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Alp i ne A110 Brilliant driver’s car faces daily grind 112 Cu p ra B orn Charging, like charity, begins at home 113 H on da Civic Our hybrid meets its Type R forebear 114

E V E R Y W E E K

Jesse Crosse Merc safety vision years ahead of tech 11 J i m H o l d e r Biggest losers in the car world this year 13 M at t Pri o r Coding replaces people; cat replaces dog 19 St eve Crop ley Mate Rimac; Bentayga; UK car clubs 2 1 Da m ien S m it h Why it’s best Vettel stays retired 2 2 Sub scribe Save money and get exclusive benefits 4 2 You r Views Departed Jag CEO; puddles; EV parity 10 8 O n t h i s day 198 8 : Testarossa, MX-5, JCB drag racer 111 S l i d e s h ow 1950

T H A N K YO U F O R YO U R S U P P O R T D U R I N G 2 0 2 2

DACI A A ND MG were t he fa stest-g row i ng ca r bra nds i n t he U K t h is yea r ( p14) It’s not so su r pr isi ng, g iven t he cu r rent econom ic cl i mate, but t hat shou ld n’t det ract f rom how much t hese fi r ms have ach ieved

A lt houg h t he sa me m ig ht not have been t r ue of budget ca rs of old, today’s cheaper motors a re wel l eng i neered, rel iable, (mostly) good-look i ng a nd replete w it h mod cons W hat’s so cha r m i ng about t he l i kes of Dacia a nd MG is t hei r ref resh i ng honest y Plus, t hei r g row i ng i n fluence must be food for t houg ht for ot her ca r ma kers, ma ny of wh ich have been a spi r i ng to be more prem iu m for decades

W hat else w i l l we remember 2 022 for i n t he motor i ng world? The ongoi ng ch ip shor ta ge mea ns ca rs were no ea sier to get hold of t ha n la st yea r, a sit uation f u r t her i mpacted by Russia’s i nva sion of U k ra i ne. On t he positive side, t hat ha sn’t stopped t he i ndust r y bei ng at t he foref ront of i n novation a nd creati ng br i l l ia nt ca rs i n t he process. One exa mple is t h is week ’ s road test, t he Fer ra r i 29 6 GTB ( p34).

Mea nwh i le, a l l of us at Autoca r w ish you a mer r y Ch r ist ma s a nd a happy new yea r. Tha n k you for suppor ti ng Autoca r - it is so appreciated - a nd we w i l l be back on 4 Ja nua r y for yet a not her big yea r i n t he automotive world.

C O M M E N T

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Differences in design for MC20 EV will be minimal

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First electric spor ts car w ill dri ve like V6, says Maserati

Mid-engined layout preserved, power substantially raised for 2024 MC20 Folgore

The Maserati MC20 Folgore will arrive in 2024 as the flag-bearer for a brigade of electric sports cars , pairing traditional mid-engined styling and handling with whip-crack acceleration and outstanding usability.

In a rare exclusive inter view with Autocar, Maserati CEO Davide Grasso outlined his expectations and hopes for the MC20 Folgore, which is one of

six EVs Maserati will launch by 2026 as it gears up to phase out combustion engines

Above all, revealed Grasso, Maserati aims to substantially boost performance over the existing V6-engined MC20 without losing its character or sense of engagement

“The type of acceleration you get from an electric car is different from an ICE [car],” said Grasso “But absolutely

from a handling standpoint and from a speed standpoint, the electric MC20 will be, to our knowledge, the first supersports car that’s fully electric.”

Grasso refused to be drawn on more specific performance and technical details (“ the programme is still going full steam; it’s a bit too early for me to start sharing”). But he suggested the difference in character between the V6

and EV versions of the new Granturismo will be a good indicator of how the MC20 variants will be told apart: “Once we’ve launched the Granturismo in Folgore and ICE forms , I think you’re going to have a sense – driving both those cars – of how that could be translated in the MC20 Folgore versus [MC20] ICE . ”

The MC20 will be the third Maserati made available as an

EV, following the Granturismo and Grecale SUV in 202 3 . The next-generation Quattroporte saloon and Levante SUV are set to be electric-only from launch (see overleaf)

The MC20 was conceived from the off to accommodate both ICE and EV hardware, so the Folgore will be structurally ver y similar to the existing car, rather than sit on an adapted version of the platform used

Granturismo is much more powerful – and expensive – as an EV

A

‘exhaust note’ for EVs has taken Maserati 1 8 months to develop. Grasso said they must have the same “authenticity”, which should be “linked to the speed and the intensity of the functioning of the engine, which isn’t an easy challenge for our engineers”

by Maserati’s larger EVs (itself derived from sibling firm Alfa Romeo’s Giorgio platform)

Grasso said: “That uniquely Maserati approach of using a platform for both versions and developing a platform that allows the maximum type of performance and handling and the characteristic and unique handling that Maserati can provide has been a characteristic of the programme strategically.”

The most potent ICE

version of the Granturismo extracts 550 bhp from its V6 (71bhp less than the sameengined MC20), while the EV boosts output to a substantial 745bhp. If the MC20 Folgore mirrors that output, it would represent a substantial rise that, together with a huge 997lb ft of torque, should yield a drastic improvement in off-the-mark acceleration

Importantly, though, the Granturismo EV carries nearly 50 0 kg more than the V6 car,

so a priority for the MC20 Folgore will be mitigating the impact of that added heft, particularly if it’s to match the acclaimed dynamics of the existing car, as Grasso hopes .

It’s anticipated that the MC20 Folgore will use the same tri-motor drivetrain, with two motors on the rear axle and one at the front, to allow for rear- or fourwheel drive as required

The MC20 Folgore will be visually nearly identical to the V6 MC20, albeit with subtle tweaks to aid aerodynamics .

Earlier preview images of the MC20 Folgore’s monocoque suggest that Maserati will position the batteries behind the seats in the name of optimised weight distribution and a low centre of gravity Lotus and Porsche have chosen this format for their upcoming electric

two-seat sports cars in order to preser ve the characteristic agility of their ICE models , with the added benefit that it allows for familiar proportions and packaging.

Meanwhile, though, the Granturismo Folgore uses a T-shape batter y running between the rear wheels and down the transmission tunnel, so it remains to be seen which arrangement will make it to production

No doubt the MC20 Folgore will be capable of charging at speeds of 270 kW, like the Granturismo, and if it uses the same 8 3 kWh batter y pack , it could offer a range of more than 3 0 0 miles per charge.

From launch, the MC20 Folgore will essentially exist in a class of one. Today’s most potent EV offerings (the likes of the Lotus Evi ja and Rimac Nevera) occupy the ultrararefied hypercar segment,

while electric equivalents to today’s traditional midengined supercars have yet to materialise.

Ferrari plans to launch its first EV in 2025 but has yet to offer any details of its market positioning or shape, while the first EVs from Lamborghini and McLaren are likely to take the form of high-riding 2+2 grand tourers , due towards the end of the decade Honda has confirmed plans for an electric NSX successor but not confirmed a launch date, while Alfa Romeo’s upcoming limited-run supercar could still use a high-output V6

Grasso said that he was “extremely excited” about Maserati being the pioneer of the electric super-sports car segment, but he added: “It’s not about being the first, it’s also about being the best in terms of performance.”

bespoke

V6 MC20 represented Maserati’s long-awaited return to form

New Levante to crow n E V line-up

Large SUV will combine Grecale platform with latest battery tech and take on

BMW iX

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Mk2 Levante is expected to follow Grecale’s design lead Maserati’s global head of e-mobility, Ana Paola Reginatto, is as focused on what might be happening in 1 0 years’ time as next year.

She told us: “On average, we expect 60% of our customers for our electric cars to be completely new to Maserati We’re opening up new opportunities , and we have to be flexible about ensuring that they understand the brand and that the cars deliver on the brand values that our heritage demands . ”

One area of key focus is on how fast people really need their EVs to charge. Reginatto mar velled at

the contradiction of cars spending 60 -70% of their time stationar y and the desire to always charge them as fast as possible.

It would be much better, she reasoned, to have more slower AC chargers available and en joy the weight and cost savings

“Think of the weight of an on-board charger –4 0 kg! We spend millions tr ying to engineer 4 0 kg out of a car, so if we can shift attitudes towards slower charging, there are huge potential benefits , ” she said “But we aren’t there yet, and that’s why we have to be flexible but ready ”

The second-generation Maserati Levante will follow the MC20 Folgore onto market by the middle of the decade, swapping from combustion to electric power in a bid to take on the BMW iX and Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV

It is expected to be the final entr y into Maserati’s first fleet of EVs , after Folgore versions of the Grecale, Granturismo, Grancabrio, MC20 and next Quattroporte – and is tipped to ride on a specially adapted

version of Maserati sibling firm Alfa Romeo’s Giorgio platform , as used by the ICE and EV versions of the Grecale and Granturismo

In an exclusive inter view with Autocar, Maserati CEO Davide Grasso hinted at the importance of the electric Levante and suggested that its development will benefit heavily from synergies between Stellantis’s 14 brands .

He said: “We’re hitting on all cylinders on that programme,

and it’s something that gets me really excited, because we really see the opportunity we have as part of a ver y large group, which makes innovations one of the first priorities . So I’m ver y excited about the way that programme is starting to take form ”

Autocar understands the Quattroporte Folgore saloon could be the first Maserati to use an upgraded batter y pack with increased energy density for more miles per charge,

T H E C A S E F O R S L O W C H A R G I N G

J I M H O L D E R

which would then be deployed in the Levante as well

While precise technical details remain under wraps , the Levante Folgore is expected to be exclusively four-wheel drive but offer a choice of powertrains – potentially capped by a 745bhp trimotor system lifted from the Granturismo, which would provide it with the necessar y shove to rival dedicated electric sports SUVs like the Lotus Eletre.

T h e G r a n t u r i s m o’s 74 5 b h p t r i - m o t o r p o w e r t r a i n w o u l d g i v e i t e n o u g h s h o v e t o r i v a l t h e L o t u s E l e t r e

Today’s Levante, launched in spring 20 1 6 and not in line for any further significant updates before it bows out, is available with a choice of a mild-hybridised four-cylinder petrol engine or conventional V6 and V8 petrol powertrains

Data sourced by Autocar revealed the Levante took the vast ma jority of Maserati’s UK sales in 202 1 and 202 2 , with demand split roughly equally between fleet and private FE LI X PAG E

Could Maserati expand its line-up as it electrifies?

“We have a sports [saloon], we have a large SUV, we have a D -segment SUV, we have a grand tourer now – which is a sports coupé, if you will –and we have a super-sports car So we’re going to have five nameplates . And with a brand like Maserati, the goal is more about continuing to fine-tune, finesse and perfect these models and continue to make sure that the consumer experience the quality, the design appeal, the emotional appeal, the performance and the luxur y experience is unparalleled ”

Is the Grecale as mainstream as Maserati can go?

“One interpretation of ‘mainstream’ is to tr y to please ever ybody, and that’s not negative. Because if you sell ‘essential’ apparel, being mainstream is absolutely the right thing to do. But we’re not selling basic apparel, we’re selling cars – and luxur y cars at that. So in terms of all-around use, the Grecale is

‘ever yday exceptional’ I struggle to see the word ‘mainstream’ coupled with Maserati, but the Grecale is ever yday exceptional.”

You aim to ultimately achieve profit margins of 20% Will personalisation play a crucial role here?

“You will see more and more our Fuoroserie programme taking [on a life of its own] But we’ve also invested in manufacturing capabilities , so you will see that it’s important for our margins , and then again: it’s a result

“Because the core of that move lies in the fact that it’s all about the customer And the modern luxur y customer is willing to pay more to have personalised objects , if you will, that distinguish himself or herself from the rest Sometimes the personalisation is a matter of comfort, sometimes it’s a matter of aesthetics , sometimes it’s a matter of performance, sometimes it’s all of the above So we’re building the capabilities , and we will deliver those with some remarkable results ”

D A V I D E G R A S S O , C E O , M A S E R A T I Q & A

Goal is to “ finesse and perfect” existing models, says Grasso Next Quattroporte

Current Levante offers

The saloon’s new design has been influenced with efficiency at its heart. Like the EQX X , it’s shaped with sleek body work to maximise airflow and thereby achieve peak range.

The EQC is likely to use the EQX X’s super-efficient axial flux electric motor, designed by British tech firm Yasa It’s lighter and more powerful than standard motors

The EQX X’s 1 0 0 kWh batter y can run for 70 0 miles on a single charge, and the new C- Class will get similar tech, although its range won’t be as extreme.

EQ X X shapes Mercedes’ Model 3

Aspects of ultra-efficient, super-sleek EV concept will be applied to 2024 junior saloon

Mercedes-Benz’s nextgeneration entr y-level electric car, due to arrive in 2024 as a CL A-size four-door saloon, has broken cover for the first time

Confirmed to Autocar to feature technology from the super-efficient Vision EQX X concept, the 4 7-metre-long EV will introduce Mercedes’ “entr y luxur y” branding

It’s essentially an electric equivalent of the ICE-powered C- Class saloon, and could take the EQC name into production, with the current EQC evolving into the EQC SUV, in line with Mercedes’ other electric saloon and SUV siblings

The EQC will give Mercedes a long-awaited executive EV to rival the likes of the BMW i4 , the Polestar 2 and the indomitable Tesla Model 3 – a positioning backed up by the first images of camouflaged prototype testing on public roads .

It will be larger and more conventionally styled than the show-stopping Vision EQX X concept car, but it looks to make a departure from the monolithic, minimalist silhouettes that have defined Mercedes’ EVs so far.

In size and stature, it’s an obvious CL A equivalent, but it’s clear even at this early stage that Mercedes’ designers

are taking a different approach for this new family of EVs .

Aside from the almost unrecognisable front-end and rear-end designs , what’s evident from this prototype is just how heav y an influence aerodynamic efficiency will now play on Mercedes designs The leading edge of the front end is lower and sharper than on any current production model, with what looks to be a clamshell bonnet leading back to a heavily raked glasshouse, designed to optimise airflow at speed

An AMG variant of the EQC is also on the cards , to be fitted with the EQX X’s active aero.

current C- Class It also sits higher than the Vision EQX X for easier occupant ingress and egress .

The prototype loses the Kamm-style bluff rear end of the Vision EQX X , but highly prominent shoulder lines that extend several inches out from the cabin ape the swollen rear haunches of the ultra-slipper y concept.

Aerodynamic efficiency plays a fundamental role in EVs eking out more miles per charge, which is why the EQC bears a much more rakish and low-slung silhouette than the

A coupé-esque sloping roofline is the most obvious differentiator from the current three-box C- Class saloon, and the glasshouse is substantially wider than the Vision EQX X’s to allow for three seats across the back row – and comparable storage space.

When it arrives , the EQC will be one of the first pieces of Mercedes’ radical new EV plan, which includes ushering in electric options in crucial new market segments and

introducing a range of new platforms with unprecedented capacities for range and performance

As such, it will be one of the first cars to use the Mercedes-Benz Modular Architecture (MMA) platform , which has been conceived for small and mid-sized EVs

It will also be packed with range-boosting technology from the 70 0 -mile-range Vision EQX X , which Mercedes chief technology officer Markus Schäfer has previously said would “make it one of the most efficient electric vehicles that exists”

FE LI X PAG E

G O V E R N M E N T F U N D S H Y D R O G E N H I L U X

A handful of hydrogen-powered Hilux pick-up truck prototypes will be built after Toyota won £ 11 million of UK government funding The move is part of a drive to find alternative zero-emissions vehicles for use in isolated parts of the countr y.

F U E L R E TA I L E R S ‘ R O C K E T A N D F E AT H E R ’

The Competition and Markets Authority has found that after sending fuel prices rocketing this summer, retailers didn’t then reduce them in line with wholesale costs It added that this coincided with an increase in retailers’ profits .

Vision EQXX drove 1000km (621 miles) on one charge this spring

EQC will look very different to current Mercedes, both ICE and EV

New Donker voor t F22 has 493bhp at 750k g

DUTCH SPECIALIST MARQUE

Donker voort will end its D8 GTO era with the F2 2 , which it claims to be the lightest twoseat supercar in the world.

The 750 kg F2 2 is the most potent Donker voort yet, with a power-to-weight ratio of 657bhp per tonne, thanks to a 493 bhp 2 5-litre five-cylinder turbo engine linked to a revmatching five-speed gearbox

Top speed, which hasn’t been electronically limited, is expected to exceed 1 8 0 mph

Much of this lightness comes from a totally reworked chassis made of a mix of tubular steel and in-house-built, Formula 1grade E x- Core carbonfibre –which is stronger, is lighter and can be made into more complex shapes than standard material.

This allows for a 1 0 0% boost in torsional and bending rigidity over the old D8 GTO Individual Series , which in turns brings better grip: it can handle up to 2 .15g of lateral acceleration.

The first car made under the eye of Denis Donker voort (who replaced his father, founder Joop) is also the firm’s largest –at only 5cm slimmer and 50 cm shorter than the Lamborghini Huracán – and most civilised

This is due to a more spacious cabin than before and new targa-style twinplate carbonfibre roof

A completely redesigned interior is the key to the claimed increase in usability, it having an extra 8 0 mm of shoulder width and 1 0 0 mm of length over its predecessor

It comes complete with custom-designed, lightweight Recaro seats , into which occupants are strapped by what’s claimed to be the first six-point harness approved for both racing and road use.

“The F2 2 is the pinnacle of what we know with lightweight engineering, strength, combustion engines and pure speed,” said Denis Donkervoort “The F2 2 gives Donker voort drivers new levels of speed, handling, driving purity, design and practicality, and shows the world where Donker voort is going in the future.”

It will look to rival the likes of the new KTM X-Bow GT-XR, Dallara Stradale and Radical Rapture from Januar y, priced at €245,0 0 0 (£2 11 , 560)

Just 75 will be made – up from the 50 that sold out after initial sketches were released

Roomier, more civilised and now with touchscreen

NE W A L FA /Z AG AT O T I E- UP

M E R C ’S O N A R O L L – 2 5 Y E A R S A F T E R FA I L I N G T H E M O O S E T E S T

The World Health Organization calculated in its 20 1 8 Road Safety Report that globally there were 1 3 million fatalities resulting from road accidents .

T H E R E A L-WO R L D CA R S I M

Sony Honda Mobility, the joint venture formed earlier this year, is considering developing an electric car that will be specifically designed around the software that Sony wants to offer in it, according to a report in the Financial Times . This could extend to integrating a PlayStation 5 into an autonomous car – something that bosses say is technically possible.

O

F I C I

Nearl y new prices under scrutiny

As nearly new prices spiral, sometimes higher than new, we analyse if it still adds up

The reality that a nearly new Volkswagen Golf is being advertised for 3 3% more than its new price threatens to turn the long-held argument for buying a used car over a new one on its head

The car, a 1 . 4 TSI eHybrid Style DSG registered in 202 2

on a 72-plate and with 150 0 miles , was being offered by a V W main dealer in November for £49,999 Fitted with the same options – premium paint, upgraded alloys and a winter pack – a new one is £37,750

Paying a third more for a used car than its new

equivalent might be expected for an investment supercar. Although the salesperson offering the used Golf made no claims about the hatchback appreciating in value, he did say that it was rare and in demand: “Nearly new electric and hybrid V Ws are ver y hard

to come by Your alternative is to buy a new Golf eHybrid but, even ordered today, it won’t arrive for another 12 months It’s why we’re confident we’ll get our asking price.”

Coming on top of the cost of living crisis , the news that a nearly new Golf can cost more

than a new one is likely to make many people think twice about buying a used car.

Here, we compare a new Golf available now from stock with its approved used (and priced accordingly) equivalent to see which really offers better value.

J O H N E VA N S

New Projected to have lost 58% (£ 15, 20 0) of its new on-the-road price after four years and 4 0,0 0 0 miles

Approved used Projected to have lost 52% (£ 1 0,0 0 0) of its purchase price after four years and 4 0,0 0 0 miles .

O U R P I C K

A P P R O V E D U S E D

We say The new Golf loses £520 0 more than the approved used one and costs £6 8 3 1 more, or £5627 after a £ 120 4 discount, to begin with

Approved used All the above.

We say All the same kit for less money? It has to be the approved used Golf What’s more, any issues

with its digital dashboard and infotainment system will surely have been identified and ironed out But in the case of the new Golf, those problems may be waiting in the wings .

S E R V I C I N G

New V W has just withdrawn its free ser vicing plan offer on new Golfs , although a dealer told us it would offer the perk as part of a deal

Approved used

Free ser vicing unlikely but often discounted by 25%

We say Neither car should be expensive to maintain, but at five years (past the end of the PCP term) the used Golf’s timing belt must be changed at a cost of around £70 0

A £6 8 3 1 saving, or £5627

after a discount, and less money lost in depreciation are compelling reasons to buy the approved used Golf over its new equivalent.

E xcept that what we haven’t told you is that our

example is a former dealer demonstrator and that prior to being put on the forecourt, it’s likely to have suffered kerbed alloys , the odd bumper graze and a few stone chips , all since expertly patched up

In contrast, standing in the dealer’s new car deliver y area with a big red bow stuck to it and your name the first on the V5, the new Golf will look all of £26k’s worth of motor and hang the expense. You pays your money

E Q U I P M E N T H I G H L I G H T S

New 1 6in ‘Norfolk’ alloy wheels , LED lights , Discover Media, Air Care climate control, keyless start

O U R P I C K A P P R O V E D U S E D

O U R P I C K

A P P R O V E D U S E D

D E P R E C I A T I O N

The Ford that increased sales the most was the brand’s least competitive car, the Ecosport (up 70%) Did someone at the factor y over-order Ecosport components in 20 19?

The SMMT recently reduced its new car sales forecast for 202 2 to 1 57 million That’s back to where we were in 1982 , when the Ford Escort was the market leader, and more than one million sales down on the all-time peak year of 20 1 6 .

A L F A R O M E O

2021 market share: 0.10%

2022 market share: 0 10%

Neither the Giulia nor Stelvio is likely to exceed 1 0 0 0 sales this year There is a revival plan, but Alfa Romeo announces those with the same frequency as the UK does new prime ministers

A L P I N E

2021 market share: 0 01%

2022 market share: 0.02% The A11 0’s share has grown

and is probably now as high as a sports car from an obscure brand can expect in these SUV-obsessed times

A S T O N M A R T I N

2021 market share: 0.06%

2022 market share: 0 07%

Despite raising £65 4 million in funding this year, Aston Martin debt has risen, due to losses of £511m . Global DBX SUV sales have actually fallen this year

A U D I

2021 market share: 7 16%

2022 market share: 6 81%

Most conventional models are being affected by supplychain issues . However, Audi’s E-tron models are up by only 12 7% compared with 2 3 . 4% for all EVs , which is more disappointing

B E N T L E Y

2021 market share: 0 08%

2022 market share: 0.10%

This is a record market share for Bentley, coming with record global profits . It made more than £50 0 m in the first nine months of 202 2 , representing a profit margin of 2 3% .

B M W

2021 market share: 7 08%

2022 market share: 6.67%

Like Audi, BMW has dropped slightly A sign of the times is that the 45-year reign of the 3 Series as the brand’s bestseller could be nearing its end, as the X3 is rapidly catching up.

C I T R O E N

2021 market share: 1 83%

2022 market share: 1.85%

Citroën’s best-selling models are the C 3 supermini and C4 family hatchback . It needs to get with the programme and boost its sales of all-important crossovers .

C U P R A

2021 market share: 0.46%

2022 market share: 0 89% Cupra is doing brilliantly –unless you work for its sibling brand, Seat The Formentor is successfully occupying a niche between mainstream and premium crossovers

D A C I A

2021 market share: 1.07%

2022 market share: 1.77%

Bentayga SUV was chief contributor to Bentley’s rise

Having survived the pandemic, car makers were immediately embroiled in supply-chain mayhem. Who coped best with this latest bump in the road?

Dacia is on a roll with the new Sandero and Jogger, with the Bigster (and maybe Spring EV ) still to come Bang on-trend for these painful financial times

D S

2021 market share: 0 14%

2022 market share: 0.24%

DS is boasting of increasing its UK sales by 70% this year That sounds good until you remember that, a decade ago, the Citroën DS3 alone took 0. 8% of the UK market.

F E R R A R I

2021 market share: 0.06%

2022 market share: 0 07%

Aston aims to emulate Ferrari’s financial success , but the point of Ferrari is that it stands on a unique heritage of 70 years of achievement on road and track

F I A T

2021 market share: 1 37%

2022 market share: 1.36%

Its future is coming into focus as a supplier of small, chic, lowcost models . No more Tipos .

