Why wait

until 2030?
Electric VW vs Polestar vs Tesla
JANUARY 2021 I £4.99 ISSUE 702

IV E
LU S
E XC
New VW Golf R + Porsche’s lost concepts + Electric Giant Test: VW ID.3 vs Polestar vs Tesla

The most powerful Golf yet, thrashed like a rally car

JA N UA RY
2021
ISSUE 702
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P L U S

I I I
 56
Flat out in the new
GT3… before it’s
even finished

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Insider
8 BMW previews its next wave of EVs
11 Georg Kacher on the future of Mini
12 Secrets of McLaren’s plug-in hybrid
13 Subaru BRZ: not heading this way, slowly
14 Lewis Hamilton: best of the best
15 Stephan Winkelmann returns to Lamborghini
16 The new Qashqai and 70 years of Nissan 4x4s
18 Inquisition Lucid boss Peter Rawlinson
20 Time to strap on a German watch

18
From Lotus
and Jaguar
to Silicon
Valley
94 Porsche’s lost
concepts

Tech
22 Smart city research and how cars will fit in
25 AMG’s ingenious transmission mount
26 Does it work? Honda E’s big screens
146 Retro tech 80 years of off-road Porsches
104 VW’s ID.3 meets Tesla
and Polestar rivals

First drives 74 Maserati MC20

Can the all-new supercar really take on the
28 300-mile test VW Golf R: most powerful ever world’s best and save Maserati?
38 Toyota Mirai: hydrogen just got real 82 Track cars tested by Jamie Chadwick
The world’s fastest woman tests the world’s
40 BMW M440i: still got it? Hell yeah
41 Hyundai Tucson: reinvented, inside and out
82 Track car heroes
vs Jamie Chadwick
wildest road-legal track cars
94 Porsche opens its vault
42 Ford Puma ST: a Fiesta ST but taller Wraps off some amazing lost concepts
44 Volvo XC40: sensationally good EV debut 104 VW ID.3 vs Polestar 2 vs Tesla Model 3
VW’s all-new electric people’s car takes
on premium rivals from Polestar and Tesla
28 There’s no R in WRC…
Oh, hang on

Our Cars
116 Is the Discovery Sport a proper Land Rover?
Green laning alongside a Series 1.
Plus heading into winter with a Caterham

69 Audi RS goes electric

Opinion The big reads

56 New Porsche 911 GT3
46 Letters: the joys of a good hot hatch We ride with Porsche GT’s boss

51 Gavin Green: off-roaders, off-road 64 Lamborghini Huracan STO

Road-legal version of the racer, on track
53 Mark Walton: reproductions at the Revival
131 The Good, the bad and the ugly
68 Audi RS e-Tron GT
Ingolstadt’s Porsche Taycan driven
116 Discovery Sport
living up to its heritage
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 Welcome
‘I’m happy to 2018 it rose to €9.1bn. In 2019, €9.66bn.)
But what if – F1 style – engine development
was stopped altogether? The 911 GT3’s flat-six,
call time on as it is now (or will be very shortly; see page 56)
for the next nine years? I can live with that,
combustion though emissions regulations won’t allow
Porsche to leave its masterpiece alone. Stop
Star
contributors
engine R&D’ the music on Ferrari’s naturally-aspirated
V12, BMW’s twin-turbo straight-six and the
Lamborghini V10? Fine by me. And I wouldn’t
‘Yeah, we’ve stopped working on this year’s car be upset if you told me that the story of BMW’s
to concentrate on next year,’ announces the flat-twin motorcycle engine – now into its
Mercedes-AMG F1 team each summer. tenth decade – must end with the versions we
How smug can you get? It reminds me of have now, triumphs of evolution that are both
exams. You’d be about 45 minutes into an big (1802cc in the R18 retro) and clever (new-ish
A-level history paper and the Simon Schama on the 1250 is a VTEC-esque cam-shifting
of the class would, with undisguised glee, stick system). Nicer motorcycle engines to work with
his hand (yep, all boys – what a waste) in the and to enjoy riding you’ll struggle to find.
air and ask the nearest invigilator for more I’m particularly happy to call time on
paper, so that he might be able to fully commit combustion engine development if, like
When you get a personal invitation from the
to paper the considerable genius currently Toto and his Silver Arrows, the upshot is a boss to come try the new 911 GT3 (p56), well,
stuck infuriatingly – for him and for mankind better EV powertrain next year. I don’t even like James Taylor, you say yes.
generally – somewhere between brain and Biro. mind if we call time on car development
When you’ve all but won both titles, driver full-stop. An electric F-Type that, like Jaguar’s
and constructor, before most people have battery-electric royal-wedding E-Type, simply
had their summer holiday, there is of course replaces the engine and gearbox with a battery
logic in switching your R&D efforts to the and e-motor? I’m in, particularly if the money
following year’s car. I just struggle to see what saved not fixing the F-Type’s not-broken body,
purpose such an admission might serve beyond interior, steering and suspension can then be
crushing the competition’s morale. I guess spent on some tiny, lightweight and punchy
I just answered my own question. e-hardware; stuff to make me want to plug in.
So, now that the 2030 engine ban sits at That’s the clincher. We have electric cars I’d
the end of this decade like a giant waterfall choose on merit. Next up is an electric sports
of oblivion towards which we, in the fragile car that’d warrant me doing the same. Creating
kayak of our 2020/2021 hopes and dreams, it won’t be cheap, so if that means it has to look
Georg Kacher has, like a lost DPD driver,
now inexorably inch, will car makers do the like a D-Type or a Porsche 907, well, fine. been around the block. So when he says the
same? Surely the R&D cash pipe must now be Enjoy the issue. MC20’s good (p74), we believe him.
re-directed at whatever’s next?
In truth, that shift began years ago. Back in
early 2018, Mercedes’ then CEO Dieter Zetsche
warned that profit growth would slow as the
R&D war chest was necessarily inflated to Ben
fight on two new fronts: electrification and
autonomous tech. (Merc’s R&D spending in
Miller
2017 was increased by 15 per cent to €8.7bn. In Editor

WE’RE ALSO PUBLISHED IN:

Our track car test demanded a judge with
both speed and soul. Fortunately Jamie
CHINA SPAIN INDIA ITALY TURKEY GREECE Chadwick has both (page 82).

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 7

 THE MONTH ACCORDING TO CAR

The face of
the new iX SUV is significant – BMW’s electric
renaissance starts here. By Jake Groves

f you’re going to be late to the party, you’d better bring EV flagship, one step removed from the many other BEVs it

I the fireworks. Five years after Tesla kicked off the

premium, all-electric crossover thing with the Model
X, and three years after Jaguar upped the stakes with
the i-Pace, BMW finally has a contender: the iX, which
showcases BMW’s latest electric-drive hardware and prom-
plans to crank out over the next decade.
Struggling to see the fuss around a late Audi e-Tron rival?
Well, even if the iX isn’t for you, chances are it contains much
of the stuff that’ll make your first electric BMW great – or
otherwise. There’s Munich’s fifth-generation eDrive pow-
ises revolution inside. It’s set to come on stream in late 2021. ertrains, the versatile CLAR platform, an all-new cockpit
But first, that name. It was previewed as the iNext, but architecture and user interface, and a good deal more am-
we expected the production version to wear an iX5 badge, bition here than you’ll find in the new, also-battery-electric
in line with the very conventional iX3. We were wrong. ‘It’s iX3 (which uses much of the same componentry but doesn’t
done! No new name,’ says BMW development chief Frank try to re-invent the wheel).
Weber. ‘This is the iX, and it’s not going to change.’ BMW’s claiming more than 300 miles of range from the
That signals BMW’s intent to make this a standalone iX, over 500bhp on tap and a 0-62mph time of under five

8 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

seconds. What’s more, within SUV parameters, it’s prom-
ised the iX will drive like a BMW. The iX name
‘ If you’ve driven the X5 45e in electric mode, you’ll know
it manages a good balance between comfort and agility,’ ex-
signals BMW’s
plains product management head Peter Henrich. ‘It’s a car intent to make
you can push but it’s also comfortable for long distances.
The iX will have this kind of balance; refinement but with this a standalone
a sense of alertness and agility. Let’s be honest, an electric
vehicle with such a range has some weight, but our engi-
flagship
neering focus is very much on not letting the driver feel the
weight. The iX will be a specifically BMW interpretation of
the luxury electric SUV.’
Further building the iX’s credibility as a driving ⊲

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 9

 like, timber-trimmed calm. There’s wood in the centre console,
glass trinketry on touchpoints like the iDrive controller, and re-
cycled plastics. It’s aiming for a feelgood sense of stripped-back
luxury. And that’s before you get to the two biggest details: the
Curved display hexagonal steering wheel and the massive new curved display.
and hexagonal The former might be an eyebrow-raising gimmick (one
wheel dominate that’ll make it onto other i-branded cars in future, so convinced
is BMW of its functional merits), but the latter is big news.
It’s made up of a 12.3-inch screen for the instrument cluster,
merged with a second 14.9-inch display that houses the iDrive
8.0 interface. Featuring an all-new look, more functionality and
increased processing power, the latest system will dramatically
reduce the number of switches, and debuts on the iX.
A worry, given the direction VW’s taken? Weber is emphatic
BMW’s interface is still the best in the business: ‘There’s no
user interface anywhere in the industry that can be operated as
simply and as safely as ours.’
Behind the vertical snout, BMW has crammed in a vast suite
of sensors and radar, working with that 5G capability. But it’s
cagey about billing the iX as Level 3-ready – a step back from a
previously confident Munich. Blame the legislative challenges
of implementing such self-driving capability.
Recycled and What’s next? Revolutionising the entire range, no less. ‘Along
eco-conscious
materials
with the iX3, the iX and the i4, the 5-series, 7-series and, later, the
X1 will all have fully electric versions,’ continues Weber. BMW’s
factories are going to be busy. Dingolfing – which Weber calls

machine is the chassis. Carbonfibre reinforcement of an

aluminium structure points to high rigidity while helping offset
the weight of the electric powertrain. BMW calls it the Carbon
Cage, and it’s a more pragmatic (less expensive!) evolution of the
composite strategy used in the pioneering i3 and i8, and more
Looks
alright from recently of the Carbon Core in the 7-series.
this angle, Inside, BMW is throwing everything at the iX, with new and
doesn’t it? ambitious technology hidden within a Trojan horse of lounge- Much more to come, then. And that future starts here.

10 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Insider

BMW’S ELECTRIC

Georg
Kacher’s
inside line
i4
Like the iX, BMW’s electric four-door Gran Coupe
will enter production in 2021 with up to 522bhp
(more than an M4 Comp) and a 375-mile range
Future of Mini... three EVs
and new SUV... Clubman
and Convertible in doubt
Mini will kick off a massive in the market between the
product revitalisation plan next five-door Mini and the
Developed in tandem with the next 7-series (due from 2023, using some third-generation Countryman
2022), the i7 arrives a year later and is expected to tried-and-tested platforms coming in 2024 is shrinking.
usher in a new design language but electrifying its core If the quirky derivative with
models either partially or the oddball rear doors does
fully. The first model lined up get a third chance, we should
for rebirth is the perennial visualise it as kind of grown-
three-door hatch, with its up five-door Paceman.
five-door running mate to Mini boss Bernd Körber has
follow shortly after – both already confirmed another
using the UKL1 platform fully-electric crossover that
M5 and i7 illustrations: Avarvarii

already in service in its will sit alongside 2024’s

predecessors. That part is plug-in Countryman.
BMW’s quietly confirmed an F90 M5 CS coming in simple, but what comes next
2022 with 626bhp. But the next-gen hot 5-series requires some asterisks. Could the Convertible
will come as a ‘Power PHEV’ and a 1000bhp BEV follow the Paceman,
All eyes are on Mini’s wild Roadster and Coupe and
Urbanaut concept right now be killed off after 2023?
(below). While it’s arguably Perhaps, but according to
just a space-efficient design the Munich grapevine there
exercise described by insiders are moves afoot to create
as Mini’s answer to the VW ID a two-seat soft-top based
Buzz, something resembling on Mini’s electric platform
a production version of the developed in partnership
Urbanaut is a front-runner with Great Wall, with a
among the ideas being compact rear-mounted drive
considered for a new larger module propelling the rear
family car within the range wheels. Allegedly mixing
expected in 2024. Battling for speedster, spyder, roadster
the same slot is the next-gen- and cabriolet elements,
eration Clubman. this more emotive variation
A new Clubman certainly promises fun in the sun with
isn’t a shoo-in, as the gap zero tailpipe pollution.

Urbanaut
concept: design
exercise or
real preview?

11
 Insider

Factfile
P OW E R T R A I N
3.0-litre twin-turbocharged
V6 plus 120bhp e-motor,
670bhp, rear-wheel drive
CHASSIS
Carbonfibre monocoque
DUE
2021

Future
scoop
Artura: McLaren’s PHEV
McLaren’s all-new hybrid supercar, the Artura, is nearly here. This is what to expect
It’s not just a cLaren’s Sports Series is dead, the 620R road-legal McLaren’s well aware that, while the new powertrain is
number
The new hybrid
gets a name
– Artura – not
a number,
thus neatly
M track car its swansong. But the vacuum will
persist only briefly – in the first months of 2021
the covers come off the first all-new McLaren
since the 12C, and the debut of a hybrid components set that’ll
see the Woking maker through most of this decade.
essential to future-proof its cars, thus far its USPs have been
outstanding steering and handling. To this end it’s worked tire-
lessly to keep weight out of the Artura, with an all-new carbon
tub shrink-wrapped around the new V6 hybrid powertrain.
To the same end, we doesn’t expect the new McLaren to be
side-stepping While much will stay the same – the Artura’s dimensions are all-wheel drive. While doing so opens the door to four-wheel
the issue of broadly comparable with Sports Series cars – it is, from its pow- torque vectoring and epic traction, rear-wheel drive is a better
names linked ertrain to its carbonfibre structure, an all-new car. McLaren is fit with the bloodline, helps create a lighter package and leaves
to complicated positioning the Artura between its £165k, 620bhp GT and the that crucial steering system uncorrupted by a driven front axle.
hybrid system
power outputs.
£215k, 710bhp 720S. As such it won’t directly replace the 570S As for the rest of the chassis, expect a blend of double-wish-
Also, the which, with its relatively affordable price (£150k) and misleading bone suspension with adaptive dampers. Hydraulic power
thinking is that Sports Series nomenclature, was guilty of selling itself short. steering? While an enabler of McLaren’s sublime steering to
a name that The Artura will put that right, with a move to a higher price date, hydraulic power steering is all but incompatible with
persists – like point (likely a shade under £200,000) and clear supercar billing. the driver assistance systems the car will be expected to have.
911 – helps The big news is the new powertrain, the heart of which is a Ultimately, electric systems are also lighter and more efficient.
Illustration: Avarvarii

make each
hybrid-boosted, twin-turbo V6 likely with a 3.0-litre capacity. How successfully McLaren can imbue its new system with the
generation feel
less obsolete as As well as delivering ‘astonishing performance’, it’ll offer what gorgeous tactility of the old will, to a significant extent, define
its time passes. McLaren describes as a ‘medium’ electric range; expect 15-20 how well the Artura is received when it finally lands.
We’ll see. near-silent miles on a full charge from the circa 8kWh battery. BEN MILLER

12 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Subaru’s new BRZ:
KEEPING IT a re-invention, with
CARBON
The all-new chassis
big power? Nope
architecture uses what
McLaren describes as The BRZ’s back. And this time it’s still slow
‘world-first processes
and techniques’ to strip
out excess mass and
reduce overall vehicle
weight. That’s the key:
leveraging carbon’s
incredible specific
strength and stiffness
characteristics to help WEIGHT
offset the weight of the
battery and e-motor.
WATCHING
And all-wheel drive? We Chief executive Mike
Flewitt has long
insisted that McLaren’s
brand values will not
accept a heavy hybrid
supercar, no matter how
powerful, and while
he’s ceded the new car
won’t be lighter than The sorry saga of the Subaru The key problem, however,
the Sports Series cars, BRZ goes from bad to worse. is the engine. Still a flat-four,
he’s implied the Artura What should be the last with capacity now 2.4 litres,
won’t be much heavier. glimmer of sporting excellence it’s had only a modest power
Expect the car to come
in at 1500kg thanks to from a quirky company that increase: 228bhp and 184lb
its ultra-lightweight tub once built dynamically reward- ft (up from 197bhp and 151lb
and engine. ing cars and dominated the ft). Not such a smart move to
JEWEL-LIKE World Rally Championship has picture it with an Impreza STi…
NEW V6 been given a very half-hearted Toyota will announce details
Given low weight is a reboot for 2021. And, as with of its GT86 replacement in the
key objective – two- A HANDY the Nissan Z, recent sales have spring. We’re told that, like the
tonne performance 670BHP been so disappointing that the BRZ, it’s not going to intrude
hybrids might be fine for
new one won’t be coming to on Supra power outputs, but at
some, but they’re out of 670bhp fits with the
the question in Woking the UK or, indeed, the rest of least it will be sold in Britain.
car’s positioning, and
– expect an ultra- McLaren has a history Europe at all.
compact, all-aluminium of not being shy on It could have been so
V6 in a punchy state of specific outputs. The different. Light, compact and
tune. The e-motor will 720S’s 710bhp from
smooth out and fill dips with a low centre of gravity,
a 4.0-litre V8 equates
in the power and torque to 178bhp per litre (the
rear-wheel drive and a
curves caused by high- Senna GTR upped that characterful engine, the BRZ
performance cams, just to 204bhp per litre), Mk1 did a lot right.
as it’ll be there to help making 550bhp (or But it was let down by a
nullify turbo lag. 183bhp per litre) from dowdy interior and a modest
the V6 feasible. And
while McLaren can power output that failed to
create more powerful open the wallets of many
e-drive units than sports-car enthusiasts. Like
the nominal 120bhp the excellent but low-bhp
we expect from the
Artura’s, they don’t
Alpine A110, the BRZ and its
come cheap. Ferrari’s Toyota GT86 sibling just don’t
SF90 and McLaren’s sell very well.
own Speedtail both Subaru’s response for 2021
use a more powerful isn’t much of a step forward.
e-motor, but those cars
are between two and While the design is clean and
five times as expensive cohesive and a true refresh of
as the £200,000 Artura. the 2012 original, the interior
hasn’t moved on at all, bar
some crude digital dials and a
new infotainment system.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 13

 Mercedes F1
switched to black
livery for 2020 to
signal the team’s
commitment to

Still
fighting racism

he
rises
By most metrics
Lewis Hamilton
is now the most
successful F1 driver
of all time. But, argues
CAR’s online editor
Curtis Moldrich, his
achievements run to
more than just stats

he 2007 Australian Grand Prix wasn’t the most think twice about on the PlayStation. It was clear he was talented,

Who is
T gripping F1 race. But in hindsight it was the first page
in the story of the most successful F1 driver of all time.
Lewis Hamilton lined up fourth on the grid in his
McLaren, two places adrift of his illustrious team-mate, double
world champion Fernando Alonso. In a front-running car,
but winning one championship was a mighty achievement – two
was unthinkable. And overcoming Schumacher’s imperious
total? Never. That Hamilton might be the greatest of all time just
didn’t register back then. Now, 13 years later, it’s self-evident.
For me, Hamilton is ahead of Schumacher. While I clearly
Curtis? against the best driver of his generation, it’s hard to imagine the remember Hamilton’s 2007 debut, my first F1 memory is hazier:
Curtis edits pressure Hamilton was under. He’d had a stunning GP2 career, the 1994 Australian GP, Adelaide. I can only really recall a burning
carmagazine. sure, but now the rookie had to prove himself all over again. sense of injustice as Schumacher’s cynical driving won him the
[Link], races But there was another, less obvious layer of pressure – and that title. That moment would dictate who I supported from then on.
on his came from people like me. As the first black F1 driver, Lewis was I backed Williams initially. When Schumacher disgraced
simulator my first real representation in a sport I’ve always loved. I watched himself again at Jerez in ’97 I switched my allegiance to McLaren.
while most of
us sleep and our old-fashioned CRT television nervously that morning, a knot Either way, from ’98 to 2007 I didn’t ever really notice how little
has followed in my stomach: ‘Please don’t screw this up.’ anyone in my favourite sport had in common with me.
F1 since the He didn’t, of course; great start, podium finish. (And we only That all changed when Hamilton arrived. Suddenly F1’s lack of
early ’90s had to wait until his sixth GP, Canada, for that first win.) My colour was clear for all to see, but it also felt much closer to home.
Nokia buzzed as soon as he crossed the line in Melbourne, a text Lewis won races while I looked for work experience, but I saw a lot
from my friend: ‘Lewis is actually good!’ And before I knew it, I of my own life played out every race weekend. Seeing Hamilton
was a university fresher watching him pass Glock on the last lap with other drivers reminded me of my own school photos, where
to win his first championship, in 2008. it was pretty easy to pick me out. And his family stuck out in the
A master of oversteer with the ability to make the car dance, paddock the same way mine did at the F1 races we used to go
Hamilton consistently pulled off overtaking manoeuvres I’d along to. Here was someone who drove how I wanted to drive,

14 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Insider

Lewis was my first Winkelmann’s

real representation in a Lambo to-do list
sport I’ve always loved
listened to the music I liked and looked more like me, winning in

1
my favourite sport.
His more troubled – but never win-less – years were still Juggle Lambo and Bugatti
entertaining and, as he began to rack up championship after Stephan Winkelmann isn’t just replacing
championship, the idea of matching Schumacher’s tally grew to Stefano Domenicali (off to run F1) at
become a ghost of a possibility. The hate from the groups you’d Lamborghini – he remains president of
expect grew, but the statistics and his performances on the track Bugatti. With a deal to transfer Bugatti to
couldn’t be questioned. From his very first race corner in F1, in Rimac in the works, Winkelmann needs
which he passed Alonso around the outside, to clinching his first to provide a steady hand, while also
championship with one corner to go (and, more recently, winning catching up on what’s happened at
this year’s British GP with three tyres…), Lewis has always been Sant’Agata since he left, initially to run
box-office. And he has it all: superiority in wheel-to-wheel Audi Sport before becoming Bugatti boss.

2
combat, surreal wet-weather speed, the cool head for qualifying.
Now Hamilton has eclipsed Schumacher, and his career Get Lambo on the stock market
shines all the brighter for being free of the controversy that According to VW Group insiders, plans to float
tarnished the German’s. Aside from a forgettable early incident Lamborghini (while keeping a majority stake) are well
in 2009 there’s been no Adelaide ’94, no Jerez ’97 and no Monaco advanced. But as Aston Martin has shown, going public isn’t
’06. Hamilton’s record is unblemished and, combined with his always the blank cheque you’d hope for. Given the added
message and influence away from the track, there’s no F1 driver uncertainty of the pandemic, this may have to wait a year.

3
who has achieved more.
Push electrification forward
The supercapacitor-enhanced Sian shows Lamborgh-
ini isn’t afraid of hybrids, but to keep the emissions
H A M I LT O N ’ S M A G N I F I C E N C E regulators at bay a plug-in Urus is needed fast (and the tech
exists on Audi and Porsche SUVs). What about a hybrid

Audi’s on-off supersports

project.

4
Championships Pole positions Don’t get sold
= 1 Lewis Hamilton, 7 1 Lewis Hamilton, 97 VW top brass have committed to a new V8 for
= 1 Michael Schumacher, 7 2 Michael Schumacher, 68 Lamborghini, but that doesn’t mean they’re not
3 Juan Manuel Fangio, 5 3 Ayrton Senna, 65 exploring all options, including a complete sell-off; the brand
has been valued at €6bn by potential buyers. Winkelmann
Race wins Fastest laps
1 Lewis Hamilton, 94 1 Michael Schumacher, 77
2 Michael Schumacher, 91 2 Lewis Hamilton, 53
3 Sebastian Vettel, 53 3

Win ratio
1 Juan Manuel Fangio, 46.15%
(24 wins from 52 starts)
2 Alberto Ascari, 39.39%
(13 wins from 33 starts)
3 Lewis Hamilton, 35.61%
(94 wins from 264 races)

15
 Nissan’s rocky road to SUV glory
As the new Qashqai approaches, a reminder of how radical it once was –
and what a hardcore 4x4 background it came from. By Jake Groves

t wasn’t quite the last roll

I of the dice, but in Britain

Nissan didn’t have much to
lose when it launched the first
1987
THE EURO INVASION
The fourth-generation Patrol
Qashqai in 2007. Nissan’s range
was dull and its image in the is a big leap forward and sells
well globally. Demonstrating its
doldrums. But then, inspired toughness, this Patrol is the first
by visionary design chief Shiro diesel car to finish in the overall
Nakamura, and drawing on top 10 of the Paris-Dakar, despite
its support truck breaking down.
decades of rugged 4x4s, Nissan
gambled everything. It dramat-
ically dropped both the Primera THE SUN RISES
and the Almera – not one tear
was shed – as well as the chunky
Terrano, and bet the lot on a car
nobody could pronounce yet
everyone (or their aunt) bought.

2010
IT’S NOT ENOUGH
Knowing a good thing when it
sees it, Nissan replicates the
formula in a smaller package

2007
THE STARS ALIGN
The first-generation Qashqai
doesn’t invent the rather fuzzy
crossover SUV category, but it
brings the ‘normal car but higher’
vibe to a huge new market. Even
now, in the dying days of the
second generation, Nissan clocks
200k Qashqai sales a year, and
the beefier X-Trail sells well too.

2021
QASHQAI ELECTRIFIES
Nissan drops a bomb of intel that the new Qashqai,
due in February 2021 and being built in Sunderland,
will have a 188bhp EV range-extender version under
the e-Power tagline. It mixes styling shared with the
electric Ariya, upgraded driving aids and a revised
version of the Renault-Nissan CMF-C platform, and
manages to shave 60kg from the kerbweight.
 The CAR
inquisition

PETER
R AW L I N S O N
C E O & C TO ,
LU C I D M OTO R S

‘I don’t set targets; just amaze me’

Lucid’s Peter Rawlinson’s is the former Lotus and Jaguar engineer turned electric-car trailblazer

t the risk of going over old ground, it’s worth ‘I know! Who’d have believed it?’ chuckles Rawlinson. ‘I got

A revisiting some of the numbers for the Air, the first

production car from Silicon Valley battery-electric
start-up Lucid. CAR visited Lucid in 2018, and rode
in an early Air prototype. We were impressed – by the car (a kind
of electric S-Class rival with the speed and handling to shame a
into designing and engineering cars because it was a fun thing
to do; never mind that those cars burned fossil fuels and emitted
bad stuff… But now, by creating cars like the Air, I’m able to
contribute to the wellbeing of mankind. I’m proud of that.’
Rawlinson’s transition is, in no small part, down to the Tesla
Porsche) and by the firm’s approach, led by then chief technical Model S. ‘The car had been signed off as a design study but it
officer and now CTO and CEO Peter Rawlinson. Lucid recently then headed off in some questionable directions, and the project
unveiled the production-ready Air (CAR, November 2020) and faltered. I went over [to Tesla in California] for an interview and
announced some astonishing numbers: 1065bhp, a 9.24sec started two weeks later. The car was a success, of course, but
standing-quarter mile, an EPA-estimated range of over 500 what we’re doing here is on another level entirely.’
miles, powerful and compact drive units and a car 17 per cent So it would appear. But how?
more efficient, Lucid reckons, than anything else out there. In part, Rawlinson puts Lucid’s advantage down to the fact
Bold claims, but Rawlinson’s no Bahar. His CV (Jaguar, Lotus, that it does everything in-house rather than using a raft of
Tesla) and track record are top drawer. But it’s the ruthless third-party suppliers, thereby avoiding ‘Frankenstein’ solutions.
logic with which he engineers his arguments that makes him ‘I’m not going to be disparaging of Porsche – they’re my
Illustration: Chris Rathbone

convincing. That and the fact that he’s just like you and me; a heroes – but it buys its Taycan motors from Magneti Marelli.
lifelong car enthusiast with a ’60s Lotus Elan in his garage and The two-speed rear gearbox is from Schaeffler. Their inverters
a McLaren F1 in his dreams. Except he’s a lifelong car enthusiast are from Hitachi.’ (CAR put this to Porsche, which was keen
who now crafts world-leading EVs for a living – and, by doing so, to point out the difference between an off-the-shelf part or
hopes to build a better future for all mankind. Eh? component from a supplier and those commissioned to the

18 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Insider

manufacturer’s exacting design and specification.)

Then there’s racing – Lucid makes the battery packs for
Formula E (distributed via McLaren). ‘There’s the great myth,
isn’t there, that racing improves the breed? Well, it may have
done in the ’50s, with disc brakes on D-Types, but it hasn’t since.
SF90 goes topless
I’ve worked in advanced engineering my whole career – I should
know. F1 is nothing but marketing. Besides, road-car budgets 986bhp and no roof? Yes please...
are bigger than F1 budgets. But doing Formula E genuinely
has improved our battery, pushing us to a higher voltage [for
reduced I squared R losses], for example – the Air’s battery is a
As savage as the coupe
The Ferrari SF90’s powertrain is
mass-produced, Lego-brick version of our Formula E battery.’
unchanged for the new Spider.
Rawlinson also insists he’s happy to change tack if need be.
For your money you get a savage
‘We’re an efficiency and technology company. If we’ve backed
combination of twin-turbo V8 shove,
the wrong horse, I’ll be the first to admit it – and jump horses
hefty hybrid power and four driven
[the Air’s evolved considerably in the design of its motors,
wheels for 0-62mph in 2.7sec…
inverters and electrical architecture].’ And he never sets targets.
‘I didn’t do it on the Model S and I don’t do it at Lucid. Instead
I challenge our engineers to amaze me. Set goals and people
stop there. That’s why, I think, our drive units are so much more
A little off the top
compact – everyone else was just happy their units were smaller
Visual differences include sculpted
than a combustion engine and gearbox.’
buttresses and subtle aero tweaks
But how can Rawlinson reasonably expect to change the
to the brake cooling system. The
world with a car out of reach of all but the global elite?
retractable hardtop is related to that
‘Yes, ours is a high-end car, I realise that. But our technologies
of the F8 Spider (and both take 14
have been designed for true mass production – they’re not
seconds to stash).
esoteric, difficult-to-make, billet-machined masterpieces
inherently ill-suited to volume production. That’s the real
message here: that what we’ve learned about efficiency and
miniaturisation can make a difference. For their power, our Fringe benefits
drive units are 2.5 times smaller than anything else out there. The good (and bad – the jury’s out
Think about that in something the size of a Golf. You could on the infotainment) news is that the
have less incompressible space and bigger crumple zones within Spider’s interior is identical to that
the car. That could save lives.’ of the coupe. The small rear window
Peter Rawlinson – the car enthusiast working tirelessly to is a wind deflector when the roof’s
make the world a better place, one electric car at a time. down; a V8 noise portal when it’s up.
BEN MILLER

Six questions only we would ask

How about two-tone?
Tell us about your first car Track-spec Assetto Fiorano version
‘A 1938 Ford 8. It was in a barn under so much filth we lops off 21kg with liberal use of
had no idea what colour it was. It had a 933cc flat-head, carbonfibre, while also upping the
side-valve engine, which I got running. After an MG Midget, ante with a fixed rear Gurney flap
my granny bought me a Lotus Elan when I was 21. I’ve still and gummy Michelin Cup 2 rubber.
got it. I nearly killed myself in it so many times…’
Two-tone paint optional…
What is your proudest achievement?
‘That I’ve found a way of contributing to the wellbeing of
the planet and of future generations.’

Best thing you’ve ever done in a car?

‘Driving an Air for a quarter of a mile…’ (9.245sec is more
than a second quicker than our best in a Taycan Turbo S.)

Supercar or classic car?

‘When I was young I liked old cars. Now I’m going the
“wrong” way – it’s the paradox of the young guy wanting to
look older and the old guy wanting to look younger…’

Curveball… how much power does the Evija make?

‘Well, they say it’s 1972bhp. If you look at the size of their
battery in kWh [70], they’re going to have to run one hell of Deliveries of Ferrari’s SF90 Spider start in the second
a discharge rate to get that power.’ quarter of 2021, with an estimated £400k price tag

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 19

 Insider

Watches
Zeigeist
o’clock
Three German newcomers, all
refreshingly elegant. By Ben Oliver
MW’s new iX seems to have made at least half of the

B motoring world recoil in horror at its appearance,

but these three new German watches should repair
any damage to the nation’s reputation for good design. And
rather than paying a premium for being German, you get a
discount for not being Swiss, so they’re good value as well as
good-looking.

01

02 03
01 I Sinn 105 from £1345 02 I Nomos Lambda £5800 03 I Junghans Meister Worldtimer
From £1570
Frankfurt-based Sinn is much favoured To celebrate the 175th anniversary of
by car designers, some of whom would watch making in Glashütte, Nomos has Junghans has a minimalist design ethic
skive off the city’s motor show to visit produced this limited-edition, steel-cased and a staunch resistance to putting its
the factory, back when we still had version of its Lambda, in lieu of a party. It’s prices up. They start below £500, but this
motor shows. This new 105 offers a pricey for a German watch, but its hand- new one justifies its higher price with its
choice of day-date or second-timezone wound movement, with an 84-hour power ability to indicate the time in every zone at
complications, and leather, rubber or steel reserve and flawlessly executed Bauhaus once. Slightly frustrating when you can’t fly
straps. You’d pay double for the same design, shows it’s high horology, not to be to any of them, but for now you can use it
thing from some Swiss brands. compared with a common Rolex. to co-ordinate global family Zoom calls.
[Link] [Link] [Link]

20 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

Glug
Glug
Glug

Fuel economy and CO2 results for the Vauxhall Corsa-e 100KW (136PS). Mpg (l/100km): N/A. CO2 emissions: 0g/km.
Electric range up to 209 miles (WLTP).#
#
The Corsa-e is a battery electric vehicle requiring mains electricity for charging. The range and electric consumption figures mentioned comply with the WLTP test procedure, on the basis
of which new vehicles are type approved from 1 September 2018. They may vary depending on actual conditions of use and on different factors such as: vehicle load, accessories fitted (post
registration), speed, thermal comfort on board the vehicle, driving style and outside temperature. The charging time depends in particular on the power of the charger on board the vehicle,
the charging cable and the type and power of the charging station used. Please contact your Vauxhall Retailer for further information.
 Tech THE INNOVATIONS TR ANSFORMING
OUR DRIVING WORLD

Tech’s in
cars in adopting smart
technology. Everyone will
benefit when they catch
up. By Jake Groves

22 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 t’s time for the city to catch up. For years, car makers have

I been kitting out the latest models with ever more intelligent
driving assistance systems. But the urban areas where so
many people live, work and drive aren’t up to scratch.
It’s become common for car makers to incorporate car-to-X
technology (where the car communicates directly with other
vehicles, or with traffic lights and road signs), and now 5G con-
nectivity is becoming standard. Audi, for example, has a traffic
light information system available in production cars you can S-Class doesn’t
need a driver on
buy now, to help you deal more efficiently and economically board to park, but
with changes from red or green. But with smart traffic lights few areas allow it
installed in very few cities, its contribution is minimal.
Similarly the new Mercedes S-Class is prepared for Level 3
autonomous driving, where the car can boss certain critical
functions. But technological and legislative lag from city and
highways authorities means most of that tech can’t be deployed,
aside from a remote valet parking system. And even then, it’s
only available in prepared and connected locations such as a
multi-storey car park at Stuttgart airport.
JLR is one of the companies aiming to do something about
this by investing in and partnering with groups conducing
smart city research. The Future Mobility Campus Ireland
(FMCI) in Shannon has seven miles of live roadways with a car-
to-X-equipped traffic light junction, 5G cellular network towers
and a parking area designed to stress test autonomous parking
and charging. The FMCI’s location has benefits of its own; the
air traffic control tower at neighbouring Shannon airport helps
with drone tests – great for your Amazon delivery of 2030.
FCMI testing teams have access to 280 miles of connected
motorways. ‘The test bed provides an opportunity to test in
The urban areas where so
the real world and help answer some of the questions posed many people live, work and
by the future of mobility in a collaborative and efficient way,’
says FMCI boss Russell Vickers. JLR’s involvement means it can
drive aren’t up to scratch
step up its connected and autonomous vehicle development;
for years it’s been trialling various technologies at the MIRA Birmingham and Warwick. MFM predicts that the autono-
proving ground and in Milton Keynes with UK AutoDrive, but mous vehicle economy will be worth more than £62bn by 2030,
there is more technological capacity at the FMCI site. and is keen to encourage a new wave of investment in the West
The Midlands Future Mobility (MFM) project has been Midlands – still home to JLR and Aston Martin, but not a centre
working on something similar, liaising with partners including of car making on the vast scale it once enjoyed.
Siemens Mobility to prepare roads, including busy Coventry, ‘We’re creating an environment to encourage them to set up
in the West Midlands for economic reasons,’ says Chris Lane,
head of transport innovation at Transport for West Midlands,
‘but also so we can understand the technology and what we
W H AT A B O U T T H E need to do as a region to better prepare for it.’
As well as major highways and urban centres, MFM is incor-
COUNTRYS I DE? porating rural roads. Here, the priority is research and trials
into more tangible technologies first (especially car-to-X) rather
While the main focus is Narrow roads, tractors,
on densely populated poor GPS signals, higher than autonomy.
areas, Renault’s Project speeds and other factors Around the world, the pace of development is slow, but there
Tornado is researching are being examined with are examples of real progress. Daimler and Bosch, working with
the different challenges the help of members of the city authorities of San José in California, announced a new
of bringing smart the public using the trial automated taxi service after the city invited tech firms and
travel tech to rural as a taxi service. automotive suppliers to use its roads for testing. S-Class models
communities. fitted with autonomous driving technology now drive a fixed
Having gained many route within the city.
insights from a trial in ‘The project ties in with San José’s extensive smart city objec-
Paris, Renault has now
tives,’ says Dolan Beckel, director of civic innovation. ‘It’ll also
given itself the target of
getting a Zoe to drive help us develop guidelines for dealing with new technologies
itself the eight miles and prepare for the traffic system of the future.’
between the train station Dr Uwe Keller, head of autonomous driving at Mercedes,
at Gazeran, south-west adds: ‘It’s not just the automated vehicles that have to prove
of the capital, and a their mettle. We also need proof that they can fit in as a piece of
business park. the urban mobility puzzle.’

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 23

THE
SIMPLE
WAY TO
TYRES
2,000+
8.)LWWLQJ&HQWUHV

RATED EXCELLENT
9RWHG([FHOOHQWRQ7UXVWSLORWFRXN

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WWHGRUGHUVDQGH[FOXGHVFRVWRIGHOLYHU\RQPDLORUGHURUGHUV
 Tech

CAR
AMG’s twisted
explains
carbon genius AMG vehicle development engineer Johannes Hettinger.
‘Coiling the material brings several advantages, not least
the fact that you can use the laminating process to build up
Want a stiff but light transmission mount and hang three-dimensional structures, whereas you can only build
the expense? AMG has the answer. By Ben Miller up a two-dimensional structure with the standard method.
[Ordinarily, making carbon parts involves layering sheets of
carbonfibre cloth into a mould, like fibreglass.] Coiling is also a
here’s so much going on with AMG’s latest GT, the Black very efficient process, with almost no waste.’

