Redline Issue 7 by Redline

ISSUE 7 / £3.99 - LAMBORGHINI SPECIAL EDITION

REDLINE JOLLY JIMNY

Off roading in the Suzuki Jimny

MAGAZINE

COMPETITION TIME

NEXT-GEN NISSAN JUKE REVIEW PAGE 11

Sideways in the BMW M2 Competition

MERCEDES BEATS WEATHER Avoiding the rain in the MercedesBenz E-Class Cabriolet

SHOCK LAMBORGHINI ALL-NEW SIÁN IS LAMBO’S FIRST HYBRID SUPERCAR

IN THIS ISSUE

FERRARI ON TOUR

PURE PERFORMANCE

We test drive the mighty Lamborghini Urus to see if it really is a proper Lambo’

Scotland and a convertible Ferrari, we drive the Portofino on some of the UK’s best roads

We spend a week with the new Audi R8 V10 Performance, but is it the end for the V10 engine? m

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Welcome

The timing of Redline Magazine Issue 7 couldn’t be more perfect. As we wave farewell to Summer 2019, we’re given the opportunity to reflect on what an amazing few months it’s been. Sure, the weather has been patchy at best, but the warmer period also brings with it some of the best press cars manufacturers have to offer. So, what have we been driving? An invite from Ferrari saw us take the short flight up to Scotland to drive the fabulous Portofino. Sun, Scottish hills and a convertible prancing horse made for a truly memorable experience, and so our review of the Ferrari Portofino is our main feature in this issue of the magazine. Our other big reads include what happened when we spent 4 days with the mighty Lamborghini Urus, and a week with the new Audi R8 V10 Performance.

Team Redline Dom Ginn - Lead Photographer & Videographer Stevo Jones - Photography & Videography Assistant Matt Price - Magazine Photographer Stephen Boroughs - Events Photographer Amy Welch - Assistant Photographer Blee Carswell - Junior Road Tester Victor Harman - Columnist @x_x_sam_x - Social Media Rep

Elsewhere, we attended the international press launch for the next generation Nissan Juke, we’ve been busy going sideways in the BMW M2 Competition, avoiding the rain in a Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet, and we went off-roading in the ever popular Suzuki Jimny. We also have Consumer Corner reviews on the Audi A1, Peugeot 508, Lexus UX, MG ZS, and Kia ProCeed GT. Finally, we take a look at the new Lamborghini Sián and discuss all things motoring in our usual columns and features. As always, it’s been a pleasure creating another action packed issue of Redline Magazine, and we would like to take the opportunity to thank the manufacturers for supplying us with cars, and our sponsors for advertising their products and services with us. The team and I hope you enjoy the read.

Mark Rose

Owner & Managing Director

Contact us Phone - 01621 774 376 / 07399 609 192 Email - enquiries@redlinemagazine.co.uk YouTube - Redline Magazine Instagram - @redlinemagazine Facebook - @Redlinemagazine1 Twitter - @RedlineMag1 Website - www.redlinemagazine.co.uk Address - The Offices, Southminster, CM0 7JF

ISSUE 7 > Welcome

ENGINE REMAPS - CUSTOM EXHAUSTS “GAD have mapped five cars for me now and I have always had excellent service from them” Geoff B

Contents Ma Featuin re 36 :

Cover Feature

07 - The Lamborghini Sián is a V12 hybrid monster which showcases Lambo’s future plans.

First Drive

11 - We fly to Barcelona to attend the international press launch for the next generation Nissan Juke.

Feature

64 - An overview of what we saw at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Columns Long : Drive 46

15 #throwbackthursday 17 Talking Tyres

Driven 18 24 30 36 46 54

Suzuki Jimny Mercedes E-Class Cab’ BMW M2 Competition Ferrari Portofino Lamborghini Urus Audi R8 V10 Performance

Consumer Corner Long : Drive 54

68 70 72 74 76

Audi A1 Peugeot 508 Lexus UX MG ZS Kia ProCeed GT

Please note, whilst we take care to be accurate, no liability will be accepted under any circumstances should any of the content of this magazine be incorrect. Reproduction of whole or in part without permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. All rights reserved. Redline Magazine UK Ltd. Registered in England No: 10596691. Registered Office - The Old Grange, Warren Estate, Lordship Road, Writtle, Chelmsford, Essex, CM1 3WT.

ISSUE 7 > Contents

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Shock Lamborghini All-new Siรกn is a hybrid supercar that represents the future of Lamborghini. We delve a little deeper ... ISSUE 7 > Cover Feature

ián might seem like an odd name for a Lamborghini – I can’t recall a famous bull by the name and you certainly wouldn’t catch Ferrari calling their latest model Lindsey – but delve deeper in to the Bolognese dialect and you’ll discover it actually means ‘flash’ or ‘lightening’. It turns out the nod to adverse weather is for good reason. Sián is Lamborghini’s first ever hybrid. See what they did there? Limited to a run of just 63 cars, Sián isn’t an Aventador replacement but a look in to the future of Lamborghini which gives us a good insight in to what the Aventador’s successor might be powered by. The naturally aspirated 6.5 litre V12 engine remains, but in this application, it’s supported by a 48volt e-motor which is incorporated in to the gearbox. The electric motor produces an additional 34 horsepower which doesn’t sound like much, but it brings the combined output up to 819 horsepower, making Sián the most powerful Lamborghini, to date. Now for the geeky bit. Instead of opting for a traditional lithiumion battery, Lambo’ have decided to use a supercapacitor which is three times more powerful than a battery of the same weight and three times lighter than a battery of the same power. It’s positioned in the bulkhead between the cockpit and engine to ensure perfect weight distribution, and weighing just 34kg, it delivers an impressive 1-1 power-to-weight ratio. Lamborghini have also been working on the regenerative braking system. The symmetrical behaviour of the supercapacitor means efficient power flow, so under braking, Sián’s energy storage system is fully replenished. Lamborghini claim that this stored energy offers an instant power boost and makes the car 10% faster up to 80mph than if it didn’t have it. The electric motor will also torque fill when it recognises torque dropping off when changing gear, making for a more linear delivery. On paper, this is the fastest Lamborghini ever with a claimed zero to 62mph time of “under” 2.8 seconds and a top speed “over” 217mph. Lambo’ are being a little coy with the performance figures, and if you take words like under and over out of the press release, Sián is actually no faster than an Aventador. However, when you get to this level of performance, it’s 62mph plus, and in-gear acceleration that separates the ballistic from the fast, so expect Sián to live up to the hype. Rather amusingly, the addition of the e-motor also means the car can reverse and park on electric power only. Although it may seem novel, the fact that Lamborghini are already thinking about this on a low level means we can expect this technology to develop in to full milk-float mode for the public road in the future. In terms of design, Sián is proper bedroom wall pinup material. Lamborghini are calling it a “new super sports car for a new era”, but look closely and you’ll notice design elements from the legendary Countach. It’s an aggressive look but one that Lambo’ claim is designed with aerodynamics and active cooling in mind. If you’re reading this and fancy one for yourself, then dream on. All 63 cars are already spoken for and have been sold for an undisclosed amount of money. Rumours of a £3million price tag have been doing the rounds, but unless you come across someone who’s actually bought one, the true value of the car will remain a mystery. The Lamborghini Sián is somewhat of a statement. Read between the lines and you can tell that Lambo’ aren’t ready to give up on the internal combustion engine yet, and for all the scaremongering about the Aventador replacement not having a V12 engine, this is the strongest hint yet that it isn’t going anywhere. It would appear that Lamborghini are doing their utmost to hang on to petrol power by cleaning it up and introducing some revolutionary tech to support it. Whether it proves to be a stop-gap between what we have now and a world where all Lamborghinis are pure EV, or this is part of a genuine long-term plan for the company, we don’t know yet. All I know is that Lamborghini are clearly trying their best to keep the internal combustion engine alive, and that’s something all car enthusiasts should be able to get on board with. > Words: Mark Rose

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“It would appear that Lamborghini are doing their utmost to hang on to petrol power”

Imagine being one of the lucky 63 people to get behind the wheel of a Sián.

Let’s play spot the Countach ...

ISSUE 7 > Cover Feature

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FIRST DRIVE REVIEW

New Nissan Juke WORDS: Mark Rose / PHOTOGRAPHY: Nissan GB

he Nissan Juke has now been with us for the best part of 10 years, but despite the polarising aesthetics, it’s arguably one of the most successful cars of the past decade. In the UK, we simply couldn’t get enough of it. In excess of 1 million Jukes have been sold in Europe, and approximately 285,000 of those have found homes in Britain. The reason for this success is simple. When Nissan designed the Juke, they effectively created the compact SUV segment that’s so popular today. For the first time, people could buy a family car with a commanding driving position for a modest amount of money, and to top it off, Nissan went to town on the styling. Keen car enthusiasts may bemoan the Juke and the type of car it represents, but Nissan’s innovation and the effect it’s had on the market place has to be admired. Sales of the first-generation Juke have remained strong over the course of its life, but the driving experience and cabin have now aged significantly and the time has come for a replacement model. We got the opportunity to spend a couple of days in Barcelona for the next generation Juke’s international press launch where we drove it for the first time. These are our initial thoughts, and once press demonstrators come available on the Nissan fleet, we’ll conduct a full UK road test.

Engine, Gearbox, and Economy From launch, the next generation Juke comes as standard with one engine and a choice of gearbox. The 1.0 litre 3-cylinder turbo petrol produces 117bhp and 180NM of torque with an overboost function that sees that figure swell to 200NM under hard acceleration. Power is sent to the front wheels via a 6-speed manual gearbox or a new 7-speed DCT, and 0-62mph is dealt with in 10.4 seconds. For the first time in a Juke, you get a choice of 3 driving modes which include Eco, Standard and Sport, each of which have an effect on steering weight and throttle response. The car never feels particular fast, but performance is respectable enough given it’s a family car and the 7-speed DCT ‘box quietly shuffles through its ratios. Our pick, however, would be the 6-speed manual gearbox which has a long throw but is still slick to use. In gear, the DCT can make the Juke feel sluggish whereas the manual gearbox helps you exploit the available torque and makes the car feel brisker as a result. Depending on your gearbox choice, Nissan quote average fuel economy figures between 44 and 48mpg and CO2 outputs of approximately 110g/km. The Juke won’t be available with a diesel engine.

ISSUE 7 > First Drive

Nissan Juke Price: from £17,395. Engine: 1.0-litre, 3cyl turbo, 117bhp @ 5,250rpm, 180NM @ NA. Performance: 0-62mph 10.4 seconds, VMAX 112mph. Transmission: 6spd manual, front-wheel drive. Weight: 1,182kg.

The new Juke’s interior represents a massive step on from the old car’s cabin.

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Bose speakers in the headrest.