F O R D

2021 market share: 7.06%

2022 market share: 8.02%

Ford has retaken the top spot, but it’s a bittersweet win. The end of the Fiesta is nigh and the Focus won’t be far behind Real losses for keen drivers .

G E N E S I S

2021 market share: 0.01%

2022 market share: 0 06%

The next Polestar or the next Infiniti? We’d bet the Koreans will get it right in the end, but a range of largely ICE models isn’t the ideal place to start

H y u n d a i ’s s h a r e i s v e r y r e s p e c t a b l e, b u t j u n i o r b r a n d K i a’s i s e v e n h i g h e r

H O N D A

2021 market share: 1 63%

2022 market share: 1.62%

The good news is Honda has kept its share The bad news is the UK now takes over 60% of Honda’s European sales Is Europe still viable for it?

H Y U N D A I

2021 market share: 4 23%

2022 market share: 5.09%

A sharp recover y this year, helped by rising Tucson and Kona sales . Its share is ver y respectable – except junior brand Kia’s is even higher

J A G U A R

2021 market share: 1.15%

2022 market share: 0.76%

The I-Pace may finish the year as Jaguar’s best-seller. It was meant to be the spearhead of Jaguar’s electric future, but it has been waiting four years for reinforcements to arrive

J E E P

2021 market share: 0.27%

2022 market share: 0 15% Alfa Romeo’s sister brand in more ways than one Great heritage, high awareness and microscopic market share.

K I A

2021 market share: 5.51% 2022 market share: 6 51% A stellar performance To give

just one example, Kia could well end the year selling more C-segment cars than any rival.

L A

N

D R O V E R

2021 market share: 3.22% 2022 market share: 2.73% Down because the smaller cars are losing out (due to restricted production) and the new Range Rover and Range Rover Sport are in production ramp-up.

L E X U S

2021 market share: 0.84% 2022 market share: 0 61% Lexus does a bit better in the UK than the rest of Europe, where it has a 0 3% share Generally, it looks a bit lacklustre next to more interesting EV alternatives

L O T U S

2021 market share: 0 01% 2022 market share: 0.01% The Emira is yet to get going, so Lotus had just 1 03 registrations in the first 1 0 months of 202 2 . It will need a strong 202 3 to justify all that investment

M A S E R A T I

2021 market share: 0 05% 2022 market share: 0.04% The new model intended to boost share is the Grecale SUV, a more upmarket version of the Alfa Romeo Stelvio What could possibly go wrong?

M A Z D A

2021 market share: 1.57% 2022 market share: 1 55% The CX-5 and CX-3 0 SUVs are doing good business . However, Mazda’s

cars

We bought more cars from Korean brands (12%) than from French, Italian and Spanish ones combined (11 6%)

idiosyncratic (if honourable) approach to EVs has fallen a bit flat; the MX-3 0’s limited range means equally limited sales

M E R C E D E S - B E N Z

2021 market share: 5 95%

2022 market share: 5.15% This is a rare case of a firm voluntarily surrendering market share. Mercedes is pulling out of smaller cars like the A- Class and B- Class to boost profit margins .

M G

M I N I

2021 market share: 2 78%

2022 market share: 2.75%

The Electric will soon get an EVdedicated platform, bringing it a much longer range. That should give the brand a ma jor boost, as it’s perfectly positioned to be the urban EV of choice.

N I S S A N

2021 market share: 4.16%

2022 market share: 4 63%

Once third in the UK , Peugeot is settling down in mid-table

The 20 8 and 20 0 8 are doing reasonably well, but the 50 8 is sinking into the quagmire reser ved for big French cars .

P O L E S T A R

2021 market share: 0.25%

2022 market share: 0 42% Buying a Polestar 2 is as cool

as buying a Tesla yet doesn’t make you cringe at Elon Musk’s outbursts .

P O R S C H E

2021 market share: 0.83%

2022 market share: 1 02%

In terms of share, Porsche is now a 1% brand In terms of market cap, it’s the world’s third-most-valuable car maker,

R E N A U L T

2021 market share: 1 81%

2022 market share: 1.86% Renault is now only just ahead of its junior brand, Dacia The only bright spot is the Arkana coupé-SUV, which seems to be capturing buyers’ imagination.

R O L L S - R O Y C E

2021 market share: 0.02%

2021 market share: 1.86%

2022 market share: 3.24% The ZS is third in its segment and the HS is sixth – MG is now properly in the mainstream Native brands are starting to seriously worr y about the rise of the Chinese in Europe

The Qashqai could well finish the year as the UK’s best-seller, but the Juke is suffering: once the class leader, it’s now fifth. The Ariya EV must do well if Nissan is to return past 5%

P E U G E O T

2021 market share: 3.71%

2022 market share: 3 42%

Plug-in hybrids

More and more buyers are deciding to jump straight to an EV, with plug-in hybrid sales down 5.7% on 202 1 .

The PHEV bridge is turning out to be shorter than planned.

Europ ean-built cars Europe has lost 1 . 5 million cars due to the chip shortage this year, whereas China has lost fewer than 250,0 0 0

Af fordab le sp or t s cars

The whole segment now consists of solely the Mazda MX-5. Let’s hope that MG’s forthcoming electric roadster can revive it

C-segment Kias such as the Ceed are on track to outsell VW’s Golf

2022 market share: 0.03% This is the first time that Rolls has hit a 0.03% share. It is all about stately progress , after all Owner BMW will be ver y happy with record global sales .

S E A T

2021 market share: 2.62%

2022 market share: 1.38%

After a ver y good period from 20 17 to 2020, Seat’s share has collapsed Cupra makes

I T W A S A B A D

Y E A R T O B E S E L L I N G

higher-margin cars in the same factor y, so the Volkswagen Group seems to be effectively winding down the Seat brand

S K O D A

2021 market share: 3 37%

2022 market share: 3.01%

Skoda has written a remarkable success stor y in good-value large cars . Both the Superb saloon/estate and the Kodiaq SUV are top of their segments

S M A R T

2021 market share: 0 10%

2022 market share: 0.08% The # 1 (the worst name since Volkswagen Sharan?) marks the start of Smart’s second life as a Chinese EV brand Owners Mercedes-Benz and Geely will be hoping for far more success than it had in its first life

S S A N G Y O N G

2021 market share: 0.09%

2022 market share: 0 10%

Following three cycles of bankruptcy and new ownership, this SUV specialist has been bought by a Korean steel maker for approximately £2 25m – less than the cost of developing one new model.

S U B A R U

2021 market share: 0.13%

2022 market share: 0 08%

We hope the UK’s dwindling band of Subaru loyalists is grateful for the firm’s efforts to make its cars available here. It’s hard to see how Subaru can make money on these volumes

S U Z U K I

2021 market share: 1 27%

2022 market share: 1.11%

The Vitara and new SX4

S- Cross SUVs are doing quite well, but the rebadged Toyotas (Across SUV and Swace estate) are, unsurprisingly, struggling Apart from loyalty to a dealer, why buy the Suzuki version?

T E S L A

2021 market share: 2 12%

2022 market share: 2 57%

With the Twitter imbroglio, is Tesla now Musk’s side hustle? Its UK share is still growing, but Tesla is starting to come under pressure from EV rivals in China and , to a lesser extent, North America

T O Y O T A

2021 market share: 6.13%

2022 market share: 6 42%

Toyota has achieved record share thanks to the new Yaris Cross and Aygo X crossovers . It’s now in sixth position but is in a ver y close four-way race for third.

V A U X H A L L

2021 market share: 5.55% 2022 market share: 5.41% Market share is now stable after a decade of losses . The Corsa supermini and Mokka crossover are doing well, and the new Astra should make an impact next year

V O L K S W A G E N

2021 market share: 8 97%

2022 market share: 7 99% Volkswagen’s scarce chips are going to more profitable Audis and Porsches (and more chiphungr y EVs). The ID EV range is doing reasonable business but has yet to set the world alight.

V O L V O

2021 market share: 2.93%

2022 market share: 2.21% SUVs now contribute 85% of Volvo’s orders . Overall sales are down because the XC4 0 has declined, but it’s still the best-selling premium compact crossover, ahead of the Range Rover Evoque DAV I D FR A N C I S

Large family cars like the Volkswagen Passat fell to another all-time low of just 0

For d h a s r e t a ken t h e top s p o t , b u t i t ’s a bit tersweet w in. The end of the Fiesta is nigh and the Focus won’t be fa r behind

MG is fastest grower and new 4 EV should really help its cause

Porsche sets new net-zero goal

Car maker targets CO2-neutral production and supply chain as line-up goes electric

Porsche is close to a radical reinvention as it prepares to electrify its entire lineup, with four new models – Macan, Cayenne, Boxster and Cayman – arriving from 2024 . These EVs , released along with petrol equivalents , feed into Porsche’s goal of 50% of its sales having electrified powertrains by 2025, with 8 0% being pure-electric by 203 0 However, making EVs is counterproductive if their manufacture incurs damage to the environment, so Porsche now has another target: to make its entire supply chain CO2 -neutral by 203 0 Here’s how it’s leading the charge to net zero.

RETHINKING ENERGY

Porsche’s energy strategy comprises two key tenets: exploiting only sustainable energy sources and reducing how much it uses The former has meant a switch to renewables at the Stuttgart factor y, which has slashed its annual CO2 output by 9 0, 50 0 tonnes Using biogas has been less transformative but has reduced CO2 by a further 42 , 3 0 0 tonnes Changes inside the factories are more novel: regenerative braking has been

added to the autonomous guided vehicles carr ying parts on the factor y floor, boosting their efficiency.

THE OLD -SCHOOL APPROACH

Porsche’s environmental drive is not a response to cultural trends over the past decade but has been in motion since the turn of the millennium

When an old militar y test facility near Leipzig was chosen to house a new factor y for Cayenne production in 1999,

the company gave itself three years for construction The base had been used since the days of the German Empire, and to break ground the firm first had to clear almost a centur y of old munitions .

At this point an ‘old-school’ approach to conser vation was set in motion, explained Porsche environmental and energy management boss Anke Höller. Some 326 acres of the 74 0 -acre facility were designated as an “ecological compensation area” to help offset the environmental impact of the factor y – a novel concept at the time.

Today, the zone houses E xmoor ponies , Heck cattle and 50 honey bee colonies , and it attracts 13 8 bird species

The facility is also used to educate the next generation Children aged seven and up are offered safari tours around the factor y grounds “It’s important that we teach children how to engage with nature and the environment in a responsible and sustainable way from an early age,” said

COLLABORATION

The final pillar in Porsche’s net-zero strategy is collaboration with parts and logistics partners Recycling, for example, has benefited from work with suppliers to remove as much plastic as possible from their products , which are often shipped without And where plastic is strictly necessar y, coloured

plastics are banned because they cannot be recycled.

“You always need partners , ” explained Höller, as she emphasised that Porsche can only do so much alone

Porsche’s war on plastic extends even to the trolleys used to ferr y components around shop floors . The company has switched to carts built exclusively from chipboard and cardboard.

BEYOND CARBON

Such measures have already had a significant impact: Porsche’s Leipzig, Weissach and Zuffenhausen facilities are now CO2 -neutral on balance

Cayenne

Boxster/Cayman

But times are changing, and CO2 is no longer the only metric by which Porsche measures its environmental footprint. “Water is the gold of the future,” said Höller, as she explained that Porsche is now working to minimise the release of pollutants and toxins into its waste water. Whether that turns out to be a visionar y move – or just another string to its bow – only time will tell.

The environmental impact of Porsche’s production process has been assessed

Thomas Schmidt, former Saxon state minister of the environment and agriculture

Macan

Due in 2024 , the Macan will arrive as the “sportiest car in its segment”, with a dual-motor set-up producing 6 03 bhp and 73 8 lb ft.

The 71 8 duo will adopt a bespoke electric sports car platform that mimics current mid-engined characteristics Launch is expected in 2026 .

New flagship SUV

Codenamed K1 , expect the BMW iX rival in the latter half of the decade It will get highperformance motors and a high-silicon-content batter y.

An electric Cayenne will land in 2025 alongside the current petrol-powered model Range is tipped to beat the 3 65 miles of the Mercedes EQS SUV.

Honey bees at the Leipzig site are part of a ‘safari tour’ for kids

Leipzig facility is on an old military base that had to be made safe IMAGE

W H A T ’ S N E X T F O R P O R S C H E ?

Renault has become the first car maker to integrate sat-nav app Waze into its infotainment system

Waze is now available in the Austral and Mégane E-Tech, the driver being able to access all functions directly on the 12in OpenR touchscreen without having to touch their smartphone.

“We’re convinced that the large number of Waze users will appreciate this new feature,” said Jérôme Seror, Renault’s director of digital customer experience “This is clearly in line with our strategy to offer our customers an intuitive, immersive and connected driving experience.”

Da

T h e m a c h i n e s a r e c o m i n g t o r e p

i g h t

Honda has confirmed that it will attempt a lap of the Nürburgring with the new Civic Type R, aiming to reclaim the record that it held for two years with the previous-generation hot hatchback

However, the German circuit is notorious for unpredictable weather during the winter months , sometimes even receiving snow, so the Japanese company’s bosses have said they will wait until “conditions allow”

The record is held by the Renault Mégane RS Trophy-R, which pipped the old Civic Type R by 3 7sec with a lap time of 7min 4 0.1sec in 20 19.

a c e u s

b u t n o t n e c e s s a r i l y h o w w e ex p e c t

l

,

l l r

,

Skoda Kodiaq’s dog carrier met Midge’s exacting standards

T E S T E R ’ S N O T E S

Is this really the best use of big data?

R E N AU LT F I N D S WA Z E T O M A K E L I F E E A S I E R

W H E N T H E G R E E N H E L L F R E E Z E S OV E R

At last Cropley got to present Rimac his Issigonis Trophy

Damien Smith

Sebastian Vettel has quit Formula 1 – hasn’t he? We really hope so

Vettel is a family man and has many interests outside F1

S i l v e r Fe r n R a l l y

The three-time F 1 winner relished a return to singleseaters at 49 in the S50 0 0 Tasman Series , supporting the Australian Supercars’ Adelaide 50 0 finale He took a best finish of fourth from his three races and reported he’d had a blast

B A D W E E K

A L L O F U S

The loss of Patrick Tambay has rocked motorsport Charismatic and popular, the Frenchman was best known for stepping into Ferrari after the death of his friend Gilles Villeneuve, winning twice there He died at 73 after years living with Parkinson’s disease

AS THE MAINSTRE AM racing season wound down, Tony Jardine checked in from down under with tales of adventure from the Silver Fern Rally of New Zealand, a seven-day epic covering 3 0 0 0 km and 43 special stages across the stunning South Island.

The intrepid Jardine had scratched a long-held itch, rallying a 1985 1 .6-litre Toyota Corolla with local co-driver War wick Martin They ran as high as seventh before the inevitable drama First, a broken exhaust manifold needed regular welding, before on day five the Corolla jammed in gear. Four stages were lost as a new gearbox was sourced and they returned to action with time penalties . Then on the final day, a Panhard rod at the rear suspension snapped

T O P S T E P

and required a makeshift strap across the axle before proper repairs could be carried out. Undaunted, Jardine and Martin pushed on to finish 1 0 th overall and first in the 1 60 0 cc class after those final “heart-stopping” troubles

Corolla (above) won class while Escort was first overall

He only made 13 starts in Formula 1 , but Martin Donnelly qualifies for our club on the back of the career he would have had were it not for an accident that should have killed him

The feisty Northern Irishman shone on the British junior single-seater scene, before a first shot at F 1 came in a one-off for Arrows at the 1989 French Grand Prix . Then Team Lotus snapped him up for 199 0 In the neat little Lotus 1 02 , powered by a Lamborghini V 12 , he showed real promise in a team that was long past its best. But then came Jerez and the practice crash that destroyed his car and left his severely broken body lying in the middle of the track , still strapped to the seat As captured in the movie Senna, Professor Sid Watkins worked mar vels trackside to save his life as a shocked Ayrton Senna walked out to the scene, having witnessed the crash via a pit-lane monitor Donnelly somehow lived, and although his in juries curtailed a return to racing, he became an equally feisty team owner “Got any dirt and filth?” he would growl if you called him for a gossip, and woe betide you if you didn’t Today, he’s the driving standards steward at Goodwood, a perfect role for a tough racer who has seen it all.

M A R T I N D O N N E L L Y

M O T O R S P O R T G R E A T S

G

I A N C A R L O

F I S I C H E L L A

T H A N K Y O U A G A I N

New Zealand’s South Island looks lush as its summer starts

Up front, it was a Ford Escort battle for victor y A puncture for Jeff Judd and ex-WRC co-driver Stéphane Prévot handed a decisive advantage to Englishman James Ford and Scotsman Neil Shanks , who won on their Silver Fern debut

T h e h a r d e s t t h i n g o f a l l t o a c c e p t i s h o w p o i n t l e s s a n d c h u r l i s h i t i s t o c o m p l a i n

Under its quietly menacing skin is the tech for 4WD and rear steering

This car is quick when it throws its electric punch but there isn’t the boisterous handling of its forebear

Interior does its best to convey the ambience of a high-tech, plush, near-£100k saloon

The ‘push to pass’ electric kickdown boost works okay on a circuit, but if you use Race mode on the road, you soon forget that the boost function is there And without it, the C63 feels notably slower M S

The drive batter y in the C63 is Mercedes-AMG’s own development, and while it’s only small by the standards of most luxur y PHEVs (6 1kWh), its construction is specially designed for close thermal management, high energy density, and the sort of rapid and intensive supply and storage of energy that’s necessar y to prevent a heav y car like this from running out of electrical oomph on track .

It weighs 8 0 kg dr y, is carried directly over the rear axle and contains up to 3 0 litres of coolant, which it distributes around each of the 560 cylindrical cells in the pack . The Mercedes S63 E Performance uses the same technology in a pack of twice the fitted capacity.

T E S T E R ’ S N O T E

As a Ford Ranger in disguise, does the Amarok remain the most car-like of pick-ups?

Steering

and V W are already looking at an EV derivative and say the T6 platform could be re-engineered to suit Project members reckon a batter y of at least 11 0 kWh would be needed to maintain adequate range and towing capability RL

We like

Electrified V6 is almost vicefree, providing savage propulsive force with effortless response and linearity. The car’s all-electric drive mode also has its uses Handling personality borders on the theatrical but never feels any thing less than confidenceinspiring, precise and rewarding, on both road and track . Stellar Comfortable over distance and usable in general

We don’t like

E xpensive, given that it will function as the entr y point to Ferrari’s mid-engined line-up Cockpit layout is fine but some of the infotainment controls need fine-tuning

Range at a glance

Ferrari offers its new mid-engined model in berlinetta and spider forms , with the spider commanding a premium of nearly £4 0,0 0 0. Both use the same PHEV V6 powertrain and the spider has been tuned and set up to behave identically to the coupé, albeit with 70 kg of extra chassis bracing and folding hard-top mechanism to contend with. (It does so ver y capably indeed )

Both cars are also available with the Assetto Fiorano kit (called the Fiorano Performance pack in the UK), which adds passive Multimatic dampers , weight-saving panels , a larger rear spoiler and stickier tyres Even so, expect a track-focused, Pista-style variant at some point.

‘Aero’ calipers are taken from the SF9 0 and are directly fed with cool air flowing from an intake integrated into the headlight design. They negate the need for an intake under the suspension arm , allowing for a flatter underbody

It’s well hidden but there’s an active Gurney flap that rises between the tail-lights It can increase downforce over the back axle by 1 0 0 kg. Also, with no screen to smoothly join the car’s roof and Kamm tail, airflow separation has been mitigated by a slender roof fairing.

Engine lid is elegantly contoured and shows the turbocharger covers – not, note, the traditional plenum covers , which now sit to the sides of the cylinder heads A body-coloured central element references Testarossa and F355 GTB .

Ferrari describes the one-piece front grille as having a bar-bell design that’s simpler and more profound than on previous mid-engined models . Two sizeable radiators lurk at each end, for cooling the twin-turbo V6 and gearbox

Enormous gearshift paddles are appropriately dramatic. Note that the aluminium ones are heavier and more satisfying to pull than the carbonfibre ones

The current-generation Ferrari models use an entirely digital instrument binnacle consisting of a single, crisp 1 6 0 in display, all of it clearly visible through the steering wheel. To navigate it, you use your thumbs to swipe touch-sensitive pads on the steering wheel It’s not the most intuitive or responsive set-up but scrolling between navigation, media and comms menus becomes easy enough with familiarity

It’s within these menus that you can also command the 296 GTB to charge its drive batter y while on the move, should you want to be more incognito at some later stage of the journey You can also cycle through three display modes , although the standard layout is best in our opinion, with the rev counter front and centre ( You can choose the background colour, too )

In the UK , Apple CarPlay is a standard feature, which is good to hear because Ferrari has charged heavily for it in the past However, Android Auto isn’t available at all UK cars also come with wireless smartphone charging as standard.

Manettino dial hasn’t gone any where with the move to hybrid tech and still controls the various chassis settings Press the switcher in for softer dampers

Chromed gear-select panel supposedly references the open-gate shifters of bygone manual Ferraris but isn’t any thing like as romantic Fob holster is useful

I t

s m o re s l i c k a r i s to c ra t t h a n s t re e t f i g h te r b u t l o v a b l e a l l t h e s a m e

H A N D L I N G A N D S T A B I L I T Y

There’s

For those of us who are not Ferrari factor y aces , a quick lap time in the 296 GTB involves switching off the traction control, familiarising yourself as best you can with what 819bhp can do even to ultra-hardcore Cup 2 R tyres operating at optimum temperature and getting comfortable with oversteer, because you will be taming it almost the entire lap

The combination of an extremely direct front axle and so much power and torque makes this Ferrari easier to rotate than any of its rivals , and while this makes for phenomenal agility and speed, it can be hard to feel fully dialled into the track surface, as happens so naturally with the McLaren Artura The two cars really are chalk and cheese in this sense.

Get it right and the result is wild pace The 296 GTB matched our fastest-ever lap – 1min 3 .6sec set by the SF9 0 (with Assetto Fiorano pack) Less weight and understeer, perhaps .

D R Y C I R C U I T

Ferrari 296 GTB 1min 3 .6sec

McLaren Artura 1min 6. 8sec

T4 is taken flat out with just a touch of stabilising understeer Telemetr y shows 135mph was exceeded just before T5 entr y.

W E T C I R C U I T

Ferrari 296 GTB 1min 19 4sec

McLaren Artura 1min 14 9sec

Incredible stopping power and Ferrari’s new ABS-Evo system allow the 296 to be slowed late and drawn precisely into corners . It’s ver y quick through T3 and T7.

Car will happily take a hint of angle all the way through the accelerating T 2 S-bend complex Confidence in the machine is key

Cold-ish Cup 2 R tyres don’t en joy wet running, and with no driven front axle, lapping is a matter of straight patience.

‘ Wet’ chassis setting does sterling job of marshalling ham-fisted inputs , but even with the traction control switched off, the car remains reasonably benign.

