2.5
Greg Fountain,
27 April 2012 07:00
Nothing against China but it seems to me its influence over the car industry is becoming problematic. The world’s great car makers allowing Chinese tastes to dictate the conception and production of their cars is rather like the world’s great restaurants developing menus entirely to please Americans, merely because there happen to be a lot of them. The fact that ...
4
Gavin Green,
23 April 2012 17:26
In Beijing, the smog is appalling and the traffic dreadful. Outside, we are ringed by coal-burning power stations, trying to fuel the city’s insatiable appetite for energy. The air is so bad you can taste it and feel it when you breathe. China’s newly enriched middle class also has an insatiable appetite for personal mobility, and you can’t blame them ...
3.5
Gavin Green,
03 April 2012 09:00
This is the tale of two Volkswagens. One risible. One righteous. The new VW Up is a brilliant little car. From its tough yet well-textured cabin, to its composed ride quality, to its tuneful three-cylinder engine, to its outstanding space efficiency, this is one of the finest small cars I’ve driven. Unlike the brilliant Audi A2 – the Volkswagen Group’s ...
4.5
Gavin Green,
07 March 2012 17:11
There is surely no surer sign that the good times are back: the stars – or rather, the most talked about cars – of the Geneva show were a new Bentley and a new Ferrari, both 12-cylinder powered. They are big, they are decadent, they will be stratospherically expensive (clearly aimed at China’s affluent and Russia’s richest, rather than we ...
3
Phil McNamara,
05 March 2012 14:30
Toyota Yaris0 points The Yaris has regressed from peppy millennium Car of the Year to an efficiently-packaged Honda Jazz-clone; it’s not remotely class-leading. Citroën DS51 point There’s much to love about the DS5: the sensational exterior design and high-quality cabin, a family car emitting 99g/km of CO2. But until the engineers develop cars with steering and ride as proficient as ...
3.5
Jesse Crosse,
23 February 2012 10:12
Is VW’s recently announced MQB (Modular Transverse Matrix) a new idea or old hat? Starting with the new VW Golf Mk7 arriving in the UK in spring 2012, the idea heralds a return to basic principles of mass production in an industry where over the last 100 years, complexity has spiralled out of control. By creating a standardised, interchangeable set ...
4
Ben Barry,
02 February 2012 14:11
A few months back, I tested the all-new Civic and wasn’t particularly impressed: I didn’t like the too-high seating position, the oddly weighted steering, the coarse diesel engine, the still-dubious rear visibility and, crucially, the lack of any discernible fun factor. There was no doubt about it in my mind: I’d buy a VW Golf instead. Then, in January, I took ...
3.5
Phil McNamara,
20 January 2012 09:30
Mercedes will unveil the 2012 A-class at March’s Geneva motor show, although last year’s Concept A-class has already telegraphed its look. It’s a big deal, this new baby Benz. Out go two generations of MPV-after-a-boilwash, in comes an aggressive, wedgy hatchback that will scare cars like the Alfa Giulietta and Audi A3. So what's new on the 2012 Merc A-class? ...
With the current July 2010 issue of CAR Magazine dedicated to the 100th anniversary Alfa Romeo (ALFA, if we’re being pedantic), and with a personal holiday planned around the Italian lakes, it seemed like a shame to opt for a shoddy hire car. So instead of a clapped-out bit of crap, the missus and I secured ourselves a new Giulietta ...
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4.5
Tim Pollard,
22 June 2010 09:59
At the recent Saab 9-5 launch, I had the chance to drive an iconic Saab from the back catalogue: the 93A from 1957. This is the very car that Spyker and Saab owner Victor Muller drove in the 2010 Mille Miglia, with the same decals and roof-mounted spotlight from his Italian adventure. Powered by a 750cc triple, this is a ...
