0-100kmph NA Top speed NA Price `24.9 lakh (ex-showroom, India)

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SAFE P H O T O G R A P H Y b y RO H I T G M A N E

S PAC E Hyundai dealerships are sanitised to ensure you can make a trip down there, whether you want to buy a car or get it serviced

S P EC I A L F E AT U R E : M A K I N G O F H Y U N DA I C R ETA

GOING BACK TO NORMAL. IS THAT EVER GOING to happen? As the lockdown is lifted in most parts of the country, everyone is looking around for hints of familiarity, of life as we knew it. Car companies have taken the buying experience online, to ensure they could sell during the lockdown and also to prepare for the social distancing norms that are going to be a part of life going ahead. However, there is still a sizeable chunk of people that will want to visit a dealership before they put down their hard-earned money on a car. No matter which car it is — even a few lakhs isn’t a small amount. Hyundai understands this and has put a number of systems in place to ensure that its dealerships are hygienic, safe spaces that customers won’t need to think twice before visiting.

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It all starts at the door, with a temperature check to ensure those entering the premises are not showing symptoms of fever, and hand sanitiser being dispensed. On the inside every surface that is used often is sanitised regularly and norms are in place for social distancing. The display cars are generally pawed by every customer who is interested in the car, and these cars are santised completely every day.

High touch points like the steering wheel, gear knob, door handles/ latches, centre console, seat belt and buckle are sanitised after every demo. There are even disposable covers for the steering wheel and seats that are changed for every customer, to ensure that the car they are stepping in to is as safe as it possibly can be.

Sales advisors have even been encouraged to hold open

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HYUNDAI HA S PUT SYS TE MS IN PL ACE T O E N S U R E T H AT ITS DEALERSHIPS A R E H YG I E N I C , S A F E S PAC E S

the doors and shut them so you don’t have to touch anything unless absolutely necessary.

In the lounge, there are hand sanitisers everywhere and areas and surfaces that are frequented by people like the sofas, chairs, tabless and washrooms are sanitised every two hours. There are no more reusable tea cups and water glasses — it is all disposable now.

Meanwhile customers will be seated two metres apart and tables for negotiations have been spaced out properly too.

The staff at dealerships have been properly trained as well to wear masks, wash hands often and maintain social distancing. The dealership will give you a mask if you aren’t wearing one, to ensure you as well as others around you are safe. More importantly, the staff will encourage you to take appointments so there aren’t too many people in the dealership at one time. As for when you go for a test drive, your license and other belongings will be kept in a sanitised bag and a sanitised pen will be given to you. The same procedure of sanitising the car before and after you use it will be followed, with disposable seat covers and steering wheel covers, and the six high-touch points being sanitised before as well as after you use the car.

Above: Temperature checks before you enter the dealership. Top: Social distancing norms will be followed. Below: The six touchpoints that are constantly being sanitised – the door handles, seat belts, steering wheel, gear knob, centre console, belt buckle

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S P ECSIPAEC L FI AE LATFUERATE :U TOYOTA R E : B U Y ICNAGMARYH YH UY NB RDAI DI

WHEN IT COMES T O D E L I V E R Y, YO U CA N O P T F O R YO U R CA R T O B E DELIVERED HOME T O YO U A F T E R YO U MAKE A PURCHASE When it comes to delivery, you can opt for your car to be delivered home to you after you make a purchase. But if you want to come to the dealership to pick it up, there are measures in place for that too!

Delivery timings will be staggered to prevent crowds and the car will be sanitised beforehand and also in front of the customer. Social distancing will be maintained and documents will be kept in a sanitised paper bag and handed over to ensure that there is minimal contact between the staff and the customers.

And while buying the car is one thing, existing customers have to get their cars serviced as well.

There are safety measures in place for this process as well. Again, there is a temperature screening checkpoint before you enter, the staff all have their masks on and regularly wash their hands. Anywhere that the customer frequents like the lounge or the front desk will be sanitised every two hours. And of course, sanitisers are available everywhere so you can stay clean.

As for what is going on behind the scenes, repair orders will be displayed over sanitised tablets and RO copies and invoices will be sent digitally to your phone. No more exchanging paperwork! The seat and steering covers will be installed while anyone else is in the car and will only be taken off when you take delivery. As usual, the car will be sanitised before it is handed back to you and a tag will be placed on the mirror so you know your car has been treated.

So if you are wondering if heading down to your nearest Hyundai dealership is a good idea, fret not.

The company has put in place measures to deal with every part of the buying experience. Rest assured, these spaces are as safe as they can possibly be.

Probably even safer than they were before! L www.

Above: Staff will open doors for you so you don’t have to touch anything unnecessarily.

Facing page, top to bottom: Temperature checks at the service centre; masks are given out; disposable steering wheel covers used in display cars; all service personnel wear masks

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PHOTOGR A PH Y by A BHISHEK BENN Y

CLICK TO BUY Hyundai has also launched its online car buying platform so you don’t have to visit a dealership if you don’t want to

HILE DEALERSHIPS ARE OPENING UP ACROSS the country, many people would prefer to minimise human interaction as much as possible during the buying process. A number of manufacturers have taken to online buying platforms — and Hyundai’s Click to Buy makes the process of purchasing a car as seamless as possible. The Click to Buy Platform is an end-to-end platform that allows you to purchase a car from where you are sitting right now, provided you have an internet connection, of course.

How it works is simple — you head over to the Click to Buy website and select the car you want to buy. Everything from the entry-level Santro to a fully-kitted-out Tucson is available online. You then customise it — pick your drivetrain, trim level and colour. Now, to understand the car better, you can watch videos about the car, view a 360-degree rendering of the exteriors and interiors of the car and the detailed specifications. You are also furnished with the ex-showroom price of the car as you have specced it. You then feed in your location, and the website allows you to choose the dealer you want to buy your car from.

Post this, you need to create an account to continue. Once your account is created, a sales representative will be assigned to you, and they will present you with a quote and close in on a deal. Once the order is confirmed, you can finance the car by picking the options available on the website itself — you can opt for a car loan on the platform or ask the assistant to do it offline for you. Insurance will also be taken care of on the platform itself. The whole process is designed to be as convenient for you as possible, and you can connect with the assistant on phone call, email or even WhatsApp. Payments are all managed online and the car can be delivered at your doorstep if you so choose!

Everything that can be done in a regular dealership can be managed online. So special deals, changing dealers, availing of promotional offers, exchanging your old car in for a new one — all of this can be done online. Even test drives can be coordinated and organised online, as per your convenience. Car manufacturers are harnessing technology to ensure you have every option available to you — from visiting a dealership to taking the complete experience online, or anything in between. It’s all depends on what you are comfortable with! L

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TO U N D E R S TA N D THE CAR B E T T E R , YO U C A N W AT C H VIDEOS, VIEW 360-DEGREE RENDERINGS AND THE D E TA I L E D SPECS

P O RS C H E 7 1 8 S PY D E R

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WORDS by H E N RY C AT C H P O L E

NIGHT RIDER The heightened sensations afforded by the Porsche 718 Spyder’s open top aren’t restricted to daylight hours, as a nocturnal drive through an International Dark Sky Park reveals

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T

ING. IF SOLITUDE IS A LUXURY ON this often crowded planet then right now I must be one of the wealthiest people alive. Over sixty-six million people live in the UK and I’m not near any of them.

It’s this remoteness from humans and the light pollution that goes with their habitations that makes this area in Northumberland an International Dark Sky Park. Gazing up at the heavens, more and more pinpricks of light appear every second as my eyes adjust to the darkness.

Ting. There is an almost overwhelming, vertigolike sensation of the universe’s enormity and my own insignificance out here. Orion, one of the few constellations I can spot, is rising escorted (Ford joke there) by his dogs, big and small. I read recently that some stars in the big O’s belt are nearly as far away from each other as they are from earth. The mind (certainly mine anyway) boggles trying to comprehend things like that. I find it fills me with a curious combination of both terror and reassurance.

Ting. After a few minutes spent just staring at the stars my neck starts to get stiff, so I lower my gaze back to more immediate, sub-astral surroundings. The air is crisp and icy cold. Although I’m snug inside my down coat, each icy breath drawn through the nostrils sharpens the senses as it chills from the inside. With the darkness rendering my eyes semiredundant, my hearing feels heightened, but a stark silence pervades the still, chilly forest. The noiseless night is broken only occasionally by a tiny… Ting …from the Spyder’s stillcontracting metal.

A shiver shudders through me. Time to get moving again.

With its white paint, the 718 appears somewhat ghostly in the middle of Kielder Forest, but in a friendly, Casper sort of way. Dropping down into the bucket seat, the sense of security is reassuring. Turn the key a couple of stops and the dials throw some light into the darkness, mostly white but with a smattering of red between eight and nine, and from the Sport Chrono clock to my left. The main screen is off as I know where I’m going and don’t want any more artificial light in here than necessary.

Turn the key one stop more and the engine comes to life, sounding all of its 4 litres as it intrudes on the peaceful night.

But loud though it is, the idling boxer engine has a mellifluous and slightly breathy tone that doesn’t shatter the stillness so much as gently dissipates it. The sound’s tactile match can be found in the soft warmth of the Alcantara that greets your palms as you hold the steering wheel and push the gearlever forward for first.

Then it’s off towards the border with Scotland. As the miles pass I really can’t think of a new car that I would rather be in. As you’ll be aware, the 718 Cayman GT4 was crowned evo’s Car of the Year in 2019. But, worthy a winner though it was, I think its open-top sibling, the 718 Spyder, is even better. Whereas the previous 981 GT4 had a more sophisticated chassis than its Spyder counterpart, this time round there are no suspension compromises with the soft-top version. As a result, you get all the wonderful GT department dynamics combined with the ability to remove the roof, soak up the sound and immerse yourself in even more sensations than with the GT4.

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IT’S A HUGE B O N U S H AV I N G N AT U R E ’ S VERSION OF A R O L L S ‑ R OYC E ROOFLINING A B OV E YO U

THE SPYDER FEEL S L I K E A C O M PA N I O N R AT H E R T H A N JUST A MODE OF TRANSPORT

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Certainly for a drive such as this it feels like a huge added bonus being able to have nature’s version of a Rolls-Royce rooflining above you. And even when the clouds are covering the celestial fibre-optics, there is still something wonderful about hearing the volume of the howl from the 414bhp naturally aspirated flat-six rise and fall depending on the surroundings. Trees all around: it’s an intimate gig in a pub.

Open moorland: more like the cheap seats in a stadium.

Of course, the scenery is largely unseen even on a clear night like this. You might be aware of the dark mass of hills or feel the slightly warmer air brought by woodland, or even catch a glimpse of the shimmering silver surface of a lake, but by and large the headlights focus your attention on a narrow view ahead. You concentrate on a slim corridor of light, the beams, however good, only giving you a small selection of information about what you’re driving towards. Where in the day you might use a line of telegraph poles or the edge of a wood to help plot the path of the road and see through a corner, the night dictates more caution. The vanishing point is everything. Yet while the darkness sometimes tempers speed dramatically, it also exacerbates the sense of it so that every daytime kmph is worth a fraction more at night.

I was very much afraid of the dark as a child. But not if I was with someone else. Even if the other person was scared, their mere presence would somehow embolden me. And curious though it may sound, driving the Spyder means that you don’t feel alone. Such is the friendly, communicative nature of the car that it feels, as the best cars do, like a companion on a journey rather than just a mode of transport.

Heading uphill on a twisting stretch of tarmac that I’ve driven numerous times in recent years, I turn into a righthander with average pace and feel the rear instantly begin to slide. Low temperature, a new road surface, whatever the reason, the back wheels are taking a longer way round the corner than the fronts. This is often tricky in the dark, because you need to steer towards a point that is in a different direction to the one in which your headlights are shining. In other words, it can be scary.

Not in the Spyder. Just as on a bright midsummer’s day with warmth running through rubber and asphalt, this car seems to afford you that other great luxury: time. There is no need to panic or snatch at the wheel because things seem to happen in a gloriously progressive, slow motion. What’s more, it feels intuitive, like a harmonious extension of your own movements. You find yourself winding on the perfect amount of corrective lock as instinctively as knowing how deeply to breathe. It’s a bit like the sensation you get when you’ve got a full harness squeezing you into a seat so tightly that you feel fused with a chassis’ movements. Except in the Spyder this feeling of innate oneness with the car’s weight transfers comes while being clamped in place with no more pressure than is afforded by a normal inertia reel seatbelt.

A significant part of the Spyder’s calm progression must come from the tyres. It’s my first time driving on the Dunlop Sport Maxx Race 2s that are the factory alternative to Michelin Above left and left: 718 Spyder offers occupants something its Cayman GT4 counterpart can’t replicate: an unobstructed view out, and the enhanced soundtrack to go with it

Cup 2s, and I would suggest that in low temperatures or damp conditions the Dunlops have appreciably less adhesion than the French boots, but they relinquish their hold smoothly and, whether gripping or slipping, give a really nice sense of connection with the surface. It’s this window around the breaking of the tyre’s hold on the road that is obviously particularly crucial, and with the Dunlops it seems to be a nice big sash rather than a little porthole.