T Series – both the high-water mark and swansong for this

generation of GT; an all-new one arrives in 2021 – that
you’d be forgiven for failing to spot its very special transmis-
A NO - COMPROMISE APPROACH
‘We wanted to save weight through topological optimisation
sion mount straight away. You were probably distracted by [engineering the vehicle’s structures for best possible perfor-
the DTM-spec aero package. Or the manic, rev-hungry and mance],’ continues Hettinger. ‘We considered the load path for
unique-to-the-Black-Series flatplane-crank V8. the mount and realised we couldn’t succeed with conventional
But the Black Series’ transmission mount is quite something. processes. So we started thinking creatively, with new calcula-
Made of coiled carbonfibre and looking for all the world like tions and new design and production processes. We arrived at
some relic of alien technology lifted from Area 51, the compo- a solution that uses special filament-winding process developed
nent represents both a production first for AMG and an exciting by our Mercedes colleagues in Sindelfingen. It takes 10 to 15
new direction for the use of hugely expensive, very sexy com- minutes to make each part.
posites in performance-car engineering. ‘We see big potential in coiled carbonfibre, and we’re already
working on other components using this technology. What’s
Light, stiff, more, all of this work was done in-house, so we get a result we
LIKE ALUMINIUM … BUT HALF THE WE IGHT quick to
‘Our target was to keep the same stiffness and strength as an al- make… and are happy with and the process is also of huge benefit to the
uminium mount while reducing weight by 55 per cent,’ explains expensive wider company.’

INSIDE

M O R E C R E AT I V I T Y
Carbonfibre is traditionally
layered with resin into a
mould. There is scope to
optimise the component’s
structure – by varying the
length of the carbon threads
in the cloth, the type of
weave, the fibre orientation,
in very small quantities
the number of layers and the
type of resin – but coiling the
material creates far greater
development engineer
scope for more creative,
Johannes Hettinger.
load-optimised three-
dimensional forms.

M AT E R I A L O N LY W H E R E
IT COUNTS
CAD modelling is able to many other carbon parts
predict where the load paths
will be in a given component
(and with 720bhp and
590lb ft in the GT Black
Series, they’re some meaty
loads…) before it’s created.
Coiling allows material to be
precisely placed to deal with
those loads, with no excess
material – and therefore no
excess weight…

| [Link] 25
 i M A X I N YO U R C A R
HOW IT WORKS

1
I N F O R M AT I O N O V E R L O A D
Big screens dominate, but the
layout is simple and not actually that
distracting for tech-savvy audience

Does it
How to make a big
work?
screen user-friendly
The Honda E’s showstopping infotainment system is surely a
massive distraction, right? We don’t think so. By Jake Groves

e frequently lament the cleaning you want accurately. And, while it looks daunting

W up of cockpits to the point of form

being prioritised over function,
but Honda completely ignored our
cries and gave its new EV an interior dominated
by touchscreens. Sure, it looks great, and different
on first glance, when you’ve customised it to your
liking it’s easy to navigate. Having two large 12.3-
inch screens allows you to run two ‘apps’ at once.
So, for instance, you can set it up to have navigation
running on the one closest to you while you’re 2
from other screen-based cabins – but is it a good driving, and leave your passenger in charge of the LEFT IN THE DARK
Screens for the digital door mirrors
idea to go so screen-heavy? jukebox. Flipping the displays is easy, done via a are well-placed but not great at night;
Firstly, the screens themselves. You wouldn’t fixed ‘button’ on the display closest to you in the disconcerting inky blackness awaits
really clock at first that it’s five separate entities top right-hand corner.
tied together in one: two bookend screens for the Any gripes? While the digital door mirror screen
mirror-replacing cameras, two central screens for placement is easy on the eye, the lack of a night
the infotainment and one non-touchscreen for the vision feature means the ‘mirrors’ aren’t at their
driver’s instruments. usability peak during the wee hours, so you start
We like the use of a matte finish to stave relying more on the lane-keep and blind-spot
off bright sunlight. Unlike the Mini Electric assistance systems.
equivalent, this finish doesn’t make the screen But, overall, this is how to do big screens properly.
fuzzy, and it does a good job of minimising the We’ve been reluctantly weaned onto them over
effects of grubby fingerprints. And, while they’re many years, particularly by Tesla and Mercedes’
entirely superfluous, the digital wallpapers and ever-growing screens, but Honda shows they can
the aquarium feature that can keep the kids have a wow factor while simultaneously being easy
entertained when the car’s at a stop prove Honda to use, especially when a few features still have
can still let its hair down and do things for the hell physical switchgear.
of it. You can even use the car’s in-built three-pin
plug and HDMI port to attach a games console
while you’re waiting for your E to charge.
Then there’s the operating system. It’s clean
Does it work?
Generally, yes. After years of giant Tesla and 3
BORED WHILE CHARGING?
Mercedes screens, this is much easier to get used Plug in a games console via the three-
and simple, with large tile-like buttons to give to, and we suspect that the typical Honda E owner pin, 240v plug and HDMI socket and
your incoming finger some real estate to tap what will be tech-savvy enough to make the most of it. reaffirm your Mario Kart dominance

26 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

Every note. Every word.
Every detail.

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 First

drivesSTARRING GOLF R, FORD PUMA ST, HYUNDAI TUCSON,

BMW M440i, E LECTRIC VOLVO XC40 & TOYOTA MIR AI

28 [Link] | JANUARY 2020

 The
300-mile
test
NEW CAR MEETS REAL WORLD

VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R

That’s more like it

We’ve been waiting for a car to bring VW’s techy,
slightly aloof but talented Mk8 Golf to life. Perhaps in
the new R – the most powerful Golf yet – we’ve found it
Words Georg Kacher Photography Tom Salt

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 29

 Reunification had some very
negative effects on the old
GDR, including the arrival
of radar speed traps…

Lots of blue
because it’s an R,
not because it’s
electric; it’s not
even a mild hybrid

30 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 First drives 300-mile test

W
Full-width LED
running light
debuts on the R

ithin a 50-mile radius

of Wolfsburg, the
countryside is about
as featureless as the
Sahara desert. For real
variety and driving
pleasure, you can do
a lot worse than head
into the former East
Germany, taking in parts of the Harz mountains and historic
cities such as Quedlinburg.
Although reunification had some very negative effects on the
old GDR – from unemployment and higher taxes to the arrival
of radar speed traps – thankfully it did not mess with some of
the country’s greatest driving roads. Some have survived in
their original form, namely a cobblestone centre strip much too
narrow for two vehicles, flanked by extra-wide and accordingly
slippery loam shoulders. While the main thoroughfares were
speedily reconstructed with EU money, these minor roads have
barely changed in decades.
It’s no surprise that in this part of Germany, companies doing
very well for new-car sales include Dacia (cheap) and Hyundai
and Kia (with their seven-year warranty). This is challenging
turf. And yet the new Golf R feels instantly at home here, not
once chafing its protruding chin spoiler, kerbing a vulnerable
19-inch wheel or denting the precious low-riding exhaust.
The Golf R formula remains the same, but there are a great
many changes from the last model. The ride height is now
20mm lower, front camber increased by a smidgeon, springs
and anti-roll bars beefed up 10 per cent, upgraded dampers and
bushings, the front subframe is now lightweight aluminium,
and the rear transverse links and wheel carriers have been
redesigned for a more direct response to steering inputs.
To improve traction, the R engineers increased the locking you select between Drive and Sport, and automatic or manual. Drift mode saves
you from your
ratio of the torque-splitting clutch. Understeer is reduced by Theoretically, you could reach down and change gears by flick- clumsier efforts
sending more oomph to the outer rear wheel while, if need ing the knuckle-size device up and down, but the enlarged shift
be, decelerating its opposite in a move to speed up the turn-in paddles are so much more intuitive and rewarding to use.
action. This standard-fit system is called R-Performance Torque And it’s worth taking the time to get familiar with the Golf
Vectoring. There’s a bunch of new software to co-ordinate R’s drive modes, which unlike those in many cars bring out
the various dynamic control systems. And there are new drive significantly different aspects of the R’s capabilities, and ask for
modes, including the gimmicky-sounding Nürburgring mode. different degrees of involvement from the driver.
It could all so easily have ended up feeling artificial, digital Sport brings a pleasingly quick throttle response, but Race
and intrusive. But as the miles mount up, and as we get further mode – which can be accessed directly by pressing the R button
from the sprawl of VW’s home town – heading first east, then on the left of the steering wheel – is better for avoiding prema-
south – it’s obvious this is an excellent car, one that manages to ture upshifts; but then again, this setting punishes you with
bind its disparate elements into a slick whole. premature downshifts.
There’s a lot to take in at first. The transmission lever, for Individual mode offers a wide choice of tweakable param-
instance, has been replaced by a stubby by-wire shifter that lets eters, and lets you fine-tune via a 10-step touchslider. So if ⊲

PICK-UP: 0 MILES 2 MILES

Roof spoiler is claimed to aid Too many functions are now

downforce. We’ll see about that controlled by these fiddly
controls on the steering wheel.
later. For now, it aids the roadside That said, ‘R’ can take you
consumption of an entirely straight to Race mode, so
unhealthy breakfast. they’re not all bad.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 31

 First drives 300-mile test

Ride height is Comfort is not cushy enough, there are 10 minor increments
down 20mm, and towards an even more compliant ride. At the other end of the
chin juts forward,
but our car was spectrum, Race can be further sharpened until you’d better
unscathed after have the first aid kit handy. Even in Sport with ESC fully active,
two bumpy days the seat of the pants can sense that underlying loose-cannon
effect the rear axle has in store for us.
The R Performance Pack is a must-have option. As well as
raising the top speed to 168mph (not, in itself, particularly
worthwhile), it brings two new driving programmes on top of
Comfort, Sport, Race and Individual. While Drift – the dash-
board lighting turns fire red – is self-explanatory, Special – the
illumination switches to viper green – is also called Nürbur-
gring. This calibration was created after hundreds of laps on the
Nordschleife. Don’t dismiss this as marketing nonsense; it’s a
mode that really has benefitted from intensive work on a circuit
that’s challenging and varied, not least in terms of surfaces. The
Nordschleife – like the roads on this trip, and like so many of
CAR’s favourite roads in Britain – is all bumps and ridges, ups
and downs, banked corners and surface changes.
Compared to all this, the engine doesn’t offer much to grab
the headlines, being yet another evolution of the long-running
GTI engine – now producing 316bhp and 310lb ft. But the reason
this engine is used so widely across the VW Group is because
it’s very good, and this is a particularly effective manifestation,
propelling the Golf R from zero to 62mph in 4.7sec. It lays
down maximum torque between 2100 and 5350rpm, with peak
power arriving at 5350rpm, but it’s happy for you to approach
the 7000rpm cut-out speed. It’s not an engine that relies on
high revs to deliver the goods, but the long legs are helpful on
fast autobahn stretches. It’s as if all the black boxes have been
programmed to encourage a ‘take it to the limit’ attitude. ⊲

87 MILES 95 MILES

Tough work, this driving lark. Got to Lose 7kg, gain a variety
keep your strength up, so plenty of of fruity noises from
the optional Akrapovič
protein, despite the best efforts of former titanium exhaust. The
East German hens to ration their yolks. nearest we’re getting to
Old habits die hard. fruit on this trip…

32 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 The reason this engine is used so much across
the VW Group is simple: it’s very good

126 MILES 205 MILES

Some great roads, even when Polished and painted

damp, pretty much to our- 19-inch alloys come
with the R Perfor-
selves. Steering is always direct, mance Pack. Happy
with plenty of useful feedback, enough on Quedlin-
whichever mode you’re in. burg’s cobbles.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 33

 Grille, bumper
and matt chrome
mirror caps are all
new for the Golf R

Freshly baked
pretzels in
Braunlage? It’d
be rude not to
 First drives 300-mile test

could complete before filing for bankruptcy. But the compact

blue cannonball is not fussed. As long as the revs don’t drop
below 2500rpm, the engine picks up loads of momentum even
The brakes maintain a in fourth gear, and it would do the same in fifth if only the
balance of stopping power, straights were long enough.
The steering is very direct at 2.1 turns from lock to lock, but
delicacy and seemingly the variable-rate and variable-effort system actually relays a
infinite stamina good range of road-to-palm feedback. Likewise, the brakes
(cross-drilled discs up front) maintain a reassuring balance
of Herculean stopping power, delicate dosage and seemingly
infinite stamina.
While American customers can order their R with a During the course of our two days together, the Golf R starts
manual gearbox, the rest of the world must make do with the to feel like a friend. And like all friends, you’re aware that it has
seven-speed dual-clutch auto. It’s a well-spaced ’box, swift and faults. In common with every Mk8 Golf I’ve driven, this one
easily controlled by two large shift paddles, but it can only be offers regular software-related frustrations – some of them
coaxed to coast in Comfort and Sport, and it deserves launch seemingly glitches, others designed to be that way. Having to
control assistance to make the most of the all-wheel drive. hit four different buttons to deactivate lane guidance after every
The engine and transmission have a slightly unrefined edge, start is a chore, while the touchsliders that control many func-
so you can feel and hear when the powertrain is working hard. tions are easy to touch but difficult to slide (see page 26). The car
Especially when fitted with the extra-cost, reduced-weight, var- seems keen to elevate swiping, scrolling, zooming and talking to
iable-flap Akrapovič exhaust, the four end pipes speak up with an art form, while all the driver wants is to have his commands
a loud and deep-throated voice in Race, but the noise they make converted into a job well done, with no delay and no distraction.
in Sport is rather one-dimensional, flat and anonymous. Drift The in-cabin disappointments you can learn to live with. And
and Nürburgring modes both have very artificial soundtracks. it’s worth doing so, when the reward is a car that’s so good to
It takes a while before I can deploy Drift mode with aplomb. drive. Become familiar with what the various drive modes can
Rappbode Dam
On dry tarmac, it needs a wide yet tightish second-gear kink, do and you get to experience the breadth and depth of the Golf spanned by the
clear visibility through the corner and beyond, plus a full day’s R’s abilities. world’s biggest
build-up of confidence. Dampness helps to stimulate the break- Accelerating hard out of third-gear sweepers, the progressive pedestrian
suspension
away reflex, but the test car’s Pirelli Sottozero winter tyres don’t torque transfer loads up the rear wheels, begging them to bridge. We’ll walk
feel like they’re enjoying this much. unhinge. Through second-gear bends tackled at nine-tenths, ⊲ it next time…
What’s the difference between Drift and ESC Off? In ESC
Off, there are no rafts or lifebelts. In Drift, the system recog-
nises trouble and steps in before the driver makes a second,
potentially graver mistake.
Again, the tyre type is not ideal for going exceedingly quick
out in the sticks, but the R Performance Pack helps by boasting
wider 235/35 ZR19 hardware all-round. While the ride barely
suffers from the snow-focused tread pattern, the softer
compound compromises to an extent longitudinal and lateral
composure at speed.
The Harz region is famous for its natural treasures, the
blindingly potent schnapps, mythical figures like elves and
trolls, and locations rich in legend, such as the Hexentanzplatz
(Witches’ Dance Floor). What better environment for a car that
aspires to out-handle the AMG A45, out-run the M135i and
out-smart its Japanese and Korean rivals through something
approaching dynamic wizardry?
The top-of-the-line Golf is just about narrow enough to
make the most out of this automotive parkour obstacle course,
with its unannounced single-file sections, crumbling-away
shoulders, tall cast iron bridges surfaced with rusty gratings,
unlit tunnels and more abandoned roadworks than any nation

287 MILES 307 MILES

Days of the unre- Our average consumption, involving

stricted autobahn are two tanks of petrol over 306.8 miles,
unlikely to continue
much beyond the was 19.3mpg. Not great for a Golf, but
2021 elections. Enjoy pretty special for a performance car
them while you can. driven hard. Sorry, driven very hard.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 35

 First drives 300-mile test

So the Mk8 is the Mk5, right?

The R’s bloodline, according to
R’s blue VW, began with the R32 of 2003,
calipers
deliver on based on the Mk4 Golf. That had
their looks a 3.2-litre V6, as did its successor.
The two that followed switched to
2.0-litre fours and dropped the ‘32’.
And now here’s the R version of
the Mk8 Golf. VW counts it as is the
fifth-generation R. But we’d locate
the start point earlier: the idea of a
Golf GTI that was more of a GT than
a hairy hot hatch was born in 1991 in
the shape of the plain-clothes, go-
faster 174bhp VR6.

turn-in instantly alters the balance from near-understeer to

near-oversteer, with the emphasis on ‘near’.
Yes, it’s proudly a Golf – the DNA is still there. But it’s very
much a Golf R. When you think, see and feel ‘Golf’ your subcon-
scious will automatically prepare you for certain familiar Golf
characteristics: early understeer and some steering fight, for
instance. But this Golf R moves the game on. Early understeer?
Not at all. True, depending on the selected drive mode, one end
of the car will eventually cave in to the law of physics. But it ain’t
the front.
Late apexing for an early straight-line exit? No need to recap
that forgotten geometry lesson. In the R, braking, turning in
and accelerating are three scalable stages of the same smooth,
uninterrupted curve. That’s what the uprated four-wheel-drive
system, the new rear-axle side-to-side diff lock, the adaptive
dampers and the software inputs co-ordinated by the Driving
Dynamics Manager do for you.
There remain many more economical and less costly Golfs
available to choose from. Versions with a plainer exterior, or
a clearer focus on comfort and convenience. Not to forget the
livelier (if less powerful) GTI, which is front-wheel drive and at
least as involving as the R.
Heading back towards Wolfsburg via Brunswick on the
ultra-fast A39 near Brunswick, the winter tyres aren’t ideally
suited to exploring the R’s full potential, but even so it’s hugely
impressive that this comfortable, composed GT car is the same
hatchback that’s spent much of the past two days demonstrating
uncanny agility and poise. Because what makes the R special,
perhaps unique, is the mix. Extra power, total grip, ample twist
action and high speed are relatively generic assets. Innovative
features like the Drift and Nürburgring modes, the now even
more agile all-wheel-drive system and the overwhelmingly
talented chassis are not. At the end of two long days, these traits
make the small but decisive difference.
Quantifiably quicker and more sure-footed, the 316bhp jack- What makes the R special
of-all-trades is first and foremost awesome on back roads. The
new Golf R is less demanding than the GTI but every bit as fun. is the mix of power, speed
And for speed, on every kind of road, it’s on another level.
and an overwhelmingly
Next month: talented chassis
NEW DACIA SANDERO
BIG MILES IN THE UK’S MOST AFFORDABLE CAR

36 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

It’s a miracle it’s here at all… Under the hood and out the back
The new Golf R has been in the Although the new R uses a version
works for five years. When you of the 2.0-litre turbo four that’s
consider the political and personnel being doing sterling work for years
upheavals that have rocked VW throughout the VW Group, other
repeatedly in that time – including options were considered. A V6
continuing Dieselgate aftershocks was rejected as too heavy and too
and the death of former chairman bulky, the 395bhp four from the Golf
Ferdinand Piëch, not to mention the 400 concept was looked at, as was
push to electric – the fact that there Audi’s near-400bhp 2.5-litre five –
is a new Golf R shows the strength of but that’s now headed for the Cupra
the R sub-brand. From its Golf-only Formentor. However, what does look
origins, it’s a badge now applied to certain is an R estate.
the Touareg, T-Roc and Arteon – and
brace yourself for the Atlas SUV.

PRICE POWERTRAIN PERFORMANCE WEIGHT EFFICIENCY ON SALE R AT I N G

From £37,000 (est) 1984cc 16v turbo four- 316bhp @ 5350rpm, 1500kg 43.0mpg, (est) Deliveries 
cylinder, seven-speed 310lb ft @ 2100rpm, (est) 153g/km CO2 (est) early 2021
Data twin-clutch auto, 4.7sec 0-62mph,
all-wheel drive 155mph (limited)

JANUARY 2021 | GET CAR FOR JUST £3.50 A MONTH! GO TO [Link] 37

 Lose our test car’s
disguise and the
Mirai is now a
regular looking
four-door saloon

To drive, it feels like

a full electric car –
on a gap year in Goa

38 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 First drives

T O Y O TA M I R A I

Postcode lottery
If your entire life happens near hydrogen filling stations, you’re a winner
For hydrogen fuel cell cars, this feels like the
Prius Mk2 moment. That was when Toyota’s
hybrid came of age with its aerodynamic tear-
drop shape, stepchange in fuel economy and a
5 minutes
tiny bit of pure electric range. Hooning for the
We’re rolling in Toyota’s second-generation camera has the Mirai
Mirai, but it’s quieter than the celebs in Madame puffing out clouds
Tussauds. The tranquillity is remarkable: there’s like a 10-year-old
an ethereal whine from the electric motor that diesel – but it’s just
water vapour
turns the rear wheels, but it’s distant, even when
intensified by the accelerator. 7 minutes
No tyre groan either: up to 40mph you’ll hear Cabin cleaner, simpler and much more modern Cold tyres under-
nothing but the muted ker-thunk of a 20-inch steer through greasy
roundabouts, but
wheel over a manhole cover –  it’s like driving The stack is now small enough to fit in the chassis feels more
a sensory deprivation chamber. Aside from a nose (in the Mk1, the driver mountaineered atop stable and steering
lick of wind noise, it barely gets much louder at it), which frees up space for a third hydrogen defter than Mk1’s
motorway speeds. The soundproofing is ace, tank. The greater storage capacity and fuel
11 minutes
assisted by fuel cells having zero moving parts. cell finessing boosts range by 30 per cent, to This must be one of
Fuel cells generate electricity by drawing 400 miles, from a circa five-minute fill-up. the world’s quietest
hydrogen atoms through the fuel cell’s anode, This assumes you’re close to a hydrogen filling cars, making the
which splits the molecules into electrons and station: UK sites are only just into double figures. tailgating C63 AMG
that roars by seem
protons. While the protons pass through the The first Mirai drove the front wheels, be- particularly uncouth
polymer electrolyte, the electrons are forced traying its link to the Prius; the new saloon rides
through an external circuit which forms an on the architecture that underpins the Lexus 32 minutes
electrical current. The electrons finish their LS and LC. All of which explains its 4.9-metre Floor it to inch past
journey at the cathode, where they’re combined length, handsome saloon body, 50:50 weight a Mazda 6: with 221lb
ft in a near-two tonne
with protons and oxygen, generating the waste distribution, epic civility and how it handles. car, it’s no surprise
products of heat and water. The light steering is effortless, steady and 0-62mph accelera-
To drive, the Mirai feels like a full electric car – accurate, and the suspension softly-sprung. That tion takes 9.2sec
on a gap year in Goa. It’s not quick like an i-Pace makes for a cushy ride at higher speeds in par-
45 minutes
or Tesla – there’s an immediate shove of torque ticular, a bobbing nose under braking, MotoGP Rear headroom
but it rapidly plateaus – and lifting off triggers a lean in corners, and some lapses into understeer non-existent and
mellow slow-down: there’s none of the abrupt, on greasy, autumnal roundabouts. So be it: the it’s a struggle to get
confected deceleration of many EVs. Mirai is a car for cruising, not careering. behind the driver’s
seat; blame boot
The Mirai e-motor’s peak power is 180bhp, Toyota’s new-generation fuel cell is a compel- nibble by battery and
limited by the output of the fuel cell stack and ling vision for hydrogen being part of the car’s H2 tank
the supporting, LS500h-donated battery. This future. Someone now needs to persuade fuel
supplies the car under low loads, otherwise providers likewise.
power comes direct from the stack. PHIL MCNAMARA ▲
It’s six years since Toyota started making the PLUS
Mk1 in modest quantities. The aim this time is First verdict It’s a hydrogen car!
to boost annual production tenfold to 30,000
A very good egg, now we need a hydrogen-
cars a year. Such improvement is true to Toyota’s laying chicken. Better in every way than Mk1, MINUS
kaizen philosophy: the fuel cell stack has shrunk with pleasingly Lexus-like refinement ▼
in volume, but energy output has jumped by half. ##### It’s a hydrogen car!

PRICE POWERTRAIN PERFORMANCE WEIGHT EFFICIENCY ON SALE

£50,000 (est) 128kW fuel cell stack, 180bhp, 221lb ft, 1950kg 0.018kg per mile Spring 2021
180bhp e-motor, rear- 9.2sec 0-62mph, (tested), 404-mile
Data wheel drive 109mph range (official; 309
miles tested)

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 39

 steering that’s almost too direct and nervous
BMW M440i xDRIVE around the straight-ahead position. Especially
at high speed, the tiniest inputs can have a dis-

2030 can wait proportionate effect. But most of the time, the
steering scans the road and transmits the result
to your palms with exactly the right amount of
THE FIRST HOUR

4 minutes
transparency and power assistance. Some fresh-looking
Straight-six engine, coupe body, sharp The brakes are strong and relentless but could colours and finishes
in here
steering – BMW’s not surrendering quietly do with more instant bite, particularly given
the speed on tap. The eight-speed transmission 12 minutes
is even faster now, giving a real kick in the butt No massage
The ban on sales of new petrol- and diesel- during full-throttle shifts. Operating in tandem, function, though
engined cars keeps getting closer, but BMW xDrive and the M Sport diff support a dedicated 20 minutes
is making hay while it can. The new M Perfor- rear handling bias for brisker turn-in and a lower Low-speed ride
mance version of the Mk2 4-series coupe ticks power-oversteer threshold. nothing special
almost all the Ultimate Driving Machine boxes: The adaptive dampers are reasonably com-
27 minutes
extensive reinforcement, a 55kg drop in weight pliant in Comfort mode, but Sport prioritises Ignore the paddles
over the old model, sharper adaptive suspension, rigidity and firmness, and Sport Plus is tauter – you won’t match
an electronically-controlled M Sport differential still. It feels firmly tied down, with body move- the auto’s shift
and perfect 50:50 weight distribution. The roof ments kept on a short leash. genius
is 57mm lower, the car sits 10mm closer to the And it introduces a new ‘Sprint’ feature. Pull 37 minutes
ground, it’s wider and it’s aerodynamically more the left paddle, and brace yourself as the black Voice control
efficient. And it will be joined by a six-cylinder box selects Sport, dials in the lowest available system really works
diesel M440d next year, not to mention the M4. ratio, speeds up the throttle response and releas-
The turbocharged petrol straight-six is now es all the e-boost it can muster. There’s nothing 55 minutes
Hard to believe
paired with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system that mild about this use of mild-hybrid tech. sat-nav still costs
brings up to 11bhp of extra power, but which also GEORG KACHER extra in a
permits earlier and more prolonged coasting. premium car
Along with changes to the fuel injection and par- First verdict
▲ ticulate filters, this energy-recapturing system
makes it cleaner, more economical and more A hugely involving old-school driver’s car
PLUS fitted with a decent array of comfort and
Great engine; powerful; 0-62mph drops by 0.4 to 4.5sec. safety kit; not so rewarding for passengers
respectable The M440i challenges the driver with sharp #####
efficiency; strong
performance
MINUS PRICE POWERTRAIN PERFORMANCE WEIGHT EFFICIENCY ON SALE
▼ £54,645 2998cc 24v turbo- 369bhp @ 5500rpm, 1815kg 36.2-36.7mpg, Now
Stupid instrument charged four-cylinder, 369lb ft @ 1900rpm, 175-178g/km
graphics; poor Data eight-speed auto, 4.5sec 0-62mph, CO2
access to rear seats all-wheel drive 155mph

40 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 First drives

Steering is light but accurate, the rolling refine-

HYUNDAI TUCSON ment good on 19-inch wheels beneath a body
that bobs and rolls to keep occupants comfy.

It’s got the lot

Default Eco mode includes a cease-and-desist
order against heavy throttle: cross the line and THE FIRST HOUR
you’ll get a howl of revs for minimal return. 2 minutes
On twistier roads, select Sport mode for more Click indicator and
New crossover offers space, tech and linear, effusive power delivery, and some Mega rear view appears in
design treats galore. But how does it drive? Mass in the rack. You can flay the hybrid from the digital binnacle.
Mirrors = belt,
dormant to 62mph in 8.0sec. This Euro-spec camera = braces
car has ECS active suspension, but the adaptive
In CAR’s October 2004 issue, there’s a shot of me dampers don’t seem to have any feel apart from 5 minutes
heaving the bland Mk1 Hyundai Tucson through uncompromising. Take it easy and the Tucson Responsive steering
and smooth hybrid
a corner with about 20˚ of lean, in a review that hybrid is more enjoyable –  and you’ll get the make for peaceful
signs off: ‘If you’re looking for a smidgen of chance to take in all that tech. Driving forwards progress in town
innovation or desirability, look elsewhere.’ or backwards, braking, the view down the side,
Seven million sales later, the Tucson has come the front and back seats: everything is moni- 12 minutes
Bumpy B-road gets
a very long way indeed. This Mk4 overwhelms tored, and automated where possible. body bobbing at
you with technology, clothed in a design to One of many novelties is a central airbag to 60mph. Sport mode
make your optic nerve twitch. The way the grille prevent driver and passenger knocking heads. flatter but harsh
morphs into daytime running lights on start-up And an alarm that sounds if you’ve left the kids
in the back seats, preposterously. What next, a 21 minutes
looks sensational, but the sides are madness.
Aircon and radio
We’re driving the flagship hybrid, which text to social services? controls small and
sandwiches an electric motor between the The new Tucson is not a technological titan indistinct
turbocharged 1.6-litre petrol engine and the six- because of my words 16 years ago. Nonetheless,
speed automatic gearbox. Total system power be careful what you wish for. 47 minutes
Heaps of rear
is 227bhp, with 195lb ft of torque. Most Tucsons PHIL MCNAMARA legroom, and a big,
will have front-wheel drive, with plenty of grip: 616-litre boot despite
this on-demand four-wheel drive only makes First verdict hybrid gubbins
▲ sense for the snow-bound or the outward bound.
Suspect petrol versions with passive 55 minutes
PLUS The Tucson is a mellow companion around suspension might have nicer ride/handling – Mixed route has
Kitchen sink about town, where the orchestration of electric drive but Hyundai, we salute your ambition returned 35.1mpg
the only thing not and petrol combustion is harmonious and fluid. 
offered
MINUS
▼ PRICE POWERTRAIN PERFORMANCE WEIGHT EFFICIENCY ON SALE
To protect the £30,000+ (est) 1598cc 16v four- 227bhp @ 5500rpm, 1685kg No official mpg Now
careless, tech cylinder plus e-motor, 195lb ft @ 1500rpm, or CO2 figures
bombards the Data six-speed auto, 8.0sec 0-62mph, yet
competent driver all-wheel drive 120mph

Fresh and
inventive front
end meets
bonkers sides

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 41

 That green thing in
your mirrors? Turns
out it’s a Puma ST,
not a Cayman GTS

Like the Fiesta ST, the

Puma ST is surprisingly
adjustable mid-corner

42 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 First drives

FORD PUMA ST

A game of cat and, er, ST

Is it really a good idea to sprinkle Ford’s ST magic on a crossover? Yes!
The RS name plate might have the allure but
Ford Performance’s finest work wears the ST
badge. For evidence, consider the Focus and
Fiesta STs. The latter in particular is one of the
most tactile superminis you can buy. And now 1 minute
it’s the Puma’s turn to go ST. These seats are
nicer than the
If the Puma ST looks like a Fiesta on stilts, Focus ST’s
well, that’s because it is. You get a bin-full of
ST-specific exterior bolt-ons and, on the inside, 15 minutes
Recaro seats from the Fiesta ST to lock your hips Feels as fast as the
Fiesta ST. Can’t be,
and ribcage in place. The steering wheel and can it?
gearshift are exactly where you’d want them.
Ford has transplanted the fizzy 1.5-litre turbo 20 minutes
triple from the Fiesta ST and, while power is Gets Ford’s new
unchanged at 197bhp, Ford has squeezed out digital dials – fancy
a little more twist. Up 22lb ft from 214lb ft to 30 minutes
236lb ft, it helps the Puma ST match the Fiesta Well behaved in the
ST’s 0-62mph time of 6.7sec. That’s just a second twisty stuff. The only
behind a Focus ST, by the way. tricky bit is the high
seating position
Significantly, the Puma’s impression of a
Fiesta ST holds up on challenging roads. Steering 40 minutes
is just as sharp and precise as the supermini’s, No doubting it’s an ST (and a Puma, sadly) Motorways feel far
thanks to a rack 25 per cent faster than the one less chaotic than in
the Fiesta ST
in the standard Puma. The steering’s generous you to wring out every bit of the Puma’s power.
feedback and direct feel make it easy to tuck the But the Puma ST isn’t all about dagger- 50 minutes
crossover’s nose into corners. between-your-teeth silliness. It’s a crossover, No change to
On the chassis side, 50 per cent stiffer springs after all, and takes a laudably practical approach the standard car’s
– 50! – and new torsion beams and anti-roll bars in most areas. It’s quieter and much more generous storage
space
all work together to make the Puma ST surpris- comfortable at cruising speeds than the skate-
ingly controlled and adjustable mid-corner. It’s board-like Fiesta ST, and also offers 456 litres of
by no means a sports car. But neither is this a storage space to the Fiesta’s meagre 311.
normal crossover, either. And you’ll find the new The Puma ST is an unlikely winner. It stays
ST-specific brake discs – 17 per cent larger than true to its crossover – and Ford – roots by steering
those on the standard Puma – provide enough clear of stuff like physics-defying all-wheel drive
stopping power and feel to keep you interested. and a clinical twin-clutch auto ’box. Instead, like
Apply the pedal on the right, take advantage the Fiesta ST, the Puma ST is about giving the
of all the three-cylinder engine’s revs, and a you the precise controls and perky performance
combination of the mechanical LSD (part of the required for accessible and unlikely fun. ▲
£950 Performance Pack) and brake-based torque CURTIS MOLDRICH PLUS
vectoring work together to provide strong trac- Fun and practical,
with little compro-
tion, effortless rotation and some impressively First verdict mise on either side
high corner speeds.
Ford has recreated the magic of its highly
And the final piece of the puzzle? A six-speed acclaimed supermini in a practical, family- MINUS
manual ’box. Reassuringly snicky and mechan- friendly crossover. Shouldn’t work; does ▼
ical, it’s more than up to the job, and encourages ##### Look at it

PRICE POWERTRAIN PERFORMANCE WEIGHT EFFICIENCY ON SALE

£29,445 1497cc 12v turbo 197bhp @ 6500rpm, 1283kg 40.9mpg, Now
(£31,445 as three-cylinder, 136lb ft @ 2500rpm, 155g/km CO2
Data tested) six-speed manual, 6.7sec 0-62mph,
front-wheel-drive 137mph

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 43

 V O LV O X C 4 0 R E C H A R G E P U R E E L E C T R I C P 8

The inevitable EV
Volvo’s first pure EV arrives. And of course it’s good
Why ever would you doubt that the XC40 would
turn out to be tremendous? It’s not much of a
stretch to argue that this car is exactly what
Volvo has been leading up to throughout the THE FIRST HOUR
93 years since its founders dragged themselves
away from a gloomy teatime drama on Swedish 1 minute
No ignition switch?
public radio and decided to make safe, comforta- Good – I can never
ble, responsible and quietly stylish cars. find them these days
Volvos have rarely been about speed or han-
dling or light weight, so moving beyond internal 8 minutes
Lack of engine
combustion is not a soul-tearing transition. And noise means you
now Volvo has gone EV with its huge-selling notice the wind and
compact crossover, a car designed from the off to tyres more. Not
accommodate a variety of power sources. Minimal design, boosted by Google brains intrusive, but not
silent running
The result is a car with lively acceleration (4.9
seconds to 62mph), good real-world range (more country with a lot of stop-start and a bit of pedal- 17 minutes
than 200 miles per charge) and a Google-based to-the-metal, and by the end it still reckoned it Out of town, floor it,
infotainment system, on top of all the other had 155 miles of charge. If you use a fast charger, and it’s pretty nippy
qualities that make every other XC40 feel so your mid-journey stops could be a relatively
28 minutes
good to drive or be passengered in. Considering decent 40 minutes (from empty to 80 per cent). Try One Pedal:
that the powertrain is completely different, and There’s not much to be gained by caning it. It’s don’t like it. More
the weight much greater, it does a very good job much happier breezing around smoothly and natural to let it coast
of offering the same mix of refinement, comfort quietly, and so will you be.
48 minutes
and modernity. You can make the steering firmer, and there’s Catch myself
It’s for now only available in a near-£60,000 an off-road setting, but the main choice is having a conversa-
spec’d-up First Edition model. Even with all the whether to go for One Pedal driving. If you do, tion with the Google
electric comfort features and safety aids Volvo the electric motors do most of your slowing infotainment. It’s
ridiculously good
could find in its warehouse, the XC40 interior is down for you. If you don’t, the car will coast
still clean, simple, modern and airy. Boot capaci- when you throttle back, and you need to press 58 minutes
ty is unaltered, and there’s a modest trunk at the the brake pedal in the conventional way. Poten- Healthy amount
front, but the charging cable almost fills that up. tially less energy is lost in One Pedal driving; it’s of charge still
remaining, despite an
The new infotainment merges smart- generally much smoother with One Pedal off.
unnatural amount of
phone-familiar features like Google Assistant Expect lower-spec and lower-powered ver- heavy right foot
and Google Maps with the usual Volvo touch- sions to follow. And assuming Volvo executes
screen (a 12.3-inch version in this case). It’s a those as well as it’s executed the P8, those
breeze to operate by voice, with the upshot that more affordable EVs should retain all of this ▲
you spend very little time looking at the screen range-topper’s best qualities: its style, its feel- PLUS
and thumbing through menus wondering how good factor and its easygoing nature. Good range; same
to adjust your seat heater. The answer to just COLIN OVERLAND appealing character
about everything now starts with saying ‘Hey as any XC40
Google’ and letting Silicon Valley do the rest. First verdict MINUS
The 78kWh lithium-ion battery (75kWh net) ▼
An EV that doesn’t make a big fuss about
is under the floor, with one electric motor on being an EV, the XC40 is like any other XC40 Expensive for
the rear axle and one on the front, for all-wheel – except even smoother and quieter now; not the
drive. We drove for 50 miles, a mix of town and  sharpest steer

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44 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 First drives

The answer to everything starts

with saying ‘Hey Google’ and
letting Silicon Valley do the rest

Different
wheels, grille
and filler cap
say it’s the EV

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 45

 S P O N S O R E D BY

Opinion
A LL H A I L H OT H ATC H E S + F4 0’ S G ROW I N G LE G E N D + I S S U E 70 0

Coulda woulda shoulda Honda E (Our Cars, November 2020),

I was thumbing through some old should use the phrase ‘keyless entry
Letter CAR mags the other day when I came and ignition’. I guess a word is required
of the across a piece on Lotus’s Project M300. to talk about the process of activating a
They were working on a ‘self-charging’ car, but it certainly isn’t ignition.
month petrol-electric hybrid supercar. It was The E sounds a nice piece of kit,
aiming at such trickery as a sub-9.0sec though, and I wonder what a hit it
electric-only 0-60mph performance, would be with a decent range.
a seamless transition between the two Mario Bortolozzo
power sources, four-wheel drive with an
electronically variable torque split and Keyless starting? BM
active suspension. The story ends: ‘If it
gets the approval of the bean counters, True costs
it is bound to be a success.’ The year? Your October issue’s Our Cars review
1990. I suspect the bean counters didn’t of your Jaguar EV was informative. Five
have the vision to see what was coming! out of nine chargers either in use or
Nick Georgiadis not available over just 684 miles must
have made for a pretty stressful journey.
Story of Lotus’s life. BM The 7.3p-per-mile cost was even more
Hot hatches rule Play to your strengths
enlightening. My Volvo V90 D4 delivers
9p per mile. In the 13,000 miles covered
I love your magazine, and I love the so far it hasn’t yet needed AdBlue, and
As a long-term reader (since the late ’70s),
cars you write about, even though I the service plan ensures maintenance
congratulations on your 700th issue – I must
can never own or drive any of them. costs are minimal. Including the service
have read at least 500 of them. However, with the
It’s all just a dream – most of them cost my £40k car will cost me £13k over
speed of migration to electrification, this issue
are only available to the mega-rich. Is the 45,000 miles/three years I own it.
does feel a bit like a petrolhead’s last hurrah.
your magazine relevant or objective? I And that nine-stop journey you refer to
In saying that, there were no 500bhp BMW
think not. If I wanted to buy a car, your I could have done on one tank of diesel.
M cars and 2.0-litre turbo hot hatches when I
magazine would probably be the last Do we really want electric cars?
started reading. My initial interest was captured
one I would consult. Keep up the good Andrew Hudson
by the first Golf GTI, Alfasud and Renault 5
work!
Gordini, and I ended up owing a succession of 10
Colin Davies For certain scenarios, yes. I ran
hot hatches, mainly Golfs.
James Taylor’s Mini Electric for
Now they are too large and powerful for my
Ha ha! Erm, thanks? BM three weeks and it was perfect;
needs, and my Polo R-line suits me fine – it is
quick, quiet, 4.8p per mile and I
more powerful than my first five hot hatches
The future is a foreign country could ‘refuel’ at home, overnight.
(including four Golfs!) and more economical.
Interesting that Tim Pollard, when These days long-range drives are
Robert McIver
discussing the specification of his feeling like a distant memory… BM
Thanks Robert. A Polo would do me nicely. BM
This kind of
irrelevant
brilliance must
continue!

