Autocar UK 25 December 2013

THE ORI GI NAL CAR WEEKLY CAR WEEKLY CAR WEEKLY
25 DECEMBER 2013 £3.30 | AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013 £3.30 | AUTOCAR.CO.UK | AUTOCAR.CO.UK
NEW MERC
C-CLASS
More space, tech &
luxury (look out, BMW)
Cars you need to try
Roads you must drive
Events you can’t miss
NEW LAMBO
600bhp Huracán V10 How baby Aventador
will outpace Ferrari and McLaren
MG 3 verdict (it’s good) • New BMW X5 driven • First Subaru hybrid tested
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YOUR GUI DE TO A BETTER
They say ‘It’s faster than a 458’
We say ‘We can't wait to find out’
MG 3 verdict (it’s good) • New BMW X5 driven • First Subaru hybrid tested MG 3 verdict (it’s good) First Subaru hybrid tested
They say ‘It’s faster than a 458’
We say ‘We can't wait to find out’
They say ‘It’s faster than a 458’
We say ‘We can't wait to find out’
EXCLUSIVE PICTURES
OFFICIAL DETAILS
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 7
DEALS
Used buying guide Toyota Supra Mk3 72
James Ruppert Open wide and say GT-R 76
New vs used New BMW or used Bentley? 79
New cars A-Z All the latest models rated 80
Road test results Autocar’s data archive 93
Classifieds Cars, number plates, services 95
72
Inspired to drive: great roads,
places to visit, things to do.
Your motoring year starts here 38
Y O U R G U I D E T O A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
NEWS
Lamborghini Huracán New supercar revealed 10
Mercedes C-class Wraps are off next-gen saloon 14
Ferrari California replacement Turbo drop-top 20
Spotlight The year’s new car sales examined 22
TESTED
BMW X5 xDrive30d SE Sporty and spacious 30
Subaru XV Hybrid Slick petrol-electric SUV 33
Chevrolet Camaro Refreshed muscle car 35
Volvo V70 D5 SE Lux auto Estate stalwart 37
MG 3 1.5 3Form Sport ROAD TEST 56
FEATURES
UK’s best roads Road trip in a Porsche 911 GT3 38
Things to do in 2014 Plan your motoring year 48
OUR CARS
Mercedes CLS Shooting Brake New alloy ahoy 66
Mazda MX-5 Enjoying its everyday appeal 69
Morgan Plus 8 Putting the politics to one side 71
EVERY WEEK
Steve Cropley Meeting the new Ford Mustang 19
Matt Prior The end of an Australian era 21
Joe Saward F1’s dash for sponsorship cash 29
Your views Batteries aren’t worth the bother 64
Colin Goodwin Better late than never… 65
Richard Bremner Lotus Etna concept revisited 98
THIS WEEK
Xxx
Lamborghini Huracán:
Gallardo replacement revealed
Secondhand Toyota Supras scrutinised
10
30 First drive: BMW X5 xDrive30d
56 MG 3 gets the road test once-over
‘ Mercedes hopes this
C-class will appeal to
a younger audience’
COVER
STORY
COVER
STORY
Mark Tisshaw, p14
The Civic T.ó Diesel
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Inspiration for a
great year ahead
JIM HOLDER EDITOR
[email protected] @Jim_Holder
IT MAY BE the season for kicking back and reflecting but,
as ever, the car industry is doing no such thing, as you’ll see
from the full official stories on the all-new Lamborghini
Huracán and Mercedes-Benz C-class. Both are ground-
breaking in their own ways and further evidence of the
relentless progress of car makers.
We’re looking forward, too, with our rundown of how
we think you should make 2014 a motoring year to savour.
As winter set in, Andrew Frankel undertook what he
considered to be his most fun feature of the year, covering
the length and breadth of Britain in our favourite driver’s
car of the year, the Porsche 911 GT3, in search of Britain’s
best driving roads. The goal is to inspire you to do the same.
Likewise, Steve Cropley has consulted the calendar and
laid out how best to enhance your motoring enjoyment
over the coming year. It won’t shock you to know that his
suggestions are diverse, entertaining
and occasionally surprising.
Be sure to contact us with your
own alternatives, and if you’re up for
trying out any of our suggestions, do
let us know how you get on.
autocar.co.uk
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reviewed and rated
GALLERY REVIEW
VIDEO
FEATURE
Issue 6079 | Volume 278 | No 13
ON AUTOCAR.CO.UK
THIS WEEK
Aston Martin Vantage V12 S
Flat out in Aston’s latest 565bhp hot rod
FIND US AT
THIS WEEK
10 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
THIS WEEK
Huracán targets 4
QLamborghini Gallardo replacement gets 602bhp from V10 Q 0-62mph in 3.2sec Q Host of
News to share? Call 020 8267 5782/5796 e-mail [email protected]
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amborghini has revealed
its new supercar, the
Huracán. The all-wheel-
drive model is powered by
a V10 engine producing more
than 600bhp and has a top
speed in excess of 200mph.
Seen here in this exclusive
studio photo shoot, the
Huracán replaces the Gallardo
in Lamborghini’s line-up and
is due to reach the UK in the
autumn after a public debut at
the Geneva show in March.
The model had been widely
tipped to be called Cabrera,
but Lamborghini has chosen
Huracán — or Huracán
LP610-4, to give it its full title
— for the name. It continues
Lamborghini’s convention of
naming its cars after famous
fighting bulls, Huracán being a
legendary animal that fought in
Alicante, Spain, in 1879.
The Huracán follows the
same basic formula as the
Gallardo, itself the best-selling
model in Lamborghini’s history
with 14,022 units produced in
its 10 years on sale.
The Huracán renews
Lamborghini’s assault on
the fiercely fought supercar
segment with more power
and performance, new
underpinnings, a high-
quality new interior, a new
look inspired by the larger
Aventador and what the firm
describes as an “innovative
technology package”.
Much of this specification
appears to address the main
criticisms of the outgoing
Gallardo, which was feeling
its age next to more powerful,
more modern and higher-
quality rivals such as the
Ferrari 458 and McLaren 12C.
The mid-engined Huracán’s
chassis mixes aluminium
and carbonfibre components
which, Lamborghini claims,
provide “race-car precision
with outstanding stiffness”.
The chassis is to be shared with
the second-generation Audi
R8, due in 2015.