This means that down a good piece of road you can be expressive with how you move the Spyder through a series of corners. Leaning on sidewalls just so, retaining balance, pushing the front, allowing some hip swivel with momentum or throttle, or both. After a while you realise the Spyder is actually behaving rather 911-like. The way you tend to set the front tyres sliding a little on the way into a corner is very tradElfer. And it’s a lovely feeling dangling the nose just over the limit of grip, knowing you can get the rear sliding whenever you want. All you need to do is lift off the throttle so that the nose bites and the rear lightens. You don’t have quite the pendulous sensation of a rear-engined car but that just makes the weight transition phase slightly shorter and the overall balance easier to manage. Like I said, it’s a good companion.

We cross into Scotland to tackle a couple more pieces of familiar road. Or at least familiar in daylight. Even illuminated by the brilliant white light of LED main beams the road takes on a new character. You recognise parts, but sometimes only at the last minute. Distances between corners seem oddly different. Bumps and dips are exaggerated by the shadows cast by the headlights. Occasionally a pair of eyes will glance up, two tiny reflections attached to an unidentified body. At the crest of a bridge the world ahead is momentarily blank beneath inclined beams. Now and again the way the light hits the verge on a bend makes you think there is a car approaching when there isn’t.

It all serves to make you hesitate, time and again. Initially it can feel frustrating, although in the Spyder it does mean you have more excuses for exercising the slickly satisfying six-speed manual. But gradually you begin to read the road in a new way, understanding the fashion in which the unidirectional light falls on different tarmacs, being grateful for white lines where they exist, using the reflections from signs or marker posts. It all builds a different but fascinating picture by which you can navigate the night and regain some flow down a familiar road.

Being back near Kielder at night is actually something that sends shivers down my spine regardless of the temperature.

The reason? Well, in 2007 this famous forest was the scene of my first few miles in the British Rally Championship, and those seminal stages remain the most terrified I have ever been in a car. It was the Pirelli Rally, and setting off at the back of the BRC field in a little, lightly modified Suzuki Swift I felt totally at sea as we ricocheted along the relentlessly rough fire roads.

Deep ruts gouged by the four-wheel-drive cars in front meant that for at least half the time it seemed like we were surfing on the Swift’s sump guard, with the steering largely ineffectual. The trouble was that if the car ever climbed out of the cavernous ruts then the oodles of loose gravel meant it felt like we had moved onto ice. The surface would instantly

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send us slipping towards the deep ditches that line the forest tracks, the puny power of the Suzuki scrabbling at the surface in a frantic effort to stop us being sucked into the dark depths.

The car’s lamp pod looked cool (I think all lamp pods do) but the spots were a bit squinty to say the least and what little illumination was being shed onto the stage seemed to be sucked into the frightening forest rather than being reflected back. To make matters worse there would occasionally be a blinding camera flash from an unseen photographer in the trees, rendering me mole-like for the next few moments.

I have never felt less in control of a vehicle than during those three stages in the night. An accident never seemed more than a minuscule moment away. Despite everything I had done to achieve my goal of rallying in the British Championship, I genuinely considered getting out of the car and walking away into the forest during that night.

Of course, the rest of the year, in fact even the next day, would prove to be everything I had hoped for and more, but those miles in Killer Kielder have haunted me ever since. As such, this drive, albeit on tarmac rather than gravel and in a car wholly unlike the Swift, feels a little like catharsis. It feels good to be turning the thought of driving here from a nightmare into a dream.

The hours and miles pass as I explore further. Traffic remains sparser than a Waitrose during a royal wedding. It feels like I’ve snuck into… well, I was going to say school, but to be honest pretty much any shop or office or building after everyone has gone home to sleep. This feels like one big after-hours playground, except there’s no fence to climb or security guard to dodge. It feels like freedom. (Had I not already crossed the border back into England, at this point I might have been tempted to channel my inner Mel Gibson.

No one would hear me…)

Eventually I head out of the forest and reach a small village, the buildings huddling together in the darkness. I make sure the exhaust is on its quieter setting and enjoy the gruff sound as the boxer drops to three cylinders under a light load. There are a couple of street lamps and it’s strange driving through these brief pools of brilliance after the dense inkiness of the countryside. Even outside of this artificial illumination it’s amazing how much light is reflected by walls, windows and anything else man-made. A light flicks on behind some curtains. Rising early for a morning shift? A baby needing attention? Perhaps just a nagging bladder. It suddenly feels strange to know there is some other human life up and about at this hour, however blearily.

Round an empty roundabout. Tempting. Then I have to pause at some temporary traffic lights. Stop/start kicks in and as I wait in silence to be bathed in green I glance up at the fantastic firmament once more. Orion’s still there, hunting his quarry. Somewhere there’s a scorpion chasing him.

Ting.

The light turns green, but there’s no one behind to hoot so I steal a few more seconds staring at the stars from the Spyder.

If you want an adventure, you don’t have to go abroad, or even that far from home. You don’t even need a 718 Spyder.

The night is available freely to all. And it’s well worth exploring. L

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THIS IS LIKE ONE BIG AFTER-HOURS P L AY G R O U N D .

IT FEELS LIKE FREEDOM

PORSCHE 718 SPYDER Engine Flat-six, 3995cc Power 414bhp @ 7600rpm Torque 420Nm @ 5000-6800rpm Weight 1420kg Power-to-weight 296bhp/ton 0-100kmph 4.4sec Top speed 300kmph Price `1.5 crore (estimated)

WORDS by R I C H A R D M E A D E N

PRECIOUS METAL

Just 19 Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato Continuations have been built, honouring the 1959 original. Richard Meaden drives this multi-million pound recreation

A STO N M A RT I N D B 4 GT Z AG ATO CO N T I N UAT I O N

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ACK IN THE ’50S AND ’60S, when Aston Martin was owned by industrialist David Brown, he was famously telephoned by a customer who was keen to buy a new DB5, but less eager to pay full retail price. When asked by said chap if he could purchase the car at cost price, Brown is reputed to have replied: ‘Of course! That will be £1000 over list, then.’

How times change. Six decades later Aston Martin is once again building ‘DB’ models at Newport Pagnell, albeit in ultra-limited runs of special ‘Continuations’. This began in 2016 with the build of 25 fabulous DB4 GTs and, er, continued last year with the completion of 19 exquisite DB4 GT Zagatos. Next in line is a run of 25 brand new Goldfinger DB5s, with other projects in the pipeline.

Quite what the redoubtable Mr Brown would have made of the whole continuation phenomena is open to conjecture, but I have a feeling he would be entirely supportive of the pricing strategy, which somewhat remarkably positioned the DB4 GT Zagato Continuation as the most expensive new car in the world.

Forming one half of the DBZ Centenary Far right, middle: 3.7-litre straight-six of collection – 19 pairs of cars built to the 1959 car has grown mark Zagato’s centenary and celebrate to 4.7 litres here, with the Italian carrozzeria’s enduring power up by 66bhp and collaboration with Aston Martin – Aston’s torque by 111Nm. Right: most avid collectors were required to part Bodywork is symmetrical this time around with a knee-knocking `55 crore (plus local taxes). In return they first received their DB4 GT Zagato, followed by an all-new DBS GT Zagato just as soon as the exotically bodied DBS Superleggera-based machine enters production at Aston Martin’s Special Ops facility at Wellesbourne.

Of course, the Centenary collection’s stratospheric price tag is almost entirely a function of the value of original DB4 GTZs, which currently sit somewhere north of `92 crore. Whether you go Dutch on the Centenary collection’s `55 crore sum and say the Continuation accounts for half of it, or apportion all of it to the DB4 and assume the DBS completes the greatest BOGOF deal in history is entirely academic. Suffice to say it’s all so far beyond the realm of even today’s top-tier hypercar pricing that all you can do is shake your head and marvel at how pleased you’d be if you got dealt either of these Zagato-badged wonders in a hand of Top Trumps.

What we do know is each of the 19 DB4 GTZs is the mouthwatering product of 4500 hours of painstaking craftsmanship by the team at Aston Martin Works. Even so, it’s all too easy to be cynical about a programme that makes new examples of old icons.

Cynical, or perhaps uneasy at the possibility that in doubling the original number of DB4 GTZs (not to mention adding to the run of four ‘Sanction II’ cars built from regular DB4 donor cars with Aston’s blessing in 1989), these Continuations somehow muddy the waters in the same way admittedly lesser and far more numerous copies of Shelby Cobras and Ford GT40s have done in the past.

See one of these cars in the metal and you quickly realise that fear is very much misplaced. OK, so there has been a 60-year hiatus in production, but these are factory-built cars, built from all-new components, made in the exact image of their ancestors and blessed with enhanced performance, quality and reliability.

You’d need to have a heart of stone not to appreciate the magic that surrounds these cars. Not only built in the same place as its legendary 1959 forebear, but made with the same age-old skills.

Skills that have found a new lease of life in the youthful enthusiasm of a dozen apprentices taken on by Works since the Continuation programme began.

With bodywork hand-beaten by Zagato’s artisans from flat sheets of thin-gauge aluminium and shaped by eye to follow the contours of wooden bucks, no two panels were ever exactly the same.

Indeed, when subjected to scrutiny those original cars were often found to be somewhat asymmetric!

This time around the bodies are fashioned in-house at Newport Pagnell. Laser scanning of multiple original cars meant Works could create a digital buck as a master reference, ensuring surfaces that were perfectly symmetrical while remaining faithful to Ercole Spada’s wonderful lines. Those paper-thin (1.2mm!) panels were then attached to the DB4’s ‘Superleggera’ structure and meticulously hand-finished prior to going into Works’ state-of-

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O N C E Y O U G O T O W O R K , T H E C A R T R U LY C O M E S A L IV E I N YO U R H A N D S

A S TO N M A RT I N D B 4 GT Z AG ATO CO N T I N UAT I O N

the-art paint booths. All 19 cars were completed at the very end of 2019, but evo was fortunate enough to visit Works at the height of production and witnessed half the production run in various states of completion. From raw alloy carapaces still bearing smoothing scuffs and deft abrasions left by the supremely skilful panel beaters to impossibly glossy painted cars sitting squat and perfectly poised on beautiful Borrani wire wheels. It could have been a scene straight from 1959.

Like the chassis structure and bodywork, the running gear borrows its design from the original car, but benefits from advances in engineering methods and material science, not to mention the continual performance and reliability developments by worldrenowned marque specialists such as RS Williams. More of which in a moment.

Due to legislative restrictions, all 19 GTZ Continuations were sold for track use. That said, for those who wish to drive their Zagatos on the road, Ray Mallock Limited (RML) helpfully developed a postregistration compliance kit that will pass the Individual Vehicle Approval (IVA) test. It’s almost like it was planned…

Sadly, Works’ development car isn’t road-legal, but fortunately we have Aston Martin’s Stowe test track on which to play. Nestling discreetly within Silverstone’s GP circuit, it’s a great place to get a feel for a car, with plenty of opportunities to fling it around and a couple of modest straights to punch through the gears.

Walking up to the bright red Zagato, tiny ignition key in hand, is a slightly surreal moment. Not due to its value, but because it feels like the vanishing point where six decades of history don’t so much collide as come full circle.

This particular Zag has done plenty of laps around here, largely in the hands of Aston’s factory race driver and three-time Le Mans class winner, Darren Turner. Despite nods to modern safety, such as a hefty lattice-framed roll-cage, slightly incongruous-looking carbonfibre seat, full harnesses and a fire system, it’s very much an old-school car to climb into.

Hook your index finger through the small loop, push the button and the lightweight door swings eagerly on its hinges. The interior is plain, with an array of white-on-black Smiths dials to cast your eyes over. In your hands is the large-diameter steering wheel with thin wooden rim, while the equally spindly gearlever is topped with a small teardrop-shaped knob.

Nothing is servo-assisted so there’s a physicality to all the pedals and major controls. Initially this fosters a sense of deadness, at least when you’ve become used to the urgency, ease and general brightness of modern power-assisted cars. However, once you go to work, the car truly comes to life in your hands.

From the moment you turn the ignition key you’re drawn into the intoxicating process of driving. Fuel pumps tick and rattle from the tail of the car as they prime the bank of triple Weber carburettors slung from the right-hand side of the classic Tadek Marek-designed twin-plug straight-six. Displacement is up by a litre over the original version, lifting capacity to 4.7 litres, power to a solid 380bhp (from 314bhp) at 6000rpm and torque to an equally impressive 488Nm (up

Right: With extremely modest grip levels, both the rear and front ends of the DB4 GT Zagato can be easily overwhelmed if you’re not measured with your inputs

Opposite page, middle left: speeds steadily fall as the i8 struggles uphill under electric power, seeing the three-cylinder motor kick in to assist

A STO N M A RT I N D B 4 GT Z AG ATO CO N T I N UAT I O N

from 377) at 5000rpm. These are big numbers for a car weighing a little over 1200kg and rolling on rims that are a scant five inches wide and wrapped by historic racing tyres.