46 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

One he made earlier
Congratulations on 700 issues and
thank you so much for the fantastic
700th issue. I remember my first copy
of CAR, back in 1969, featuring the
then new Ford Capri. I’ve pretty much
bought every single issue since then,
and was very pleased to contribute
some ‘scoop’ illustrations of a new
Aston while at college in the ’80s.
Given that your magazine has been
such an influence on my life, I couldn’t
have been more thrilled to see the Lotus
Elise finishing a close second as your
choice for the best car in CAR’s history.
Not only that, the car you tested was
the car I actually once owned. I wish I
could tell you something clever about
the choice of spec but at the time it was Stevenage’s easy option when it comes to opinions! archives. Hoping that we’re all still
fastest yoghurt
the best I could afford! knitter Anyway, I’m already looking forward around for the 1000th.
So I’m quite happy to finish runner- to the 60th anniversary issue in two Chris Ballantine
up to the F40 and agree with this years, and in particular where the F40
choice – on the condition you arrange features then in the list of great cars. Glad you enjoyed it, Chris. As you
for me to drive one! Good luck with the Simon Hull point out, space was the issue. For-
next 700. tunately anyone keen to read more
Julian Thomson, Jaguar design The race to be green can head to [Link] for
director Mark Walton’s November column on a wealth of stories. For example,
Lewis Hamilton was spot-on. Lewis search ‘CAR magazine Bulgin’
Nothing wrong with the Elise’s spec, as a sportsman is a national treasure, and you’ll be spoilt for choice, with
Julian – Gavin, Ben and Chris loved and should be recognised as such. But everything from his essay on the
it. Let’s see what we can do about he does spout some sanctimonious simple joys of the Renault 4 to his
that F40 drive… BM claptrap. If so concerned about the legendary ‘Thanks but no thanks’
planet, why does he continue in an first drive of a Porsche 911. BM
Going to need a bigger podium industry that in 2019 announced an
Thanks for the 700th issue. It’s the kind 11-year plan to be carbon neutral? Cogito ergo sum
of issue CAR always does best, simply Eleven years!! Why so long? I’m sure one I’ve been reading and subscribing to
because of the fantastic history behind of the most technologically advanced CAR for over 40 years now. Your 700th
the magazine. sectors in the world can do better than issue was a trip down memory lane.
The subscriber in me led me to one that. The CO2 footprint of F1 with I remember reading LJK Setright’s
of my favourite CAR issues – the 50th all its logistics, manufacturing and original article in Latin. Would it be
anniversary special of October 2012 – consumables must be enormous! possible for you to re-print this? I’d
and the statistician in me thought I’d Lewis needs to look closer to home, enjoy translating it again. Some of his
compare the 50 greatest cars in that cut out the ‘knit your own yoghurt’ other articles are still very relevant
issue with the seven favourite cars in nonsense and become an eco warrior today, and worth reading.
the 700th issue. within his F1 glasshouse first! David Earl
The conclusion? The F40 rose an Gareth Morgan
astonishing 26 places from 27th to first, One of the great privileges of
knocking the 911 off top spot which I
Our Chris Chilton
The greats working at CAR is ready access ⊲
in Julian’s old
guess shows that CAR doesn’t take the Lotus Elise I saw the news of your 700th edition
and hurried off to buy it. I have to
admit I was somewhat surprised Have your say:
by being greeted by such a slimline
VIA EMAIL
700th – not so much a bumper edition
as a bumperette. Having said that, I
@ CAR@[Link]
was impressed that you managed to VIA TWITTER
condense the story of 700 editions into @CARmagazine
just 35 pages, and find space to mention
past contributors such as LJK Setright, VIA FACEBOOK
George Bishop, Russell Bulgin, Mel [Link]/CARmagazine
Nichols, et al.
VIA POST
However, perhaps a little more space
CAR, Media House, Lynchwood,
would have allowed a new generation
Peterborough, PE2 6EA
to enjoy the quality of their writing,
I’m sure there are some gems in your

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 47

Opinion

would turn his cost argument on its to the next 700 issues.
head. While I’m on about it, how about Peter Stockley
some comparison tests of the i-Pace ver-
sus rivals such as Porsche Macan Turbo, 1997, late one Sunday evening,
Mercedes GLC63 and Alfa Stelvio, January. I’m heading back up to
rather than the predictable Mercedes university for a new term, 205 XS
EQC and Audi e-Tron? It might help loaded with a pristine ironing board
me and other readers, who are unsure and a load of depressing CDs. Know
about taking the leap into an EV. the road well. Headlights appear in
James Marsh my mirrors through a village, long
straight to come. 30mph limit goes
In fairness, we have published to 60mph and I give the Peugeot
plenty of mixed-powertrain tests, everything in third gear – usually
notably Model S against Taycan, enough to see off most comers.
Polestar 1 and BMW M5 Competi- The headlights grow no smaller,
tion and, before that, Jaguar i-Pace then overtake: Renault 5 GT Turbo.
to the old issues. Reading and New and XK120; a perennial consumer He finds my effort to drop him so
re-reading LJKS is always time well vocabulary conundrum… BM hilarious that he spends the next
spent. I tend to stick to the stuff in required
20 miles gleefully overtaking me,
English, though. CO On your way then, sonny bombing off ahead, turning round,
What a wonderful edition the 700th coming back the other way, turning
Apples versus oranges was – a real trip down memory lane. I round, catching me up, overtaking
I see Phil McNamara is suffering from always remember an article that LJK with impunity… Yep, GT Turbos
‘automotive tourettes’ (Goodbye Jaguar Setright did, singing the praise of the were fast. BM
i-Pace, Our Cars, November). This Citroën 2CV, and how he was told
manifests itself as the compulsion off by the police as he went around a You had me at ‘supercars’
to blurt out ‘too expensive’ when roundabout in one, the doors almost Congratulations on your 700th edition,
reviewing any high-end EV. It seems to parallel to the road, and how the police which I enjoyed from cover to cover.
affect most of the motoring press and walked away dazed after he’d explained Perhaps I’m not the only reader
is normally followed by comparison to why the car was able to do such a thing! who was originally switched on to the
a completely irrelevant car. We saw it Excellent writing, knowledgeable as excitement of cars by your January 1976
first when the Tesla Model S launched, well as witty, like all your scribes past cover: ‘The supercars face-to-face’.
and found itself compared to the Ford and present. Alan Easton
Mondeo. Phil compares the i-Pace to I have read CAR since 1976 and look
a rattly diesel F-Pace, when surely the forward to every issue. I like the way Look this way, car designers
non-afflicted would compare it to the you tell us what’s what. I am almost 50, and for the past five
better-matched F-Pace SVR, which Nick Brunner years I have needed reading glasses to
enjoy this magazine, although I don’t
Gravy o’clock need them for driving.
I can understand your choice of cars to When car designers ‘improve’ mirrors
celebrate the best of the past in issue with a camera and a screen they change
700. My pick would have been my old it from an infinite focal length to one
One of Renault 5 GT Turbo. Nothing this side of about 50cm, which means I can no
Renault’s
other very of a 205 1.9 GTI could stick with it. longer see it clearly.
quick turbos Fantastic issue. I am looking forward What’s worse, if/when I get bifocals,

[Link]

1 Ford Kuga PHEV versus hybrid

SUV rivals
2 Mercedes S-Class review:
the new ‘smart’ car
3 Mazda 3 Skyactiv-X long-term
test review
4 Dacia Spring Electric:
a bargain EV for the masses
5 New VW Golf R: Wolfsburg’s
hottest hatch is here

48 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Subscription hotline
01858 438884 or visit
[Link]/car
CAR magazine,
Media House, Lynchwood,
Peterborough PE2 6EA
Tel 01733 468000
Email CAR@[Link]
or visit us at
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EDITORIAL
Editor
Ben Miller
Editor-in-chief
Phil McNamara
Managing editor
Colin Overland
Deputy features editor
James Taylor
Deputy news editor
Jake Groves
New cars editor
Adam Binnie
Digital editorial director
Tim Pollard
Online editor
Curtis Moldrich
that’s not going to help me in my new The comparison his amusing articles always digressing Art editor
test everyone Mal Bailey
Maserati MC20 (CAR, October 2020), onto the subject of food. Who could Editors-at-large
demanded
which has a camera-based ‘mirror’, forget Mott? And CAR’s photography Chris Chilton, Mark Walton,
Ben Barry, Ben Pulman
because I’d need to tilt my ageing neck has always been a standout feature.
Contributor-in-chief
skywards to focus through the bottom The world has, however, moved Gavin Green
half of my glasses. on from petrol at three gallons to the European editor
Georg Kacher
Car designers may all be vigorous pound. And the days of enjoying the Contributing editors
30-year-olds now, but in 15 years it’s open road free from traffic are a distant Ben Oliver, Ben Whitworth,
going to happen to them too. memory. Keep up the good work, CAR. Anthony ffrench-Constant,
Steve Moody, Sam Smith
James Harding Nick Kemp F1 correspondent
Tom Clarkson
The yoke’s on us Office manager
Leise Enright
Nice piece with James May in your INSTANT RE ACTIONS VIA FACEBOOK Production controller
700th issue, but your sub needs a New Mercedes Richard Woolley
smack: ‘The seatback disappeared, ADVERTISING
taking me and the yolk with it.’ James S-Class Commercial director
Kelly Millis
might not have been killed after a stall, Digital commercial director
but he certainly would have had egg on Jim Burton
his face. Key account manager
Dan Chapman
Nice tribute, too, to Georg Kacher. I Account manager
remember once sitting next to him at Claire Meade-Gore
an EMAP conference [CAR’s publisher Regional sales
Graham Roby
prior to Bauer]. After the seventh
PUBLISHING
or eighth publisher had bored us
Acting publisher
with their mission statement, Georg Rachael Beesley
announced, in a loud whisper all could Cars are getting so complicated that it goes well Acting marketing manager
Sarah Norman
hear: ‘My mission statement is to **** beyond the actual goal – being comfortable and Direct marketing manager
Kim Basinger.’ easy to operate. Either you have to spend whole Julie Spires
I believe it still is. weeks learning to operate your new car or you will Direct marketing executive
Raheema Rahim
Mark Revelle not use all its functions. It’s a road to nowhere.
Editorial director
Paul Lozanov June Smith-Sheppard
Going to need a bigger loft MD, automotive group
700th edition? Oh my, that means I’ve It’s very impressive but to me it looks like a facelift of Niall Clarkson
the previous model. They also dropped the ball on Chief financial officer
been a reader for over half a century. Lisa Hayden
the interior.
Where has the time gone! Back then Robert Cumming
CEO, Bauer Publishing UK
Chris Duncan
CAR was the rebel mag, with containing President, Bauer Global Publishing
brilliant articles by the likes of LJK Honey I… expanded the A-Class? Rob Munro-Hall
Setright. His praise for Bristols even Anthony Aspiridis
persuaded my brother-in-law to buy
one. And, of course, George Bishop, and
SUBSCRIPTIONS To ensure you don’t miss an issue visit [Link]. To contact us about subscription orders, renewals, missing issues or any other subscription queries, please email bauer@[Link] or call our UK number 01858 438884, or overseas call +44 1858 438884. To manage your account online visit
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NW1 7DT © All material published remains the copyright of H Bauer Publishing. No part of this magazine may be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher. CAR can’t accept responsibility for unsolicited material COMPLAINTS H Bauer Publishing is a member of the Independent Press Standards
Organisation ([Link]) and endeavours to respond to and resolve concerns quickly. Our Editorial Complaints Policy (including full details of how to contact us about editorial complaints and IPSO’s contact details) can be found at [Link]. Our email address for editorial complaints covered by the
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‘The Cullinan is the
king of big SUVs:
a car of brilliance
without wisdom,
technical prowess
without taste’

T
he month began in the
back of a Rolls-Royce
Cullinan and finished
driving a Land Rover
Defender 90 in the mud.
Most new cars seem to be
SUVs these days, but before
I talk about all the 4x4s driven

parked outside my house and my neighbour’s (the Cullinan is a

very big car). The first thing the driver did was give me a mask. It has
Rolls-Royce branding and continues to attract admiring glances. Jaguar Land Rover has been a plug-in-hybrid laggard. There were two to
The Cullinan is the roomiest, most refined and most comfortable SUV in drive, the Range Rover Evoque P300e and its mechanically identical, more
the world. It’s also a limo-lorry leviathan, a dinosaur in size and in concept spacious but less stylish twin, the Discovery Sport P300e.
(12-cylinder SUVs do not have much longer to roam the Earth). I’d like to Commendably, a lighter and more economical 1.5-litre three-cylinder
say the looks have grown on me since I drove it two years ago in Wyoming, engine is fitted to these PHEVs. Plus, these two Merseysiders can do
but I can’t. Mind you, there’s technical wizardry in its Phantom-like refine- 30-plus miles on electric power, which is better than most. Cabin design
ment and ride quality. It is the king of big SUVs: a car of brilliance without and quality are also excellent, increasingly a Land Rover signature.
wisdom, technical prowess without taste, success without goodwill. The Discovery Sport P300e is now surely JLR’s best family car, unless
I was on my way to Goodwood to see Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten you have a few acres to park a Disco 5. Mind you it’s heavy by ‘small’ SUV
Müller-Ötvös, a noted Anglophile despite all the umlauts. He told me the standards, at 2.1 tonnes (like the PHEV Evoque), the same weight as a Puma
Cullinan was selling like Veuve Clicquot at the Ritz and would be the com- with a Lotus Elise on its roof.
pany’s best-seller, perhaps alongside the new Ghost. Some fabulously rich Finally, I churned up the mud on a tough off-road route at Eastnor
younger customers were gravitating to the Ghost instead. ‘They now think Castle in Herefordshire in a Defender 90. This was the base model, on steel
an SUV is a car for their dad.’ Is this the end of the trend to premium SUVs? springs rather than optional height-adjustable air suspension. The 90 is
A few days later I collected a much-lauded new car, the Ford Puma. This the pick of the new Defenders, the best looking, smallest, cheapest, most
is essentially a pumped-up Fiesta and the sweetest-driving SUV on the manoeuvrable and most off-road capable, and it works just fine riding on
road. It steers and handles almost as fluently as a Fiesta, the best-driving steel. We waded streams, wallowed through deep mud and clambered
supermini. It’s also light by SUV standards, a modest 1280kg (or a whole up impossibly steep rocky and rutted slopes, revelling in the astonishing
Mondeo less than a Cullinan, and with the same number of seats). Plus, I’ve all-condition proficiency of Land Rover’s most all-terrain-adept 4x4.
always loved Ford’s tuneful 1.0-litre triple-cylinder engine. This of course is what SUVs were originally designed for: to explore,
But there’s the usual SUV caveats. What does a Puma offer that the go places normal cars can’t, to discover the wildness and wonders of our
Illustration by Peter Strain

donor Fiesta does not? A touch more rear seat room and a bigger world. Like my Namibian odyssey in a new Defender 110 (see CAR, May
multi-functional boot. It’s also pricier, longer and wider, 100kg heavier and 2020), and boyhood Outback adventures in my dad’s Land Cruiser, it was
no more all-condition capable. If you want a small SUV, buy a Puma. But wonderful to enjoy a 4x4 where it best belongs.
the Fiesta is more fun to drive and almost as practical.
Next up, there was a fleet of new Land Rovers. Despite being Europe’s You can find former CAR editor Gavin Green’s hard-hitting original Cullinan
first premium car maker to launch an electric car, the excellent i-Pace, drive story, with Torsten Müller-Ötvös in Wyoming, on [Link]

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 51

‘How did this kind
of fakery become
acceptable?
A few years ago
originality was
everything’

I
’m driving a 1960 Ferrari 250 SWB – one of
the undisputed crown jewels in automo-
tive history. As I mash my foot to the floor,
the gargling V12 instantly hardens, like an
orchestra transitioning from a chaotic warm-
up into a single, penetrating, rising note. The

when I first climbed in. The SWB never had an open gate like a 250 GTO, so
it needs concentration and force to place it right; but when third is engaged, So far, straightforward. But two things surprise me: first, how unbeliev-
the V12 picks up where I left off: with all the guts and mettle and shove of a ably awesome this SWB is, given it’s from a company that doesn’t normally
weightlifter snatching a 150kg bar. God, what an engine. What a heavenly, build entire cars. And second, how did this kind of barefaced fakery become
ear-splitting noise. acceptable? Just a few years ago, originality was EVERYTHING. A car’s
Shame it’s a fake. Yes, I’m afraid it’s a fake. Or, if you want to use modern history was what made it attractive, and to drive a replica Ferrari was like
parlance, it’s a facsimile… a reproduction… a recreation… a continuation. admitting your Rolex was bought off a street market in Bangkok.
Or, to be more precise, it’s the GTO Engineering 250 SWB ‘Revival’. ‘A lot of copy cars were there before people actually realised,’ Mark tells
GTO, based outside Reading, is a Ferrari specialist formed in the ’80s by me. ‘Someone owned a 250 GTO or GT40 and they had another one made,
Mark Lyons. For decades it’s been restoring Ferrari road and race cars, and quietly. Not many people would know it wasn’t the original car.
I don’t mean a once-over and a lick of paint – GTO has an engine workshop ‘It had to happen,’ Mark goes on. A 250 GTO is now worth $60 million;
that can turn out a brand new, race-spec 3.0-litre V12 to slot into your 250 an alloy SWB perhaps $15 million. ‘There’s a different type of owner today,’
Testa Rossa. Mark admits. ‘The guy who bought a car and drove it, had fun, enjoyed it –
The SWB Revival actually dates back more than a decade, to the 2008 that doesn’t really happen any more. It’s an awful shame and I hate it, but
financial crash, though the project has only come to light now. Mark Lyons you’ve got to accept it’s happened.’
explains: ‘We’d been making a lot of parts for race cars, and we thought, So if you’re a billionaire collector and you’re invited to attend a high-
“What can we do to keep the workshop busy?” We came up with the idea of profile historic race or rally event, why risk the $60 million investment, if
building complete cars.’ you can take a million-pound facsimile and no one – not even a black-belt
So, each Revival (about 30 have been sold already) starts with a donor marque expert – will know the difference? This has become a major head-
car. This is misleading, because the SWB is all-new from the ground up; ache for events like the Goodwood Revival, which prides itself in racing the
but the donor gives you the all-important Ferrari chassis number. GTO very best, original, historic cars.
recommends you find (with its assistance) a 250 GTE, the SWB’s uglier, 2+2 And so – bizarrely  – driving a perfect copy has become the ultimate
cousin. Mark insists this isn’t sacrilege. ‘We use donor cars that will never demonstration of wealth. Buy an £800,000 replica like the 250 SWB
Illustration by Peter Strain

be repaired,’ he stresses. ‘They’ve had engines and gearboxes taken out, Revival and drive it like a boss, and not only will you have the time of your
they’ve been on fire, they’ve been crashed.’ life, you’ll also leave people guessing, ‘Do you think he owns the $20 million
Your neglected GTE costs around £150k, and over the next 18 months original at home?’
GTO will build you a gorgeous alloy-bodied 250 SWB that will set you back
a further £500,000-£700,000, depending on spec (you can add air-con or Editor-at-large Mark Walton has been contributing to CAR since 1998.
upgrade to a 3.5 or 4.0-litre V12). He’s the real deal – or is he?

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 53

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 ] 2 4 - P A G E S P E C I A L ]

F L A T O U T
I N 2 0 2 1 ’ S
M O S T W A N T E D
Driven: the class of 2021

] P O R S C H E 9 1 1 G T 3 ]

E M O T I O N A L
I N T E L L I G E N C E
Objectively, the new 911 GT3 will be the best
ever. But more importantly, says Porsche GT
boss Andreas Preuninger, its raw appeal will be
off the scale. We hit the road to find out
Words James Taylor

56 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 PORSCHE 911 GT3
P R I C E £125,000 (est)
P O W E R T R A I N 3996cc
24v flat-six, seven-speed
twin-clutch auto or six-speed
manual, rear-wheel drive
P E R F O R M A N C E 503bhp
@ 8400rpm (est), 350lb ft @
6250rpm (est), sub-3.4sec
0-62mph, 200mph (est)
W E I G H T 1340kg
O N S A L E February 2021

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 57

 ‘IT. IS . NO T.
H E AV I E R .
YOU’LL BE
ABLE TO
CHECK ON THE
SCALES’
ANDREAS PREUNINGER

inflated too: the regular 992-generation 911’s

structure makes it a bigger car than ever. And yet
the new GT3 weighs the same as the last one.
‘It. Is. Not. Heavier. Than its predecessor,’
Preuninger says, emphasising each word with
relish. ‘We’re really proud of that. If you look at
Gearlever an some manufacturers, every new car gets heavier,’
endangered
species? Not in he winces. ‘Not my cars. We’ll have a set of scales
Porsche GT cars at the launch, so you can check for yourself.’
Working with fresh source material has
made the new GT3 more or less a from-scratch
project, with all the contradictory challenges

I
and advantages that involves: ‘The 911 has got
bigger but that means it has wider front and rear
tracks [for greater grip], and the shell is stiffer. So
f you’ve ever wondered what kind the 992 platform is definitely a plus. But to get all
of desk the head of Porsche’s GT the GT3 vibes into a car that’s become bigger – to
division drives, it’s a very clean one. have that raw 911 essence – that’s the challenge.’
Some stationery is kept in a suspen- To that end, there’s still not a turbocharger
sion spring on Andreas Preuninger’s in sight. The flat-six is a development of the
desktop, and a titanium conrod sits on top of previous GT3’s 4.0-litre unit, with many of the
a neat pile of documents. There are a couple CO2-cutting tweaks fitted to last year’s limit-
of other, unusually proportioned suspension ed-run 911 Speedster to ensure it slips through
components nearby. ‘Don’t jump to conclusions! emissions regulations’ tightening snare. It
They’re for my motorcycle…’ he says. develops ‘around 10bhp’ more than before, for a
It’s from here, inside Porsche’s secretive total around the 503bhp mark.
Weissach R&D centre (and also, challengingly, ‘Five hundred horsepower in a car of this size
from home sometimes during the pandemic) and weight – it’s enough,’ Preuninger says. ‘If you
that Preuninger’s engineering team is finalising have 600bhp, you need bigger brakes, heavier
the latest 911 GT3. No easy task. Each successive weight, and it would need turbos – which the
GT3 has been somehow better than the last, and GT3 customer doesn’t want. So, if we want to up
the outgoing 991.2 model is still one of the most the ante, we have to do that in other areas. It is
exciting, immersive driver’s cars in the world. substantially faster on a circuit than the last car.’
We’re here to get a one-to-one briefing on the How? One giant leap is the suspension. For
brand-new, 992-generation GT3, but not just via the first time in a roadgoing production 911, the
a chat in Preuninger’s office. We’ll also see it first front suspension is by double wishbones rather
hand: while it’s moving, from the passenger seat. than MacPherson struts. ‘That has advantages
Sitting in a parking bay just outside is a lightly in camber stiffness and precision,’ explains
Manual and
PDK GT3s get camouflaged prototype, close to final production Preuninger. ‘It keeps the wheel on the road better
the exact same spec, and we’ll spend the rest of the morning out than a MacPherson. Our mid-engined competi-
lever design
on the road with Andreas at the wheel. tors have had double wishbones for a long time
But first, the headlines. The new GT3 will be but it wasn’t possible on the old 911 platform.’
revealed to the world undisguised early in 2021. We head outside to meet the prototype. This
Pricing is not yet confirmed but will be ‘a little example has covered thousands of development
bit more’ than the previous car, Preuninger says, miles, many of them with Preuninger himself
in line with usual inflation from one generation at the wheel. It’s wrapped in a fetching and
to the next. The car’s overall dimensions have camera-shy shade of black but otherwise ⊲

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 Driven: the class of 2021

Finally! The big

news on the 992
GT3 is double-
wishbone front
suspension

Blank badge
is fooling no
one: it’s a 911
at 120 paces

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 59

Driven: the class of 2021

MANUAL CONTROL STILL NO TURBOS

DIY enthusiasts rejoice: a CO2 regs almost mandate

manual six-speed gearbox is turbochargers in modern cars.
still standard; a seven-speed How much longer can the
PDK an option. Both are the BIGGE R, NOT HE AVIE R GT3 avoid forced induction? NO NONSE NSE
same gearbox designs as ‘Put it this way: we will stick to
before; the latter has slightly Current-gen 911 shell is the naturally-aspirated engine Slick touchscreen from
different cooling to save ‘a bigger than the old one, and for as long as possible,’ says regular 911 remains but
few hundred grammes’. although the body-in-white Preuninger. If the GT3 ever important go-to adjustments
is lighter, all the new tech does go turbo in the future, – damper mode, nose-lift,
and equipment carries kilos. you get the feeling it won’t traction and stability control
So keeping the new GT3’s be because it’s chasing – are physical switches. Sole
needle at the same point on horsepower. screen-only controls are start/
the scales is an impressive stop and the sports exhaust.
achievement. ‘First thing I do when I get in is
press those two spots on the
screen simultaneously, then I
don’t touch it again,’ AP says.

60 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 THE SOUND
HIT THE FE E LS
IS STILL
Steering feel, a marvel of the
previous car, was a priority in
GOOSEBUMP
development. ‘We had to start M ATERIAL . THE
from scratch with the new
front axle. You’ll have to take GT3 R E A LLY
my word for it, but I’d say this HOWLS
is the best yet,’ Preuninger
says. Likewise brake feel, he
promises: servo assistance is
less abrupt than other 911s, camouflage is minimal. The rear bumper is a is that you should be able to tell in the first few
and ABS is programmed to fake, though; the production car’s will be easier metres that you are in a GT3, rather than a 911
cut in only as a last resort. on the eye. The new carbonfibre bonnet ducts Carrera or Turbo,’ Preuninger says.
airflow through a deep pair of nostril vents but From the passenger seat, it really does feel as
they haven’t compromised boot space; my suit- responsive as its predecessor. We’ve driven out
case drops easily into the frunk with space for of Weissach’s gates and immediately into rolling
another couple of bags on top. countryside. On Porsche’s doorstep are coiled
It’s a long drop into the passenger seat, lower bunches of great driving roads, some smooth
than regular 992 models. AP says the driving po- in surface, some less so. The GT3’s ride feels taut
sition is exactly the same as the previous GT3 (no yet relatively supple, one of its predecessor’s core
fixing required; it definitely wasn’t broke) as he skills. (‘It should be raw but not uncomfortable;
positions his rangy frame in the left-hand seat. it should be usable as a daily driver for someone
Andreas is tall but my passenger seat’s runners who wants that,’ Andreas says.)
can slide even further back than his driving The redline on the revcounter remains at
position, for epic legroom. The steel half-roll- 9000rpm – something of a GT3 USP. ‘People
cage behind us is an optional extra rather than expect it,’ Preuninger acknowledges. Once the
standard fit. So is this car’s PDK auto gearbox. A engine’s warmed through and Preuninger exer-
six-speed manual will be standard equipment. cises its vocal chords, its note is still goosebump
Spec PDK and the gear selector looks identical to material despite additional particulate filters
the manual lever. You’d have to count the pedals that weren’t mandated on the previous GT3. It
in the footwell to be sure. Regular PDK 911s have really howls. ‘It’s loud on the inside – we gave up
a square plastic blade to select drive, reverse and a little bit of long-distance comfort – but on the
so on, with manual control only possible via the outside it’s quieter. Even with the exhaust valves
steering paddles, but in the GT3 you can also open in villages it’s quiet, and it’s a nice sound.
punch the lever back and forth to shift up and We don’t want to appeal to posers who want to
down the ’box. ‘I love this detail,’ Preuninger be loud for the neighbours. That’s not my game.’
says. ‘I wanted to keep the lever – I don’t want to Nor is straight-line speed for the sake of it. The
be on the paddles all the time.’ The faster, track- road clears to a well-sighted, open section and
focused GT3 RS version on the way later will be the (still analogue) tacho pings off the 9000rpm
PDK-only, however, as before. redline. The acceleration is fast enough to thrill,
Sauntering out of Porsche’s R&D base the without distorting reality like some supercars.
GT3 already feels… well, like a 911 GT3. ‘Our aim ‘In a straight line it’s not substantially quicker ⊲

Alloy wheel
Andy P in his design is close
happy place: at to production
speed in a GT3 spec

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 61

 than the old one,’ Preuninger says, matter of
factly. ‘Why would it be? Similar power, similar
‘WHEN YOU’RE GOING
weight. Six hundred horsepower… you don’t R E A LLY QU ICK LY, YOU SH I F T
need that! I’d rather have 100bhp less and keep it
naturally aspirated.’ Amen to that.
INTO TOP AT 186MPH’
The weight savings over the regular 992 have ANDREAS PREUNINGER
come from countless areas, some big (carbon
bonnet, thinner rear glass), others tiny parmesan
shavings of mass here and there. Interestingly, an all-new diffuser at the rear contributes to a ‘50
active engine mounts, a technological feather to 60 per cent’ increase in negative lift over the
in the old car’s hat, have been done away with. previous GT3, itself not exactly a floaty car.
The engine’s mounted further forward, so they’d Downsides? Erm… Nits are hard to pick from
be less useful. Net gain: 3.5kg. ‘You feel the light the passenger seat, but here goes. Engine noise
kerbweight all of the time,’ Andreas says, jinking in top, seventh, gear is rather more rowdy than
the wheel. ‘It’s like a little dog that’s always on at a regular 911, and could become tiring on a long
you: “Come on! Throw the stick again!”’ journey. ‘We could have put an eighth gear in but
The reduced mass is aided and abetted by that it would have compromised the others,’ Preu-
keen new front axle. Using the same design as ninger explains. ‘Or we could have used the 911 Carbon shells
the 911 RSR racing car (‘And ball joints all round; Carrera’s eight-speed but that weighs 20kg more.’ carry over from
there’s no rubber,’ adds Andreas), the front tyres Trying the driver’s seat for size back at Weissach, old GT3 but
cushioning is new
scythe a path to the apex as he tips the nose into I notice the rear wing bisects the mirror, blocking
a tricky, tightening curve. ‘The front axle is now a portion of your rear view, and the high-perfor-
so responsive. The big challenge was to have the mance brake-pad material can be occasionally
rear axle keep up…’ he smiles. To that end: ‘Rear vocal. None of these feel like deal breakers.
geometry is new from scratch. The platform’s ‘Our customers are tough critics, but they’re
bigger wheel wells mean 21-inch rears are stand- also loyal when you get it right,’ Preuninger says.
ard; we had to engineer them into the previous On the basis of this first impression, they’re
GT3 RS. Bigger contact patches, more lateral likely to feel pretty content with the new GT3: a
g-force. That’s something we like,’ he grins. ground-up re-design, with a new, bigger body
Tree-lined switchbacks give way to an open, and radically different front suspension that,
but seriously bumpy, dash through field-lined from the passenger seat at least, manages to feel
lanes. ‘The faster you go, the better the damping just as alive and emotionally involving as the old
is,’ he says, before attacking the school-din- car. Good news all round: we get a magnificent
ner-custard lumpy surface at serious pace. The new 911 GT3; Preuninger gets a rich supply of
standard-fit adaptive dampers are faster-react- striking new desk ornaments.
ing (and lighter) than ever before, and they’re
working miracles here. You sense this car will be
more than a match for the gnarliest of UK roads.
On to a dual carriageway… and straight into a
traffic jam, to Andy’s frustration. Off at the next R ACING IMPROVES THE BREED: THE PROOF
junction and suddenly a daydream-made-real
vista beckons ahead: an entirely empty, entirely Porsche’s motorsport in tandem with the largest flat-six ever
de-restricted autobahn. Throttle hits stop and department is right next ducktail below for both made by Porsche, find
the flat-six starts to sing. Speed builds, inexorably door to the GT division, downforce and drag its way into a future
if not overbearingly. ‘I wanted to make accelera- and its engineers often reduction. road car? Don’t bet
tion continue strongly way beyond 120mph, so chat over coffee. Perhaps even more on it. Preuninger: ‘The
we didn’t just want big downforce – anyone can Those caffeine breaks significantly, the burn rate with the larger
do that – but the slipperiest shape as well.’ have been fruitful: two double-wishbone front bore is a tough nut to
Mission accomplished: there’s no let-up all
the way to 180mph, when traffic appears and it’s
time to wipe off the speed. ‘When you’re really
going quickly, you shift into top gear at 300km/h
[186mph],’ he says, casually. ‘It’s not really an
autobahn racer, but anyway… If you want more
straight-line speed, there’s the 911 Turbo.’ down swan-neck
The GT3 feels rock-solid stable throughout, mounts for clean,
downforce’s invisible hand steadying the ship. As uninterrupted flow
before, there’ll be a Touring version without the along its lower
rear wing for buyers who prefer a cleaner shape
matters. It works
and less attention. That may move around a bit
more at such high speeds, but there’s plenty of
underbody-generated downforce going on too:

62 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Driven: the class of 2021

Front brakes have

grown to 408mm.
Steels are standard,
ceramics an option

Front tyres’
bite matches
the exhausts’
bark. Both are
savage

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 63

Driven: the class of 2021

] L A M B O R G H I N I H U R A C A N S T O ]

T R O P H Y
H U N T E R
Ever fancied an all-out GT3-esque
evolution of the raging V10 Huracan?
Us too. And Lamborghini’s obliged
Words Georg Kacher

64 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 HURACAN STO
P R I C E £216,677
P O W E R T R A I N 5204cc
naturally-aspirated V10,
seven-speed twin-clutch
auto, rear-wheel drive
PERFORMANCE
631bhp @ 8000rpm,
417lb ft @ 6500rpm, 3.0sec
0-62mph, 193mph
W E I G H T 1339kg (dry)
O N S A L E May 2021

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 65

 S
uper Trofeo Omologato –
sounds like a prescription
cocktail served in Naples’
shadiest bars. It isn’t, but the
effects are (I would imagine)
remarkably similar: palpi-
tations, inflated ambitions, a thrilling sense of
invincibility, climax. But don’t worry, it’s all good,
clean fun. And what isn’t will polish out.
In the Nardo pitlane, my early Huracan STO
prototype awaits. The lead vehicle is a proper
Huracan Trophy Evo racer (see box, right), at
the wheel instructor Mario Fasaneo. His laps of
the Puglian handling circuit out-number mine
11,678 to 89. Soon, we’ll drive – hard. It’s impossi-
ble not to love this job.
The STO’s race seats are shaped for jockeys,
and you’re clamped into them via four-point
harnesses. Forcing yourself into the high-perfor-
mance body glove can be embarrassing but, once
seated, the driving position is more comfortable
than it appears thanks to the 50mm lower seat
base now standard across the Huracan range.
Visibility is excellent straight ahead, peep-box
restricted to the sides and non-existent aft of the Downforce
shoulders. In the rear-view mirror you see only a is – you won’t
be surprised to
close-up of the rollcage – a Lego Technic installa- learn – up
tion that frames the world behind you.
In the STO, effectively a street version of
Lamborghini’s one-make racer and the wildest
Huracan yet, you’ve a choice of three drive
modes: full-on Trofeo, road-ready STO and
TURN-IN IS
Pioggia, Italian for rain. Then there’s ESC on or SENSATIONAL,
off. Roger that? Then let’s go.
Firing up the V10 is like swapping Spotify for
AS IS THE
good old vinyl, big amps and King Kong speakers. STREAK OF
Who wants batteries when burning petrol can
create such a hypnotic soundtrack, summon
SUPERGLUE
enough punch to momentarily tack one’s skull to FRONT-END
the headrest and generate more power than two
obese 305/30 ZR20 Bridgestone Potenzas can GRIP THAT
handle in first, second and third gear? Fast? Oh FOLLOWS
yes. Once this howler monkey of an engine picks
up the throttle-controlled banana scent it goes
nuts; 0-62mph in a very physical 3.0sec, 193mph ics. The STO has a fixed rear wing which can minimum-loss, big-gain set-up supports faster
on the fear-o-meter. be adjusted with a toolkit between five angles. direction changes, radical corner-entry lines and
At first the STO confuses with an odd mix of In its most extreme position, it helps – together quantifiably faster exits. In STO mode, heroes
the familiar and the unusual. At 13:1 versus 16:1 with the new integrated front spoiler/nose – to won’t be penalised for clumsy throttle inputs.
the steering is a fair bit quicker now, and this increase the downforce over the Performante by In Trofeo with ESC off, however, the rear-drive
extra directness also extends to the rear-wheel another 53 per cent (to 480kg) at 175mph. STO sets you free to make your own mistakes.
steering. The STO also gets firmer springs, four Turn-in is sensational, as is the streak of To arrive at the STO’s dry weight of 1339kg
fistfuls of adjustable magnetic 2.0 dampers, superglue front-end grip that follows. Even when R&D has cleared out the cabin, fitted door panels
hollow anti-roll bars as strong as steel rods, a treated to an X-rated helping of excessive entry and a clamshell bonnet made of carbonfibre-
wider track (by 10mm up front; 16mm out back), speed the nose still duly flings itself at the apex, reinforced plastic, added a reinforcing rear arch
a bespoke brake-based locking diff and tweaked tyres bonding with the tarmac at a molecular made of titanium and mounted lightweight
kinematics all-round. level. Understeer? Thanks, but no thanks. wheels. The car’s brain has been re-programmed
But none of these modifications would kick It’s a surreal experience early on, but by for more aggressive torque vectoring and a
your inner PlayStation into gear if it wasn’t for mid-morning such addictive front-end locking ratio of up to 40 per cent on the e-diff.
the game-changing ground-effect aerodynam- response is the new normal. On the circuit, this One last session: the goal to try to stick