Ride, Handling and Refinement The new Juke is bigger, lighter and stronger than the old car. Rear passengers now have an extra 5.8cm of legroom and 1.1cm of headroom, and boot size has increased to 422 litres making it 20% larger than before. Overall weight is down by 23kg and torsional rigidity is up by 13%. Rear occupants certainly benefit from the extra room in the back compared to the old car, and from a driving perspective, the changes have made a significant difference to the way it handles. Where the old Juke would roll about when you showed it a corner, the new car feels tight and the steering is direct with a decent weight to it. It’s not a performance SUV by any stretch of the imagination, but if the mood takes you post-school run, then it can be entertaining along a country road. Irrespective of the type of road, the ride always felt smooth but we’ll reserve final opinions until we test it in the UK, as Spanish roads have a habit of being easy on the suspension and damping. Interior, Technology and Safety Nissan are making big noises about the next generation Juke being their most connected model ever. The car now comes with a full 8-inch touchscreen display with a 4G WiFi hotspot, and you can spec Bose speakers which are integrated in to the headrest for an immersive surround sound experience. You can link up your phone and display your favourite apps via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and you can now download an app to your phone which works with Google Assistant to help you stay connected to your Juke. It recognises around 30 different voice commands, and when asked, Google Assistant can tell you how much fuel is in the tank, relay tyre pressure information and remotely programme a route in to the satnav so it’s ready before you get in the car. Connectivity aside, the cabin is now a lovely place to spend time which isn’t something that could be said for the old car. Nissan have worked hard to simplify the ergonomics and improve the quality of the materials, and interior options like Alcantara really help lift the feeling of quality. There are still some scratchy plastics around and the door bins could do with a line of fabric to stop items moving around, but overall, better use of soft-touch materials is noticeable throughout the cabin. The seats are supportive in all the right places, the driving position has plenty of adjustment, and overall visibility has been improved thanks to thinner A-pillars. On the move, you still get some road noise, but that could have something to do with the fact that the Juke now comes with a 19-inch wheel option. Also, depending on your direction of travel relevant to the wind, there is a little wind noise in the cabin. Having said that, refinement is high and the new Juke is a pleasant place to cover distance from. In terms of safety tech, the Juke is the most advanced Nissan ever, and they’ve used the platform to debut ‘Blind Sport Intervention’, which recognises when a car is in your blind spot and steers you back in to lane. Needless to say, we didn’t feel the need to test the feature but we suspect it works a treat if such a situation arises. Pricing and Trim The new Nissan Juke starts from £17,395 for the base model with Visia, Acenta, N-connecta, Tekna and Tekna+ trims available depending on your budget. For the money conscious buyers, you can pick up a brand new Juke for £275 per month with a £1,500 down payment and a £500 deposit contribution from Nissan. Regardless of trim and specification, it’s a lot of family car for the money, and if you can stretch to Tekna+ trim then you open up extra customisation options to help your Juke stand out from the crowd, further. Verdict We won’t allocate our Redline Rating until we’ve spent a week with it in the UK. Having said that, first impressions are very strong and we suspect the Juke’s ride has been set up for the UK market given we bought more of them than anyone else. Finally, and on a subjective note, the new model is now a fine looking car, particularly in white paint with a black roof. More to come soon.

ISSUE 7 > First Drive

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#throwbackthursday Car makers frivolously lean on their heritage when it comes to naming their latest models. Blee Carswell takes them to task.

> Does Sir remember that we in fact invented the wheel back in 2000BC? Well, of course we did. Therefore, you should definitely buy a car from us. Okay, I made that conversation up, but it proves a point. for nearly 45 years and every successor has built on the Manufacturers should be judged on how good the cars foundations laid by the generation before. Where the lines they’re producing at right this moment, are. What they made start to get blurred though, is with products such as the Up! in the 70s and 80s is irrelevant. Take Hyundai for example. GTI. Sure, it’s a good car in its own right and it does come If you were to base your opinion solely on their exploits from from the same company, but fitting tartan seats to a model the turn of the millennium, I’d wager you’d rather contract that’s been with us for less than a decade is the equivalent of several deadly diseases than own one. Now look at the recent turning up to a wedding in a kilt because your great uncles’ i30N, it’s a fantastic, desirable and highly acclaimed hot cousins’ wife was Scottish. Yes, the link is there, but it’s fairly hatch that took the segment by storm. tenuous. So, where does this obsession with heritage come from, It can get confusing, too. The MG ZS is a perfectly is it simply to sell more cars? Quite possibly, but the cynic good way of transporting a family around for not much in me can’t help but wonder if putting a Viva badge on cash. Unfortunately, and I’m not making this up, when an the back of a supermini got anyone rushing to their local intrigued resident posted on the local “spotted” page asking dealers. In some cases, this sort about one, all the comments “Perhaps we’re at fault. After referred to the head gasket of name resurrection should be a criminal offence. JDM fans across suffered by the ZS all, we love our rose-tinted problems the world had their hearts broken saloon from the early noughties. when Mitsubishi gave their new, glasses, and everything was I’m not sure that is quite what yet-another-SUV, the Eclipse they had in mind during the board better in the past, right?” nameplate. I doubt anyone would meetings. be quick to congratulate Mazda on With so much new technology such a shrewd marketing decision if something similar were and the rate of advancements ever increasing, I’d like to to happen with the MX5 name in the future. think our electric future might see an end to this. It’s fruitless Perhaps we’re at fault. After all, we love our rose-tinted to hang onto the past highs and lows a company might have glasses, and everything was better in the past, right? If had when the latest products are based on brand spanking anything is to blame for the aforementioned naming strategy, new tech. A new model should be just that – a new model. then surely this is the prime suspect. We are creatures of There is little point in spending years upon years and habit and somebody looking to upgrade a 3-year-old family millions of pounds developing a brand-new product to then hatch is likely to be put off when they are politely informed go and stick a badge on it that refers to a much older, and that the latest model is called the Spacemax 4000. therefore objectively worse product. Surely a customer is Clearly, lineage and heritage are two completely different more likely to buy a car based on its new technologies and things. Unveiled in 1975, the Golf GTI has been with us not because of its #throwbackthursday name.

ISSUE 7 > Column

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Talking Tyres ... Why have separate sets of summer and winter tyres when you can have two in one? Victor Harman discusses the pros and cons.

> So called “all seasons tyres” have been around for some years, but the earlier interpretations were little more than half and half combinations of conventional summer and winter tyres. They were reasonably effective, and the best available likely to get stuck in snow on a narrow road and leave you compromise, but fell well short of the performance of good trapped, along with them! Their superior grip and braking summer tyres and proper winter tyres in the appropriate abilities may even deceive other drivers on ordinary summer seasons. The arrival of the Michelin CrossClimate tyre in 2015 tyres into thinking that they can progress as well as you! So was a radical step forwards, as they offered performance very their benefits on busy roads are compromised, and they are little short of the good normal winter and summer tyres. For probably most useful to those living in less densely populated most drivers they offer near to the best of both worlds over areas, but where transport to work, schools and shops etc. may the four seasons of the year, and other tyre manufacturers be absolutely vital. Those are people most likely to have fitted have since responded by offering products with matching winter tyres in past times, and all seasons tyres now offer huge all-seasons performance. They cost a little more than seasonadvantages for them in eliminating the twice-a-year wheel/ specific tyres, but much less than two sets of tyres for winter tyre swap. and summer, and are far more convenient for those who really What of the technology involved? There are significant need good winter mobility, whist changes in the properties of most avoiding the need for having two around 7 degrees Celcius, “The arrival of the Michelin tyres sets of wheels and tyres. What they and between 5 and 10 degrees can never do, of course, is match the CrossClimate tyre in 2015 was Celcius neither summer nor winter dry road grip and steering response tyres can be at their best. The a radical step forwards” of sporting tyres fitted to some rubbers used in all seasons tyres high performance cars, but they are bridge this performance gap, and rarely available in appropriate sizes anyway, with only a few have multiple “sipes,” or fine patterns of slits, cut into the 40 profile all-seasons tyres available. tread blocks, to help prevent slippage on wet tarmac, and in This highlights the problems of cars with more extreme sludge, and snow. Winter often brings very wet roads with tyre and wheel size options. It suggests that a more practical the lower temperatures, so tread patterns need to displace and safer alternative in winter is a set of smaller and narrower standing water well, using deep drainage channels to prevent wheels, fitted with all seasons or full winter tyres. However, aquaplaning, and properties that prevent the treads becoming all-seasons tyres are not available in run-flat designs, which clogged with snow. All-seasons tyres tend to be more flexible means that full winter run-flat tyres, preferably on narrower than summer tyres, and usually therefore offer a soffter and rims, are the only alternative to summer tyres if you want quieter ride. Add to these the qualities of offering reasonably better mobility in the winter months. One significant problem good fuel economy, and good wear properties, with only with having all seasons (or full winter) tyres, and with the minor cost increases over conventional tyres, and the fine superior grip that they offer in snow and ice, is that you’re achieivement of the tyre designers becomes apparent. The still left very much at the mercy of other road users. They best rated all seasons tyres come from top manufacturers, like are no less likely to run into you, for lack of grip, and no less Michelin, Goodyear, Continental, and Nokian.

ISSUE 7 > Column

JOLLY JIMNY For the first time in 20 years, we have an all-new Suzuki Jimny. Time to celebrate with a spot of off-roading ... WORDS: Mark Rose PHOTOGRAPHY: Dom Ginn

here’s something about a dusty Suzuki Jimny that’s ‘just right’, purposeful, even. It’s very easy to mistaken the all-new Jimny as a pintsized fashion accessory that belongs in a Range Rover’s handbag, but to suggest such a thing would be to undermine the entire purpose of the car. Miniature G-Class it may appear, but there’s nothing small about the Jimny’s off-road capabilities. Over the decades, the little Suzuki has built up a devoted following thanks to its cute charm and cando attitude. Such is the popularity of this all-new car, there’s now an 18-month waiting list, as UK demand has considerably outstripped allocations. There’s even talk of build slots being advertised and sold on, above list price. I bet Suzuki weren’t expecting that. Eager to find out what the fuss was about, we put in a request for a loan car and then waited 5 months for it to arrive – it appears even motoring journalists can’t get enough of it. When it did turn up, I’ll admit that it was love at first sight but not love at first drive. I ventured on to the public road only to return worried that I might not get along with it as much as I had hoped. The problem for the Jimny is how capable modern off-road cars are. A Toyota Land Cruiser is designed to comfortably take the kids to and from school, and rough it out in the interim. At the upper end of the scale, a Range Rover is a luxury SUV which can also take on pretty much any terrain you throw at it. Okay, with a starting price of just £15,499 I was never expecting any of the above, but first impressions were of a car that didn’t like corners, was cheaply built and not particularly practical. Our SZ5 ALLGRIP test car came with a naturally aspirated 1.5 litre 4-cylinder petrol engine with outputs of just 100bhp and 95lb ft. Suzuki don’t quote a zero to 62 time for the Jimny, but it would do well to see it in under 12 seconds, and with peak power arriving at 6,000rpm, you have to rev the knackers off it to make it go anywhere. With a top speed of just 90mph, it’s the slowest car I’ve driven in years. And you know what? I don’t care one iota.

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ISSUE 7 > Driven

SZ5 spec cars come with 15-inch alloy wheels as standard.

Off-road is where the Jimny truly feels at home. We didn’t take it on a serious route, but we decided to indulge in a spot of Green Laning to see how it responded to some rough terrain. Our course comprised of rugged surfaces, tight passages, and elevation changes; we even stumbled across a ford. The Suzuki sits on a ladder frame chassis with rigid axle suspension, but it doesn’t come with a locking differential like other traditional off-roaders. Instead, it uses torque vectoring to brake slipping wheels and divert power round the fourwheel drive system, to aid traction. It may not be as effective as a locking-diff, but when you get stuck, it pulls you clear with relative ease. You also get Hill Descent Control and a low-ratio gearbox to help with steeper inclines, not that we encountered anything overly challenging on our adventure.