Thanks to the track-only nature of the car, its suspension and gearbox are competition items. That’s to say rose-jointed for maximum feel and minimal compliance, and non-synchromesh for quick shifts and durability. Together with the race-raw motor, which spits and snorts impatiently, the first few laps are a raucous and rather overwhelming affair.

This car is anathema to the modern high-performance driving experience. You are literally responsible for every single input and operation. No nonsense, no driver aids and no place to hide. Right from the off you’re put to the test, slotting home first gear with a kerchunk, then easing away with measured throttle so as not to flood the generous float chambers of those huge Weber carbs.

For a while you flounder. If you’ve never driven a ’50s or ’60s car before, all your conventional reference points are useless. Even if you have, it’s a struggle to dial yourself into the machine. Go is

prodigious, but grip is very, very modest, so it’s easy to overwhelm either end of the car if you’re oafish with your inputs. Take a breath and wind things back a bit and slowly you begin to establish a set of boundaries. Coax the steering and you find some grip to lean on.

S-q-u-e-e-z-e the throttle and it sits down and finds more traction.

Meld those two inputs and suddenly your right foot has as much say over the Zag’s trajectory as your hands.

It’s a bit like driving on snow; if you’re early, smooth and sensitive with your inputs you can transfer weight forwards on the way in and rearwards on the way out of corners. This helps reduce the front tyres’ workload when it comes to making an initial direction change, and in turn enables you to use the rear wheels (and throttle!) to steer your course onto the next straight.

Shifting gear is a lesson in measured aggression. Dither and you’ll crunch and grind your way through a box of neutrals, but hammer the lever through the gate and it feels too brutal. The sweetest shifts are delivered with a Bruce Lee-like one-inch punch, with the lever whipping through the gate like a switch. Downshifts

ASTON MARTIN DB4 GT ZAGATO CONTINUATION Engine In-line 6-cyl, 4670cc Power 380bhp @ 6000rpm Torque 488Nm @ 5000rpm Weight 1230kg Power-to-weight 314bhp/ton Price `66 crore (includes DBS Superleggera Zagato, excludes Indian taxes and duties)

need some deft pedal work, too, ideally a double declutch blip-shift rather than a regular heel-and-toe.

Braking is perhaps the trickiest to master. Not because the brakes are weak, but because there’s no ABS and modest grip to play with.

You have to recalibrate your brain to long braking distances. Partly because the Zag really does romp along, and also because it is happiest stopping in a straight line. Brake too late, or simply try to extend your braking effort towards an apex and you’ll feel a wheel begin to lock up. It’s about as far from the smash-and-grab braking style encouraged by current high-performance road and race cars as is possible to get.

You might expect Aston Martin Works to be ultra-protective about this precious car. You certainly wouldn’t blame it. Yet much to my amazement Works boss Paul Spires lets me enjoy lap after lap. Lots for photography and lots more for the hell of it. I think it’s fair to say I got a bit carried away, but in the process of chewing through a large portion of the skinny Dunlop Racing tyres’ tread I got to know the Zag very well indeed.

Part of me is left thinking it perhaps has a little too much performance for its own good, for that 4.7-litre motor is a dominant force. Another part of me thinks the dog ’box and rose-jointed suspension would be too much for road use should you elect to do RML’s post-registration IVA test. But then the racer and romantic in me thinks it would be pretty epic to drive one of these awesome cars to Le Mans Classic, beat some Ferraris, then drive home again.

Which is, after all, what the originals were designed to do.

The business of remaking classic icons is controversial and the sums of money involved are madness. At least to all but those who can afford them. Still, in the case of this DB4 GT Zagato the end result is something undeniably magnificent. While the latest wing-festooned wedges of carbonfibre chase downforce and lap times, this freshly minted DB4 GTZ shuns such binary brutalism and instead rejoices in the style, emotion and dynamics of a golden age. As a creation to covet and a car to connect you to an almost overwhelmingly pure, tactile and rewarding driving experience, it is just about perfect. L

IT WOULD BE PRETTY EPIC TO DRIVE TO LE MANS C L A S S I C , B E AT SOME FERRARIS, THEN DRIVE HOME AGAIN

S

JERSEY

RS STICKE

TEES

S

IN KEYCHA

SE NEW CT ION

THIP’S DUCA 205B

ALL-NEWHTER V4S STREETFIG

T H G I F

T H FLIG

UPFRONT: BMW F 900s, BRAND-NEW TRIUMPHS & MORE RIDDEN: ALL-NEW HONDA CRF1100L AFRICA TWIN FEATURE: RECUPERATING AFTER THE LOCKDOWN

PLUS

NEW S & REVIE WS PLANET FAST BIKES – NEW META L,

Is the CB500 range headed to India?

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n conversation with Fast Bikes India, Yadvinder Singh Guleria, director, HMSI suggested that Honda is readying a sub-500cc motorcycle range for India. He also added that the motorcycles are ‘already sold abroad’ which quite obviously hints at the CB500 range along with the Rebel 500. Honda is planning to manufacture the range locally which would lead to optimal pricing. If our speculation is correct, the CB500 range – which includes the likes of CB500F, CBR500R and CB500X will be launched in India along with the Rebel 500 which shares the same engine. Speaking of which, all the motorcycles are powered by the same 471cc, parallel-twin, DOHC motor that churns out 50bhp and a

FTR gets the carbonfibre treatment

WORDS: ABHISHEK WAIRAGADE

BIG WINGS healthy 45Nm torque. The figures may not sound substantial when compared to the KTM 390 Duke which features a smaller capacity single yet makes almost the same amount of torque and weighs much less. But we have already ridden the CB500 range in Malaysia and going by initial impressions, we can tell you that these are typical Hondas – supremely refined and very comfortable. The CB500X which is an adventure tourer would be the

ideal motorcycle from the range, as it not only offers a comfortable riding position and longer travel suspension, but also fills up the void in the ADV market that ranges from the Hero Xpulse 200, the Royal Enfield Himalayan and the KTM 390 Adventure at one end of the spectrum to the Kawasaki Versys 650 and Suzuki V-Storm 650 at the other. We expect the whole range to be priced between `3.5-3.8 lakh.

CARBON UPGRADE

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he FTR 1200 has been luring a new set of buyers for Indian Motorcycles owing to its neo-retro elements combined with a powerful motor. And to bring in more numbers, Indian has given it a set of carbonfibre updates calling it the FTR 1200 Carbon, for obvious reasons. The headlight nacelle, airbox cover, fuel tank, front fender and rear seat cowl are all made of carbonfibre. There’s also a new FTR Carbon logo plate for those who still don’t get it. Interestingly, the bike has put on 3kg thanks to a new full-exhaust system sourced from Akrapovic. The exhaust lends it three extra horses while the torque remains the same. There are no other mechanical changes to the FTR 1200 though. We believe the Carbon variant along with Rally will be introduced in India later this year.

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THE BRITS ARE COMING!

BMW F 900 XR and F 900 R

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riumph India is on a roll and following closely on the heels of the 2020 Street Triple RS’ launch, the British bikemaker is all set to bring in five more models to our shores this year.

Starting with the Tiger 900, the stream will be followed by the Street Triple R, Rocket 3 GT, T100 Black and T120 Black.

The most important launch will be the Tiger 900 which is one of the most popular mid-weight ADVs in the country and considering the positive word-ofmouth, the 900 is expected to bring in good numbers despite the slowdown. The Street Triple R is the mid-spec variant and is set to replace the S in the country. The Rocket 3 GT is a touring-oriented variant with forward-set pegs and a wider, relaxed handlebar. The T100 and T120 Black editions are, as the name suggest, blacked-out variants of the Bonnies, paying homage to the original 1959 model.

ALL-NEW MID-WEIGHT BEAMERS ARE HERE

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MW’s F 900 XR and F 900 R as the name suggests are the same bikes underneath with subtle tweaks to make them adventure/road friendly. Featuring a bored-out motor derived from the F 850 GS, the BS6 compliant bikes make 103bhp which is on par with the competition. The F 900 XR is the more ideal of the duo for Indian conditions, owing to its longer-travel suspension, relaxed rider’s triangle and more features, including the likes of electronic suspension and cruise control on the Pro variant. The F 900 R on the other hand comes only as standard and

doesn’t feature any of the goodies. The pricing is very aggressive; starting at `9.9 lakh for the F 900 R while the F 900 XR is available in two variants – Standard and Pro – costing `10.5 lakh and `11.5 lakh, respectively. But remember, these are introductory prices and are expected to go up marginally once the initial stock is sold out. The naked is another addition to the burgeoning mid-weight segment in the country, featuring the likes of the Triumph Street Triple range and KTM 790 Duke while the XR goes head-to-head against the Ducati Multistrada 950.

ALL-NEW VERSYS 1000?

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New brows for the ‘Triple RS

awasaki’s BS6 range is here but the Versys 1000 was always BS6-compliant suggests the company, since its update back in 2019. The 2020 variants feature a LED headlight, an adjustable windscreen and a semi-digital LCD console.

Rider aids include traction control, cruise control, IMU-based cornering ABS alongside two riding modes. The Versys 1000, as the name suggests, is powered by the same 1043cc motor underpinning the Ninja 1000, producing 118bhp and 102Nm torque. It also sits at the top of the Versys range in India which includes the Versys-X 300 and the Versys 650.

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FIGHT OR WORDS: MIKE BOOTH

|

IMAGES: JAMIE MORRIS

FLIGHT? DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S The naughty naked we've all been waiting for will soon be coming to our shores so we took one for a spin, Fast Bikes style…

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was like a dog with two erm… bones, when my name got put down to go on the launch of the new Ducati Streetfighter V4S. It was going to be in Spain and I simply couldn’t wait. But after months of waiting excitedly, we were given the inevitable news that, thanks to the current global coronavirus crisis, the launch wouldn’t take place. It was a bitter pill to swallow, but it was, of course, totally understandable and necessary. In our anticipation of things going south, though, we pulled a bit of a blinder as far as the Ducati’s new naked weapon goes – a few weeks before the country went into complete lockdown, we managed to get our hands on one to take for a spin on the UK roads (in fact, I believe it was the very first one registered in the country) – it’s not what you know, it’s who you know, right?

There has been loads of excitement about this model, and for good reason. With a power-plant straight out of a Panigale V4, the new naked makes 205bhp (@ 12,750rpm) and 123Nm of torque (@11,500rpm) and with a dry weight of 178kg (kerb weight 199kg), the boys (and girls) from Bologna had told us that their new weapon was going to blow the opposition out the water, and if the spec sheet is anything to go by, most would be inclined to agree.

The ‘S’ version would cost roughly `20 lakh, coming with Marchesini forged wheels and the latest Öhlins EC 2.0 semi-active electronic suspension, while for around `17 lakh you would be able to get hold of the standard version.

We picked up a shiny new, barely run-in Streetfighter V4S from a top-secret location in the UK for a full day’s worth of skids, wheelies and general dickery – just the sort of thing that we think a bike like this has been designed for, and despite the weather doing its level best to turn freeze my man jewels, we had a day full to bursting with laughs, on possibly, nay probably, the sexiest new

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Highlights

Sex on two wheels Smooth like butter Techno, techno, techno 199kg 205bhp 123Nm BRAKING Super Stylemas

10

STABILITY

9

AGILITY

9

Winged wonder

Supersport spec

PERFORMANCE 10 Incredible

FUN

The definition

10

DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S

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motorbike for 2020…

Apparently, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, or so they say. I don’t really know what that means, but whoever the ‘beholder’ is, he must have been at EICMA in 2019, because he (or indeed 36.7 per cent of the voters at the Milan Show) voted the Streetfighter V4S ‘The Most Beautiful Bike of the Show’. I can see why. Its aggressive, imposing stance is everything a super-naked should be, and indeed everything a bike named ‘Streetfighter’ should be. In fact, if you asked someone to draw an aggressive looking motorbike, I’m pretty sure they’d have a good go at drawing something that looked like this new weapon from Bologna.

Having done plenty of miles on the Panigale V4S, chucking a leg over the ’Fighter seemed a reasonably familiar experience – you’re greeted by the same dash and V4 boom when striking the motor up, but that’s where the similarities end, at least for the time being anyway. The riding position is a lot nearer to what you’d call acceptable on the road, taller and more upright – not quite as tall and upright as the old 1098 Streetfighter, but a lot less ‘wrist heavy’ than the Panigale from which it shares its 1103cc Desmosedici Stradale motor.