147. 2mph, standing km 1 8 .1sec at 1 85. 4mph, 3 0 -70 mph 1 .9sec, 3 0 -70 mph in fourth 3 .1sec

C o n t ra c t h i r e p c m na C o s t p e r m i l e na I n s u ra n c e 5 0/£ 1 195

E Q U I P M E N T C H E C K L I S T

Sma r t p h o n e co n n e c t i o n

Pa r k i n g s e n s o r s , p l u s r e a r c a m e ra

Fu l l m a t r i x L ED h e a d l i g h t s

D u a l -zo n e a i r co n d i t i o n i n g

Ma g na r i d e susp ensi o n (S CM E- Fr s)

C a r b o n - ce ra m i c b ra kes (CCM)

20 i n f o r g e d w h e e l s £3552

S u s p e n s i o n l i f t e r £326 4

B l a c k b ra k e c a l i p e r s £ 1296

C a r b o n f i b r e ra c i n g s e a t s £576 0

R a c i n g s e a t l i f t e r £ 14 4 0

S c u d e r i a s h i e l d s £ 1 0 5 6

C a r b o n f i b r e a i r d i f f u s e r £3072

C a r b o n f i b r e i n s t r u m e n t c l u s t e r £4 320

M a t t i n t e r i o r c a r b o n f i b r e £2 4 0 0

C a r b o n f i b r e s t e e r i n g w h e e l w i t h L E D s £28 8 0

C a r b o n f i b r e u p p e r t u n n e l t r i m £230 4

C a r b o n f i b r e r e a r d i f f u s e r £6720

C a r b o n f i b r e f r u n k u p p e r z o n e £3 8 4 0

S p e c i a l c o l o u r : R o s s o I m o l a £ 7 1 0 4

P r e m i u m s o u n d sys t e m £3552

Fo u r - p o i n t s a fe t y h a r n ess es £ 26 8 8

F i o ra n o Pe r fo r m a n ce p a c k E x te n d e d £ 2 5 ,92 0

L exa n d o o r g lasses £ 28 8 0

M i ch e l i n P i l ot Sp o r t Cu p 2 R t y res £ 28 8 0

C a r b o n f i b re ra c i n g w h e e l s £ 19, 2 0 0

A DA S fu l l p a cka g e £ 5 1 8 4

Two we e ke n d b a g s £45 12 F i re ex t i n g u i sh e r £624

O p t i o n s i n b o l d fit te d to test ca r = St a n da r d na = n ot ava i la b l e

C H A S S I S & B O D Y

C o n s t r u c t i o n A l u m i n i u m m o n o co q u e We i g h t /a s t e s t e d 1 47 0 kg (d r y, w i t h l i g h test o p t i o n s)/ 1 6 4 8 kg W h e e l s 9 0 Jx 2 0 i n (f ), 1 1 0 Jx 2 0 i n (r)

Ty r e s 245/35 ZR2 0 95 Y (f ), 3 0 5/35 ZR2 0 1 0 7 Y (r), M i c h e l i n P i l o t Sp o r t 4 S (Cu p 2 R t y res u se d fo r l a p t i m es) S p a r e N o n e (m o b i l i t y k i t)

T E C H N I C A L L A Y O U T

65 litres 7.5 kWh

Ferrari has yet to use composite monocoques for its mainline models , so the 296 GTB sticks with aluminium Weight distribution was 4 0% front, 60% rear on our scales , which is more rear biased than that of the SF9 0, whose front-mounted electric motors spread the car’s mass more evenly In the 296 , all power comes from the back , where an electric motor is sandwiched between the V6 and gearbox .

E N G I N E

I n s t a l l a t i o n M i d , l o n g i t u d i na l , r e a r - w h e e l d r i ve Ty p e V6, 2 9 92cc, t w i nt u r b o c h a r g e d , p e t r o l

M a d e o f A l u m i n i u m b l o c k a n d h e a d B o r e/s t r o k e 8 8 0 m m /82 0 m m

C o m p r e s s i o n ra t i o 9.4: 1

Va l ve g e a r 4 p e r c y l

P o w e r/t o r q u e 65 4 b h p/5 4 6 l b f t R e d l i n e 85 0 0 rp m

E l e c t r i c m o t o r Sy n c h r o n o u s a x i a l f l u x

D r i ve b a t t e r y 7 5 kW h (tot a l), l i t h i u m i o n

To t a l s ys t e m p o w e r 8 19 b h p a t 8 0 0 0 r p m

To t a l s ys t e m t o r q u e na P o w e r t o w e i g h t 55 7 b h p p e r to n n e S p e c i f i c o u t p u t 2 1 8 b h p p e r l i t r e

A N S M I S S I O N

p e 8 - sp d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o m a t i c R a t i o s

p h p e r 1 0 0 0 r p m 1s t 3 .4 6/5 .4 2 n d 2 . 26/8 . 3 3 r d 1 . 65/ 1 1 . 3 4 t h 1 2 9/ 1 4 5 5 t h 1 03/ 1 8 2 6t h 0 8 4 / 2 2 4 7 t h 0 67/

S U S P E N S I O N

Fr o n t D o u b l e w i sh b o n es , co i l sp r i n g s , a n t i - ro l l b a r R e a r M u l t i - l i n k , co i l sp r i n g s, a n t i - ro l l b a r

T R m p h 2n d 3 r d 4 t h 5t h 6t h 7 t h 8 t h 20 - 4 0 1 . 0 1 .4 1 . 8 – – – –30 - 5 0 1 0 1 3 1 6 2 2 3 0 – –4 0 - 6 0 0 9 1 2 1 6 2 0 2 7 – –5 0 -70 1 2 1 3 1 5 1 9 2 5 6 1 6 6 6 0 - 8 0 – 1 2 1 5 1 9 2 3 6 1 6 1 70 - 9 0 – 1 1 1 4 1 8 2 3 5 9 5 9 8 0 -1 0 0 – 1 2 1 4 1 8 2 4 5 5 5 5 9 0 -11 0 – – 1 5 1 8 2 4 5 3 5 3 1 0 0 -120 – – 1 7 1 8 2 4 5 3 5 5 11 0 -130 – – – 2 0 2 5 5 6 5 7 120 -14 0 – – – 2 2 2 5 6 0 6 1 130 -15 0 – – – 2 7 2 6 – –14 0 -16 0 – – – – 3 0 – –14 0 -170 – – – – 3 6 – –

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Ta n k s i z e 65 l i t res E V ra n g e 1 5 m i l es

E M I S S I O N S & T A X

C O 2 e m i s s i o n s 1 49 g / k m Ta x a t 20/4 0 % p c m na

S A F E T Y

A B S Evo, E S C , EB D, eSS C , eTC , e D i f f, S CM E u r o N C A P c ra s h ra t i n g N ot teste d

C A B I N N O I S E

Ty p e E l e c t r o m e c h a n i c a l , ra c k a n d p i n i o n Tu r n s l o c k t o l o c k 1 .9 Tu r n i n g c i r c l e na To r q u e cu r ve i s I CE o n ly 4 0 A U T O C A R C O U K 2 1 / 2 8 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 2 P O W E R & T O R Q U E M A X S P E E D S I N G E A R A C C E L E R A T I O N A C C E L E R A T I O N I N G E A R Read all of our road tests autocar.co.uk R O A D T E S T N o 5 6 0 4 Data log 1 2 3 4 5 46mph 8500rpm 70mph 8500rpm 96mph 8500rpm 123mph 8500rpm 6 155mph 8500rpm 7 8 205mph 7378rpm 190mph 8500rpm 205mph* 5265rpm * claimed E C O N O M Y TEST M PG C L A I M E D

6 d BA 5 0 m p h 7 2d BA 70 m p h 75 d BA

n For mu la 1, t here’s not h i n g l i ke a r u leb o ok overh au l to u n s eat t he top dog a nd t h i s i s s omet h i n g t he y k now plent y ab out i n Ma ra nel lo I n t he st re et c a r world , g ra nd c h a n ges to t he play i n g field a re n’t s o c lea r c ut but t he y st i l l h app e n a nd s up er ior it y sh i f t s . It’s w h at m a kes mo der n Fer ra r i s o i n i m it a bl y i mpre s si ve. Si nce t he 458 It a l ia , t he c ompa ny h a s b e e n at t he top of it s ga me, t i me a nd a ga i n del i ver i n g m id - e n g i ne d s up erc a rs of breadt h , s ou l a nd u n r i va l le d d y n a m ic ex ploit a bi l it y – c la s s leaders a l l . But we ’ re now i n t he m id st of a n F1- g rade re g u lator y sh a ke -up t h at h a s obl igate d t he a r r i va l of t h i s plu g -i n hy br id 2 9 6 GTB , w it h it s dow n si z e d si x- c yl i nder t u rb o e n g i ne It t a kes it s m a ker i nto a n u n k now n , fa i nt l y c ont rover sia l te c h nolog ic a l era , a nd at w h at c o st? O n t he ba si s of t h i s test , l it t le i f a ny. T he ne w c a r i s rem a rk a ble. It pic k s up w here t he V8 l i nea ge e nde d , s ea m les sl y ble nd i n g i n t he ad va nt a ge s of ele c t r i fic at ion w it h pre c iou s fe w of t he d raw bac k s we ’ d fea re d B e n ig n a nd ad apt a ble but a l s o w i ld l y q u ic k a nd ex pre s si ve, t he 2 9 6 GTB i s s p e c t ac u la r to d r i ve a nd t he V6 a l s o s ou nd s st u n n i n g . It i s u s a ble yet oh s o s p e c ia l a nd it s c lea r m a n ner b el ie s it s c omplex it y Fer ra r i c ont i nues to s et t he st a nd a rd

RICHARD LANE

You’ve got to wonder where Ferrari goes from here because the one thing the 296 recipe doesn’t need is more speed Any Pista or Speciale-type version, which will surely come in due course, should find some natural agility through weight loss and a touch more grit in the controls . Power? Nope.

MAT T SAUNDERS

It’s fabulously good, no doubt I just wish it had a bit more tactility in the controls and interest at lower speeds , both of which the Artura does well You would probably fall for one or the other, not both

Spec advice

t o p s p e e d C O 2 , e c o n o m y

F E R R A R I 296 G T B

A n a bso l u te to u r d e fo rce i n te r ms of p e r fo r ma n ce a n d e n j oy m e n t N o s h o r t a g e o f s o u l , e i t h e r Fe r ra r i’s hy b r i d p a ra d i g m sh i f t h a s co m e o f f b e a u t i fu l l y

AAAAA

£ 24 1 , 5 6 0 8 19 b h p, na 2 9 se c, 2 0 5 m p h 1 49 g / k m , 4 4 .1 m p g

P O R S C H E 9 11 T U R B O S

To o s e n si b l e i n t h i s co m p a ny? M ay b e, b u t t h i s u l t ra - 9 1 1 has t h e p e r fo r ma n ce ch o ps to b

Don’t feel obliged to option racy seats if you don’t intend on doing track days They lessen the all-round usability of the car Elsewhere, less is probably more with carbon interior trim , although the rear diffuser in carbon does look good Better lumbar support for the carbonfibre seats . Work in the option of dropping the rear screen, just like in the 296 GTS Redline at 850 0 rpm is great, but we wouldn’t say no to 50 0 rpm more Finesse the haptic cockpit controls . They too often miss a beat

Jobs for the facelift

The Golf R , VW’s best-selling hot hatch, is marking its 20th birthday with a special-edition model. Illya Verpraet compares old with new PHOTOGRAPHY LUC LACEY

It

The Volkswagen Golf GTI wasn’t t he first hot hatch, but it ’s perhaps t he semina l one The badge sur vives to t his day and means somet hing to many people, whet her it ’s at tached to a V W, a Peugeot or a wheelbarrow Since 2002, t hough, t he GTI has had to share t he hot Golf limelight, first wit h t he Golf R32, and since 2010 wit h t he Golf R It ’s easy to see t he appea l. You get a ll t he performance you could possibly deploy on t he road, and you can do so in any weat her. And to top it off, it ’s a ll wrapped up in, well, a Golf. Volkswagen has made a ha bit of releasing an anniversar y model of t he Golf GTI ever y five years, so wit h 20 years since t he Mk4 Golf R32 hit t he road, it ’s time for t he R to get its own celebration Enter t he Golf R 20 Years.

For t he UK launch of t he Golf R 20 Years, Volkswagen brought its German heritage fleet R32 to a cold, wet Wa les – perhaps not t he vacation t he car had in mind, but I can’t t hink of bet ter conditions to find out if t he new car still shares some DNA wit h its ancestor

By modern standards, t he origina l Golf R32 seems quite exotic, wit h its 3.2-litre narrowangle V6, but back in 2002, V W wasn’t a lone in stuffing comica lly large multi-cylinder engines into sma ll hatchbacks – A lfa Romeo was at it too wit h t he 147 GTA

Dig deeper and t he similarities wit h today ’s R are obvious Wit h a 0 - 62mph time of around 6 5sec, it was usefully if not over whelmingly fast But t he Ha ldex four-wheel

drive system made it rapid in a ll conditions, and you got a ll t he luxuries you might have expected from t he class a bove. A ll t he while, casua l onlookers saw not hing more show y t han a Golf wit h big wheels

I star t t he day reacquainting myself wit h t he modern Golf R while staff writer Jack Warrick meets one of his automotive heroes in t he R32 My 10 -minute drive to t he photo location turns into a 20 -minute one as I pull over severa l times to fiddle wit h t he screen, tr ying to remember t he right star t-up sequence in a spor t y Volkswagen The lane keeping assistance, star t-stop system, traction control and driving mode selection are a ll scat tered to t he four winds wit hin menus.

On t hese latest ones, at least t he screen reacts quick ly and doesn’t freeze up.

Driving modes decoded and it doesn’t ta ke long to be reminded of t he rightness of one of t hese It mooches t hrough town as well as any t hing, its DSG ’box shift ing quick ly and smoot hly, t he

Modern Golf R’s 2.0-litre four-pot makes 328bhp to the R32’s 3.2-litre V6’s 237bhp

Golf R’s cabin is slick and comfortable, but the R32’s is surprisingly not far behind

Brash wheels are 20 Years edition option

R32’s alloys are appropriately restrained

can take a while to configure the Golf R

The Golf R 20 Years edition is visually distinguished from the standard Golf R by its contrasting mirror caps , unique badges , larger rear spoiler and blue accents on the black 19in ‘Estoril’ wheels . You can have all-black wheels if you find the latter too garish.

cabin nicely hushed and t he ride as inoffensive as it gets in a performance car And yet, wit h t he oil up to temperature and switching to t he more aggressive driving modes, a truly sor ted driver ’s car emerges. At less t han t wo turns from lock to lock, t he steering is incredibly quick but remains ca lm and predictable. I prefer to keep it in Comfor t mode because, unencumbered by ar tificia l weight, genuine feedback about grip levels filters t hrough Equa lly, our test car has t he optiona l adaptive dampers wit h 15 stages of firmness, but on bumpy UK roads, you only need one: t he softest. So configured, t he Golf R remains nicely composed but wit h tight body control Annoyingly, it shares a trait wit h most ot her adaptively suspended MQB-based

cars I’ve driven: t he occasiona l sharp ridge or pot hole can brea k t hrough t hat compliance and briefly expose some brit t leness

The drivetrain is best in Race mode, t hough, as it sends enough power to t he back to subt ly heighten t he agilit y in faster corners. Boot t he t hrot t le out of a tight hairpin and it will do a slight ly clumsy but nonet heless amusing impression of a rear-wheel-drive car.

There’s no escaping t he fact t hat t he engine is a tool for a job. Wit hout t he 20 Years edition’s ex tra 12bhp and sharper t hrot t le response, a Golf R is still ba llistica lly fast and plent y responsive, but even wit h t he exhaust in its loudest mode, t he noise it ma kes is never par ticularly memora ble

W hile photographer Luc Lacey shoots details of bot h cars, I poke around t he R32 and, frank ly, it blows me away Granted, t his 28,000km example from 2003 might be t he mintiest R32 in existence, but I was still expecting a mess of stick y but tons and hard plastic inside. Instead, but for t he gent ly melting centre console, t he Mk4 Golf ’s interior seems a lmost more expensive t han t hat of t he new one It ’s solidly built, wit h a luminium trim adorning t he centre stack and door cards, and features such as t he neat ly closing air vents, springloaded rear r ubbish bin and fivestage click wheels for t he heated seats are a delight

W hat dates t he Mk4 Golf is t he vintage driving position, which is

The R32 followed the disappointing GTI and V6 4Motion , but our road testers called it “ the best Golf in years and one of the true highlights in the model’s histor y” It was pricey to buy and to run but turned out to be a fine cross-countr y tool despite mute steering The R32 was also much more refined than the Mk1 Ford Focus RS – the hot hatchback benchmark at the time We also said the Golf was almost worth buying for the engine alone, but the six-speed manual gearbox wasn’t especially satisfying to use: it was too short-geared, needing two shifts to reach 60 mph That said, with today’s economyoptimised transmissions that take you well north of the speed limit in second gear, that now sounds like quite a good thing

quite perched despite t he spor t y König bucket seats. Even wit h t he steering wheel pulled a ll t he way out, it ’s too far away.

I a lso have a play wit h t he hilariously terrible radio-navigation system (‘infotainment ’ had yet to be coined). Its tiny but tons and low-res screen are unfat homable, and t he nav doesn’t have maps for t he UK. It was a £2500 option t hat puts modern systems into some perspective But t he older car continues to impress on t he move. The 3.2-litre VR6 fires and idles quiet ly and smoot hly and displays plent y of star qua lit y in a world of turbo fours It growls menacingly at low revs, ta kes on a zing y rasp at 3500rpm and is happy to rev out, a lt hough t he noise at higher revs is more generic V6 It doesn’t feel especia lly rapid, t hough. Blame t he comparison wit h

The R in VR6 stands for ‘Reihe’, or ‘in line’ in German , because Volkswagen VR engines have their cylinders in a vee but with such a narrow angle ( just 15deg) that the two banks overlap, in effect making it a cross between an inline engine and a vee

S w i tc h i n g to t h e m o re a g g re s s i v e d r i v e m o d e s, a t r u l y s o r te d d r i v e r ’ s c a r e m e r g e s

As ageing performance cars go, an original Golf R32 looks fairly robust. You will need to put up with the fuel consumption, of course (during our 20 03 road test, we averaged 2 1 7mpg), and some wear items , such as the uprated brakes and suspension components , will be more expensive than those on a normal Golf

The Mk4 Golf had pretty good rust

protection from new, so while 20 years on UK roads can take their toll, many other cars fare worse for tin worm The VR6 engine and four-wheel drive system have proven largely dependable, but these were the early days of long-life oils and lengthy ser vice inter vals , so it’s worth seeking out a car with evidence of more regular ser vicing In particular, it will

a modern hot hatch, as well as t he R32’s close-to-1500kg kerb weight –similar to t he new car ’s.

This V6 drives t hrough a six-speed DSG ’box. The Mk4 Golf R32 was t he first production car availa ble wit h a dua l-clutch automatic gearbox. V W made just 500 and only sold t hem in Germany because it wasn’t quite ready to roll out t he technolog y more widely. Won’t t his 19-year-old glorified beta test feel a bit agricultura l today?

Not so. You need to hold t he bra ke wit h your left foot to stop it rolling back on hills and t he clutches slip for a moment longer t han a modern unit before fully engaging, but ot her t han t hat it works rea lly well. It doesn’t hesitate when manoeuvring and shifts quick ly but

smoot hly W hen t he a lternatives were four-speed slushboxes and clunk y automated manua ls, t his must have been a revelation

It star ted a revolution: none of today ’s of a ll-wheel-drive hot hatches is availa ble w it h a manua l You can buy a manua l Golf R in t he US, but wit h t he previous generation, European buyers showed t hey weren’t interested.

Wit h t he bad reputat ion of t he Mk4 GTI in mind, I wasn’t expecting much in t he corners. However, any notion of la zy nose-heaviness soon disappears, and while not especia lly t hrot t le-adjusta ble, t he ba lance is at least impressively neutra l when powering out of corners.

A comparison like t his inevita bly highlights how much more torsiona lly rigid modern cars are The tiny bit of flex in t he R32

extend the life of the timing chain

Prices start at £8 0 0 0 for rough examples , so count on £ 15k for a clean R32 that’s had recent maintenance These are ver y usable cars , so owners tend to use them , and as a result most have 8 0,0 0 0 -plus miles Because of that, and it’s growing cult status , low-mileage R32 ’s are advertised well north of £20,0 0 0

Better-connected Golf R encourages you to carry more speed

Despite the R32 having the first production dual-clutch automatic ’box , V W even made the paddles work the way you expect (up on the right, down on the left), long before BMW and Porsche came to their senses . We’ll forgive them for putting the ‘+’ and ‘ –’ the wrong way round on the lever.

U S E D B U Y I N G T I P S

introduces a slight looseness to t he r ide t hat can’t be ascribed to worn dampers or bushes. You get used to it, t hough, and might not even notice it in isolation. The suspension is remarkably taut and dea ls wit h a Welsh road just as well as t he new car, giving up a lit t le bit of control but avoiding brit t leness The bra ke peda l feels soft, but for t he road at least, t he R32 stops just fine The one major black mark against its dynamics is t he steering Forget any facile ‘hydraulic steering good, electric steering bad’ genera lisations – t he Mk4 Golf ’s steering is heav y but tota lly iner t. I t hought t he w inter t yres might be to blame, but our road test from 2003 remarked on t he same t hing. Swapping back to t he Golf R 20 Years, it ’s immediately apparent how much more t he bet ter-

connected steering lets me commit to corners, even t hough t he Bridgestone Potenza Spor t t yres should not be in t heir happy place on greasy roads at 4deg C.

But t he higher levels of grip and improved refinement mean I’m driving ever y where at 15mph more t han I did in t he R32, while t he lack of an engine t hat ’s an event in itself means it ’s far more tempting to go look ing for t he handling limits Am I having more fun? Not necessarily. Then again, effor t less crosscountr y pace has a lways been t he Golf R’s remit. The R32, wit h its sonorous V6 and (usua lly) a manua l ’box, was t he 2002 way of achieving t hat goa l. Meanwhile, t he current

Golf R exemplifies how modern cars have changed: faster, more competent and wit h more tech, in bot h t heir cabins and drivetrains. It ’s more efficient at a cruise, too Just as t he origina l Golf GTI set t he blueprint for t he hot hatch, t he Golf R has done so for t he hyperhatch. It ’s ta ken a few generations to set t le on a format, but in t hat time t he Golf R has made cars such as t he Subaru Impreza WR X and Mitsubishi Lancer Evo obsolete and inspired riva ls like t he BMW M135i and Mercedes-AMG A35. Shor t of t he far more expensive MercedesAMG A45, it ’s perhaps still t he most complete. Happy bir t hday, Golf R. L

R32 sits you too high and far back

Torsional flex gives the R32 a looser ride

JA N UA RY

TThere was plenty to get excited about in Januar y: our bumper new cars feature, Sony’s entr y into the EV market and MG’s electric sports car plans for starters My overall highlight, though , was our exclusive reveal of the new Noble M50 0 – a £ 150 k supercar that marked a return to form for the British firm Not only did we get the world’s first look at the completed two-seat mid-engined car, but we also secured an exclusive inter view with Noble boss Peter Boutwood and exclusive images . It was a great start to the year, made even better when we discovered , later in the year, just how good the M50 0 was to drive.

J a c k Wa r r i c k

M O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

P i e r s Wa r d

Most long-term test reports in this game end with an ‘I’ll miss this’ line Who wouldn’t? It’s a car you’ve been able to treat as your own and then give back to the manufacturer with no real personal implications about how much it’s depreciated or cost in pence per mile But in Januar y, I had to say goodbye to the McLaren GT I’d been running and that really hurt Not only because another workingfrom-home advisor y from the government meant I didn’t use it as much as I’d have liked, but also because it’s not often you get to en joy a supercar just for the sake of it. Okay, so it woke the kids when I left at 5am , it didn’t have Apple CarPlay and you were always paranoid about where you’d parked it, but for putting you in a good mood no matter what, it delivered outstandingly. Much missed.

M O M E N T T O F O R G E T

Eagerly awaited Emira gave up some of its secrets to Cropley

We were lucky enough to get a dusting of snow near where I live in Februar y. And even better news came when this happened to coincide with a loan of an Audi Quattro I pictured all sorts of fun , re-enacting my childhood dreams of the Monte Carlo Rally on the school run Piers ‘ Walter’ Ward: fire up the Quattro! E xcept the snow came on a bit heav y and a combination of lack of talent and appalling traffic meant we spent the entire time worr ying about crashing and being stuck at 25mph. Dreams were smashed that day

M a t t S a u n d e r s

“ W e a r e n ’ t c h a s i n g t r e n d s o r h e a d l i n e p e r f o r m a n c e f i g u r e s w i t h o u r c a r s . I r e a l l y d o n ’ t c a r e w h e t h e r t h e c a r ’ s 0 - 6 0 m p h t i m e i s 2 9 o r 3 1 s e c o r i f i t w i l l d o 2 10 o r 2 15 m p h O u r b u y e r s d o n ’ t c a r e e i t h e r W e ’ r e n o t c h a s i n g s t a t s a n d w e n e v e r w i l l T h e b e a u t y o f s i m p l i c i t y i s t h e k e y t o o u r c a r s ”

PI E RS WA R D

Q U O T E O F T H E M O N T H

G O R D O N M U R R A Y a t t h e u nv e i l i n g o f t h e G M A T 3 3 ‘ j u n i o

I thought I’d fallen through a wormhole, or woken up in another life, when I first heard the other worldly howl of the Porsche 71 8 Cayman GT4 RS The car’s induction noise is like nothing even a 1970 s Group 4 rally driver would have been used to. Only once on a press launch, in approaching two decades of attending them , have I been given earplugs for a test drive – and this was it. It never occurred to me that I should have actually used them

We revealed BMW M’s six new stars arriving in 2022

UK to Italy via the Alps in a Giulia GTAm: lucky Lane

IMAGE

At the start of my Lexus UX 3 0 0 e long-term loan, I boldly claimed that I didn’t believe in range anxiety Well, the winter certainly put that to the test. I was rationing my use of the climate control in what was already a freezing March, but it soon got worse The range figure in our UX 3 0 0 e, which in my experience packed around 155 miles fully charged , plummeted on my 150 -mile commute home. Much feathering of the accelerator ensued, resulting in me rolling back to my home village with just one mile remaining. God, was it stressful.