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One of the benefits of the Jimny’s boxy proportions is its ability to squeeze through gaps that larger 4x4s couldn’t, which makes it ideal for Green Laning routes. Not that our ford pushed the limits of the Jimny’s wading depth, but it can deal with 220ml of water up to the centre of the wheel hub before running in to trouble. In fact, it handled everything we threw at it, skipping across loose gravel and charging up inclines without even breaking a sweat. The plucky Jimny gave the impression it was capable of conquering far more challenging terrain than that found in the English countryside. Unfortunately, the Jimny’s off-roading ability and focus compromises its on-road usability. If you want something that serves as a daily driver then you best look elsewhere. It’s a noisy car to operate due to lack of sound deadening and its short

“We didn’t take it on a serious route, but we decided to indulge in a spot of Green Laning to see how it responded to some rough terrain”

A wipe-down interior adds to the Jimny’s rugged looks. gearing – at 70mph the engine sits at 3,500rpm which is very annoying on stretches of motorway. It’s also not that practical. The glovebox is small, the door bins are too skinny to hold anything useful, and with the rear seats up, the boot space is non-existent. As for the satellite navigation and phone connectivity – it has it, and that’s all you need to know about that … However, in spite of all the obvious annoyances, I kept falling for the little Suzuki. Take the Jimny seriously and you immediately play yourself out the game. Yes, the steering is vague, the body rolls a comical amount, and the front tyres squeal, even at low speed. But once you push past the fear that you might roll it or end up in a terminal understeer scenario, you’ll discover a car that can take a fair beating before deciding

to give up the ghost. The realisation that the Suzuki Jimny can be driven quickly came when I found myself short on time and needing to catch a plane – nothing provokes anxiety fuelled driving quite like it. With the airport an hour away, I had no other option than to push the Suzuki beyond its design capabilities in my quest to make up time, and the Jimny rose to the challenge with aplomb. Some things that should be noted. The four-wheel drive system is rear biased, so when you tip it in to a corner the back comes round to meet you. Despite the long throw, the 5-speed manual gearbox benefits from a delightfully mechanical shift. Also, it grips much better than the slender tyre sections would suggest. Needless to say, it is not a sporty car, but it can be hustled along at a fair rate and I guarantee you’ll crack a smile in the process.

ISSUE 7 > Driven

For the record, I made it to the airport with time to spare. What else is there to tell you about the Jimny, then? The old school engine returns around 37mpg, a reasonable fuel economy figure that’s helped by the car’s kerbweight of just 1,135kg. The interior may look like it’s just thrown together with cheap plastic, but it’s in fact made to be wiped down when it gets dirty. And finally, everyone else will love you for driving it, such is the appeal of the boxy, retro appearance. To sum the Suzuki Jimny up as a great off-road car but a questionable daily proposition would be both accurate and unfair. It’s a jolly little thing, a charm offensive on four wheels that I adoringly looked back at every time I parked it up. It’s completely honest with itself, and in a motorindustry filled with fast hatchbacks and brash SUVs, that’s a rare thing indeed. Damn that 18-month waiting list!

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Suzuki Jimny Price: from £15,499. Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cyl petrol, 100bhp @ 6,000rpm, 95lb ft @ 4,000rpm. Performance: 0-62mph N/A seconds, VMAX 90mph. Transmission: 5spd manual, four-wheel drive. Weight: 1,135kg.

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Endless charm with serious ‘go anywhere’ capabalities.

Very slow, doesn’t like corners, and the waiting list is 18 months.

Don’t take it seriously and be sure to take it off-roading.

ARC EXPRESS

UK, European and Scandinavian Car Transportation Service

01206 823 479 www.arcexpress.co.uk

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MERCEDES BEATS WEATHER Nothing says trolled like a rainy week with a convertible Mercedes. Can Mark make the most of it? WORDS: Mark Rose PHOTOGRAPHY: Dom Ginn

e Brits are a determined bunch. Despite the changeable weather, we buy more convertibles than any other country in Europe, and what’s more, we actually use them. I once witnessed a gentleman driving his drop-top sports car with the lid off in the cold of winter. The outside temperature was 4 degrees, and for the life of me, I couldn’t work out whether he was being silly or just admirably stubborn. I’m also someone who enjoys open-top motoring, a trait that I no doubt inherited from my father – a man who’s always had something in the garage with a retractable roof. Before you put two and two together, no, he wasn’t the individual mentioned above, although I wouldn’t put it past him … When news came of a week in summer with a Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet, I naturally started visualising drives through the countryside with the roof stowed and the sun beating down. Fast forward to delivery day however, and true to form, the not-so-great British weather poured cold water on my plans. A bit of rain I can deal with, monsoon conditions, less so. The first few days were spent with the retractable soft top firmly latched in place. If you do happen to get caught out in the rain while driving, you’ll be pleased to know that the roof can be raised in just 20 seconds at speeds of up to 30mph. Roof up or down, you can’t help but marvel at the quality of the Mercedes’ interior. The E-Class sits nicely between the smaller C-Class and the company’s flagship S-Class model, but you could be fooled in to thinking that you were sitting in something further up the Mercedes range. Ash wood and leather are abundant throughout, the build quality is exceptional and some of the finer details – particularly the turbine air vents – are exquisite. Comfort and overall refinement are also high thanks to seats that are supportive and a cabin that filters out unwanted wind and road noise. When it comes to in-car tech, Mercedes and Audi rule the roost but come at it with very different philosophies. In AMG-Line trim, the E-Class now comes as standard

ISSUE 7 > Driven

Crystal effect tail lights.

Open top on a rainy day. with the ‘Widescreen Cockpit’ which consists of not one, but two, 12.3-inch displays aligned to create your very own cinema screen on wheels. They look fabulous with a screen resolution of 1920x720 pixels and are used to configure the car’s plethora of driving and onboard settings. Generally speaking, all the menus are laid out well and the graphics are excellent, but it’s not a touch screen system, with Mercedes opting to stay with a more traditional click wheel set up. It works well enough but the touchscreen displays in Audi models – some of which now come with haptic feedback – seem more intuitive to use. On the plus side, at least you don’t need to worry about constantly wiping your finger prints off the screens in the Merc. On the move, the E-Class has impeccable road manners and comes with a multitude of driving modes to cycle through. We spent most of our time pottering around in Eco mode as it

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slackens off the throttle response to aid fuel economy and keeps the car in its softest set up. As a whole, the E-Class range has a very wide remit thanks to saloon, coupe and estate variants, as well as snarling AMG models. The Cabriolet’s character however, occupies the mellow end of the spectrum. You can drive it with verve, but you can tell that the suspension and damping have been set up with comfort in mind. The ride is sumptuous and does a fine job of separating you from the nasty bits of the road beneath you. Interestingly, our test car sat on the larger 20-inch multi-spoke alloy wheel which come with foam absorber in the tyre to help reduce road noise and soften off the ride. As such, ride quality isn’t compromised over a car wearing the standard 19-inch rim which means you can spec 20s for aesthetics and not worry about your ride quality going to pot. Are you listening, Audi?

“The ride is sumptuous and does a fine job of separating you from the nasty bits of the road beneath you”

360 degree parking cameras. There are 6 different engine and drivetrain combinations to choose from. You can either have a petrol or diesel motor, and a choice of rear-wheel drive or 4MATIC all-wheel-drive. Whatever specification you choose, it will distribute its power via a 9-speed automatic gearbox. Needless to say, there’s no manual option for the E, but autos come equipped with paddles if you do want to take control manually. Gearbox response times quicken when you choose one of the car’s sportier modes, but driving the Merc in this way feels a little silly. The auto is best left alone where it will quietly slip through ratios without you noticing. Our 220d AMG-Line is a popular choice among E-Class owners, and it’s plain to see why. For a small capacity diesel, this is a very refined engine in terms of response and noise levels. Outputs of 191bhp and 295lb ft. from the 2.0-litre

4-cylinder motor give it respectable straight-line performance despite its 1,830kg kerbweight. It’s not a fast car, but there’s more than enough midrange to make easy overtaking manoeuvres, and the engine’s lack of outright pace helps add to the E-Class’ easy going demeanour. Not only that, we managed to average fuel economy figures in the low 40s and the 66-litre fuel tank means you can cover cross-country distances without needing to stop for a refill. Back to the weather, and after a few dreary days and unsuccessful attempts at getting the roof down, the sun finally made an appearance. Lid off? You bet! Cold weather drivers can rejoice, the E-Class comes with AIRSCARF which uses vents in the headrest to blow warm air on to your neck, and on the move, the cabin is well protected from wind intrusion so you won’t need to worry about losing your hat, at speed.

ISSUE 7 > Driven

Ultimately though, a convertible’s full potential is realised in fine weather, and with the roof off, the E-Class Cab’ comes in to its own. It’s a lovely thing to cruise about in. Going fast is great, but sometimes you can gain equal amounts of pleasure from a car that does nothing to rush you, and that’s what the Mercedes does best. Prices for the E-Class Cabriolet start from £45,960 with AMGLine cars benefitting from a lot of standard equipment. Mercedes’ options list is comprehensive, but

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you can pick up a great spec for little more than £50,000. Given the quality, refinement, the ability to lose the roof and the fact that it’s a Mercedes-Benz; our maths makes it good value for money if you don’t go crazy on the extras. In truth, you don’t need to go silly with the spec sheet or stump up for a powerful engine. The Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet is a wonderful daily proposition whatever the weather, and when the sun shines, it’s just about spot on.

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet Price: from £45,960. Engine: 2.0-litre, 4-cyl diesel, 191bhp @ 3,800rpm, 295lb ft @ N/A. Performance: 0-62mph 7.7 seconds, VMAX 147mph. Transmission: 9spd auto, rear-wheel drive.

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Beautiful cabin, chilled road manners and never ending head room.

Infotainment isn’t touch screen and there isn’t much room in the back.

Go for AMG-Line trim and keep the options light.

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WARNING: Much rubber was harmed in the making of this review!

COMPETIT Is the BMW M2 Competition just a drift machine, or is there more to it than big smoky slides? Time to investigate further ... WORDS: Mark Rose PHOTOGRAPHY: Dom Ginn

here’s both a comforting familiarity and wonderful simplicity to the cabin in the BMW M2 Competition. It’s an interior that first appeared in the F20 and F21 1 Series way back in 2011, and despite BMW’s best efforts to keep it looking fresh, there’s no escaping the M car’s connection to those early reardrive hatchbacks. You make do with one infotainment screen, a perfectly round steering wheel with a couple of paddles, manual speedometer and rev readouts, and one conspicuously placed traction control button. Sure, there are 3 different configurations for your steering weight, throttle response and gearbox ferocity – all of which can be adjusted individually – but importantly, there’s little to distract you from the job of driving the car. The chassis layout is also simple. Space for a twin-turbocharged 3.0 litre straight-six out front, drive to the rear wheels via a 7-speed Dual Clutch Transmission (you can

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also buy it with a stick), and an electronically controlled reardifferential. It’s a delicious little recipe that’s aimed squarely at people who love to have fun. Consider it the automotive equivalent of the double Vodka with Red Bull – not difficult to get your head round, but once you’ve seen a few off, you know what sort of night you’re in for. But that’s not to say the M2 Comp’ is just a 2 Series with widened bodywork, a big engine and snappy gearbox. Much has been snatched from the M3 and M4 including front and rear suspension assemblies, a detuned version of the S55 engine with outputs of 404bhp and 406lb ft, and the carbon fibre strut brace from the bigger M cars. BMW’s aim has clearly been to add the best bits their M Performance division has to offer to their entry-level coupe in an attempt to capture the essence of the now legendary 1M – a car famous for being a BMW partsbin-special that turned out to be one of the finest driver’s cars of its time.

TION TIME

ISSUE 7 > Driven

The M Performance bucket seats are straight from the M4.