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 Driven: the class of 2021

Did we say
it’s rear-wheel
drive? The
STO’s rear-
wheel drive

That shirt?
Flameproof.
That resolve?
Steely

with Mario, at least through the slower esses

and in the braking zones. Though it has the
massive forward thrust thing covered, the AND NOW FOR THE REAL THING
Huracan STO also cuts a fine figure under
braking. Assisted by the finest Japanese rubber Driving the Huracan gain some straight- nine-position traction
in a shark’s-teeth compound, the STO’s bigger Super Trofeo Evo racer line speed via the control is forgiving of
carbon-ceramic discs reduce the Huracan’s at Imola teaches you clinically quick Xtrac an impatient right foot.
braking distances by half a car length from two things. One: Imola sequential ’box and There’s less aero than
is a spellbinding circuit. slimmed down 1270kg a full GT3 car yet the
60mph to zero. While absolute stopping power
And two: driving a weight. And the noise? grip is huge. The Super
is up 25 per cent, dedicated cooling elements slick-shod Lamborghini Possibly the finest Trofeo allies that grip
ensure the system’s stress resistance – and thus racing car is less mankind’s yet made. with a flat cornering
its immunity to fade – is up by 60 per cent. terrifying than you Braking is mighty, attitude and impressive
The next day, waiting for a connecting flight, might imagine. though you need to stability to build
my body’s still compiling a list of STO-inflicted With 611bhp on force the pedal down tremendous speed. But
pains and wounds. Like that fast-growing blister tap the racer – which with some 50kg of the car’s accessibility
on the right upshift finger, the ooh-ah bruises the competes in a high- effort to get everything is the real magic – the
so-called seat embossed on my bum and thighs, profile one-make from them; 12-position fact that pros and
and the firmly engraved grin. Such collateral series – isn’t any more racing ABS means gentleman racers alike
powerful than the road you can really lean on can make it dance.
damage is only sustained when a car conquers all
five (nay, six) senses: by blurring your vision over
crests; by tingling your tongue with the acidic
whiff of brakes; by stuffing your ears with a vol-
ume-to-11 jam session; by pinioning your body to
its bucket seat with unrelenting brutality; and by
exposing your mind to challenges, g-forces and,
ultimately, a level of satisfaction so rich it wants
to be treasured in that secret compartment
marked Truly Great Moments in Life. Worth
£216k? On a five-star scale, this is a seven-star car.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 67

 ] A U D I R S E - T R O N G T ]

R S
G O E S
E V
Want your next Audi to look great, wear
an RS badge and go like a Porsche?
With the RS e-Tron GT, you’re in luck
Words Ben Barry

68 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

Driven: the class of 2021

AUDI RS e-TRON GT
P R I C E £120,000+ (est)
P O W E R T R A I N 93kWh
battery, twin e-motors,
all-wheel drive
PERFORMANCE
592bhp (631bhp with
overboost), 631lb ft, sub-
3.5sec 0-62mph, 156mph
W E I G H T 2300kg (est)
O N S A L E May 2021

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 69

 Driven: the class of 2021

BMW M, AMG…
Audi Sport’s
beaten them
both to BEV
power

RS e-Tron GT
on the island
of Rhodes –
tough gig, Ben

70 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

T o dismiss the Audi RS e-Tron
GT as a Porsche Taycan in
fancy dress isn’t inaccurate,
but it does underplay its
significance – this is the first
all-electric model from Audi’s high-performance
RS division, and it beats BMW’s M division and
Mercedes-AMG to the honour of being the first
from a German performance division.
It’s a huge deal, and to find out if the RS e-Tron
GT drives like a real RS, we’re testing a pre-pro-
duction example in Rhodes. Trademark RS fast
looks are present and correct (if toned down since
the fist-bitingly gorgeous concept of 2018) and
bragging rights are covered: the most powerful
RS ever, says Audi, with an RS6-matching 592bhp
always on tap and bursts of 631bhp on overboost.
Harnessed in an e-all-wheel-drive catapult,
that performance translates as 0-62mph in Ride quality –
even on 21-inch
under 3.5 seconds and 156mph flat-out (limited, wheels – is
of course). The night before our road drive those impressive
stats were given some context when I covered the
quarter-mile in a whisker under 12 seconds on
an airfield, with an instant kick in the guts from
standstill and acceleration to match a supercar. THE QUARTER-MILE IS
No skill, just a reaction-time required, and I sped
down that airfield with the alien and mostly
DONE IN UNDER 12SEC,
quiet surge of electricity, suitably smacked back NO SKILL REQUIRED
in my seat, if knowing that the ferocity of the
Taycan Turbo S was another league beyond.
In fact, the performance slots the e-Tron (RS
GT? Sorry, but I’m not saying the full name every immediately off-centre – nothing to complain
time) a little below the Taycan Turbo, and it’s a about, but perhaps a nod to high-speed stability.
similar story with the driving dynamics, with Having no telltale at all is the real telltale of
one engineer explaining the Taycan is more perfect calibration, and there’s certainly much
focused on every last tenth of lap time, where the hidden expertise lavished here. Like Porsche,
Audi has a more rounded GT remit. Audi thinks coasting is a better way to preserve
You drop down into a gorgeously comfy range, so when you back off the throttle there’s a
driver’s seat with generous bolsters and tactile comparable level of retardation to a combustion
fabric trim perfectly complemented by a thin engine – not the exaggerated pull-up of some EVs
alcantara steering wheel. The seat is surprisingly (Audi hopes for a range of over 248 miles once G.O.A.T
close to the floor given the battery beneath you, homologation is complete, a little more than the meets goat
and while much of this prototype’s dash is under Taycan Turbo, much less than any Tesla Model
wraps, it’s clear that the centre console is angled S). Same with the brakes – mostly e-motors do
quite aggressively towards the driver, and that the braking but press harder and the transition to
the digital displays are much like those inside the discs and pads is seamless.
RS6. It’s a purposefully sporting driving position The spacey baazuuwww noise of the e-motors
(and, like the Taycan, pretty cramped for taller is very much real (not unpleasant, if to be damped
passengers in the rear seats – expect more space down for production), but there’s also the warm,
with a TBC Sportback version). bassy smoothness of a petrol straight-six. That’s
Pull back a tiny lever, squeeze the throttle fake, of course, and yet so naturally engineered
and ease away. The ride is plush on our test car’s into the driving experience as to feel integral –
optional 21-inch wheels, refinement impressive, turn off the sounds if you like, but such strong
the steering mid-weighted and precise, if perhaps acceleration in a vacuum of silence scrambles my
not quite with the incisive response of a Taycan brain; noise grounds it. ⊲

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 71

 CHARGE MA STE R
Charge times will be
equivalent to the Porsche
Taycan, with a maximum DC
charging capacity of 270kW,
for a theoretical 62 miles
of range in five minutes. A
50kW DC charger boosts the
battery from five to 80 per
cent in around 90 minutes, or
an 11kW charger from empty
to full in around nine hours.

Audi doesn’t hold back on T H E R E ’ S ners intended. Fair enough.

the drive route, and we zig-zag The bigger questions relate to
up mountain passes freshly A P U R I T Y Audi’s own product planning.
coated in dust from the previ- Firstly, a non-RS version of the
ous day’s downpour. It’s quite
T O T H E e-Tron GT is also incoming for
an ask for a circa 2.3-tonne W A Y T H E around £20k less, and it looks
car, but much of that mass is identical (the few differences
carried low down, and there’s
R S C A R V E S can mostly be addressed with
rear-wheel steering too, so BENDS options) and shares much of
there’s a surprising keenness the mechanical specification,
to the way in which the electric which can again be addressed
RS changes direction, with little sense of mass via options save for the larger rear e-motor and
toppling about as the e-Tron swings into corners. 40bhp difference. Clearly those options will push
What’s more, there’s a real purity to the way it the price right up, but as an RS owner I’d want a
carves through bends and faithfully follows your bit more differentiation.
line, even at highly ambitious speeds. Keep it in Related to this is whether the RS e-Tron GT
Comfort mode for a pillowy feel, for ambling, actually feels like a true RS, difficult as that is to
or knock it into Dynamic, which locks the body contextualise in this electric era. Perhaps Audi is
down and deals well with fractured tarmac. more concerned with bringing EV drivers to RS
My only qualms are the light-switch throttle than vice-versa. What’s not in doubt is that the
in Dynamic, which makes feeding in power del- RS e-Tron GT is a very satisfying performance
icately through corners tricky (go Comfort) and GT, one capable of covering challenging roads
– more crucially – the RS e-Tron GT’s tendency at speed in security and comfort and that just
to understeer without a great deal of progression happens to run on electricity. To me, an S badge
once its high limits of grip are breached. would feel safer than RS given the expectations
The takeaway is this first electric RS feels a it brings, and I’m going to bet the regular e-Tron
highly impressive if less incisive drive than the GT will be the pick of the range.
Taycan, just as the engineers and product plan-

The third-generation jointly developed by Expect either a 400bhp-

Audi R8 has been more Porsche and Audi for plus version of the
on again/off again than PHEV sports cars, 2.5-litre turbocharged
an unresponsive iPhone. with three scalable five-cylinder engine for
Audi did look seriously modules: a super-flat a total 625bhp, or a V8-
at a pure electric central battery tray based drivetrain good
version, but it’s now that’s variable in width for 800bhp all told. Due
destined to be plug-in and length, a single- 2023, it sounds pretty
hybrid, or Performance motor front-axle module enticing to us, even if it
PHEV in Audi talk. The and a mid-mounted does mean curtains for
new R8 will be based combustion engine with the Lamborghini-derived
on the MTP architecture on-demand e-assist. V10. Sob.

72 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Driven: the class of 2021

21s AND CE R AMICS TE SL A GOE S FURTHE R

The RS e-Tron GT gets three- Just like the Taycan, there’s
chamber air suspension, a two-speed transmission
20-inch wheels and brakes on the rear axle, and a
that generate 90 per cent less focus on coasting rather
NO PAUCIT Y dust as standard (all optional AUDI VS PORSCHE than recuperation to extend
OF POWE R on the regular e-Tron GT). Our battery range. Audi uses
The RS e-Tron GT shares
The 93kWh battery has a net test car is upgraded to 21s its J1 platform with the the front e-motor more for
capacity of 83.7kWh, and and carbon-ceramic discs, Porsche Taycan, so much of efficiency, but can divert
there’s 800-volt cabling that’s plus fixed-ratio steering and the hardware is the same. torque rapidly to the rear (five
lighter and faster-charging. rear-wheel steering. Its 592bhp, with 631bhp times faster than mechanical
The front e-motor makes for short overboost squirts all-wheel drive, apparently) so
231bhp and is shared with (and 631lb ft), makes this the the effect on dynamic driving
the regular e-Tron GT, but the most powerful Audi RS ever, should be minimal. Expect
rear e-motor is beefier, with if 40bhp shy of the Taycan more than 248 miles on the
443bhp and a limited-slip diff Turbo. WLTP cycle.
(but no twin motors on the
rear axle, note, unlike Audi’s
e-Tron SUV).

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 73

 ] M A S E R A T I M C 2 0 ]

Y O U
L I T T L E
B E A U T Y
An all-new Maserati supercar, developed from scratch
to go up against the world’s best? It was easy to be
cynical about the MC20 – until we drove it…
Words Georg Kacher

74 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

Driven: the class of 2021

MASERATI MC20
P R I C E £187,230
P O W E R T R A I N 2992cc
twin-turbo V6, eight-speed
twin-clutch auto, rear-wheel drive
P E R F O R M A N C E 621bhp @
7500rpm, 539lb ft @ 3000rpm,
2.9sec 0-62mph, 202mph
W E I G H T 1470kg
O N S A L E Deliveries spring
2021

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 75

 Driven: the class of 2021

Feels at home
on road and
track; race
version follows

76 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Looking good –
on three spokes!

A t first the steering feels

almost too light, too eager,
too keen to please. But
confidence soon starts to
flow, every movement of the
wheel bringing about a faithful response in a way
that makes life at the limit incredibly transparent
and manageable.
Same goes for the brakes. Don’t be afraid to
drop the hammer late; just make sure you drop
it hard. Maserati’s awesome stopping system
simply delivers, no matter how often the driver
hits the repeat button.
In the MC20, you get what you feel, and what
you feel is the road; pure and simple. Better still,
that trusted connection remains intact at all
times – on full lock, during quick changes of M ASER’S has this been achieved? By starting with a clean
sheet of paper (probably several, in truth) without
direction, when braking hard into a bend, over
ripples and along longitudinal grooves. AW E S OM E conceptual restrictions, compulsory synergies
The new mid-engined Maserati is astonish- and cost-driven compromises.
ingly accomplished, especially when you consider
STOPPING While the tyre sizes are 100 per cent Ferrari F8
that it’s been many years since the company even SYSTEM Tributo front and rear, the suspension features
tried to do something this driver-focused. And a more compliant set-up, with one top link and
that’s before you get to the engine, made by
SI M PLY two bottom links at each corner. At 1470kg and
Maserati itself, after 18 years of buying in engines DELIVERS 621bhp, the MC20 has a strong power-to-weight
from Ferrari. It’s called Nettuno, Italian for ratio. It also excels in aero performance and
Neptune, as in the trident badge. stability thanks to a small frontal area, efficient
Maserati is immensely proud of the V6’s heat dissipation, low drag, minimum front axle
key innovations: ignition pre-chambers, side Head and knee lift and maximum rear downforce at speed. All
sparkplugs that fires when the pre-chambers room tight, this wind cheating is achieved without adaptive
visibility good
are bypassed, and the dual (direct and indirect) spoilers, which add weight and corrupt the looks.
high-pressure fuel-injection system. By igniting The slim-fit cockpit is notably simpler and
the mixture in the pre-chambers ahead of full less gaudy than recent Aston, Ferrari, Lambo or
combustion, two thermo-dynamic sequences McLaren cabins. There is no head-up display, no
are unleashed within milliseconds of each other. inflationary use of assistance systems, no gesture
The result? High swirl and multiple flame fronts control and no voice activation. Lurking a little
for enhanced power and efficiency. too close behind the multi-function, three-spoke
Contrary to rumour, the engine did not start steering wheel are the world’s longest shift
life as an evolution of Ferrari’s V8 F154, and machetes, which operate to the parameters set
the car was not originally kicked off at Ferrari via the drive mode controller: Wet, GT, Sport and
as a future ‘new Dino’. It is true, however, that Corsa. To select Corsa, press the selector for two
Maserati did hire for this project a number of en- seconds. Those brave enough to wrestle ESC Off
gineers who previously worked for the prancing must keep it pushed three seconds longer.
horse on Via Abetone. The gear selector buttons are labelled R and
But don’t think of the MC20 as a reimagined D/M for Drive and Manual. Pull both paddles
Ferrari F8 Tributo. It isn’t a direct McLaren rival simultaneously and you’re in neutral. It’s a fairly
either, its character is very different to that of straightforward and functional layout except for
Aston Martin’s Vantage and it spreads its talent the six hard-to-decipher push-buttons tucked
over a much broader range than the Lamborghi- away in the small roof console, and the shortage
ni Huracan. The MC20 is a radical yet reasonable of oddments space.
driving machine which excels when it matters. It When we drive our black pre-production
pushes the bookends of sports car DNA a good MC20 through the outskirts of Modena, the first
bit further apart than any of those alternatives. eye-opener occurs just 200 metres east of the
It flashes its wild side when challenged, but can factory gate on Modena’s Via Emilia Ovest. ‘No
also assume a more easygoing personality. How need to slow down,’ says Federico Landini, ⊲

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 77

 other side, and a dozen or
so swirly bends in between.
T H E N Y O U So, room for improvement.
But then you realise just
The short-legged eight-speed REALISE how good the steering and
twin-clutch gearbox is racing
through the bottom two
J U S T H O W brakes are. More than the
engine, what matters most in
gears like a greyhound within G O O D T H E fast driving are the tools that
snapping distance of the hare. control speed and direction.
Although the peak 621bhp
S T E E R I N G And in the long-awaited
Dial is for
modes; buttons
and paddles for
is available at 7000rpm, the AND MC20 these are fantastic.
limiter permits 8000rpm Priced from £187k,
gears. Simple
before interfering, which is B R A K E S the Maserati MC20 does
borderline for making third ARE not rewrite the sports-
the gear of choice through car rulebook. It’s not a
the difficult bits where the head-turning design trend-
last thing you want is to upset the flow – and setter either, an aggressively priced smart
subsequently dent the line – with an ill-timed buy or a digital marvel. There are sharper
upshift. Conversely, the quickest right-handers and faster cars. Instead, this is an incredibly
are fast enough for fourth gear, which does a homogeneous work of art whose many-
splendid job riding the 539lb ft torque surf all the sidedness never ceases to amaze in the course
way from 3000 to 5500rpm. of a long, grey day. Virtually from nowhere a
In Corsa, the explosive torque delivery makes new supercar has landed which holds all things
the rear wheels wriggle and yelp when third gear dynamic in perfect balance, and in doing so is as
passes on the massive twist action to fourth. super-competent as it is always accessible.
When the conditions are right, it must be a treat Not as bulky as the AMG GT, lighter than the
Software needs
tweaking for to summon launch control and relish that raw Vantage and aerodynamically more efficient
production car. urge as the MC20 beams you 0-62mph in 2.9sec. than the Tributo, the MC20 strikes a compelling
But it’s a blast Likewise, the top speed of 202mph kicks the door compromise which may turn out to be the
to a parallel universe wide open. new gold standard in the GT class. And a GT it
Slight delays and minor in-gear hiccups undeniably is: uncommonly refined, unexpect-
MC20 project engineer, as we approach a cobble- suggest the software adaptation is not quite edly supple, unusually versatile in the manner it
stoned speed bump. In a Huracan or a GT3, this complete. The gearing is a little off in third, delivers the goods. This GT will be joined later
would almost certainly require the assistance of which runs out of revs too early. ESC interferes next year by the folding hardtop Spyder, and
a hydraulic axle lift to protect the chin spoiler. prematurely except in Corsa, the brake pedal in 2022 we shall see the 600bhp-plus electric
The MC20, however, swiftly climbs and descends could do with a shorter travel, and the wipers are version. Not bad for a marque that’s been written
without crunching. struggling at 80mph, let alone at 125mph-plus. off more than once.
The bystanders are beside themselves with joy
at the sight of the lightly camouflaged MC20, so
of course we engage Corsa, ensuring all exhaust
flaps are wide open even at idle speed. And then
the Carabinieri dozing in their Tipo wake up, M E E T T H E S O R T- O F A N C E S T O R
and it doesn’t seem such a good idea any more.
As we get out of town, though, we’ll re- The last mid-engined underpinnings, including built. There was also the
engage Corsa and discover that it also provides Maserati sports car built its V12 engine and trackday-only Versione
for road and track was gearbox (and shared Corse; 12 were made.
maximum boost at the tiniest blip of the throttle,
2004’s MC12. It was a its wheelbase), the Winning drivers of the
firms up the dampers and celebrates the battle glorious creation, but Maserati was longer, race version included
for traction with a shrill cat’s choir and swathes where the MC12 was wider and taller, and had Andrea Bertolini – now
of Profumo di Pirelli. The accelerator becomes heavily Ferrari-based, a two-metre rear spoiler. Maserati’s test driver.
hyper-responsive, which further stimulates the the MC20 is all-Maser. The roadgoing Although the race
feeling of exuberant power and torque. And whereas the MC12’s main job was to car did well on track,
We deviate to the Autodromo di Modena, carbonfibre-bodied homologate the car for there were no series
where I’m assured I’ll be amazed how easy the MC12 was a limited FIA GT racing, in line production cars for it to
car is to drive in the rain. After all, it is not only edition, it’s all gone with which 25 were built promote. But the MC20
light but also rigid, and this stiffness is essential very wrong if Maserati in 2004. The following is now ready to cash in
for precise handling and accurate feedback. I’m
told to forget GT mode on the track. Instead, do a cars with the new
couple of laps in Sport with the dampers in Soft, sporting flagship.
because the surface has seen better days, then Although the
dial in Corsa and enjoy. MC12 used Enzo
This is a short circuit, with a long-ish uphill
start-finish straight, a matching descent on the

78 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Driven: the class of 2021

MADE IT ITALY BESPOKE

PAINT WORK
The MC20 is being
assembled at the Viale The MC20 is the first
Ciro Menotti plant in car to use the plant’s
Modena, which until a new eco-friendly paint
AE RO CR AFT NEW NAME , CLOCKING OFF
year ago was building shop. It comes in six
NEW LOOK ,
Developed in part the GranTurismo and colours, all created The aim inside the
OLD COMPANY
in the Dallara wind GranCabrio. The for the MC20. Bianco MC20 is function-first,
tunnel, the MC20’s engine – Maserati’s ‘MC’ is for Maserati Audace, seen here, taking its lead from
bodywork – with its first home-grown unit Corse, referring to a is a yellow-ish white racing cars, but with
butterfly doors – has in 18 years – is made racing heritage dating with a bluish mica that rather more luxury
been shaped to be at the new Maserati back to the ’20s, supposedly merges than any actual racing
sleek up top and busier Engine Lab within the while ‘20’ refers to the white and dark car. The driving mode
down below. The Modena plant. 2020, the start of the blue of the Birdcage. selector looks a bit like
Spyder version (with brand’s new era. The a watch, but doesn’t
a retractable hardtop) MC20 debuts a slightly tell the time; the
was designed at the different version of the MC20 breaks with the
same time. trident badge, and a Maserati tradition of
tweaked font. oval analogue clocks.

Functional aero is
focused on black
areas, so bodywork
can stay smooth

JANUARY 2021 | GET CAR FOR JUST £3.50 A MONTH! GO TO [Link] 79

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 Track car of the year 2020

F A S T

The wildest
road-legal track
cars money can buy,
thrashed and rated
by the world’s
fastest woman
Words James Taylor Photography Jordan Butters

82 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

M E E T F A S T E S T

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 83

 Track car of the year 2020

the cars’ potential, and to give an unflinching assessment of each. When

your daily driver is a European F3 championship car and you’re a dab hand
at the Nürburgring 24 Hours race, you don’t muck about when passing
judgement. Chadwick’s most well-known for winning 2019’s inaugural W
Series, the international single-seater championship specifically for female
drivers. But she was also the youngest ever British GT4 champion, the first
female British Formula 3 race winner and she’s now a development driver
for the Williams F1 team. More to the point, she’s also down to earth, loves
driving, and can download her thoughts on the cars with absolute clarity
as soon as she climbs out.
‘I can’t wait to get started!’ she says, surveying the pitlane. ‘There are
quite a few cars here I’ve never driven before, and this is the perfect track
for it. Which one first?’
Let’s start with – and rewind back to – that Ariel. This is the Atom 4,
lower, wider and stiffer than its predecessor but just as delectable to
Reigning W behold. A kind of rolling cutaway drawing, it’s a little like a high-end
Series champion, sportsbike to walk around and admire, drinking in all of its componentry.
F3 racer and F1 Tucked away in the middle is a turbocharged Honda engine plucked from
test pilot Jamie
Chadwick the current Civic Type R. The high-pitched yelp of a supercharger was a
hallmark of previous top-spec Atoms, and I’d wondered if the 4 might
have lost that character in its transition to turbo power. I was wrong. All
kinds of tweets, squawks, hisses and flutters emanate from the engine bay.
It sounds like there’s a whole pet shop in there. Who knew all of that was
ust as there are few things worse going on behind the bulkhead of a Type R? The five-door Civic already
than sitting next to a driver who feels monstrously fast – in a car that’s half the weight, the turbocharged
scares you, there aren’t many purer Honda four feels explosive.
pleasures than riding with someone It’s the first time Jamie’s driven an Atom, and she’s impressed. ‘That’s…
who’s really good at what they do, punchy,’ she says, approvingly. ‘At least, it’s punchy until you run into the
doing what they’re really good at. limiter. It feels like the gearing’s too short for the car and the turbocharged
To my left, through the bars of powerband is weird. You want to keep revving but then it hits the redline,
the Ariel Atom’s trellis frame, fresh so you find yourself changing gear all the time. The pedal positioning is
air. Over my harnessed-in shoulder, perfect, though; great for heel-and-toeing. I like it.’
the airbox is sucking like a Dyson on Into the driver’s seat for a turn. The steering strikes you immediately – ⊲
overdrive before a visit from your in-
laws. And to my right sits W Series
champion Jamie Chadwick, steering
the Atom as much with the pedals
Chadwick quells slides quickly,
as with the wheel. Chadwick’s not swift hands flickering to opposite
into big slides, except for the camera.
Most of the time they’re quelled
lock so as not to lose momentum
quickly with swift hands flickering to opposite lock so as not to lose
momentum. Right-left esses rush towards us: the Atom enters at a surreal
rate, steering wheel pretty much straight, weight transfer doing the work.
This is fun.
We’re at Aston Martin’s development base at Silverstone, which uses
the tricky little Stowe infield circuit to put its prototypes through seven
shades of hell in development. We’ve brought along six very different
sports cars, and Aston’s turned the circuit over to us for the day. Each one is
fully road-legal but really comes alive on track: Ariel’s barely-there Atom 4,
Radical’s barely road-legal Rapture, McLaren’s borderline race-ready
620R, the jewel-like Jannarelly Design-1, the raw Lotus Exige Cup 430 and
Caterham’s evergreen Seven, here in rabid 420R guise. There are big differ-
ences here in price and approach, aero and engine position, but they’re all
outrageously good fun.
To find out which gives the biggest kick, regardless of price, power or
tech, we’ve enlisted an expert judge to assist us. All journalists reckon they
can drive a bit. But a racing driver can download crystal-clear feedback ‘I’m a firestarter,
while we’re still trying to think of clever metaphors, and get to grips with a boutique
built-to-order
car within half a lap while most of us are still working out where the track firestarter’
goes. That’s why Jamie Chadwick is here – as an accurate barometer of

84 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 MCLAREN 620R LOTUS E XIG E CUP 430 A R I E L AT O M 4
Essentially the 570S GT4 made road legal The most extreme Exige yet: big power, Atom goes turbo, with 316bhp…
and given 620 metric horsepower big downforce, and lighter P R I C E £39,975
P R I C E £250,000 P R I C E £103,375 P O W E R T R A I N 1996cc turbo four-
P O W E R T R A I N 3799cc twin-turbo V8, P O W E R T R A I N 3456cc supercharged cylinder, six-speed manual,
seven-speed DCT, rear-wheel drive V6, six-speed manual, rear-wheel drive rear-wheel drive
P E R F O R M A N C E 610bhp, 1386kg, P E R F O R M A N C E 430bhp, 1093kg, P E R F O R M A N C E 316bhp, 595kg,
2.9sec 0-62mph, 200mph 3.3sec 0-62mph, 174mph 2.8sec 0-60mph, 162mph

J A N N A R E L LY D E S I G N - 1 C AT E R H A M 4 2 0 R RADICAL RAPTURE
Retro-futuristic rawness: no servo, no The 2.0-litre Seven in R spec, with track- Looks like it’s escaped from a race – has
power steering, barely any silencing focused suspension, diff and seats P R I C E £107,400
P R I C E £89,700 P R I C E £35,490 P O W E R T R A I N 2261cc turbo four-
P O W E R T R A I N 3498cc V6, six-speed P O W E R T R A I N 1999cc four-cylinder, cylinder, six-speed paddle-shift, rear-
manual, rear-wheel drive five-speed manual, rear-wheel drive wheel drive
P E R F O R M A N C E 320bhp, 810kg, P E R F O R M A N C E 210bhp, 585kg, P E R F O R M A N C E 360bhp, 765kg,
3.9sec 0-62mph, 135mph 3.8sec 0-60mph, 136mph 3.0sec 0-60mph, 165mph

McLaren’s 620R
dwarfs (from left)
Lotus Exige, Ariel
Atom, Jannarelly
Design-1, Caterham
420R and Radical’s
Rapture – literally
and on price

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 85

 No apex is
safe from the
Radical’s kart-
like accuracy

She’s on it
straight away;
we hear the
wheels spin out
of the hairpin
as the turbos
come on-boost

Spot the pro

(clue: lack of
sponsors on
CAR’s crash
helmet)

86 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Track car of the year 2020

Ever imagined
a Le Mans
car with
leather trim?

Exige steering
and poise is a
marvel, even
if traction isn’t

unassisted yet light in weight (hardly a surprise with so little mass over the It’s a trait Jamie applauds. After a slow sighting lap, we hear the revs soar
front tyres) and mainlining confidence-inspiring front-end grip to your out of the hairpin, wheels spinning as the turbos come on-boost. She’s
fingers and palms. The balance is ever so slightly understeer-biased in this trying different lines each time, the McLaren’s tail gradually arcing wider
baseline (and tweakable) set-up but, crucially, rear grip is stable too. You’re as she lets it blend into oversteer. The 620R’s getting looser as the tyres get
never in any doubt about what the rear axle’s up to (or what it’s about to hot, Pirellis scribing black lines onto the tarmac like a charcoal sketch.
do). Original Atoms could be tricky on the limit, but the 4 feels seriously When we wave her down, heat spilling from the car’s brakes and vents,
well sorted. Its handling is as transparent as its see-through structure. she instantly downloads a stream of feedback. ‘Even in Track mode the
I could happily stay in here all day, but there are five more cars to get ESP cuts in too much – it needs to be off completely. The chassis’ response
through – starting with the McLaren. It’s twice the weight of the Atom, to steering input is absolutely instant, which is good – unusual for a road
with more power, more aero, more… everything. The 620R is the closest car – but you have to wait for the tyres to catch up. It feels like it needs the
thing possible to a road-legal GT4 racer. It’s even designed to run either slicks to come alive. Anyway, I need to go and cool these brakes down…’
road-legal tyres or slicks on the same-size wheels: simply unbolt one set, The 620R purrs off for a cool-down lap and then to swap for slicks.
bolt-on a stickier one. The Radical Rapture could perform the same trick Re-booted, it sets what turns out to be the quickest time of the day (if only
but, like the rest of the cars here, it’s on road-legal tyres. With that in mind, a fraction ahead of the road-tyred Ariel and Radical). ‘With the slicks on,
we start the 620R on its road-spec Pirelli Trofeos to begin with, to see how it’s a different car,’ Jamie says. Close to a full-on GT4 car? ‘Very close, espe-
they compare and contrast. cially on the brakes and turn-in. More like a GT racing car than a trackday
The McLaren’s fast and great fun. The best lap time comes from being car, in fact. It’s very refined; perhaps too refined if you’re after something
neat and tidy but the McLaren’s happy for you to lean on it and over-drive it raw and really exciting.’
a little. It won’t bite, even with its stability control in lenient Track mode, or It’s hard to think of a car more raw than the Radical Rapture. If the
switched off altogether. Just like the GT4 racing car the 620R’s bodywork McLaren is only one step removed from a pure race car, the Rapture is even
and hardware are so closely related to, this McLaren is absolutely consist- closer to its original source material. It feels incongruous to see number
ent: it responds in the same way every time and gives you the confidence to plates on the car, and to climb into the open cockpit – with leather trim!
push harder and harder each lap. – and find a handbrake. The spaceframe chassis and composite body ⊲

JAMIE’S (VERY FAST) STORY SO FAR

First steps Ginetta Juniors GT racing Single seaters W Series and F1

‘I fell into Chadwick entered From mini Ginettas ‘The step from Since winning the
motorsport pretty the Ginetta Junior to V8 Aston GTs to single- global W Series
much by accident, Scholarship instead Vantage, Chadwick seaters was a big championship for
following my older became youngest learning curve. female drivers,
brother into karting Winning the MRF
at 12 years old. championship, my
That’s later than first single-seater
championship, was
a big breakthrough
moment for me.’

JANUARY 2021
 are both closely related to Radical’s hugely successful – and hugely fast – with the Rapture.’ It’s deceptive in that regard: you’re well into sixth gear
SR series of racing cars, and while the Rapture’s fully road-legal, it’s very on Stowe’s back straight – and it’s not that long a straight. I can’t imagine
much at the drive-to-and-from-the-circuit-only end of the scale. Power how it must feel on the road. Mind-altering, I imagine.
comes from Ford’s 2.3-litre four-cylinder turbo as seen in the Focus RS, but Stowe doesn’t quite feel the right setting for the Rapture to stretch its
uprated to 360bhp (in a car that weighs 765kg…). legs. ‘Really strong brakes, great gearbox, but it would be better on a longer,
You sit in the middle of the car, but it feels almost as if you’re over the faster circuit, where you could use the downforce,’ Chadwick says. ‘You
front axle, like an astronaut at the tip of a ground-level, horizontal rocket. need more momentum than you can get here. But somewhere like Spa…’
Handy reversing camera aside, the cockpit feels like a Le Mans-style If the Radical needs high speed to do its best work, the Caterham 420R is
prototype. The paddleshift gearchange emits a pneumatic pfft-ting as you the opposite. ‘If I was going to do a trackday, it’s the car I’d pick,’ says Jamie,
engage first gear and the clutch pedal is heavy as you pull away (once above who’s spent a fair few miles in Caterhams, some of them racing. ‘You can
cantering pace in the pitlane, you needn’t touch it again). The Radical drive under the limit, over the limit, and it’s always enjoyable. And you’re in
should feel intimidating – and it does at first – but the car is actually on an open environment, which adds to it. When it’s not raining…’
your side. It’s honest and friendly, not least because it has the greatest It’s definitely not raining today, and heat spills from the Caterham’s
clarity of feedback of all the contenders here, more kart than car. bazooka-like side exhaust onto my bare arms. Even when you’re being
After putting you at ease, it eggs you on to try a little harder. There’s a bit lightly toasted by sun, windburn and silencered heatgun, the Seven is
of understeer at the first hairpin through the relatively weighty, unassisted accessible and huge fun. Sitting inches ahead of the rear axle, its limits are
steering, but massive traction on the way out. The road-legal Yokohama lower than almost all of the other cars here but that means you’re never in
tyres hang on well as they get hot, and the sequential gearbox is fantastic doubt what it’s up to, nor in any doubt of catching it as it lets go. There’s
fun, crisply matching the revs with every downshift. Jamie’s impressed more bodyroll than most of the other cars here but it’s no bad thing; it
with the gearshifts too, although she notes that the wind rush and turbo helps you gauge what the Seven’s up to.
whoosh take away the engine noise when you’re inside the car, leaving you If the Seven feels like home, this one offers more generous accommo-
dependent on the shift-up lights to time your changes. dation than most thanks to its wider SV chassis. Jamie describes herself as
‘When a car sounds fast, it feels fast,’ she says. ‘You don’t get that so much ‘excessively short’, and this broader-of-beam Seven gives her an awkward ⊲

Jamie neatly sums up the outlandish Jannarelly:

‘It’s a beautiful car to be in, and to drive’

88 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

Track car of the year 2020

Eponymous co-
founder Anthony
Jannarelly owned
a Caterham, and
his car shares the
same earthy ethos

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 89

 Old Atoms
could be
tricky; this
one is not

McLaren the
only car here
with power
steering.
Luxury

Looking for
reasons not
to buy an
Exige? There
aren’t many

Trucker’s
tan nothing
compared to
‘Seven arm’
 Track car of the year 2020

Accustomed to
downforce and
‘On corner entry, the Lotus slicks, Chadwick
relishes these
Exige is the best-balanced car more playful cars

here,’ says Jamie, impressed

angle on the wheel, pedals and gearlever, and makes heel-and-toeing an

impossibility. Even so, she wrestles it to a quick lap time and some enter-
taining angles. ‘It’s perfect for this track; great to throw around,’ she grins.
If the Caterham’s a home from home for Jamie, the Lotus Exige is new
territory. And this is the ultimate Exige: the Cup 430 is the most powerful,
most expensive and most ruthlessly stripped-out version of Hethel’s
hairiest car. The gearchange mechanism looks fantastic, exposed to the
open air like Arnie’s arm post-surgery in The Terminator, but the action
is similarly stiff. I find it easy to miss gears unless you punch the weighty
clutch pedal right to the floor and are slow and emphatic with the lever.
Jamie finds it obstructive too: ‘Surely they could have engineered a
lighter gearchange?’ In all other respects the Exige is anything but obstruc-
tive: the brake pedal relays so much feedback you can take the brakes j-u-s-t
to the point of ABS intervention, and it always feels balletically poised and
nimble. It pogoes on its springs a little in the curved braking zone for the
first hairpin, which I initially find disconcerting, but Jamie’s fine with it:
‘That’s okay, you can use that weight transfer.’ As the corner unfolds to
its exit, however, the Lotus is less okay. With the traction control off, the
inside rear tyre squeals and the Exige wheelspins its power away. It doesn’t
have a limited-slip differential, an Achilles’ heel that this track layout
brutally exposes.
‘That’s really good. On the way into all the corners the Lotus is the
best-balanced car here,’ Jamie says. ‘It’s really reactive, and you can place
it exactly where you want. It’s almost like a little race car in that respect.
But the way it spins its wheel makes it really difficult in the second part of a
corner. Into the corner it’s perfect, but on the way out…’ Looks lairy
The Exige fights back with a secret weapon – a race-derived traction but the 620R
is pretty
control that mimics a locking diff. Turning a knurled aluminium wheel civilised
on the steering column allows six levels of slip. In a mid setting, the Exige
scrambles out of the slower corners more easily, although without quite
the alacrity of a mechanical locking diff. In every other respect, however,
it’s ferociously, addictively capable. And, with the V6 singing its heart out I can’t wait for a go myself. Forward-hinged hardtop tilted aside (it’s an
through titanium pipes, it sounds fantastic too. optional extra, and so is the windscreen), you open slender, half-height
In fact, it’s hard to imagine a better-sounding car in the world than doors and step over broad sills into an objet d’art cockpit. The dials look
the V6 Exige – until the Jannarelly Design-1 fires up. You’d never guess its like chronograph watch faces; the gear linkage, like the Lotus, is an exposé
3.5-litre V6 comes from a Nissan saloon (and the old 350Z). Or, given the of machined metal. There’s no servo assistance for the brakes, nor power
bonnet’s shape, that it’s mounted transversely behind the seats. It sounds, steering, and it’s just as physical an experience as Jamie suggests. Physical
and looks, like it’s just driven off the grid at the Goodwood Revival, a sort for your eardrums too – comically loud (more so on the inside than the
of steampunk retro-modern barchetta. outside), yet the sound is so evocative you don’t mind. It does feel like a
The Jannarelly is an outlier in our all-British line-up. It’s a citizen of the classic car to drive – lots of big steering inputs to maintain a smooth line,
world, part French and part Emirati but available in right-hand drive in and brakes which, in Jamie’s words, don’t do a huge amount, so you use
the UK. ‘This is interesting,’ says Jamie. ‘The design puts me in mind of a engine braking as much as the middle pedal to slow down.
Jaguar E-Type.’ There are hints of AC Cobra, too; she sets off and it sounds With its dampers in their softest setting the Jannarelly’s less agile than
more raucous even than a race-spec Cobra. Every head in the pitlane the others but it’s also by far the most road-orientated car in the line-up.
swivels around to watch and listen, and I jump in the Atom to follow. I The limited-slip diff it really needs (like the Lotus, it lights a ‘one-tyre
can hear the crispness of the throttle response as Jamie rev-matches on fire’ on corner exit) is an option, and so are uprated brakes, and more or
downshifts, and in big braking zones the Jannarelly’s exhausts turn into less anything you want as long as you’re prepared to pay for it. Jannarelly
flamethrowers, spitting fire. aspires to a similar tailor-made mentality as Koenigsegg or Pagani. Paint
She’s climbing out as I return to the pits. ‘Phew, that’s physical to drive. colours are removed from the palette once ordered, so no two of the 499
I’ve got a sweat on! Its limits are low, but it doesn’t have any vices to catch Design-1s to be built will be the same hue. Jamie sums it up: ‘Rather than
you out. It rotates really well – it’s just lack of traction holding it back. It the way it handles, the big thing about it is the way it is – a beautiful car to
feels almost like a historic car to drive.’ (Jamie’s CV also includes racing a be in and to drive.’
Jaguar E-Type in the Spa Six Hours endurance race). Six very different, very rewarding cars, then. But which one wins? ⊲

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 91

 T H O S E L A P T I M E S …
Just two-tenths cover the top three. The McLaren is the only car
here on slicks but it’s only just quicker than the featherweight
Atom and Rapture. Were this a faster, more flowing track, the
Radical’s downforce may have elevated it to the top of the table.