I was more than happy to see the heated grips button on the right-hand switchgear, but no matter how many times I pressed it, I couldn’t see anything on the dash to tell me I’d activated them, nor feel any heat through my best winter gloves. It wasn’t until later on that I realised that although the button is free, the actual heated grips themselves are an optional extra that will set you back another `25,000. What a swizz.

Before making my way out into the wild I thumbed through the familiar modes and settings and selected ‘Street’ for my first tentative steps into the Streetfighter’s world, half expecting the thing to be a right old handful, even in its tamest setting. Very quickly I realised this was not to be the case. Even at really low revs, the chuggy Ducati clatter that I’d become accustomed to was almost non-existent. Tickling through towns and villages on the ’Fighter was buttery smooth, and not in the least what I expected – a pleasant surprise.

It wasn’t long before one of the Streetfighter’s most ingenious tricks made itself known. At tickover, the back cylinders literally turn off, to avoid burning your arse and inner thigh – a trait that the Panigale V4 is well known for. As it happens, a bit of extra warmth wouldn’t have gone amiss on our ride, but come summertime, I’d put money on being glad of this neat little trick. The first time it happened, I wasn’t sure what it was (it sounded like someone had bunged the exhaust up), but you only have to blip the throttle and all four pots spark back into life.

Pleasant though the bike was through town, it isn’t a machine that’s designed for speed bumps and supermarket car parks. And that became quite evident when we found a bit of open road, because that’s what it was designed for. The smoothness that had made the bike so sweet to ride at a comparable snail’s pace certainly didn’t fall by the wayside when I started to open the throttle up even more, and the more I did, the more that big V4 rewarded me. According to Ducati, the Streetfighter makes 70 per cent of its torque between 4,000rpm and 9,000rpm, which is where I tended to find myself most of the time once we got out on to the proper roads. It’s at that point, I hasten to add, that I opted to bin off ‘Street’ mode and ride the bike in ‘Race’ mode, completely leapfrogging the mummy-bear ‘Sport’ mode.

‘Race’ mode certainly gave the package a tauter, more aggressive

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DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S

...And you'll be able to compress even the firmest of fork legs

feel, but it still felt beautifully ridable at any speed. The way the engine punched its power out at the circa 6000rpm mark meant there didn’t seem like a lot of point letting the thing rev to its 14,500rpm red-line – you could open the throttle and in any gear there would be bags and bags of poke, more than enough to hoist the front wheel in the air. Well, there didn’t seem a lot of point until I actually tried revving it to its 14,500rpm redline, I should say.

Because wow. That Desmo engine is just the gift that keeps on giving; it’s as though it’s never going to stop. From about 10k onwards, you find yourself waiting for the limiter, as the thing just gets faster, louder and more exciting. I was literally laughing in my helmet, just waiting for the red-line.

The calm and collected demeanour that had impressed me so, only half-an-hour earlier, was a thing of the past – I could barely believe it was the same bike, as all I’d done was given it a few extra revs, and it had turned into a head-case. A serious head-case.

The Streetfighter might not have the variable inlet trumpets that its sportier brother, the Panigale, has, but it’s certainly no slouch in the performance department; normally at this point I’d be considering which of the other big supernakeds would be able to match the ’Fighter’s performance, but I can’t help thinking that this www.

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powerhouse would be more at home pitched against a full-on superbike.

Whilst we are talking about silly speeds, the lack of wind protection was particularly evident (there was none), but I’d be lying if I said it bothered me on the route we took. Another slight niggle I had, when we were getting the hammer down, was the gearbox – the shifter and blipper were both cracking, but I got a falsey once or twice when going from fifth to sixth gear. It didn’t ruin my ride, but once it happened a few times, it was always in the

STYLING

Despite a big old pair of handlebars and the lack of a fairing, you can see there have been a lot of design cues taken from the Panigale family; its holes through the rear seat unit and single-sided swinger are oh-so Ducati – but we think it looks great. Ducati reckon they have tried to mimic the grin of ‘The Joker’ with the fullLED headlight set up (although we can’t really see it), and there is about enough bodywork to attach the biplane wings and not much more so expect a windy ride if you’re going to be getting a move on.

ENGINE

The new Streetfighter uses the 1103cc Desmosedici Stradale V4 engine that we know and love from the Panigale V4, but with some subtle changes to the intake and engine mapping. The Streetfighter doesn’t have the variable inlet trumpets, hence peak power on the Pani is a little bit stronger, and the final drive ratios are a bit shorter, so there is still plenty of punch. And if you’ve got enough pennies left over, a full racing Ducati Performance Exhaust by Akrapovic will boost power to 216bhp (as well as losing 6kg) – just imagine the fun you could have! – and that works for us.

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back of my mind.

I did try to discern whether or not the Ducati Corse Biplane Wings were making a difference to my road ride, but I’d be lying if I said I could tell whether or not they were having any real effect. I understand the science of them (sort of) so I’m sure they were helping things in their own way, but it’s an effect that’s way too subtle for a rough lad like me to notice out on the street. On a big fast race track it might be a different story.

I did notice, however, how good the mirrors were. Every other

DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S

ELECTRONICS

The Streetfighter uses Ducati’s latest generation electronics package with a six-axis IMU, which controls every part of the ride, with three riding modes, Street, Sport and Race. This tech includes DTC (Ducati Traction Control) Evo2, their latest TC system, which was developed on the Desmosedici MotoGP bike. It uses a new ‘predictive’ strategy to intercept any wheel-spin even before you feel it happening, ensuring faster, smoother intervention. There are eight different levels of DTC Evo2.

On or off? A 5mm Allen key holds the power

WINGS

The ‘Ducati Corse Biplane Wings’ have been developed to maximise stability at speed and when braking, as well as reducing wheelie-ing without having to electronically quell the power.

Altogether the four wings generate 28kg of downforce at 270km/h (168mph), 20kg on the front wheel and 8kg on the rear, as well as directing more air through the radiator and oil cooler, keeping engine temperatures down. Ducati reckon that the downforce produced stabilises the bike enough to help the rider keep the throttle open longer, brake later and harder – and that works for us.

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bike I’ve ridden with the V4 Stradale engine might as well not have mirrors – even when the bike is doing little more than ticking over they are nigh-on useless, all you can see in them is a blur of colour in which it is impossible to pick anything out. Not on the Streetfighter, though, whose mirrors are not only plenty wide (so you can see round the back of your elbows without having to pull them out the way), but they are fixed in a way that doesn’t make them vibrate to the tune of the engine. Sometimes, it’s the little things that make the difference.

After a quick Big Mac and some full-fat Coke I decided I needed to see just how well the Streetfighter could cope when properly pushed, so went in search of some twists and turns to really put the Duc through its paces. A five-minute scan of Google Maps was all I needed to find what I was looking for, so I donned my lid and set a course for my new-found playground.

En route I decided to have a play with the electronic suspension, which I’ll admit I never used to be a big fan of, but the Öhlins EC2.0 really is nothing short of superb. To be able to alter the attitude of your bike’s set up at the touch of a button (ok, a few touches of a few buttons), particularly on the road, makes life so much easier, and comfier. Bumpy, nasty roads can be made much more palatable by softening everything off, but what makes me really smile is how well it makes the bike handle when things get twisty.

I soon got to the roads I’d scoped out on Google Maps, and I wasn’t disappointed. Smooth, clean tarmac (if a little cold) meandered from left to right to left again and screamed out for me to fling the ’Fighter from one side to the other, burning through my new knee sliders as I went. No matter what I threw at it, it just lapped it up.

u r ha n d s to get yo Too posh ronic suspension ct dirty? Ele er is the answ

ly lov ely!

Just like the Panigale's...

TECH DATA

2020 Ducati Streetfighter V4S ENGINE

Type: Bore x Stroke: Compression: Fuelling: Claimed power: Claimed torque:

1103cc liquid-cooled 90° V4 Desmodromic 81 x 53.5mm 14.1:1 Electronic fuel injection 205bhp @ 12,750rpm 123Nm @ 11,500rpm

ELECTRONICS

RBW/Riding Modes: Yes/three Traction Control: ABS: Quickshifter: Wheelie Control: Launch Control: Autoblipper:

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

CHASSIS

Frame:

Aluminium front frame

Front suspension: Öhlins NIX30 43mm EC2.0 USD Rear suspension: Front brakes: Rear brakes:

forks Öhlins TTX36 EC2.0 monoshock 2 x 330mm discs, Brembo Stylema callipers 245mm disc, two-piston caliper

DIMENSIONS

Wheelbase: Seat height: Wet weight: Fuel capacity:

1488mm 845mm 199kg 16 litres

INFO

Price: From:

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`20 lakh (estimated) www.ducati.com

DUCATI STREETFIGHTER V4S

It was light, agile and perfectly precise, and once the Pirelli Supercorsas had got up to a reasonable temperature, I found myself starting to take liberties with the package. I’d intended to try and push the bike to its limits, to really see what it could do, but the more I rode it, the more I realised that you are never going to get anywhere close to this bike’s limits on the road, for that you’d need a race track. Just as its engine’s performance had been up to superbike standards, so too was its chassis and suspension, which on the road was faultless.

Brembo Stylema callipers are in charge of slowing the front wheel down and, as expected, do an impeccable job, particularly since the ABS system, in level 1, is almost non-existent so skids and stoppies are absolutely on the cards. Wheelies, too, can be performed with the greatest of ease – all that torque and a big old pair of flat ’bars are a stunt rider’s wet dream. In fact, I struggled to keep the front wheel down… I did insist on having the anti-wheelie turned off for most of my ride, though. As far as anti-wheelie systems go, this one takes a little bit of getting used to; you have to really rely on it, almost lean on it, for it to work. If you open the throttle and hold it pinned, the system will (or certainly always did for me) stop you looping the thing, but if you give the throttle a pre-emptive roll when the system is about to work its magic, you are in for an uncomfortable ride – it’s as if it’s too much for the computer to

Verdict

calculate and the front wheel will be up and down like a fiddler’s elbow. And you’ll look like a fool.

It’s difficult to say anything bad about this bike, or to pick fault with any part of it… except maybe one part – the price. We expect it to cost roughly `20 lakh, when it is launched in India sometime early next year. Especially when you bear in mind you would be able to pick up a new Aprilia Tuono, the reigning Fast Bikes Super Naked Champ, for lesser cash. The new Streetfighter will, without a shadow of a doubt, give the Tuono a serious run for its money when we pitch the two against each other later on this year, in a way that we’ve yet to see anything do, but with its superbike price tag, it needs to.

Whilst it is a ludicrous amount of money, I can sort of see Ducati’s thinking behind opting for this kind of price point. It’s a superbike price, but on the road, this bike is every bit as good as a superbike. It’s smooth and comfortable and in the road rider’s normal rev range, it really is as fast as any superbike out there and it handles as well, too. This isn’t just a good road bike, it’s one of the very, very best and if money was no object, I’d be putting my name down for one right now. But unfortunately money is an object (so to speak), so until Ducati can sharpen their pricing pencil a little bit, my garage will remain deficient in the Steetfighter V4S department, to the tune of one.

We reckon the Streetfighter will smoke the competition

10/10

A supernaked that will give most superbikes a serious run for their money. It’s fast, agile and beautiful, and has all the tech you could wish for.

But it’s not cheap. + Very fast – Could be pricey

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|

IMAGES: HONDA

DOWN SOUTH

AND DIRTY 2020 HONDA CRF1100L AFRICA TWIN

In one form or another, the Africa Twin has been around for over 30 years, but could this new one, the CRF1100L, be the best one yet?

We went to the Honda Adventure Centre to find out…

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I

f there’s an excuse to get dirty, I’m all over it, any day of the week; especially if it involves twins. Unfortunately, getting dirty with my favourite type of twins wasn’t on the cards this time (it never actually is), but blasting round a forest on an all-new adventure motorbike definitely comes in at a close second. So when the chance to have a go on the new Africa Twin, down at the Honda Adventure Centre in Somerset came along, I grabbed it with both hands!

And when I say the ‘new’ Africa Twin, I really do mean new. Pretty much everything about the CRF1100L is either brand new or heavily updated. The new ‘1100’ engine is actually only 1,084cc, but that’s still 86cc more than the 998cc CRF1000L that it replaces, and not only that, it has 7 per cent more power and 6 per cent more torque (101bhp and 105Nm respectively) claims Honda, which is not to be sniffed at.

The new models (of which there are actually six variants) come with an absolute ton of rider aids and electronics, including a new 6.5-inch touchscreen dash, which you can connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth and/or Apple CarPlay, with the option of Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT).

The Adventure Sport version, which is the more touring, rather than off-road, focused option, also comes with the option of having cutting-edge Showa Electronically Equipped Ride Adjustment (EERA) – electronic suspension, in English.

In an attempt to make the most of my

Africa Twin weekend, I managed to blag an Adventure Sports to ride down to the Adventure Centre (and back) on; and a 1000km round trip, plus a day chasing three-time World MX Champ Dave Thorpe round the woods proved to be the perfect way to get to grips with Honda’s new, and improved, CRF1100L Africa Twin.