Does it drive like a 1M? I couldn’t say because I’m yet to get behind the wheel of one, but what I can tell you is that that the M2 Competition is as much of a hoot as the spec sheet suggests. Aside from an adjustable chassis and a willingness to respond to your inputs, the most important aspect of any car that’s designed to be driven is how it communicates with you. Indeed, one of the first things that strikes you is just how chatty the M2 Comp’ is, and it’s this constant line of communication that lends the car its predictable nature. Turn the traction control off, apply some steering lock and get on the power; the M2 will rotate on demand. It doesn’t break away suddenly, instead, it transitions smoothly and then offers you options. Once you have your eye in, you can pick your angle and go, such is the adjustability on the throttle. If going sideways is top of

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your agenda, then it will not leave you wanting. Given its penchant for smoky drifts, you’d be forgiven for thinking the M2 Competition is a one trick pony, but the chassis balance is such that it can perform the neat and tidy routine just as competently. It loves to be grabbed by the scruff and hustled along a country lane. It turns in positively, grips tenaciously, and as you exit the corner the back comes round to meet you. There’s some roll in the chassis, but what it does is communicate how hard you’re working the tyres. The EPAS system also offers you feedback and never are you left second guessing where the front wheels are. The brakes are powerful, our test car came with the upgraded M Sport braking system – denoted by grey callipers – and the pedal feels strong even after hard use. Interestingly, the suspension isn’t adjustable, BMW

“It doesn’t break away suddenly, instead, it transitions smoothly and then offers you options”

Look! A round steering wheel! instead choosing to run a fixed spring and damper rate. At first, I thought this was a missed opportunity for the M2 Comp’, but the setup walks a fine balance between a purposeful ride and not being too harsh for the public road. In a world where downsizing is the industry norm’, the engine is a standout feature. There’s something about sixcylinders in a compact sports car that just works. The twinturbocharged 3.0 litre straight-six offers abundant mid-range poke and then begs you to chase its 7,600rpm rev limiter. Apart from a little turbo-lag lower down in the rev range, the delivery is smooth, and running it out to the red line allows you to indulge in its glorious straight-six soundtrack. Equipped with our test car’s 7-speed DCT gearbox, the M2 sprints to 62mph in just 4.2 seconds (4.4 for the manual),

and the ‘box represented one of the biggest surprises of the package. For the final word in driver involvement, you want the 6-speed manual, but in its Sport + configuration, the Dual Clutch Transmission shifts so quickly that the engine may as well be bolted directly to your fingertips. BMW has worked hard to engineer immediacy in to the way the car reacts to input, and that relationship is apparent in the quality and speed of the gear change. I love a manual gearbox just as much as the next driver, but not once did I feel like I was missing out by not having one, and if you’re going to daily your M2 Comp’, then you’re likely better off with the DCT. Day to day, it’s an easy car to live with. If you leave the gearbox, throttle mapping and steering weight in their Normal setting, the M2 will behave just like any other 2 Series.

ISSUE 7 > Driven

At speed you get some tyre roar in the cabin, but the upgraded Harman Kardon hi-fi soon drowns it out. Of more concern is the fuel consumption, we averaged 18mpg across our week with it and on an economy run we saw 29mpg. You’ll also get through rear tyres regularly, not because they don’t last under normal driving, but chucking cheeky slides as you come out of junctions is all too tempting. Despite the relative simplicity of the cabin, it’s well made with quality materials, and there’s enough M Performance branding to help it feel special. A particular highlight is the seat which is beautifully bolstered with plenty of adjustment. If you like your driving position low and snug, then you’ll love sitting in the M2. With the exception of a Caterham Seven 620S/R, I can’t think of anything else in the M2 Competition’s

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price point that comes close to matching it in terms of outright fun – quite an admission coming from someone who swears by everything that rolls out of Crawley. You’ll need £51,510 before options to purchase one, and while that may sound like a lot of cash for a small coupe with four seats, consider it this way. With spec, an entry level Porsche 718 Cayman or Jaguar F-Type cost near enough the same, but they are strict two-seater sports cars. I’ve driven them both, and despite their individual merits, I’d put my money on the BMW M2 Competition every day of the week. There’s something about it that gets under your skin. Sure, it’s fast, fun and it brings out your inner yob, but most importantly it’s been designed for people who love to drive, by people who love to drive. What more could you ask for?

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It’s an absolute riot and one of the best cars on sale today.

Drinks fuel and shreds rubber. It’s worth it though!

Get Hockenheim Silver paint with the carbon M Performance extras.

BMW M2 Competition Price: from £51,510. Engine: 3.0-litre, 6-cyl twin-turbo, 404bhp @ 7,000rpm, 406lb ft @ 2,350rpm. Performance: 0-62mph 4.2 seconds, VMAX 155mph. Transmission: 7spd DCT, rear-wheel drive. Weight: 1,575kg.

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Ferrari on Tour

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The Portofino is Ferrariâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s replacement for the California T, and their take on a more dynamic GT car. Ferrari invite us to Scotland to drive it. WORDS: Mark Rose

ISSUE 7 > Main Feature

t first, the Old Course Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa in St. Andrews, Scotland, seemed like a curious place to host the beginning and end point of a Ferrari Portofino tour, but actually, it couldn’t have been better selected. The evening prior to the test, we sat in the fourthfloor restaurant overlooking the golf course and out on to the North Sea, while we indulged in good food and fine wine. Before even setting foot in our test car, I already understood what the Portofino was about. Yes, Ferrari is arguably the world’s most revered motor manufacturer with a rich heritage and prodigious back catalogue, but the brand is just as much about lifestyle as it is motor racing and fast road cars.

In many ways, the Portofino is the modern embodiment of the Ferrari brand. In terms of bloodline, it may only have the California and the later California T to lean on, but the steering wheel and body panels still wear the famous Prancing Horse. It’s also built to devour long distances in comfort, with two rear seats and a usable boot which allows additional access to the cabin to help make way for longer items like skis and the all-important golf clubs. Competition? Ferrari insist that clients are trading in Bentley Continental GTs for Portofinos, and that the car alone accounts for a third of their overall sales. To tempt buyers out of an Aston Martin DB11 Volante is one thing, but to steal Bentley customers is another job entirely, which makes you question whether the Portofino has been built to cut it as a true Ferrari. If the pomp and prestige of one the world’s most famous golf destinations

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serves as a metaphor for Ferrari lifestyle, then the roads and backdrops of rural Scotland certainly satisfy its reputation for building driver’s cars. We set off from St. Andrews and made our way crosscountry to Perth, Crieff and then north to Pitlochry via Aberfeldy. The first leg of the journey was mostly dual carriageway which gave us the opportunity to ‘sample’ the Portofino’s performance credentials. Listen carefully and you can still hear purists whining that Ferrari now build series production cars with turbocharged engines. What you don’t have trouble hearing is how adamant Ferrari are that their engines respond just as well as normally aspirated motors. The Portofino validates the concept that clever engineers can make forced induction feel natural. If you pay attention, you can still feel the 3.9 litre twin-turbo V8 engine boost, but crucially, you have to concentrate very hard to pick out any inertia.

Our test car was a white Portofino with a black roof. It looked fabulous, easily the best example there. ISSUE 7 > Main Feature

The car sets off down the road at an alarming rate; it certainly covers ground quicker than a Continental GT which itself is a very fast car. 592bhp and 561lb ft. help push the 1,664kg Portofino from rest to 124mph in just 10.8 seconds and on to a top speed of 199mph. The strong midrange is followed by a rampant top end which encourages you to chase the 7,500rpm rev limiter. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dualclutch gearbox, and what a gearbox it is. As with many dualclutch ‘boxes, around town it’s a touch lazy to respond, but once you’re up to speed it shuffles through ratios at lightning speed. Sport mode quickens the response times further and upchanges are met with a hilarious kick in the back. It’s certainly a match for McLaren’s ‘Seamless Shift Gearbox’, if a little quicker. For a while, I thought Woking made the snappiest ‘box in the business, but the boys and girls at Maranello may have just pipped them to it. With the Ferrari’s straight-line performance in little doubt, we swung a right turn just before Crieff and headed toward

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Aberfeldy. The further north we pushed, the more Scotland began to reveal itself to us. I’ve been to some beautiful places in the world, but rural Scotland is by far one of the most enchanting, and there’s no shortage of captivating driving roads to enjoy – now was the time to see if the Portofino could cut it as a proper driver’s car. There are 3 driving modes to choose from that can be adjusted using the Manettino. You can either select comfort, sport or ESC off (traction control off) and then adjust the electronic dampers separately using the famous “bumpy road” button, on the opposite side of the steering wheel. We dialled our prancing horse in to sport, and bolted. The Portofino uses a new electric power steering system which is quite unlike any EPAS system I’ve used before. It lacks feel and initially feels too quick, but once you learn how it operates, you’ll find yourself scything through twists and turns with millimetre accuracy, without having to make large inputs. The carbon ceramic brakes which are standard fit – yes, Ferrari won’t charge you extra for those – are typical in that they offer little feedback but will stop the car on a pin, if need be.

Cavallino Rampante The Prancing Horse.

ISSUE 7 > Main Feature

Ferrari are making big noises about the development of their front-engined rear drive chassis. The Portofino is 80kg lighter than the old Cali’ T, with 40% of the weight saved from the chassis structure, alone. Overall, torsional rigidity is up by 35% thanks to aluminium for the underbody, use of 12 different alloys for extrusions, castings and sheet metal, and a reduction of components in the A-pillars from 21 to just 2 parts. Thanks to the increase in stiffness, there’s minimal bodyroll, and across a broken stretch of tarmac the suspension soaks up the worst of the road surface. However, when you start to push hard the Ferrari does begin to move around as it gets deflected by road imperfections. The best way to enjoy the Portofino across a technical country lane is to leave it in sport for the sharper throttle response, weightier steering and noisier exhaust, and to use the bumpy road mode to help soften off the suspension and damping. This set up helps the car flow down the road better and gives you the confidence to push that little harder, but ultimately this is a car that most owners will enjoy driving at seven-tenths as opposed to flat out. Whatever the speed, driving the Portofino is an event thanks to its glorious flat-plane crank V8. The exhaust may have an electric by-pass valve to help moderate volume – something

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that’s useful while idling or driving through town – but you never escape the fact that there’s a Ferrari engine lurking beneath the bonnet. Nor would you want to. With the roof down, your ears are exposed to the tunes from the engine and exhaust. As we wound our way through Scotland, the roar from the V8 added pure Italian theatre that reverberated off hills and barrelled across landscapes. It was special. The scenery didn’t disappoint either. By now, the long dual carriageways of the A90 had been long forgotten and what we were driving through was Scotland as it looks in the brochure. ‘Grand Touring’ has become a regular pastime for the wealthy, with many choosing to pop over to places like Monaco or even venture on longer trips across Europe. What people often forget, is that the UK is also a wonderful place to go in search of stunning driving roads and beautiful backdrops. The Portofino cuts it as a Grand Tourer. It doesn’t consume miles in the same comfort as a Bentley Continental GT, nor does it offer the same levels of luxury – nothing other than a Rolls Royce does – but it’s no less a GT car for it. The seats, despite feeling a little firm are supportive but not overly bolstered, and can be adjusted 22 different ways. The cabin in our test car was well appointed with leather, aluminium and carbon fibre, and the infotainment is much easier to use than McLaren’s IRIS system, if a touch slow to respond.

Did you know that Portofino is a fishing village on the Italian Riviera coastline?