THE 420R, SLOW?!

In isolation, the 420R
would feel absurdly
accelerative along the
back straight but the
McLaren and Radical
warp perspective and TYRES ON FIRE
SUPER-STABLE MAC make the Caterham feel The hairpin has a
The McLaren is at home merely brisk. Until you kinked approach,
in Turn 4, a downhill get to a corner... so you’re braking,
sweeper: rock-solid downshifting and
under braking and turning. The Radical
flat under load. ‘The picks up a bit of
gearshift is really good understeer mid-corner
too,’ says Jamie. ‘Most but is mighty on
road cars won’t give you the exit, where the
a downshift from high Lotus and Jannarelly
revs – this will.’ wheelspin merrily.

ATOMIC KITTEN
The Ariel feels great
through this kind of turn;
stable but playful and
adjustable. Its balance is
slightly to understeer if
you don’t trail the brakes
into the right-hander,
though it doesn’t
understeer when Jamie’s
LET’S GO ROUND
driving…
AGAIN
The Lotus Exige needs
care with the shift from
third to fourth here;
it can’t be rushed. Its
brakes are strong and
easy to modulate at the
end of the straight; Jamie
strafes it into Turn 1 in a
four-wheel drift.

McLaren 620R I 54.60sec

Ariel Atom 4 I 54.71sec NEVER-ENDING
This is a loooong corner.
Radical Rapture I 54.78sec Takes a couple of laps
to suss out the best line.
Lotus Exige Cup 430 I 58.42sec The Jannarelly struggles
for traction with its
Caterham 420R I 59.22sec inside-rear wheel but
you don’t mind the revs
Jannarelly Design-1 I 1min 3.2sec rising when they sound
so good.

92 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Track car of the year 2020

CAR rides
shotgun with
Jamie in the
Atom 4

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B E S T O F A W I L D B U N C H
So, a winner. It’s easy to love the Jannarelly – Jamie falls for its glorious glean more excitement from both. But I think she’s right; for a purely recre-
sound – and of all the cars here, it’s the one I’d put in my lottery garage. But ational track car, perhaps something rawer is ultimately more rewarding.
it’s not the one you’ll most want to keep lapping until it runs out of fuel; it’s Which leaves three cars: the Lotus, the Caterham and the Ariel. ‘I would
not quite precise enough, doesn’t quite give you back what you put in, even have gone with the Exige as the winner but the lack of a locking diff really
if it does put a gigantic grin on your face as you work away at its wheel. spoils it. It makes a massive difference. And it’s a little bit too physical to
‘I didn’t feel I could push the limit in it – it’s more about enjoying the drive – I was having to work quite hard with that gearshift; after a full day
experience,’ Jamie says. ‘The rear is very progressive, so you can release the on track, you don’t want to feel like your arm’s going to fall off.’
brake and it rotates into the corner, which is really nice. But on the down- I agree; I loved the Lotus from the moment I first tested it, and I’m still
side, that means traction is… poor,’ she grins. captivated. But the traction issue really does hold it back.
If a shortfall of grip holds the Jannarelly back, does that mean the cars Caterham or Atom? For Jamie, it’s the Caterham 420R: ‘Where the
at the more track-focused end of the scale, the Radical and McLaren, edge window to finding the limit in the McLaren is like this,’ she says, miming
into the winner’s circle? Not for Jamie: ‘On this track the Radical was actu- a small aperture, ‘in the Caterham it’s like this,’ expanding her hands like a
ally a little underwhelming, because it couldn’t maximise its potential. In fisherman describing the biggest catch of his career. ‘At any speed, on any
any downforce car, you don’t really play around with the limit of the tyres’ type of track, and for sheer fun, it’s everything I want.’
grip, which, if your aim is having fun on a trackday, maybe isn’t ideal.’ I love the Seven wholeheartedly too but, on this track in this weather, the
The McLaren, on the other hand, is just so sorted it leaves the driver Atom is the car I most want to drive more. And even though Jamie plumps
with less to do. ‘The first time you drive it you think, “Ah, this is fun,” for the Seven, she’s impressed by the Atom: ‘You really feel the speed, more
because you’re up to speed straight away,’ Jamie ex- than the other cars here. And it’s quite playful, so it
plains. ‘But hit the brakes and you’ve got ABS, stamp
on the throttle you’ve got ESC… You can’t really get
‘You really feel rotates well through the twisty stuff, even if it’s not
so easy to play with in the high-speed corners.’
anything wrong. So it’s confidence-inspiring, and the speed in the A challenging plaything, it’s our winner. For
I’d say it’s the best in terms of outright performance. heart-in-mouth speed with hand-in-glove feedback,
But I think it’s also a bit… numb.’ Atom, and it’s it’s our favourite road-legal track car.
I don’t drive an F3 car for my day job, so both the
Rapture and 620R’s absolute precision and perfor-
playful,’ grins With thanks to Aston Martin for the use of its Silverstone
mance impress me more than they do Jamie, and I Jamie test track – Valkyrie for the win next year?

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 Inside
ACCESSING ALL AREAS

94 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Inside Porsche’s chamber of secrets

The chamber
of secrets
These Porsche design studies were never
meant to see the light of day. From road-
legal LMP1 cars to MPVs, they’re a window
into the company’s wild imagination
Words James Taylor, Gavin Green, Chris Chilton

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 95

 Inside Porsche’s chamber of secrets

T
his is not the done thing. Car
companies’ design studios don’t
normally show their working:
the flights of fancy, the ‘What if?’
studies, the way-out-there con-
cept-car proposals. But Porsche
has taken the unusual decision to
do exactly that, revealing a tanta-
lising array of 1:1 scale models that
didn’t make it to the motor show
floor, but do carry elements that
will live on in Porsche road cars of
the future.
‘Here’s one ‘It’s not normal for a car
we didn’t company to show its secrets to the public like this,’ says Porsche design chief
make earlier…’ Michael Mauer. ‘These models were a starting point for discussion within
Design boss
Mauer the company, to see if it would make sense to realise them, to bring these
ideas to the street.’
While some are serious design stress-tests and others works of imagi-
nation, they’ve all had an impact on Porsche’s design strategy. The Taycan
production car’s shape began as a model for a four-door grand tourer version
of the 918 hypercar. And the Mission E concept car that previewed the
Taycan borrowed its headlights from an exploratory study of a six-seater
Porsche MPV (nope, not a misprint).
‘It’s a sign of confidence in our work that the CEO Oliver Blume gives us
the budget to explore without really knowing what the result will be,’ Mauer
says. ‘We’re going into the day after tomorrow doing studies like this – even
as physical models as a base for discussion – and that gives you findings that
change your state of mind. You then bring that back to the cars of tomorrow.
I think the fact that we do this is one of our keys to success.’
This isn’t every single previously-unseen Porsche concept. But by reveal-
ing this carefully curated selection of clay and hard models to the public,
the designers’ blood, sweat and clay shavings get a world debut after all, and
Even the Porsche reaps some handy marketing benefits. You sense they’ll be gauging
Porsche public reaction to some of the design cues with interest, too.
badge is up
for debate The really tantalising thought: what other projects are Mauer and his
team working on right now? ⊲

96 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

919 Street exactly
as described: a
proposal for a road-
legal version of the
919 Le Mans racer

▲ Taking it to the street

919 Street
Porsche poured huge resources
into its Le Mans campaign in the
top LMP1 class, winning the 24
Hours three times from 2015 to
2017. When it pulled out to save
cash, Mauer’s team didn’t want
to see that tech go begging
and explored a customer-spec
919. The 900bhp hybrid system
ultimately proved just too
complex: the race team needs
45 minutes to start the race car’s
engine. ‘The technology in the
end was too complicated to put
into customer hands,’ says Mauer.

⊳ This is just a tribute

917 Living Legend
In 2013, Mauer’s team spent
six months creating a modern
interpretation of Porsche’s most
famous racing car, the 917. Despite
917 tribute: this dimensions based on the 918
one, happily, did hypercar, it’s a full-size clay model
make it to the rather than a real car (sadly). It
reveal stage made an appearance in public in
2019, for the 917’s 50th birthday.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 97

Dean-referencing
graphics in bad
taste, perhaps.
But a tastefully
minimal design

Dean machine
Vision Spyder I by Gavin Green
This is the Porsche sports car I really want to see on sale. The Vision Spyder
harks back to the wonderful mid-’50s 550 Spyder, possibly Porsche’s purest
Michael Mauer
and most beautifully minimalist car. The nose and sills carry ‘551’ badging, saw this concept
making crystal clear it’s the 550’s spiritual successor. Note also the ‘Little
Rebel’ plate to salute the most famous 550 Spyder owner, James Dean, as Porsche’s
whose car was nicknamed Little Bastard. Unfortunately, the 550 Spyder is
even better known as the car in which poor Dean was killed, on his way
petrol sports
to a race meeting in Monterey, California in September 1955, when he hit car swansong,
Donald Turnupseed’s Ford sedan.
The 2019 Vision Spyder has a similar minimalist two-seat style, is before the world
mid-engined and looks wonderfully light: the 550 Spyder weighed just goes electric
550kg. Porsche design boss Michael Mauer and I discussed this concept
a year ago, just after it was built. He saw it as Porsche’s petrol sports car
swansong, before the whole world goes electric. He also said: ‘I’d love to
do a pure new sports car like this, reduced to the maximum. I think it’s
possible, especially with new materials.’
What a tempting prospect! There was some hard-nosed business logic,
too. As the next 718 (Boxster/Cayman) is likely to be fully electric, so the
718’s current platform and its flat-four engine could easily provide the
architecture for the ‘new’ 550 Spyder. Alas, I fear the accountants have
canned it, as I feared they would, extinguishing my Spyder dream. And
Michael Mauer’s. ⊲

98 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Inside Porsche’s chamber of secrets

No mates? No
worries. Single-
seat Boxster
cut kilos at
all costs

▲ Incy, wincy spyder

Boxster Bergspyder
This one’s no model: it’s a working
prototype Boxster that lost its lid
(and passenger seat) in tribute to
the Porsche 909 Bergspyder.
That was a ’60s hillclimb special
that weighed just 385kg, making
it Porsche’s lightest ever racing
car. Despite losing roof, screen,
door handles and passenger seat,
the Boxster Bergspyder is a little
chubbier at 1130kg. But a 388bhp
Cayman GT4 engine helps
matters. Created in 2014, concerns
over eligibility in some markets
meant it remained a one-off. It
now sits in the Porsche museum
alongside its namesake.

⊳ The ultimate Cayman concept

Le Mans Living Legend
Clearly it’s not just the 550 Spyder
Porsche’s designers have pinned
to their mood boards. The lesser-
known fixed-roof 550 Coupe,
which raced at Le Mans in 1953,
inspired this study for an extreme
mid-engined, eight-cylinder(!)
race-inspired sports car on the
Boxster/Cayman platform.
It got as far as the clay model
Round stage but its central fuel filler,
headlights, doors cutting into the roofline and
but this is split rear window design were
no 911 unlikely to see production. Nice to
dream, though.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 99

 Inside Porsche’s chamber of secrets

‘I saw a contour line

on a layout for the
918 Spyder. It looked
like a rear door joint.
I was astonished’
MICHAEL MAUER

▲ Taycan: (un)seen here first

Vision Turismo
From the front it looks like a 918
Spyder. Walk around and, whoa!
There are four doors… This study
came about when Michael Mauer
spotted a contour line drawn on a
layout of the 918 Spyder: ‘It looked
like a rear door joint – I was
astonished.’
This four-door supercar model
followed in 2016. The nose was
too low to make it front-engined;
a rear engine would compromise
space. But if it were electric…
So, when the Mission E GT
concept (which would become the
Taycan) emerged in 2015, guess
where its shape came from?

⊲ Martini Mixer
911 Vision Safari
Perhaps tired of Cayennes,
Porsche created this working
911 crossover prototype in 2012,
taking its inspiration from the Rally-inspired 911
works Safari rally 911s of the prototype even
included a cooling
’70s with long-travel suspension shelf for sweaty
and off-road arches. It tested at crash helmets
Porsche’s gravel facility, and high- between stages
rise 911 mules have been spotted…

100 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

Space shuttle
Vision Renndienst
Proof Porsche’s designers
don’t spend all their time on the
photocopier with 911 silhouettes.
Here’s how far they get to push
the envelope in exploratory
projects: an all-electric, six-seater
modular minivan with a central
driving position, designed in 2018.
‘We asked our designers to see
how far they could stretch the
Porsche design language, even
to a car of these proportions,’
Mauer explains. ‘The challenge
was building tension in such big
surfaces. Emphasising the wheel
arches made it feel sporty.’
Don’t expect a Porsche van
any time soon, but the headlight
treatment at least found its way
into real life. ‘When we worked
on the Mission E concept, we Expect some
were inspired by this design’s cracking car
headlamps,’ Mauer says. ‘What chases in the
you see today on the Taycan – this next series of
was the starting point.’ Postman Pat

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 101

 The only thing likely to send your
jaw further through the floor is
the origin of the car its based on

What a lightweight
904 Living Legend I by Chris Chilton
Twice I’ve visited the anonymous warehouse close to Porsche’s museum,
a place full of hidden treasures like a four-seat 911, GT3-engined Cayman
and the stillborn 989 saloon. But if I’d seen the 904 Living Legend there,
I’d have struggled to notice anything else in the building.
A tiny, tapering two-seater inspired by one of the most beautiful sports
cars of the ’60s, the only thing likely to send your jaw further through the
floor towards Australia than its perfect proportions is the discovery of the
origins of the car underneath, helping define that shape.
That car is the VW XL1, the miniature hypermiling supercar built
by VW and sold in tiny numbers in 2013-16. Just imagine combining the
disarming tactility of the XL1’s unassisted steering, its rock-solid carbon
structure and the high-revving V-twin bike engine Porsche imagined this
900kg jewel would feature in place of the VW’s two-pot diesel. A Cayman
GT4 would feel like a Panamera in comparison.
Why didn’t it progress further than this 2013 design study? CAR’s Georg
Kacher certainly understood from his sources that both Porsche and Audi
were seriously looking into production variations on this theme, though
neither materialised.
Maybe that’s because, even if they haven’t always been conventional,
Porsches have always been practical at their heart. A carbon-monocoque
Why the long sports car wouldn’t be as simple or cost-effective to make or repair as a
tail? That’ll be
the VW XL1 steel or aluminium car, and while the high-revving V-twin might make it
building blocks fly, its emissions wouldn’t fly with the clean-air crowd.

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 Inside Porsche’s chamber of secrets

Unfinished business Stay cool One step beyond Electric cars are dull, right?
918 RS 906 Living Legend Vision 920 Vision E
Porsche’s 918 Spyder hypercar Modern hypercars are all about If the 919 Street proposal was With a factory Formula E entry
ended production five years cooling and aero; ’60s sports extreme, the Vision 920 is the since 2019 and various EVs
ago, but perhaps Porsche’s racing cars like the 906 were most intense design here. Also on the way, it makes sense for
designers and engineers still about being sleek and compact. using the discontinued 919 Porsche’s designers to explore
feel they have unfinished Put them together and you Le Mans racer as its basis, the the outer limits of electric
business with it. get 2005’s 906 Living Legend brutal red/white colour break performance.
This 1:1-scale model, created concept, which gives the illusion is actually its most demure The Vision E uses the 800-
in 2019, imagines the ultimate of one body being slotted inside aspect. Created in 2019 as a volt electric powertrain from
evolution of the 918, with the another; the resultant fissure customer-spec race car or AMG Porsche’s Formula E racing car
kind of aero to scare a Le on the car’s side becomes a One-esque road-legal hypercar, in a single-seat, faired-in track
Mans prototype and, no doubt, giant ventilation duct. There’s a its central cockpit floats above special for either customer
an absurdly quick projected definite resemblance to 2013’s deep channels for airflow and motorsport or trackdays in a
Nürburgring lap time. 918 Spyder production car. exposed inboard dampers. fast-charging future.

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Giant
test
THE DEFINITIVE VERDICT

wagons
VW’s new ID.3 takes on two other EVs with mainstream
ambitions. But is the mass market ready for any of them?
And are they ready for the mass market?
Words Georg Kacher & Phil McNamara Photography Tom Salt

104 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

VW ID.3 I POLESTAR 2 I TESLA MODEL 3

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 Giant test: ID.3 vs EV rivals

with the Prius in the early days of hybrids, Tesla is simply

better than the others at knowing how to manage bat-
teries, e-motors and performance electronics for a clearly
superior range. In contrast, the Polestar 2 over-promises
when the batteries are full while under-delivering just
before the white flag comes out. The ID.3 is less ambi-
tious and more relaxed overall, and keeps a close eye on
all charging eventualities.
Whichever electric car you’re in, the charging infra-
structure is far from ideal; in the here and now, even
Tesla’s impressive proprietary Supercharger network can
his just got a lot more pressing, didn’t it? If we really are involve a level of anxiety and delay that’s best avoided. It’s
going to be legislated out of new petrol and diesel cars much more convenient to hook up to the mains at work,
within 10 years, it’s about time we took a bit more interest or at home, or in the case of the Tesla one of the faster
in the electric cars currently available, and those about V3 Superchargers. These deliver a phenomenal 250kW
to follow them. Will they offer anything comparable to of charge – typically double what we consider to be the
the pleasure currently provided by internal-combustion ultimate in charging in the UK – but there are fewer than
engines, or do we need to adjust our expectations? 10 here right now. Model 3 owners must pay to use Super-
Here they come, white, grey and green silhouettes chargers, unlike owners of some older Teslas. (It can use
tiptoeing through the morning dew, the three newest regular public chargers too.) ⊲
clear-air temptations, the batteries in their bellies fully
charged and the charging cables in their frunks or
underfloor bonus boot meticulously furled. Just a trace of
One, the Tesla Model 3, is from a manufacturer that Golf style, but
ID.3 is a clean-
has only ever existed to build electric cars, and which has sheet product
to a large extent defined what the premium electric car
is all about; this is its smallest, most affordable model.
Another, the ID.3, is the key product from the maker of
the original people’s car as it transitions from traditional
powertrains to EV. The third, the Polestar 2, comes
from what used to be a performance sub-brand of Volvo,
backed by the global might of Geely.
The three cars differ on shape, price and performance
– but all are clearly aimed at the same rapidly growing
market: not the earliest of early adopters, but those who
want to be ahead of the curve on combatting the climate
emergency, combining environmental responsibility
with a smart package and a degree of driving enjoyment.
In an EV comparison many of the usual Giant Test
criteria are overshadowed by the need to put remaining
range, state of charge, charging infrastructure, available
performance and average consumption under close
examination. In this complex context, the driver’s
self-restraint is a massive factor. Back off early, and you
will likely get away with covering between 2.5 and 3.5
miles per kWh. Press on regardless, and these numbers
can easily halve.
All-wheel drive with a motor on each axle is the
formula for the Tesla and Polestar. VW will offer a similar
layout soon, and the choice of battery sizes and power
outputs will grow. For now, the two significantly more
expensive cars are also significantly quicker. And who
could resist, at least once in a while, slurping from the Too many
vast amounts of torque – 471lb ft in the case of the Tesla, functions are
controlled via
or the Polestar’s 487lb ft – waiting to be uncorked? This is the Tesla screen
one area in which Tesla’s experience shows. Like Toyota

106 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Polestar
reluctant to lose
fake grille; VW
has followed
Tesla’s lead

They differ on shape, price and

performance, but are all aimed at
the same rapidly growing market

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 107

 Never quite as
cheap as Tesla
teased, but it’s a
sell-out success

No problems with
our ID.3’s build
quality, but some
fabrics feel cheap

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 Giant test: ID.3 vs EV rivals

Tesla build
quality doesn’t
meet premium
expectations
Long queues, out-of-order docking
stations, payment issues, busy hotlines…
Tomorrow today? We sincerely hope not

long queues, out-of-order docking stations, illegible dis-

plays, randomly reduced charging power, busy hotlines…
Nonetheless, the UK network continues to grow, with
contactless payment now mandatory here.
But on to happier matters, starting with the Model
3’s rapidity. Our mega-quick Performance edition pips SECOND OPINION
All three cars display state of charge, consumption, the Ferrari Portofino’s 3.5sec 0-62mph time, and the top PHIL MCNAMARA
range and energy flow in detail on prominent touch- speed of 162mph matches the Taycan Turbo S. The Tesla
screens, which can be even more distracting than takes off as if it’s been flung from an aircraft carrier’s The ID.3 is
handling two smartphones at a time. The most chal- catapult. It combines total traction and a brutal throttle understandably
eclipsed in this
lenging of these devices is the Tesla’s multi-tasking XXL response, with power and torque joining forces like an ballistic company,
device – recently declared unsafe by a German court. The explosive chemical reaction. Full throttle feels simulta- but it has some solid
VW splits the information between a small driver display neously like both an implosion and explosion. virtues. Covering
with limited EV feedback and a larger tablet in the centre Is this the wrong approach, because these are not 2.8 miles per kWh
of the dash. In combination with the user-unfriendly hardcore sports saloons but heroic planet savers? Yes during my full-on
multi-function steering wheel, the ID.3 is the undisputed and no. As long as the charge is CO2-neutral, and you driving shows that
the 58kWh battery
king of belt and braces. know where the next charge is coming from, there is no
can go beyond 150
It doesn’t help that the Wolfsburg software is slow, real need to hold back. Even under pressure the Model 3 miles. The dash-top
capricious and prone to losing touch with the internet. Performance can still cover 150 miles non-stop. Driven in lightbar is nicely
The Polestar’s Android-based system is more user-friend- similarly self-indulgent style (touching 100mph on the communicative,
ly thanks to the first appearance of Google Automotive autobahn), its rivals run out of juice 25 to 45 miles earlier. flashing red for a
Services (now also on the EV version of the Volvo XC40), The Model 3’s Autopilot is allegedly fully prepared for braking warning, or
easy-to-spot green
integrating streaming, navigation and voice control in a future hands-off operation, but right now Tesla does
when charging. The
plausible and pragmatic fashion. not possess sufficient data and is still waiting for the EU cabin is calming
Imprecise touchsliders, concealed home buttons and regulators’ permission. In any case, who needs self-driv- and spacious. But,
unintuitive sub-menus let down all three, though owners ing when a car can be this satisfying to drive yourself? crucially, this little car
will get used to them. But you can’t afford to ignore The Model 3’s lane-change, overtake and follow-to- stands for something
this vital information, which can help you minimise stop tricks are aped by the Polestar 2 and ID.3, which do huge: VW’s rebirth
the amount of time spent waiting for access to a public an even more accurate job through tighter radii and on from emissions
sinner to electric
charger, and then typically twiddling your thumbs for 30 tarmac devoid of road markings. The VW slows down by evangelist. That’s
to 40 minutes while the state-of-charge read-out climbs itself when approaching a built-up area, and it pulls over hugely welcome with
from 10 to 80 per cent. And that’s on a good day; charging automatically should the driver nod off. the 2030 engine ban
can also involve dramatically varying electricity prices, The Polestar has good performance figures – it can do ⊲ looming.

▼
PRE-FLIGHT BRIEFING V W ID.3

⊲ Why is it here? the Polestar and the Tesla – it’s with power from renewable capability fitted as standard,
Because there are so many a people’s car, after all – but that energy sources and a carbon which enables the speediest
tough questions to be asked doesn’t mean it can’t have their credit scheme in operation. possible top-ups at public sites.
of the ID.3 that Emily Maitlis want-one appeal, or fit into your Entry-level cars have 50kW DC
ought to be doing the interview. life more neatly than they can. ⊲ Which version is this? fast charging, which allows a
VW is betting a fair bit of its
considerable farm on the ⊲ Any clever stuff?
ID.3’s success: does it have the Packaging is the ID.3’s party
desirability an EV It-Car needs? piece, with its wheels pushed to
Is it as usable as a Golf? Is its the corners for maximum interior
quality up to scratch? That last space. Although, as we’ve found,
point is a genuine concern, given it doesn’t feel quite as roomy as
the endless delays and niggles you might expect. £30k for Life.
the ID.3 has suffered pre-launch. VW claims the production The First Edition
It may be priced lower than process is net carbon neutral, has 100kW charging
 ID.3 has the
best ride, and
is quietest too

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 Giant test: ID.3 vs EV rivals

Polestar’s like
a Volvo, but
with less of
To some drivers one-pedal operation everything

– which can mean sharp braking – is a

blessing, to others an unnatural curse

0-62mph in 4.7sec, and goes on to 127mph – and is a

commendably involving drive. And although the VW
is the least powerful of these cars, it’s lighter than the
others, which helps give it a decent 0-62mph time 7.3sec.
Top speed is, however, limited to 99mph, which fits the
SECOND OPINION philosophical brief but is frustrating (in Germany, at
JAMES TAYLOR least…) because the sorted chassis could handle more.
Despite the big wheels and the firm, occasionally
If the ID.3 is jarring, suspension, the VW wins on ride comfort with
designed to be a car
its mix of general compliance and high-speed cushiness.
for the everyman,
the Polestar and But that win was there for the taking thanks to its
the Tesla vie for uncompromising rivals. Our Polestar is let down by its
the affections of extra-cost sports suspension. Feeling better suited to
more affluent style- racetracks than the road, the steel-sprung set-up employs
conscious buyers. a bunch of poltergeists, allows the advanced multi-link All three ride high,
Which edges it on because of in-floor
rear axle to squeal on rough turf, and at times feels too batteries, but drive
feelgood factor?
The Polestar flies harsh in everyday circumstances. In this Performance like cars, not SUVs
out of the blocks specification, the Tesla is also too firm. It’s upset by
with a nicely put transverse irritations, potholes and patched-up blacktop.
together, soothingly The ID.3 doesn’t only provide the smoothest ride by driver to driver. The Polestar 2 lets you choose from three
understated cabin. some margin, it’s also quieter all-round. different settings, whereas Tesla and VW have only two.
Its tallboy centre EVs increasingly offer one-pedal operation, which can At least the Tesla’s calibration is clear-cut, progressively
console is a contrast
with the Model 3’s
mean sharp braking when you lift off the accelerator. increasing the deceleration before the vehicle comes to
airily open-plan The intensity varies depending on the car maker’s ethos a full stop. The fixed set-ups chosen for the ID.3 are in
layout, and the and can often be adjusted: to some drivers it’s a blessing, contrast too much alike, and the slow-down effect is
Polestar feels more to others an unnatural curse; some are happier using the automatically suspended below 20mph. Enhanced
like a ‘normal’ car as brake pedal for slowing down, and want the car to coast coasting is, in all three cases, only possible in the high-
a result. Although when they ease off the accelerator, not decelerate sharply. est-efficiency driving programme.
the Model 3 is the
Which approach is more energy-efficient? Is it best to Thanks to its electric-optimised chassis, VW says the
oldest car in this test,
it still looks, feels go one-pedal, and have the maximum amount of deceler- ID.3 fuses the footprint of the new Golf with the cabin
and drives like a ative energy recaptured as electricity, or is it better to let a space of the current Passat. It doesn’t quite feel like that.
welcome visitor from car coast, propelled by its momentum? There’s clearly no The ID.3 is not as wide as the conventional family car, and
the future. simple answer – so much varies from car to car, and from the rear headroom is to an extent compromised by the ⊲

▼
PRE-FLIGHT BRIEFING POLESTAR 2

Why is it here? commands. Nav is by Google one version at launch, with here: manually adjustable Öhlins
Because it might just beat the Maps, log in with your Google two electric motors, 402bhp dampers, big Brembo brakes,
Tesla at its own game. Clean, account and your contacts are and 487lb ft. The optional 20-inch wheels and various bits
modernist styling, dual-motor ported in, and the voice interface Performance Pack (adding of gold trim. Based on sales data
all-wheel drive (and a more
affordable single-motor on the
way), and an interior dominated
by its operating system. That and ⊲ Which version is this?
start-up brand chic. The brand launched with the
handsome two-door Polestar
⊲ Any clever stuff?
This is the first production car and an expensive one. The 2
with Google’s Android-powered is Polestar’s first pure EV, and
operating system for the it’s more accessible in both
infotainment and various other door count and price. There’s

111
 Giant test: ID.3 vs EV rivals

The Tesla is a saloon with

a narrow lid making it
tricky to stuff the boot
sloping roofline. Although it is 500mm shorter than the
Passat, the hatchback does have a decent-size boot, at 385
litres (or 1267 with the rear seats down).
The Polestar’s rear passenger compartment is fine for
six-footers, though their seating position is noticeably
upright, and big passengers may find the door opening
angle narrow. It’s spacious up front, and it can swallow
up to 440 litres of luggage (combined front and rear,
or 1905 litres with the rear seats folded). Like the VW,
Google-driven the Polestar has a large, practical hatchback opening,
infotainment, via whereas the Tesla is a saloon with a narrow lid making it
portrait screen, tricky to stuff its 425-litre conventional rear boot.
is a big advance
In the Model 3 the space behind the front seats feels
tight, the thinly upholstered bench is positively uncom-
fortable, the dropping roofline impedes entry and exit,
Tesla has more and
better chargers to and on a hot day there is no sunshade to prevent the scalp
choose from, and from simmering under the glass canopy.
needs them less After all these years, Tesla still has work to do on
quality. The yawning panel gaps and the clatter of the
closing doors are the most obvious examples, but not the
only instances of ho-hum finish and assembly work.
The Polestar feels – and sounds – well put-together,
using good-quality materials wherever you’re likely to
come into contact with them.
Unlike Tesla and Polestar, who keep the options list
short, VW offers a confusing array, and sometimes
bundles the extras together in odd combinations. If
you’re on the configurator, take your time. Some early
ID.3s were criticised for patchy fit and finish. Ours was
faultlessly put together, but the choice of materials was
in places lower-rent than you’d expect from the self-pro-
claimed leading premium marque for the volk.
All three cars fall some way short of perfection, but all
also have great strengths, and give reasons to be hopeful
about the all-electric future that’s fast approaching. ⊲

▼
PRE-FLIGHT BRIEFING TESLA MODEL 3

⊲ Why is it here? ⊲ Any clever stuff? ⊲ Which version is this? miles). Then it’s the twin-engined,
The Model 3 has overtaken the The Tesla effectively bins The Tesla line-up is frequently all-wheel-drive Long Range
Nissan Leaf as the biggest selling conventional instruments, opting tweaked with no notice but, as (360 miles) and this car, the
electric car ever. It’s the closest instead to put almost everything things stand, the current Model Performance (quicker, but at the
the US company has so far come to the large central touchscreen.
to making an EV for the mass Tesla is a huge manufacturer
market. And, as we’ve discovered of batteries, and is at the
on previous tests, it drives very forefront of battery tech, driven
well by anybody’s standards. by Elon Musk’s habit of making
It’s a more direct rival to the wild promises that his team then
Polestar than the less expensive try to deliver, with great results
VW, but it should be on the in terms of improved efficiency
shortlist for anyone looking to and reduced cost; the Model
buy an EV for pleasure as well as 3’s bang-per-buck is hugely
practicality. impressive.

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 Big wheels do
no favours to
ride quality; if
you can, opt
to downsize

Polestar and
Tesla rewarding
to drive; VW’s
not far off

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 113

 Giant test: ID.3 vs EV rivals

VW ID.3 & RIVALS THE DETAILS

VW ID.3 POLESTAR 2 TESLA MODEL 3

1ST EDITION PERFORMANCE

AFFORDABILIT Y

WE SAY... £35,215 (after grant) £46,900 (after grant) £56,490

Top Tesla too (£35,215 as tested) (£53,800 as tested) (£63,290 as tested)
expensive for plug- Representative PCP £435pm Representative lease £643pm Representative PCP £762pm
in grant; options (47 payments): £2545 deposit, (48 payments): £3858 deposit, (48 payments): £6000 deposit,
can make all three 10k miles per year, 5.4% APR 10k miles per year 10k miles per year, 4.9% APR
expensive Typical approved used value Typical approved used value Typical approved used value
£30,470 (70 plate, 10,000 miles) £40,870 (70 plate, 10,000 miles) £51,800 (70 plate Performance)

POWERTRAIN

WE SAY... 55kWh battery, 78kWh battery, 75kWh battery,

Single-motor for single e-motor, twin e-motors, twin e-motors,
now, ID.3 will get rear-wheel drive all-wheel drive all-wheel drive
AWD. New ID.4
is AWD

PERFORMANCE

WE SAY... Power 201bhp Power 402bhp Power 444bhp

Performance by Torque 229lb ft Torque 487lb ft Torque 471lb ft
name… Tesla is Top speed 99mph Top speed 127mph Top speed 162mph
properly rapid 0-62mph 7.3sec 0-62mph 4.7sec 0-62mph 3.4sec

B O DY/ C H A S S I S

WE SAY... Structure Steel Structure Steel Structure Steel, aluminium

Ride quality is Weight 1794kg Weight 2123kg Weight 1847kg
an issue if you’re Suspension MacPherson strut Suspension MacPherson strut Suspension MacPherson
tempted by front, multi-link rear front, multi-link rear strut front, multi-link rear
sportier options – Length/width/height Length/width/height Length/width/height
be warned 4261/2070/1568mm 4606/1985/1479 4694/2088/1443mm
Boot capacity 385/1267 litres Boot capacity 440/1905 litres Boot capacity 542 litres

EFFICIENCY

WE SAY... Energy consumption (official) Energy consumption (official) Energy consumption (official)
Go steady and all 3.96 miles per kWh 3.22 miles per kWh 3.79 miles per kWh
offer decent range, Range 260 miles Range 292 miles Range 352 miles
but Tesla’s big CO2 emissions 0g/km CO2 emissions 0g/km CO2 emissions 0g/km
battery makes a Charging time Rapid charge: 30 Charging time Rapid charge: 40 Charging time Supercharger:
big difference minutes 0-80% minutes 0-80% 20 minutes 0-80%

114 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Seen the light?
Three EVs to
persuade you to
go electric early

FINAL RECKONING low-rent plastics to trade-off the expensive hardware, or

the lumbering infotainment. Think of the ID.3 as a cute

The race for

alternative to the Nissan Leaf, with rational strengths to
lure more punters into the electric mainstream.
Car enthusiasts want more than pleasing; they want

second is passion. With its beefy proportions, the Polestar 2 is nice

to be seen in, and the imaginative fabrics and finishes
(clawmarked trim!) make it the nicest to be in, too. The

hotting up Google-powered infotainment handles English-

language inputs adroitly, whereas the VW labours as if
your navigation instructions are in its second language.
The Polestar’s strong performance sits squarely in
These are ground-breaking cars, made even more fasci- this test’s middle ground, with more of that head-jarring
nating now the stopwatch is counting down to end the thrust so intrinsic to EVs. The steering is more delicate
combustion engine’s days. The ID.3 bears hefty baggage, and vivid, but the superior dynamics do impact the cruis-
spearheading VW’s zero-emissions push to draw a line ing refinement and ride comfort. Efficiency and charge
under Dieselgate, and the ambition to deliver an all-elec- time are not its strongest suits either.
tric people’s car to rank alongside the Beetle and Golf. With its first-mover advantage, Tesla knows how to
‘People’s car’ is spot-on. The ID.3 is a five-door hatch pamper batteries to extract XL range in the lesser models
which focuses on human necessities such as spacious- and XXXL performance from the £56k flagship. It lags the
ness (mostly), civility and comfort (mostly). With a range legacy car makers on quality, and the minimalist cabin
starting at £29,990 it’s also the most attainable, some can’t match the Polestar for surprise and delight, save for
£7500 less than the cheapest Model 3 and £16k below the a screen big enough to monitor America’s airspace.
Polestar. The ID.3 is pleasant to drive, with the punch of But with performance to match a Porsche Taycan, alert
a middleweight boxer, accurate, easygoing steering and steering and a sorted chassis, the Model 3 is in a league
ample cornering grip, though few rear-drive frolics. of its own. Even a couple of years of familiarity have not
Maybe it’s the weight of expectation, but there’s some- blunted its appeal. The baby Tesla was the breakthrough
thing underwhelming about the ID.3, and not just in the EV. Its newer rivals remain pretenders to the throne.