Lamborghini had discussed
the use of a carbonfibre
monocoque for the Huracán,
but parent firm Audi deemed
the structure too costly
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 11
THIS WEEK
58 Italia and 12C
new driver aids Q On sale next autumn
THE MARKET IN which the Gallardo
has been competing has changed
out of sight over the 10 years of its
life. For the Huracán, expectations
on every front — performance,
usability, handling — will be much higher, but
meeting them won’t be easy.
We knew the next Gallardo would have to do
without the low-range torque that only forced
induction can supply, but it’s disappointing to
see that, despite some structural carbonfibre,
the Huracán is heavier than the Gallardo.
Sant’Agata’s claims are for better
performance than the Ferrari 458; we’ll wait
to road test the car before getting carried
away. The only certainty, with the likes of
the new Porsche 911 Turbo S around, is that
Lamborghini will need more than just big-
hitting acceleration figures to sell this car.
It can always fall back on its brand and
ever more audacious styling to attract its
clientele, of course, but Lamborghini makes
revealing claims about “innovative technology
packages”, “excellent quality” and “easy-to-
drive road behaviour” in its press material.
The company probably plans not to get
mixed up in the current one-upmanship going
on between Maranello and Woking. But if the
Huracán lives as long as the Gallardo, cycling
through endless special editions just as the
Gallardo has, don’t be surprised if the car ends
up even further off the pace. MATT SAUNDERS
Can the Huracán handle the heat?
The Huracán takes its
styling cues from the
larger Aventador
to secure the necessary
economies of scale for the R8.
The Huracán’s chassis is
understood to be clothed in
a mixture of aluminium and
carbonfibre-reinforced plastic
bodywork panels.
Lamborghini has not yet
released official dimensions
for the Huracán, but it appears
to be only marginally bigger
than its 4345mm long,
1900mm wide and 1165mm
high predecessor, although
a slight increase over the
Gallardo’s 2560mm wheelbase
should improve cabin space.
Despite an increase in the
use of lightweight materials in
its construction, the dry weight
of the Huracán has actually
increased slightly over that
of the Gallardo, from 1410kg
to 1422kg. This is most likely
down to the amount of interior
and dynamic technology that
has been added to give the
Huracán what Lamborghini
claims is a combination of
“absolute performance with
easy-to-drive road behaviour”
and a “luxurious and ◊
12 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
At the heart of the Huracán is a
normally aspirated 5.2-litre V10
∆ sports-orientated finish”.
At the heart of the Huracán
is a normally aspirated
5.2-litre V10 engine, heavily
updated from its application
in the Gallardo to the extent
that Lamborghini calls it a new
engine, with new direct and
indirect injection systems.
It makes 602bhp at
8250rpm and 413lb ft at
6500rpm, up from the 552bhp
at 8000rpm and 398lb ft at
6500rpm produced by the
Gallardo LP560-4.
Top speed has not been
quoted, but Lamborghini
says it is “over 202mph” —
the claimed top speed of
the Gallardo LP560-4. The
Huracán can crack 0-62mph
in 3.2sec and 0-124mph in
9.9sec, bettering the 0-62mph
time of the Gallardo LP560-4
by half a second.
Economy is improved over
the automatic version of the
Gallardo LP560-4, from
19.2mpg to 22.6mpg, while
CO2 emissions are down from
351g/km to 290g/km.
The standard gearbox is
no longer a six-speed manual
but a seven-speed dual-clutch
automatic transmission,
christened Lamborghini Doppia
Frizione (LDF) and derived
from the dual-clutch auto
recently added to the Audi
R8. Lamborghini has yet to
officially confirm the death
of the manual gearbox from
its range, but it would appear
likely, given its absence from
the Huracán’s launch line-up.
The gearbox sends drive
to the road through an
electronically controlled all-
wheel drive system. A switch
on the steering wheel allows
the driver to configure one
of three dynamic modes —
Strada, Sport and Corsa — to
deliver a drive ranging from
“traction orientated” to
“extreme performance”.
The system adjusts
the engine and gearbox maps
and the four-wheel drive
system as part of an “extensive
modification in the road
behaviour of the Huracán”,
according to Lamborghini.
Carbon-ceramic brakes
feature on the standard
specification, while a
variable steering system,
called Lamborghini
Dynamic Steering, and a
magnetorheological adjustable
damping set-up can be found
on the options list.
The styling is derived from
the larger Aventador, including
its profile, sharp edges, LED
light designs and an engine
cover with hexagonal detailing.
The high-quality interior
of the Huracán is a big step
forward from the Gallardo. It
features Nappa leather and
Alcantara trim and upholstery,
a new 12.3in TFT instrument
display, increased multimedia
options and a more luxurious
feel. A full suite of customisable
options will be offered.
The Huracán will enter
production on a newly
equipped production line at
Lamborghini’s Sant’Agata
HQ in the spring. UK prices
have yet to be revealed, but an
increase over the £158,976
Gallardo LP560-4 is expected.
As with the Gallardo,
expect a whole host of extra
variants of the Huracán to
follow, including an open-top
Spyder, a higher-performance
Superleggera and entry-level
rear-wheel-drive versions.
MARK TISSHAW
L AMB OR GHI NI HUR ACAN L P 61 0- 4 Mc L AR E N 1 2 C F E R R AR I 45 8 I TAL I A L AMB OR GHI NI G AL L AR DO L P 5 60- 4
P r i c e £ 1 6 5 , 000 ( e s t ) £ 1 7 6, 000 £ 1 7 8, 5 2 6 £ 1 5 8, 9 7 6
0- 6 2 mp h 3 . 2 s e c 3 . 3 s e c 3 . 4 s e c 3 . 7 s e c
To p s p e e d 2 0 2 mp h + 2 0 4 mp h 2 0 2 mp h 2 0 2 mp h
E c o n o my 2 g 2 g 2 g 1 g
C O2 2 m 2 m 3 m 3 m
Ke r b we i g h t 1 ) 1 ) 1 ) 1
E n g i n e V1 0, 5 2 0 4 c c , p e t r o l V8, 3 7 9 9 c c , t wi n - t u r b o, p e t r o l V8, 4 4 9 9 c c , p e t r o l V1 0, 5 2 0 4 c c , p e t r o l
P o we r 6 0 2 b h p a t 8 2 5 0 r p m 61 6b h p a t 7 5 0 0 r p m 5 6 2 b h p a t 9 0 0 0 r p m 5 5 2 b h p a t 8 0 0 0 r p m
To r q u e 41 3 l b f t a t 6 5 0 0 r p m 4 4 3 l b f t a t 3 0 0 0 - 7 0 0 0 r p m 3 9 8 l b f t a t 6 0 0 0 r p m 3 9 8 l b f t a t 6 5 0 0 r p m
G e a r b ox 7- s p d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o 7- s p d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o 7- s p d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o 6 - s p d a u t o ma t e d ma n u a l
The Huracán comes with
a dual-clutch automatic
gearbox as standard
12 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
∆ sports-orientated finish”.