“ I t ’ s t re m e n d o u s f u n f o r a w h i l e, b u t y o u ’ re a l w a y s a w a re t h i s c a r i s i tc h i n g to b e s o m e w h e re e l s e – m o re s o e v e n t h a n w h e n s i t t i n g i n a s u p e rc a r i n to w n T h i s i s l i ke u s i n g a j e t s k i i n a g a r d e n s w i m m i n g p o o l ”

A P R I L

Billionaires have never had more choice of ultra-fast, ultra-expensive hypercars than they do today, but if you’re after a driver’s car on a budget, things are looking a bit grim That sad fact was illustrated ver y poignantly by our inability to gather together a field of new ones for our yearly Britain’s Best Affordable Driver’s Car contest So Toyota’s new sub£3 0,0 0 0 rear-driven sports coupé finally going on sale was cause for celebration Until a press release came in, triumphantly announcing that the UK allocation had sold out in a mere 9 0 minutes We can’t even console ourselves with the knowledge that the GR8 6 is a bit rubbish , because it isn’t. It’s brilliant. Damn.

I l l y a Ve r p ra e t

M O M E N T T O F O R G E T

Romeo is infamous for its quality struggles , so promises to raise the bar for the Tonale were met with scepticism in some quarters But real progress was made at the Giambattista Vico plant where the crossover is built, including the installation of a ‘master block’ body and cuttingedge laser tools These developments have translated into the real world: to date, the Tonale has the fewest problems per car (proportionally) across all the Stellantis brands Could April 202 2 have been the month that Alfa Romeo finally started to shed its unwanted reputation?

M AY M

R i c h a r d L a n e

Open road in a BMW M5 CS; the intensity of a Nürburgring 24 Hours race weekend in which to submerge ourselves; a couple of storied German tuners to visit; inter views with the legends of BMW ’s M division; and an old mate (photographer Olgun Kordal) to do it all with Our epic, 250 0 -mile M at 50 feature was a pain to organise but an utter joy to execute

Vantage was quick and agile but not the most inspiring

We got to preview only the second stand-alone M car

Stellantis exec Alison Jones won our Editor’s Award

M O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

M

a r k T i s s h a w

There are 29 Mercedes-Benz models listed in our A-Z guide at the back of the mag, a quite extraordinar y number It’s hard to pinpoint the gravity of the Mercedes range now, and all models , even SUVs , seem to then spawn coupés and then stand-alone EVs The EQB road test this month seemed a particular low point as a by-the-numbers car, one made to fill a perceived gap in the range that in reality didn’t really need filling

“ C h u c k i n m u c h - i m p ro v e d re a r s p a c e, t h e p ra c t i c a l i t y o f a h u g e b o o t , a t a i l g a te y o u c a n s i t o n a n d a n e w l e v e l of c i t y m a n o e u v ra b i l i t y v i a t h e f o u rw h e e l s te e r i n g a n d y o u h a v e o n e o f t h e m o s t v e r s a t i l e c a r s o n t h e p l a n e t S m a l l w o n d e r i t h a s h a d s o m a n y s e r i a l o w n e r s i n i t s 5 2-y e a r h i s to r y ”

Q U O T E O F T H E M O N T H

o

Early in the year, we broke the news that Aston Martin was looking to part company with CEO Tobias Moers . It was denied. And a few months later, he was gone Then in June, we got wind that the company was looking to raise hundreds of millions in funding –something that part-owner and executive chairman Lawrence Stroll had previously strenuously refuted. Aston declined to comment We published and Aston’s share price tanked 20% There were reports of fireworks in Gaydon. And a few weeks later? The share issue was formally announced (and the share price wobbled again)

Defender became almost as long as the waiting list to buy it

At long last, BMW made an M3 Touring. Yes, yes, yes and yes!

There’s nothing more disheartening for a driving fan than to be kept off the road, and as fuel prices soared in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, getting behind the wheel became more ruinous and less attractive When prices were at their peak , our Ford Puma ST long-termer spent a disappointing amount of time in Eco mode at half throttle and I went and bought a bicycle, wondering if the days of simply ‘going for a drive’ for fun had passed

Ferrari SF90 Spider proved absolutely mind-boggling

h e o n - c e n t re p i c k- u p i s g ra d u a l e n o u g h to a l l o w t h e w h e e l to s q u i r m i n y o u r h a n d s o v e r c h a n g i n g c a m b e r a n d f o r r o a d f e e l t o c o m e b u b b l i n g t h ro u g h s o c l e a r l y b u t w i t h o u t d e s t a b i l i s i n g t h e c a r

I l l y a Ve r p ra e t

Of course, there were the usual reasons , but I also got strangely excited about seeing a Hyundai Equus , Kia Ray or Samsung SM5 Seoul residents also have a surprising fondness for lifted Jeep Wranglers . While none of these is my idea of the perfect car, I do love seeing the quirkily different ways in which people around the world use and love cars .

Hyundai flew a handful of UK journalists out to its headquarters in South Korea in July to see its design studios and have a first taste of the new Ioniq 6 saloon Although South Korea’s overly cautious Covid measures torpedoed part of that trip for me, the experience was still pretty memorable

M O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

long-term Audi Q 4 went back to its maker in July. For the most part, it was near-perfect ever yday transport: quiet, comfortable, a good size and with excellent electric range. Yet all three versions we ran suffered from one software malfunction or another that led to time off the road Off the back of our reports , many other Autocar readers came for ward with issues with their Q 4s and other related V W Group models No surprise that the V W Group has put fixing these woes at the top of its to-do list, with a change in management to boot

P i e r s Wa r d

What an inspiration the women’s football Euros were, England’s victor y a real feel-good moment as we basked in the summer sunshine. One of the smaller stars was the remotecontrolled Volkswagen ID Buzz ball carrier, which had racked up 17.6 million views on TikTok and more than 24 ,0 0 0 Twitter followers by the end of the tournament I got to ‘drive’ it at Milton Keynes Dons Women’s training ground and enlisted Mollie Coupar, one of the team’s for wards , to help The Tiny Buzz was great fun , and it was also fascinating talking to Coupar She’s a real-life embodiment of the impact that England’s victor y will have. Long may it continue for the women’s game.

I adored our unhinged road test Caterham Seven 420 Cup, and so did my sister, having been delivered to her wedding in it. Of course, the car itself is exhilarating and so rewarding to drive – but what a day For the first time I burned myself on a Caterham’s side exhaust during the photoshoot, then the telemetr y numbers didn’t log properly at MIRA – cue another 9 0 minutes of track testing, and it was one of those 3 6deg C days! I got home 3 1 0 miles later deaf, sore, badly sunburnt and exhausted Still, what a car

Litchfield GR and M365 were ace but still no BBR MX-5

“ T h e p ro u d o w n e r s of t h e f i n a l i s t c a r s w e re y o u n g , m o s t u n d e r 3 5 a n d m a n y i n t h e i r e a r l y t w e n t i e s. S o d i e s t h e s u g g e s t i o n t h a t y o u t h d o e s n ’ t c a re f o r c a r s; i t ’ s j u s t t h a t l i f e d e m a n d s t h e y o w n c h e a p o n e s, a n d t h i s i s a g re a t w a y o f o w n i n g s o m e t h i n g s p e c i a l ”

Q U O T E O F T H E M

O N T H

S T E V E C R O P L E Y o n th e st a r s of th e Fe sti va l of th e U n exce p t i o n a l

M O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

The idea of ‘doing’ Route 66 in something like an old Ford Mustang or Chevrolet Camaro still holds huge appeal for me, and for many it will rank as the dream driving holiday, but times change, and that ideal doesn’t seem so in step with prevailing trends as it once did So I was hugely reassured to discover that you can do much the same thing much closer to home and with much less noise The Kia EV6 GT is a fantastic road trip companion – rapid, taut and long-legged – and Nor way (not even two hours away) provides the perfect environs for stretching its legs The scener y was dramatic, the roads sublime and range anxiety totally non-existent The road trip lives on

Fe l i x P a g e

M O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

M a t t S a u n d e r s

Our road test of the BAC Mono R started badly, as we were refused admittance at Horiba MIRA proving ground, where openwheeled cars are temporarily banned So we decamped to North Wales for some extended road driving and vital ever yday usability testing (speed-bump testing, buying milk etc). Like a lot of similar cars , the Mono R doesn’t have a tight turning circle, it has heav y controls and it’s ver y easy to stall The weather? It bucketed . The biggest shame of all? That I didn’t bring one of my own for bailing

p ro c e s s m a n y w i l l w a n t to g o t h ro u g h j u s t to g ra b a c o ff e e, s h o o t t h e b re e ze w i t h t h e i r c a rc l u b m a te s o r t a ke i n a p a n o ra m i c v i e w p o i n t ”

M O M E N T T O F O R G E T

M500 could signal Noble returning to what it once did best

M a t t P r i o r

M2 is final pureICE M car. What a way to go, though

Mercedes continued to plough cash into electric cars

Old-school hot rods racing on British beaches: badass

October is the month when we head to Anglesey to run our Britain’s Best Driver’s Car contest, a few weeks before publication My first laps of a damp track were in a GR8 6 , the replacement for Toyota’s GT8 6 , my favourite car of the past decade Within three corners , I was pretty sure this was going to be one of my favourite cars of the next decade. What an easygoing, beautifully poised and balanced sports car

BM O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

“

e n o l o n g e r h a v e t o p u r p o s e - b u i l d a n e n t i r e v e h i c l e [f o r E u r o p e] Fo r a p p l i c a t i o n s a r o u n d t h e w o r l d , w e c a n s c a l e t h e d e s i g n a n d d e v e l o p m e n t t h a t w e h a v e ”

was

an Autocar subscribers’ event

RAC

in London I was typing his quotes up to use the best bits for our social media channels . Saunders said, while talking about the possibility – and difficulty – of developing an electric Atom , that Ariel’s “whole raison d’être is power to weight” What did I post to our 20 0,0 0 0plus Twitter followers? Raisin d’être Bravo to the follower who replied: “That’s an awfully currant phrase ” I detest making mistakes , but that just about raised a smile at the end of a long day.

The brilliant Simon Saunders of Ariel

talking at

at the

Club

M O M E N T T O F O R G E T

It’s 2025. You’re in a rush. You jump into your brand-new combustion-powered

and press the start button Then you wait – for up to 3 0 seconds . Why? The new Euro 7 emissions laws . Proposals released in November suggest that electrically heated e-catalysts must be fitted to all ICE and hybrid cars from 2025 so that they comply with upcoming cold-start regulations The move, originally billed for 2027, has been criticised by car makers , who reckon it will reduce investment in developing EVs as attention is turned to complying with the new laws . That point seems perfectly valid to us . ICE motoring looks to be about to change for good

We’re lucky enough to have access to many automotive CEOs in this gig, so it takes a lot to impress us Enter Thomas Schäfer of Volkswagen , who showed those at an exclusive global media gathering just how much he had achieved in his first 1 0 0 days in the job Not only had he accelerated the ID 3 facelift to address those ma jor concerns with which we’re all familiar, but he had also made the decision to bring back push-button steering wheel controls – a bugbear for so many That was just the tip of the iceberg, as he explained how V W factories would become significantly more efficient, plus his grand (yet sensible) plans for a model range that will renew people’s love for the brand. The fact that he is affable, flies back to a remote farm in Ireland ever y Friday for the weekend (“I hope I get back while the pub’s still open”) and doesn’t believe in contacting his staff on weekends only adds to his appeal. We published five news stories off the back of our time with Schäfer, which were picked up around the world Result

d e r s to o d e a c h o t h e r I n m y c a re e r, I d ro v e m a n y F1 c a r s a n d

Nobody makes cars quite like the British. Or trikes, for that matter

This red-hot special marks 20 years of the Golf R

M O M E N T O F T H E M O N T H

MATT SAUNDERS

Many car makers shut down for Christmas quite early Thankfully, though , the start of December brought with it a gem – and one that we had always wanted Welcome, the Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato Who doesn’t love an off-road supercar? There’s something rather naughty about a sub-4 0 sec 0 - 62mph on dirt It did arrive riding a wave of sadness , though, being the Italian brand’s final pure-ICE car.

Hybridisation is next, and with it a power uplift has been promised Maybe electrically assisted supercars aren’t such a bad thing , after all?

I l l ya Ver praet gat hers t he d at a f rom a l l t h i s yea r ’ s road test s a nd c r u nc he s t he nu m b ers

ver y week , we produce

n in-dept h road test

a signif ica nt new

r w it h independent ly

if ied dat a a nd ma nufac t urer-supplied fac t s a nd f ig ures t hat a ren’t ava i lable elsewhere. In t he space of a yea r, t hat produces quite t he k nowledge ba n k So what does 2022’s cohor t tel l us?

For t y-nine ca rs ca me t hrough t he road test mi l l t his yea r (not count ing t he specia l Chr ist mas road test of a hovercra f t), w it h a combined va lue of £3,958,917 – t he most e x pensive being t he Fer ra r i 296 GTB feat ured in t his issue. At £298, 440, it was 17 t imes as ex pensive as our cheapest test ca r t his yea r, t he Dacia Jogger, which cost £17, 490 when we tested it. T hat seems to be a t rend, because last yea r’s least a nd most e x pensive ca rs were a lso a Dacia a nd a Fer ra r i. T he 296 GTB wasn’t just a f ivest a r dr iv ing e x per ience but a lso a n astonishing col lec t ion of numbers. A s wel l as t he most e x pensive ca r we’ve road tested t his yea r, it was t he most power f u l (819bhp), w it h t he highest power to weight rat io (557bhp per tonne), highest specif ic power out put (218bhp per lit re), fastest t ime to 100mph (5 1sec), fastest t ime bet ween 30mph a nd 70mph (1 9sec, or 3 1sec in four t h gea r) a nd fastest lap of MIR A’s dr y ha nd ling circuit.

T he wooden spoon in t he per for ma nce met r ics tended to go to t he Toyot a Aygo X. By t he t ime it reached 60mph (15 6sec), t he Fer ra r i was a lready t ravel ling at more t ha n 170mph. At 37.1sec, t he Jogger was t he slowest to 100mph, but on ly because t he Aygo X wou ldn’t do 100mph before t he end of Mi l lbrook ’s mi le st ra ight A lt hough t he Toyot a a nd t he Dacia cou ld bot h do w it h a bit more oomph, t hese st a rk dif ferences

Bodystyle Powertrain

in per for ma nce a re most ly ma rk s of how mind-scra mblingly fast today ’s superca rs a re

In spite of it s plug-in hybr id power t ra in, t he 296 GTB recorded t he lowest MPG f ig ure a long w it h t he Porsche 911 Turbo S, at 7.1. By cont rast, even when t hrashed, t he Skoda Fabia wou ldn’t ret ur n less t ha n 32.2mpg. T his yea r’s economy

At 2 67 3 k g , t h e M e rc e d e s -A M G EQ S 5 3 w e i g h e d m o re t h a n fo u r M o r g a n S u p e r 3 s

Stars awarded

cha mpion was t he DS 4 E-Tense, t hough T ha n k s to a decent elec t r icon ly ra nge a nd a n ef f icient pet rol engine, it recorded 72. 3mpg over t he course of a week w it h us

T he power t ra ins may be get t ing ever more sophist icated, but t hey ’re a lso get t ing more homogenised At one end, we had va r ious t urbo pet rol t r iples, countered by t he Chev rolet Cor vet te’s 6 2-lit re V8 at t he ot her, but we had no f ive-c ylinder engines, V10s or V12s On ly four of t he pet rol engines were nat ura l ly aspirated, too, whi le 15 of our test ca rs had no combust ion engine at a l l

On t he elec t r ic side, we saw t he f u l l ga mut of single f ront or rea r motors, as well as dua l-motor power t ra ins, a nd a w ide ra nge of bat ter y si zes

A s a cit y ca r, t he Fiat 500 needed on ly a bat ter y pack w it h 37 3kW h of

usable capacit y for 142 mi les of rea lworld ra nge, whi le t he MercedesA MG EQS 53 sa loon had a massive 107.8kW h pack . In our test ing, it didn’t have t he best ra nge, t hough T hat honour went to t he G enesis Elec t r if ied G80 limousine a nd it s 272 mi les T he average bat ter y si ze was 7 7.4kW h, for a ra nge of 223 mi les.

A l l t hose bat ter ies a nd t he burgeoning si ze a nd comple x it y of moder n ca rs have t a ken t heir tol l on kerb weight T he heav iest ca r we had on our sca les t his yea r was t he EQS 53. At 2673k g, it weighed more t ha n four Morga n Super 3s (644k g)

On average, our road test subjec t s weighed 1879k g, about 100k g more t ha n last yea r G oing on a diet is a common New Yea r’s resolut ion High t ime for t he world’s ca r ma kers to ac t ua l ly fol low t hrough L

Tavares

Britishvolt faces financial issues but UK needs batteries

Skoda Citigo will be replaced by a bigger, taller model in a move echoed by other makers

The shock exit late this year of Jaguar Land Rover boss Thierr y Bolloré after barely two years in the role raised questions over the future of his bold Reimagine transformation plan. Will a successor see it through? Who will that be? Will Jaguar sur vive? Answers must surely be on the horizon

G M I N E U R O P E

As if European manufacturers weren’t worried enough about an influx of competitive new EV rivals from China, an attack from the west is imminent General Motors has pledged to return to Europe as an electric mobility brand, meaning Cadillacs , Chevrolets and –gulp – Hummers could soon be coming to a showroom near you.

E L O N M U S K I S K I N G

O F T H E W O R L D

Not content with heading up one of the world’s most profitable and fastest-growing car companies , Musk is now the ma jority shareholder and CEO of Twitter With that new role seemingly dominating his diar y, it seems more and more unlikely that we will ever see productionready versions of the long-delayed Cybertruck and Roadster You can still place deposits for both, mind

T H E M O T O R S H O W I S D E A D

Or is it? Depends who you ask If it’s anyone who attended the sparsely

populated Paris and Detroit shows in autumn – or was planning to go to the now-cancelled (again) 202 3 Geneva show – the answer is probably yes But Brussels , Tokyo and Munich will return next year, so there’s still hope.

A S T O N M A R T I N I S S A V E D

By a massive £653 m investment package comprising cash from the Saudi Public Investment Fund, Mercedes-Benz and – in a last-minute surprise – Geely Chairman Lawrence Stroll called the package “gamechanging” but the firm is still battling heav y losses off the back of the supply chain crisis and interest on debts .

The Ford-Volkswagen platformsharing partnership has already borne a family of closely related commercial vehicles with different badges , but we will soon see Ford’s first passenger car using V W ’s MEB EV platform . E xpected to be an ID 4-sized crossover, it will help to fill the gap left by the soon-todepart Fiesta and Focus .

There were doubts when Henrik Fisker announced his grand automotive comeback plans , but his Ocean SUV reached production in Austria as scheduled in November and touts performance stats that would worr y any of the big names in the family crossover market We will drive it in around mid-202 3 .

MG 4 (left) shows how Chinese makers can succeed

in Europe

E Vs c a n n ot b e b u i l t i n t h e U K i n m e a n i n g f u l n u m b e r s w i t h o u t a l a r g e - s c a l e b a t te r y o p e ra t i o n

L

J L R ’ S N E W C E O

F O R D ’ S M E B E L E C T R I C C A R

F I S K E R O C E A N

DA I M LE R C O N Q U E ST

Here t he Queen at tends t he 1957 Roya l Ascot event, wit h Prince Charles and Princess Anne, in her Daimler The Queen’s love of cars was far surpassed by her love of horses and horse racing. She at tended t he event ever y year for 70 years. In failing hea lt h in 2022, she missed t he occasion, to her regret.

ROVE R P5

Land Rover ’s sa loon car parent Rover enjoyed considera ble roya l patronage. The Queen owned severa l V8 P5s, including t his 1971 P5B, which is now at t he British Motor Museum. The model was a lso used by British prime ministers of t he period, including for many years after it left production in 1973.

In September, t he nation – and many well beyond our shores – mourned t he deat h of t he Queen, who passed away at t he age of 96. As const it ut iona l r ules dictate, t he opinions of t he late Queen on most mat ters are unknown. But it

appears she was a huge fan of cars and driving Once on t he t hrone in 1952 she never needed to drive again, but t hat wasn’t for her, and she owned – and drove – a large number of cars over t he years. So here is t he Queen’s life in cars – bot h t hose she was driven in and t hose she chose to drive herself.

TH E WA R Y E A R S

In 1945, t he 18-year-old Princess Elizabet h joined t he Auxiliar y Territoria l Ser vice and learned how to ser vice and maintain jeeps and trucks, being dubbed ‘Princess Auto Mechanic’ by t he press The experience was a cata lyst for an interest in t he automotive world t hat continued t hroughout her life

R E N AU LT

DAU PH I N E

One of t he first cars t he Queen’s great-grandfat her, K ing Edward VII, purchased was a Renault – a 14/20hp Landaulet te, which he gave to his wife, Queen A lexandra. The French company went on to build a factor y in Acton, west London, on t he site of a former airfield, in 1926. In 1957, as shown in t his photo, Renault presented t he Queen wit h a gift of t his Acton-built Dauphine at a ceremony in Paris Prince Charles learned to drive in t he car, in turn k ick ing off a lifelong love of cars for Britain’s now King, who has himself owned a series of interesting vehicles.

DA I M LE R S U PE R V8 LW B

In 2001, t he Queen took deliver y of t his Daimler Super V8 It was mainly used as a relatively low-key way for t he Queen to travel around Windsor and for journeys bet ween t he cast le and Buck ingham Pa lace. The car clocked up 11,000 miles in 12 years It had some discreet mods, including a holder for her handbag and t he abilit y to lower bot h rear windows from eit her side of t he rear seats. The car was sold to a member of t he public for £45,000 in 2013

The Queen wasn’t your t ypical petrolhead , but she certai n ly k new her

ca rs. Tom Evans tallies them up

RO LLS - ROYC E S I LV E R W R A I T H LW B

The Queen and t he Duke of Edinburgh visited Nigeria for t he first time in 1956 and were frequent ly transpor ted in t his splendid 1952 Rolls-Royce Silver Wrait h LWB The car was loaned to t hem for t he tour by t he Emir of Kano, A lhaji Muhammad Sanusi I.

VAU X H A LL PA C R E STA F R I A RY E STAT E

One of t he Queen’s favourites was a 1961 Vauxha ll Cresta, which she drove regularly It ’s t hought Prince Philip ordered t he numberplate ‘MY T1’, standing for ‘Might y 1’. The plate now adorns a Range Rover, seen in t he cor tege collecting t he Queen’s coffin from R AF Nor t holt.

R A N G E ROV E R LW B L A N DAU LE T

The modern-day Range Rover was widely used as a ceremonia l vehicle by t he Queen and t he Duke of Edinburgh in recent years, Roya l Standard prominent in place, as ever. Delivered in 2015, t his hybrid is only t he four t h vehicle Land Rover has delivered for state processions since 1953. It was a one-off created by Land Rover ’s Specia l Vehicle Operations, t he division t hat a lso ma kes armoured versions of t he company ’s cars, among ot her commissions.

A

ST O N M A R T I N P L A NT

The Queen had an interest not only in cars but a lso in how t hey worked and were built, and she visited many car factories over t he decades. Here she can be seen touring t he Aston Mar tin Lagonda plant at Newpor t Pagnell in 1966, a longside company owner David Brown Aston presented her wit h a miniaturised DB5 car as a gift for her sixyear-old son Prince Andrew It was powered by t wo 12V bat teries and would do 10mph Anot her example was given to Reza, son of t he Shah of Iran. In 1969, t he Queen chose a (full-size) DB6 Volante to give to Prince Charles for his 21st bir t hday The car was driven up The Ma ll by Prince William and Princess Cat herine, on t heir wedding day in 2011

JAGUAR XJ

W hile t he Queen was a Jaguar owner in a private capacit y, t he company ’s cars were used ceremonia lly, too, as wit h t his splendid, specia lly conver ted XJ luxur y sa loon, which saw ser vice here on a roya l tour of Mauritius back in 1972.