The bike that I managed to blag to head down south on was the touring focussed Adventure Sports, perfect, I thought, for a long journey. Now, the journey from my house in East Yorkshire to the Honda Adventure Centre, on the edge of Exmoor National Park, could be taken one of two ways – the fast way, or the fun way. After a lavatory-related crisis on the morning of my departure I found myself severely delayed and very tempted to point the Africa Twin a the nearest motorway and take the fast, rather than the fun option. As soon as I set off, however, my plan changed. Like the old bike, the new, bigger engined CRF is a bike that instantly makes you feel comfortable – from the smoothness of the engine to the comfort of the riding position, the whole package was very ‘Honda’, and I liked it. In fact, I liked it so much that what could have been a four-hour ride turned out to be a six-hour ride, with me only resorting to motorways for the last 160 kilometres or so (when it started to rain).

Before I set off, I’d tried to figure out what the smorgasbord of buttons on the left-hand switch gear do, but to no avail. As I tried to explore the menus and settings, all

that seemed to happen was the dash would change from one layout to the next, to the next – it wasn’t until later on that I realised that each riding mode has its own display mode on the dash. That made things more confusing than they needed to be, if you ask me. For swapping rider modes I found it much easier to utilise the touchscreen functionality, although you can only do that when the bike is stationary, and whilst it does work with gloves on, my sheathed hands didn’t have anything like the dexterity needed to complete such a fiddly operation – you’d be just as well whipping them off.

And whilst we’re talking about the dash, it didn’t take me long to get fed up of waiting for it to fire up – it’s nearly 15 seconds from turning the bike on, to seeing anything worth seeing on the dash; my five-year-old laptop sparks into life quicker than that (granted, it’s had a few factory resets to beat the viruses in its time – you can’t trust the porn sites these days, can you?).

You can fire the engine up and ride away whilst the screen is doing its thing, but if you don’t ‘press ok’ when the bike tells you to ride safely (or words to that effect), you don’t get any information at all.

I wasn’t sure how noticeable the 7 per cent more power (that Honda claimed the new model has) would be, particularly having not done a million miles on the old bike, but it made itself known straight away. The 6 per cent more

Highlights

Genuine all-terrain vehicle Deliciously comfy Tons of tech 238kg/248kg(DCT) 101bhp 105Nm BRAKING

9

Super strong

STABILITY Impeccable

10

AGILITY

Not bad for a big girl

5

PERFORMANCE 7 Decent up top

FUN

A barrel of ‘em

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Shoulders back, chest out... like a real adventurer

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TECH DATA

2020 Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Adventure Sports ENGINE

1084cc, W/C, SOHC, parallel twin 92 x 81.5mm 10.1:1 Electronic fuel injection 101bhp @ 7500rpm 105Nm @ 6250rpm

Type: Bore x Stroke: Compression: Fuelling: Claimed power: Claimed torque: ELECTRONICS

RBW/Riding Modes: Traction Control: ABS: Quickshifter: Wheelie Control: Launch Control: Autoblipper:

Yes/Six Yes Yes No Yes No No

CHASSIS

Frame: Semi double cradle Front suspension: 45mm Showa fully adjustable Rear suspension:

Boat or bike?

Ticks both boxes

Front brakes: Rear brakes:

torque was less noticeable, probably only because I remember the old bike having a really good mid-range, but the extra power, particularly at the very top-end, really gave the new bike something extra: a peaky-ness and a playfulness that I wouldn’t necessarily associate with a big adventure bike, but one that you’ll never hear me complaining about.

The more I got used to the bike’s engine, the more fun I started having on the thing, and the more I started pushing it and asking more from the rest of the package. The route I opted for took me through the centre of the Peak District through some twisty little streets and fast-flowing A roads, and the big ’Twin didn’t half impress me. On a bike as capable and as well balanced as the Africa Twin, you start to forget about its sheer size and weight; my pace got faster and faster until I started getting a little bit carried away – once or twice I had to have a little word with myself inside my helmet.

On the road, it will do almost anything you ask of it, but you do have to remember you are on a 238kg (or 248kg if you’ve gone for the DCT version) adventure bike.

With an hour or so to go the heavens opened so I headed for a motorway to complete my journey. At motorway speed, the hand guards and the windscreen are great, but it wasn’t long before the screen got caked in road dirt and I found myself

craning my neck to look over it. The heated grips are plenty warm too, so much so that full blast was a little too toasty for my sensitive paws. Out of the five available levels, I found number three to be the most comfortable. Speaking of comfort, whilst the bike had been comfortable for the majority of my ride, it was during the motorway section that I realised that the seat was, in fact, a little bit hard –but it didn’t cause any real discomfort to write home about.

By the time I got down to the adventure centre, I was wetter than an otter’s pocket and ready for a beer – luckily there was a hotel room with my name on it and my Kriega rucksack did a smashing job of keeping my spare pants and socks dry, so after a warm shower, a cold beer and a few rounds of snooker I got my head down ready for a day of getting dirty.

Base camp for the Honda Adventure Centre was a 20-minute ride from the hotel so I headed across on the Adventure Sports I’d ridden down on ready to jump on to one of Honda’s more off-road ready bikes, there.

The Africa Twins that Honda have prepped for the Adventure Centre are identical to the ones you’ll find in a showroom, except they’ve had their mirrors and footpeg rubbers removed – and some of them have

USD forks Showa adjustable Pro-Link monoshock 2 x 310mm discs, radial 4-piston callipers 256mm disc, single piston calliper

DIMENSIONS

Wheelbase: Seat height: Wet weight: Fuel capacity:

1575mm 825mm/850mm/870mm/895mm 238kg (DCT 248kg) 24.8 litres

INFO

Price: From:

From `15.35 lakh www.hondabigwing.in

one or two scratches on, but it really is only one or two.

After some words of wisdom from multiple World MX Champ Dave Thorpe, we were all allocated a bike to head down to the play area on. I was given an Adventure Sports, like the one I rode down on, but this time with DCT. I’ve ridden bikes with DCT before and not really got on with it, so I’ll admit I wasn’t thrilled about the prospect of having no clutch lever or gear selector, or about having a computer decide when it thinks I’m ready for a gear change. But I soldiered on, and decided to give it another chance.

The first part of the ride was a mixture of tarmac and hard-pack gravel roads, and the system itself is actually really good, in that gear changes are completely seamless and don’t upset the bike in the slightest, and although it’s a bit weird (ok, very weird) not having a clutch lever or a gear selector, you get used to it eventually. The DCT has different modes, so you can tell it how www.

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sportily you want to ride, which is helpful, but with it in full automatic I’m still not sold on the tech. As clever as a computer is, it can’t predict what you are about to do, so it can only put you in an appropriate gear for what you are doing at that very instant; for instance, if you open up the throttle all of a sudden, the DCT has to decide whether or not to accelerate in the gear it’s in, or drop a gear and then go. As a rider, it’s difficult to know what the bike is going to do, just like the bike can’t predict what you are going to do. It makes for a very unpredictable ride. Of course, you could always set the DCT to manual, using the up and down buttons on the right-hand switchgear to select gears, but when you bear in mind the extra 10kg that the DCT system adds to the package, I’d much rather do it the old-fashioned way. That said, if you are a less than able-bodied rider, or you just want an easy life cruising along the highway, DCT might suit you down to the ground. Or it might not.

Our day at the Adventure Centre started with some simple drills to get used to the bike and it’s electronic systems – at first the exercises they had us doing seemed a little pedestrian, but in actual fact, some of the slow-speed riding we did really got me thinking about bike control in a way I’ve never done before and helped me really get to grips with the TC on the Africa Twin. On the gravel roads and with the bike in Off-Road mode I played about with the traction control (or Torque Control, as Honda like to call it) settings, and found that ‘1’ was the most appropriate – normally I’d be tempted to turn everything off, but level 1 still allowed you to spin the back wheel to get the bike to turn, but helped stop things getting too out of control. I’m afraid I did turn wheelie control off, though – well, boys will be boys, won’t they?

The bikes we were riding at the Adventure Centre all came wearing Bridgestone AX41 adventure tyres, which were perfect for the conditions we were riding in and despite the rain and sloppy conditions, were surprisingly grippy. There were a couple of reasonably deep water splashes to ride through, with a steep-ish climb on the other side that I thought would have been impossible on such a big bike, but it wasn’t. In fact it was easy; the motor chugged away and the tyres just, well, gripped.

Whist at the Adventure Centre, I got the

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HONDA AFRICA TWIN

chance to ride one of the standard Africa Twins too, which is the more Off-Road focussed model. The standard bike comes with a smaller fuel tank, a lower screen and without the option for Showa EERA electronic suspension, but it is 14kg lighter.

I’d be lying if I said that the 14kg weight loss was instantly noticeable under normal riding conditions, but when the going got a bit more technical, the standard bike did seem a fraction easier to put where I wanted it to. It was still a big old bike and a handful if you let yourself get carried away, but should you want to swap ruts or wheelie over a log or something, you stood a slightly better chance on the standard bike over the Adventure Sports version.

As the day went on, I got the hang of riding the big CRF off-road, so Thorpey took me and a few others on some more challenging trails through the woods, and

Verdict

8/10

Each version of the new Africa Twin offers something slightly different, but they are all capable of all that you are likely to throw at them both on and off-road. + Beautifully balanced – Dashboard, too many buttons

no matter what we threw at the thing, it lapped it up – especially with Thorpey on board; whilst I was wobbling my way up hill and down dale, he was making it all look seriously easy. It was impressive to watch, but it was also an awesome showcase of what the new Africa Twin is capable of, in the right hands.

I would wager that most people who buy an Africa Twin will never take them on anything like the trails we encountered with Thorpey at the Honda Adventure Centre, but to know it’s capable of doing way more than you are likely to ever throw at it is surely worth something.

There’re a lot of very capable adventure bikes on the market right now, all very adept off-road and on. Without testing them all back-to-back, it’s very difficult to say which one is the best, and anyway that depends on what you consider the 'best'; the fastest, comfiest, most capable off-road?

What I can say with absolute confidence though, is that the 2020 CRF1100L Africa Twin is one of the easiest to ride, most well-balanced big adventure bikes on the market today. But hey, don’t take my word for it – get down to your nearest Honda Big Wing dealership and see for yourself, you won’t regret it!

Boothy's often surrounded by planks

FEATURE

H

umankind hasn’t seen anything like the Covid-19 quarantine since World War II. This time will be remembered as ‘post-COVID’ and ‘preCOVID’ when we retell the stories to our grandchildren. Work has stopped, trackdays have been postponed, weekend rides have been cancelled, staff has been furloughed and some industries are left with no option but lay offs. We don’t know when the auto industry will come out of this grave situation and the road ahead is uncertain for everybody. It’ll take us all a while to get back to normal life. For bikers, the normal is weekend rides and trackdays. But are you prepared for your first trackday or Ladakh ride with your buddies that you’ve been dreaming about?

Let’s not run away from the fact that a lot of us are going to feel very different mentally and physically. Even those like me who are used to exercising daily will feel the fatigue. I haven’t taken my Scrambler out in ages although I have contemplated a lot of rides already. But with all the lockdown extensions, my Ducati stays parked in the garage. And having two or three months away from any hobby isn’t

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WORDS: ABHISHEK WAIRAGADE | IMAGES: FASTBIK ES INDIA ARCHIVE

INTO THE UNKNOWN What are the challenges a motorcycle rider is bound to face once the lockdown lifts? And what are the solutions? We have the answers for you

really ideal – all of us will be rusty. But this is what I am going to implement before my first trackday.

Body We all know that working from home isn’t easy. You have to manage your daily chores and some of us even have to take care of the children or pets. Taking time

out to exercise is difficult amidst all the stress but I suggest you take out at least five hours/week to exercise (check out the lockdown special digital issue of evo India for detailed, biker-centric workouts). I have been working out at home but that’s not enough to get the blood flowing. We must exercise so as to not feel out of breath once we are out there on the track. I recommend

POST-LOCKDOWN TO-DOS

GETTING BACK UP TO SPEED IS GOING TO BE A BIG CHALLENGE. YOU MUST CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM AND EXCITEMENT are tight, chain tension is okay, brake pad thickness is healthy, check for water in the cooling system and battery levels too. If the battery is going down, it’ll die on that long ride for sure. I would be comfortable only when I know that my motorcycle is ready

Hitting the apex won’t be easy

you put on your headphones, start the timer and begin with strength and cardiovascular workouts. Last, but not the least; make sure you’re eating healthy and restricting your diet to maximum protein sources.

Riding gear Lastly, take a look at your riding kit and check whether you’ve packed in everything for the ride. What can catch you out?