At the heart of the Huracán
is a normally aspirated
5.2-litre V10 engine, heavily
updated from its application
in the Gallardo to the extent
that Lamborghini calls it a new
engine, with new direct and
indirect injection systems.
It makes 602bhp at
8250rpm and 413lb ft at
6500rpm, up from the 552bhp
at 8000rpm and 398lb ft at
6500rpm produced by the
Gallardo LP560-4.
Top speed has not been
quoted, but Lamborghini
says it is “over 202mph” —
the claimed top speed of
the Gallardo LP560-4. The
Huracán can crack 0-62mph
in 3.2sec and 0-124mph in
9.9sec, bettering the 0-62mph
time of the Gallardo LP560-4
by half a second.
Economy is improved over
the automatic version of the
Gallardo LP560-4, from
19.2mpg to 22.6mpg, while
CO2 emissions are down from
351g/km to 290g/km.
The standard gearbox is
no longer a six-speed manual
but a seven-speed dual-clutch
automatic transmission,
christened Lamborghini Doppia
Frizione (LDF) and derived
from the dual-clutch auto
recently added to the Audi
R8. Lamborghini has yet to
officially confirm the death
of the manual gearbox from
its range, but it would appear
likely, given its absence from
the Huracán’s launch line-up.
The gearbox sends drive
to the road through an
electronically controlled all-
wheel drive system. A switch
on the steering wheel allows
the driver to configure one
of three dynamic modes —
Strada, Sport and Corsa — to
deliver a drive ranging from
“traction orientated” to
“extreme performaance”.
The system adjusts
the engine and gearbox maps
and the four-wheel drive
system as part of an “extensive
modification in the road
behaviour of the Huuracán”,
according to Lamboorghini.
Carbon-ceramicc brakes
feature on the stanndard
specification, whilee a
variable steering syystem,
called Lamborghinii
Dynamic Steering, and a
magnetorheologicaal adjustable
damping set-up cann be found
on the options list.
The styling is derived from
the larger Aventador, including
its profile, sharp edges, LED
light designs and an engine
cover with hexagonal detailing.
The high-quality interior
of the Huracán is a big step
forward from the Gallardo. It
features Nappa leather and
Alcantara trim and upholstery,
a new 12.3in TFT instrument a new12 3in TFT instrument
display, increased multimedia
options and a more luxurious
feel. A full suite of customisable
options will be offered.
The Huracán will enter
production on a newly
equipped production line at
Lamborghini’s Sant’Agata
HQ in the spring. UK prices
have yet to be revealed, but an
increase over the £158,976 increase over the £158 976
Gallardo LP560-4 is expected.
As with the Gallardo,
expect a whole host of extra
variants of the Huracán to
follow, including an open-top
Spyder, a higher-performance
Superleggera and entry-level
rear-wheel-drive versions.
MARK TISSHAW
L AMB OR GHI N I HUR ACAN L P 61 0- 4 Mc L AR E N 1 2 C F E R R AR I 45 8 I TAL I A L AMB OR GHI N I G AL L AR DO L P 5 60- 4
P r i c e £ 1 6 5, 000 £ 1 7 6, 00 £ 1 7 8, 5 2 6 £ 1 5 8, 97 6
0 - 6 2 mp h 3 . 2 s e c 3 . 3 s e c 3 . 4 s e c 3 . 7 s e c
To p s p e e d 2 0 2 mp h + 2 0 4 mp h 2 0 2 mp h 2 0 2 mp h
E c o n o my 2 2 . 6mp g 24 . 2 mp g 2 1 . 2 mp g 1 9. 2 mp g
C O2 2 9 0g / k m 2 7 9 g / k m 3 07 g / k m 3 51 g / k m
Ke r b we i g h t 1 4 2 2 k g ( d r y) 1 3 41 k g ( d r y) 1 3 8 0 k g ( d r y) 1 41 0k g (
E n g i n e V 1 0, 5 2 0 4 c c , p e t r o l V8, 3 7 9 9 c c , t wi n - t u r b o, p e t r o l V8, 4 4 9 9 c c , p e t r o l V 1 0, 5 2 0 4 c c , p e t r o l
P o we r 6 02 b h p a t 8 2 5 0 r p m 61 6b h p a t 7 5 00 r p m 5 6 2 b h p a t 9 000 r p m 5 5 2 b h p a t 8000 r p m
To r q u e 41 3 l b f t a t 6 5 00 r p m 4 4 3 l b f t a t 3 000 - 7 000 r p m 3 9 8l b f t a t 6 000 r p m 3 9 8l b f t a t 6 5 00 r p m
Ge a r b ox 7- s p d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o 7- s p d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o 7- s p d d u a l - c l u t c h a u t o 6 - s p d a u t o ma t e d ma n u a l
( e s t ) £
3
2
2
2
0
h
g
m m
d r y)
0 4 c c p e t r o l
The Huracán comes with
a dual-clutch automatic
gearbox as standard
THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 13
The cabin has a more
luxurious finish and more
kit than the Gallardo
Electric Audi R8 back on track
AUDI HAS BACKTRACKED
on its decision to cancel
production of the R8 e-tron
and will now push ahead
with small-scale production
of the zero-emissions EV as
part of a number of changes
made to its R&D operations
since the arrival of its new
head, Ulrich Hackenberg.
Citing recent advances
in lithium ion batteries that
have increased the e-tron’s
range from an original
134 miles to close to 250
miles, insiders suggest the
car will now go into limited
production during the latter
half of 2014.
The rear-wheel-drive
R8 e-tron is set to act as a
halo model for a number of
smaller and more affordable
battery-powered Audis.
Among the changes made
to the R8 e-tron to enhance
its suitability for production
is new lithium ion battery
technology featuring
an alternative chemical
process and, it is claimed,
greater energy density than
the original 48.6kWh unit.
