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Motors
Tourer tops the family charts
I’VE always been a huge fan of estate cars - while they’re not for everyone given their larger proportions when compared to their saloon siblings, I’m sure most petrolheads will have a fondness for many.
Things like multiple Audi RS models - the 2, 4 and 6 - immediately spring to mind, as does the new BMW M3 and M5. Fast estates are just cool; their looks, their practicality and their Swiss army knife-like...
Model Y builds on predecessor's magic
DESPITE petrol most definitely flowing through my veins from a very young age, I must admit that the electric vehicle revolution - against all odds - is something I’m now a fan of.
Whereas before when I started reviewing EVs several years ago - irritated by their lack of passion and the UK’s below-par charging infrastructure - 2026 is a very different proposition thanks to many more high-power chargers and genuinely very good cars.
Sure,...
458 Spider is a true modern classic
The start of November is such a predictable time of the year. In just a matter of days the relative warmth of an October Indian summer has faded into single figures, the daylight hours are decreasing and that all too familiar chill is in the air. It's blustery, raining and rather depressing, actually. It's time to admit defeat and dig out your wintery coat.
Or you could take your convertible out, drop its roof...
RS4 is the most accomplished daily driver
PROWLING the classifieds has long been an enjoyable way to pass the time - you often find yourself in dreamland scenarios where budgets aren’t a factor, so you pick the best in each sector and end up with a fleet of ten, just in case you fancy a blast in whatever takes your fancy.
I suppose that notion goes back to Harry Metcalfe's early YouTube days when he'd lovingly showcase his sensational garage. You'd be...
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All-electric Porsche maintains its thoroughbred DNA
I’m a man of simple pleasures when it comes to what I want in a performance car and it’s probably because of my unquestionably imbalanced diet that consisted purely of hot hatches in my formative years.
Nonsense-free cars like the 106 Rallye and 182 Trophy; two naturally aspirated gems, both paired to manual gearboxes and absolutely made by engineers whose obsessiveness to please people like you and I came to the fore within yards.
No...
Golf-sized ID3 will win fans
I’LL be honest: having reviewed a fair amount of electric vehicles over the last few years, there aren’t many that I’d actually buy with my own money.
Aside from the big-money Porsche Taycan, nothing much has floated my petrol-loving boat other than Cupra’s cracking little Born, which brought a much-needed dose of cool to the often strait-laced sector.
That car’s got a stablemate - the Volkswagen ID3 - and as usual when it...
Stylish Taigo is the go-to family choice
IT’S a funny one, the Volkswagen Taigo, because on the face of it it’s a similar size to stablemates such as the T-Cross and T-Roc, so whereabouts does it fit in?
Is it a pointless model? Is it going to be overlooked as families head to either of the latter pair?
On the face of it, the Taigo’s extremely similar size-wise, but it completely trounces its siblings on the looks front purely because...
Sold-out GR86 is a performance car throwback
ASK a keen driver to tell you their ideal on-paper spec for a performance car and you can all but guarantee three things will appear before anything else: a naturally aspirated engine, a manual gearbox and rear-wheel drive.
It’s a tried-and-tested formula, one which has appeared on countless greats throughout the years, but unfortunately it’s something that’s all but extinct in today’s market. Manufacturers’ hands are effectively tied and so they’re ditchi
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Do-all Hilux feels indestructible
IF you’re in the market for a pick-up truck there are plenty to choose from - but there’s one that’s head and shoulders above the rest.
Toyota’s Hilux has become an immoveable icon, the go-to choice for anyone who needs a rock-solid, rugged vehicle that’s happy on every surface. Yes, they’ve always been a tad utilitarian inside and hardly brimming with quality, but the Hilux is what it is: a tough, no-nonsense machine that’s been...
All-new Defender is a worthy successor
I’LL be honest - I never really ‘got’ the obsession with Land Rover Defenders until a few years ago. Sure, I appreciated their coolness - chiefly because they’ve effectively stayed the same for decades - but to drive they were woeful so I wasn’t really a fan.
As time’s gone on, I’ve come around massively, mainly due to the simply gorgeous, last-of-the-line Heritage Edition which signalled the end of its frankly incredible 67-year...