Visors: optional dark and clear visors along with anti-fog solutions Knee and toe sliders with bare minimal life Soiled inners from the previous event Non-working zips Leathers that have been left to be infected by fungus Spare gloves for wet riding considering the monsoon is going to start very soon

Don’t forget!

Brain Getting back up to speed is going to be an even bigger challenge. You must curb your enthusiasm and excitement in order to avoid any potential incident. Obviously, you’ll be chomping at the bit when we get the ‘okay’ from the government to go out again and this will bring in a combination of fear and over-excitement. Leading up to the big day, you ought to think like a racer again. Watch some racetrack videos or destination guides to familiarise yourself with where you are going. Do not forget your reference points when you go on to the racetrack. I’d also recommend that you try a few video games to improve hand-eye co-ordination and get online to keep the competitive juices flowing.

When you go out for your first track day, make sure to make a simple checklist and tick off all the jobs one after the other. List out the things you will need and need to do, right from keeping yourself hydrated, checking tyres, tyre pressure, gauge, tool kit, cleaning cloths and of course; your riding gear.

for the thrashing, is filled with a full tank of fuel and the tyres are in a good condition.

Don’t leave these jobs till the last minute.

Diet and training is very important

It’s all about preparation. You will obviously feel the pressure of getting up to speed fast on a trackday or matching up to your last track timings but remember, you’re not getting paid to do what you’re doing. Take it slow. Indian roads are full of idiots and the traffic levels may be lower than usual.

But that also means a lot of hooligans riding on the wrong side of the road, animals crossing the streets and all sorts of hazards.

Build up pace gradually, stick to the basics and remember to keep your cool in sticky situations. After all, this is about getting out and finding your inner peace on two wheels.

Practice before doing this again

Bike I’m sure you’ve kept your ride clean during the lockdown but try giving it a spanner check before the trackday. Take the wheels out; degrease the spindles. If you’ve serviced it, check the oil levels. Double check that both the sump plug and oil filter

Don’t forget to check your gear

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WORK RACE FROM HOME Online gaming platforms are set to become the norm in the foreseeable future, lockdown be damned

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OMPETITION IS INTEGRAL. WHETHER for money, fame, or simply keeping up with the proverbial Joneses, everyone wants to be better than their peers. And, after running out of external avenues, people invariably look within and try to beat their own previous records. This is especially applicable for motorsport, on multiple levels. Why, you ask? Well, because most tournaments comprise separate criteria of drivers and constructors championships.

Now, irrespective of country, motorsport is an especially difficult, inherently dangerous and astronomically expensive activity. A victory here

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R AC E F RO M H O M E

wrought with teething troubles. Though the average racecar driver is acclimated to simulators, to simply be plonked onto a simulator and be expected to race their heart out and win against equally determined (and skilled) opponents is undoubtledly a Herculean task. Though F1 was the first to take the ‘virtual’ plunge, the first F1 race was far from a faithful reflection of the drivers’ on-track skills, with Renault test driver and Formula 2 racer Guanyu Zhou besting established champions like Charles Leclerc and Daniel Ricciardo to clinch the win.

Soon after, MotoGP too went virtual with the #stayathomeGP, unwittingly bringing in an even bigger problem. You see, while the Formula One or Formula E drivers were in simulators which, though far from perfect, mimicked real-world driving, the MotoGP racers were on their couches, with controllers in their hands. This led to the inaugural virtual MotoGP race being almost a comedy of errors: racers routinely going into the sand traps; Iker Lecuona in particular crashing more times than even the commentators could keep track of; and Repsol Honda’s Alex Marquez winning with a massive 7-odd

E S P O R T S G AV E RIDERS & DRIVERS ACROS S G E NRE S A CHANCE TO SHOW OFF THEIR SKILLS equates to a combination of talent and mechanical superiority melding together at the right time and place. And despite that, it is prone to chance: for every Michael Schumacher racing seemingly beyond the limit and going on to race another day, there are countless Wayne Raineys and Ayrton Sennas who don’t.

Top: W-series racer Jamie Chadwick on her home simulator.

Left: Race 1 of the virtual MotoGP race was full of crashes

The brick wall...

But despite the grit of individual motorsport athletes or that of entire authorities, there are situations where circumstances prevail, like the global coronavirus pandemic. One by one, motorsport events across genres started being postponed, and finally cancelled, equating to months of testing and training gone all for naught. This vacuum, however, had esports coming in and giving drivers and riders across genres a chance to show off their skills, albeit in an unfamiliar format.

Right off the bat, this entirely new experience was www.

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“INDIAN ESPORTS HAS BEEN A PERFECT MICROCOSM OF GLOBAL ESPORTS” participants could compete in the virtual stages of the World Rally Championship (starting with the virtual Rally Argentina) via the online play option for the DiRT Rally 2.0 game. This was soon followed by the Asia Pacific Rally Championship joining onto the same platform. Meanwhile, the WRC lent momentum to its own dedicated tournament, this time on WRC8, the official game of the World Rally Championship.

Oh, and remember the ‘teething troubles’ I mentioned? They seemed to be history after all of one round of the respective championships, with the competitors having quickly settled into a rhythm.

The Formula E races now had closer wheel-to-wheel action, with the previous two weekends won by Mahindra Racing’s Pascal Wehrlein. Meanwhile, the thrill was back to Moto GP as well, with the most recent race at Mugello witnessing a nail-biting finish, with a dashing last-lap, last-corner overtake by Alex Marquez, passing elder brother Marc to bag the win.

That said, as with all sports, esports has brought about its share of controversies. A famous case was from the iRacing IndyCar Challenge. During the race, F1 racer Lando Norris was vying for the lead

Top: It didn’t take long for the MotoGP racers to find their groove.

Above: When circuits go digital, can rallies be far behind?

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second lead over Francesco Bagnaia, despite it being a measly six-lap race! ...and the way around Once the various tournaments had settled upon a rhythm, the humanitarian aspect soon followed, a given considering the ongoing pandemic. While MotoGP was raising funds for Two Wheels For Life (the sport’s official charity), all proceeds from the Formula E races were forwarded to UNICEF. Next came the tie-in with the sport itself, both the real and virtual aspects, as the final winner of the Challenge races within the Formula E round (composed of fulltime sim racers) stood to not only win a chance to drive a Gen 2 Formula E car, but also secure a place in the BMW Sim M2 CS cup finals.

By now the excitement had moved away from the more regimented, circuit-based format to the wider, open-world format of rallying as well. Skoda Motorsport were the first to introduce the concept, announcing the Skoda Motorsport eChallenge where

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R AC E F RO M H O M E

against Indycar racer Graham Rahal. The ensuing racing duel resulted in Rahal’s car hitting that of 2019 Indianapolis 500 Champion Simon Pagenaud, who deliberately came in the way of Norris’ car in the final laps of the race. Norris lost out on the title and Pagenaud’s actions were almost instantly called out, though no punitive measures were taken.

A more recent case was of Formula E driver Daniel Abt who confessed to using sim racer Lorenz Hoerzing as a ‘stand-in’ to help him win the Berlin round of the series. As a response, his championship progress and points scored were declared void, and he was compulsorily made to pay €10,000 (about `8.26 lakh) to a charity.

Both these cases show how easily it is to use unfair means in virtual racing; however being a spectator sport, such instances should be few and far between, as the gaming platforms become more and more complex and the authorities, too, can easily discern such infractions.

The Indian connect, and a look ahead Save for the controversy, Indian esports has so far been a perfect microcosm of global esports. The X1 Racing League, in the absence of physical racing, had spawned the Ultimate E racing championship, attracting racing talent from all around the country.

Simultaneously, Rayomand Banajee’s IR eSports, in

association with Volkswagen India and (surprise) Mumbai Falcons, X1 Racing League’s Mumbai franchise, started the third season of the Indian Sim Racing Challenge.

Not to be outdone, the Ultimate E Championship joined hands with the FMSCI and the Ceylon Motor Sports Club (CMSC) and kicked off the first virtual Indo-Ceylon Grand Prix, won by Shameem Fahath and Aditya Raghav, neither of whom is a full-time sim racer.

Meanwhile, Chennai’s Amith Kutti, who won season three of the Indian Sim Racing league, will now get a chance to test with a Volkswagen Motorsport racecar, as well as a seat in the national karting championship under the tutelage of NK Academy, run by Narain Karthikeyan himself.

However, virtual racing is far from saturated, with perhaps the biggest news being the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual, comprising of teams composed of four drivers – at least two professional drivers and a maximum of two sim racers – challenging each other on the famous Le Mans circuit, for 24 hours, complete with driver changes.

So whichever way we look at it, the motorsports arenas of the future will no doubt have a spot reserved for the sim racer. So if you too want to excel in this niche field, flip the page to check out the tools of the trade you’ll need to get started in your endeavours. L www. www.

Top: The Indo-Ceylon Virtual GP recieved great response from both Indian and Sri Lankan racers. Above: The 24 hours Virtual Le Mans will be a true oneof-a-kind event

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S I M U L AT I O N TH EORY With sim racing getting more popular by the day, is this the perfect time for you to dip your toes in the water or maybe even jump off the deep end?

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020 HAS CHANGED A LOT OF things, both good and bad, motorsport included. Who would’ve thought we’d see Lando Norris go up against Johnny Herbert on a virtual grand prix? Or see Charles Leclerc dressed up as a banana during a Twitch stream. Sim racing has truly taken over the motorsport community. With local leagues like Ultimate E and the Indian Sim Racing League helping new talent come through, you could try your hand at it too.

But what do you need to get started? A purpose-

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built rig that costs more than your car, or will your humble gamepad do just fine?

Let me talk about the latter first. A gamepad works just fine for most casual gamers. You can get pretty close to the fastest times with just a controller, if you practice hard enough. However, if you really want the experience of driving a car, rather than guiding it with a thumbstick, you need a steering wheel and pedal set.

The main advantage is having a lot more travel.

A good steering wheel has more than 900-degrees of rotation, while a thumbstick probably has a

e S P O RTS R I GS

A GOOD STEERING WHEEL HAS MORE THAN 900-DEGREES OF R O TAT I O N , W H I L E A THUMBSTICK HAS A COUPLE OF CENTIMETRES couple of centimetres on either side. This makes it a lot harder to make minute corrections. A similar principle applies to the pedals, they offer a lot more travel as opposed to the trigger on your controller.

That said, let’s break down your ideal setup.

Steering Wheel This is the core of your setup. We’re going to be focusing on three main types of force feedback steering wheels — gear-driven, belt-driven and direct-drive systems. The first type is the most affordable and oldest technology for force feedback. The Logitech G29 or G920 is a popular option among the gear-driven steering wheels.

Gear-driven wheels offer a decent amount of force, but are also very noisy and not as precise as the other two. However, they’re a great choice for beginners on a budget.

Belt-driven wheels haven’t been around for too long, the first one popped up around 2009, but they offer considerable advantages over gear drive Bottom: The Fanatec Podium Racing Wheel F1 is a very serious piece of kit. Bottom right: The Thrustmaster TMX Pro gets good build quality at a great price

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wheels. Not only do belt-driven wheels generate more force than gear-driven ones, they are also much smoother and quieter. Belt-driven wheels should satisfy both beginners and pro racers, depending on the wheel you get. The Thrustmaster TMX is one of the most affordable belt-driven wheels, while ones like the Fanatec CSL Elite F1 are one of the best belt-driven systems around.

This brings me on to the last kind, direct-drive systems. As the name suggests, direct-drive systems directly mount the wheel onto the motor itself, instead of having it translated through a gear or belt system. The result is a more powerful, accurate and linear force feedback. Needless to say, direct-drive systems are very expensive. The Fanatec Podium Wheel Base DD2 is one of the best direct-drive motors out there and costs `1.25 lakh, before Indian taxes and duties and without a wheel! These systems are only for the really serious sim racers, or folks with a herd of cash cows.

Pedals Most budget wheels come with a pedal set bundled, and if you want to buy a standalone one, they are usually only compatible with the same company’s peripherals. Budget pedal sets tend to be made of plastic and usually don’t get a clutch pedal. Try to stay away from these as plastic pedals will flex and break more easily when you need to slam the brakes lap after lap. So, unless you’re on a tight

POPULAR SIM RACING GAMES  iRacing  rFactor 2  Assetto Corsa  Dirt Rally 2.0  F1 2019

BEST BUDGET WHEEL AND PEDAL BUNDLE  Thrustmaster TMX Pro (Xbox One/PC): `25,999, discounted regularly  Thrustmaster T150 Pro (PS3/PS4/PC): `24,990, discounted regularly

BEST PRO WHEEL AND PEDAL SET  Fanatec Podium Racing Wheel F1: `1.52 lakh + shipping charges and duties  Fanatec Clubsport Pedals V3 Inverted: `50,000 + shipping charges and duties

COCKPIT  INRacing Cockpit : `29,500 + GST  Playseat F1 : `93,000 + shipping charges and duties

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budget, stick to metal ones. They last longer, and feel closer to the real thing. Most pedal sets above the low-end budget options will feature a dedicated clutch pedal too. You can pair that up with a gear lever and get an even more immersive experience when driving a car with a manual transmission.