The new car is expected
to share the styling of the
new, second-generation R8,
itself due to be launched
with conventional petrol
engines next year. The
R8 e-tron was conceived
from the outset around
the second-gen R8’s new
aluminium and carbonfibre
body structure in a move
that resulted in prototypes
with a 1780kg kerb weight.
GREG KABLE
THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 13
The cabin has a more
luxurious finish and more
kit than the Gallardo
Electric Audi R8 back on track
AUDI HAS BACKTRACKED
on its decision to cancel
production of the R8 e-tron
and will now push ahead
with small-scale production
of the zero-emissions EV as
part of a number of changes
made to its R&D operations
since the arrival of its new
head, Ulrich Hackenberg.
Citing recent advances
in lithium ion batteries that
have increased the e-tron’s
range from an original
134 miles to close to 250
miles, insiders suggest the
car will now go into limited
production during the latter
half of 2014.
The rear-wheel-drive
R8 e-tron is set to act as a
halo model for a number of
smaller and more affordable
battery-powered Audis.
Among the changes made
to the R8 e-tron to enhance
its suitability for production
is new lithium ion battery
technology featuring
an alternative chemical
process and, it is claimed,
greater energy density than
the original 48.6kWh unit.
The new car is expected
to share the styling of the
new, second-generation R8,
itself due to be launched
with conventional petrol
engines next year. The
R8 e-tron was conceived
from the outset around
the second-gen R8’s new
aluminium and carbonfibre
body structure in a move
that resulted in prototypes
with a 1780kg kerb weight.
GREG KABLE
14 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
Fresh look for luxurious
Mercedes’ new 3-series rival is bigger and lighter than before, with S-class tech and high-quality cabin
M
ercedes-Benz has given
its all-new, fourth-
generation C-class
saloon a dramatic new
look inside and out, a 100kg
weight reduction and a more
efficient engine line-up that
includes a model with sub-
100g/km CO2 emissions for
the first time in the fiercely
contested compact premium
saloon segment.
The new model, Mercedes’
global best-seller, is seen here
officially for the first time
ahead of its public debut at
the Detroit show in January
and a planned arrival in UK
showrooms in June. Prices are
set to rise marginally over the
outgoing model.
Other features of the new
W205-generation C-class
include the option of air
suspension (another segment
first), a more agile chassis,
greater use of aluminium in
its structure and a whole suite
of advanced driver assistance
systems shared with the
recently launched new S-class.
Underpinning the C-class is
SLIPPERY SHAPE
The drag coefficient for the
C220 Bluetec Eco model is
a best-in-class 0.24.
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25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 15
new C-class
What else is in the C-class range?
the new lightweight modular
rear-drive MRA (Mercedes
Rear-drive Architecture)
platform that will underpin
all core rear-drive models
from the C-class and above,
including saloons and SUVs.
This new platform will be
rolled out across a C-class line-
up that will extend to include
estate, coupé and AMG variants
as well as a new cabriolet
version and 4Matic all-wheel-
drive models that will be sold in
the UK for the first time from
the end of next year.
The new C-class is 4686mm
long, 1810mm wide and 1442mm
high, the length and width
growing by 95mm and 40mm
respectively over the current
car and the height reducing by
5mm. The wheelbase is up by
80mm to 2840mm.
The increase in size is due to
the recent arrival in Mercedes’
line-up of the CLA, a model
that closely matches the
current C-class in length. The
fifth-generation C-class has
thus grown longer and wider to
distance itself from the CLA.
Visually, the new C-class
shows a clear family
resemblance to the latest
S-class and recently revised
E-class, as well as the smaller
A-class family. Following
Mercedes’ ‘sensual purity’
design theme, the fundamental
classic rear-drive saloon
proportions, including a long
bonnet and set-back cabin,
remain, but the Mercedes
design team, headed by Gorden
Wagener, have reduced the
overhangs, raised the
beltline, narrowed the
glasshouse and added
sculpted, flowing lines
and surfaces that
taper back to give a
more classic profile
inspired by the ◊
HIDDEN FROM VIEW
The C-class has no visible exterior antenna. It is now housed in
the mirror on the passenger door (driver’s side in RHD models).
SAFETY FIRST
Myriad safety options — including
a level of autonomous driving at
low speeds — are borrowed from the
S-class and use a series of cameras.
THE FOURTH-GENERATION C-class line-up will
be the model’s largest yet. The saloon’s arrival on
UK shores in June will be followed by an estate
version in the autumn. The C63 AMG is set to
arrive at the end of the year, complete with a new
twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 engine. Another addition is
the option of four-wheel drive on selected models — a C-class
first for UK buyers. A replacement for the
C-class coupé will follow, most likely
in 2016, and it’s tipped to spawn a
convertible variant for the first time.
Still unconfirmed beyond that — but
looking increasingly likely, according
to insiders — is a liftback version to
rival the BMW 3-series GT. MT
Riding in the new C-class
16 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
∆ Streamliner models from the
1920s and 1930s. This ‘soft’
treatment, which includes front
and rear ends that avoid sharp
edges and creases by curving
into the car’s sides, contributes
to the C-class’s class-best drag
coefficient of 0.24.
The overall result is a more
modern-looking C-class that
Mercedes hopes will appeal
to a much younger audience
without alienating the more
traditional C-class buyer.
The new look for the modern,
luxurious interior is bolder
still than that of the exterior.
Its ‘wraparound’ dashboard
design is derived from that
found in the A-class family and
the new S-class and features
three central circular air vents,
greatly reduced switchgear
on the centre console and
improved overall fit and finish.
A free-standing screen
on top of the dashboard
displays key information and
infotainment options and
is controlled by a standard
rotary controller, or an optional
touchpad that mimics the
controls of a touchscreen
smartphone.
In the rear, the longer
wheelbase means back-seat
passengers get 25mm more
legroom, while the increase in
overall width further boosts
space. Boot capacity is up by
five litres over the outgoing
C-class, to 480 litres.
The structure of the new
C-class is now almost 50 per
cent aluminium, contributing
to an overall weight reduction
of up to 100kg, model to model.
This not only helps to reduce
fuel consumption but also
improves strength, ride and
handling characteristics and
safety performance.
The new C-class’s chassis
has been tuned to offer a more
sporty and agile drive without
compromising ride comfort.
Stiffness has been increased by
around 20 per cent.
The suspension consists of
a four-link set-up at the front
and a five-link arrangement
at the rear. A steel suspension
system with selective damping
is fitted as standard in three
different versions, including a
sports set-up lowered by 15mm
in AMG Line models.