R A N G E ROV E R C L AS S I C

The Land Rover ’s upmarket sibling was launched in 1970, and it was quick ly pressed into roya l ceremonia l ser vice. But t he Queen a lso embraced t he Range Rover for off-dut y usage, especia lly after a more practica l five-door version was launched in 1981

L A N D ROV E R S E R I E S 1

Land Rovers played a key role in t he Queen’s ceremonia l duties t hroughout her reign, as seen on t his visit to Ma lta in 1954, t he year after her coronation This was at t he star t of a ver y long association bet ween t he roya l family and Land Rover: t he company has held at least one Roya l Warrant continuously since 1951, and in recent years it held a ll t hree – t hose of t he monarch, t he Duke of Edinburgh and t he Prince of Wa les

B E N T LE Y STAT E

LI M O U S I N E

The UK motor industr y was proud of t he suppor t t he Queen gave it and her choice of owning, driving and being driven in (most ly) British-built cars. In 2002, t he industr y clubbed toget her to build t wo specia l armoured V8 Bent ley limousines as a gift to t he monarch on her Golden Jubilee Rat her uniquely for a Bent ley, t hey are equipped wit h clot h not leat her seats, in a nod to t he Queen’s love of anima ls

The late Queen, like her mot her before her, was ver y fond of France and t he French, and she visited t he countr y frequent ly, often in a private capacit y Here we see her wit h President Georges Pompidou, who had ordered from coachbuilder Chapron t wo of t he specia lly conver ted four-door drophead Citroëns for ceremonia l dut y. One was used for t he Queen’s state visit in 1972, and she once again travelled in t he car in 2004, when she reviewed troops in Paris to mark t he 100t h anniversar y of t he Entente Cordia le a lliance bet ween t he t wo nations.

Fe st i ve i ndu lgenc e i s a l l wel l a nd go o d , but we a l s o ne e d to t h i n k a b out t he motor i n g yea r a head . Here a re ou r pla n s a nd pre d ic t ion s for 2 023

For a ll t he brilliance of top-rank motor racing, t here’s still somet hing pleasingly honest a bout club-level motorspor t in t he UK. It is t he ver y hear t beat of t he British motorspor t scene

Our top tips for 2023? Go to one of t he lesser-known circuits and get out of t he paddock. Tr y Cadwell Park, for example, and ta ke a scenic wa lk to t he outside of Charlies or Chris Cur ve for a less well-known view Or don a bobble hat for a round of t he British Ra lly Championship For t he rea l dea l, ma ke it one of t he ver y early or later rounds. Hillclimbs a lways have plent y of action and some eclectic machiner y, or why not tr y some tria lling?

It ’s a ll cheap and easy family enter tainment

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

Diesel sa les have fa llen from 50% of t he market to just 11%, but don’t let t hat fool you. They ’ve now reached a point where only t he commit ted users remain, so t hey ’re likely to star t plateauing And for good reason. Despite a ll t he money being t hrown at EVs and turbocharged petrols, neit her can hold a candle to t he diesel when it comes to range and towing. And t here’s still a significant market in t hat arena

A L FA R O M E O W I L L L A U N C H A S P O R T S C A R – AT L A S T

For a ll t he exciting electric spor ts cars from promising star t-ups, t here’s one spor ts car we would like to see more t han most: a modernday A lfa And, fina lly, it looks like it ’s a goer

That ’s because Jean-Philippe Imparato, a fast-ta lk ing, passionate and convivia l A lfa Romeo boss, has a lready star ted to turn t he Ita lian brand’s for tunes around, which has convinced Carlos Tavares, overlord of parent company Stellantis, t hat t here may well be room for a spor ts car a longside its more sensible SUVs and sa loons

The first hints of a new A lfa spor ts car suggested it would be electric and come later

t his decade when t he firm had esta blished its credentia ls after a rock y few years. More recent ly, t hough, Imparato has suggested an exciting t wo-door could arrive much sooner

Imparato said just last mont h t hat an exclusive, limited-run A lfa Romeo supercar is under serious consideration, wit h news expected in March. He said: “We are work ing on somet hing ‘few-of ’ for A lfa Romeo ”

W hile t he firm’s future is ver y much electric, t he expectation is t hat t his bespoke A lfa w ill be a fina l hurra h for t he combustion engine Imparato hinted t hat it would be a bespoke A lfa rat her t han share components wit h ot her

closely a ligned models in Stellantis, such as t he Maserati MC20.

He has regularly referenced iconic A lfa Romeo spor ts cars of old, such as t he midengined 33 Strada le, when ta lk ing a bout t he possibilit y of a new spor ts car, so we can hope t he model’s design has nods to outstanding A lfas from t he company ’s rich histor y.

“It could be iconic, super-sex y and recognisa ble as an A lfa Romeo at first sight,” said Imparato. “It ’s not done yet, but it ’s ongoing We have so many fans ask ing for somet hing specia l.”

W A T C H S O M E L E S S E R - K N O W N M O T O R S P O R T

T H E F A L L I N D I E S E L S A L E S W I L L P L A T E A U

E V H O T H AT C H E S W I L L B E A T H I N G

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

There are fast EVs. There are expensive EVs. We’re even star ting to see more fun EVs. But EVs t hat are engaging to drive and yet don’t cost t he ear t h? They remain few in number At t he same time, petrol-powered hot hatches – until now t he go-to afforda ble driver ’s car – are being pushed out of t he market. Time, t hen, for t he electric hot hatch to esta blish itself. The good news is t hat it ’s look ing like it might happen in 2023 The Cupra Born has made a decent star t, but nex t year we’ll see an Abar t h version of t he electric Fiat 500 If a ll goes well, we’ll see a second-gen Mini Electric, now based on a dedicated EV platform, and MG is planning a hot version of t he MG 4 Typica lly for EVs, t hey will proba bly be more expensive t han t heir petrol-powered forebears, but we have to star t somewhere

Go to the Louwman Museum

There are some fantastic car museums in t he UK – Beaulieu, Haynes, Coventr y Transpor t et a l – but consider a weekend away to The Hague and t he Louwman Museum It was founded by t he eponymous family in 1934 wit h t he purchase of a pre-war Dodge but is now one of t he world’s largest privately owned automotive collections

It ’s wor t h t he (shor t-ish) drive just to mar vel at t he astounding entrance ha ll, and t here’s enough here to fill severa l repeat visits: Elvis’s Cadillac, Churchill’s Humber and t he actua l Goldfinger DB5 to name a few. There’s a lso t he world’s largest collection of pre-1910 cars, 15 cars from Dutch supercar firm Spyker and a Citroën 2CV 4x4 Sa hara.

1 s We jest, of course But t here is only a finite number of old Porsche 911s, yet t here appears to be no let-up in t he number of people who want to restore and modif y t hem –and find customers for t hem Perhaps it will only be a handful of cars, per modifier, per year, but t hat could amount to dozens. At what point does an origina l become t he rare one?

The details of any for t hcoming combustionengine sa les ban remain annoyingly vague, par ticularly whet her sma ll-volume car ma kers might get a reprieve Eit her way, it won’t be good news for t he availa bilit y or afforda bilit y of pure driver ’s cars

This has been a surprisingly good year for simple spor ts cars We’ve had t he Morgan Super 3, t he Toyota GR86 and a couple of new Caterham Sevens, and t he Ma zda MX-5 is still a live and well Some of our favourite driving experiences t his year have been in t hose cars If you are in a position to get one in your garage, do it before prices get out of hand

The Supercars championship –Australia’s touring car series – gets a new generation of cars for 202 3 . Crucially, they will have less downforce and grip. No question about it, I’ll be signing back up to watch. M AT T PR I O R

WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHAT TO DO

B U Y T H E A N A L O G U E S P O R T S C A R Y O U ’ V E D R E A M E D O F

The UK’s best-preser ved Second World War R AF technica l site, now transformed into a communit y of automotive specia lists known as Bicester Heritage, will pay homage to its origins wit h t his t wo-day festiva l (17-18 June, t bc). The airfield still at its hear t will be a live wit h flying machines bot h old and new as t he site’s tenants t hrow open t heir doors to revea l t he treasures wit hin Thousands of rare cars will a lso be on-site to create an eclectic and spectacular display t hat seems t he perfect complement to t he wonderfully restored buildings of Bicester Heritage, including aircraft hangars and parachute stores.

T H E R E W I L L E N D U P B E I N G M O R E R E S T O M O D 9 1 1 s T H A N C L A S S I C 9 1

WHAT TO DO

M O R E B R A N D S W I L L H I V E O F F E V E N T I T I E S

Polestar, Model E and Ampere: t hree stand-a lone companies dedicated solely to t he development, production and sa le of EVs, having been separated from t he ICEcentric operations of t heir parent companies (Volvo, Ford and Renault, respectively)

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

The rationa le is simple: each has in effect been gifted t he agilit y and freedom of a new star t-up company, while t he origina l companies can focus more closely on securing continued revenues from t he dwindling combustion car market Plus, in t he case of Polestar ’s and Renault ’s EV units, public IPOs will bring in welcome funding for new developments Lotus, meanwhile, has expressed an appetite to do similar wit h its China-based Lotus Technolog y division, which has been charged wit h producing its more volume-friendly electric models If t hese pioneering marques can prove t he business model to be fruitful, split ting engines and EVs could become ver y fashiona ble indeed.

Cycle to work for a week

Aside from t he ver y obvious fisca l benefits of leaving t he car at home, and t he positive hea lt h implications of (a) not catching t he flu on t he bus and (b) moving your legs around a lot, a lso consider t his: cycling ma kes you a bet ter driver. You’ll see your commute t hrough completely different eyes, developing an enhanced awareness of vehicle blindspots, rough stretches of aspha lt and oft-overlooked obstacles such as badly parked cars and school drop-off zones. And you’ll remember t hem when you get back in t he car, and t hus drive wit h a bit of ex tra caution

WILL

HAPPEN

T H E 2 0 3 0 I C E S A L E S B A N W I L L C O M E U N D E R S C R U T I N Y

It might be pushing it to suggest t he 2030 ban of t he sa le of non-electric cars is going to change, but more and more questions are going to be asked of it, and wit h greater desperation by t he day. For far too much remains up in t he air, and t he clock is tick ing

The first step towards t he ban comes in 2024, wit h a mandate t hat means car ma kers will have to sell a set propor tion of zero-emission models, and t his will gradua lly increase bet ween 2024 and 2030 Yet just 12 mont hs away from t his, t he government has yet to confirm t he exact details of t hat mandate. How are

car ma kers supposed to plan t heir businesses and future stock? Indeed, lead times a bove 12 mont hs are not uncommon for some popular models due to t he chip shor tage, and t hat will inevita bly push some of t hese orders into 2024.

The mandate is a bit nonsensica l any way In moving away from a CO2-based fleet average system, it could open up t he industr y to a rise in emissions If t he mandate is for, say, 30% of sa les to be electric cars, t he ot her 70% could be V8s – it won’t mat ter what else you sell, as long as 30% are EVs An unlikely scenario, yes, but it releases t he CO2 shack les elsewhere in a way

t hat could be counterproductive to t he overa ll drop in average emissions.

The 2030 mandate itself says t he sa le of hybrids will be a llowed until 2035 as long as t hey have a meaningful zero-emission range. Yet t his too remains unresolved, a good couple of years since its announcement. The UK has a major manufacturer, Toyota, building hybrids here, but t he firm can’t current ly plan for 2030 (which is tomorrow in car-ma k ing terms, given investments and lead times) and doesn’t yet know whet her or not t he cars it ma kes in t he UK will actua lly be sold here.

C H I N A’S E Vs W I L L P U T T E S L A U N D E R P R E S S U R E

It ’s hard to know what represents a greater t hreat to Tesla’s success: t he loose cannon at t he helm or t he army of car ma kers coming after it. Aiways, Geely, Great Wa ll, Ora, Xpeng not made-up names but rat her Chinese car ma kers heading to our shores in t he nex t 12 mont hs, t heir oppor tunit y arriving w it h t he switch to electrificat ion, much as Tesla’s did, a lbeit somewhat more prescient ly

They are well esta blished in t heir enormous home market, wit h strong volumes and profits to fund t he beachhead, and t he technolog y underpinning EVs is neit her as complex as a combustion engine’s nor as expensive China’s tech supremacy ex tends to bat ter y efficiency and connectivit y, t wo more key bat t legrounds.

Brand still mat ters, but as far as capa bilit y and price go, prepare to be ama zed

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

B E U N V E I L E D

Zero emissions and 20mph limits or not, t he clock is surely tick ing for cars having unfet tered access to cit y centres. London, of course, likes to lead t he way, but so much of its industr y hinges on persona l mobilit y t hat it ’s quite possible one of t he more keen-tobe-seen progressives, such as Bristol, Cardiff, Cambridge, Glasgow or Oxford, will get t here first by introducing a blanket ban on any t hing more powerful t han an e-scooter

P H E V s W I L L L O S E FAV O U R W I T H B I K TA X

A study by t he Internationa l Council on Clean Transpor tation found t hat plug-in hybrids’ rea l-world fuel consumption in Europe is, on average, t hree to five times higher t han measured by officia l WLTP tests And t hat means t heir CO2 emissions are a lso much higher So expect company car ta x bands – current ly weighted in favour of (supposedly) low-emission PHEVs wit h long(ish)-range capa bilities – to be reworked, to push company fleets towards bat ter y EVs where possible.

UK plc’s blea k financia l out look and chancellor Jeremy Hunt ’s planned ta x hikes will only encourage such changes

B U Y A C O N S O L E

WHAT TO DO

I

Socia l media and Meta might gra b a ll t he headlines, but t he video game market is still wor t h a massive £5 89 billion a year

The big launch in 2023 is Forza Motorspor t 8 on t he Xbox Series X The last one arrived more t han five years ago, and main riva l Gran Turismo 7 was launched last summer, so t his bat t le is likely to be t he big dust-up of t he year Wit h fans as commit ted as t he AMG or M camps, it ’s never an easy one to ca ll, but hyper-rea listic graphics and gameplay are a given

N E W E

It ’s no secret t hat sa les of new E Vs have boomed over t he pa st few yea rs. But in 2023, we t h in k t h is boom cou ld st a r t to slow – i f it ha sn’t a l ready. It ’s ma in ly due to money: a s recession bites, fi na nce a nd lea se dea ls spi ke in cost – so buy ing a pr icey E V becomes much less fea si ble for ma ny.

Meanwhile, less cost ly used electric cars will become more a bundant as fleets clear stock bought in 2020 – t he year EV sa les took off. Combine t he expense of a new car wit h limited availa bilit y (wit h par ts shor tages expected to continue a ll year), and ex-fleet cars will look much more appea ling.

The wheels are a lready in motion for t his shift According to data from t he SMMT, during t he t hird quar ter of 2022, used electric car sa les grew by 44 1% year on year, to 16,775 units.

It’s been decades since I bought a car that would be all mine. I need something inexpensive, reliable and rot-proof, to get me to airports and the odd office trip. But it must be interesting enough that I want to spend time in it and making it better A Mk 2 Mazda MX-5, Toyota GT8 6 and Subaru Impreza WRX are contenders

Browsing the classifieds should fill the winter months . M AT T SAU N D E RS

C h a rg i n g a n E V i s ex p e n si ve now . O r i s it? Fre e c h a rger s a re pret t y c om mon i f you k now w here to lo ok , a nd w it h publ ic c h a rg i n g c o st s r i si n g by over 4 2% (63 2 9 p p er kW h), now i s t he t i me to fi nd t he m Nor m a l l y lo c ate d i n pay-to - pa rk c a r pa rk s a nd sup er m a rket s , t he y tend to b e slow but cost a f rac t ion of ot her c h a rger s Plu g i n , leave over n ig ht w here p o s sible a nd you ’ re f u l l y c h a rge d for les s t h a n t he pr ice of a K it -K at .

A R O A D M A P F O R B A N N I N G

C A R S F R O M T O W N S W I L L

V M A R K E T S T A L L S A S U S E D E V s R I S E

A recent track lesson with journalist-cumracer Mark Hales made me realise you’re never too old to be told you have bad habits behind the wheel. But 202 3 will begin afresh, with a New Year’s resolution of tr ying to put Mark’s tips into practice whenever I get to a track . The key takeaway from my time with him was not to be such a clot and concentrate: really think about ever y aspect of the track and car to maximise both In other words , engage brain

PI E RS WA R D

D R I V E A C R O S S N O R WAY I N A N E V

Proba bly among t he more impractica l suggestions in t his package (Nor way isn’t t hat far from t he UK, but it ’s a long way from being a budget destination), but our Scandinavian nex t-door neighbour ’s long-standing affinit y wit h t he electric car gives it t he potentia l to become a mecca for driving fans over t he coming years The charging infrastructure is so prolific and relia ble as

to completely mitigate any lingering sense of range anxiet y you might harbour when ta k ing to t he roads in a modern EV That means you can cover ground at t he same rate –and wit h t he same peace of mind – as you might when, say, doing t he Nor t h Coast 500 in an MX-5. Plus, t he scener y is simply breat hta k ing in par ts, t he coffee is delicious and t he roads are delightfully well cared for

The first deat h officia lly caused by a selfdriving car was recorded in 2018, in t he US. Wit h public tria ls using t he technolog y having begun here last year, it ’s a cer taint y t hat a similarly grizzly statistic will follow. Should we be as outraged as t he headlines t hat will inevita bly follow? Data suggests t hat per mile driven your risk of deat h is a quar ter to ha lf what it would be in a human-driven car.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

Ju st Stop O i l a n nou nc e d a breat her f rom d i sr upt i n g motor ways t h i s aut u m n , but t he n st a r te d a ga i n i n c it y c e nt res S or r y to b e t he pre d ic tor of bad ne w s for motor way u s ers , but w it h t he gover n ment s et to m a ke a c a l l on Nor t h S ea oi l l ic e nc e s i n Ja nu a r y, t he prote st g roup w i l l a l most c er t a i n l y w iden it s d i sr upt ion a ga i n . Even more queues on t he M 25 , t hen . W h at a t h i n g to lo ok for wa rd to.

Watch the British GP on TV

Aston avoids the headlines

Is sta ble ground fina lly coming into view for Aston Mar tin? Divisive boss Tobias Moers left t his year, wit h his place ta ken by Amedeo Felisa, formerly of Ferrari In 2023, Aston will overhaul its spor ts cars wit h a much-needed modernisation (including touchscreens for t he interiors), and t he new DBX 707 should ensure t he best year yet for t he SUV.

That should give sta bilit y to t he existing range, but Aston’s presence on t he stock market opens it up to ex tra scrutiny, because investors a lways want to know what ’s coming nex t.

The company flotation a lso exposed Aston to a shareholding by Geely, which was not met wit h open arms (publicly at least). But it is understood t hat productive ta lks are ongoing in t he background as Aston has rea lised t he Chinese giant knows a t hing or t wo a bout turning brands around, funding t hem and electrif ying t hem (see Volvo and Lotus). Perhaps Aston won’t stay out of t he headlines, but let ’s hope t hose headlines can be a good dea l more positive over t he nex t few years

It was regret ta ble how Silverstone handled t he ticketselling process for t his year ’s race. A botched online queuing system unsurprisingly failed under t he weight of demand Okay, t hat can happen, but what was inexcusa ble was t he ‘dynamic’ pricing t hat saw ticket prices go up in rea l time Profiteering at its ver y worst, so don’t give ’em a penny and watch it on Channel 4 instead

R O A D P R O T E S T S W I L L C O N T I N U E

B R I T A I N ’ S F I R S T S E L F - D R I V I N G

F A T A L I T Y W I L L O C C U R ( A S S U M I N G I T H A S N ’ T A L R E A D Y )

C I T R O E N W I L L B U I L D T H E O L I

In case you missed its September unveiling, t he Oli is Citroën’s vision of a low-cost, lowenvironmenta l-impact electric car If you will excuse t he obvious comparison, t hink of it as a 2CV for t he electric era

Citroën was emphatic at t he revea l t hat it would not build t he Oli, but it was instead a vision of what is to come from t he brand over t he nex t few years We are unconvinced

Primarily, t his is because t he concept is fully road lega l – t he lower front bumper houses a

pair of sensors for assisted driving tech, for example And a quick search on socia l media revea ls t hat it ’s even been driven around Paris

Considering most concepts, including t he similar Dacia Manifesto, aren’t operationa l – and t hat road-lega lising a one-off is so cost ly –one has to ask why Citroën bot hered. Branding executive Laurent Barria said at t he Oli’s revea l t hat t he nex t C3 supermini would be focused on “accessibilit y to electric mobilit y ” , which is t he precise mission set out by t he concept

Design director Pierre Leclercq said “not one” of Oli’s ideas was being writ ten off for production, and CEO Vincent Cobée added t hat some of its tech could even ma ke it to market wit hin mont hs

Wit h t he current C3 long overdue a replacement, we put it to you t hat t he Oli is not simply a concept but a ver y rea l test mule for t hat model And Citroën has form for doing t his: see 2019’s Ami One concept, which ver y rapidly became t he cult-hero quadricycle

G O T O A M O T O R S H O W B E F O R E T H E Y D I E O U T

They were once t he crowning jewel of t he automotive ca lendar, revea ling t he nex t wave of cars. Then Covid hit and t he motor show stumbled – and we don’t t hink it will recover This year ’s Paris show, for example, returned after a once unheard of gap of four years Even t hen, t here was no get ting away from just how sma ll it was: not even Citroën turned up. So now may be t he time to head to your nearest show, before t hey ’re confined to t he dreaded Zoom conference for good.

WHAT TO DO

Wit h internationa l legislation, governmenta l suppor t and OEM investment strategies so rigidly focused on priming bat ter y-electric cars to pick up from t heir combustionengine counterpar ts, it feels like t he time for hydrogen fuel cell cars has come and gone.

In t he seven years since Toyota launched t he Mirai in t he UK, just over 200 have found homes, and its only riva l, t he Hy undai Nexo, was delivered to just t wo customers in 2021 There’s still huge potentia l for hydrogenfuelled HGVs, and BMW and Land Rover

are showing how fuel cells ma ke sense for t he heaviest cars, but t here remain only 11 active hydrogen ‘pumps’ for passenger cars in t he UK, and clearly lit t le incentive for fuel companies to invest in increasing t hat figure. Promoting FCEVs as a via ble means of persona l transpor tation has never been harder, but wit h t he Chinese government ta k ing (early) steps to encourage t heir adoption, perhaps t he narrative can change over t he coming years.

C A Z O O W I L L S T U M B L E O V E R I T S O W N H Y P E

Wit h its name bedecked on many a spor ts team and pumped at you from an onslaught of adver ts, it was hard not to get caught up in t he hype t hat built up around Ca zoo.

That bubble has burst The self-st yled ‘online used car disruptor ’ said it would revolutionise t he car-buying experience as it built to a stock flotation, yet it has since spent time selling off assets, refocusing priorities

and repor ting less-t han-stellar results. W hy? Because its origina l dream of pure online car sa les hasn’t caught on W hat ’s left? Beyond a slick website and heav y marketing spend, it ’s become just anot her car dea ler A big one, wit h a high profile, but ultimately, as t he layers of bluster have been stripped back, it ’s hard to define what it does different ly WHAT WILL

HAPPEN

T H E A G E N C Y M O D E L W I L L A R R I V E – A N D S T R U G G L E

Goodbye haggling, hello ‘agency ’ , as car ma kers – led by Abar t h, DS and Mercedes in mid-2023, but wit h many ot hers following suit over t he coming years – look to ensure t he fat ter-t han-ever profits t hey ’ve enjoyed over t he past 18 mont hs continue long into t he future by controlling t he entire sa les journey. The losers are t he retailers, which will t ypica lly get paid a set fee rat her t han a cut of t he sa le price, and punters, who will be asked to pay more in return for what ’s promised to be

a slicker purchase journey. Oh, and t he factor y workers where t he cars are (or were) made, as maintaining t he necessar y supply/demand tension will surely cost jobs

The model has a lready been tested in ot her countries wit h success, but t he UK is t he most complex market yet. That agency is launching mid-recession, which will surely flat ten demand, and as semiconductor availa bilit y eases, only adds to t he cha llenge. Customers, meanwhile, will vote w it h t heir wa llets.

More learners pass the automatic test than manual

As electrification dawns, many learners have rea lised t hat manua l gearboxes are a t hing of t he past. But t he rate at which t hey have switched has perhaps flown under t he radar: t he number of auto-only licence holders has risen by 25% since 2020, and a sur vey by IAM Roadsmar t found t hree in five 17- to 24 -yearolds plan to go auto-only. As more learners filter t hrough t he system, 2023 could be t he year t hat more new drivers pass t heir test in automatic cars t han t hey do in manua ls.