The Portofino loves to chase its 7,500rpm rev limiter

ISSUE 7 > Main Feature

Cabin ergonomics have never been Ferrari’s strong suit, but the Portofino interior is relatively easy to fathom. Many of the controls are now accessed using a 10.3-inch full HD multi-touch screen display, with 3D maps and Apple CarPlay – with maps, vehicle information and entertainment also available in the instrument binnacle. As odd as it sounds, steering wheel mounted indicators also feel instinctive to use after a few miles at the helm. If you want to both scare and entertain your passenger, you can also option an 8.8-inch touchscreen display which sits in the dash just above the glovebox. This allows them to view your speed, rev counter and what gear you’re in, as well as play around with the in-car entertainment. If like me, your friends insist on being your personal in-car DJ and get a little annoying, just remember, your right foot has the power to keep their bums and backs pinned to their seats. Begrudgingly, we drove the car with the roof up for a little while – we were under strict orders to keep the lid off, with our Ferrari spokesperson telling us to just drive faster if it rained – and the cabin was well insulated from wind and road noise. The folding hard top can be stowed away in just 14 seconds while driving at speeds of up to 30mph, and with the roof folded away, the cabin suffered from very little wind intrusion, even at, erm, higher speeds. Roof up or down, boot space was adequate enough for weekend bags and the Portofino’s 2+ configuration adds further practicality for longer trips. Consider the rear seats useful storage spaces; Portofino passengers may benefit from an extra 50mm of legroom compared to California T occupants, but anyone larger than small children will struggle to get comfy. Our stop in Pitlochry coincided with lunch at the Atholl Palace Hotel. Needless to say, another beautiful venue with great food and a stunning view. However, when there’s a Ferrari parked outside, food becomes more of a necessity than a pleasure. With full bellies and updated Instagram stories, we dived in the Portofino and headed back the way we came. If the journey up to Pitlochry was one of discovery, then the return to base camp was one of reflection. Starting from £164,426, the Portofino is the most financially approachable model in the Ferrari range, and in direct price competition with the aforementioned Bentley Continental GT. If you want a traditional Grand Tourer, then the Bentley is unparalleled, but if you want to cover distance comfortably, in a car that also offers big thrills, then the Ferrari does things that the Conti’ could only dream of. We rounded the left turn in to the Old Course Hotel, parked the car up and cut the engine. Ferrari Portofino Tour, completed. However, it wasn’t until later that evening, on the flight home, that I had a chance to properly reflect on my time with it. As with every car of this calibre, I always think carefully about what makes it special. The Portofino has been built with a purpose and one that’s been heavily influenced by owners of the old California T, and the result is a great GT car that’s also exciting to drive on the right road. Arguably, the brief has been nailed, but that’s not what makes the Portofino special. What makes it special is who it’s made by. To Grand Tour is a fine thing and to drive while under the influence of adrenalin is possibly even better, but to do both in a Ferrari, is something else entirely.

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“If you want to cover distance comfortably, in a car that also offers big thrills, then the Ferrari does things that the Bentley Continental GT could only dream of” REDLINE 9 rating 10

Ferrari Portofino Price: from £164,426. Engine: 3.9-litre, V8 twin-turbo, 592bhp @ 7,500rpm, 561lb ft @ 3,000rpm. Performance: 0-124mph 10.8 seconds, VMAX 199mph. Transmission: 7spd dual-clutch, rear-wheel drive. Weight: 1,664kg.

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Excellent GT car infused with Ferrari theatre and passion.

Carbon ceramic brakes lack feel, as does the steering.

Sport with the bumpy road mode is the Portofino’s sweet spot.

ISSUE 7 > Main Feature

Debunking The Bullâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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Much has been said about whether an SUV can be considered a proper Lamborghini. We put the Urus through its paces in search of a definitive answer. WORDS: Mark Rose PHOTOGRAPHY: Dom Ginn ISSUE 7 > Long Drive

“I never thought I’d see a Lamborghini in Boxford” 48

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f ever there’s a photo-op to be had, you can be damn sure we get it. Dom shouts while gesturing wildly towards a set of double yellow lines outside a church. “Park the Urus there”, he demands. Never one to undermine creativity, I did as I was told and parked the big Lambo so that my enthusiastic colleague could get on with his thing. The chosen location was the rural village of Boxford. An area of East Anglia best known for its contribution to the woollen industry that thrived between the 1400 and 1800s. If ever there was a place where a Lamborghini would look like some sort of unidentified foreign object, it was here. The Urus’ wide stance, sharp lines and angry demeanour cut through the local, English architecture and subsequently drew the attention of everyone within its vicinity. On noticing it, a hunched-over, elderly lady slowly made her way across the road, inspected the Lambo’ and then exclaimed “I never thought I’d see a Lamborghini in Boxford”. In that moment, anyone who ever argued against whether the Urus was worthy of the badge had just seen their opinions thrown out by the least likely of judges. The Lamborghini Urus is, after all, a controversial car. Purists will say that it’s nothing like the low slung, mid-engined, Italian exotica that Sant’Agata is famous for, while others argue that the Urus is so outrageous an SUV that it couldn’t be anything other than a Raging Bull. Whatever people’s opinions, it’s a car that has come about through necessity if Lamborghini is to survive, but that’s not to say it’s unworthy of the marque. With an SD card full of images, we decided to leave before over excited locals began to complain about the quality of our parking. If Boxford has a community Facebook page full of ranting residents, then I’m in little doubt that we made it to the top of that day’s newsfeed. Something else that strikes you about the Urus as you wield it through town, is just how easy it is. At nearly 2.2 metres, the Lambo’ is anything other than slender, and yes, narrow streets and awkwardly parked vehicles require you to breathe in as you negotiate your surroundings, but once you learn how to thread the needle, you’ll do so with confidence. As a daily proposition, the Urus is perfectly useable. It can do the school run, take you to the shops, transport metal sticks to those places people call “Golf courses”, and do all of these things in genuine comfort and relative peace. If you think all of this sounds a little sensible, then you’d be right. The Urus may be what Lamborghini call a “Super SUV”, but it still has to do the Sport Utility Vehicle bit properly, otherwise the concept falls down entirely. But fear not, as the super aspect of what this 2200kg SUV is capable of, borders on outrageous. Beneath the bonnet is a twin-turbocharged 4.0 litre V8 engine, and is another thing that seems to take stick from the internet’s elite army of keyboard warriors. Okay, so Lamborghini are renowned for their naturally aspirated V10 and V12 engines, but only the uninitiated or downright stubborn would complain about the force fed V8 in the Urus. 641bhp and 627lb ft of torque are outputs that look exciting in any supercar, let alone an SUV, and it’s this combination that makes the Urus feel like nothing else on the road. On deploying all 641 horses, the nose of the Urus lifts and the car sets off toward the horizon, but it’s not the sheer speed that takes you by surprise. The initial shock

ISSUE 7 > Long Drive

that something so vast can move at such an astonishing rate is what really plays havoc with your understanding of fast. I’ve driven quicker cars, but never something this rapid yet so generously proportioned. In the grand scheme of things, the claimed 0-62mph time of 3.6 seconds and the 189mph top speed are utterly meaningless. Unless you experience the Urus first-hand, you’ll never truly understand the uniqueness of its ability. The idiosyncrasies aren’t confined to the Urus’ straight-line performance either. The breadth of its talent extends far beyond that of any fast SUV, particularly when it’s presented with a twisting country lane. In its Corsa driving mode, the Urus thunders along at a frightening pace, crushing tarmac and whipping round corners as if the road beneath retreats in to submission at the very sight of it. The mid-corner grip is just as sensational as the lack of body roll, giving you the confidence to push hard and lean on the Pirelli P Zero tyre. The traction as you come out of corners is strong, but the traction control light does flicker away from time to time as the Urus goes about deploying its immense grunt. In the wet, the big Lambo’ will step out if you’re too hasty with the power delivery, a reminder that for all its competence it should still be treated with respect. The carbon ceramic brakes were also mighty, but then they need to be if they’re to stop a car of this size, weight and performance in any reasonable distance. The only real weak link is the 7-speed twin-clutch gearbox. Pull a paddle and it doesn’t change with the immediacy we’ve come to expect from high performance cars, particularly when you’re cycling down the ‘box. Having said that, upshifts are entertaining as the torque spikes and kicks you in the back for good measure. Violence, even if it is engineered in, is always fun. To say the Urus handles like a hot hatchback might seem like a back-handed compliment – it is a Lamborghini, after all – but any manufacturer that can make something this bulky scythe through a back road with such dexterity should be lauded for their achievement. In a bid to ensure that the Urus handles as a Lamborghini should, the VW Group has allowed them to steal the best tech its collection of manufacturers has to offer. The result is a raft of items that are not seen collectively on any other VW Group car. Active Roll Stability Control tightens up the outside suspension to help keep the body flat as you negotiate corners. Four-wheel steering points the rear wheels in the same direction as the fronts at high speed to decrease corner radius, and at low speed they turn in the opposite direction to help create a wheelbase shorter than that of a Huracan. Lamborghini also use a torque vectoring combination of an active rear differential and central Torsen diff which can send up to 70% to the front wheels and 87% to the rear. The rear diff can also send up to 75% of the torque it receives to one side. Air suspension is common place throughout the VW Group and it’s also made an appearance on the Urus, but instead of being used to aid ride comfort, its main purpose is to adjust the ride height with respect to how you’re using the car. In Sport and Corsa, the Urus sits 15mm lower to the ground and in the off-road modes it raises the car by 40mm to help with ground clearance. Perhaps less exciting is the place from which you drive the car. In short, there’s a lot of Audi lurking around the cabin. Ordinarily, this is a good thing because Audi make some of the best interiors of any manufacturer which leaves you safe in the knowledge that nothing is going to break inside your Lamborghini. Having said that, a little more effort could have been made to disguise some of the obvious bits, mainly the steering wheel and the housing round the infotainment and climate control screens. It’s worth noting that Bentley also use a lot of Audi components in their cabins, but the big difference is that they’re packaged and presented in such a way that only motoring journalists notice the carry over. Rant aside, the quality of the materials is high and Lamborghini have been able to add some Italian flair to an otherwise German interior. There are enough hexagonal shapes to keep the eyes wandering, contrast stitching stretches as far as the eye can see, and the start button comes complete with a fighter-jet style cover. A special mention must also go to the Bang & Olufsen hi-fi with pop up speakers in the dash. Naim better watch out, this is the best B&O surround sound system I’ve heard yet.

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“The Urus thunders along at a frightening pace, crushing tarmac and whipping round corners”

Bang & Olufsen hi-fi.

Fighter jet style in the Lamborghini Urus.

The cabin is full of high quality materials.

ISSUE 7 > Long Drive

Some consumer-ish things to mention which I’m choosing to visit only briefly – this is a Lamborghini road test after all. The infotainment is Audi’s MMI system and it works brilliantly, there’s plenty of room for the entire family and their luggage, and if you drive the Urus nicely it will return 23mpg. Done. Time to talk about money. An Urus will set you back £159,925 before options and I’ve seen many priced well north of £200,000. Interestingly, our test car came in at a relatively modest £190,000 and never was I left feeling like I was missing out on anything. And before any of you accuse me of being sarcastic, I genuinely thought I’d be taking delivery of a £220,000 plus Lamborghini. But, is it worth the money? Well, that’s like going to a steak restaurant and asking if the chateaubriand is worth the premium over a sirloin. Fundamentally, they come from the same animal – a cow, funnily enough – but one is just dinner whereas the other is

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a culinary delight. You don’t need the chateaubriand, but you can afford it so you have it anyway. I suppose the moral of the review is to buy the best you can afford, and if an Urus is within your means then go for it. But there’s also something a little more pressing to consider. For decades, posters of Lamborghinis have been plastered to bedroom walls the world over, and the Urus is part of that continuation because no series production car manufacturer can survive long term with a two-car line up. Something has to pay the bills and by introducing the Urus, Lamborghini plan to double their annual output. You only have to look to Bentley and their Continental GT to see the impact one significant model can make to a manufacturer’s fortunes. Put simply, Urus sales equals Aventador replacement which in turn means Huracan successor, and so on. Any true petrolhead who says otherwise should go and take a long, hard look in the mirror.