The big news, however,
is the option of AirMatic air
suspension, the first time
it has been offered in this
class. This fully adaptive, self-
levelling system offers four
driving modes, from Comfort
to Sport+, or allows the driver
to tailor his own preferences
in the Individual mode. The
steering set-up, meanwhile,
is a speed-sensitive electro-
mechanical system.
All engines in the C-class
range are Euro 6 emissions
compliant, come with stop-
start as standard and offer up
to 20 per cent better economy
than the previous line-up but
with no loss of performance.
The engine range at launch
includes a 168bhp 2.1-litre
turbodiesel in the C220
Bluetec, a 154bhp 1.6 petrol in
the C180 and a 181bhp 2.0-litre
petrol in the C200.
A series of other engines
will be rolled out soon after
launch, including a new 1.6-litre
turbodiesel co-developed
with Renault. It will be offered
with power outputs of 113bhp
and 134bhp and will see the
C-class’s CO
2 emissions dip
below 100g/km in its most
frugal form. Other variants
of the familiar OM651 2.1-litre
turbodiesel will also follow, with
power outputs ranging from
113bhp to 201bhp.
The launch petrol line-up
MERCEDES HAS GIVEN
Autocar an exclusive ride
in what’s expected to be
the biggest-selling C-class
variant, the C220 Bluetec,
alongside development chief
Michael Kraemer.
First impressions? It
has grown, most notably in
length, a move necessitated
by the arrival of the CLA in
Mercedes’ line-up. Despite
the light disguise covering
the car, it’s clear that the new
C-class has been styled to
resemble the larger S-class.
Inside, you’re immediately
aware of Mercedes’ efforts to
provide the new C-class with
a more contemporary look.
Allied to a big lift in perceived
quality, it gives the car a more
upmarket and luxurious air.
As we head out on to public
roads, it is the pervading
smoothness, both in the
operation of the engine and
the ride, that hints at a higher
class than that in which the
new Mercedes competes.
The C220’s four-cylinder
engine delivers a good deal
of torque in the first couple
of thousand revs, providing
it with impressive low-end
urgency away from traffic
lights and through the gears.
Subjectively, it feels faster
than its claimed 0-62mph
time of 8.1sec.
The engine’s most
impressive facet, however, is
its ability to propel the C220
at typical motorway speeds
in a totally relaxed manner.
Longer gearing clearly plays
a crucial role, but isolation of
engine noise from the cabin is
also excellent.
The feeling as we leave the
autobahn behind and begin
heading along narrow back
roads is one of added agility.
The car we’re in is fitted with
AirMatic air suspension,
which will be an option on all
models sold in the UK. Even
on badly rutted surfaces, the
ride is superbly controlled.
Refinement is another
strength, with little hint of
tyre slap or tread roar on
coarse and uneven asphalt.
Low levels of wind roar and
buffeting make for hushed
progress at all but breakneck
speeds, but overall, the lift in
refinement is arguably the
single biggest improvement
over the outgoing C-class.
Our next outing in the
fourth-generation C-class
will be a proper drive. Until
then, our initial impressions
are of a smoother, quieter
and more comfortable car,
with hints of added agility
and improved responses.
In short, it appears to be a
better prospect in every key
area than today’s C-class, but
it needs to be when the BMW
3-series is among its rivals.
GREG KABLE
will be expanded with further
versions of the M274 engine
already familiar from its
transverse application in the
A-class. In the C-class, it will
be offered with power outputs
of up to 235bhp. A V6 petrol
engine is also planned.
The C-class will be offered
in a C300 Bluetec Hybrid
version, which mixes a 2.1-litre
turbodiesel engine with an
electric motor and comes with
a provisional 72.4mpg claimed
economy figure. Also planned
from 2015 is a plug-in petrol-
electric drivetrain in the C350.
Two transmissions are
offered: a six-speed manual
or seven-speed dual-clutch
automatic. A nine-speed
automatic has also been
rumoured for introduction
further down the line. Rear-
wheel drive is standard, with
all-wheel drive being offered
later in the year on selected
C-classes for the first time.
A whole host of technologies
derived from the S-class is
also being offered on the
C-class. These include a
level of autonomous driving
at low speeds and in traffic
jams, along with drowsiness
detection, steering assistance,
lane assistance and numerous
parking assistance systems.
MARK TISSHAW
REAR ROOM
Legroom for
rear passengers
has increased
by around
25mm over the
previous C-class.
The cabin is
also wider, and
an optional
panoramic roof
makes it feel
airier still.
THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 17
ALL THE TRIMMINGS
On the interior options list
are various wood and metal
trims, plus ambient lighting.
All C-class models will be
fitted with an electronic
parking brake as standard.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
Infotainment functions include video and audio playback, full internet connectivity
when stationary, live traffic updates and Google search among other apps.
A NICE TOUCH
Optional touchpad works like a smartphone’s touchscreen.
As well as controlling basic multimedia functions, it allows
text input and can recognise handwriting in any language.
HEADS UP
A head-up display is offered as an
option on the C-class for the first
time. Key speed and navigation info
can be displayed here.
VIEWING FIGURES
A 7in screen is standard, with
an 8.4in one fitted should
the buyer opt for the Comand
Online infotainment package
and its suite of functionality.
THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 19
Steve Cropley
MONDAY
Last big trip of the year is one
of the best. For months I’ve
been keen to clap eyes on the
new Ford Mustang, the first
pony car in 50 years to have
been fully engineered in right-
hand drive so it can come
officially to the UK. Today it
was revealed simultaneously
in Barcelona and three other
cities around the world.
Of course it’s never going
to be a major seller here, so I’d
understand if you reckoned
my excitement a bit overdone.
But I was 15 when the hugely
influential and desirable
Mustang burst on to the market,
transforming the fortunes of
a struggling Ford by selling in
thousands on its first day.
Since then we’ve strolled
through our lives together,
the ’Stang and I, our ups and
downs often coinciding.
I’m delighted to report that
the icon is now back to its best.
Its modern but unmistakable
shape starts off looking, well,
challenging in a few areas
(flanks, rear side windows),
but by the time you’ve spent a
few hours around it, it seems
just right. The new interior is
perfectly judged: correct for the
car but far classier in design and
materials quality than before.