Used

prices coming down Second-hand values have soared so high that I’ve stopped idly browsing and even deleted the eBay app, but as the new car supply situation improves and pentup post-lockdown demand evaporates , I’m predicting the bounce-back of the banger (if you can’t wait that long, see the 7/14 December issue for some festive bargains) That tatty E 3 6 3 Series Touring will be mine before you know it

I

M L O O K I N G

JANUARY

A top Ford exec wa kes up slight ly worse for wear on New Year ’s Day, saying he had a strange dream in which t he firm a xed t he Fiesta during 2022. “Yeah, as if,” he says, before check ing his email and brea k ing into a cold sweat

Elon Musk decides to merge Tesla and Tw it ter into a single company. He launches t he new Twisla car, which proves instant ly popular, but many buyers are left fr ustrated t hat it can only be driven for 280 metres at a time.

FEBRUARY

“It

MARCH

Frustrated by t he increasing size of modern cars, Citroën boss Vincent Cobée launches its sma llest car yet, t he Nàno. Only visible under a microscope, t he new machine has an incredibly low carbon footprint, but Cobée concedes t hat storage capacit y is limited.

A mix-up at Red Bull means Ma x Verstappen is accidenta lly assigned to t he team’s catering division for t he Austra lian Grand Prix He spends t he weekend put ting shrimps on a barbie, while Ken Hom is drafted in to drive for t he team. He claims a shock pole position, causing quite a stir-fr y

Nevera’s top speed record put a target on its back.

Volvo and Citroën take aim

APRIL

After t he Rimac Nevera set a 258mph speed record for an electric production car late in 2022, a host of riva l firms vow to eclipse t he record. Citroën plots a specia lly modified version of t he Ami quadricycle, a lt hough t he bid fails because t hey forget to adjust t he gearing and it caps out at 28mph.

There’s a major shock at London ta xi ma ker LEVC, when Liz Tr uss is named t he British firm’s new CEO. The former PM immediately shocks t he market when she announces plans to ditch t he company ’s entire model line “W hat I’m a bout is cut ting ta xis,” she says.

MAY

Liz Tr uss is fired from her role at LEVC just 45 days after ta k ing over. She is replaced by a let tuce, because you knew exact ly where t his bad pun was going

Elon Musk ’s Tw isla unveils a revamped socia l media app. It wins plent y of suppor ters, but a series of controversia l incidents prompt US aut horities to advise users strongly against engaging t he ‘Full Self-Tweeting’ mode

Volvo engineers star t work on a secret project to brea k t he electric production car speed record, but t heir effor ts are frustrated by a ll t he Swedish firm’s models being limited to 112mph. Still, it is officia lly named t he safest speed record car ever made

Will Fiesta do a Puma and return to the Ford line-up?

Red Bull Racing decides to beef up its catering ahead of t he new season, opening a swank y new high-powered fan oven t hat ’s big enough to fit an F1 car in it. “This is so we can ser ve bet ter food,” says team boss Christian Horner at t he launch.

’s absolutely not a high-tech new wind tunnel t hat we’re snea k ing under t he cost cap ” Sa les success of t he Land Rover Defender 130 prompts t he firm to launch an even bigger variant. The Defender 250 is t wo storeys ta ll and can seat more t han 60.

Transpor t for London ma kes an order to replace its New Routemaster buses

“Truss me – I know what I’m doing.” The industry braces itself

JUNE

Ford decides to temporarily plug t he gap left in its UK line-up by t he Fiesta by impor ting t he F-350 Super Dut y pick-up from t he US. It proves a sa les hit, a lt hough t he narrow roads of severa l Cotswold villages have to be permanent ly shut after t he machines get irretrieva bly wedged bet ween buildings.

JULY

Following

SEPTEMBER

AUGUST

After t he popularit y of t he 31in screen in t he back of t he i7, BMW revea ls t he i9. The new model can ser ve as a mobile cinema t hanks to a massive 65 -foot wide cinema screen, which is only margina lly sma ller t han t he new k idney grille on t he front It a lso sells popcorn Smar t unveils t he follow-up to t he #1. It intended to ca ll t he model #2 but has to change its plans because it has joined ot her car firms in boycot ting adver tising on Twisla. “Well, t his is hashtag awk ward,” says a Smar t boss.

Munich show organisers insist t he success of t heir events proves t hat motor shows are not dead yet. But a lack of exhibitors prompts a late change of venue: instead of t he Munich exhibition centre, t he show is staged in t he back of a Volkswagen ID Buzz Cargo.

In a shock move, Liz Truss returns to t he automotive industr y as head of commercia l vehicle brand Ma xus. She immediately announces plans to shut down t he firm. “W hat I’m a bout is cut ting Ma xus,” she says.

OCTOBER

Elon Musk announces t hat Twisla will launch a new car capa ble of brea k ing Rimac’s electric production speed record The car is scheduled for launch late in 2023, and t hen instant ly delayed for anot her t wo years.

NOVEMBER

Ma x Verstappen clinches his t hird F1 tit le despite bot h missing t he opening race of t he season and a string of controversia l clashes t hat once again ca ll his temperament into question Mercedes responds by searching for a similar driver and signs Gordon Ramsay for 2024

DECEMBER

Facing opposition from a host of pretenders, Rimac revea ls an upgraded version of t he Nevera to eclipse its own speed record It ’s t heoretica lly capable of 500mph but is denied a record because t he energ y required to accelerate drained t he bat ter y before it got near V-ma x

Ford causes a major stir when it unveils plans for an a ll-new t ype of car It ’s a sma ll model wit h decent st yling t hat ’s designed to be relatively afforda ble and idea l for younger drivers or as a second car for families The revolutionar y design is immediately hailed as t he sor t of car t he industr y has been cr ying out for. It will be ca lled t he Fiesta L

Musk: new Twisla EV could end up being a bit of a turkey

Roux Jr: restaurant tyre sponsor clash scuppers F1 drive

Ford’s new supermini is set to take the class by storm

Ken Hom’s successful outing wit h Red Bull, Michel Roux Jr is lined up to race for Ferrari in t he British Grand Prix But t he move is vetoed by t yre supplier Pirelli because Roux refuses to relinquish his t wo Michelin stars.

O f c ou rs e, ou r prophet ic lo ok at t he yea r a head wou ld n’t b e complete w it hout t h i s , t he gosp el accord i n g to office s o ot h sayer Ja m e s At t wo o d.

R e mem b er, fol k s – i f it h app e n s , he wa s r ig ht!

T h e a d v e n t of t h e E V e ra m

g h t m e a n R o v e r o u t

ts c o u l d c

a d B M W c h a s s

Tweed-and-pipe approach didn’t work, so how about modernist techno chic?

i

f i

l

i s

Matra

I t w o u l d h a v e a l a rg e, p o w e r f u l s t ra i g h t e i g h t , a l b e i t h y b r i d i s e d

Duesenberg

I L LYA V E R P R A E T

Triumph sports cars were and remain much loved

Matra invented crossover but 30 years too early

American equivalent of Rolls-Royce would surely thrive today

IMAGE

Duesenberg was a leading luxury light in 1920s and 1930s

A N D R E W F R A N K E L

Recent ly I asked Andreas Preuninger, Porsche’s GT guru, which was bet ter: a 911 GT3 or a Cayman GT4 RS. “Easy,” he replied “It ’s t he 911 ” Surprised by such a sw ift and definitive response, I asked him to ela borate “It has t he double-wishbone suspension, far more downforce, wider t yres, an electronica lly controlled differentia l,” he said. “It just has a

higher level of specification, which is why, despite having ver y similar power, it ’s actua lly quite a lot quicker around t he track ”

So I asked which was more fun to drive. His answer took no longer to come: “Oh, t hat ’s t he Cayman ”

W hich ma kes my point beautifully. Would you trade fast for fun? No, nor I And when I t hink of t he time I’ve had on road and track t his year in t he Cayman GT4 RS, I can’t t hink of any t hing else new on sa le t his year, and

which is genuinely usa ble, t hat offers any t hing like t his level of enter tainment. Not even, for t hat mat ter, t he GT3 RS, which may be one of t he most remarkable cars I’ve driven but only at t he price of litera lly not having a boot

The point is t his: t he enjoyment a car can provide is determined by how fun it is to drive multiplied by how often you feel inclined to drive it. So if its ride is intolerable, or it deafens you ever y time you star t it, or you can’t actua lly go any where

because it won’t ta ke any luggage, t hat seriously limits your potentia l enjoyment. The genius of t he GT4 RS is t hat while it screams like Siouxsie Sioux’s back ing band when you’re at 9000rpm on t he track, on t he road its ride and refinement and even luggage capacit y are good enough for a trip to Spa or t he Nürburgring to be an entirely sensible t hing to contemplate.

On track, t he biggest danger is t hat you’ll be laughing so much you’ll miss a bra k ing point. The

AU D I S 8

We’re not a llowed to pick cars t hat have a lready been ‘bagsied’; if we could, you’d a lready be reading anot her love let ter to t he Cayman So my second pick – the car that surprised me most in 2022 – is an old-school Audi wit h a trick up its sleeve

The S8 is in a familiar Audi mould: a luxur y sa loon wit h a 563bhp V8, a £100k entr y price, Quat tro four-wheel drive and more tech crammed into it t han you can rea lly use in a t ypica l journey

But, in one case at least, t he S8

deploys its tech unequivoca lly well in order to ma ke it a bet ter car to drive. It has an ingenious active ride system, Predictive Active Suspension, which uses cameras to scan t he road surface a head so it can t hen adjust its a x les in preparation for t he bumps it ’s a bout to hit Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? The t hing is, t he S8’s system rea lly works Electromechanica l actuators – electric motors at tached to each wheel via t he anti-roll bars – are t he difference W hile most systems t hat

claim to do somet hing similar can only soften or firm up dampers or air springs, Audi’s can help to lift a wheel up out of t he way of a bump, brace it against a different one, or grab it and prevent it

from rebounding after it ’s hit a t hird one. It can lift t he whole car up, increasing its ride height to a llow more wheel travel a head of a par ticularly big input, or it can prevent it from rolling in a long, fast bend, as plent y of similar systems a lso do. It doesn’t quite give a magic-carpet ride, but it ’s get ting t here, and it handles speed bumps uncannily well Too often, new ‘Technik ’ fails to ma ke cars demonstra bly bet ter In t his case, it hits t he target dead centre. Bravo, Ingolstadt.

M A T T S A U N D E R S

car seems to pivot around you, centra lising you in t he t hick of t he action. The noise is a bsurd, t he gearshift speed is beyond belief, t he ba lance is superb and t he feel is as good as t hat of any car wit h electric power steering A ll it lacks is t he manua l gearbox available in bot h t he GT4 and GT3 Its omission is a shame, but not even t hat can prevent t he GT4 RS from being my favourite new car of 2022 Fun beats fast ever y time. Or at least it should.

M G 4 E V

V I C K Y P A R R O T T I’m not going to sit here and tell you t he MG 4 is incandescent ly brilliant fun. The most fun you can have in t he £30k range is t he Caterham Super Seven 600, which, incidenta lly, I ver y nearly chose. I have a lways yearned to own a Seven and, in many ways, it is my favourite car of t his year and most ot her years But when considering my star of 2022, I couldn’t stop t hink ing about t he MG 4 The Caterham represents a ll t hat we purists most fear losing in t he transition to EVs, but t he MG 4 represents a promising step-

T OYO TA G R 8 6

I L LY A V E R P R A E T

And now for t he most obvious choice of t he year: t he GR86 was hyped more t han a lmost any t hing else, got glowing reviews and sold out in 90 minutes

Then in our Britain’s Best Driver ’s Car acid test, it finished a respecta ble but unspectacular fift h It ’s still my car of t he year, t hough, because I know I’d have a huge laugh driving it ever y day On a track and on most ly deser ted Welsh roads, t he 600bhp monsters might enter tain more viscera lly, but away from perfect destination drives, I’d ta ke t he Toyota keys ever y time.

The 86’s knuck ly manua l gearbox provides engagement at any speed

and is fairly sensibly geared, and you can indulge in its sweet reardrive ba lance any time you like. Even so, I would be tempted to bring it closer to t he old GT86’s philosophy by ditching t he Pilot Spor t t yres for somet hing less racy

I love how accessible t he GR86’s fun is. Most modern performance cars are so quick and grippy t hat you need to t hink t wice a bout uncork ing t hem on t he road; t he GR86 is pret t y much my perfect road car

It ’s ever y t hing I could wish for in a track car, too. It won’t set t he fastest time, but neit her will I Instead, it provides enough of a cha llenge wit hout being scar y. Turn t he traction control off and powersliding it is child’s play. The

control systems will hold your hand while you do it, or you can turn t hem off completely and achieve huge angles Toyota’s press office knew t he GR86 it sent for Britain’s Best Driver ’s Car would be drifted for a ll it ’s wor t h, so it k indly supplied a spare set of rears But despite our best effor ts, t here was still plent y of tread left on t he origina l Michelins at t he end of t he day Any GR86 owner would be doing t hemselves a disser vice by not ta k ing t heir car on an airfield drift ing day.

Unfor tunately, t hat will be a ll too few people, given t he limited number coming to Europe. That ’s not rea lly t he car ’s fault, t hough. If you did ma ke it onto t he list, you’re in for a treat.

change, proving t hat great EVs needn’t come wit h prohibitive cost or leaden dynamics. It is nimble, rides well, is comfor ta ble to sit in and has plent y of room for people and t heir stuff. Even t he cabin and infotainment are modern and up to scratch, yet you’re get ting a 281-mile range for usefully under £30,000 It ’s undercut ting chief riva ls by some £7000 and more, while mont hly finance costs are even more in favour of t he MG

A ll t his ma kes t he MG a disruptor, which is a key reason why I chose it. It ’s a sign t hat t he impending influx of affordable Chinese EVs is good news for consumers, because t hey w ill force t he established

brands to stay competitive

A ll MG has done is build a welljudged family EV at a reasonable price But consider t hat in t he contex t of how EVs have been evolving, and suddenly t he MG feels as impor tant as t he Nissan Leaf

and Renault Zoe did when t hey first made electric cars ‘norma l’

I got out of t he MG 4 wondering if China has made a bet ter job of reinventing ‘t he people’s car ’ for t he EV era t han Germany. And t hat is why it ’s my favourite car of 2022

T he br ie f wa s a si mple one : pic k you r favou r ite c a r of 2 02 2 I f t he c h ips were dow n , here’s w h at t he Auto c a r st a ff wou ld c ho o s e

I A P I CA N T O

P I E R S W A R D

By any number of measures, t he Kia Picanto shouldn’t even be in my top 10 favourites from 2022, let a lone top. It ’s not par ticularly new, or clean, or controversia l I didn’t even have a par ticularly memorable drive in it, confined as I was to school runs and loca l roads But t hat ignores t he simple, joyous fun of Kia’s sma llest, cheapest car The Picanto is a riot to drive and perfect ly sums up why we might not be heading in quite t he right direction at t he moment

Its combination of par ts mould into a package t hat feels just so; no excuses are needed for any of it The car has been on sa le for five years, which shows t hat if you build it right in t he first place, it ’ll stay right

We’re a family of four but t here was never a grumble from t he back (a miracle, given my t wo), t he ride is comfor ta ble and t he handling a

revelation Incredibly sharp turnin wit h t he body control of a car severa l times t he price means it ’s a hoot to drive A slow hoot, but fun Ah, t he engine Yes, it ’s a dir t y ICE wit h no electric assistance. Its 99bhp and 127lb ft was weedy a decade ago; now, it ’s practica lly Noddy-car territor y. But t he rev needle zips swift ly around t he dia l, and ever y journey is enjoyable. Stuck behind a lorr y? Oh well, enjoy t he view Road opens up? Enjoy t he chassis, well wit hin speed limits.

It ’s t he happy democratisation of t he Picanto t hat will stay wit h me En famille, we went for lunch at a sizea ble countr y pile and parked t he lit t le yellow Picanto right outside t he front door. It couldn’t have looked more incongruous yet more brilliant: it just goes to show t hat ‘legacy ’ cars are still capable of t hrowing up surprises Here’s hoping t hat manufacturers continue ma k ing t hem.

M A S E R AT I M C 2 0

R I C H A R D L A N E It ’s sad t hat t he legendar y carrozzerie of Turin have faded in output and influence over t he past 20 years, if t hey still exist at a ll Even t he might y Pininfarina, having split from longstanding client Ferrari after t he F12 Berlinet ta, is now more involved wit h architecture and home appliances, while t he Pininfarina Automobili brand, ma ker of t he ba zillion-horsepower Bat tista EV, is Indian-owned and Munich-based Meanwhile, Ita ldesign Giugiaro is Volkswagen Group-owned so

does lit t le outside t hose corporate confines, and if you were being generous you could describe Ber tone as ‘lying dormant ’ I’m not embedded enough in t he design world to know t he intricacies of how it a ll happened, but as far as t he aest hetics of Europe’s high-end cars go, t he independent carrozzerie have lost ground to an array of sprawling in-house operations –and wit h mixed results Neit her Ferrari’s 812 nor t he new BMW 7 Series is what you’d ca ll pret t y

So while 20 years ago t he Maserati MC20 (for Maserati Corse 2020) would have been penned and clay-

modelled by one of t he carrozzerie, today it is merely anot her ‘Centro Stile’ product Granted, t he design was led by t he ta lented – and Coventr y-trained – K laus Busse, but his job is to oversee Fiat, Lancia, A lfa Romeo and ot hers besides.

So much product, and churning it a ll out must be hard Might t he end result be a depar tment too stretched and a supercar designed by commit tee – one hoping to express some t wee ta ke on Maserati’s incredible histor y but failing to manage even t hat wit h t he necessar y conviction? Somet hing in-house and a lso inward-look ing,

wit hout t he a ll-impor tant rea lit y check provided by an ex terna l carrozzeria?

Yes, t hat could so easily have been t he result, but t he MC20 is not hing of t he sor t Quite t he opposite. It ’s glorious to behold in t he meta l: subt le and a lmost plain in its form but wit h more presence t han any competitor. It doesn’t do fripper y, and while t he fresh front is perfect ly Maserati, t here’s somet hing old-world and rat her streamliner y about t he sloping back and squared-off tail t hat I can’t quite put my finger on but t hink looks so inspiring It ’s timeless, and

DAC I A J O G G E R

J A M E S D I S D A L E

There’s so much I love a bout t he Jogger t hat it ’s difficult to know where to star t, so let ’s ta ke it from t he top. Litera lly, because t he Dacia’s brilliance star ts wit h its roof bars No, rea lly, it does For many SUVs and estates, roof rails are more of a lifest yle status symbol, hinting at an exciting outof-office-hours existence involving kaya ks and carbonfibre-framed

bicycles Yet t hey ’re often no more t han decoration: you still need to buy t he crossbars to use t hem.

Not so t he Jogger, whose neat solution a llows you to simply unbolt par t of each longitudina l rail and rotate t hem t hrough 90deg to form a roof rack It ’s a brilliant ly simple and rationa l detail t hat sums up neat ly t he Jogger experience

This isn’t exact ly an at tractive car, but t hose ta ll and box y lines a llow it to offer genuine seven-seat

space and versatilit y in a footprint t hat ’s barely bigger t han a compact estate. The interior is a lso designed to be as easy to use as possible, wit h a simple layout and up to 23 litres of storage, which helps ma ke light work of a ll t hose odds and ends t hat families tend to accumulate

And if you need to carr y t hings rat her t han people, t hen t he t hird-row seats can be removed, t he middle bench folded and a cavernous 2094 litres of carr ying capacit y liberated. For reference, a Mercedes E-Class wagon, t he large-estate k ing, can only muster 1820 litres. Few vehicles t his side of a van are as handy for hauling big loads

This might ma ke t he Dacia sound like a dull but wor t hy utilitarian choice, but t hat couldn’t be fur t her from t he trut h Of course, t he Jogger isn’t at tention-gra bbing street sculpture or an apex-hugging

high-performance weapon, but it is packed wit h charm and is a lways a pleasure to peda l.

There’s a supple, easy-going gait to its ride t hat brings to mind t he products of t he brand’s French financia l back bone, while t he turbocharged 1.0 -litre triple is a smoot h and willing accomplice. The steering is light and accurate, and while t he Dacia’s body can adopt some a larming angles when cornering hard, it clings on gamely Yet t he Jogger ’s rea l appea l lies in t he fact t hat it ma kes you feel like you’re beating t he system Here’s a car t hat will hold seven, is equipped wit h ever y gadget and gizmo you will ever need, and will get you to your destination just as painlessly as any luxo-barge, super-SUV or cut ting-edge EV, yet it costs as lit t le as £16,645. It ma kes you question t he sanit y of spending more Yep, t he Dacia Jogger is my favourite car of 2022, (roof ) bar none.

I want one. To say t his Maserati succeeds as an object is t herefore an understatement, and as an a llnew Ita lian supercar designed in Turin Well, you’ve got to love t hat, haven’t you? W het her carrozzerieconceived or, as in t his case, not. As for t he driving experience, it ’s basic and a lmost laughably brutish on t he surface, but t hen it ’s delicate, trust wor t hy and playful at its core. The car is accessible yet a lso intriguing. And so, so fast! Welcome back, Maserati Crack on

G E N E S I S GV6 0

J I M H O L D E R

I fear many Autocar readers w ill be raising at least one eyebrow at t he news t hat I’m championing a re-engineered electric car t hat is only selling in tiny numbers as t he one t hat will linger longest in my mind from t he past 12 mont hs But please, give me a minute or t wo to explain…

First, t he GV60 isn’t based on just any electric car, but rat her t he Kia EV6, which to my mind – even a year on from its launch in t his fast-paced business – sets t he class standard, offering more capa bilit y, comfor t, qua lit y and efficiency for t he price t han any ot her electric car I’ve encountered. I’ve spent most of t he year in a Ford Mustang Mach-E, and if Detroit isn’t sweating buckets at how far behind it is a lready in t his race, t hen it ’s possibly doomed

But t he GV60 isn’t just a rebadged EV6 wit h fancy fit tings. No, it ’s been t horoughly reworked by t he firm’s dynamics team, too, wit h power and suspension t wea ks available t hrough t he range to t he point t hat it has t he pace and poise to trouble many of t he much-championed hot hatchbacks of recent times. Is it as fun to drive fast as t hey are? No, weight and height provide physica l barriers to date, but t here is somet hing slight ly supernatura l in t he way it still grips and goes, despite t hose impediments

And t hen t here’s t he work t hat ’s been done to justif y t he Genesis badge (and price) over t hat of t he Kia (or indeed Hy undai) equiva lent Many Asian brands have claimed to be ready to riva l Audi, BMW or Mercedes, but none has managed it, least of a ll in t he interior (a lt hough Lexus may quibble at t hat, I accept)

The Genesis is different Specced right it looks magnificent, t he materia l qua lit y is superb, t he fit and finish is top-notch and t he design is light, air y and useful The pièce de résistance is t he revolving sphere t hat revea ls t he gear selector on star t-up. It sounds like an a lmight y gimmick, but it never failed to ma ke me feel like I was get ting into a car t hat was a bit specia l.

A significant car, t hen, not just for its capa bilities but a lso for pitching Genesis head-on wit h t he riva ls it must beat if it is to sur vive and t hrive I remain bewildered t hat t he brand launched wit h interesting but mediocre petrol and hybrid vehicles when it knew what it had coming. The GV60 is a car t hat stands t he test against a ll-comers, and it deser ves to be t he car t hat t he histor y books reca ll as set ting t he marque on t he road to success

R A N G E R OV E R S P O R T

S T E V E C R O P L E Y

Guess it ’s time to admit it: I’m a Range Rover sor t of bloke, or would like to be I love t he ex treme comfor t, I love t he cut-a bove positioning, I love t he imperious performance, t he long-distance capa bilit y and t he excellent visibilit y.