Perhaps the appropriate judge of whether the Urus is a real Lambo’ should not be cynical journalists or people from the internet, but the general public. While I had the car, I popped out to visit a friend who wanted to see it for himself, except, it wasn’t just my mate who wanted to take a look. Waiting on arrival were some of his pals, their parents, the neighbours and the neighbours’ children. I’d argue that if I turned up in a McLaren or a Ferrari, I would have received a smaller welcome party, but the lure of a Lamborghini is such that people of all ages, gender, race and background will wait around if it means having the chance to poke around one. Unsurprisingly, everyone loved the Urus. Not just because it looks outrageous and sounds equally so, but in a world of dull SUVs which serve no other purpose than to ferry the family around, Lamborghini’s Super SUV is completely and utterly barmy. And that, is what a big Lambo’ is all about.

REDLINE 9 rating 10

Lamborghini Urus Price: from £163,635. Engine: 4.0-litre, V8 petrol TwinTurbo, 641bhp @ 6,000rpm, 627lb ft @ 2,250rpm. Performance: 0-62mph 3.6 seconds, VMAX 189.5mph. Transmission: 7spd twin-clutch, all-wheel drive. Weight: 2,200kg.

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Looks mental and goes like a rocket. Without doubt a Lamborghini.

Too much Audi in the cabin and the ride is on the firm side.

If you can afford it then buy it. There’s nothing else quite like an Urus.

ISSUE 7 > Long Drive

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Pure Performance We road test the latest Audi R8 V10 Performance, but is this the last time we’ll see a V10 engine in Audi’s supercar? WORDS: Mark Rose PHOTOGRAPHY: Dom Ginn

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“A V10 engine at full chat stirs the soul in ways that can’t be put in to words”

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t’s a car that needs little introduction. Since its release in 2007, the Audi R8 has become arguably the world’s most recognisable series production supercar. At the time, it was a game changer. It introduced genuine supercar performance without the usual drawbacks associated with something fast and mid-engined. No doubt, it pissed off the Italians who now had to work through lunch to ensure everything that rolled off their coffee-drenched production lines would be habitable. Over the last 12 years, this idea of a ‘daily supercar’ has often defined the R8’s place among its contemporaries, but with usability now at the forefront of every performance car manufacturer’s mind, the naturally aspirated 5.2 litre V10 engine is the attribute that truly elevates the R8’s stock. Facelifted in late 2018, the second generation R8 benefits from new bumpers, a return to oval tailpipes, changes to the suspension and an increase in power. Standard V10 models now produce 570PS (up from 540PS) and V10 Performance models which replace the pre-facelift V10 Plus now have 620PS (up from 610PS). In Queen’s English, that equates to 612bhp, which makes the Performance the most powerful variant to ever roll off the Audi production line. Last year, I tested the McLaren 570S and claimed that it had the legs on an R8. I’d now like to retract that statement. The V10 Performance now has McLaren levels of straight-line poke – 0-62mph on 3.1 seconds, 124mph in around 9.0, and a top speed somewhere north of 205mph. The way you extract the speed from the R8 is also arguably more rewarding. Free of turbos, the engine demands that you chase its 8,700rpm red line. The power delivery is beautifully linear, and what it lacks in low down grunt, it makes up for with its atmospheric top end. The engine gains strength as the revs build, speed piling on as you hunt down the limiter, and as you approach the edge of its operating window, the screaming 5.2 litre V10 crescendos quite unlike anything else with pistons. V8s and V12s have their own merits, but a V10 engine at full chat stirs the soul in ways that can’t be put in to words. In some respects, the R8 is a victim of its own engine’s success, with the V10 often drawing attention away from other things the car does so well. Despite the rapid straight line performance, the R8 is an approachable driver’s proposition. It doesn’t have the precision or offer the engagement that a 570S does, but what it lacks in ultimate feel, it makes up for with confidence inspiring grip and control.

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We love the steering wheel design in the R8! The steering is well weighted and communicates what the front wheels are up to. Fast Audis have a reputation for understeer, but the nose of the R8 turns in crisply and you can lean heavily on the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres in the pursuit of big cornering speeds. As you accelerate out of corners, traction is near unbreakable thanks to quattro all-wheel-drive which gives you the confidence to get on the power early. Extracting the performance from the car is almost too easy, with some arguing that it lacks outright drama, but it now covers ground at such an astonishing rate that to take your eye off the ball would be silly. When you’re really up it, you become thankful for the traction control systems working away in the background as you feel the car moving around beneath you. The all-wheel-drive system is set up to be rear biased, but when you turn all the driver aids off it doesn’t power oversteer like a traditional rear-wheel drive car. If you like to slide then you’re best lifting off and using the weight transfer to get the car rotated, but such behaviour in a 612bhp supercar on the public

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road is not advisable. The 7-speed twin-clutch gearbox is a joyous thing to use. The changes are lightning fast, but a new PDK has the edge on it and the SSG in the McLaren 570S operates on a different level. What separates the ‘box in the R8 is the engine it’s mated to, and you regularly find yourself shifting down for the sake of pulling revs out the V10. Performance models come with Brembo carbon ceramic brakes as standard – entry level R8s run steal discs – and the stopping power is awesome with Audi claiming that the R8 stops 5 metres earlier from 124mph than the pre-facelift variant. Should you need to emergency stop from speed, the R8 will pull your face off, but the pedal is also modulated enough to make for neat and progressive braking which is something not usually associated with carbon ceramics. Whether you’re chewing up a British B-road or pottering around town, the suspension has a suppleness to it that lends the car a wide bandwidth of capabilities. Across twisty tarmac

A naturally aspirated 5.2 litre V10 engine.

it flows along and adds to the overall sense of confidence you get from the package, and the quality of the damping makes it usable enough for use around town and for longer journeys. It’s this breadth of ability that has made the R8 such a popular choice among supercar owners, particularly for those who are venturing in to supercar ownership for the first time. Despite the R8’s approachability, it never fails to feel special from behind the wheel. How people perceive you shouldn’t enter your mind, but there’s something about it that makes you feel cool. Indeed, as something for people to behold, the new bumpers make the R8 look far more aggressive, and the Vegas Yellow paint with contrasting silver body panels turn it into a complete show stopper. Looks are subjective, but to my eye the latest R8 is the best looking variant thus far. One area of the car that hasn’t seen any revisions is the interior, and as a result it’s now starting to show its age, especially when you compare it to newer models in the Audi range. The V10 Performance also comes with fixed Recaro

bucket seats which have very little in the way of adjustment and position you too high up in the cabin. They may look great, offer plenty of support and have B&O speakers built in to the headrest, but they’re difficult to get used to and we would recommend optioning the standard seat back in. In terms of cabin fit, finish and ergonomics, the R8 is faultless. Audi make some of the best interiors and even though the basic architecture is getting on a bit, the quality and build is still up there with the best. Our press demonstrator was a well-used example. It arrived with 8,600 miles on the clock, went back with in excess of 9,300 on it, and there were no rattles or squeaks from any of the interior panels. Apart from the over-shoulder blind spot, the visibility is very good and the R8 doesn’t feel like a particularly wide car to get about in. You wouldn’t need to think twice about taking it on a long road trip, as you can comfortably cover distance, and there’s enough room for a couple of weekend bags. You’ll also be amazed to discover that a supercar with a naturally aspirated V10 engine is capable

ISSUE 7 > Long Drive

is capable of returning 27mpg if you’re easy with the throttle pedal. Yes, we were surprised, too! So, you want one, but what’s it going to cost? Supercars are now getting silly expensive, however, the R8 is still relatively affordable. A standard V10 coupe will set you back £128,295 and the Performance model £138,445 before options. Our test car weighed in at £148,480 with extras. For context, a McLaren 570S starts from around £158,000 and you can easily spec them to over £200,000. The R8’s closest competitor is a Porsche 911 Turbo / Turbo S, but the new one is still in the works given the latest 992 hasn’t been on sale for long. If you’re adamant about having a supercar with a V10 engine, then a Lamborghini Huracan Evo starts from £198,307, so a top-spec R8 offers remarkable value. For all of the R8’s brilliance, it’s ultimately the V10 engine that lures prospective owners in to one. It dominates nearly every aspect of the driving experience, from its response, to the linearity with which it delivers its power, to the sheer noise that makes every hair stand on end. It’s awe-inspiring. However, we also have to accept the fact that it won’t be around forever, if for much longer at all. What Audi do next is anyone’s guess. Rumours range from an all-electric R8 to Audi canning the car altogether, although I doubt the latter would come to fruition given the R8’s continuing popularity. The most likely scenario is that the V10 is replaced with the twinturbocharged 4.0 litre V8 that currently resides in the Lamborghini Urus. If Audi move from 10 cylinders to 8 then you can be sure that the Lamborghini Huracan would follow suit, and both manufacturers would want to use an engine with a proven track record. Personally, I’d like to see the V10 return but with hybrid technology to help clean it up in light of ever tightening emissions regulations. I empathise with the idea that we need to look after our planet, but surely, something as beautiful as a V10 deserves its place in this world. Having said that, if this is to be the beginning of the end for the mighty V10 engine, then let it be known that it’s not going quietly. I’m just thankful that I was around to hear it.

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Audi R8 V10 Performance Price: from ÂŁ138,445. Engine: NA 5.2-litre, V10 petrol, 612bhp @ 8,000rpm, 428lb ft @ 6,500rpm. Performance: 0-62mph 3.1 seconds, VMAX 205mph. Transmission: 7spd twin-clutch, quattro all-wheel drive. Weight: 1,595kg.

REDLINE 9 rating 10

Likes

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Naturally aspirated V10 engine and genuine day to day usability.

Cabin is starting to show its age and the high driving position.

Spec the normal seats over the Recaros if buying the Performance.