To underscore the importance
of the European debut, the firm
sent Bill Ford himself, looking
more relaxed and confident
than ever. That he attended
the Spanish event rather than
Dearborn’s is no small matter;
old Henry’s great-grandson is
a prominent Mustang collector
(“I have more than 10 Mustangs,
but less than 20, including
quite a few ‘number’ ones, and
I drive ’em all the time”), so you
wouldn’t have blamed him for
staying at home.
WEDNESDAY
Out and about in the new Lexus
IS300h, a really interesting car.
It’s a Hybrid Synergy model,
of course, so naturally it’s soft,
quiet, vibe-free and stepless
despite the total powertrain
providing 320bhp when electric
motors and four-cylinder petrol
engine are percolating together.
The IS has all the right stuff
– sporty seats, quick steering,
grippy chassis, good economy,
interesting instrumentation,
controls that are different yet not
confusing – but it’s still tough to
define its precise mission. Which
is it: a limo or a sports saloon?
Those who enjoy the car will
say this doesn’t matter, but for
enthusiasts like you and me, car
selection is a cerebral process
and we know it does.
FRIDAY
Funny to be writing in an issue
officially timed for Christmas
Day, given that by the time you
read it, both you and we will
already have been away from
the coalface for several days,
enjoying not only the comforts
of home and family but also
possibly, intermittently, those
weird periods staggered through
the British Christmas break
when the roads are deserted.
Seems to me that everyone
travels at once at Christmas. On
Boxing Day, for instance, we
all decamp to visit relatives and
the roads are packed early until
late. But at other times they’re
deserted, almost as traffic-free as
the few hours when everyone’s
watching a World Cup match.
Wherever you are, all at
Autocar hope you greatly enjoy
the break. Because of your
steadfast support, the auld mag
has ended its 118th year in a
far healthier state than the vast
majority of printed periodicals.
Meanwhile, its website has been
expanding on a scale we’d have
said was impossible a couple of
years ago. It’s an amazing story
and we send profuse thanks for
your help in writing it.
SUNDAY
Wonderful homeward thrash
at 7.30am down the M5 from
a shindig in the Midlands,
top down in our long-term
Jaguar F-type with the
temperature hovering around
4 to 5deg C and the heating
full on. Kept thinking what a
privilege it was to be sitting so
comfortably in this terrific car,
sighting the world over such
an elegant bonnet while my
bum was lightly poached by the
seat heater and the breeze was
chilling my cheekbones and
ruffling my barnet – and all of
it with home just a few more
enjoyable miles ahead.
I was 15 when the hugely
influential Ford Mustang
burst on to the market
A week in cars Meeting a modern take on an old friend; season’s greetings
The Lexus IS300h doesn’t seem to know its place
Cosseting F-type warms both the body and soul
Steve reckons
the new Mustang
hits the spot
[email protected] @StvCr
A step in the wrong direction
Ford showed its Fiesta-based
SUV, the EcoSport, the day
after the Mustang, to rather
less acclaim. It’s no bad car
but it definitely lacked the
star quality we’ve come to
expect. In fact, it’s the first
new-gen Ford to be noticeably
compromised in quality
and looks by the One Ford
mission. Will Henry’s next
all-new model be better, or
is this the new standard?
CONCEPT HINTS AT NEW XC90
Volvo is paving the way for the introduction of a
new XC90 with a concept at next month’s Detroit
show. The Concept XC Coupe’s fundamental
design traits will be carried over to the XC90
when it’s revealed towards the end of next year.
SKODA TOUGHENS UP OCTAVIA
The Skoda Octavia Scout will be launched in
Europe next summer. Previewed in this sketch,
the Scout is based on the Octavia estate and will
have optional four-wheel drive. New bumpers
and body cladding give it a more rugged look.
Ferrari drop-top goes turbo
F12-derived styling and V8 turbo power or Maranello’s Cali ornia replacement; set or Geneva reveal
F
errari’s replacement for
the California is in the final
stages of development
ahead of a launch at the
Geneva show in the spring.
The model will usher in
turbocharging to mainstream
Ferraris, with the new car set
to be powered by a 552bhp
version of a new Ferrari-
designed and built twin-turbo
3.8-litre V8 engine first used
in the Maserati Quattroporte
and Ghibli models.
Test mules indicate that
there is still work to be done on
the California replacement (its
real name is still unknown), but
Autocar understands Ferrari
dealers are already taking
pre-orders for the model with
deliveries scheduled for May,
just two months after its debut
at the Geneva show.
The styling of the coupé-
convertible is understood to
have been heavily influenced
by the F12, particularly at the
front, although the shape of
the headlights are said to be
borrowed from the 458 Italia.
At the rear of the car, the
height has been reduced
slightly, although this visual
effect is apparently heightened
on the production car by some
clever lines. The retractable
hard-top roof remains.
For the interior, the cabin
is also said to have had
an overhaul. A new-look
dashboard and a completely
new multimedia system are
among the upgrades.
The 552bhp, direct-injection
turbo V8 is adapted from
its 523bhp form in the
Quattroporte. Our spy
photographer reported a
louder exhaust note than that
of the normally aspirated V8
found in the current California.
A V6 engine option was
understood to be under
consideration at one stage,
but plans for this have now
been dropped.
Ferrari wants to reduce
output of the California
replacement by around 500
units per year as part of its
plans to limit production to
improve exclusivity but without
harming profits.
Once order books officially
open at Geneva, customers
are likely to have to wait more
than a year for delivery, with
initial production preserved
for pre-orders.
The price of the California
replacement is understood to
be the same as the £152,154
of the current model.
MARK TISSHAW
FULL-BODY test mules of Land
Rover’s upcoming Freelander
replacement have hit the roads
around the firm’s Gaydon
headquarters in the Midlands.
Previously, mules have used
a test chassis under an Evoque
body. But the new mules give
the first clues to the shape of
the Freelander replacement,
which is due later next year.
The Freelander name will
not be carried over. Instead, it
will be renamed Discovery and
become part of an extended
Discovery family.
The mules show a sportier
profile and more rakish roofline
than the current Freelander’s.
Insiders who have seen the car
report that it borrows some
styling cues from the Range
Rover range, including Evoque-
style headlights and Range
Rover Sport lights at the rear.
The new car is based on
the same LR-MS platform as
the Evoque. It was developed
from the Ford EUCD platform
that underpins the current
Freelander, although Land
Rover says 90 per cent of the
parts are new.
As with the Range Rover
Sport, a seven-seat version of
the Freelander replacement
is set to be offered, with two
optional rear seats folding into
the boot. A seven-seat option
is crucial in bolstering the car’s
appeal in the United States.