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 Our cars H E LLO B M W M 8 + S KO DA O C TAV I A
G O O D BY E V W T- RO C R + VAUX H A LL G R A N D L A N D X H Y B R I D
+ O F F - ROA D I N G I N A D I S COV E RY S P O RT

116 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Land Rover Adventure

going back
to its roots
Mark Walton takes our Discovery Sport
green laning along with his 1950 Series I

Off-roading has become

controversial. Unless you own a
Scottish shooting estate, there
aren’t many places left in the UK to
venture off tarmac. The last public
Land Rover Discovery tracks, open to the likes of you and
Sport D240 HSE me, are green lanes, and even those
R-Dynamic have come under fire recently.
Month 4 A high-profile case in the Lake
The story so far District last year tried to shut down
a couple of green lanes to 4x4s. The
Every Land Rover has to go off
road at some point. Question is,
campaigners lost, but their cause
where do you go? was plastered all over the media.
+ The Disco Sport’s four-wheel The 4x4 drivers realised their
drive can eat green lanes for hobby was under threat a long time
breakfast ago and they got organised. This
- It makes me want a real year marks the 25th anniversary
challenge, like the Camel Trophy
of the Green Lane Association,
Logbook or GLASS. GLASS promotes
Price £50,635 (£60,120 as tested) responsible off-road driving and it
Performance 1999cc turbodiesel spends most of its members’ cash
four-cylinder, 237bhp, 7.9sec on restoring and maintaining
0-62mph, 137mph Efficiency
36.6mpg (official), 29.5mpg green lanes. GLASS doesn’t even
(tested), 202g/km CO2 Energy like the term ‘off-road’. ‘Green lanes
cost 21.6p per mile Miles this are unsurfaced public roads that
month 1187 Total miles 3579
were never tarmacked,’ explains
Lauren Eaton of GLASS. ‘They
What’s the appeal of off-roading? retain the same status of any legal
I have no idea. It feels instinctive, road in the country. If people think
but my nomadic ancestors it’s off-road, they immediately
weren’t exactly cruising round the think the rules don’t apply. But
savannah on 20-inch alloys, so I they do.’
can’t claim it’s primeval. It feels Lauren’s point is borne out by
liberating, so maybe it’s to do with looking at old maps. One of the
escaping modern life? Turning off resources available when you
that crowded main road, with its join GLASS is Trailwise2, the
speed cameras and warning signs, organisation’s online mapping tool
to strike out across a field… that shows every green lane in the
No, wait! NOT A FIELD! UK, along with notes and advice
Alex Tapley

I didn’t mean that. I’m NOT from other members. You can
TRESPASSING. overlay the routes on the latest ⊲

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 117

 The tracks make their way
across idyllic, undulating
countryside, and we roll along at
10mph. Apart from some deep
potholes, the lanes are hard-packed
and smooth at this time of year,
before winter gets going, posing
no challenge at all to the crude
all-wheel-drive of the Series 1 or the
supercomputer 4x4 of the Disco.
There are a couple of times when
extra ground clearance would
have been nice on the Discovery
Sport, but with no air suspension
option, raising the ride height isn’t
possible. Never mind, with a bit of
careful maneouvreing we avoid
scraping any plastic.
Much more fun are the fords,
which definitely add a feeling of
adventure. Again, I’m not sure
which bit of my brain this is all
appealing to, but I glow with
Mark’s Series satisfaction when I drive the Series
I looks closely
related to that 1 through the water. The Discovery
farm gate just shrugs and follows, wondering
what the fuss is about.
At these speeds and in these
conditions, neither car feels
ambience – on a day like today. stretched by these green lanes,
There’s something about Land Still, there’s something about Land but the instinctive pleasure is
Rovers, old and new: they always Rovers, old and new: they always undeniable. Ironically, the chasm
look at home on a dirt road look at home on a dirt road.
Even after triple-checking the
in capability between them – that
70-year age difference – is
map, there’s something unnerving mostly felt when we turn back
Ordnance Survey maps, but you looking for a route that can link the first time you open a farmer’s on the tarmac. My wife takes
can also choose historical maps, a series of gravel tracks together, gate and drive into a field. I keep the Discovery and is home in 30
dating back to 1885. Sure enough, with lots of narrow B-road in telling myself, ‘It’s a public road, a minutes; meanwhile the Series 1
the green lanes were always there, between. Strictly speaking it public road!’ But I have no need to grinds home at 40mph and by the
often shown as roads. should be called ‘back laning’. worry – we quickly come across time I get back I’m almost deaf
After 120 years of tarmacking, It’s a stunning day, and my wife a couple of dog walkers and then from wind noise.
most green lanes are very short Melissa joins us with our Series the farmer himself, in a tractor. I’m
these days. The campaign in the 1, roof down, windscreen folded. half expecting a showdown, but We recommend joining GLASS
Lakes surrounded a 1.5-mile track I’ve owned this car for two years everyone just waves. ([Link]) before green laning
in Little Langdale, and a 0.3-mile and I love it. It’s an early 80-inch,
lane near Coniston. Which seems exported to Australia in 1950.
Complex and
crazy to me – think of the traffic When its working life ended it was weighty versus
visiting the national park every parked in a barn, where it stayed simple and light
year, millions of cars clogging the for 35 years. It was then dragged
roads. If you’re worried about the out, stuck on eBay and bought by
Lakes being ruined, all that angst a Belgian collector, who shipped it
about a few 4x4s on a 500-metre back to Europe and mechanically
stretch of track seems a bit restored it, keeping its 70-year-old
disproportionate. patina. It eventually found its
Oh well, it’s time for me to way home in stunningly original
have a go. After joining GLASS condition.
and spending hours absorbed in Compared to the Series 1,
Trailwise2, I find some lanes in the Discovery Sport looks like a
nearby Leicestershire. Because spaceship, and of course it can’t
the lanes are so short, you’re really compete on character – or interior

118 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Our cars

Voyage of
discovery In which nothing bad happens
So much tech to try out, so little time. Who you gonna call? Pooh Bear! By Ben Pulman

4 C O N S TA N T C A L C U L AT I O N
6 C H A R G E TO S PA R E
Twenty minutes after setting off we’ve
We arrive home after covering 90 miles,
cruised across the New Forest and the
and with 61 per cent battery charge
claimed range actually ticks up – yay! – 5 DARK ART remaining, or a range of 134 miles.
to 205 miles. It then drops sharply as we
The ‘virtual mirrors’ get their first after-dark No worries, no stress, and definitely
accelerate onto the motorway and
outing, and I’m not sure what to expect – a video no range anxiety.
join the Sunday crowd heading home.
of inky nothing? Dusk brings some spectacular
But thereafter it loses range at roughly
colours like an Instagram filter has been applied,
one mile for every mile we cover.
and as darkness falls the screens project images 6
much lighter than you’d see reflected in glass.

3 E V E N E E YO R E WO U LD LI K E IT
Whether via Bluetooth or Android Auto,
the connection to Spotify is better than
in the Peugeot I ran before, and
playback through the B&O stereo 4
is much clearer than the Pug’s Focal
system. All the better to listen to The 3
Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
2 Audi e-Tron
back-to-back-to-back.
Sportback
Month 2
1
The story so far
Audi’s first EV, on test in
Jaguar i-Pace-rivalling
2 IT KNOWS US SO WELL Sportback guise
Battery is fully charged, but the car’s + First decent-length journey
analysis of how it’s been used on previous an absolute doddle
journeys means a predicted range of - Imminent prospect of using
204 miles, 37 below the WLTP figure. public charging network
Logbook

After cruising across the Price £79,900 (£92,470 as tested)

Performance 95kWh battery,
1 THE NIGHT SHIFT New Forest the claimed twin e-motors, 402bhp, 5.7sec
0-62mph, 124mph Efficiency 2.5
The night before the journey from the New
Forest to London the Sportback is plugged
range has actually miles per kWh (official), 2.3 miles
per kWh (tested), 0g/km CO2
in, so the battery is brimmed by morning. increased Energy cost 7.4p per mile Miles
this month 545 Total miles 1767

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 119

 The handling is so ponderous
that the full 296bhp is deployed
less than the Swiss Navy

Grandland X
hybrids start at
£32k, but our
spec adds £11k

Pass the smelling salts

By the first corner, in fact. The
handling is so ponderous that the
full 296bhp was deployed less than
the Swiss Navy.
Goodbye It’s not the Vauxhall hybrid’s performance that will induce There are other plus points,
such as being able to to lock it
fainting so much as its high price. By Steve Moody into four-wheel drive. Caught in a
biblical downpour on a motorway
A price heading in the direction of went anywhere further than about once, it definitely helped stability.
45 grand was an insurmountable 15 miles away and the cylinders of The cabin proved to be good-
obstacle for Grandland X the petrol engine must have been quality and hard-wearing and I
acceptance. During the gummed up with cobwebs. Such a like the fact that most operations
conversations I had about the car, big proportion of those few miles could be conducted by buttons and
I was always on standby with a was being done on battery power dials. Some of the switchgear is the
Vauxhall Grandland X pillow and some smelling salts for alone (the battery was recharged size of a Tic Tac, but that’s still far
Elite Nav Hybrid4 the moment when I mentioned the before the next journey) that I was easier than having to point a finger
Month 8
price; cue fainting. It doesn’t really getting nearly 300mpg. accusingly at a graphic swimming
The story so far hold itself like a car of that price, If you’re working from home about on a screen.
A very fast, very expensive or look like one. That’s the cost – a lot, a PHEV like the Grandland On the downside, the boot is
Vauxhall hybrid literally – of having big batteries. with its solid 30-mile range might annoyingly small and replacement
+ Great when you only have Of course, there is a caveat, and just fit your new lifestyle perfectly; tyres cost the earth (£192), as my
to go 30 miles it’s a big one. If you are a company my overall 60mpg-plus in recent wife found after falling down a
- An expensive private buy, car driver, the tax you’ll pay is way weeks, using both powertrains, is sinkhole the size of Lincolnshire.
and the PHEV part starts to
drag on longer journeys below that of a standard petrol or pretty impressive. So variously the Grandland
diesel equivalent, so as my wan Thanks to that electric motor proved to be big, small, cheap and
victim lay recovering I would and a combined 296bhp, it can go expensive, as most PHEVs do. It
Logbook
furnish them with the requisite off the line like Tom Cruise off a didn’t prove to be a great car either,
Price £43,400 (£43,900 as numbers for higher- and lower-rate carrier deck in a Tomcat. It’s a lot of but rather an adequate one.
tested) Performance 1598cc
turbocharged four-cyl plus twin taxpayers. They still needed the power, and it’s delivered quickly. @Sjmoody37
e-motors, PHEV, 296bhp, 5.9sec pillow after that, mind. Problem is, heavy batteries
0-62mph, 146mph Efficiency In certain circumstances, the combined with an SUV stance Count the cost
204-225mpg, 63.6mpg (tested), Grandland X can be ridiculously results in the Grandland running
Alex Tapley

34g/km CO2 Energy cost 5.8p Cost new £43,900 Part exchange
per mile Miles this month 1523 cheap to run. There was an out of form and into trouble £33,520 Cost per mile 8.3p Cost
Total miles 6203 extended period where we hardly quicker than Harry Maguire. per mile inc depreciation £1.92

120 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Our cars
Big Sport
button wants
pressing. We’re
happy to oblige

unseparated rear luggage area, but 32psi recommended and I presume

I tend to crank up the stereo to they’ve been that way while I’ve
cover it up. My car’s spec includes had it, seeing as the tyre-pressure
12-speaker JBL Audio. monitoring hasn’t blinked. Time
It’s not just about laid-back, for some higher pressures and a bit
stereo-up motorway driving, of experimentation, I think.
though. I also particularly enjoy @IamBenBarry
squirting along quick third- and
fourth-gear twisty roads – that
planted feel again, the smooth
performance, how eagerly
it changes direction and the
accurate, pacey steering. I’d like
more feel to that steering (make
that some steering feel) and crisper Toyota Supra GR
gearshifts, and I can see there’s Month 2

All about the whoosh room for extra dynamic sparkle on

more technical roads, but I always
enjoy the Toyota.
The story so far
The first new Supra since 2002,
this time twinned with a BMW
Sports car, yes, but cruiser too. By Ben Barry For a while I thought this car + It’s a rear-wheel-drive sports
had less traction than the last car with a straight-six!
I think this new Toyota Supra’s damper setting, even when I’ve new-generation Supra I drove. Tyre - Two seats; small boot; no
a great motorway car. I know, got the steering and powertrain tread on the Michelin Pilot Super manual gearbox
that sounds a bit damning for a in perkier Sport (press start, select Sports is still very healthy, but the Logbook
sports car, but it’s because it feels gear, press Sport, it’s ingrained car was sliding early and quickly –
so planted when you’re cracking now), because the stiffer damper short wheelbase, decent torque – in Price £54,340 (£55,050 as
tested) Performance 2998cc
on. It’s satisfying in a way I can’t mode is a bit spiky. a softish sort of way. I adapted by turbocharged six-cylinder,
quite pinpoint just yet, although You sit slightly recumbent in the not flattening the throttle quickly, 335bhp, 4.3sec 0-62mph,
it’s something to do with the swell low-set driving position (comfy more feeding it in like I’m dosing 155mph Efficiency 34.4mpg
of torque always available from the enough, though my back’s had an infant on Calpol. And then I (official), 30.5mpg (tested),
188g/km CO2 Energy cost 16.7p
silky BMW turbo six. enough after two hours). Road checked the pressures. They’re at per mile Miles this month 1143
I always default to the softer noise would creep in from the 30psi, down from the minimum Total miles 1979

Highly Taller than a

Clio, but less

efficient roomy. Blame

the battery

And highly high.

R135 Z.E. 50
Month 2
By Ben Whitworth
The story so far So this pretty little car is pretty
damned good at meeting our daily
Third-gen Zoe now up against
a lot more rivals driving needs. A real-world driving
+ Perky performance; range of 215 miles means longer
generous equipment; trips can be undertaken with none
easygoing versatility of the range anxiety Honda E and
- Teetering driving position; Mazda MX-30 drivers will endure.
harsh low-speed ride
It took me less than a week before speeds it feels alert and responsive. battery between the front and
I stopped constantly checking the There’s more than enough room rear axles optimises packaging
Logbook
range and started feeling confident on board for day-to-day trips, efficiency, but it also means the
Price £28,620 (£30,120 as about 200-mile trips. CarPlay hook-up is seamless, and seat – which is not adjustable for
tested) Performance 52kWh
battery, e-motor, 134bhp, 9.5sec Performance up to 50mph the audio system is loud enough height – positions taller drivers
0-62mph, 87mph Efficiency 4.6 is enjoyably swift. With an to embarrass my children on the far too high for comfort, reducing
miles per kWh (official) 4.2 miles instantaneous 181lb ft of torque school run. visibility levels and forcing them
per kWh (tested), 0g/km CO2 (same as a VW Corrado VR6!), But the driving position really to peer down at the bonnet rather
Energy cost 3.1p per mile Miles
this month 2762 Total miles the Renault snaps smartly off the grinds my teeth. I understand that than out at the road ahead. Not
3324 line, and even at higher motorway skateboarding the uprated 52kWh ideal when you’re 6ft 2in.

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 121

 the screenwash tank lid; storage climate-control commands. Good

Hello
But can it send space for the luggage cover under
the load-space floor (much to the
disappointment of our shed); and
job too, because the on-screen
air-con control layout looks to
be something of an intuition

a telegram? four curry hooks built into the side

walls of said load space to stave off
the world’s biggest emergency slop.
trip-hazard in waiting.
So there’s plenty to explore and
examine, just as long as everyone
The VW Group Virtual Cockpit can find a USB adapter to plug in
Many tech mysteries just waiting to be is endlessly configurable, but the their phone.
unravelled. By Anthony ffrench-Constant Classic format does the job well.
With a digital speed read-out
Keeping up with the Joneses has young executives with wafer-thin- writ large in the middle, it rather
never interested me much. But mint-proportioned laptops who negates the £690 optional head-up
that’s clearly not the story at Skoda, would settle for nothing less. But display, which the missus is only
where the tech message is: if you I know a woman who’ll settle for going to switch off anyway.
want to get ahead of them, you’d nothing less than being able to The infotainment screen is
better buy an Octavia Estate. recharge her phone in the car, so clear, fast and already infuriating. TDI 150PS DSG First
It boasts five USB ports, but not the first thing I did on climbing It may boast a touch slider along Edition Estate
as we know them; these are Type-C aboard the Octavia was to climb the bottom that can differentiate Month 1
ports and, to the ff-C clan, about straight out again and buy an between one fingertip and two
as much use as an ejector seat in (volume and map zoom, since The story so far
adapter. Or four…
a helicopter. A quick rummage Having thus landed the tech you ask), but scrolling through Well made, well equipped and well
round the homestead unearths Luddite custard pie with some radio stations is fiddly even when spacious
three laptops, four diverse mobile vim, this SE L First Edition Octavia stationary, hence destined to be a + Awash with digital technology
phones, two iPads and one much proves altogether kinder, and often nightmare on the move. - Will the tech prove user-friendly?
fought-over PlayStation, all rather clever, with the rest of its ‘Laura’, the voice-controlled Logbook
serviced by a veritable snake’s standard equipment list. digital assistant, sounds promising.
Price £29,515 (£32,960 as tested)
kindergarten of cabling universally Please welcome, then: an I’ve yet to try her out, but we’re Performance 1968cc turbodiesel
tipped at one end with a USB umbrella – Rolls-Royce-style – in assured she’s bright enough to four-cylinder, 148bhp, 8.8sec
Type-A fitting. the driver’s door; an ice scraper find me a decent curry in the area, 0-62mph, 137mph Efficiency 52.3-
Apparently Type-C stuff has under the fuel filler cap; mobile and to differentiate between the 60.1mpg (official), 56.2mpg (tested),

Alex Tapley
123-141g/km CO2 Energy cost
been around a while now, and I’m phone pockets on the front driver’s and front passenger’s 13.8p per mile Miles this month
sure there are plenty of thrusting seatbacks; a funnel built into voices when responding to 342 Total miles 4038

The infotainment
screen is clear, fast
and already infuriating

Both roomy
and well kitted
in SE L First
Edition spec

122 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Our cars

On paper, very
close to a Golf
R. On the road,
quite different
Matty Graham

Goodbye

speed awareness course is never of the screen required thereafter

Licence-saving far over the horizon. But when

a family-free flail on a sinuous
for... well, anything.
I know we’ll miss the T-Roc,

performance car
B-road beckons, somehow the though. As Joni Mitchell put it:
flappy paddles always seem to stay ‘Don’t it always seem to go, that you
un-tugged... don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s
As transgressions go, I don’t
T-Roc R offers much more than just hot hatch think this is up there with
performance. By Anthony ffrench-Constant shrouding a mint Ferrari 365
GTB/4 in a dust cloth and hiding
it under a Swiss mountain in
I can’t remember having my hands position is also only fractionally perpetuity, but my reluctance to
on any other quick car for so much more lofted and upright than that engage Race mode has left me a
time and spending so little of it of the nippiest Golf, I’ve come to tad baffled.
2.0 TSI 4Motion
driving quickly. the conclusion that it’s down to Such musings aside, the T-Roc
Odd, really. VW has clearly presentation. No; not the orange has been a doddle to live with – the
Month 6
put some effort into pummelling paint. I wouldn’t drive an orange hallmark of any R-badged VW, the The story so far
its SUV undercarriage into McLaren more slowly... Perhaps continual crunch of road-surface
A practical performance
sufficient submission to elicit don the full Groucho disguise first, information pushing its way into car. The stabbed rat that’s
R-appropriate handling alacrity, but no slower. the cabin the only cruising-speed genuinely easy to live with
including winding the T-Roc’s ride Thing is, you just don’t – reminder of the performance + Crouching tiger…
height all the way back down to metaphorically or otherwise – walk potential available. - …hidden dragon, left hidden
near-hatchback status. A residual out to it of a morning pulling on Though VW does it better than too often
whiff of extra bodyroll and pitch the string-backs while muttering most, I’m not yet entirely sold
Logbook
cannot be held accountable for this ‘Right you lot: en garde!’ on the digital cockpit, especially
amount of amiable dawdling. Don’t get me wrong; amid when it expends so much effort Price £38,450 (£42,359 as
tested) Performance 1984cc
So, given that the driving Mudfordshire’s mithering traffic, merely replicating proper analogue turbocharged four-cylinder,
having the in-gear oomph to dials. No one (including Lexus) 296bhp, 4.8sec 0-62mph,
overtake largely at will makes for has yet bettered Lexus’s first 155mph Efficiency 32.5mpg
Count the cost (official), 26.3mpg (tested), 176g/
a heady blend of necessity and joy. centre-console touchscreen, with a
Cost new £42,359 Part exchange km CO2 Energy cost 20.5p
£32,587 Cost per mile 19.5p Cost And such is the effortless delivery screen-flanking, button-operated per mile Miles this month 676
per mile inc depreciation £3.40 of straight-line pace that the next menu and no more than two prods Total miles 3110

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 123

 Zen and the art of four-
Hello
wheeled motorcycling
Living with a bare-bones
sports car every day could be
lots of things, but it won’t be
dull. By James Taylor

124 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Our cars

Definitely two
windows on

Alex Tapley
the left. Yup.
It’ll be fine

I stop halfway home to put the

hood up, and don’t do quite as taut
a job as I should (I’ve since learnt
the knack). Above 60mph the wind
whips it rhythmically against the
frame. Flap, flap, flap. At about the
Caterham Seven 360S same speed, fifth gear has a slight
Month 1 but insistent whine. Somehow
six decades of development still
The story so far hasn’t blessed the Seven with
1957: Colin Chapman devises self-cancelling indicators, so every
the Lotus 7. 1973: Chapman time you use them they emit an
loses interest; Caterham takes
on the rights. 2020: CAR picks electronic nails-on-blackboard
up this one bleep to remind you to switch
+ It’s a Seven, and it’s all ours them off and avoid a roguish lamp
- Noise Vibration and winking away at traffic around you.
Harshness (there’s a lot of all Neep, neep, neep.
three) It’s dark by the time I’ve
flap-flapped, neep-neeped, whined
Logbook
and roared my way home, and I
Price £31,490 (£44,918 as remember I didn’t get a chance
tested) Performance 1999cc
four-cylinder, 180bhp, 4.8sec to clear space in the garage for
0-62mph, 130mph Efficiency the Seven beforehand. A bit like
n/a mpg (official), 41.9mpg returning from a long-haul flight,
(tested) n/a CO2 Energy cost
15.1p per mile Miles this month ready to collapse into bed, before
230 Total miles 4504 remembering that you stripped
the covers before you went. After
exchanging lawnmower, bicycles
As first journeys go, this isn’t a and another car for the Caterham,
best-case scenario for our new lit by its headlights and neighbours’
Caterham Seven: a 150-mile grind twitching curtains, I yoga my
from Sussex to Lincolnshire, way out of the cockpit, almost on
through the traffic chaos hands and knees (the side screens
emanating from a closed M25. can’t open fully in the garage). I’m
Without sat-nav and with my sense exhausted, vaguely sun-stroked
of direction (or lack of) it takes five and with a ringing in my ears that
and a half hours, almost exclusively won’t go away until the following
spent in traffic jams and average- morning. Yet as I close the garage
speed-camera zones. door I feel like the jammiest bugger
180bhp 360S sits With the NVH (noise, vibration, in the world. I could not feel luckier
very happily in harshness) levels of an industrial to have this car to myself for the
the middle of the
Caterham range threshing machine, the Seven is next few months.
not a happy car on the motorway. Our Seven, picked up from ⊲

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 125

 M AY B E N OT TH E S E
The wide-body SV chassis (£2500) is only a good
idea if you have big feet and broad hips.
The high-intensity LED headlights (£800) are
BOXES WORTH TICKING powerful, but there’s a gap on full beam, and
The 360S is priced from £31,490, but ours other cars flash us on dipped.
is worth £44,918. Among the options Leather rollover bar cladding for £700?
we’re glad it has are the limited-slip diff (£995) and Spend it on two trackdays.
sport suspension (£795) with a rear anti-roll The Avon ZZS tyres (£595)
bar (£195). Your elbows will thank you are super-grippy in the dry and the
for the £95 you spend on side armrests. naughty tread pattern looks great,
The half hood (£195) is easier to put on and but Sevens should be skinnily
doesn’t steam up when it rains, although you’ll under-tyred.
need the standard full hood in serious
wet weather.

Alex Tapley
You can’t help but revel in the it’s an S with some R bits added
as options. So while it has leather
that cars can be so much more
than just transport.
connection with your surroundings seats and weather protection, it Whether you’re going from A
also has the diff, rear suspension to B or from A to A for the fun
Caterham’s Crawley centre near and burlier in feel than the Sigma mods and brake upgrades. It might of it, you can’t help but revel in
Gatwick, where it’s surrounded but less eager and zingy; for now just be the best of both worlds. the exposure to the elements
by other alluring Sevens in all I’m undecided which I prefer. We’ll see. and connection with your
hues and trims, is a 360. That Regardless of engine, each Seven is Next stop Sussex, to meet surroundings, the sensation
means it sits bang in the middle of also available in a choice of either with contributing editor Ben of speed and the simple joy of
Caterham’s numerically ordered road-friendly S or track-orientated Whitworth and his Renault movement. The Seven’s creator,
range, approximately named R trim. Ours is a 360S, which Zoe. ‘You’re a lucky boy,’ he says, Colin Chapman, described it as
after power-to-weight ratios. The means it has a full windscreen, wistfully remembering the Seven ‘motorcycling on four wheels’. I feel
humbler 270 and 310 use Ford’s hood and side screens (handy), a 160 he ran on these pages in 2013 like a kid on a bike again.
1.6-litre Sigma engine; the 360 is heater (ditto) and slightly softer and ’14. ‘Just remember to pack As I lock the garage and
the cheapest Seven available with suspension. It misses out on the earplugs.’ stumble off to bed, I figure that
the 2.0-litre Ford Duratec engine. R’s race seats, lighter flywheel, If only I’d thought of that earlier. having survived – enjoyed, even
The 420 and 620 above it use the limited-slip diff, rear anti-roll bar But the journey is, in fact, so slow – a journey the 360S is so utterly
same engine, tuned for headier and uprated brakes. that wind noise isn’t a big deal. unsuited to, the next few months
power outputs. Or at least it would, except our Frustrating as the congested trip are going to be pretty special.
The 2.0-litre motor is torquier car is a bit of a crossbreed in that may be, it also serves as a reminder @JamesTaylorCAR

126 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Our cars

Gaydon or A caffeine i before E, Crossover

Roma? emergency silently episodes
Tell fellow enthusiasts you’re This month I had the chance Editor-in-chief Phil McNamara In theory the CX-30 is a Mazda
currently smoking around in an to drive two other Ford STs, the really fell for the Jaguar i-Pace he 3-based crossover. But as you can
Aston DB11 AMR, and that you Puma ST and Focus ST auto. The ran for several months, but he see from the photo of the pair
recently drove the new Ferrari only catch? Both cars were three hadn’t driven my Honda E. So we together, there’s really very little in
Roma (above), and the first thing hours away in Midhurst, meaning spent a couple of hours piloting it in terms of size or style.
they’ll ask you is: ‘So, which this was going to be a long day the two around the Midlands in a Maybe driving the CX-30 will
would you have?’ Tough. There when you factor in the time spent back-to-back comparison. reveal the true differences. Then
are price, cylinder count and actually driving them. Wildly different segments again, maybe not. Like the 3’s the
seating discrepancies, of course. The problem with a long day (crossover versus city car) and CX-30’s interior is very elegant and
But the two are cut from the isn’t my Focus ST, it’s me. On the prices (£65k plays £29k), but this well made. Like the 3’s the CX-30’s
same very fine cloth; neo-classical way back, a driver fatigue message duo share more than you might petrol engine is on the limp side.
front-engined GTs in which to popped up between the dials, expect, including sophisticated So, what else is there? The extra
both breeze the Alps and, on a fine suggesting I take a break. chassis poise and uncanny ride height gives a fractionally
Sunday morning with the roads The warning system involves a acceleration, though the Honda better view over other vehicles,
to yourself, scratch that itch. I front-facing camera that looks at doesn’t come close to the Jag’s but it’s not a big deal. There’s a
didn’t drive them back-to-back, road markings, and then compares mighty 4.8sec 0-62mph thrust. marginally larger boot. But really,
but my hunch is that the (lighter, them to driver inputs. If the two Phil hailed the E ‘a Tokyo nothing of substance. For another
smaller, faster-steering) Ferrari don’t match up as well as usual, it concept car made real’. He’s right grand, or £10 a month extra on a
just shades the Aston for agility, suggests a break. (as usual). What unites this pair lease deal, it’s negligible, unless
while also boasting a nicer interior So at the next service station is the fresh approach to design you really prefer the looks of the
(infotainment is weak in both). But I procured a pumpkin spice – they’re both unencumbered by crossover. I’ll stick with the 3 and
V12s are special, and the Aston’s frappucino with oat milk and what went before, and all the book myself a holiday… or get a
very special indeed. vegan cream. Any excuse. better for it. new streaming subscription.
BEN MILLER CURTIS MOLDRICH TIM POLLARD JAKE GROVES

Aston Martin Ford Focus ST Honda E Advance Mazda 3 GT Sport

DB11 AMR Month 5 Month 3 Skyactiv-X
Month 9 Month 4
The story so far The story so far The story so far The story so far
Unspeakably handsome GT The Focus that aims to be A really special small EV, but Fleeting drive in crossover
+ Gorgeous; vaguely both hot hatch and practical how does it compare to the cousin reminds me I chose
practical; sensationally fast transport much bigger Jaguar? correctly
- Expensive; expensive to run; + The ST formula is hard to + Wins the tech stakes hands- + The supreme ruler of the
so big and so valuable you argue with down; perkier around town five-door style-off
can get paranoid in rush-hour - But is it too sensible to earn - Jag’s quicker, rides better – - No chance to use the 3 at all
traffic; cramped in the back the badge? even on 22-inch rims this month, which is a waste
Logbook Logbook Logbook Logbook
Price £178,495 (£209,350 as Price £32,510 (£34,460 as Price £29,160 Performance Price £26,675 (£27,465 as
tested) Performance 5204cc tested) Performance 2261cc 36kWh battery, single e-motor, tested) Performance 1998cc
twin-turbo V12, 630bhp, 3.7sec turbo four-cyl, 276bhp, 5.7sec 152bhp, 8.0sec 0-62mph, four-cylinder, 178bhp, 8.2sec
0-62mph, 208mph Efficiency 0-62mph, 155mph Efficiency 100mph Efficiency 3.6 miles per 0-62mph, 134mph Efficiency
24.8mpg (official), 19.1mpg 35.8mpg (official), 28.8mpg kWh (official), 3.1 miles per kWh 48.7mpg (official), 36.4mpg
(tested) Energy cost 27.5p mile (tested), 179g/km CO2 Energy (tested), 0g/km CO2 Energy cost (tested), 131g/km CO2 Energy
Miles this month 278 Total cost 22.9p per mile Miles this 4.2p per mile Miles this month cost 14.3p per mile Miles this
miles 7069 month 568 Total miles 3280 484 Total miles 1355 month 0 Total miles 3715

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 127

 You shall go to the same 617bhp twin-turbo V8,
the same eight-speed automatic
gearbox and the same configurable

ball, Cinderalla
Hello all-wheel-drive system that can be
toggled from four- to rear-wheel
drive at the push of a button (well,
two pushes; BMW’s lawyers want
The M5 dons party frock and glass slippers. By Chris Chilton you to be sure you know what
you’re asking for).
For 35 years the BMW M5 has an M8 for a whole lot more. But you get a whole load more
consistently set the super-saloon The non-Gran two-door M8 swagger with it. The M8 GC sits
agenda. While the exact details coupe is pleasant but suffers from 50mm closer to the ground than
may have changed over the years, being neither sporty enough to the M5 but it feels more; the driver’s
shifting from six cylinders to eight, cut it as a 911 rival, nor glamorous seat seems to drop much lower
to 10, and back to eight again, the enough to stop people spending than the saloon’s. It looks most
proposition has always been clear: a little more on an Aston DB11 or outrageous from the rear-three-
it’s a supercar in a stealthy shell. Bentley Continental GT. The M8 quarter angle, where (ironically,
Too stealthy? I know that’s the Gran Coupe, on the other hand, is given the BMW connection)
point of an M5. I’ve owned one, BMW M Performance brochure. a much clearer proposition, being there’s a hint of Toyota Supra. But
driven dozens and enjoyed most of I’d much rather it look like… our a straight rival for other four-door wherever you stand, it stands out.
them. I love that you can get up to new M8 Competition Gran Coupe, coupes like the Porsche Panamera And it’s equally bold inside.
all kinds of mischief, or leave the the plain-Jahn M5’s sexy sister. and four-door AMG GT. Okay, the basic cabin architecture
car in the shadiest car park without The Gran Coupe is a longer, Mechanically, it’s virtually is shared with cheaper 8s – a
attracting attention (‘Who, me?’). four-door spin-off of the two-door identical to the M5 Competition, Panamera’s cabin has more wow
But on the flipside, if I was 8-series coupe. The range is small; which has just been updated with appeal. But the quality is excellent
spending £100k on a car I’m not just three models, starting with the a slightly bigger kidney grille plus and, with our car’s red-orange
sure I’d want it to look like a rep’s £79k 840i, moving up to the £102k the M8’s damper tune and bigger leather punctuated by handsome
520d after a minor splurge in the M850i xDrive, and topping out as multimedia screen. You get the metal grilles for the Bowers &

GC gains
201mm
between the
axles; it’s a
whopper

128 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 Our cars

Wilkins speakers that begin to But is there more to it than that?

glow as ambient light falls, the We’ll be finding out if there are
feelgood factor is high. more substantial differences over
It’s early days but already a few the next few months.
things are clear. First, this is a huge
car. It’s over five metres long, with
a three-metre wheelbase, so we’ll
be relying on the surround-view
cameras to save us from adding to
the grazes it arrived with following
its life on the BMW press fleet. BMW M8 Competition
It’s also hugely expensive, Gran Coupe For £6 you too
costing £123,880, which makes Month 1 can bring a hint
of minicab to
it £21k pricier than the M5, but The story so far your XC40
interestingly, almost £3k less
Longer four-door version
expensive than the two-door
M8. Factor in the £20k Ultimate
package, which brings carbon
of the two-door coupe version
of the four-door M5 saloon
+ Very powerful, very quick,
Safe and sound
brakes, side and rear sunblinds, very well equipped
- Very big, very expensive
It’s a treat for the ears. By Alex Tapley
laser headlights and other goodies
we’ll cover in more detail in a Logbook When you’ve got a newly clear sound, which you can
future report, and you’re perilously arrived car with a bunch of fine-tune effortlessly, and
close to £150,000. Price £123,880 (£140,000 as options gagging to be tried there’s very little wind- or
tested) Performance 4395cc
Also clear is that the M8 twin-turbo V8, 617bhp, 3.2sec out, it’s a real shame when a road noise, leaving you
generates the kind of attention 0-62mph, 155mph Efficiency sudden burst of hectic work wondering whether there’s
you expect from cars in that price 26.4mpg (official), 23.1mpg activity stops you actually a five-piece band playing live
(tested), 256g/km CO2 Energy
bracket. Attention that you’d never cost 23.6p per mile Miles this spending much time in the in the back seats.
get in the always-discreet M5. month 730 Total miles 4070 car. But I’ve seen enough to Wireless charging and
know that the inside of the smartphone integration
XC40 is every bit as lovely as are always a little wasted
the outside – and I’ve heard on me: I’ve never quite
enough to know that the gelled with Apple CarPlay
It’s a straight rival for audio is sensationally good. and I always choose to run
The elegant tan leather, Google Maps on my phone
four-door coupes like wooden inlays and premium on those journeys with
the Panamera and plastics mix beautifully with
the vast array of recycled
an unfamilar destination,
hence the ugly phone holder
AMG GT, er, 4-Door materials – most noticeably (£6 on Amazon) stuck in the
the carpet effect on the door window.
cards and transmission I’ve tried Volvo’s Sensus
tunnel. But the real star is Navigation and, user
the Harman Kardon audio friendly as it is, it just isn’t as
system (a £550 upgrade). efficient as Google Maps. 
It provides staggeringly @actcreative

Plug-in Hybrid T5

Month 2
The story so far
More powerful XC40 plug-in hybrid, here in front-drive,
top-spec form
+ Truly a wonderful place to spend time driving
- Shame it’s not getting to do many miles

Logbook
Price £42,430 (£46,940 as tested) Performance 1477cc
turbocharged three-cylinder plus e-motor, PHEV, 258bhp,
7.3sec 0-62mph, 112mph Efficiency 134.5mpg (official),
Alex Tapley

32.2mpg (tested), 47g/km CO2 Energy cost 16.4p per mile

Miles this month 1617 Total miles 2977

JANUARY 2021 | GET CAR FOR JUST £3.50 A MONTH! GO TO [Link] 129
 Screen time.
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behind the wheel? At Hagerty, everything we do - Insurance, Car Values, Entertainment - is focused on making it
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 Totally unique
guide to EVERY
car on sale in
the UK, with a
punchy view
on all of them –
The Good, the Bad & the Ugly yours included

ABARTH ARIEL
595 
NEW IN THIS MONTH ATOM 
> > Unrivalled intimacy with the road; zero weather
protection > VERDICT Spectacular toy. Great on
engines in various stages of steroidal over- track, barmy on road
compensation > VERDICT
NOMAD 
> Not content with terrifying on tarmac, Ariel
ALFA ROMEO also offers the off-road Nomad. Gains a roll-over
structure but, like the Atom, still no doors
> VERDICT Remember to put the hot water on –
GIULIETTA  you’ll need a long, hot bath when you get home
>
now the game has moved on. Keen prices, but ASTON MARTIN
fun to drive > VERDICT
VANTAGE 
> A truly convincing 911 rival that’s impressively

GIULIA 
> Good grief – an Alfa Romeo we can finally
recommend that you buy. Auto-only 3-series rival
has sharp steering, sultry looks, great driving
Cupra
Formentor
This is no
  
aggressive and thrillingly quick. Interior is
pleasingly solid but lacks fizz > VERDICT A stunner
to look at and rewarding to drive
DB11 
position and a choice of diesels and petrols. > Slick aero slinkiness, belting V12 turbo and,
Bellissimo! > VERDICT Note to dealers: don’t crucially, Merc help with wiring > VERDICT Finally
cock it up original, and the right blend of new stuff and classic Aston charm
pretty good results in a cut-above GT
STELVIO  to drive
> Either we’ve collectively entered another DBS SUPERLEGGERA 
> Superlight it isn’t, and can’t match the spine
tingle of a Ferrari Superfast, but stunning to look at,
buying them again > VERDICT incredibly quick and dripping with prestige
once in your life > VERDICT A proper flagship GT, but softer-edged
than a Ferrari 812
GIULIA QUADRIFOGLIO
> RAPIDE AMR 
> Glorious final outing for Aston’s old-school V12.
Forget the limo pretensions, though: it’s a cramped
long lamented soul. At last > VERDICT four-door 2+2 > VERDICT Pretty and still very fun
to drive, but the interior is more dated than a New
That good York socialite and almost as hard on your wallet

ALPINA DBX 

> English sports car heritage, Welsh birth, German
heart – sounds like a recipe for a personality
B3  disorder, but it’s luxurious, fast and can turn its hand
> to a gravel rally stage > VERDICT Not convinced
Aston has pulled it off? Drive one
Leather clad, mature and available as probably
the coolest estate on the planet – what’s not to
D5 S/B5  XD3 
AUDI
like? > VERDICT The most desirable 3-series
currently available isn’t made by BMW. It’ll be > Twin-turbo B5 petrol V8’s 590lb ft could de-forest > A torquey straight-six diesel X3 with more cows
very interesting to see how the next M3 – now the Amazon while the planet-loving D5 doesn’t let inside than a tannery. Fast, fun and leftfield in a A1 
confirmed to be coming as an estate as well as a a relatively meagre 155g/km prevent 174mph max good way > VERDICT In its current form this is one > Ups the dimensions, tech and maturity on the first
saloon – compares > VERDICT You can’t have a real M5 Touring, but of the best-handling SUVs you’ll ever drive, but gen, although you can spec it in brash two-tone
this comes close flanked by cheaper rivals colour combos. Best at its simplest > VERDICT The
D4/B4  Evoque of superminis: stylish and posh
> Same blend of fast and frugal as the previous B7  ALPINE
B3, but slotted into the slinkier 4-series shell. ZF > BMW doesn’t make an M7, but Alpina A3 
REPLACED
automatic transmission is not as snappy as M4’s SOON does. Twin-blown petrol V8 delivers > Wears Golf underpants, looks sharp and has the
twin-clutch set-up, but much smoother > VERDICT vast luxury coupled with autobahn- A110  latest VW tech, but isn’t different enough to warrant
53mpg and a 4.6sec sprint? And you’re okay with busting performance > VERDICT Niche Mercedes- > Desirable, cleverly packaged and blessed with paying the extra. But that hasn’t stopped people
this, BMW? AMG S63 alternative
  
dynamics to die for. A bit pricey and the cramped
interior lacks wow > VERDICT Serious Porsche
Cayman alternative
before > VERDICT Oddly unconvincing this time
RS3 
> The superhatch/saloon for those
Use “CAR50” for £50 off car warranty protection at [Link] A110S  REPLACED
lacking in imagination and/or driving
SOON
> Add 39bhp, along with stiffer suspension and talent, RS3 struts its stuff best in a

  
wider tyres, then lower the right height and
increase the price to get the harder, faster A110S
> VERDICT Even more serious
straight line > VERDICT Only feel a little bit
ashamed for wanting one in preference to
something more nimble

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 131

 AUDI > HONDA Use “CARMOT” for full car servicing with a free MoT test at [Link]