Mounting or Cockpit Since racing wheels generate a lot of force, you will need a solid mounting point so your thighs aren’t getting obliterated everytime you understeer.

A basic mounting setup would usually include a sturdy metal stand for the wheel and a base to stop your pedals moving about. You can bring a regular chair to this and do just fine. If you want to upgrade your experience, purpose-built cockpits like the one from INRacing offer a racing seat, steering mount and pedal mount, placed in a way that feels like you are in a car. Premium offerings like ones from Playseat come in different flavours for different disciplines of racing, ranging from Formula 1 style cockpits to a WRX setup.

Above: Simulation titles like rFactor 2 and iRacing are popular for their lifelike physics and ability to add community created mods.

Facing page: The INRacing cockpit is a nifty product for serious and budding sim racers

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T H E Q U E S T I O N YO U H AV E T O A S K Y O U R S E L F I S , W H AT Y O U A R E LOOKING FOR?

Console vs PC The answer to this question comes down to your budget. If you’re a serious sim racer or you’ve got deep pockets, pick up a gaming PC. The number of mods you can add to your game and the massive ecosystem of both games and peripherals should keep you happy for a long time to come. However, if you are a casual gamer a console would do just fine too.

Consoles are more affordable, and less of a hassle when buying — no need to ponder over what processor you want or how much graphics memory your rig needs. Just plug and play. Keep

in mind that the console you buy will determine what games you can play and what racing wheels are compatible with it.

The world is your oyster when it comes to sim racing setups, but the question you have to ask yourself is, what you are looking for? If you want to be at the top of leaderboards, you should be looking at a belt-driven or direct-drive wheel setup with a good pedal set and a purpose-built cockpit. If you’re just an enthusiast looking to make Sundays a bit more entertaining, a secondhand wheel and pedal set mounted to your table should suffice. L www.

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WHAT FMSCI’S RECENT STEP MEANS FOR US ALL Will the changes prescribed within the stimulus package be enough to revive Indian motorsport?

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HE RECENT LOCKDOWN left Indian motorsport in the lurch. So the Federation of Motorsport Clubs of India (FMSCI) announced initiatives to get the ball rolling, starting with free renewal of nationallevel competition licences applied for in 2020 for the year 2021, provided licence holders do not participate in any event in 2020. Next, they announced a waiver on permit fees for organisers and on naming rights fees for events with no associated sponsors, with only 50 per cent fees to be charged otherwise.

A one-year extension was also announced for the promoters of national championships irrespective of whether they were to be conducted in 2020. Lastly, appointing local stewards was stressed upon, to ease the organisers’ burden on hospitality costs.

At a glance, the measures seem adequate and Vamcy Merla, director, Champions Group, lauded the move, but added, “Going forward, organisers and promoters will have a tough time due to the disease’s impact on many regular sponsors, themselves under grave financial strain.” Aditya Patel, co-founder X1 Racing league and Ultimate E, echoed the same, saying, “A concession on the track fees, a sizeable amount when organising a race, would have gone a long way.”

About the government’s stand on reopening sporting venues (and by extension racetracks), Vicky Chandhok, president,

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MMSC, explained the final decision lies with the state governments. Coimbatore’s Kari Motor Speedway and Chennai’s MMRT can both reopen for commercial testing (as per the rules enforced May 14 onwards), for no doubt a smoother transition back to racing.

Another obstacle is the current travel restriction, so generating awareness becomes even more important. “We’ll need to find value for investments, with regards to sponsors or promoters,” said Sanjay Sharma, head, JK Tyre motorsport, adding, “broadcast viewership, so far a secondary facet, now becomes the primary attraction.

We – the sportsmen, the organisers, the federation – all need to learn the ropes.”

As events restart, the response across the board stays the same – that of conforming to set guidelines. Sirish Vissa, head, Volkswagen Motorsport, went a step ahead: revisit the guidelines, identify loopholes (if any), and plug them. Additionally, prevailing opinion points to the season starting earliest by September, with twice the number of races in the same amount of race days, and spectatorship almost exclusively on the airways, or online.

Lastly, with online events like Ultimate E and the Indian Sim Racing league already in place, it’s only a matter of time for enthusiasts to demand more. Hence, a dedicated motorsport-focused TV channel or OTT spot would work wonders. So whichever way we look at it, the feistiness of Indian motorsport is far from finished and enthusiasts have much to look forward to. L

SIRISH VISSA

HEAD, VW MOTORSPORT “A situation where everything’s at a standstill is the perfect moment to lay the foundation for the next big thing. Despite all the FMSCI did, I think they could have done more, especially by getting the sport’s promoters to really step up.”

SANJAY SHARMA

HEAD, JK TYRE MOTORSPORT “FMSCI, like any governing body, has its revenue stream coming from licenses, permit fees and the like, and this stimulus package obviously means they’re taking a cut on their own revenue. Doing this shows their resolve and support for the sport as well as its athletes.”

VICKY CHANDHOK PRESIDENT, MMSC

“Motorsport is unique in the sense that social distancing is a default. However, irrespective of orders from the government or guidelines, sporting activity cannot happen as long as there are travel restrictions.”

VAMCY MERLA,

DIRECTOR, CHAMPIONS GROUP “I think it was a great decision by the FMSCI. Judging by last year’s performances in national as well as international events, motorsport in India is showing good growth. Hence, decisions like this, especially at this time, definitely give crucial relief and encouragement to everyone.”

evoIndia

evo Fleet Volkswagen Tiguan After two months under lockdown the Tiguan is put to good use running back and forth to the farm

evo Fleet

REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME I DROVE the Tiguan during the lockdown. Till then I’d been using the electric car parked alongside and was saving the full tank of diesel in the Tiguan for any contingencies.

So anyway, it was parked for six weeks and I felt bad, thought it deserved to get its juices flowing and so I took it out for a grocery run down the road. And my juices started flowing.

Call me a dinosaur but no EV can give you the joy of an IC-engined car. An engine, it makes the car feel alive. A living, breathing creature that likes a bit of TLC. An engine gives a car a breadth of abilities, a range of decibels to perk up the ears, the throb of a heartbeat through the seat of the pants. Working the gearbox, even if it is the paddleshifters for the DSG automatic, makes you feel so much more involved in the driving process. Six weeks of IC engine-detox and the Tiguan reminded me why I love cars so much.

Just pottering down to the shops, I enjoyed driving it so much that I made two laps round the block, just to blow off the weeds.

Any problems having kept it parked for so long? The motor fired up at the first press of the button and it was only the rear brakes that started squealing which was sorted by riding the brakes to get rid of whatever had built up. That’s it. Good as new (which this car is, it came to us in December with less than 150km on the clock!).

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Eight weeks later we finally managed to get a pass to go to our farm outside the city. Empty roads, the Tiguan’s lovely road manners, clear skies, I haven’t enjoyed driving as much as I did — as I am sure you too would have experienced after taking your car out post lockdown. It’s on drives like these that the Tiguan’s practicality comes to the fore, boot filled with supplies for the farm and the staff living there, a battery and parts for the generator, feed for the livestock, the SUV loaded to the gills.

I enjoyed driving it so much that over the next two weeks, I ended up making three round trips to the farm as we rush to get things ready in time for the monsoons.

With empty roads there’s the temptation to boot it but it’s best to resist that since

Empty roads, Tiguan’s lovely road manners, clear skies, I haven’t enjoyed driving as much as I did empty roads also lull the few other people into complacency. And everybody is riding/ driving on the wrong side, like as if the rules are also in lockdown. The Tiguan, it remains enjoyable even at a relaxed pace. Appreciate the comfort of the suspension, airiness of the cabin, the good sound system, the surefooted manners and the strong brakes.

Also the 850km highway range on a full tank.

These are things that we are familiar with after driving the Tiguan all over the country, but now that we’ve been locked up for over two months you appreciate, even more, the things that we once took for granted. L Sirish Chandran (@SirishChandran)

Date acquired January 2020 Total mileage 5323km Mileage this month 1750km Costs this month `0 Overall kmpl 11.5kmpl

CAN CONFIRM THAT THE KONA Electric makes for a fantastic city car. I can also confirm that electric cars pose no headaches at all. In fact, all the worries that we have about infrastructure and what not, they really aren’t worries if you’re using your EV for city use — more so when you have a long range EV like the Kona.

Now we don’t have a high-speed charger, what we’ve done is put another 15Amp plug point in our office parking lot and that’s that.

A full charge obviously takes forever on this plug but I make it a point to plug it in once or twice a week and I’ve never dipped under 70km of range (below that and my OCD might kick in). I had a full charge just before the lockdown kicked in and for eight weeks I only used the Kona, all the emergency runs, vet visits, grocery runs, everything was done in silence in the Kona. And I had enough range left over for when I finally went to the office and plugged it in to keep my OCD at bay. I also discovered that parked up, the Kona doesn’t leak charge… over eight weeks it lost around 40km of range which I’m perfectly okay with,

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Hyundai Kona Electric A brilliant city runabout!

I can confirm that electric cars pose no headaches at all, least of all charging infrastructure

Date acquired February 2020 Total mileage 5433km Mileage this month 525km Costs this month `0 Overall kmpl `1.2/km running cost

considering the running cost is `1.2 per km.

And the best part is you don’t have to go to the petrol pump and interact with anybody to tank it up.

As for how it drives, the Kona Electric is a really nippy car, accelerating with fervour and pinning your head into the headrest when you step on it. It’s also very darty and

manoeuvrable, perfect for the city. On the downside, the ride is stiff and space inside isn’t much. The only real problem I faced was when I ran over a nail that cut the sidewall, and now I’m running the space saver as I figure out how to get a new tyre during these crazy times. L Sirish Chandran (@SirishChandran) www.

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by R ICH A R D PORT E R

ENCYCLOPEDIA

THE

In the latest instalment of our motoring A to Z, Richard Porter explores everything from the eccentric to the full beam THIS MONTH G -H 156

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G-force

Measure of acceleration expressed as the equivalent force of gravity. As seen on those four-way gauges you can bring up on dashboards that look quite cool but are of no earthly use whatsoever unless you really need a system that prompts you to crash while seeing how far left or right you can make it go.

g/km

Metric by which car emissions are measured and therefore how governments can tax our cars, at least until they move the goalposts again.

Gallon

Old-fashioned measure of liquid, e.g. petrol, and one that has differed between the US and the UK since the 1824 Weights & Measures Act in which the British decided to standardise the measurement of wine, ale and other liquids around a common ‘gallon’ equivalent to 4.546 litres, while the Americans stuck with the existing measurement derived from the Queen Anne measure for wine, which was, and remains, equivalent to 3.785 litres. That’s why American mpg figures can sound even worse than they are.

Gap insurance

The main thing car dealers sell these days.

Garage

Place where most people now keep ladders, boxes and old cans of paint. A hidden side effect of the great advances made in car rustproofing.

Gas

What Americans call petrol, as an abbreviation of ‘gasoline’. Not to be confused with gas (the thing) or gas (the other, more specific version of that thing).

Gas turbine

Form of internal combustion flirted with

by Rover, Toyota and Chrysler, amongst others. Has never reached production because although gas turbines are cool, they are actually extremely hot, as well as thirsty and hard to throttle.

Gasket

Seal mounted between two components, the failure of which in a cylinder head situation may cause a scenario familiar Top: Gallon – an old-fashioned measure that’s available in two different sizes. Above: A gasket, intact for now. Left: A garage, untypically with space for a car in it

T H E E VO E N CYC LO P E D I A : G - H

Go-kart

Clockwise from above: Gatso inventor and rally driver Maurice Gatsonides, go-karts, gauges, and a Grand Prix (which sounds best if not translated)

to unadventurous British people ordering chips in Belgium, that is to say the unwelcome appearance of mayonnaise.

Small, lightweight racing machine much favoured by small children who are on the first stage towards becoming a professional racing driver and also by braying men who are on the first stage of Steve’s stag do.

Gate

Grand Prix

A thing that is left open on Ferraris, presumably to the chagrin of the Ferrari farmer.

A kind of motorsport event known in France as the ‘Big Prize’.

Green laning

Gatso

Brand of speed camera that has become a proprietary eponym. Invented by Dutch rally driver Maurice Gatsonides based on tech he created to measure his own speed when practising. A rueful Gatsonides later admitted: ‘Even I cannot escape my own invention because I love speeding.’

Gauges

Another word for ‘instruments’. Unless you work for an orchestra, then it isn’t.

Gearbox

Metal casing containing gears of different ratios. Also a vital part of a car’s transmission system. The type of gearbox can be a crucial factor in the character of a car. For example, a Clio 182 automatic would be horrible, but so would a manual Bentley Mulsanne.