I completely swa llowed Gerr y McGovern’s simple, essentia l design message a long time ago: to me, Range Rovers look conclusively bet ter t han ot her people’s SUVs. Park one bet ween a Bent ley Bentayga and a Porsche Cayenne and you’ll see how effor t lessly t he point is made

But above a ll of t hat I love t he Range Rover brand of refinement. W hich, incidenta lly, is my main reason for choosing a Range Rover Spor t in t his categor y over t he fullfat Range Rover Here’s a chance to have t he class-leading silence and smoot hness of t he main event, while saving yourself £10,000 to £20,000 off t he purchase price. The hand-span of body leng t h you save is welcome, too, as is t he 80kg of mass. And I happen to prefer t he Spor t ’s stance, a lt hough t here isn’t rea lly much in it

Despite t he use of ‘Spor t ’ in t he name, I wouldn’t pursue t his qua lit y in my chosen spec, which would be t he six-cylinder

3.0 -litre plug-in hybrid version. I know t here’s a BMW-supplied V8 offshoot, but choosing t hat would strike me as deliberately per verse in t his day and age Big SUV performance is pret t y difficult to deploy at t he best of times, and t he PHEV has plent y of it any way Bet ter still, t he PHEV has a power train t hat is eit her nearly or actua lly silent at a ll times The fact t hat it affords 50 to 70 miles of bat ter y-only range, depending on how you drive, means t hat for many of us, you might go a week or t wo wit hout filling t he (80 -litre) fuel tank Incidenta lly, providing so much bat ter y range strikes me as being one of t he Range Rover Spor t ’s crowning achievements

Having said a ll of t his, I’m still not sure t he Range Rover Spor t would be able to ser ve as my own do-any t hing car. The widt h (which is t he same as t hat of t he ‘big’ Range Rover) is too great in rea lly tight going. But t he Spor t ’s versatilit y is still a ver y strong suit And t he best of its capa bilities mean you could indulge yourself by owning anot her appea ling but limited-function car whose streng t hs are in a completely different direction I’m seeing my idea l as a Honda E (whose shor t range more or less confines it to urban areas) and t he Range Rover Spor t Reckon t hat could be t he perfect combination.

VO LK SWAG E N M U LT I VA N

t his piece star ted as t he

Buzz W hich car put t he biggest smile on my face in a year t hat was, let ’s face it, a lit t le shor t on joy? It was t he ID Buzz, no question.

It ’s a concept car made rea l, a car t hat exists simply to be fun and let you live t he lifest yle we a ll secret ly dream of: to head to t he beach and forget a bout it a ll while having a cup of tea and a doze in t he back And maybe do a spot of surfing. Or rock-pooling…

And yet ma k ing t hat fantasy rea l isn’t a ll t hat pract ica l The ID Buzz is in effect a five-seat MPV minus t he clever seats or flexibilit y (t he rear bench only folds 60/40 and t he seats can’t be removed) Camper versions, wit h practica l seating, a k itchen and a bed, have yet to come.

There is, t hough, a V W on sa le

t hat does let you live t hat life: t he Multivan. New t his year and based on t he MQB platform t hat ma kes it sophisticated and easy to drive, t he Multivan might not have t he trafficstopping charm of t he ID Buzz, but it ’s not far off. The Multivan can be traced a ll t he way back to t he Type 2, wit h which t he beach lifest yle came as standard equipment.

So it was to t he beach we went on a warm weekend in May. We took out a sma ll loan to park at West Wit tering for t he day and had a blissful time living t he dream.

The Multivan we had came wit h seven seats, each adjustable on sliding rails running up t he floor, or removable entirely We took t he middle row out, ma k ing it a four-

seater wit h a quite a bsurd amount of space bet ween t he front chairs and t he t wo remaining at t he back In t his space we put t he dog’s bed, where she had a snooze, and we slid t he centre console/picnic table/ Swiss Army knife-st yle storage a ll t he way from t he front to t he back, where we enjoyed a picnic and a cup of tea. Then we read books, had a snooze and strolled on t he beach.

We’re semi-regulars at West Wit tering but never spend more t han a couple of hours t here before t he dog gets tired, and t here’s nowhere rea lly to rest out of t he elements. A cup of tea on t he dashboard of a Renault Zoe isn’t quite t he same.

Not so in t he Multivan It is t hat most wonderf ul t hing: an ena bler and enhancer of ot her experiences It ’s ama zing how different an experience just t he right k ind of four wheels and engine can give you

M A R K T I S S H A W

My entr y into

Volkswagen ID

H a v i n g s o m u c h b a t te r y ra n g e s t r i ke s m e a s o n e of t h e c ro w n i n g a c h i e v e m e n ts

F E R R A R I 2 9 6 G T B

W hen automotive historians look back on t he supercar boom we’ve enjoyed in t he past decade, McLaren’s role will be seen as pivota l. Not only by adding a nag to what had long been a t wohorse race bet ween Lamborghini and Ferrari, but a lso by forcing t he Ita lians to up t heir game No more so t han wit h t he Ferrari 296 GTB.

To ca ll t he 296 a technica l tour de force would be selling it shor t This is a plug-in hybrid supercar packed w it h act ive systems t hat in lesser cars often diminish t he dynamic experience: electrica lly assisted steer, bra ke by w ire, active aero and driver-flat tering sta bilit y aids including Ferrari’s Side Slip Control. Plus t he considera ble complication of blending t he assistance of a 163bhp a xia l flux motor wit h t he 654bhp of t he 3 0 t win-turbo V6

Yet Ferrari has made it look easy The 296 GTB is not just savagely fast – a claimed 1 5sec quicker around t he Fiorano test track t han

t he lighter F8 Tributo – but it a lso feels incredibly natura l even at its toweringly high limits On t he car ’s launch, development driver Raffaele de Simone insisted we should experience t he car on track in its ultra-permissive Traction Control Off mode, proving it was no harder to drift t han a Ma zda MX-5.

Yet t he GTB is most impressive under less intensive conditions

The electric power steering has t he chat t y off-centre feel of hydraulic assistance but wit hout k ick ing back over rougher surfaces, and t he electrica lly boosted bra kes feel similarly natura l It wears its cleverness incredibly light ly.

There are still some characterenhancing flaws Ferrari’s new user interface is perplexing and hard to operate, and t he determination to put so many controls on t he steering wheel means t here is no room left Yet overa ll, t he 296 GTB feels like an exemplar for t he plugin hybrid supercar generation and a brilliant ly synt hesised ana logue experience for a digita l age.

H O N DA C I V I C

It would be prematurely sensationa list to say hatchbacks are a dying breed Yet, bet ween Ford canning t he Focus and t he inevita ble canniba lisation wit h SUVs, t he good ol’ hatch is having to fight its corner like never before.

Excellent news, t hen, t hat Honda’s 11t h-generation Civic, which arrived t his year, is fighting t hat corner remarkably well

The Civic has had its ups and downs, but t his latest model shows t he best of Honda engineering It is, unsurprisingly, electrified, but in t he subt lest way, driven by a 181bhp electric motor whose energ y is generated by a 2.0 -litre petrol engine in a roundabout way The outcome of t his fairly powerful motor is t hat t he engine is tota lly

disconnected from t he front wheels for t he majorit y of t he time

A ll of which means t he Civic is bloomin’ great to drive. It runs largely in electric mode, so it ’s ver y smoot h, and even when t he engine does k ick in or star t to drive t he wheels, you barely notice It ’s a lso a rea l delight to have a number of physica l but tons in t he cabin. In a world of increasingly touchscreencontrolled functions, to have simpleto-use heating and ventilation controls is a welcome pleasure

Most of a ll, t he new Civic reminds us why we a ll loved hatchbacks in t he first place: it ’s low, not too heav y and excellent on ever y t ype of road, but most enjoya bly on t he t w ist y

t ype Helped by accurate, nicely weighted steering and a great ride, it is t he ultimate a ll-rounder It leaves you wondering how SUVs became so popular in t he first place.

R A C H E L B U R G E S S

M I K E D U F F

M A T T P R I O R

I baulk at t he idea of cars having soul or persona lit y, but t he Super 3 has character even standing still

That ’s par t ly from t he design, at once traditiona l and space-age. At t he front are t hree a luminium castings wit h multiple purposes, helping ma ke t his trike compact and light but a lso beautiful They mount t he suspension and engine and deflect air to t he radiator but are a lso gracefully finished It ’s automotive engineering left exposed to become aest hetic. It goes on wit h t he switchgear, wind deflectors, stressed body work and t hose turbofan wheels.

Driving t he Super 3 sea ls its place as t he most charming car of 2022. Not objectively t he best, not t he fastest, t he best va lue, t he most luxurious or t he most

comfor ta ble But it ’s t he vehicle t hat ’s made me smile t he widest.

Its t hree-cylinder Ford engine rasps away in ha lf-a-Porsche st yle, t he rear wheel sending a ll 635kg down t he road wit h an entirely adequate turn of pace The steering can chase cambers, but t he Morgan feels a live and a ler t, its gearshift precise, t he bra kes firm and progressive.

It ’s fantastic to meet a vehicle t hat decides what a driver rea lly needs is to hold on to a beautiful piece of engineering as it nibbles a long a B-road, where it brings a lit t le understeer on t he way into a corner and a nudge of oversteer on t he way out, a ll wit h a speedo number star ting wit h an unt hreatening ‘2’ or, gosh, a ‘3’

So many cars score on measura ble qua lities, so it ’s lovely to find one t hat t hrives in t he rea lm of t he immeasura ble.

AUTOCA R AO K E

From favourite cars to favourite songs , we asked our staffers what’s their top automotive tune and why You can even listen to the playlist on Spotify. Click the QR code for more

R A D I O H E A D –

K I L L E R C A R S 1998

This three-minute public ser vice announcement about the dangers of driving complacency rings true even as NCAP-friendly modern cars do their best to avoid all accidents . Check your tyre pressure, make sure your lights work and put your seatbelt on. FP

J A N & D E A ND E A D M A N ’ S C U R V E 1964

This evocative, tyre-squealing ear worm about a street race gone wrong is my favourite from this Californian duo’s impressive catalogue of car songs . It’s ironic that the car that fails to make the titular cur ve is the Jaguar E-Type (sorr y, ‘XKE’) and the Chevrolet Cor vette somehow emerges unscathed AC

F R A N K O C E A NW H I T E F E R R A R I 2016

This song is for contemplative late-night drives rather than top-down summer thrills . It plays on themes around the sincerity, value and desirability of love –all of which apply to any Ferrari JW

K I A E V6 G T

There remains a faction of t he ent husiast sphere t hat is confused by – if not opposed to – t he performance EV.

They argue t here’s lit t le noise, t he flat acceleration cur ve does away wit h character and even sma ller ones are lia ble to weigh more t han 2000kg But t he louder shouting comes from t hose who question, reasona bly so, why we need ‘hot ’ versions of cars a lready capa ble of scintillating straight-line pace.

The Kia EV6 GT-Line S AWD I nominated t his time last year has 321bhp and hits 62mph in just 5 2sec So why would you buy an EV6 wit h an ex tra 255bhp and t he 0 - 62mph time of a Caterham 620S? One wit h an electronica lly controlled limited-slip diff, Michelin Pilot 4 S t yres, fearsome bra kes and a Drift mode?

Earlier t his year, t he EV6 GT came a close t hird in Autocar ’s inaugura l ‘EV Handling Day ’ contest, snapping at t he taillights of t he BMW i4 eDrive40 and Porsche Taycan GTS, bot h of which have rewrit ten t he rulebook on zero-emission

driving fun. That t he Kia can hold a candle to t he dynamic prowess of a five-star Porsche costing t wice as much is testament to t he ma keover at t he hands of Kia’s GT depar tment

The Kia was just as compelling when I took it on a t hree-day lap of Nor way earlier t his year The stunning, smoot h switchbacks nor t h of Oslo gave scope to deploy its bruta l shove bet ween corners, while its unflappa ble turn-in and refusa l to brea k trajector y midbend made rapid and rewarding work of even t he tightest passes.

That t he EV6 GT can do a ll t hat yet cruise at 70mph for 250 miles or so, charge as rapidly as any EV on sa le and has t he space, connectivit y and comfor t of a Skoda Kodiaq is cause for ex tra celebration.

T A Y L O R S W I F TG E T A W A Y C A R 2017

A standout track from Swift’s sixth album , Getaway Car is a construction of pop perfection, telling a Bonnie and Clyde-esque stor y of love, loss and betrayal G P

A D A M A N D T H E A N T SC A R T R O U B L E 1980

As this track appeared at about the same time as I started my driving career, often at the wheel of various old Alfa Romeos , I can’t quite shake it from my mind M Pe

R A S C A L F L A T T S –

L I F E I S A H I G H W

A Y 2006

Originally a hit for Tom Cochrane in 199 1 , this song was given new life by the Rascal Flatts (and the Pixar film Cars)

It’s simply a must-have tune for any road trip, whether you’re hightailing it on Route 66 or cruising on the M4 OY

T H E B E A C H B O Y S -

L I T T L E D E U C E C O U P E 1963

Little known fact: Spandau Ballet’s True was about wheel alignment and A-ha’s Hunting High and Low was written in frustration over a carburettor problem Which leaves Little Deuce Coupe as the one car-related song that makes me smile. And sing, but only to myself M Pr

R O X Y M U S I C - O H Y E A H 1980

This fine pop drama makes me happy and sad at the same time from the moment its gentle opening chords chime It is at heart a romance, and it has a start, middle and end inside three minutes . I dare any driver to deny the poignancy as they remember their own fated, lost-love journeys . TE

F E L I X P A G E

E-Type sadly came before Radiohead’s advice

That top 1 0 above makes you feel sorr y for those car brands that don’t capture a songwriter’s imagination, doesn’t it? So we had a look around for lyrics referencing the (ahem) unsung heroes of the motoring world. Here’s what we found

B T S - M A C I T Y 2015

“I put a Kia in gear and turn it on, bounce like crazy.”

Young Pearson seen with his fingers crossed

1979

From the band’s excellent third album , this harks back to their punk roots . A cover of a 1959 song by Vince Taylor, it’s about the singer’s girlfriend suddenly pulling up in a new Cadillac – and promptly leaving him The guitar sounds are dirty, the drums are properly foottapping and the lyrics are hilarious . I’m eagerly awaiting the day when I can use “Jesus Christ, where’d you get that Cadillac?” in context J H

O O K

S O U L L I M B O 1968

Sorr y, who? What? You’re probably asking that. But hear the first second of this song and you will know exactly what it is: the Test Match Special theme tune This is a bit of a cheat here, but hearing this song means that the journey will be aurally ver y pleasing indeed MT

2018

It’s sacrilegious to call Hot Wheels music in earnest compared with any thing else on this playlist, but few tunes get my heart going with such ease Just don’t play it too loudly at a drive-through, else be thought of as the typical just-passed, spotty-faced hooligan behind the wheel of their mum’s hatchback . CM

the Canning Highway, a stretch of road in Australia that the late AC/DC lead singer, Bon Scott, would travel down in the late 1970 s to reach popular rock ’n’ roll hotel Raffles . S P

T R A C Y C H A P M A NF A S T C A R 1988

It’s the mix of the emotions that always gets me in this song She starts off slightly morose but then builds to the more upbeat notes in the chorus It’s uplifting and calming, just how I like my journeys . Driving is my thinking time, and to put this song on is to drift away, concentrating but not concentrating. PW

S T O R N O W A Y - F U E L U P 2010

Not their finest work (lyrics banal) but about a Chev y from the early muscle car era, which I remember well The capacities of Detroit V8s in ‘cubes’ became important car lingo It speaks of a carefree time when nobody even knew what ‘sustainability’ meant. SC

This jolly tune is comical and reminds me of more innocent times as a kid in the back of my dad’s Ford Orion. SO

E L V I

E R I C C H U R C H -

T A L L A D E G A 2014

It’s a countr y song about a road trip to watch stock cars at Talladega that contains lyrics such as “like those cars my thoughts roll over and over” You’re expecting the musical equivalent of Talladega Nights now, right? Wrong: sadly, this is an insipid and serious ballad that somehow fails to buckle under the weight of its po-faced ridiculousness . JA

G A R Y N U M A N - C A R S 1979

I’m fairly convinced this song is the reason my love for cars is so pathetically large I can remember listening to it ever y time I was in the car with my dad, driving back from some earthy car auction or ill-begotten motorsport event in the far reaches of the Scottish countr yside As you can imagine, the weather was bleak , but this song was blaring J B r y

A C / D C - H I G H W A Y T O H E L L 1979

This iconic rock hit is a must-have on any road trip playlist. From the simple three-chord opening riff to the head-bopping drum accompaniment, Highway to Hell successfully showcases the ‘less is more’ formula Fun fact: Highway to Hell is the nickname given to

This lovely modern-folk ballad details how cars move through our lives with us , from being curled up on the back seat as a child, to being the driver excitedly heading to meet your first love, to rekindling old friendships when visiting your hometown many years later as an adult KC

K R A F T W E R KA U T O B A H N 1974

I love the chaotic optimism of this 2 2-minute epic The music is meant to capture the soundscape and simple freedom of driving between Cologne and Bonn on the A555, and while it’s aptly hypnotic, there’s also so much going on in the details It’s just a joyful, intricate track , and while you can obviously listen to it any where, there’s something a bit spiritual about blasting it out while driving down an actual autobahn, no matter how fast or slow you’re going Be warned, though: the main refrain has to be one of the most effective ear worms ever recorded. RL

with

about the

looming

like a beehive”,

K I N G S O F T H E R O L L E R S –H O T W H E E L S

T H E C L A S H - B R A N D N E W C A D I L L A C

B

E R T A N D T H E M G s –

T H E B E A C H B O Y S - 4 0 9 1962

M A D N E S S – D R I V I N G

I N M Y C A R 1982

Somehow this inspired a melancholic ballad

You don’t want to see your girl pull up in this…

Ihate cars To be specific, I hate my cars. The ones I chose to own So far, 2022 has turned out to be my automotive horribilis.

Let ’s star t wit h t he Lorr y – a Series 3 Land Rover – which on t he whole is pret t y well behaved. However, back in Januar y, when it was a bit chilly and dark, I noticed t hat t he bat ter y wasn’t keeping its charge for long It is fair to assume t hat t he origina l 1984 a lternator had had enough Incredibly, I ordered a replacement, put on my overa lls, got out my socket set and heaved open t he bonnet One nil to me

Nex t up was a set of t yres for t he Ba by Shark, or BMW 320 to its ma ker. It deser ved t hem, after a ll, and we had to drive to t he Autocar Awards at Silverstone.

In May, I popped t he Mini Cooper in for a quick MOT Apar t from t he bra ke switch light, I didn’t t hink t here was much to delay its return, except t hat t he front suspension had collapsed. The cone springs had given up, so new cones were ordered However, a massive complication was a historica l bodge where someone had secured t he ba ll pin wit h an incorrect bolt and retainer, which had t hen seized solid and needed to be cut off That

meant ordering a new set of Hi Lo adjustable suspension par ts. A mont h later, I had t he MOT. Just in time to do a few hundred miles wit hout fur t her incident.

Then in August, I had a long journey to do on beha lf of Autocar, to t he West Countr y, and I decided to ma ke t he trip in t he late-1970s comfor t of t he Baby Shark. On t he return leg, while paused at some ser vices in Cambridgeshire, t he Bavarian failed to star t. I tried my best, but it seemed like fuel wasn’t get ting to t he carb, so I gave up. A ’60s Mustang-owning patrolman dug deep, but t he Shark didn’t fire up

We were rescued, t hen handed over to recover y team number t wo in t he early hours and fina lly unloaded at my garage at 4am, pret t y much 24 hours after t he journey had begun

Solex carburet tors are terrible t hings. The Ba by Shark ’s automatic choke was not entirely complete

Not so Innocenti: it needs a new fuel pump

Bu y i n g a nd r u n n i n g c heap s e c ond -h a nd c a r s i sn’t a l way s pla i n s a i l i n g. Ja mes R upp er t re p or t s on t he ot her side of t he Ba n ger nom ic s c oi n a s he c on siders a sh a ke -up of h i s (onc e) c her i she d fle et PHOTO GR A PH Y JA M E S M A N N

and gummed up I bought a rebuild k it for £95, which basica lly looked like bits of cork in a bag Any way, t here were not enough bits of cork, and luck ily I had a spare Weber carburet tor t hat I persuaded my garage to fit By now it was October and t he Flying Pig – a Porsche Cayenne – needed an MOT and ser vice, so I dropped t hat off and picked up t he Ba by Shark, which didn’t have a choke fit ted Big mista ke Wit h a fresh MOT, t he Flying Pig was back in ser vice as Mrs Bangernomics’ daily driver until, t hat is, it seized solid in a supermarket car park Wit h a

A b a t te r y t h e s i ze a n d p r i c e of a s m a l l te r ra c e d h o u s e w o ke t h e F l y i n g P i g

‘steering fault ’ show ing, it would not go into gear or star t. And neit her would t he Ba by Shark, which was a shame, since t his was t he designated rescue vehicle. Actua lly, you hand-prime t he carb using t he t hrot t le return lever, but in a ll it ta kes a good 10 minutes to fire consistent ly, t hen you have to rev it to infinit y until t he engine is slight ly warm. Only t hen might it decide to run I swapped cars and waited for t he rescue ser vices.

Severa l hours later, t he Cayenne could not be dragged onto a truck and ex tra assistance was required. I don’t know what t hey did, because after four hours I had to be somewhere else. Later, we had to use t he Mini to go out t hat evening A bat ter y t he size and price of a sma ll terraced house woke t he Flying Pig I took t he Lorr y to t he garage because it needed an MOT

and t he bra kes were pulling to t he nearside. Two days later, t he warning light popped up on t he Pig’s dash again. I spoke to AMS Porsche and t he ver y helpful boss Angus Archer, who said it might be t he steering column, which is £1200, plus fit ting and reset ting, but even t hat might not be t he cure

To cheer myself up, I took t he Ita lian Job Innocenti for a spin –except I didn’t The fuel pump had broken. I decide to replace it, but it looks like an engine-out job

Nex t, a phone ca ll from t he garage about t he Lorr y, to say t he bra kes are shot. Par ts ordered, but bra ke fluid has lea ked into t he rear diff

I fire up t he Mini Cooper to go and buy a replacement for t he Flying Pig There’s a downpour After five miles, t he wipers pack up. I return home to get t he Baby Shark, which only agrees to star t after some serious persuasion.

This is why I hate a ll of my cars L

The Flying Pig is a relatively easy fix: replace it. First I have to sell it, so there’s much ringing around scrappers and ‘ we buy any shed’type operations before I get a sort of okay offer It covers the full ser vice and that batter y – worth its weight in gold – and gives me some small change SORN’d and waiting for the scrapper. You may be able to spot its Japanese replacement

The Baby Shark is getting a choke and has a new MOT, but sadly I will sell it It didn’t work well enough for Mrs Bangernomics I have plans to buy a newer BMW, from 1999 or something

The Mini Cooper needs a new windscreen wiper motor, so I’ll spend even more time online buying car parts

The Italian Job is another ‘ fix it and sell it’, I’m afraid I just don’t use it enough any more I love it to bits , though, especially the fact that no one knows what it is

I’m still waiting to get the Land Rover back with a full MOT, then it will continue as normal shifting stuff and just being a Lorr y

Carb

Ruppert has fallen out of love with his 1979 BMW 320

woes have caused starting issues

Mini’s windscreen wiper motor has failed

Stick or twist? Ruppert’s fleet of cars could soon look quite different

D

N

Ro

Ro

D

St a f f w r t e r Jack Warrick

E d t o r i a l ass i s t a n t Charlie Mar tin

E d i t o r i a l a p p r e n t i c e Jonathan Br yce Us e d c a r s e d i t o r Mark Pearson C h i e f s u b - e d i t o r Kris Culmer

G r o u p a r t e d i t o r Stephen Hopk ns A r t e d i t o r Sarah Özgül

S e n i o r p h o t o g ra p h e r Luc Lacey Ph o t o g ra p h e r Max Ed eston

Pi c t u r e e d i t o r Ben Summerel -Youde V d e o g ra p h e r Jack Harrison S o c i a l m e d i a exe c u t i ve Georgia Patmore

E D I T O R I A L C O N T R I B U T O R S Eu r o p e a n e d i t o r Gre g Kable B u s i n ess c o r r es p o n d e n t N ck G bbs

Us e d c a r c o r r es p o n d e n t James Rupp er t S e n i o r c o n t r i b u t i n g w r i t e r Andrew Frankel S e n i o r c o n t r i b u t i n g e d i t o r Richard Bremner C o n t r i b u t n g e d i t o r Mike Duf f M o t o r s p o r t e d i t o r Damien Sm th S e n i o r c o ns u l t n g e d i t o r Tom Evans

S p e ci

i l auto car @haymarket com

E d i t o r Mark Tisshaw

E d i t o r i a l d i r e c t o r, Automot ive Jim Holder

E d i t o r - i n - ch i e f Steve Cropley

M a g a z i n e e d i t o r Rachel Burgess

A ss o ci a t e e d i t o r P ers Ward M a n a g i n g e d i t o r Sami Shah

E d i t o r - a t - l a r g e Mat t Prior

a d t est e d i t o r Mat t Saunders

e p u t y r o a d t es t e d i t o r Richard Lane

a d t est e r Illya Verpraet

ews a n d f e a t u r es e d i t o r Felix Page

e p u t y n ews e d i t o r Wi Rime

While our road testers were en joying Mazda’s latest rotar y-engined sports car, the 1 85bhp RX-7, our news team was scooping the Japanese firm’s next project

Being prepared to steal the thunder of the forthcoming M1 0 0 Lotus Elan and Australian-built Ford Capri, the MX-5 would be a lightweight, affordable, cute little roadster with a modest 120 bhp engine at the front to drive the rear axle

“What Mazda is desperate to do,” one industr y obser ver told us , “is recreate the classic English roadster. It has bought cars like the MGB , Triumph Spitfire and Lotus Elan and pulled them apart in a bid to define their appeal and their shortcomings It now thinks it knows exactly what makes this kind of car tick ”

“The MX-5’s credentials seem good,” we commented. “It has been kept as simple as possible The only thing electric about it is the ignition system . A turbocharger was ruled out because, one source claimed, it spoiled the sound of the exhaust

“Our [spy] photographs show a car with undeniable good looks , and indeed its styling is the cause of much celebration within Mazda.”