A4 SALOON/AVANT/ALLROAD Q5  FLYING SPUR  M5 

  
 > Textbook Audi: calm and sophisticated, pleasing > What do you get when you cross an M5 > G30-generation V8 bruiser sends shove to all
> Lighter, smarter, better to drive than the last one – to have on your drive > VERDICT An extremely Competition with Chatsworth House? A luxo-limo four wheels but you can still drift it like Ken Block.
and only microscopically different to look at polished performer that’s a considerable cut above that really can do both ends of the motoring A sharp-suited and refined yet ballistically quick
> VERDICT As you were, except inside, where tech so many other premium SUVs spectrum > VERDICT No longer the Continental autobahn prowler > VERDICT All-wheel drive hasn’t
obsession offs elegance. Rivals remaining calm GT’s shunned ugly sister ruined the M5
Q7 
RS4  > German heavy metal turns techno as Mk2 Q7 BMW 7-SERIES 
> Estate-only hot A4 ditches free-revving V8 for sheds weight despite megaload of extra gizmos > So high-tech, BMW must have ram-raided
RS5’s twin-turbo V6. Covers ground with impressive > VERDICT Everything but the charm Google’s R&D bunker, confident the ‘carbon core’
pace and ease and just a tiny bit of proper driver 1-SERIES  construction would enable it to drive back out
involvement > VERDICT An RS5 in a parka and Q8  > While undergoing powertrain reconstructive > VERDICT Gesture control, remote parking, active
Timberland boots > First coupe-SUV from Ingolstadt is as sound as you surgery it had a nose job too, and now manages to anti-roll – it’s got it all. But not quite the kudos of the
would expect. The cabin might be different, and the look like a twin of the 2-series MPV > VERDICT 118d Mercedes-Benz S-Class…
A5 SPORTBACK  grille fresh, but is that enough to steer you away from buyers won’t miss rwd; M135i fans might
> More tech and even better quality doesn’t the formidable Q7? > VERDICT The glitziest car Audi 8-SERIES 
compensate for a lack of personality. Better makes, with a limited choice of engines 2-SERIES  > Not quite the dramatic sports car we hoped for. Still, it’s
looking, but so is Dorking after eight pints. You > Nope, not a looker. But, like the 1-series, it’s an incredibly impressive piece of kit, and you can really
E-TRON 

  
could buy worse, but you’ll definitely get bored genuinely a good car – even if the drivetrain is the hustle it on track. M8 monsters everything else but
> VERDICT It’s better to live in than to drive > A bit tubby and plain when sat next to a Jaguar wrong way round. Polish aplenty, actual practicality misses the point > VERDICT Just be thankful a big V8
i-Pace but Audi’s first all-electric car has all the and a rear-driven variant in the future isn’t dead in coupe like this exists at all
A5 COUPE/CABRIO  usual tech and refinement. It’s potentially one of the water. M235i grippy if a little flat > VERDICT Be
> Deceptive bunny boiler – looks normal until you the most commercially important Audis ever, hence happy you don’t have to look at it when driving X1 
realise it’s killed a TT and is wearing its face. Cue the risk-averse approach > VERDICT Vorsprung > Ugly old one sold by the bucket load; all-new
B-road mayhem. Not really > VERDICT Even more durch Elektrisch M2 COMPETITION  replacement is miles better to look at and to drive.
of an A4 in a frock than the last one, but still better > The M2 turned up a notch, and now your only It’s a proper mini-SUV now > VERDICT It’s even
to drive, especially the S TT COUPE/ROADSTER  option. M3 engine, new barkier exhaust and based on the front-drive Mini platform. Swallow that
> Brilliant coupe gets virtual dash and sharper tweaked dynamics > VERDICT An already great bile, because it works well
RS5  handling. Try 2.0 TFSI. Boot big, but the rear seat’s package now even better
> Like a bouncer in a tailored suit, the hot A5’s for handbags only > VERDICT A proper real-world X2 

  
power bulges through the creases in its bodywork. sports car – but the same money buys an early 2-SERIES ACTIVE TOURER  > Sportier, arguably more stylish coupe-ish version
Twin-turbo V6 has full-bodied soundtrack; quattro secondhand R8 > Decent drive, great interior. Need to cart OAP of the X1. Avoid the M Sport X if you don’t want your
provides grip > VERDICT Four-seat express with relatives around? Get the seven-seat Gran Tourer. SUV to look like Bond villain Jaws > VERDICT Great
power to spare, but it’s not the most involving TT RS  Boom boom! > VERDICT The ultimate driving (to to drive and well-built inside, although not the most
> At the outer limits of the TT’s dynamic envelope, a the park/crèche/post office) machine rational choice
A6  17 per cent power hike ekes 395bhp from five pots
> BMW 5-series still edges it in the driving and targets wounded Cayman > VERDICT Audi i3  X3 
department, but the gap is much slimmer. springs the offside trap, rounds the keeper, but hits > One of BMW’s best cars is home to its finest > Studiously un-gangsta SUV offers a sweet blend
Well-appointed, super comfortable, clever and the bar. So close! cabin. Electric version has short range; hybrid of handling and handiness > VERDICT The BMW
handsome. Still a bit dull, mind > VERDICT A cruise is noisy and has a fuel tank like a flea’s hip flask SUV we don’t hate ourselves for liking
R8  > VERDICT Carbon-chassis supermini, electric

  
missile for the outside lane of the M4
> V10 is one of today’s most engaging engines power and £30k price. Did we wake up in 2045? iX3 
RS6  and delivers more spine tingles at the top end > For something that looks like a
> Audi’s ultimate estate car steps up to the plate, than a McLaren Sports Series. All versions now hit 3-SERIES  NEW generic electric SUV, remarkably good
ENTRY
swings and scores a home run. Fast, practical, 200mph > VERDICT Brilliant daily supercar with a > G20 isn’t the wildest upgrade but there’s a lot to drive and remarkably efficient >
imposing and impressively built, as ever. It’s also hint of wildness going on under the skin. Chassis is so good on VERDICT It shouldn’t be this good
now fun to drive > VERDICT Five-star rival for the M340i version we have high hopes for the next M3
non-existent BMW M5 Touring BAC > VERDICT Still the dynamic benchmark X4 
> Blame the Evoque and people who bought the
A7 SPORTBACK  3-SERIES TOURING  X6 for this carbuncle. Priced at £4k-£5k more than
> Think a more stylish A8 rather than A6 spin-off. MONO  > As usual, the estate is prettier than the saloon. an X3, but better equipped and not terrible to drive
Capable of incredible wafting ability and grippier > Single-seat racer that took a wrong turn out of Still comes with the independently-opening rear > VERDICT Depressing X3 spin-off for grown-ups
than Spider-Man covered in superglue. Petrol the pits. Pushrod suspension, Cosworth-tuned 2.3 window, still drives well, still handles family life who still dream of being a professional footballer
properly refined but diesel will make better sense in Duratec and bath-like driving position > VERDICT > VERDICT It’s a cliché, but this really is all the car
the UK > VERDICT Stylish GT with sensible engines Sublime track-orientated tool with a six-figure price you need X5 
> Luxurious, capable and very much at the forefront
RS7  BENTLEY 4-SERIES  of good handling in the posh SUV stakes. The
> An Audi RS with communicative steering? Light > Sharper, firmer and tauter in every full-fat M version is expensive overkill. Even bigger
the beacons! The fact it’s an imposing, stupidly fast NEW way, creating an M440i that properly X7 is a serious alternative > VERDICT We’d still take
BENTAYGA  ENTRY
and technology-overladen sports car killer should thrills and room for an epic M4 a 5-series Touring
come as less of a surprise. Much more a driver’s car > Redesigned, with a tech upgrade, Bentley’s SUV > VERDICT BMW noses (sorry) ahead of the A5
than the A7 > VERDICT Menacing still gives an impressive balances of opulence, X6 
dynamism and off-road ability. Still weighs more 4-SERIES GRAN COUPE  > All the impracticality of a coupe and all the
A8  than a house and looks still polarise > VERDICT > Pretty and practical, like a bikini car wasteful high-centred mass of an SUV. Genius. If
REPLACED
> Packs enough technology to worry Skynet Super luxurious, and costs so much you could get a SOON wash, hatchback GC costs £3k more you must, X40d gives best price/punch/parsimony
and avoids being wooden behind the wheel so two-bed semi in Crewe for the same money than 3-series > VERDICT Smart and > VERDICT Pointless pimp wagon. Buy a Porsche
convincingly you’d think it had a different badge useful, much more than a niche exercise. But why Cayenne or an X5
on the front > VERDICT New king in the exec tech CONTINENTAL GT  isn’t this the 3-series?
arms race – but watch out for the next S-Class > Still heavy and thirsty, but few GTs can match its X7 
interior, ride quality and performance > VERDICT M3 CS  > Gah! Avert your eyes! Gaudy full-size SUV for
Q2  Used to be essentially a pricey Volkswagen; now a > More of a thriller than the now well-to-do folk who consider a Range Rover a bit
REPLACED
> Odd-looking small crossover is like a Mini great GT in its own right SOON defunct M3. Better sorted dynamically too subtle. We challenge you to spec one that
Countryman that’s lost a battle with a set square and epic feedback. But £86k?! > doesn’t instantly make babies cry at the sight of it
> VERDICT Nice enough to drive but still a nerd to CONTI GT CONVERTIBLE  VERDICT The version it should have been all along > VERDICT Big, comfy and excessive – just what
the Mini’s prom queen > How many convertibles could get away with a a luxo-SUV should be. May be a bad idea, but it’s
5-SERIES 

  
tweed roof? Cue shock and awe at the country nicely executed
Q3  club. Shame it loses so much luggage space > Smart, semi-autonomous and still the best in
> Practical, comfy, handsome, well-built compared to the coupe > VERDICT Gorgeous, class, and now available with a serious PHEV Z4 
> VERDICT Shame it’s so bland swift, built like a Chesterfield sofa powertrain > VERDICT Spirit-crushingly good > The uglier of the BMW/Toyota siblings shines

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132 [Link] | JANUARY 2021
 The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
more for its refinement and comfort than its van. Is a van > VERDICT Good value for aspiring you might expect from a Ferrari > VERDICT Better
ability to set your hair on fire. Accomplished and Bill Oddies and Steve Backshalls than the California in every way MONDEO HATCH/ESTATE 
robust – the Smeg fridge of the sports car world > Huge space and you can even have the plucky
> VERDICT Sweet, but more could have been done CUPRA ROMA  little 1.0 EcoBoost engine > VERDICT A fine family
to make it thrilling > Turbo V8 GT meets sports car in a gloriously car. Best avoid the half-hearted hybrid – it eats up
elgant front-engined 2+2 coupe package boot space and doesn’t do much for economy
i8  ATECA  > VERDICT The Ferrari we didn’t know we wanted
> Carbonfibre-constructed three-cylinder hybrid > Seat spices up its stylish Ateca with powertrain until we saw it, and it drives every bit as well as PUMA 
supercar that’s fun for four, as fast as an M3 and from a VW Golf R and chunky body kit. Then ruins you’d hope > Very much not the old Puma coupe reborn, but
does 40 real mpg. Minor demerit: looks like it’s it by slapping on a copper badge with the style of a better than the EcoSport – Ford’s other attempt at
crimping off a 911 > VERDICT Fascinating futuristic tribal tattoo students got in Magaluf > VERDICT It’s 812 SUPERFAST  this size of crossover – by a mile > VERDICT The
sports car that’s big on the wow factor, but too good but offers no reason to avoid the Golf R > Proof that Ferrari can still make truly epic GT crossover for keen drivers. Or just get a Fiesta
expensive to sell cars that fly the naturally aspirated V12 flag with
FORMENTOR  pride. The screaming 800hp engine is matched by ECOSPORT 
BUGATTI NEW
This is no reheated Seat – it’s a Cupra laser-guided handling > VERDICT GT? Supercar? > Ford’s half-arsed stab at a crossover sold in droves
ENTRY original, and pretty good to drive Astounding despite being crap first time round. Current version
> VERDICT A trend follower, but one looks half decent and isn’t built out of melted wheelie
CHIRON  Cupra needs to follow GTC4 LUSSO/T  bins > VERDICT Better, but still lags behind most of
> ‘The Veyron was okay but why couldn’t it have > Two-door shooting brake is thoroughly capable. the increasingly crowded field
30 per cent bigger turbos and 300bhp more LEON  V8-powered Lusso T nudges price below
power?’ Bugatti answers the question absolutely > Much to the amusement of tyre manufacturers distressing £200k barrier > VERDICT Closest KUGA 
nobody asked – and answers it loud > VERDICT everywhere, the front-wheel-drive Leon Cupra now Ferrari has got to an SUV (but not for long) > Not thrilling and doesn’t reinvent the wheel. But
A £2.5m riot has 297bhp. GTI who? > VERDICT Ballistic, and Ford relying heavily on Focus know-how for its
best bought with a manual transmission SF90 STRADALE  big-selling SUV is a smart move. Plug-in hybrid
CATERHAM > Heavy, complex hybrid starts with zero noise and onslaught from the Blue Oval starts here
DACIA has a plug socket. Plenty of people aren’t going > VERDICT As normal as beans on toast, and just
to like this, but the engineering behind it is mind- as satisfying
SEVEN  blowing and offers vast amounts of exploitable
> For bobble-hatted Terry-Thomas wannabes and SANDERO  performance > VERDICT Future-proofed Ferrari S-MAX 
the track-curious, the Seven comes in flavours from > Cheapest new car on sale, not the > Exploits latest Mondeo’s undercrackers to full
REPLACED
160 triple to mental road racers > VERDICT 80bhp SOON worst. Yoghurt-pot plastics and FIAT effect. Pricey, but still the best of the seven-seaters
160 is underpowered, 310bhp 620R verges on pre-Glasnost styling can’t detract from to drive. Toys include electric everything and
lethal, 180bhp 360 model is just right a spacious sub-six-grand runabout with Renault speed-correcting cruise control > VERDICT Harder
engines, if that’s where your priorities rest TIPO  to beat than FC Barcelona
CHEVROLET > VERDICT Austerity rocks. Right, Greece? > Dull, but good value and the best Fiat hatch
MUSTANG 
since the last Tipo – and that dates from 1988
LOGAN  > VERDICT Only consider buying Fiats with > Sub-optimal interior quality and still thirsty, but the
CORVETTE  > Estate looks like a Sandero that’s reversed into numbers, not names crash ratings are no longer embarrassing. Sounds
> Chevrolet has made impossible things happen with a phone box. Cavernous boot, but dreadfully great, bags of character, and a lot of fun to drive
the Mk8 Corvette, and not just the engine layout. unrefined thanks to all the brittle plastic and tin PANDA  > VERDICT Go manual V8 with sports exhaust
Resolved handling, premium interior and bags of > VERDICT You put things in it. It will carry them > Spacious city car with ‘squircle’ obsession, as
character abound, and yet the price (in the US) is still for you. You can take them out. Job done, at a roly-poly as its blobby looks suggest. Two-pot GALAXY 
reasonable. We’re promised right-hand drive too very low price TwinAir willing but thirsty > VERDICT Baggier than > Based on the same Mondeo-derived platform as
> VERDICT A genuine supercar that’s also a bargain the VW Up but more charming too the S-Max. Just as high-tech, but more spacious
DUSTER  > VERDICT Great if you need a seven-seater that
CITROËN > Its major overhaul hasn’t stopped it being a hardy 500/C  doesn’t feel like a mini bus – fits adults in all rows
4x4 for low-budget mud-pluggers and family folk; > Delicate job, modernising a retro cash cow. with no human rights violations
front-wheel-drive versions keep costs ridiculously Fiat’s approach pairs a korma-grade facelift with
C1  low > VERDICT Like Crocs but way, WAY cooler updated tech and even more colour palette kitsch GT 
> Trying hard to escape the clutches of its sister > VERDICT Fashion victims rejoice! The cupholders > Very expensive hardcore supercar from Detroit
cars from Toyota and Peugeot, the C1 can have DS actually work now that proves a global mega-seller can cut it against
a funky Airscape cloth roof and half-hearted Ferrari when it wants to > VERDICT ‘Race car for the
personalisation options. 1.0-litre has most pep 500L  road’ translates into ‘Brilliant fun but a bit coarse’
> VERDICT Good, solid urban fare – of a kind that 3 CROSSBACK  > Bloated supermini-sized people carrier,
won’t be around for much longer > Chic and desirable hatch has turned into a desperately attempting to cash in on city car’s chic. RANGER/RAPTOR 
crossover shaped to new DS styling values. Kitsch Seldom has the point been so massively missed > One of the less swanky pick-ups but you can doll
C3  interior of its larger sibling adds some zest to an > VERDICT In-car coffee machine option the only it up with all kinds of chrome. Great value but crude
> Citroën produces a great small car by looking up otherwise lukewarm package > VERDICT We’re not purchase excuse from behind the wheel. Raptor injects some fun
its own Wikipedia entry and remembering what it’s convinced this is an improvement; electric version but engine is weak > VERDICT Tough workhorse,
good at; spacy, compliant and different also falls short of genius 500X  proud about it
> VERDICT Are Citroëns cool again? They’re > Compact crossover is the Arnie of the 500 range
certainly getting there 7 CROSSBACK  – limited in its range of abilities, but rather likeable GINETTA
> France’s idea of a premium SUV. Sharp-looking > VERDICT Worthy Nissan Juke alternative works
C3 AIRCROSS  interior and plenty of technology fitted as standard, the 500 thing well, especially after recent facelift,
> Funky mattress on wheels takes C3’s style and but from some angles it looks like an Audi Q5 in new engines and cabin tech upgrade G40 
puts it on stilts. Thankfully retains C3 Picasso’s half-baked drag > VERDICT Neatly done, but not > Pint-sized road-legal racer. Two models: G40R
super-spacious interior and flexi seats > VERDICT quite there. Expect plenty more from DS very soon, QUBO/DOBLO  (civilised version, with carpets) and GRDC (a race
The Vauxhall Crossland X’s much more characterful all of it electrified > Postman Pat’s wheels? No. Pat’s long since car with number plates) > VERDICT Tiny, twitchy
Gallic sibling retired to the Caribbean, where he’s living off the and top fun. Pick the £35k GRDC and get free entry
ELEMENTAL royalties and drives a red Bentley > VERDICT Van- to a Ginetta race series
C4 CACTUS  based MPVs. Practicality first, people second
> Comfortable, roomy, slightly sloppy HONDA
REPLACED
family car, now Airbump-free. Citroën RP1  FORD
SOON
claims it’s a hatchback; it’s not > As expensive as a used Porsche Cayman GT4,
> VERDICT A proper Citroën, with all the pros more refined than any Caterham – and a weapon on E 
and cons that involves. Its replacement looks track > VERDICT Crazy, but worth it FIESTA  > Gambles on charisma, tech and usability
significantly different > Still a peach to drive and now has an interior that rather than sheer range and bargain price – very
C4 SPACETOURER 
> Defiantly anti-cool family shifter, with five or (in
FERRARI
F8 TRIBUTO 
  
isn’t from the Dark Ages, even if material quality is
still a bit iffy. ST-Line version is suitably sporty but
Vignale too expensive to justify > VERDICT You can
un-Honda. Here’s hoping it’s more an iPhone
moment than a Zune one > VERDICT Everyone say
‘awwwww’, worry about the range later
Grand form) seven seats. Parents go weak at the thank the heavens they haven’t ruined it
knees for its peace-and-bloody-quiet ambience > Pista-hearted 488 replacement treads fine line JAZZ 
> VERDICT Drives like a shed, but at least it makes between hardcore power and GT driving with FIESTA ST  > More practical than its modest silhouette
Satan’s brood shut up aplomb. Pista might have the dynamic edge but > One of the biggest hot-hatch bargains currently suggests, simple to live with, hybrid-only
it’s mission accomplished > VERDICT Ferrari’s V8 available. Fast, fun to drive, easy to live with powertrain drives sweetly and cockpit has some
C5 AIRCROSS  world domination continues > VERDICT Buy one. You won’t regret it goodness from the E > VERDICT Still a pensioner’s
> Currently the biggest of all Citroën’s sofas on runabout, though…
wheels, yet this one’s capable of a smidge of 488 PISTA  FOCUS 
off-roading. A comfortable, relaxing, calm family car > So clever even Ferrari’s own test drivers > Looks derivative but under the skin lies a compact CIVIC 
that works just as much for the driver as it does for recommend leaving the traction control switched family car that’s great to drive. Ford is still throwing > The might of Honda’s engineering prowess
the passengers, so long as you don’t come here on. Every bit as good to drive as it is to look at, plenty of chips the hatchback’s way > VERDICT The delivers more space, clever engines and an
looking for dynamic brilliance > VERDICT Have we which is saying something > VERDICT The ultimate spirit of the Mk1 is almost back exterior that looks like it was drawn on a bus on
mentioned comfortable enough times yet? Ferrari road car right now, and it’s a V8 the way into school > VERDICT Easy to admire, but
FOCUS ST  loving requires heavy use of recreational drugs
BERLINGO MULTISPACE  PORTOFINO  > Takes everything that made the Fiesta ST so
> A wipe-clean tin lifeboat for cagoule-wearing, > The transformation from California to good and ups the scale. We’re a bit gutted there’ll CIVIC TYPE R 
REPLACED
Thermos-sipping birdwatchers, and dog owners, SOON Portofino works a treat. It’s sweeter, be no RS this time > VERDICT Shame it looks plain > Its many angles hide a rounded hot hatch with a
and anyone inclined to frequent visits to the tip. sharper and more practical as a great now and costs as much as the (better) Honda Civic wonderful gearbox. Driving one day to day much
Recently updated, but still rattles and drives like a everyday road car, if ultimately lacking the focus Type R easier now but its speed and agility can still take

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 133

 HONDA > MERCEDES Use “CAR11” to save 11% on new or used car gap insurance at [Link]

your head off > VERDICT Fast, practical, agile and friendly five-door. There’s talk of a more powerful
easy to live with XF  RIO  version, but it’s plenty wild enough (and plenty
> Saloon and estate just been refreshed with a > Long on space, short on enjoyment, life with a Rio expensive enough) already
HR-V  simplified range, upgraded infotainment, new mild- is no carnival, although current generation is much
> After 10 years, an underwhelming second HR-V. hybrid diesel (but no plug-in hybrid) and a modest improved > VERDICT White-goods car gets the LAND ROVER
A sort-of crossover thing, up against a lot of much facelift > VERDICT Very attractive alternative to basics right but there are many better rivals
better defined sort-of crossover things > VERDICT German rivals, helped by competitive pricing
Sport version is fun but pricey STONIC  DEFENDER 
XJ  > Her name is Rio and she’s put on a bit of weight. > Not a working vehicle and not cheap. But JLR has
CR-V  > Questionable styling but unquestionably an Kia’s first go at building a Juke rival has a hard ride absolutely nailed the resurrection of this 4x4 icon:
> Design revisions so minor you’d barely notice, or excellent steer – although passengers may mutiny. but is more practical than the Nissan > VERDICT modern yet retro looks, tough yet techy cockpit and
care. Roomy interior, petrol or hybrid power, two- or Interior looks luxurious but lacks intelligence, even Looks good but forgettable to drive a breadth of ability like little else on the road (or off
all-wheel drive, five or seven seats. Libido optional, if it’s fitted with the latest infotainment > VERDICT it) > VERDICT Land Rover’s greatest achievement
crumbs in rear footwells standard > VERDICT Not Hollywood baddies’ limo of choice. Flawed, and CEED 
exciting – just gets on with the job showing its age, but there’s still much to enjoy > Golf wannabe is big on equipment and not bad DISCOVERY SPORT 
about the traditional approach to drive. Range-topping GT is an enjoyable if costly > Comfy, handsome and good off road, but Land
NSX  warm hatch > VERDICT Now with downsized turbo Rover’s awkward middle child is outshone by the
> ‘We’ve blown all our development cash on an F-TYPE COUPE/ROADSTER engines. Europe still ahead. But only by a whisker more desirable Range Rover Evoque and countless
insanely complex hybrid drivetrain. Do you think  other SUVs that are cheaper to run, better built
anyone will notice if we fit an interior from a Civic?’ > New face on the same alluring body, with an PROCEED  and/or more interesting to sit in > VERDICT Decent
> VERDICT Something like a Porsche 918 for half a updated engine range that drops the fruity V6. > Nope, not a three-door hatch any more. Slick 4x4 is tremendously overshadowed
million pounds less – mind-blowing to drive, crap Thrifty JLR didn’t do much to update the interior, shooting brake styling and solid interior hide
to sit in though, which it desperately needed > VERDICT uncharismatic engines and indecisive auto DISCOVERY 
An old Jag that’s been taught some new tricks > VERDICT Style/substance balance are a little off > Gen-5 Disco can climb mountains and social
HYUNDAI E-PACE  NIRO 
strata with equal equanimity. Worryingly close to
Range Rover, slightly frustrating engine choice
> Jaguar’s compact SUV wears the Evoque’s > Hybrid, plug-in and full EV that dodges > VERDICT The best seven-seat party wagon
i10  undercrackers and can be had with same four-pot pigeonholes. SUV? Tall crossover? Regardless, it’s money can buy. New Defender arrives soon to offer
> Not a VW Up, but has a better warranty. Angry face engine as the F-Type – both very good things. inoffensive as a hybrid and quite good as an electric even more choice
hides plush, well kitted and roomy cabin > VERDICT Top-spec version is incredibly expensive > VERDICT car > VERDICT None of the Jaguar i-Pace’s glamour,
Growing fish in a shrinking pond Handsome, filled with technology, lacks polish but an awful lot of its forward-looking efficiency RANGE ROVER EVOQUE 
> Posh mum’s SUV is five-door only in its current
i20  F-PACE  SOUL  form, but still visually very strong and now better
NEW > Wild looks outside, properly > Porsche Macan botherer. Built light to be nimble; > An e-Niro after a gap year, with a bolder design than ever to drive, with a good engine line-up.
ENTRY sophisticated inside. Hyundai proves body control brilliance and pokey engines prove and a bigger price. The same great e-range, just Even in its most basic form this makes most
its cars can be exciting, techy and family DNA. SVR model hilarious fun > VERDICT enough funk on the outside and just enough frills other compact SUVs feel frumpy, ungainly or
posh without breaking the bank. N version has Macan remains most sporting choice, but more on the inside. Less practical than bread-van shape compromised > VERDICT Pricey, but perfectly
tremendous weight on its shoulders > VERDICT rounded F-Pace has plenty of bite might imply, though > VERDICT Funky but… why? pitched
You’ll finally start noticing them on the road
i-PACE  SPORTAGE  RANGE ROVER VELAR 
i30 HATCH/TOURER  > One of the best-handling electric cars, as you’d > All-new, all-turbo SUV truly handles and rides but > Sport-lite or Evoque-plus? Either way, Land Rover’s
> Where the current crop of Hyundais hope from a Jaguar. Cab-forward design strikes somehow a picture of Mr Potato Head’s face got centrally placed SUV is handsome, capable, well
REPLACED
SOON got serious – which means it’s now in lustful feelings, and whooshing noises as you hurtle mixed up with the blueprints > VERDICT Improved finished and worthy of its name > VERDICT The new
need of a facelift as the established into the distance will make you giggle like a toddler in just about every way – except to look at benchmark Range Rover
mainstream moves ahead again > VERDICT Tries > VERDICT A watershed moment for 21st century
hard but lacks imagination Jaguar; and it’s been judged Car of the Year SORENTO  RANGE ROVER SPORT 
> Three-row SUV has come over all American: bluff > As luxurious as a Rangie, as practical as a Disco,
i30 N  JEEP front end, acres of space inside and best driven better looking than an Evoque and could follow a
> Korea’s first proper hot hatch is very good indeed slowly. Pricing nudges into the £40k zone, but it’s Defender cross country > VERDICT Very good at
– no ifs, no buts – and cheaper than a VW Golf roomier than a Mercedes GLB for the same money just about everything
GTI > VERDICT An intergalactic leap ahead of any RENEGADE  > VERDICT Does what it aims to do well enough.
previous Hyundai > Strange but true: junior Jeep is built in Italy Very much like Kia as a whole, then RANGE ROVER 
alongside Fiat 500X that donates its platform. Even > Still the benchmark luxury SUV. V6 diesel
KONA  stranger: it’s not terrible. New hybrid will broaden STINGER  acceptable, supercharged V8 petrol hilarious,
> Forgettable crossover, over-styled. Rear space its appeal > VERDICT Only the top Trailhawk > Handsome four-door GT has a mountain to climb PHEV pointless > VERDICT The perfect car for

  and boot are tight but the occupants get plenty of

kit to fiddle with > VERDICT You’d have to like the
looks to pick it over its rivals
version cuts it in the rough (and in the UK Fiat
doesn’t even sell a 4x4 version of the 500X)
COMPASS 
  
to win over German exec buyers but it’s comfy and
a head-turner. Interior not as well-finished or techy
as rivals > VERDICT An impressively solid first
smuggling cash to Switzerland, skiing, turning up at
a ball, game shooting and being smug

effort; V6 GT-S is playful LEXUS

TUCSON  > Qashqai rival misses the mark. Looks imposing,
REPLACED
> Promising initial impressions of and the Trailhawk version is very good off road, but KOËNIGSEGG
shiny-looking ix35 replacement tarnish Jeep’s own smaller Renegade is more charming CT 
SOON
quickly > VERDICT Dull to drive, duller > VERDICT Almost as forgettable as the last on > Pig-ugly premium Prius a mix of decent handling,
inside, unrefined. An N version is on the way, which AGERA  woeful performance and a ride so poor it makes a
could fix some of those shortcomings CHEROKEE  > Evolution of Lex Luthor’s original CC8S supercar black cab feel like an S-Class > VERDICT Wouldn’t
> Less ugly to stare at than some recent features carbonfibre wheels and twin-turbo 5.0 merit a single sale if company car tax bills were less
SANTA FE  Cherokees, but with an engine configuration V8. The R version even runs on E85 biofuel CO2-focused
> Biggish SUV has always led Hyundai’s assault on choice that’s clear as mud. Classic Jeep off-road > VERDICT Yin to Volvo’s yang keeps Sweden’s car
the European market from the front. Comfortable, traits and actually half decent to drive output balanced IS 
self-assured and easy to live with > VERDICT A > VERDICT Chunky all-rounder, but high price > Sharp-suited, well-spec’d 3-series rival finally
Hyundai you can choose without shame. Looks pitches it against some excellent competitors KTM gets decent rear space. Good chassis, but the 250
fresher than Waitrose parsnips V6 is irrelevant, and the frugal hybrid is hobbled by
GRAND CHEROKEE  a nasty CVT > VERDICT So close. Needs a proper
NEXO  > Proper off-road cred, but not everyone takes to X-BOW  automatic gearbox
> Hardly a dynamic benchmark but this hydrogen this very US version of luxury. Ludicrous Trackhawk > 22nd-century Ariel Atom mixes carbonfibre
crossover has a fantastic interior and loads of tech. demolishes 0-62mph in 3.7 seconds > VERDICT construction with hardy Audi turbocharged 2.0 ES 
But it’s expensive to buy and only makes sense if you Makes sense at $30k in the US, but doesn’t drive four-pot > VERDICT Big money, big grins, but > Lexus changes tack in exec saloon fistfight by
live near a hydrogen filling station, which you don’t or feel like a premium car when pitched against single-seat BAC Mono is more racecar-like to drive removing samurai-styled, hybrid-powered GS and
> VERDICT Guilt-free motoring for pioneers German and British rivals replacing it with samurai-styled, hybrid powered
i800  WRANGLER 
LAMBORGHINI ES. No, we don’t know why they went to the effort
either > VERDICT Smooth and quiet, with well built
> Massive van-based people carrier that’ll seat > Much better on road than before, but still an if awkward interior. Sound familiar?
eight and still have space for their luggage. Ideal for acquired taste on-road. Available in various body HURACAN EVO 
part-time airport minicabbers > VERDICT It is what shapes, even catering for those not keen on doors > Spine-tingling V10 engine, beguiling looks and LS 
it is: a van with seats in. But it’s a nice van > VERDICT Nigh on indestructible, and now at least enhanced dynamic ability make the Evo a proper > Interior materials are to die for, but hybrid
a bit modern performance contender > VERDICT Almost powertrain less than convincing > VERDICT With
IONIQ  unbearably charismatic and achingly desirable. alternatives as good as the S-Class and 7-series,
> Hybrid, EV and plug-in hybrid – something in all GLADIATOR  And we should mention fast you’d have to REALLY want to be different
shades of green > VERDICT Challenges neither > Its name is Jeepus Maximus Meridius and it shall
pulse nor helmsmanship, but the numbers stack have its off-roading vengeance in this life or the AVENTADOR S  UX 
up if you’re ready for a cleaner future. Look hard at next. Jeep’s pick-up is super-capable > VERDICT > Aventador hits the sweet spot: it’s now old > Baby crossover that’s striking, quiet and
the Ioniq before buying any other ‘green’ car Who doesn’t like the idea of stripping the doors off enough for Lamborghini to have sorted out the a bit hybrid-y, like every Lexus that isn’t a coupe
their pick-up truck? gripes associated with early versions and young or the LS > VERDICT Efficient urban-focused
JAGUAR enough to not yet be the subject of 31 run-out feelgood transport for those who value comfort
KIA limited editions. Semi life-affirming > VERDICT over ruggedness
Pose-to-talent ratio heading in the right direction
XE  NX 
> Facelifted to look angrier and now with i-Pace PICANTO  URUS  > Trumps even the Audi Q5 with a fabulous interior
interior tech. It’s charismatic but slightly let down by > Now has an angry face and there’s a feisty turbo > Fast, capable SUV that sounds good, looks like and arrest-me (for persecuting curves) exterior
hit-and-miss engines, although we’ve yet to try the triple. GT Line brings amped-up looks > VERDICT it’s in a movie and is full of Audi bits, but used in a design. Fwd or 4wd with electric motor at rear
new mild-hybrid diesel > VERDICT There’s life in Better than the previous model, while still being pleasingly Lamborghini way > VERDICT Halfway > VERDICT Doesn’t work as a driver’s car, so take the
the small saloon yet keenly priced between armageddon on wheels and a family- NX300h hybrid over faster, costlier NX200t

134 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
is worth a look thanks to its smart cabin and crisp
RX  drive, not to mention its neat manifestation of
> Looks like Lord Vader’s helmet with wheels on.
Interior opulence and general tranquillity make
Mazda’s very sleek current look. Pity about the firm
ride > VERDICT Pricey, but better than most rivals TOP 5
BEST CONVERTIBLE SUPERCARS
up for idiosyncratic infotainment > VERDICT Build and well equipped
quality and refinement to save the galaxy, even if
the hybrid tech won’t CX-30 
RC/RCF 
> Stellar interior and chassis lifted from the Mazda Look forward to summer 2021 with these formidable droptops
3 hatchback; engines are just as limp, unfortunately
> RCF’s old-school unblown V8 completes > VERDICT Does everything the 3 does but for
charismatic package that shocked M4 in our Giant more money
Test. Elegance of regular range can’t overcome
MX-30 
lack of diesel option > VERDICT Deserve more
success than they’ll likely get
LC500 
> Electric crossover with a confusing name, cork in
the cockpit, funny doors and not much range (but
a rotary range extender is on its way) > VERDICT
1
> A serious sports car from the most serious of Mazda’s reluctantly joined the e-SUV party with a
makers gets a clever hybrid or a tasty V8, 10-speed car that’s charming and sweet to drive but not that
auto and less bovine acoustics. It’s quite sexy practical
> VERDICT Proof that Lexus is at its best when it’s
not trying to be the Japanese Mercedes CX-5  its hardcore edge
> How an SUV should drive. Better than ever, and and authenticity
LOTUS yet it’s still unfairly ignored in favour of inferior really excite.
rivals > VERDICT It’s the closest you’ll ever get to a
Boosty V8 might
five-seat MX-5
ELISE  irk some, but
> Reminds you just how connected cars used to MX-5  thrills us to no
be, and still can be, for a while at least. Slothful 1.6 > Shorter than the ’89 original, and in real terms half end. Priced at
reminds how they used to go, too, so pick the 1.8
instead > VERDICT A 10-year-old example does the
same job for half the price
the price. The 1.5 is sweet but a little slow; 181bhp
2.0 introduced in 2019 solves that > VERDICT
Brilliantly uncomplicated budget sports car
£242,000.