Prices are set to start
from around £24,000, but
plusher versions will also be
offered, with the reported
range-topper getting a price
tag in excess of £40,000.
Range Rover looks for Freelander replacement
New convertible
uses a 552bhp
twin-turbo V8
SPY SHOTS
CALIFORNIA ITALY
SPY SHOTS
FREELANDER GAYDON
20 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
F12-derived styling and V8 turbo power for Maranello’s California replacement; set for Geneva reveal
errari’s replacement for
the California is in the final
stages of development
ahead of a launch at the
Geneva show in the spring.
The model will usher in
turbocharging to mainstream
Ferraris, with the new car set
to be powered by a 552bhp
version of a new Ferrari-
designed and built twin-turbo
3.8-litre V8 engine first used
in the Maserati Quattroporte
and Ghibli models.
Test mules indicate that
there is still work to be done on
the California replacement (its
real name is still unknown), but
Autocar understands Ferrari
dealers are already taking
pre-orders for the model with
deliveries scheduled for May,
just two months after its debut
at the Geneva show.
The styling of the coupé-
convertible is understood to
have been heavily influenced
by the F12, particularly at the
front, although the shape of
the headlights are said to be
borrowed from the 458 Italia.
At the rear of the car, the
height has been reduced
slightly, although this visual
effect is apparently heightened
on the production car by some
clever lines. The retractable
hard-top roof remains.
For the interior, the cabin
is also said to have had
an overhaul. A new-look
dashboard and a completely
new multimedia system are
among the upgrades.
The 552bhp, direct-injection
turbo V8 is adapted from
its 523bhp form in the
Quattroporte. Our spy
photographer reported a
louder exhaust note than that
of the normally aspirated V8
found in the current California.
A V6 engine option was
understood to be under
consideration at one stage,
but plans for this have now
been dropped.
Ferrari wants to reduce
output of the California
replacement by around 500
units per year as part of its
plans to limit production to
improve exclusivity but without
harming profits.
Once order books officially
open at Geneva, customers
are likely to have to wait more
than a year for delivery, with
initial production preserved
for pre-orders.
The price of the California
replacement is understood to
be the same as the £152,154
of the current model.
MARK TISSHAW
New convertible
uses a 552bhp
twin-turbo V8
SPY SHOTS
CALIFORNIAITALY
THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 21
E
ither you’re here or
you’re not.” That’s what
Australia’s treasurer, Joe
Hockey, told Holden two
weeks ago, when the company
said it hadn’t decided whether it
was committed to building cars
in Australia or not.
Holden has absorbed
$A1.8 billion (£990 million)
in subsidies during the past
decade and this year sought
more cash to secure the next
generation of Aussie-built GM
cars. The government said no,
Holden hesitated and Hockey
was fuming. “If I was running a
business and I was committed
to that business in Australia,
I wouldn’t be saying I haven’t
made any decision about its
future,” he said.
The Australian opposition
said Hockey’s reaction “dared
Holden to leave”. A day later,
Holden said it was leaving.
When production of the
current Holden Commodore
finishes in 2017, then, that’ll be
it for Holden manufacturing in
Australia. Holden will join Ford
and Mitsubishi in pulling out
of making cars in a country that
has the combined difficulties of
a strong currency and a small
local market. Only Toyota is left
committed to it. For now.
Holden’s downfall is a failure
to sell enough cars in its home
market. In 2002 it sold 80,000
Commodores, but a decline
in sales meant just 30,000
Commodores found homes
last year. With a break-even of
40,000, this decision has been a
long time coming.
When I visited Holden
and Holden Special Vehicles
(HSV, more on which in a
moment) in July, the stock
answer to questions about
the future was an honest “we
don’t know”. Now we do, and
although the announcement
was a disappointment to many,
presumably it surprised no one.
That Holden has soldiered on
this long is because it has much
to offer. It employs 3500 people
at its plants in Victoria and
Adelaide and it also has a fine
test track at Lang Lang, near
Melbourne, and some talented
engineers. These engineers and
the test track will go, along with
Holden’s status as GM’s rear-
drive specialist. Pity. It’s good
at that. Holden developed the
current Chevrolet Camaro.
Then there’s HSV, which
Tom Walkinshaw founded.
It makes hot Commodore
derivatives, with heady engines
and honed dynamics. HSV’s
latest ‘Gen-F’ is a belter. We
know it as the Vauxhall VXR8.
HSV is independent but was
given access to Holden’s cars
years ahead of launch, so when
there was a new Commodore,
an HSV landed at the same time.
HSV might still tune Holdens, of
course, but it’s hard to imagine
the same relationship when the
cars will be imported. Still, HSV
owns a V8 Supercar race team
and has other business interests,
so it’s versatile and has a future.
Holden isn’t so lucky.
Holden will join
Mitsubishi and
Ford in pulling
out of Australia.
Only Toyota is
left. For now
[email protected] @matty_prior
The independent
HSV, and its race
team, will remain
Holden failed to
sell enough cars in
its home market
THIS IS THE clearest sighting
yet of a test mule for the new
Jaguar SUV, due in 2016. The
model, which will be Jaguar’s
first SUV, was previewed by
the C-X17 concept at the
Frankfurt motor show.
Under the adapted XF
bodywork on this early
engineering mule is Jaguar’s
new iQ[Al] (for ‘intelligent
aluminium architecture’)
platform. It underpinned the
C-X17 concept, but its first
production application will be
on Jaguar’s BMW 3-series-
rivalling saloon, due in 2015.
The production SUV is set to
be smaller than the 4.72m-long
C-X17, something backed up by
how big the XF body looks in
proportion to the chassis.
HYUNDAI’S NEW CONCEPT,
the Intrado, previews a
future in which its cars will
be “lighter, cleaner and
more efficient”, according
to Hyundai-Kia design chief
Peter Schreyer. It also points
to the next generation of
Hyundai styling.
Schreyer revealed a
sketch of the concept, which
is thought to be a small
crossover similar in size
to the Nissan Juke. It will
be unveiled at the Geneva
motor show next March.
The Intrado uses a smaller
version of the hydrogen
fuel cell powertrain found
in the ix35 FCEV, but it
isn’t based on an existing
Hyundai platform.
Instead, the experimental
vehicle is built around a
lightweight structure using
construction processes
and materials that Hyundai
says “have the potential
to change the way cars are
constructed in the future”.