Handsome CX-5 has style and substance
IT can’t just be me who’s often looking in my rear-view mirror, being followed by a gaping-grilled, handsome Mazda with sharp, sleek headlights…
It’s happened a few times on the motorway recently; I often associate the marque with the indomitable MX-5 and the family-favourite 3, but this car - the CX-5 - is possibly its best-looking model.
It has to stand out, too, for it’s in battle with some big names in the larger SUV...
Qashqai's family-favourite title remains
LIKE the Juke, the Qashqai’s become a huge hit for Nissan.
It’s not hard to see why, either: cast your mind back to the mid-noughties and there wasn’t much to choose from in the now-congested family SUV sector. The Qashqai, back then, was arguably the very first to kick-off the trend and more than five million have been sold across the globe.
As far as sales hits go, the family-favourite hit gold thanks...
Jag takes fight to German rivals
THE executive estate market shows no sign of slowing down - having been dominated by German marques for years - so manufacturers simply must be on the top of their game if they dare go toe-to-toe with Audi, BMW and Mercedes.
So it’s a relief that Jaguar’s XF Sportbrake, which has been around for more than a decade now, is better than ever in 2021 guise and has become a genuine alternative to the...
Pair top of their hybrid game...
LOVE it or loathe it, the government’s unquenchable thirst to reduce emissions is happening at a rapid pace and manufacturers are doing all they can to adhere to ever more stringent rules.
While bans on internal combustion engines are on the horizon, if you can’t be bothered with tedious plug-ins and want an economical, kind-to-the-environment car in the meantime, Lexus and its Toyota sister brand have the market pretty much covered.
Let’s start...
Type R Limited Edition builds on standard car's greatness
IF I picked the perfect ingredients for a countryside drive the car would - 100 times out of 100 - be a hot hatch. Their uncanny knack of fitting tight, twisty roads like a glove mean you’re not worrying about grazing an eye-wateringly expensive, low-slung carbon splitter and you can instead concentrate on why the car of choice was created: the thrill of driving something built for enthusiasts.
Of course the weather - particularly...
Quadrifoglio models turn Alfa's fortunes around
IF I think of guaranteed disappointments which have caused no end of misery in my life, I can recall three key players responsible for continuously plastering a forlorn-looking expression on my face.
Firstly, two football teams: Leeds United and England. My love of the former began when I was a seven-year-old but since the heady, albeit debt-ridden days of the Champions League, I’ve been knocked down more times than a journeyman boxer by a...
ES300h offers a different take on the German-dominated saloon sector
THINK of the highly competitive saloon sector and your mind automatically conjures up images of a BMW 5-Series, probably dawdling along, infuriatingly hogging a motorway’s middle lane.
The Germans have the market pretty much cornered in truth - Merc’s handsome new E-Class and Audi’s A6 are both worthy contenders to the BMW and, if anything, even eclipse that car.
However, Lexus isn’t a manufacturer known for treading the same path as its rivals and its...
Hot Megane is worthy of its Trophy moniker
RENAULTSPORT, to me at least, represents just about the final word when it comes to hot hatch magnificence - no other performance arm has created cars like the ones they’ve done, time and time again.
Think back to the two versions of the crazy Clio V6, for example. They plucked a humble supermini from obscurity, pulled out its rear seats and shoehorned a 3.0-litre V6 where children once sat. If that doesn’t get you hooked...
Fiesta ST is a modern-day hero
ONE of life’s simple pleasures is barrelling down a tricky stretch of road in a car that’s fizzing with feel, feedback and involvement. If you enjoy driving, little can beat the brilliance of doing such a thing in a well-sorted hot hatchback.
Key to the exercise is the car’s simplicity. Intrusive stability nannies are often dialled down or made redundant at the press of a button, there’s just about always a six-speed manual gearbox and...
New Megane RS has predecessors' magic
I MUST let you in on a little secret: I’m a former owner of two of Renaultsport’s cars so I took delivery of the new Megane RS 280 with a significant amount of bias towards the brilliant French brand.
I was 21 when I bought a several-year-old Clio 182 Trophy, build number 490 of 500, and covered more than 40,000 miles over the following three years on its trick Sachs dampers. I replaced it with...