FERRARI F8
2
EXIGE  MX-5 RF 
SPIDER
> Gym-bunny Elise with supercharged V6 retains > When a folding fabric roof is just too common to
beautifully unassisted steering. Superb 350 Sport contemplate, pay more for the heavier and more Muscular, tightly
turns up the wick > VERDICT The Lotus our tyre- complicated RF and never fold the bloody roof wound and with
frying Ben Barry would buy down anyway > VERDICT Right car, wrong spec a badge like no
EVORA  other, how could
MCLAREN we not include
> Currently available in two roadgoing forms, GT
410 Sport and the new GT 410, which offers slightly
a Ferrari here?
more creature comforts, making it almost a genuine 540C  Narrowly loses out
GT car > VERDICT The chassis and steering are > The world’s first decontented supercar. Entry to the McLaren
Lotus at its sparkling best. Sublime. This is the level doesn’t get any better > VERDICT for feeling a little
heritage that the electric Evija must live up to digitally enhanced.
of its game Costs £226k.
MASERATI
GHIBLI 
570S/570GT 
> Base McLaren ditches carbon body and
trick suspension, but keeps carbon MonoCell and
3
> Small exec drives great, looks the business, twin-turbo 3.8-litre V8. Now available with glass
doesn’t have the four-cylinder diesel that will get hatch, too > VERDICT S and GT performance near VOLANTE
it on your shopping list. A shame > VERDICT An identical; both make 911 Turbo S feel too normal
alcohol-free Quattroporte Rare case of a
600LT  turbocharged V12
QUATTROPORTE GTS  > The Sports Series gets its LT; more power, a that sounds great.
> A fine blend of Maranello turbo V8 and graceful comprehensive track-focused re-engineering and
old Maserati bits. Dynamically outshines most high-mounted LT exhausts > VERDICT The most
other saloons, and remains the coolest four-door thrilling McLaren this side of the Senna. (And let’s
money can buy > VERDICT It won’t let you in unless face it: everything’s this side of the Senna) and less spikey to
you’re in a suit or chinos drive than 715bhp
GT 
GRAN TURISMO/GRAN > The first McLaren where boot space and comfort around £248,000.
CABRIO  take centre stage. The entire world shouts: ‘What?!’
> Four genuine seats a rarity in this class, but fill > VERDICT Supercar trying to be something it isn’t
them and you’ll regret choosing the weedy 4.2 over doesn’t do great job
the 4.7 > VERDICT Podgy, pretty, practical GT for
720S 
folk who hate four-door faux coupes. And luggage
LEVANTE 
> 650S replacement turns the wick up and is
measurably better in every way than a Ferrari 488,
LAMBORGHINI
4
> Accomplished SUV that holds its own against the which is no mean feat. Maranello won’t be pleased
Porsche Cayenne and Jaguar F-Pace, with lots of > VERDICT Obscenely fast and engaging – we just HURACAN EVO
Maserati charm, very little quirkiness and a much wish it was louder SPYDER
lighter touch than many premium SUVs > VERDICT
Far from flawless but it’ll show you a good time, and it 765LT  Just an R8 underneath?
says good things about you > How do you improve on the already brilliant Nah – this is so much more.
720S? With this Longtail version. The balance An engine to die for that’s
MAZDA between slidey fun times and usability is a fine one, louder than Spinal Tap
but Woking pulls it off > VERDICT The 720S with a and a chassis accessible
cherry on top
2  to novices. An AWD EVO
> Shot-in-the-arm supermini packs good value, SENNA  can be yours for £181,781
handling and looks, leaving sweat marks on the > As happy breaking lap records as it is nipping before taxes.
shirts of the VW Polo marketing team > VERDICT to the shops. A quite astounding engineering
Under-radar Fiesta threatener achievement that makes even the legendary P1
3 
> Most stylish family hatch on the market right
feel slow > VERDICT Named after a hero – but you
don’t need to be one 5
now? It’s also great to drive. Generally weak MERCEDES
engine range, including clever Skyactiv-X, the only
significant flaw > VERDICT A hatch you should pay
attention to – it’s good A-CLASS  Turns as many
> Sharp looks and an interior swish enough to put
6 SALOON/TOURER  higher-class cars to shame – even if most of the Europeans and,
> Boss won’t let you have a BMW 3-series? This best kit is optional. Dynamically still a bit slushy despite Lexus’s
makes an impressive alternative. Handles well but > VERDICT Finally, a compact hatch worthy of affinity for hybrids,
rides like the tyres have DTs > VERDICT Swoopily being called a Merc, and a fine saloon version too
styled, tax friendly, entertaining alternative to naturally-aspirated
po-faced VW Passat A45 AMG 
V8s still available.
> Smallest AMG is winning the hot hatch
CX-3  horsepower arms race and can drift like a Ford
From £90,755.
> This late arrival to the compact crossover party Focus RS > VERDICT It’s quite the weapon

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 135

 MERCEDES > PEUGEOT

CLA  GLC  MINI PLUS FOUR 

> Drives like an A-Class, has near-useless rear > Dull on paper, and not a looker but benefits from > About as revolutionary as it gets from people
seats, but exudes a fantastic laptop-on-wheels vibe a touch of Mercedes magic, especially the AMG who still build cars (partially) from wood in sheds.
that will draw in the affluent kids > VERDICT Slick versions > VERDICT Rivals are cheaper and better HATCH/CONVERTIBLE  Relationship with BMW has provided its four-cylinder
tech powerhouse for considerable wedge to drive but GLC makes you feel special inside > Bigger and less charming than anything called engine and gearbox; the rest is still very Morgan, and
Mini should be, but comes with choice of smooth rather expensive > VERDICT There’s nothing like it
B-CLASS  EQC 

  
and peppy engines, while ride has improved
> Hatchback handling and fancy interior. Oddly > The GLC’s battery-only cousin is an unchallenging without ruining handling. Britpop rear lights a ROADSTER 
short of useful cubbies > VERDICT Like an A-Class, way to wean yourself off fossil fuels. If you want thorny issue for some > VERDICT Better than ever > Roadster uses Ford V6 and looks much sportier
but taller. Who knew? an electric car that’s as much like a combustion to own, even if you love it slightly less but some won’t be able to tell > VERDICT It’s this or
car as possible, this works a treat > VERDICT Like the new Plus Six for your pokiest Morgan thrills
C-CLASS SALOON/ESTATE  an electric comfort blanket, cosy and relaxing; ELECTRIC 
> Mini-S-Class styling and almost all the same excitement is simply not on the agenda > Arrives late and unprepared to EV supermini party, PLUS SIX 
cutting-edge on-board technology > VERDICT when snacks have been eaten and booze is drying > Despite its BMW-sourced powertrain this
BMW is still better to drive, but if you want a G-CLASS  up. Normal looks a double-edged sword and range is still a Morgan. Just one that’s leapt into the

  
relaxing techno cocoon, this is it > Turns out you can teach an old dog new tricks, is only acceptable > VERDICT Outdone by Honda at current century > VERDICT Fun in a way that you
so long as you completely overhaul its entire being charming. Hell really hath frozen over wouldn’t think still possible
C-CLASS COUPE  personality and physical structure > VERDICT A
> Sexpot C-Class 10cm longer and available with air dinosaur that has evolved to avoid extinction. AMG COOPER S/JCW  NISSAN
suspension. Still tight in the back for those with legs and diesel both excellent > BMW 2.0-litre four-pot-powered 228bhp JCW
> VERDICT Much more of an event than the BMW most powerful Mini ever. Terrific fun, if a tad
4-series, but the latest Audi A5 is right back in the GLE  synthetic > VERDICT Beware the options list MICRA 
game; a nice problem for potential buyers > Seven-seat SUV dials up the refinement and > So much better than the old car, the current
gadgets. Active air springs can make it tilt like a GP  Micra is on Wikipedia deleting all mention of its
C63 AMG  Pendolino at speed or hop like a baller’s low-rider > Limited-run hardcore hatch is like owning an over- predecessor > VERDICT Bigger and better, and
> Madder than ever with bi-turbo 4.0 V8; coupe > VERDICT No longer an also-ran plush-UV excitable pedigree guard dog; expensive, unruly with a vastly improved interior, although not all
gets unique 12-link rear suspension for sharper and so difficult to tame it could easily bite your arm versions are equally good
responses > VERDICT Mega traction and one of GLS  off if you provoke it. But you wouldn’t have it any
the best turbo engines ever > Luxo-monster seven-seater lacks Range Rover other way > VERDICT Distilled hot-hatch thrills JUKE 
panache but it’s comfy and refined, and the > Crossover that’s exchanged one sort of ugly
E-CLASS SALOON/ESTATE  infotainment doesn’t come from Poundland CLUBMAN  for another, and become less interesting in the
> Techno tour-de-force thinks it can > VERDICT A brilliant bus > Replace circus-freakery of old one with full process > VERDICT One step forward, one step
REPLACED
SOON drive better than you. Exceptional complement of portals, add longer wheelbase, back, and now up against much more competition
interior > VERDICT Four-cylinder diesel SLC  bigger boot; now bake > VERDICT Loaf-alike maxi- than Juke Mk1 ever faced
is so smooth it churns motorway miles into butter > Buy the SLC43 AMG and it’s like an uglier but Mini freshness, the grown-ups’ choice
cheaper F-Type with a nicer interior. Buy any other LEAF 
E-CLASS COUPE  SLC and you’ve lost your mind > VERDICT Come COUNTRYMAN  > Less gawky than pioneering first-gen Leaf, and
> Swish, clever and satisfyingly capable, as long back 718 Boxster, all is forgiven > A Mini SUV that drives almost as nimbly as the promises better range, and single-pedal driving.
as there’s six cylinders up front. Like coupes used hatch > VERDICT Spacious, solid inside and just Shame about the dull interior > VERDICT Version
to be before everyone decided they needed to be SL  funky enough 2.0 of people’s EV now far more… normal
‘Ring-meisters > VERDICT Middle age has never > The plastic surgeon was worth every penny.
been so appealing Turning up the sporty makes the most of the super- MITSUBISHI QASHQAI 
stiff structure, too > VERDICT Brilliant execution of > Crossover for the masses gets more luxury and
AMG E63  a particular version of the European GT dream a facelift > VERDICT It’s no Volvo XC but still has
> Complete with all-wheel-drive system that you MIRAGE  huge family appeal
can switch off in Drift Mode (on the S version). AMG GT  > Catastrophic lack of style or charm. As well suited
Which is exactly why you should buy one, and > GT C is the very tasty sweet spot, GT R is track- to the small-car segment as a Sopwith Camel is to X-TRAIL 
possibly open an account at Kwik Fit at the same bred lunatic and ‘Ring fast-lapper. Whichever you executive short-haul flights > VERDICT Want your > Used to be a rough, tough off-roader designed on
time > VERDICT Go S or go home pick, it’s blessed with a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 and kids to stay off the roads? Buy them one an Etch-a-Sketch. Now it’s a Qashqai put through
jaw-dropping looks > VERDICT Got muscle, maybe a photocopier at +10% > VERDICT Still not exciting,
CLS  lacks finesse ASX  but does the job
> Comfy four-door coupe has great interior and > Box-ticking small SUV feels like it was designed
loads of tech, although it can’t match the original for AMG GT 4-DOOR  on a spreadsheet > VERDICT At least it’s cheap GT-R 
visual drama. AMG 53 is punchy > VERDICT Slick > Yes, it looks like a steroidal CLS and, yes, it’s a > A hardcase, moments from rage > VERDICT
tried-and-tested formula, but boy does it work. ECLIPSE CROSS  Drivetrain sounds like a drum kit falling down the
S-CLASS  Pricey, mind > VERDICT Mercedes already had one > Genuine off-road ability like a traditional stairs; leaves your brain feeling much the same
> Equipped with so much computing M5 rival in the shape of the E63 S; now it has two – Mitsubishi, but cushy ride and interior quality show
NEW
power you could arm a nuclear missile both very good influence of Renault-Nissan partnership > VERDICT NAVARA 
ENTRY
on the other side of the planet, but Petrol-CVT combo sounds worse than it is > One of the most sophisticated pick-up trucks
drives like a – very good – much smaller car MG currently around, aided by interior bits from the
> VERDICT The benchmark once again OUTLANDER  X-Trail > VERDICT Perfectly fine on and off road
> Midlife overhaul brings sleeker looks and
S-CLASS COUPE/CABRIOLET

MG 3  lifts cabin ambience by miles. Diesel still a bit PAGANI
> Tough-looking, spacious supermini has handling of a tractor but PHEV comfy and refined
> Over five metres of barking mad indulgence; that lives up to the promise of that once-British > VERDICT The UK’s best-selling plug-in hybrid,
Coupe carries it off like Errol Flynn on a bender badge. As does the woeful build, crap engine and largely for tax reasons HUAYRA 
> VERDICT Howard Hughes would approve, but he concrete ride > VERDICT The Chinese are coming! > Spectacular cottage-industry supercar with
went crazy in the end But so far they’ve only got to Tajikistan L200  active aero, AMG-built 720bhp twin-turbo V12
> Farmhand/building site runabout is not as decent and a wondrously decadent interior > VERDICT
GLA  GS  to drive as older generations. Many trim and cab- Obviously we want one but they’re all sold
> Merc’s high-rise A-Class is now more practical > Spacious, duck-faced SUV hamstrung by coarse size variations available > VERDICT Dependable
than the previous one, and generally better all 1.5 turbo petrol, shonky gearboxes and shoddy PEUGEOT
round > VERDICT Good, but aimed at badge snobs interior. Actually handles okay, if you can hack the MORGAN
with no imagination firm ride > VERDICT Dacia will sleep well tonight 108 
> Pug-faced city car twinned with the Toyota Ayo
GLB  ZS  3-WHEELER  and Citroën C1. Available as a three-door and five-
> Seven seats in a footprint smaller than a > Looks like a bootleg Mazda CX-3 and has knock- > As comfortable as riding over Niagara Falls in a door but the perkier engine has gone, leaving only
Skodiaq’s, plus Merc badge and tech. What’s the off driving dynamics, build quality and price > barrel and equally sane. Not as quick as it feels, the 68bhp 1.0 – so slow we were all monkeys when
catch? So-so handling and passive dampers only in VERDICT Last in an extremely competitive sector, but quick enough > VERDICT Brilliant Caterham it set off and it still hasn’t hit 60mph > VERDICT No-
the UK > VERDICT G-Class + shrink ray = this but it would still be last in easier company alternative without the macho trackday posturing frills compact transport; boot and rear space tight

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like you wish all cars would > VERDICT Know any familiar face > VERDICT The same but different,
208  nice 981s for sale? and a bit better in many ways; now also available IBIZA 
> Dramatic looks and a swanky interior might be in hybrid form > Angular Spanish supermini nabs A0 platform
enough for many. Available in petrol, diesel and 911  before VW, thoroughly grows up in the process. FR
electric flavours. Oh, and it has dramatic light-up > 992-generation could have been phoned in and CAPTUR  versions irritatingly don’t look that sporty any more
fangs either side of the grille > VERDICT A lovely still been fantastic, but Porsche has done it again. > It’s the new Clio’s cockpit inside, and cheaper > VERDICT Ibiza by name only
product, but it’s no Fiesta to drive The 911 continues to be trackday hero, athletic GT than most of its competitors > VERDICT Much
and surprisingly adept family transport rolled into improved compact crossover LEON 
308 HATCH/SW ESTATE  one > VERDICT Unrivalled do-anything sports car > Not Seat’s most memorable design, but drives
> Hushed 308 is at its best when eating motorway MEGANE  very well, making good use of its Golf basis >
miles, or when you’re watching it out of the window 911 TURBO S  > Looks like a foie-grased Clio outside and a low- VERDICT Which family hatch is this one again? We
of your Golf. Fiddly touchscreen > VERDICT > Gone are the days of the 911 Turbo being a rent Tesla inside > VERDICT Renault Sport-fettled keep forgetting…
Non-GTi hatch isn’t up to scratch, but SW wagon is fast-but-safe cruiser – Porsche has let its hair down GT with rear-wheel steering a keen drive
worth a look and made a properly fun, balls-to-the-wall ICBM. ARONA 
Handle with caution > VERDICT No longer a fast MEGANE RS  > Normal-ish VW Group baby crossover but a

  
308 GTi  sports car, but a true supercar > Sport is a credible hot hatch all-rounder but it good one. Practical and easygoing with simple
> Discreet styling hides playful proclivities; Limited- doesn’t thrill like the pokier Cup > VERDICT Go trim structure – pick a spec and get a jazzy colour.
slip diff keeps things tight up front while fantastic MACAN  for a manual Cup version and you have a properly Piece of cake > VERDICT A sensible daily driver,
chassis delivers entertainingly lively rear > Baby Cayenne is even better than dad – and sorted Civic Type R rival but then so is an Ibiza...
> VERDICT 250 and 270 variants both great, but better than the rival Evoque too. Base car with Golf
270 gets more kit GTI 2.0 makes no sense when S is pennies more SCENIC  ATECA 
> VERDICT GT3 RS for trackdays, Cayman GT4 for > Compact MPV trades practicality for a sharper > Latecomer to the SUV party gets the dress code
508  weekends, this for everything else. Sorted exterior > VERDICT Console your manhood with the right, isn’t the life and soul but neither will it bore
> Best-looking mainstream exec? Quite possibly. fact that 20s are standard you into leaving early. Another sangria please!
Likeable and civil, and the cockpit is a knockout. CAYENNE  > VERDICT Go SE, petrol, manual
Estate equally handsome and there’s a hybrid > A masterclass in how to make a big SUV handle. KADJAR 
too, available with either body > VERDICT For the Slick Panamera-derived interior is great. Turbo > Nissan may rue the day it left the parts store TARRACO 
discerning iconoclast is brutally fast, too, but whole thing feels anally door ‘Kadjar’, as Renault’s take on the Qashqai > Seat takes a Kodiaq and gives it a Spanish
retentive > VERDICT Impressively capable but bests the original in every way (including ‘Is that an nose job. Then spends the afternoon in the pub
PARTNER TEPEE  Macan is more engaging anagram?’ name) > VERDICT Aggressive pricing, > VERDICT No improvement over its very good
> Spacious, versatile, more practical than a regular smooth ride, great refinement, squishy seats Skoda and VW Tiguan Allspace siblings; harder
MPV, drives okay if you keep your ambitious PANAMERA  ride is of questionable merit
modest > VERDICT Make your own clothes? Live in > The Mk1 was just throat-clearing; this Mk2 is KOLEOS 
a yurt? This is the car/van for you the opera. Ripe with tech, innovation and better
DIES
> A five-seat X-Trail that took a gap SKODA
dynamics – and it looks nigh on perfect > VERDICT SOON year living at a French vineyard and
2008  A lesson in making nonsensical niches make has come back with an accent, more
> Take everything that makes the 208 cool, fresh perfect sense stylish clothes and an avant-garde view on life CITIGO 
and different and make it a few inches taller. Slightly > VERDICT Neither great nor rubbish – c’est bof > Skoda’s all but identical version of
PORSCHE TAYCAN  REPLACED
stodgier to drive, though > VERDICT As small SOON the VW Up and Seat Mii. Well
crossovers go, this makes a lot of sense > Way pricier than a Tesla and real-world charging ROLLS-ROYCE packaged as always > VERDICT
still suspect but Porsche’s first EV is, naturally, a Cheaper than the Up, but not by much. Only
3008  technological marvel > VERDICT Supernatural pace available in all-electric iV spec, just like the Seat
> Tell your friends you’ve bought one and they’ll and body control housed in a concept-car body GHOST  Mii. Want an engine? The Up still offers one...
laugh – until they see it. Sharp to look at, surprisingly > Don’t be blinded by that glowing grille or
good fun to drive and not too weird > VERDICT Just RADICAL distracted by the palatial cockpit. Powered by a V12 FABIA HATCH/ESTATE 
make it clear you’ve not bought the old one that surges like a high-end EV, this is the opulent > Mature supermini that’s best on small wheels
but relatively subtle Rolls for driving rather than and modest petrol engine. Estate version ideal
5008  SR3 SL  being driven in. Or you could have two Bentley for Jack Russells > VERDICT Roomy, well made
> Edgy design meets genuine practicality, comfort > Properly street-legal SR3 gets a 300bhp blown Flying Spurs for the same money > VERDICT The and dynamically well sorted – like the low-rent
and seven seats. Looks quirky, but easy to live Ford 2.0 instead of a motorcycle engine, a heater world’s most desirable luxury saloon VW Polo it is
with and pleasurable to drive > VERDICT Not the and even a 12v socket. It’s almost lavish > VERDICT
German approach to premium, but just as effective Toned down for occasional road use but still hairier WRAITH  SCALA 
and good value than a cave man with hypertrichosis > A 624bhp twin-turbo V12 sporting vehicle that > A bargain next to its rivals, and good level of
drives like no other. Dismisses distance but would standard kit, but it’s not exactly brimming with
POLESTAR RXC TURBO  never lower itself to squealing through bends charisma > VERDICT Golf space on a tighter
> Play out those Le Mans fantasies on the commute > VERDICT An amazing driver’s car budget
with this Peterborough-built headcase. Sequential
1  PHANTOM  OCTAVIA HATCH/ESTATE 

  
gearbox welcome in town like an EDL demo
> Concept car looks, vast power, supernatural > VERDICT When you’ve outgrown your > Enough opulence to make Blenheim Palace look > Like a Golf but bigger, cheaper and more
handling, Bentley pricing > VERDICT Quite the way Caterhams and 911 GT3s, here’s the answer like an abandoned warehouse yet just the right functional. Hot vRS versions are old-school ballistic
to start a new marque… with a supercharger and a amount of tech to keep start-up billionaires happy fun, and the 4x4s even more practical > VERDICT
turbo and two electric motors RENAULT > VERDICT By far the world’s best luxury car A lot for the money
2  DAWN  SUPERB SALOON/ESTATE 
> The other end of the electrified spectrum to TWIZY  > A Wraith with the roof cut off – although actually > So vast inside it echoes. Sharp lines, stacks of
the Polestar 1 in terms of scope. Usable, ultra- > Part electric scooter, part social experiment, 80 per cent of the exterior panels are new kit, double the number of umbrellas. Shame about
modern and hyper-pragmatic, and it helps that it’s it’s easy to love the doorless Twizy, especially on > VERDICT Starry the dull interior and stiff price, especially for big-
handsome and decent to drive, too. Only tried a balmy evenings along La Croisette. Grimy days powered and high-spec versions > VERDICT All
prototype so far, though > VERDICT Pay attention in Hull less so > VERDICT Transport of the future, CULLINAN  the family car you’ll ever need. Only bigger
to this if you’re serious about the EV switchover if it’s never wet in the future and you like chatting > Redefines off-road plushness. But it costs £100k
with other drivers at traffic lights. And when we say more than a Bentayga and weighs more than the KAMIQ 

  
PORSCHE chatting, we mean having abuse hurled your way moon > VERDICT Rangie is a better off-road, but > A Czech drop in a baby crossover ocean. Like
the fact that Rolls-Royce can build a decent luxury its VW Group compadres, it’s absolutely fine at
ZOE  off-road worthy of the badge is itself remarkable everything it does but has even less pizazz than
718 BOXSTER  > While the old Zoe was good, the latest much the T-Cross and Arona > VERDICT Wake us up
> The turbo revolution continues as Boxster bins longer-ranged, more attractive and refined model SEAT when it’s interesting
the six for a brace of faster forced-induction fours is enough to convince supermini buyers > VERDICT
> VERDICT Whole lotta lag; chassis still a stairway A mainstream EV tipping point KAROQ 

  
to heaven MII  > A miniature Kodiaq: practical, sharply styled and
CLIO  > Stuck between a cheap Citigo rock comfortable. Shame it’s just not as likeable as its
718 CAYMAN  > Smaller and lighter? That’s not how new
REPLACED
and variety-filled Up hard place predecessor, even in more rugged Scout spec
SOON
> Choral flat-six ditched for punchy but industrial generations work, Renault! Interior quality is > VERDICT A good city car that’s > VERDICT RIP Yeti. No, since you ask, we aren’t
turbocharged four. Uglier than before, still handles now up with the best in the class, tidy handling, currently electric-only planning to stop going on about that any time soon

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138 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

 The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
marginally more fun > VERDICT This is a loveable
KODIAQ  car we were crying out for, and urged them to
> Vast SUV takes the Octavia approach by bulking
SPEC EXPERT
make, but it turns out not enough of the paying
out on a shared platform, but doesn’t share its public wanted to buy one. There’s a new one on the

BUILDING A BALANCED
dazzling personality. Hot vRS version expensive horizon, along with a new GT86, but whether it will
overkill > VERDICT The most comfortable place to ever reach us is open to question
die a little inside. Very similar to Seat Tarraco, but
SUZUKI
DEFENDER with softer ride

SMART
How to make a 90 for town and country CELERIO 
> Braking-phobic city car is otherwise spacious,
FORTWO  full of kit and cheap. Three-cylinder petrol engine
> Wider than the last one, and now visually only, plus all the handling vigour of a B&Q Value
Our spec treads the line resembling the Toyota iQ, with a much better ride, wheelbarrow > VERDICT Dowdy and rowdy. Stop
between family all-rounder higher quality cabin and slicker auto > VERDICT A complaining and be grateful you’ve got DAB and
and mud-plugging brilliant city runabout, with an electric version that a cupholder
adventurer, without makes sense
SWIFT 
breaking the bank. We’ve FORFOUR  > An unsung hero, and not just the excellent
started with a three-door > Renault/Merc tie-up means ForFour is 134bhp Sport. Handles well, spacious and cheap.
90 with the D250 straight- accomplished, with a classy cabin, although Upgraded Dualjet motor sweet > VERDICT Buy one
ludicrous pricing seem at odds with targeted city and challenge anyone who questions your choice
six mild-hybrid diesel, car buyers > VERDICT Its sister car, the Twingo, is to a fistfight
with 247bhp and 32mpg more than two grand cheaper. Work that out
economy. IGNIS 
Starting price: £49,300 SSANGYONG > Cute. Might look tiny but Ignis has more room
inside than most other cars this cheap. Shame the
stodgy dynamics don’t match the adorable ’70s
KORANDO  Suzuki Whizzkid-inspired looks > VERDICT Good
> Most well-behaved SY on the road, which isn’t mix of cheap and cheerful, if not exactly fun
saying much, and still great off road, which is. Price
for a decent one squares it up against so many BALENO 
While any of the earthy
other good SUVs now, though > VERDICT Getting > The biggest of Suzuki’s small cars, but not a Focus
colours suit the Defender rather big for its boots rival by a long shot. Brand traits come through
well, we’ve picked here: hollow interior, bargain price but fun to
Gondwana Stone (£895). REXTON  drive if you’re prepared to work with it > VERDICT
> SY’s poshest SUV yet, which admittedly isn’t Practical, unpretentious, almost entirely forgettable
SE spec comes with saying a huge amount. Think old Discovery and
20-inch wheels; we’ve you’re not actually that far off > VERDICT Far less SX4 S-CROSS 
downgraded to 19s with rubbish than the last one > The cheap way to clone a Nissan Qashqai. Won’t
taller sidewalls for no score any points for style – in fact you might be
TURISMO  encouraged by your kids (and everybody else’s
cost, which helps ride > Less odious than the old Rodius, but every bit as kids) to hide it at the back of the school car park.
quality and cuts the risk practical, this giant seven-seater is slower than the Diesel is the best bet, if not an attractive one
of damage. The black Crossrail boring machine > VERDICT Has minicab > VERDICT A crossover to be cross over
exterior pack (£420), written all over it, or soon will, which will handily
help disguise the ugliness JIMNY 
black contrast roof (£900) > It’s a mini Tonka toy! Still supreme off road and,
SE-spec toys include TIVOLI 
and privacy glass (£490) now, there’s few else like it on sale. It’s slow, still
heated, 12-way adjustable > There’s no getting away from it: Korea’s not great on road, but we know what we’d have
accent the paint well.
front seats, LED lights and also-ran car maker has finally built a contender. in a zombie apocalypse > VERDICT So incredibly
Running total: £52,005 Great value, spacious and – get this – well- loveable we forgive its road manners
a Meridian sound system.
finished inside > VERDICT If they do this again
We’ve kept the interior the dross heritage is under threat VITARA 
standard, but added air > Two-tone cross-dresser to rival the Nissan Juke,
suspension (£1615), which MUSSO  with handsome body and economical diesel
lets you raise the height > Mega cheap with trim levels that have silly names. engine or a lively petrol, and genuine all-wheel-
Ponderous diesel and incredibly bouncy ride drive ability. Cabin could do with some work,
for off-roading, the Towing when empty doesn’t endear it with road manners though > VERDICT Rutting rhinos and pink paint a
Pack (£2200), which brings > VERDICT ‘Good… for the money’ should be thing of the past: it’s a serious family car now, but
Terrain Response 2, an SsangYong’s slogan still good value
electronically-deployable SUBARU TESLA
towbar and LR’s clever
Tow Assist, while the
IMPREZA  MODEL 3 

  
Cold Climate Pack (£455)
> Yes, it still exists beyond the WRX and STi of > An affordable electric vehicle you actually want
involves a heated steering legend. No, you don’t want one. Boggo Impreza is to drive? Say it ain’t so. Impressive performance,
wheel and heated washer now reduced to a 1.6 or 2.0 petrol hatchback only taut but spine-breaking dynamics, clean interior
jets. Add £1905 in fees and with optional CVT. Shudder > VERDICT Have you > VERDICT Musk’s watershed moment – if only he
got a brand new combine harvester? It’s probably could build them at anything approaching the rate
you’re ready to roll. a better drive needed to meet global demand
Total price: £58,180
LEVORG  MODEL S 
> Impreza estate with a silly name. Single choice of > Electro-rocket covers ground like little else on the
2.0 petrol with CVT auto and 4wd means it’s got planet, and in P100D guise is capable of delivering
a silly drivetrain too > VERDICT Niche, as is all too kidney-thumping acceleration. The future, with
common with Subaru a cabin from the recent past > VERDICT Crush
supercars, emit nothing
XV 
> Admirable engineering but you have to pay MODEL X 
through the nose for it and you’re limited to a petrol, > You can scare the bejeezus out of your six
all-wheel-drive and CVT powertrain that dims the passengers by reaching 62mph in 3.1 seconds. It’s
pleasure > VERDICT Another very niche Subaru effective, albeit in one dimension. Looks like an
SUV holding its breath > VERDICT Musky
FORESTER 
> Functional square-rigger is the kind of crossover TOYOTA
that existed before we had ‘lifestyles’. Good on
road, great off it, not cheap > VERDICT A solid
Subaru. Tweed cap, pipe, sheep flock optional AYGO 
> City car with a characterful three-pot motor,
OUTBACK  sharing its fundamentals with the Citroën C1 and
> The unloved last-generation Legacy’s only Peugeot 108 > VERDICT Great to have the choice of
UK legacy is this Allroad-style crossover. It’s this trio or the VW/Seat/Skoda alternatives
huge inside and the 4x4 look isn’t all for show
> VERDICT Dependable, not desirable YARIS 

  
> Finally – a conventional Yaris that we’re at least
BRZ  slightly interested in. Hybrid only – and good this

TOTAL PRICE: £58,180 > Pure and simple but slightly under-nourished
rear-wheel-drive boxer-engined coupe, crying
out for a supercharger. Its Toyota GT86 twin is
time – it looks dramatic and feels pretty sharp from
behind the wheel, too > VERDICT A solid base for
the mentalist GR

JANUARY 2021 | [Link] 139

TOYOTA > VOLVO
COROLLA  VAUXHALL POLO GTI  TOUAREG 

  
> Like the RAV4, it combines nondescript > A proper junior GTI right down to the tartan seats. > Less low-key than previous generations, especially
powertrains with oodles of room for your Responsive engine, sorted chassis, OTT electronic that glittery grille, but still not as charismatic as the
passengers, paying or otherwise. Half decent to CORSA  aids. Manual gearbox adds a sorely-needed bit smaller T-Roc. Composed to drive, and space-age
drive, too, as hatch, saloon and estate > VERDICT > If Vauxhall’s supermini was a huge seller before, of zest > VERDICT The latest Fiesta ST should be dash is very clever > VERDICT The SUV choice for
The Uber in front is a Toyota new owner PSA’s help will keep that trend going. nervous those who don’t like drama
Flexible, tidy design, useful interior and thrifty
CAMRY  engines > VERDICT It’s like someone improved GOLF  AMAROK 

  
> The humdrum saloon now shares hardware with vanilla ice cream > Supremely comfortable, slick and clean cockpit, > Vying with the Mercedes X-Class to be about
the Lexus ES. It’s a lot of room for your money, allied and tech steps up a bit. About as much as you’d as car-like as a pick-up truck can be, for better or
to decent comfort and the reasonable assumption ASTRA HATCH/ESTATE  VW’s perennial family hatch > VERDICT Now the worse. V6 power makes it stupid fast, and saying
that it will be super reliable for approximately ever > Massive step forward compared to previous Mk8, it’s good. No surprises, then it has a cockpit like a Mk6 Golf is, in this context, a
> VERDICT Would make an excellent taxi generation in terms of driving dynamics and compliment. Relies on electronics for its off-roading
interior design, plus added techno-charm GOLF GTI  skills > VERDICT A hot hatch of the pick-up world
PRIUS  > VERDICT In hatchback grandmother’s > Reserved looks and underpowered by modern
> Prius v4.0 boasts entirely new structure footsteps, Focus and Golf turn round to find standards? True, but GTI Mk8 is far more than the VOLVO
compared to all previous Priuses, improved Astra standing right behind them. You really sum of its parts when you get behind the wheel
suspension, and is no longer totally joyless to drive should try one if you’re in the market > VERDICT Finest GTI since the original, but facer
> VERDICT A Toyota hybrid that handles. Electric- much stiffer competition this time around V40 
only range still pathetic INSIGNIA  > Smart Swede in a sector dominated by good
> Uninspired, but usefully big. The Sports Tourer GOLF SV  Germans. Efficient D4 engine and impressive kit,
MIRAI  estate and its rugged Country Tourer variant > The artist formerly known as the Golf Plus. And but it’s a fraction bloated in seat, suspension and
> Weird on the outside, Star Trek on the inside were the best versions, and best value – and then by ‘artist’ we mean medium-sized MPV. The car you steering feel > VERDICT Sitting uncomfortably
and a hydrogen fuel-cell underneath. Drives just Vauxhall binned them > VERDICT Too close to always knew the Golf would grow up to be between Golf and A3. A rock and hard place
like a very refined regular car > VERDICT The tech how you’d hope an Insignia isn’t, but fine if you’re > VERDICT Not a bad choice, but now the BMW
is right, but there’s nowhere to refuel it yet. More given one 2-series Active Tourer is breathing down its neck S60 
conventionally stylish new version on the horizon > Imposing mid-size saloon is the first Volvo to ditch
CROSSLAND X  PASSAT SALOON/ESTATE 

  
diesel, instead offering us a 400bhp Polestar-
C-HR  > Practical Meriva replacement sits beside the > Interior design and refinement so good it shames tweaked point-and-squirt weapon > VERDICT
> Compact crossover that’s stylish outside, huge Mokka X for size. Designed to be the more some limos, cutting-edge kit and elegant looks. If Needs a dynamic edge
fun and kooky inside too > VERDICT The start of a pragmatic choice > VERDICT Genuinely practical if only most versions weren’t so dull to drive
more interesting new phase for Toyota as dull as Luton’s skyline to drive > VERDICT Mile-muncher for the undemanding V60 
> Can now once again reign supreme in the mid-size
RAV4  MOKKA X  ARTEON  estate space race – take that, Germans. Otherwise

  
> Styling like an 8-bit Space Invader on wheels > Mokka gets a better cabin, some new engines > Here we go again: VW tries to be properly standard modern Volvo; handsome, refined and
is the only element of sparkle in a package that’s and pointless suffix. Driving misery reduced by half premium, almost pulls it off. Great interior, huge boot safer than a fallout shelter > VERDICT We’ve got the
otherwise all about practicality and safety tech. > VERDICT X marks the spot where the ball was – and there’s standard safety tech aplenty, but it’s a bit need for Swede
Ho-hum powertrain and sub-par infotainment don’t about five years ago dull, although some versions are much better than
help > VERDICT At least it looks interesting now, others > VERDICT For SUV-resistant saloon fans… V90 
and the imminent plug-in hybrid version promises GRANDLAND X  or those who can’t afford a BMW > Sacrilegiously abandons the boot-space race for
around 300bhp, which should help > A Peugeot 3008 in disguise, but different enough style while prioritising comfort and refinement over
to appeal in its own right, and with the benefit of TOURAN  German machismo. Lovely inside. A genuine rival
LAND CRUISER  Vauxhall’s vast dealer network. Not exciting, but a > It’s still more Millets than John Lewis, but the to the 5-series, E-Class and A6 > VERDICT If there’s
> Bare-knuckle ladder-frame brawler that wouldn’t very good family crossover. Now also available in current Touran does family stuff well > VERDICT such a thing as Swedish zen, this is it
know a latte if you spilt one on its rigger’s boots. pricey hybrid form > VERDICT Up there with the MPV meets MQB, nearly goes VIP while retaining
Not cheap, but the excellent stripped-down Astra as Vauxhall’s top current car whiff of OAP S90 
Commercial version offers a lower-priced way to > Smart, well-crafted and adept-handling exec
get the essentials > VERDICT Rough, but if we VOLKSWAGEN SHARAN  saloon dances a merry jig on the grave of unloved
were stranded in the desert we’d trust one of these > Large seven-seater sliding-door people carrier S80 > VERDICT Loudly purring Swedish cat enters
over a Rangie > VERDICT Nice enough but made to look silly by 5-series/E-class pigeon enclosure
UP  all-but-identical and cheaper Seat Alhambra
GT86  > Charming box on wheels is the kind of city XC40 

  
> The slowest fast car you can buy. B-road heaven, car the Japanese have been building for years, T-CROSS  > No thriller to steer but posh crossover has sharp
like its Subaru twin > VERDICT As pure as Jon except this is better built. EV has a Yorkshire name > Wait, which one is this? Smaller than a T-Roc. look, practical interior and charming personality
Snow. Both of them but doesn’t kill off the petrol just yet > VERDICT Polo-size, not Golf-size. Like the Seat Arona and > VERDICT Feels good , and it’ll look after you
Spacious small car with a strong, appealing image some Skoda or other. Probably > VERDICT Exactly
SUPRA  right for today. Definitely. XC60 
> New coupe relies heavily on BMW Z4 hardware, UP GTI  > A shrunken XC90, and more middle class than a

  
which seems to be a sticking point for some, but > Pokey 113bhp engine, dynamics that come close T-ROC  book club morning at an organic farm shop cafe,
it drives really well – and many who’ve tried both to delivering on the dream of roadgoing go-kart, > Golf-sized SUV aimed at hashtagging sponsored by Boden > VERDICT Good to drive
prefer its feel to the BMW’s > VERDICT Be very glad and great value for money. And fun by the skipload millennials. Massive tech options list and scope and super safe, and benefits from the mild hybrids
Toyota made the effort on every journey > VERDICT Compelling mini hot for personalisation make up for brittle interior and spreading rapidly through the Volvo line-up
hatch package hefty price > VERDICT The funkiest VW
HILUX  XC90 
> Not the most efficient or cheapest pick-up POLO  TIGUAN  > Luxurious seven-seater, clever safety tech, choice
currently available, but it has durability like little else > Mini-Golf isn’t that mini any more. It’s practical, > Accomplished but unexciting, with no real of efficient drivetrains, refined drive > VERDICT
and it does all of the things a pick-up should do well, has a sharp interior and is well built… but so’s the innovations, and Allspace seven-seater has an One of the most complete cars on sale, of any style,
excellently > VERDICT There’s a reason there’s a Seat Ibiza > VERDICT Accomplished but lacking awkwardly packaged boot > VERDICT No sex at any price. Drive it and you soon stop questioning
trim level called ‘Invincible’ the fun factor please, we’re VW its size and its image

All prices inclusive of VAT and correct at time of going to press

LEASE ACADEMY NEW FAMILY CARS Good-value hatches in desirable specs

CITROËN C4 PURETECH SEAT LEON TSI 115 SE FORD FOCUS ECOBOOST VAUXHALL MOKKA 1.2
130 SENSE PLUS DYNAMIC HYBRID 125 ST-LINE EDITION ELITE NAV
£273 £173 £240 £282
Striking looks for new generation Absolute bargain, plenty of tech Flashy spec with mild hybrid Looks so much better than before
Spec 1.2-litre, front-wheel drive, Spec 1.0-litre, front-wheel drive, Spec 1.0-litre, front-wheel drive, Spec 1.0-litre, front-wheel drive,
128bhp, 122g/km CO2 113bhp, 126g/km CO2 123bhp, 117g/km CO2 128bhp, 126g/km CO2
List price £22,990 List price £20,955 List price £24,260 List price £23,205
Initial payment £2000; then Initial payment £1250; then Initial payment £1750; then £240/month Initial payment £2000; then
£273/month for 36 months £173/month for 36 months for 36 months £282/month for 36 months
Mileage allowance 10,000 Mileage allowance 10,000 Mileage allowance 10,000 Mileage allowance 10,000
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140 [Link] | JANUARY 2021

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Retro
tech
Porsche’s engineers love the rough stuff. By

1940 Ferdinand’s unstoppable ‘bucket car’

1940
Too pretty
to rally,
surely?

Four months after entering production, the 911 makes its

motorsport debut in the ’65 Monte Carlo rally. Porsche
while boosting ground fettles the car in-house: the engine’s tuned from 128bhp to
160bhp (Weber carbs, a lighter flywheel, polished ports,
and increased compression) and in go bigger brakes, a
rear anti-roll bar and a vast fuel tank. The rear of the car’s
also fitted with a bar and straps to let the co-driver ride the
back axle, husky sled-style, for more traction.

Porsche first tackles the Dakar in ’84 with jacked-up

Carreras. The ’85 and ’86 entries are closer to the
production 959 and stuffed with advanced desert-beating
The second-gen Cayenne is a big leap forward, tech; sequential twin-turbocharging, aluminium bodies and
ditching the transfer case, shedding nearly a clutch-based Porsche-Steuer Kupplung four-wheel drive
with a hugely flexible front/rear torque split. A Dakar Rally
1-2 in ’86 proves their might.

a couple of years, from Yes, you’re a

10,000 units in 2009 to purist. But you
over 20,000 in 2012. also want this

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roofline. The production car will likely ditch the all- Unveiled at the 2013 Los Angeles show, the Macan goes
road pretensions. Not dirty enough for you? Then on sale in 2014 – and immediately becomes our favourite
SUV. The platform’s shared with the stodgy Q5 but you’d
never know it. The Porsche drives like a lifted Golf R with
most of the power punted rearward; tight, agile and fun.
dirt-ready 911… Everyone loves it, and sales are stellar – 350,000 cars in its
first four years, with nearly a third of those sold in China.

US postal information: Lynch Wood, Peterborough, PE2 6EA, United Kingdom.

The US annual subscription price is $103.56. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by agent named World Container Inc, 150-15, 183rd Street, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Brooklyn, NY 11256.
US Postmaster: Send address changes to CAR magazine, World Container Inc, 150-15, 183rd Street, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Subscription records are maintained at Bauer Media, Subscriptions, CDS Global,
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company number LP003328, VAT number 918561701. Registered address: Academic House, 24-28 Oval Road, London NW1 7DT.
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