ISSUE 7 > Long Drive

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A Celebration of Speed PHOTOGRAPHY: Redline Photography Team

More than ever, the motor industry is seemingly at odds with the people who make or influence the rules. Environmentalists appear to be getting their way when it comes to the demise of fossil fuel powered cars, road safety campaigners are increasingly hellbent on slowing us down, and politicians are clearly happy to bend over backwards to accommodate these people’s never-ending list of demands. The most frustrating aspect of it is that there seems to be little compromise for the people who love cars and enjoy driving. Thankfully, the Goodwood Festival of Speed remains a good old two-finger salute to the establishment. Petrol is burnt for fun, crazy people rag fast cars up a famous hill, and no police officer or politician can do a single thing about it. What’s more, 150,000 people turn up to spectate and indulge in their passion for speed. No one can claim there’s little appetite for it, then. 2019 will go down as a vintage year for the world’s fastest festival. We had new performance car launches from McLaren, Porsche, BAC, Radical, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Ford and De Tomaso, and all manner of ultra-rare exotica sent blasting up the Goodwood Hill. It was also a record-breaking event. For 20 years, Nick Heidfeld’s hillclimb record in a McLaren Formula 1 car stood strong, but in 2019 it fell to the Volkswagen ID. R – an all-electric race car – at the hands of Le Mans legend, Romain Dumas. His practice run on Friday yielded a scintillating time of 41.18 seconds, which was already fast enough to topple “Quick Nick” and his McLaren MP4/13’s sprint of 41.60 seconds. However, during Saturday’s running, the Frenchman went ever quicker, setting a blistering time of 39.90 seconds. An outstanding achievement which shows that whatever you think of electric vehicles, they sure are astonishingly fast. Literally and figuratively speaking, the Goodwood hillclimb is the heart of the event. Crowds of people line the grandstands to watch their favourite supercars and race cars fire up the hill, and even when you’re not watching, there’s no escaping the roar of engines every time something is sent out for a run. Last year, we got to experience the Goodwood Hill from behind the wheel of a Lamborghini Urus, but for 2019, Ferrari invited us for a passenger ride in their 812 Superfast. We in fact had the option between the 812 and the 488 Pista. The Pista is undoubtedly brilliant, but a Ferrari with a naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine is about as special as cars get. The engine did not disappoint. With 789bhp at 8,500rpm, the 812 was never going to be slow, but nothing can truly prepare you for

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the sledgehammer acceleration. Every time I tried to pull myself from my Alcantara clad seat, the sheer force pushed me back in to it. Then there was the noise. Our professional driver wasted no time in taking the Ferrari to its 8,900rpm rev limiter, and the more the car piled on the revs, the stronger the engine got. It’s a highly-strung thing, the 812. It’s a car that encourages you to use the upper limits of the rev-range, and when you do, your bravery is rewarded with a noise unlike anything else on 4 wheels. Like the engine, the gearbox operates in a world of its own. It’s a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission like the one we tested in the Portofino a few weeks prior, but in this application, it scythes through ratios so quickly your brain can’t keep pace with it. Our run up the Goodwood Hill was over almost too quickly, but I guess that’s what you get for choosing to go up in such a rapid machine. As the day drew to a close, the crowds thinned out which gave us the opportunity to have a poke around the ‘125 Years of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport’ enclosure, undisturbed. It was an indoor exhibition with examples of past Mercedes race cars, the most modern of which was Lewis Hamilton’s 2018 championship winning Formula 1 car. As luck would have it, the W09 wasn’t cordoned off and so I done the honourable thing and took a close up look at the aero, cockpit, back of the car, suspension, wheels, inside the sidepods; everywhere. I must have spent about 45 minutes poring over it, something that I could have done for hours more had I not needed to get home. The run up the hill in the Ferrari 812 Superfast and the time spent with Lewis’ Mercedes, really captured what the Goodwood Festival of Speed is about. Whether you go for a day or do the entire weekend, it gives petrolheads the chance to lose themselves in their passion for cars. Goodwood isn’t just a festival in the name of fast things, it’s a celebration of everything that’s right with motoring. > Words: Mark Rose

Goodwood House looking resplendent!

Always a rare sight, a Zonda.

ISSUE 7 > Feature

nick@carswithscars.co.uk

Consumer Corner 68: Audi A1

72: Lexus UX

70: Peugeot 508 76: Kia ProCeed GT

74: MG ZS ISSUE 7 > Consumer Corner

AUDI A1 SPORTBACK

WORDS: Mark Rose / PHOTOGRAPHY: Matt Price What is it? The second-generation Audi A1 is the latest Volkswagen Group supermini to be based on its MQB-A0 architecture, alongside rivals like the SEAT Ibiza and VW Polo. This all-new car benefits from Audi’s latest design language and comes as a ‘Sportback’ (5-door) only model as only 20% of buyers bought the old car as a 3 door. How does it drive? I drove the old S1, and for all its competence at going fast, it was a car that I never truly enjoyed. Happily, there’s plenty of fun to be had out of the new A1, even though it hasn’t been given the proper go-faster treatment by Audi. It changes direction keenly, resists body roll, and offers genuine adjustability on the throttle. You also get 4 driving modes to choose from: efficiency, auto, dynamic, and individual, which adjust the throttle mapping and steering weight. Our test car came with the turbocharged 1.5-litre 4-cylinder

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petrol engine with outputs of 148bhp and 184lb ft. It’s a fizzy little motor with plenty of mid-range and enough torque to push you along with ease, even in higher gears. Performance is of the warm variety with a zero to 60mph time of 7.7 seconds and top speed of 137mph. Power is sent to the front wheels via 6-speed manual gearbox (a 6-speed S tronic is also available with this model), with the manual the week point in an otherwise fun package. The clutch is light, but the shift action is too long and a little notchy. On the move, the ride could be best described as firm, as was the rebound and compression over large road undulations. I suspect it was because our test car came as standard with sports suspension and 18-inch wheels. If you’re not after a ‘sporty’ ride, may we point you in the direction of lower-spec model. The cabin also filtered in a fair amount of road noise at cruising speed. What’s it like inside? The build and finish are class-leading, but if you’re familiar with

Audi A1 Sportback Price: from £17,735. Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cyl turbo, 148bhp @ 5,000rpm, 184lb ft @ 1,500rpm, Performance: 0-60mph 7.7 seconds, VMAX 137mph, Transmission: 6spd manual, front-wheel drive, Weight: 1,125kg.

Copper painted wheels for the Audi A1.

“Happily, there’s plenty of fun to be had out of the new A1”

Our test car came with grey leather.

REDLINE 7 rating 10 cars from Audi, you’ll be left wanting for a little more quality as it lacks compared to other models in the range. The main problem is the abundant plastic, some of which feel cheap and scratchy. Another gripe we have is with the seating position which is set too high without enough adjustment. Ergonomically, it’s a well-considered cabin that strikes a good balance between minimalist design while including the buttons you actually need. It’s also been designed with the driver in mind. The infotainment screen points towards you, and virtual cockpit gives you a fully digital dash from which you can access your navigation, phone and entertainment. Your best bet is to spec the £1,650 ‘Technology pack’ which gives you a wider 10.1-inch display, the aforementioned virtual cockpit, Google Earth, top quality graphics and wireless phone charging, as well as some other options. What are the costs? Prices start at £17,735 for the base spec ‘SE’ model, with another 5 trim levels above it. There are also 4 different engines to

choose from (all of them petrol), 2 of which come with a choice of gearbox. Our press demonstrator was a top of the range ‘S line Style Edition’ which comes with ‘Chronos Grey’ metallic paint, copper painted wheels, and front sports seats trimmed in grey leather with copper stitching. The starting price for our test car was £25,690 but weighed in at £28,835 once options were added. Audi quote a combined fuel economy figure of 44.8mpg, and on our travels we regularly returned 42mpg. To buy, or not to buy? Overall, it’s a thumbs up from us. One of the attractions of the original car was that it offered a premium alternative in a segment that was dominated by the Ford Fiesta, SEAT Ibiza, and VW Polo, while giving the Mini Hatch some stiff competition in the process. Despite the interior plastics, it’s still doing the business. Audi has sold a lot of these little cars, and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t continue to do so.

ISSUE 7 > Consumer Corner

PEUGEOT 508

WORDS: Mark Rose / PHOTOGRAPHY: Matt Price What is it? In a market place where manufacturers keep pumping out compact SUVs, small saloon car sales have dwindled. Thankfully, Peugeot aren’t ready to give up on them yet and so what we have here is the new 508 Fastback. Not a fan of SUVs but still want something to ferry the family around? Then I suggest you read on … How does it drive? The 508 has a large breadth of ability, whether you’re just looking to cruise around in comfort or go for a spirited drive. There are 4 driving modes to choose from including Eco, Comfort, Normal and Sport. The body is well controlled and the steering feels positive through all the modes, the most obvious difference being the throttle response as you cycle through them. In Eco it feels very lazy to respond and is ideal if you want to save fuel and consume miles with little fuss, whereas Sport encourages you to drive it harder.

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The ride always remains supple which helps it feel both compliant along a country road and comfortable on longer motorway journeys. Wind and road noise are also low making the 508 a very relaxing car to drive. In a way, it’s easy-going demeanour reminded me of the Audi A7 Sportback I drove earlier in the year. I liked that car a lot, so consider this high praise for the Peugeot. The engine in our test car was the turbocharged 1.6 litre 4-cylinder petrol with outputs of 179bhp and 185lb ft. 0-62mph is dealt with in a respectable 7.9 seconds and it will top out at 140mph. Power is sent to the front wheels via an 8-speed automatic gearbox which changes quietly and smoothly but isn’t overly sharp while in sport mode. If you want a little more performance then the GT model comes with a healthy 225bhp. What’s it like inside? I’ve always bemoaned French ergonomics as they tend to lean on the side of style as opposed to common sense. Happily, however, the cabin in the 508 bucks the trend with its driver-

The 508 is a handsome looking car.

Peugeot 508 Fastback Price: from £25,245. Engine: 1.6-litre, 4-cyl turbo, 179bhp @ 5,500rpm. 184lb ft @ 1,650rpm. Performance: 0-60mph 7.9 seconds, VMAX 140mph. Transmission: 8spd auto, front-wheel drive. Weight: 1,420kg.

“The quality of the materials and the build are both excellent”

REDLINE 8 rating 10 centric layout and sensible approach to design. It still retains many of the styling cues that the PSA Group are known for, but they haven’t over complicated things either. In fact, it would have been excellent if it weren’t for the ‘i-Cockpit’ driving position with the instrument binnacle positioned above the steering wheel. The layout means you have to drive with the seat high and your hands low in cabin which doesn’t fit well with anyone who enjoys a low seating position, myself included. The quality of the materials and the build are both excellent, and there are plenty of small glitzy details that lift the sense of quality further. The interior is a classy place to soak up miles and the upgraded hi-fi is a delight to the ears. On the subject of tech, the infotainment is easy to use if a little slow to respond to input, and the graphics could do with a refresh as they look dated, especially alongside German infotainment systems. There’s also plenty of cabin space and storage for front occupants, and people in the back benefit from adequate legroom as well as headroom; somewhat of a surprise given the sloping roofline.

What are the costs? The 508 range starts from £25,245 for the Fastback and £26,845 for the SW estate, with a total of 4 different trim levels to choose from. Our GT-Line test car with options weighed in at £33,150 and comes with front and rear LED lights, smartphone charger, and upgraded 18-inch alloy wheels as standard. Our fuel economy runs regularly returned 37mpg against a quoted combined figure of 41mpg, and the fuel tank has a capacity of 62 litres, so expect fill ups to cost within the region of £80. To buy, or not to buy? This is the best PSA Group car I’ve driven, to date. It strikes a convincing balance between stylish looks, a sporting drive and a comfy ride. Perhaps the 508’s biggest challenge is the people who simply won’t consider it because they feel that they must have a small SUV. The Peugeot 508 is a fine alternative and I implore you to go and try one out before committing your money elsewhere.