The Capri was a flop and Lotus sold fewer than 50 0 0 Elans , but the MX-5? It’s by far the biggestselling sports car ever and revered still, now in its fourth generation.

So successful was musician Giorgio Moroder in the 198 0 s that he could afford a Lamborghini Countach, and the specialist who ser viced it for him happened to be a former Sant’Agata engineer who dreamed of creating his own supercar He gathered some old colleagues , con joined two Lambo V8s and a few years later the CizetaMoroder V 1 6T was unveiled It would be the first V 1 6 road car since the 193 0 s and histor y’s sole bearer of double-stacked pop-up headlights It had a 0 - 62mph time of just 4sec and a top speed of 20 4mph, but it cost $650,0 0 0 in a global recession, so just 12 were made from 199 1 to 1999.

Bringing such a crazy idea to fruition cost a lot of money, but it certainly repaid itself it in publicity value Yes , JCB , the definitive manufacturer of backhoe loaders , decided to turn one of its yellow machines into a drag racer, having it fitted with a 1 0 0 0 bhp supercharged 7 4-litre Chevrolet V8 It therefore could have embarrassed some sports cars , but that wasn’t the point: instead it had 9 0% of its 3250 kg weight over its rear axle so that it could pull monster wheelies . As for handling characteristics or ride quality? Forget about it

A L P I N E A110

The darling of road testers is a delight to drive, but is it rounded enough to live with?

To see if one of the world’s best driver’s cars can also prove sufficiently easy to live with for it still to make sense

Can it rea lly be five years since we first saw it? Ha lf a decade since I first sat in an A lpine A110 and knew t hat today was going to be a different day before I was even out of t he car park? It seems it can

It ’s fair to say t he A110 has not exact ly tumbled out of t he showrooms in t hat time, despite as rapturous a reception in t he motoring media as enjoyed by any new car t hat I can remember Turns out t hat when t he choice is bet ween t he most exquisite, ba lanced

handling from a car designed to be as light and responsive as possible, or one wit h a posh badge on t he nose, most people would rat her have t he Porsche

As a t hing to drive, it is t heir loss. I’m a huge Cayman fan, but you’ll only get t he base model wit h its unlovely flat-four engine for t his money, and while it ’s more powerful, by t he time its additiona l quar ter tonne of avoirdupois is factored in, t he t wo cars’ respective power to weight ratios are as near as ma kes no difference. And t he A lpine is sma ller and more delicate and just plain fun to drive

But as a t hing to live wit h? That ’s what t he nex t six mont hs are a bout So don’t expect me to spend t hat time gushing relent lessly over its on-limit handling or t he deftness

of its damping. There’ll be some of t hat, I’m sure, but what I rea lly want to find out is whet her an A110 works not just in t heor y and in t he road testers’ fantasy rea lm of mountain passes and race tracks, but here in t he rea l world. I hope to have many great drives in it, but I know a lready I’ll have many bloody awful ones, too, sit ting in heav y traffic, or simply tedious ones droning down t he motor way, because t hat ’s life How will such a tight ly focused car fare? If it does well, it will prove you rea lly don’t need to compromise your driving pleasure; if it doesn’t, t he A110 will go down as a wonderful idea t hat works far bet ter in t heor y t han in practice

The car came to us in base spec, which used to be ca lled ‘Pure’ but now, post its facelift t his spring

As the owner of an A11 0 of similar spec but a year older, I’m pretty sure Andrew’s going to find a lot of ‘living with’ positives , certainly as regards comfort and easy cabin access The curiosity will be the car’s durability Andrew does big miles , so I’ll be interested to see how he fares My experience has been good , so far SC

(which was scarcely a facelift at a ll), has no fur t her nomenclature beyond ‘A110’ The options spend was modest (see box right), at around 4% of t he purchase price, but had it been me tick ing t he boxes, I’d have dispensed wit h t hem a ll save t he park ing sensors

S E C O N D O P I N I O N

F I R S T R E P O R T

W H Y W E ’ R E R U N N I N G I T

H

F O R D M U S TA N G M A C H - E

Fixed-back standard seats might compromise long-distance comfort

W hat would I have chosen instead? Perhaps Thunder Grey paint in place of A lpine Blue, but t hat ’s about it No need for t he big bra kes on an 1100kg car, and not even I am sufficient ly nerdy to crave t he opt iona l telemat ics pack, which can tell me t he steering wheel angle I’m fairly sure I can see for myself I would love t he slim panniers t hat fit down t he sides of t he seat as somewhere to store stuff in t he ca bin because t here’s precious lit t le room elsewhere, but t hey don’t seem to be available any more A mate who had t hem on his prefacelift car said t hey were a gamechanger And t he jur y is out on t he comfor t pack: I’d quite like t he spea ker upgrade it brings, but it ’s t he comfor t seats wit h adjusta ble backs I’d covet most. The standard buckets, which only slide to and fro, may prove restrictive on long runs The only slight ly odd t hing about t he specification are t he standard Michelin Pilot Spor t 4 t yres. They ’re good enough boots for sure, but t he nex t one up t he range, t he Pilot Spor t 4 S, is t he best a ll-round performance t yre I know, and I’ve tried t hem on cars as diverse as a Ford Focus ST and a Ferrari 296 GTB. There’s no way I can afford a set to tr y out for myself, but after winter, and if Renault and Michelin are happy, I’d be rea lly interested to see what t hey brought

to t he par t y. They are not an origina l equipment t yre for t he A110 – t hough strangely t he far more ex treme track-focused Michelin Pilot Spor t Cup 2 is –but in t heor y at least t hey should be perfect.

For now, I’m just look ing for ward to get ting to know t he A lpine a lit t le bet ter, which shouldn’t ta ke long Regulars will remember I’ve just got out of a Mercedes S-Class, whose w idgets and gadgets were still surprising me six mont hs in Technologica lly, t he A110 is an abacus by comparison

And t hat ’s just fine W hen people ask me what I like most in a car, t he answer is ver y simple: it is to know what it is for And it rea lly doesn’t mat ter whet her it ’s a Caterham Seven, a Rolls-Royce Phantom or an origina l Mini you’re ta lk ing about It ’s what I liked so much about t he S-Class and what I hope to feel a bout t he A110. Eit her way, I’m look ing for ward to finding out.

C U P R A B O R N

Life with an EV should get a lot easier now there’s somewhere to charge it

M I L E A G E 74 3 2

To see whether the Cupra is a new EV contender or just a gussied-up V W ID 3

Five mont hs into EV ownership, and fina lly I can charge it at home And it is truly transformationa l No more is t here t he pre-depar ture stress of searching for a top-up charge, and I can head home wit h only a few miles of range left, knowing I can plug it in as soon as I get back

After a bit of shopping around, I found EVIOS, which promises easyto-use but sophisticated charging functiona lit y at home, for a sensible price. Insta llation is included in t he price, but wit h my home not being in t he first flush of yout h, I t hought it might be pr udent to get a site sur vey done first That cost £200, ha lf of which is refunded if you go a head w it h your order Engineer Davide reckoned it could be done for t he standard fee and recommended t hat w it h my preferred, slight ly concea led location, a 7 5m rat her t han 5m ca ble might be prudent.

Ordering was a doddle – as easy as shopping on Ama zon I went on to myevios.com, selected a One Charge Point single-phase 7kW

F E E L I N G H O T , H O T , H O T

As winter sets in , I’m grateful for the Cupra’s heated seats , but the heated steering wheel is a treat L

C H I L LY I N T H E B A C K

While those in the front are nice and cosy, the kids have been moaning about the lack of warm-air outlets in the rear

charger (£1195) wit h a 7.5m ca ble upgrade (£45) and checked out Wit hin a few days my unit arrived and Davide was back wit h colleague Colin to insta ll it

They did a brilliant job, routing t he cabling beneat h t he floor to leave t he house look ing as if t hey had never been, t hen running me t hrough t he app t hat controls and monitors t he charger Neat features include a colour screen on t he unit, which can be integrated wit h solar panels (if I had t hem), and by telling it what car is being charged and your electricit y supplier ’s tariff, it can estimate t he miles added and t he cost. And it ’s PIN-controlled, so I can let up to six friends use it w it h t heir own codes, t hen tell t hem how much t hey owe me after wards. A ll of which is so simple t hat even I can operate it.

The only drawback is t hat, because it has a tet hered ca ble, you’re restricted to one t ype of plug – CCS in t his case, so my sister can’t charge her Nissan Leaf wit h its Chademo socket. But wit h most car ma kers (even Nissan, w it h its new Ariya) opting for CCS, it shouldn’t be too much of an issue. I’m revelling in t he peace of mind it brings – not least because t he cooler weat her has hit t he Born’s consumption, now down to a more disappointing 3.4mpkW h average.

ALASTAIR CLEMENTS

ANDREW FRANKEL

W H Y W E ’ R E R U N N I N G I T

O A T H E I T

L O V E I T

B o t h c a r s g e t u n d e r y o u r s k i n . T h e Ty p e R i s b l o o d y g o o d , t h e h y b r i d i s j u s t e f f o r t l e s s

H O N D A C I V I C

any of Honda’s Type R magic found its way into the latest hybrid hatch?

produced over t he decades.

To see if Honda can save the ever yday family hatchback

et ’s ma ke t his ba by fly!”

There are t wo t hings you can learn from t his neat summar y from my six-year-old The first is t hat his parents are clearly terrible at t heir roles, let ting him watch too many American car toons

The second is t hat not hing gets a child excited quite as much as a massive rear wing on a car, helped in t his case by t he t hree “rocket boosters” (a ka exhausts) at t he back The vehicle in question is t he previous-generation Honda Civic Type R, one of t he finest hot hatches ever built and a high-water mark for Honda, even among a ll t he brilliant machiner y t hat t he company has

But why look at it now? Well, we’ve been pret t y evangelica l in t hese pages about t he excellence of t he current Civic, par ticularly wit h regard to t he way it drives, so I wanted to see how it compares to its ancestra l forebear: has some of t he previous Type R’s fair y dust made its way into my car?

It ’s wor t h pointing out t he vagaries of maga zine deadlines, par ticularly at t his time of year. I would have loved to have tested t he a ll-new Type R against my Civic, but sadly t hat wasn’t possible wit hin t he time frames we had because t he latest version had yet to arrive on t hese shores.

We should star t out by praising Honda for even building t his Type R in t he first place. Granted, when t he FK8-generation Type R was launched in 2017, t here were still some riva ls k ick ing around – t he

Ford Focus RS and Renault Mégane RS to name but t wo But a lot of manufacturers have since deser ted t he hot hatch arena, instead concentrating on SUV sa les and electrification Only a few remain to mercifully buck t he trend.

That rea lly is a shame, as demonstrated by just a 10 -minute drive in t his car. Shor t of an Ariel Atom, t he hot hatch is probably t he finest way to feel a live in a car: wit h a manua l gearbox, shor t wheelbase and sharp suspension, t he vagueness of modern cars remains delightfully absent.

Middle-ground Spor t mode is t he best way to drive t his Type R, because it tightens up t he t hrot t le response but leaves t he damping on t he acceptable side of firm. I’ve got a great test route near me wit h some wicked off-camber bends and t he k ind of lumps and bumps t hat sor t good suspension from average I

Type R’s manual ’box adds engagement

tried t his in Type R mode but it was too much. Maybe it ’s my age, but t he car felt sk it tish and flight y; Spor t just rounded t he edges off a bit and made t he car more driva ble

There are a lso a couple of evil crests a long t his road t hat poorly damped cars rea lly struggle wit h But t he rebound on bot h Civics over t hese is superb: in bot h t he Type R and t he later hybrid, you can feel t he weight come out of t he t yre as t he aspha lt drops away, but t he control in t hat drop is incredible It ma kes for a smoot h, confidenceinspiring experience.

Some cars bang horribly over t hese crests, wit h noisy suspension upset ting t he body and occupants. But not in eit her of t hese Hondas Instead, t hey get on wit h flowing down t he road wit h a composure

t hat surpr ises and, in t he case of t he Type R, belies t he looks.

Bot h cars get under your sk in: t he Type R simply because it ’s a bloody good hot hatch t hat demands to be driven, t he hybrid because it ’s just effor t less I haven’t yet decided why I like driving t he hybrid so much: whet her it ’s because it ’s a good car in its own right, or because it ’s not an SUV, or an EV t hat weighs 600kg more t han it ot her wise would

But enjoyable it remains, even on t he commute down t he M1 and M25 Weirdly, doing t hat same journey in t he Type R rea lly surprised me. Years ago, I ran a Mégane RS and, brilliant t hough it was, it did get a fraction fractious on a boring road. The FK8 Type R manages to avoid t his, par t ly t hanks to its adaptive dampers (Comfor t mode is at least an at tempt

at get ting some maturit y into t he suspension), but it ’s a lso because t he exhaust and road noise don’t ‘boom’ like some hot hatches can

I did 480 miles of motor way driving over t wo days, and for t he lat ter of t hose t wo I could easily have ta ken t he hybrid Civic. The fact I didn’t tells you what you need to know a bout t he FK8.

It ’s hear tening to see. Not only can Honda build a hot hatch t hat remains brilliant five years after its launch, but it can a lso sprink le some of t hat engineering integrit y onto its norma l cars. The Japanese firm has a lways been capable of brilliance, but it ’s been sporadic at times Here’s hoping t hese t wo Civics show t here’s some consistency developing

Another week , another sensor failure warning There are so many coming and going now, I’m starting to wonder if it’s not the Mach-E that’s to blame but rather the onset of winter and mucky roads that throw up the grime that covers the various detection systems If so, it does make you wonder how anyone thinks the autonomous car will ever be realistically possible J H

In the freezing and stormy weather we’ve been enduring lately, I’ve been extremely grateful for the umbrella hidden inside a special hole in the Fabia’s driver’s door – a ‘Simply Clever’ feature that I also en joyed on the previous generation So handy is it, with its telescopic shaft, that I even put it in my hand luggage for a recent trip to Amsterdam KC

I’ve always hailed Mazda’s aversion to the touchscreen, and there’s a special sense of satisfaction to be gleaned from a fingerprint-free dash, but sometimes its rotar y dial frustrates Switching between CarPlay and the Mazda interface is fiddly, for example, and spelling out addresses using the linear keyboard takes up loads of time FP

PIERS WARD

Type R is surprisingly usable day to day

The 2.0-litre four-pots in these two Civics perform different roles

Both cars showed immense composure on tricky local roads

I t e n d t o r e c o m m e n d p e t r o l s t h e s e d a y s

All 695s from 20 1 8 onwards have 178bhp – the standard car, the Turismo, the Competizione and the Tributo 13 1 Rally special edition

The basic 595 gets sports seats and the Turismo has leather plus aluminium for the gearknob and pedals . The Competizione gets slim bucket seats , plus Alcantara and carbonfibre around the cabin

A 595 or 695 can do 4 0 mpg-plus if driven sensibly VED is £ 1 65 per year, unless it’s a pre-April 20 17 car, in which case it’s CO2 -based.

BA N G E R N O M I C S

The MOT is a funny old test It’s supposed to tell you if a vehicle is roadworthy, but it can’t possibly be 1 0 0% conclusive – or, it seems , consistent Incredibly, this is a safe and legal tyre. Not even worthy of a serious advisor y, depending on which testing station you talk to Be careful out there…

Only 139 0 were built, with white wheels , an aluminium bonnet and an ad justable spoiler, but it’s still not the rarest 695. The earliest examples are 202 1 cars , though, so they remain expensive The cheapest we found was £29, 395.

T h e B M W M 1 i s a c o v e t e d m a c h i n e, i m m o r t a l i s e d a s a r a c e r f o r t h e r o a d

BMW’s

The M1 is good for 270bhp, but early cars were unreliable

A n ex p e r t ’s v i e w

“It’s a BMW version of a Ferrari With a bit of luck , you’ve got the reliability of a BMW, but the rest of it is like a Ferrari of that era Having said that, the money that people are now paying for these cars is purely on the basis of investment, so make sure you know a detailed histor y of the car you’re buying ”

B u y e r b e wa r e…

G E N E R A L M A I N T E N A N C E

No two M1s are the same, so ensure the car has a full ser vice histor y from a specialist or approved dealership Make sure you know the car’s histor y and if there are any faults with it Cars like this can be difficult to repair because spare parts normally have to be custom-made

E N G I N E

Such is the fate of most M1s as collector items that many will not have accrued enough mileage over the years to develop common faults However, it may have been sitting for a long time, so make sure the engine isn’t going to seize as soon as you tr y to fire it up.

S T E E R I N G

This was BMW ’s first rack and pinion steering set-up, so ensure the steering turns smoothly, especially at slower speeds . If not, it may not have been properly inspected

R U S T A N D R O T

Since all M1s are now around 4 0 years old, ensure it doesn’t have rust or rot leaching into the wiring looms Be extremely gentle when taking apart any fixtures and fittings , and ensure any replacement parts are specially ordered (see ‘Also worth knowing’)

L O G O

Some owners have found the ‘M1 ’ logo on their car is wrong. The three ‘M’ stripes were disproportionate in width and there was no space

between them and the ‘M’ logo itself. Verify with the dealership or previous owner that yours is the correct one

A ls o w o r t h k n o w i n g

BMW stopped manufacturing spares for the M1 in order to free up warehouse space, and many spares now have to be sourced from subcontractors in Germany or China

If you’re planning on driving your M1 ever y day, budget at least £50 0 0 per year for maintenance and ensure a full set of diagnostic checks is completed Some dealerships even recommend taking the car apart piece by piece to make sure ever y thing is as it should be

H o w m u c h t o s p e n d

£ 3 0 0 , 0 0 0 - £ 4 9 9 , 0 0 0

Higher-mileage restored examples , normally with 50,0 0 0 -1 0 0,0 0 0 miles , perhaps with added bodykits or spoilers . Prepare for incoming maintenance costs

£ 5 0 0 , 0 0 0 - £ 6 0 0 , 0 0 0

Mileages from 420 0 to 4 4 ,0 0 0, all restored examples with great variation in specs; some originals .

£ 6 0 0 , 0 0 0 A N D A B O V E

Ver y rare but usually original M1s with much of their life spent garaged With higher mileages at this price, ensure you aren’t being ripped off

O n e w e f o u n d

B M W M 1 , 1 9 7 9 , 4 4 , 0 0 0 M I L E S , £ 5 4 9 , 4 3 9

With an average mileage, this car has been used properly, so ensure it has had a full diagnostics check and comes with a maintenance histor y.

K E V I N B I R D , T E C H N I C A L D I R E C T O R , B I R D S B M W

The cabin is more understated than the exterior styling

A road test in any other magazine might well be a short, subjective summar y of a new car produced under almost any circumstances , but the Autocar road test is different Specific, rigorous and detailed, it’s the closest examination we can give of any new model. It appears over at least eight pages and is close to 50 man-hours in the making ever y week

Most of what the road test process entails is designed to be strictly repeatable and fair We benchmark standing-start and in-gear acceleration at a purpose-built test facility ever y week . We carr y out both subjective and objective handling tests on both road and track , on the latter up to and beyond the limit of grip, so as to fully assess stability, drivability and limit handling appeal And while benchmark lap times are sometimes taken, they’re never an end in themselves .

We record and publish stopping distances , too, as well as taking cabin noise measurements at various cruising speeds and benchmarking either indicated or brim-to-brim fuel economy We independently measure leg room , head room , boot space and certain key exterior vehicle dimensions , and we also weigh ever y car we test

Just as ever y new car is different, however, the road test has developed to be versatile enough, week by week , so as to best assess and reflect the suitability of each test subject to its intended purpose. It now includes modular sections describing in detail the limit handling of a new car, or its semi-autonomous assisted driving technologies or its off-road capability. All of this goes to bringing you the most thorough, relevant and fair test of a new car we can produce The scores from the most recent road tests reproduced here are the ones we gave the cars at the time so they don’t necessarily represent what those same cars might score today were they re judged using current class standards But you can dig deeper into their attributes by using the magazine publication dates listed here to look up an old test in your own collection or you can order a back issue by phoning 03 4 4 8 4 8 8 81 6 Matt Saunders, road test editor

The

S L I D E S H O W

The wonderful world of the microcar

n t he 1950s, ever yone wanted mobilit y in t he era of post-war austerit y. The answer was a glut of tiny vehicles, usua lly powered by t wo-cylinder engines and clot hed in glassfibre, which made sma ll-sca le production via ble Throughout t he ’50s t hese companies flourished, but when t he Mini appeared in 1959, t he end of t he market was nigh These are some of t he most famous.

P e e l P 5 0

Z ü n d a p p J a n u s

The smallest production car ever made was produced by the

The threewheeled P50, built between 1962 and 1965 when around 50 were made,

for 4 . 2hp and 37mph. There was no reverse gear. In 20 11 , it was revived: a

engine offering a heady 4 . 8bhp via a CV T but only

range, which in a normal EV would be

all over the world and

Ve s p a 4 0 0

Fr is k y

a 49cc

Dornier was banned from making planes after W W2 so turned to cars and made the Delta prototype It lost interest and sold the design to bike maker Zündapp, which built the Janus from 1957 to 1958 . This four-seater had its occupants facing in different directions and was powered by a two-stroke 245cc single, good for 14bhp and a vaguely terrifying 50 mph Almost 70 0 0 cars were produced in a year before time was called

Zündapp wasn’t the only motorcycle maker keen to get into building cars: Italy’s Vespa did the same thing, although its 4 0 0 was actually built by a firm called ACMA in France. Production ran from 1957 until 1961 , with all cars powered by a 14hp 393cc two-cylinder air-cooled engine When we tested it in 1959, we somehow coaxed it to 52mph Just over 3 0,0 0 0 were built before the future caught up with it

You’d buy one of these just for the name Well, we would. Initially built in Wolverhampton by Henr y Meadows , the Frisky came with an array of identities including the Friskysport, Coupé and Family Three, with production lasting from 1958 until 1961 Motive power was courtesy of various two-stroke engines , with either one cylinder or two, offering up to 1 8bhp and an impressive top speed of 60 mph

B M W I s e t t a

The Isetta began as a design from Italian firm Iso, starting in 1953 Germans desperately needed cheap transport and this led to BMW taking out a licence in 1955 and installing a 12bhp singlecylinder 247cc four-stroke motorcycle engine that gave a top speed of 50 mph or so. BMW built a remarkable 1 61 ,728 examples up to 1962 It helped the company to sur vive and go on to make somewhat larger and faster cars .

L i g h t b u r n Ze t a

In 1963 , Australian cement mixer and washing machine maker Lightburn branched out into affordable small cars The first product was the front-wheel-drive Zeta, with a 324 cc twocylinder Villiers engine Around 4 0 0 were made between 1963 and 1965, including a handful of Utility commercial editions that were sold to the Sydney city council The 196 4 Zeta Sports came with a 498cc two-stroke engine rated at 2 1bhp.

F M R T G 5 0 0

Like Dornier (and Heinkel), Messerschmitt turned to microcars , teaming up with established microcar builder Fritz Fend Messerschmitt’s first cars were three-wheelers , but in 1957 came the four-wheeled TG50 0, or Tiger Sold under the FMR brand, the 493cc 20 hp TG50 0 was capable of 78mph and many were raced Open and closed versions were offered, with around 450 built One was sold at auction in 20 13 for a cool £269,0 0 0.

Peel Engineering Company on the Isle of Man.

featured

DKW single-cylinder engine good

petrol version now has a 49cc Honda moped

28mph. The electric version is slightly less powerful and offers a 20 -mile

tiresome but not, we expect, in one of these Priced around £ 15,0 0 0, they have been exported

buyers reputedly include the famous ‘Rainbow Sheikh’ car collector based in Abu Dhabi.

R I C H A R D D R E D G E