Weekend leisure activity in which the Vauxhall Frontera is driven up an old track until it gets stuck.

Grey import

Gearchange

The action of moving between ratios in a manual gearbox car, the smooth and mechanical quality of which can significantly enhance the enjoyment of driving, or significantly spoil it if the change is reminiscent of wiggling a crowbar in a bucket of treacly rocks.

Glovebox

Dashboard-mounted compartment conceived for the storage of hand sheaths.

Come to think of it, shouldn’t it be glovesbox?

A car brought into the country by means other than the manufacturer’s official channels. Hence why it can be hard to source parts for your Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V Release-R XX-X Harri Platamattenen Edition.

Grille

Slatted or mesh-filled covering, originally a functional item to protect the cooling system of the car, now a designers’ plaything to stamp brand identity on a car or, in the case of stylists at BMW, to make the front of the car as disgusting as possible for reasons that can only be some kind of in-house dare.

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T H E E VO E N CYC LO P E D I A : G - H Clockwise from right: Gas turbines generated electricity in the original Jaguar C-X75 concept; handling is a Cayman GT4 forte; one of many GTIs; a gull-wing doored Mercedes 300SL; a grille, Bentley‑style

Ground effect

Aerodynamic principle in which the very surface over which the car is passing can be used, through the Bernoulli effect, to reduce pressure under the car, thereby ‘sucking’ it downwards to the benefit of grip. Oscillates between legal and illegal in F1.

direction, much demonstrated with great precision by Russ Swift on telly in the 1980s and without any precision whatsoever by teenagers in empty car parks ever since. Being killed off by the electric parking brake, the mobile application of which just causes a heavy emergency stop.

Grunt

Handling

A way of referring to power if you want to sound casual or Australian (which is basically the same thing).

GT

plop when preceded by ‘Mitsubishi’.

Grand tourer. First used (as Gran Turismo) on the 1929 Alfa Romeo 6C. GT has come to symbolise a sort of long-striding highperformance car in which one might cross an entire continent in a night, or just a television programme in which three old men shout at each other until someone’s trousers fall down.

GTi (or GTI)

Grand Touring Injection. First used not by Volkswagen but by Maserati on the 3500 GTi of 1960 and applied to many things since, not always in the right spirit. Hence the Peugeot 505 GTi and Rover Montego GTi estate.

GTO

Gran Turismo Omologato or ‘great touring car for homologation’. Sublime in combination with 288 or 250, absolute dog

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evoIndia.com | June ’20

Gull wing

Top-hinged car doors, first seen on the 1939 Bugatti Type 64, though made more famous by the Mercedes 300SL, which was given the design to make access easier in a car with a very high door sill and a very low roof.

Enigmatic combination of grip, suspension performance, and steering sensitivity and feedback by which a car’s goodness is determined.

Hard shoulder

What the safety area of a motorway used to be called before it became ‘the extra inside lane’.

Harness

Hairpin

A type of bend much favoured by motoring magazine photographers who wish for the writer to ‘get it a bit sideways’.

Static, racing-style occupant restraints giving greater restriction of movement and increased safety benefits while, on the downside, making it impossible to close the door if you forget before doing up all the straps, thereby making you look like a bit of a berk.

Hammer

Hazard lights

Something that goes down. Also a type of AMG.

Handbrake turn

Parking brake-assisted change of

All-indicator trigger, largely redundant in an age of great reliability except for doing van driver-style thank yous and amongst people too bone idle to walk any distance to the cash machine.

‘157.’

‘Is that Pferdestärke?’

‘Why do you always have to make things complicated, Dave?’

Head-up display

Long-promised, fighter jet-inspired concept car tech finally brought to the showroom by that most F-16 alike model, the 1988 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme.

Headrest

Upper part of a car seat, less for the resting of the head and more for the preventing of it being flung over the backrest in an accident, resulting in the getting of the whiplash.

Heated rear screen

Thing which, despite vast leaps in automotive technology in the last 50 years, still relies on a series of extremely visible wires buried in the rear window.

Heated windscreen

Ice and condensation clearing system usually based around very thin wires embedded in laminated glass, as pioneered by Ford in the 1980s. Some say they are distracted by the wires while others claim not to see them, much like those Magic Eye pictures from the ’90s.

Heavy duty

Appealing word pairing applied to various car items including springs, clutches and batteries, often dangerously conflated with the notion of ‘harder to break’.

Heel-and-toe

Multi-pedal driving skill in which the driver’s right foot is used to blip the accelerator to achieve a rev-matched downchange while simultaneously applying the brakes. Waning in demand thanks to double-clutch gearboxes and those rev-match features offered by Porsche, BMW, Nissan et al that are

uncannily accurate but always feel a bit like cheating.

HIAB

Common shorthand for a lorry-mounted hydraulic crane, often associated with the painfully crunchy removal of knackered cars. Actually the trade name of Hydrauliska Industri AB, a Swedish maker of cranes and handlers.

High geared

What Porsches often are.

High level brake light

Middle braking lamp, legally mandated in North America since 1986 and Europe since 1998. CHMSL, or Central High Mounted Stop Light, in industry speak and the reason why after sitting in traffic at dusk all you can see is red.

Hill climb

Form of motorsport in which each competitor must get from the bottom of a hill to the top as quickly as possible.

Contestants then gently return to the bottom of the hill for a cup of tea (if at Shelsley Walsh) or a reflection on how at any moment they could have plunged to their doom (if at Pikes Peak).

Homologation

The requirement to certify a car for public sale or competition use. A word rendered 1000 per cent more exciting with the suffix ‘special’.

Horsepower

A measurement of the rate at which work is done by an engine. As in, ‘Excuse me, at what rate is work being done by this engine?’

Hot hatch

Higher-powered and more dynamic version of a normal, usually front-wheeldrive, hatchback. The Mk1 Volkswagen Golf GTI is often considered the genesis of the hot hatchback, though it was preceded by the Autobianchi A112 Abarth of 1971 and the Simca 1100Ti of 1974. So there.

Hybrid

A car that combines two distinct propulsion sources, typically petrol and electricity. Or, in the case of the 1987 Yugo 45, petrol and pushing it with your hands. In the case of a series hybrid, the internal combustion engine acts as a generator and is not directly connected to the driving wheels. In the case of a parallel hybrid, the internal combustion engine is mechanically linked to the road wheels and can directly propel the vehicle on its own or in league with the electric motor.

And in the case of the 1987 Yugo 45 the internal combustion engine has stopped working again and that’s why you’re pushing it.

Hydraulic

System based around a liquid under pressure, e.g. being unexpectedly asked to locate the paper part of its driving licence. L Top left and above: Hot hatches and hairpins.

Below: Homologation brought us the Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth

D E A D O N A R R I VA L WORDS by RICHARD PORTER

DOA: Lotus Esprit Whilst Lotus’s 2010 Esprit concept never made it past the styling stage, there was a fully functioning prototype of its all-new in-house hybrid V8 EMEMBERING THE DANY BAHAR era at Lotus can sometimes feel like recalling the details of an insane fever dream. The vapid ‘brand lifestyle’ magazines printed on paper so glossy it was like trying to read condensed milk. The ‘boutique’ shops selling expensively confected luxury goods while the road car range still hinged on the aged and basic Elise. The 2010 Paris motor show press day when a random grab bag of celebrities including Naomi Campbell and frizzy haired badger enthusiast Brian May pulled the covers off five brand new models while Sir Stirling Moss popped up to proclaim that if he was 50 years younger with one of these cars, ‘well you’d pick up all the girls, wouldn’t you?’ Seriously dude, feel my head, I think I’m running a bit hot.

The minds at Lotus were clearly fevered too, since they honestly reckoned they’d have five all-new cars ready for sale within six years (plus a hybrid city car, made in partnership with then-owner Proton). It was a scheme of such towering ambition that even a well-resourced megacorp such as Toyota or Volkswagen would think twice about giving it a shot, never mind showing their hand by revealing ‘concept’ versions of the entire future portfolio, having designed and built all six from scratch in just ten months.

It seemed like a lot of flim-flam, but there was a small sliver of substance behind it because in Norfolk work was under way on production versions of these concepts, starting with the new-generation Esprit. This one sounded promising, and it got a whole lot more intriguing when Bahar, perhaps still giddy from Parisian afternoons with Brian May, decided to bin its adapted Lexus V8 and instruct Lotus engineers to confect an inhouse engine instead.

In fact, it’s the V8 that’s the real focus of this story, because normally on this page we talk only about cars that got perilously close to production, and the Esprit did not do that.

Plenty of CAD work was completed on its basic packaging and performance, and the designers were adapting the show car’s looks to be feasible for production, but it was all a

BAHAR BINNED THE ADAP TE D LEXUS V8 FO R AN IN-HOUSE ENGINE INSTEAD

long, long way from finished. The slick-looking Paris motor show car was little more than a glassfibre styling model fitted with electric motors that allowed it to move (slowly) onto the stage. Whereas the engine did reach the fully functioning prototype stage. According to Bahar boasts at the time, it was good for 570bhp in league with optional KERS, and claimed to be 80 kilos lighter and 40 per cent smaller than the bought-in V8 it had usurped.

The new motor had been run on a dyno and got so far as to be installed in a hacked-about Ferrari 458 for real-world testing before the roof fell in on the House of Bahar.

The man himself was dismissed in 2012, the magic money tap that was funding his plans ran dry, and the lone powertrain mule was written off in an accident, never to be replaced. With Bahar’s departure, the other Paris cars were quickly declared dead, but the Esprit remained a ‘live’ project until 2014 when new boss Jean-Marc Gales pulled the plug. The promising new hybrid V8 would never get to be anything more than an aborted engineering project.

As a side note, a source tells us that the Esprit revealed at the 2010 Paris show has not been junked and still lives at Hethel, where it serves as a reminder for those working on the Evija hypercar to ‘do things properly this time’.

NEXT MONTH IN

V8 SPECIALS Ferrari’s ‘special series’ V8s – from the 348 GT Competizione to 488 Pista – go head to head

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

WORDS by SIRISH CHANDRAN

Mitsubishi Cedia

A fantastic rally car that dominated the INRC for years.

As a road car though, it didn’t light any fires THERE’S A WARM, SOFT, CUDDLY corner for the Cedia in my heart. It was, after all, my first rally car, Mitsubishi loaning me one from their marketing fleet to build and rally in the INRC. It was the range-topping Cedia Sports that was launched in 2010, complete with bumper extensions and side skirts, prominent boot spoiler, OZ Racing wheels and a gorgeous Momo steering wheel. The latter found a new home in an Evo VII our technical editor was building.

All the former remained on the rally car built by Red Rooster Performance, which I rallied for three full seasons in the INRC. Those were the days when the sharp end of the grid were all Cedias. The works MRF and Red Rooster cars were the N+ Cedias with wildly tuned engines that revved to the moon and put out over 200bhp. MRF had their engines built in Australia, Red Rooster used to source parts from Formula 1 suppliers. And of course they had custom gear ratios in their dog ’boxes. Mine was the more humble Group N Cedia with no engine mods save for an intake, exhaust and a Race Dynamics ECU. Back then Group N cars had to stick with the stock gear ratios and I remember the crazy hole in the power band between second and third that you always

Above: Learning to fly is the ed with his rally Cedia

struggled with, especially on steep climbs.

The engine was never a fire-cracker, but what it lacked in the horsepower department it made up with its handling.

Based on the same platform as the Evo — the honest truth, some tuners even built cut-paste Evos out of the Cedia — the car handled superbly. With the independent rear suspension it was so much more forgiving, so much more predictable,

EXCEPTIONAL HANDLING BUT IT DIDN’T HAVE THE HORSEPOWER TO MAKE THE CHASSIS WORK

especially when you hit bumps at speed.

And of course, once Red Rooster put Reiger dampers on my rally car, I went on to battle for the Group N championship. It was also a very reliable rally car, and its dominance in the INRC only ended after extensive development of the Polo — its main advantage being the smaller size making it more nimble on the tighter sections, and the shorter gear ratios making it accelerate harder out of slower corners.

As for the road car, it didn’t light too many fires. The long-stroke 4G94 2-litre engine was lazy, the gear ratios too tall, and the car too expensive. Like the rally car, the road car handled exceptionally well but it didn’t have the horsepower to make the chassis work. Also, HM-Mitsubishi dealerships were as rare as unicorns. The Cedia did appeal to rally enthusiasts and even today if you see one on the road, it will be in pristine condition — a rare sighting if we are being honest because the rally boys bought every Cedia they could find to strip it for parts.

And once every avenue was exhausted, we switched en-masse to the Polo.

The only thing that remains are warm, cuddly feelings. And the deep pride that every rally driver takes in having won rallies in a Mitsubishi. L

*This is not a page for vintage cars. We will drive modern classics, made in India, and we’re going to apply the only sensible filter we can think of — to drive cars that came with seat belts.

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