ISSUE 7 > Consumer Corner

LEXUS UX

WORDS: Mark Rose / PHOTOGRAPHY: Matt Price What is it? Oh look, it’s another circa thirty-grand compact SUV. If that’s what the people want then that’s what they get. Lexus has a reputation for making well built and striking hybrid SUVs, with cars like RX and NX already a part of their back catalogue. Their ultimate test though, is whether they can successfully infiltrate a more competitive area of the market. The all-new Lexus UX 250h is the company’s first foray in to the compact SUV segment, in a bid to introduce new customers to the brand and increase sales. How does it drive? The first thing you need to know is that the ‘h’ stands for hybrid. The UX uses an electrically assisted 2.0 litre 4-cylinder petrol engine which sends 176bhp to the front wheels (four-wheel drive variants are also available), via an electric CVT gearbox. The car will move off and run in full EV mode of speeds up to 19mph before the petrol engine cuts in. The transition from EV

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mode to petrol power feels smooth and goes unnoticed, with the engine only audible under hard acceleration. Lexus quote a zero to 62mph time of 8.5 seconds and a top speed of 110mph. It never feels particularly quick, but the power delivery is linear and has enough performance for a car of this type. Work has been done to ensure the UX is rigid and has the lowest centre of gravity in its class. A combination of lightweight materials like aluminium, and clever tech such as Active Cornering Assist and adaptive suspension have been introduced to help it drive in a sporty fashion. In F Sport trim, you also get a choice of 5 drive modes: Eco, Normal, Sport, Sport + and Custom, which gives the UX a nice balance between town and country driving. Across a B-road it feels agile thanks to its low centre of gravity, and day-to-day it’s a comfy car that rides well and is a quiet place to spend time. Our only big complaint are the brakes which lack feel and require excessive use of the pedal travel to help slow the car, but then most cars with regenerative braking suffer with modulation issues.

Lexus UX 250h F Sport Price: from £29,905. Engine: 2.0-litre, 4-cyl hybrid, 176bhp @ NA, 140lb ft @ NA, Performance: 0-60mph 8.5 seconds, VMAX 110mph, Transmission: 7spd auto, front-wheel drive, Weight: 1,540kg.

“The transition from EV mode to petrol power feels smooth and goes unnoticed”

The sports seats are very supportive.

REDLINE 7 rating 10 What’s it like inside?

premium at just 220 litres.

The cabin design is a little haphazard and it takes a while to acclimatise to where things are. Having said that, there are lots of soft touch materials and attention has been paid to the interior touch points, most notably the steering wheel which feels plush to hold and the sports seats which are well bolstered and support the small of your back. The seats are also an attractive item thanks to the red stripe and Alcantara finish. The seating position is well considered and much of the time it feels like you’re driving a large hatchback instead of a small SUV. If one area needs some work, it’s the infotainment. For an all-new car with clever hybrid technology we were expecting better graphics and a screen that was flush to the edges of the housing. On a positive note, it responds quickly to input and the menus are well laid out. You also operate it using a mouse pad which at first seems odd, but after a while it becomes intuitive to use. Overall cabin space is good with plenty of storage and an adequate amount of room in the rear, but boot space is at a

What are the costs? The UX range consists of three trims levels with prices starting from £29,905. Our F Sport model came in at £36,525 with the £1,800 tech & safety pack, and £820 ‘Blazing Carnelian’ paint included. Lexus quote combined fuel consumption figures between 49.5 and 53.2mpg. At worst we saw 48mpg but day-to-day we averaged an impressive 55mpg. To add some context, brimming the UX’s fuel tank will set you back about £55 and will give you a range of around 380 miles. To buy, or not to buy? If you’re in the market for an economical, compact SUV then there’s no shortage of options available to you. A Lexus may seem like a bit of a left-field choice, but the striking appearance and hybrid technology make it a choice worth considering.

ISSUE 7 > Consumer Corner

MG ZS

WORDS: Blee Carswell / PHOTOGRAPHY: Dom Ginn What is it? You won’t be shocked to learn that compact SUVs are big business at the moment. Keen to profit on this, MG has given us the ZS, their answer to rivals such as the Nissan Juke, Ford Ecosport and Renault Captur. On paper the ZS offers an alluring mix of value for money, practicality and kit (more on all of that shortly), but for MG it’s much more than that as the car is supposed to herald in a “new era” for them … no pressure then. How does it drive? Surprisingly well, the six-speed automatic gearbox is a brilliant match to the 1.0 litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine. Around town and when exploiting the mid-range, the 110bhp and 118lb ft of torque on offer are enough and make for a pleasant, relaxing drive. When pushing on though, the 12.4 second 0-62 time and a

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gearbox that seems reluctant to change down when coming out of corners do start to frustrate. However, once up to speed, the ZS doesn’t feel out of its depth. It’s just a shame you get quite a lot of road noise intruding into the cabin. Sudden bumps in the road reveal a slightly bouncy back end, but apart from that, body control is adequate. An unexpected highlight for me was the steering. Dynamic and urban modes are best left alone but in normal it felt nicely weighted and direct. Clearly, it’s not a driver’s car, but as a compact SUV for the daily grind the ZS does everything you’d want it to comfortably and competently. What’s it like inside? It’s extremely roomy, but certainly not the most memorable place to sit. Rear passengers are treated to class leading space and there’s 448 litres of boot space which is above average in this car’s class. Both the mid-level Excite and top-spec Exclusive

The MG ZS at speed.

MG ZS Price: from £12,495. Engine: 1.0-litre, 3-cyl turbo, 110bhp @ N/A, 118lb ft @ N/A, Performance: 0-60mph 12.4 seconds, VMAX 112mph, Transmission: 6spd auto, front-wheel drive, Weight: 1,255kg.

“Rear passengers are treated to class leading space” REDLINE 7 rating 10 The interior is well put together. (tested here) models come with an 8-inch colour touchscreen display and Apple CarPlay. Android Auto isn’t available but you can still connect via Bluetooth to listen to music and make calls. Exclusive models also come with a rear-view camera and satellite navigation. As you may expect at this price point there are some cheaper plastics used, but they don’t subtract too much from the cabin, and overall the quality and build inside the ZS felt fine. Having said that, I don’t think I’d being doing my job properly if I didn’t mention the fact that the air con decided to leak all over the road during my final day with the car. Furthermore, whilst the kit list on higher specification models is impressive, the ZS does miss out when it comes to active safety tech. This omission goes someway to explaining the three out of five-star Euro NCAP score. What are the costs? Price is where the MG plays its trump card. Starting at only

£12,495, it is comfortably cheaper than similarly optioned rivals. Admittedly, you’ll want to spend another £1550 to step up to the better equipped Excite model. Exclusive adds another £1750 to that bill and the drivetrain tested here adds a further £2000. Our car also came with the £695 Tri-coat Dynamic red paint which helps the car standout. Regardless of the added extras, the ZS still offers fantastic value for money. Disappointingly for such a small engine, road tax will cost you £140 a year and over our time with the car we averaged fuel economy figures in the mid to high 30s. To buy, or not to buy? As you may have noticed by now, the ZS is a bit of a mixed bag. There are short comings but factoring in its price and a 7-year/80,000-mile warranty, it’s hard to call them deal breakers. Somebody looking at this type of car will love the practicality and ultimately it is a perfectly good way to ferry the family about for not a huge amount of cash.

ISSUE 7 > Consumer Corner

KIA PROCEED GT

WORDS: Mark Rose / PHOTOGRAPHY: Matt Price What is it? The all-new ProCeed GT is a stylish and sporty alternative to the hatch and estate models in Kia’s Ceed model range. With its shooting brake design it certainly looks the part, but are the good looks and promise of performance enough to tempt buyers away from a Peugeot 508 SW? How does it drive? Kia have gone to town to ensure that the GT has the drive to match its sporting credentials. It’s turbocharged 1.6 litre 4-cylinder petrol engine produces 201bhp and 195lb ft which is sent to the front wheels via a 7-speed DCT gearbox. Torque comes in from just 1,500rpm and the delivery feels strong all the way through the rev range making it feel every bit as quick as the 0-62mph time of 7.2 seconds and the 140mph top speed suggest. The ProCeed GT sits 5mm lower to the ground than its Ceed

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hatchback and estate car siblings, and also comes with stiffer springs. You get a choice of just 2 driving modes – normal and sport – the latter of which sharpens up the throttle response, increases exhaust volume and adds further weight to the already heavy steering. Kia’s ambition in making a sporty family car is admirable, but the ride is too firm and the ProCeed GT does without adaptive dampers for good measure. Send it down a B-road at speed and the body resists roll and Michelin PS4 tyres ensure plenty of grip, but this is supposed to be a family car and day to day most will find the ride, steering and tone-deaf exhaust an annoyance. On the odd occasion you don’t have the kids in toe and the road opens up, it can be enjoyable to drive, but most of the time you’ll be left wanting for a little more comfort. What’s it like inside? Gone are the days when the name Kia was a byword for questionable quality. The ProCeed GT’s cabin is well built and

Kia ProCeed GT Price: from £28,140. Engine: 1.6-litre, 4-cyl turbo, 201bhp @ 6,000rpm, 195lb ft @ 1,500rpm, Performance: 0-60mph 7.2 seconds, VMAX 140mph, Transmission: 7spd auto, front-wheel drive, Weight: 1,438kg.

“Kia’s ambition in making a sporty family car is admirable”

18-inch alloy wheels look fantastic.

REDLINE 6 rating 10 the interior plastics are decent. The GT also comes with sports seats which are nicely trimmed and very supportive. The ergonomics are well considered making the cabin easy to fathom, but the positioning and design of the infotainment screen makes it look a little ‘last-gen’ Audi. The graphics for the 8-inch touchscreen display need sharpening up, as does the reversing camera, but overall the screen is responsive and the functionality is good. One thing that does need significant improvement is the sound system which sounds fuzzy, particularly when you increase the volume. While we’re on the subject of sounds, the ProCeed GT also plays a short but annoying jingle every time you get in the car or kill the ignition. It’s a bit Ryanair and Kia would do well to get rid … Elsewhere, there’s plenty of storage space and rear occupants benefit from adequate knee room, although the sloping roofline does cut in to head space. The boot is also a useful 596 litres and has extra under floor storage. Overall, it’s a solid cabin, but what lets it down is the amount of road noise that filters in. Whether it’s through lack of sound

deadening or the fact that the car rides on large 18-inch alloy wheels remains to be seen, but even with the music volume up you can still pick out significant road noise. What are the costs? The GT starts from £28,140, with lower spec ProCeed models starting from £23,840. Kia quote a combined fuel economy figure of 39.3mpg, and on test we regularly returned mid-30s. It’s also worth remembering that Kia still offer an industry leading 7 year / 100,000 mile warranty when you buy a new car. To buy, or not to buy? If you long for something stylish, practical and sporty, then the Kia ProCeed GT ticks those boxes. There’s nothing wrong with Kia’s approach, but it’s far from perfect and this would be a much nicer car if it was a little softer on the road. For now, I’ll stick with a Peugeot 508 SW.

ISSUE 7 > Consumer Corner

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Fuel economy and CO2 results for the MG ZS EV. Mpg (l/100km): Not applicable. CO2 emissions: 0 g/km Electric range†: 163 miles.** Figures shown are for comparability purposes. Only compare fuel consumption, CO2 and electric range figures with other cars tested to the same technical procedures. †These figures may not reflect real life driving results, which will depend upon a number of factors including the starting charge of the battery, accessories fitted (post-registration), variations in weather, driving styles and vehicle load. ^MG ZS EV range starts from £28,495 OTR. After Plug-in Car Grant of £3,500 and the MG contribution, customers can purchase their MG ZS EV Excite from just £21,995. MG will match the Plug-in Car Grant on Exclusive versions, reducing the £30,495 OTR price to just £23,495. Offer available on the first 3,000 MG ZS EV retail orders. OTR prices include VAT where applicable, vehicle first registration fee, delivery, number plates and 12 months’ Vehicle Excise Duty. Prices are correct at time of being published and are subject to change without notice. *Exclusive models only. **From a single charge on the WLTP combined cycle: Combined Range: 163 miles (263 km); City Range: 231 miles (372 km).