The name ‘Intrado’ comes
from the underside of an
aircraft’s wing, specifically
the shape that allows the
wing to produce lift.
The Intrado was styled by
Hyundai’s European design
team and will be the first car
to feature the next evolution
of Hyundai’s ‘fluidic
sculpture’ design language.
“The Intrado is part of
where I want to take Hyundai
design,” said Schreyer.
“But the interesting thing
is that it isn’t just an
expression of new styling.
With the hydrogen fuel
cell powertrain, it is also a
research project.”
Jag’s SUV reveals
more secrets
Intrado previews
Hyundai’s future
SPY SHOT
NEW SUV GAYDON
OFFICIAL
PICTURE
“
Matt Prior
Tester’s notes Holden holds on no longer
SPOTLIGHT
It’s been a good year for the UK’s
new car sales. Jay Nagley looks at
why and finds out who has made
the most of a buoyant market
W
hen the final numbers for the 2013 UK
car market come in next week, they
are likely to show a growth in overall
sales to 2.25 million, a rise of exactly
10 per cent year on year. The two factors that
traditionally drive the growth in car sales —
house prices and unemployment figures —
were both positive last year and there was
an additional one-off boost from Payment
Protection Insurance compensation payouts.
The latter factor will not be repeated next
year (unless the banks are forced to pay out
for yet another scandal), so the market is
likely to stay flat over the next 12 months.
Within the UK market, the big trend was
fragmentation. The two biggest segments
(superminis and small family cars) both grew
by 12 per cent — about the same rate as the
whole market — but some of the smaller
segments grew more. Both city cars (up 16
per cent) and SUVs (19 per cent) grew rapidly,
while the traditional upper-medium car really
suffered, with a 28 per cent drop in sales. In a
couple of years Ford’s principal large family
car may well be the Kuga, not the Mondeo.
The other form of fragmentation was the
growth of both premium brands and value
brands. For example, Audi and Skoda both
had excellent years, but mainstream brands
simply fought to maintain their share as best
they could. What the premium and the value
brands have in common is that they clearly
stand for something: one is for prestige,
the other is for value. The problem for mid-
market brands is carving out a similarly clear
identity. Some have managed it — Ford, for
example, is identified with driving dynamics
— but many have no strong image at a
manufacturer level and have to rely instead
on the strengths of individual models.
MARKET SHARE
2013
2.48%
2012
2.65%
HONDA
MARKET SHARE
2013
3.42%
2012
3.63%
HYUNDAI
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.72%
2012
0.69%
JAGUAR
22 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
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WINNERS
& LOSERS
2013
ALFA ROMEO
Talk of selling 30,000 cars a
year in the UK is long gone;
sales are now below 6000.
The 4C will be a wonderful halo
model for the brand, but it’s a
shame there is nothing to bask
in the light it will generate.
ASTON MARTIN
With market share halving
since 2007, Aston’s new
investor has a lot of work to do.
The recent technology tie-up
with AMG will also be crucial;
Aston is simply not big enough
to generate the R&D budget
it requires to develop new
technology by itself.
AUDI
Likely to finish this year as the
UK’s fourth-largest brand.
The key fob du jour, as Audis
are currently perceived as the
coolest of the premium brands,
if not always the best to drive.
BENTLEY
Sales are stable but at a lower
level than before the crash,
when Continental GTs were
ubiquitous and market share
was around 0.08 per cent.
BMW
A quiet year by BMW standards,
but still on target to sell over
130,000 cars a year. It has been
overtaken by Audi thanks to
the B-segment A1; BMW leaves
that segment to Mini.
CHEVROLET
The emerging brand that
stubbornly refused to emerge.
With sales around one-sixth of
Hyundai or Kia’s levels, GM has
decided to pull the plug.
CHRYSLER
The ‘rebadged Lancia’ strategy
has failed utterly. If Jeep can be
turned around, will Chrysler be
quietly dropped from the UK?
CITROEN
Compared with Peugeot and
Renault, Citroën has been a
success story in recent years.
The DS3 has showed that
Citroëns can be sold on the
quality of the car rather than
the size of the discount.
DACIA
The best first-year result ever
recorded by a new brand. Base
models have stunning headline
prices, but Laureate models
are less of a bargain.
FERRARI
The most stable of all the
supercar manufacturers.
Has sailed through the crisis,
with record sales this year of
around 700 units.
FIAT
The Panda, 500 and 500L
now account for more than 85
per cent of Fiat’s sales. The
intention is that larger cars
will be left to Alfa Romeo, but
that’s like sending an unarmed
man into battle.
FORD
Its share is stable, which, for a
market leader under ferocious
attack, is not a bad result. It
seems like the worst is over
for Ford in Europe. Losses are
reducing and it should be back
in the black by 2015.
HONDA
Honda’s expected recovery in
2014 is based not on a new car
but a new engine. The 1.6 iDTEC
diesel enables the company to
effectively re-enter the family
car and SUV segments.
HYUNDAI
‘Hyundai in static market share
shock.’ Hyundai isn’t declining;
it’s just drawing breath for
its next assault on the UK car
market. The company plans to
get past five per cent, and few
would bet against it.
INFINITI
Infiniti said at launch it was
only targeting around 1000 UK
sales per year, but it has not
reached half that number. With
three German premium brands
plus JLR, British buyers just
don’t see the need.
JAGUAR
Land Rover profits will be
used to transform Jaguar into
a company big enough to be
viable. Ford tried exactly the
same thing with disastrous
results, but the new plan is far
more plausible.
JEEP
Next year is positively Jeep’s
last chance to re-establish
itself in the UK with the
new Cherokee and Fiat ◊
END-OF-TERM REPORTS
MA
3.42%
2012
3.63%
SPOTLIGHT
It’s been a good year for the UK’s
new car sales. Jay Nagleylooks at y
why and finds out who has made
the most of a buoyant market
hen the final numbers for the 2013 UK
car market come in next week, they
are likely to show a growth in overall
sales to 2.25 million, a rise of exactly
10 per cent year on year. The two factors that
per cent) and SUVs (19 per cent) grew rapidly,
while the traditional upper-medium car really
suffered, with a 28 per cent drop in sales. In a
couple of years Ford’s principal large family
car may well be the Kuga, not the Mondeo.
MA
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.72%
2012
0
JAGUAR
ARKET SHARE
2013
342%
ARKET SHARE
2013
2.48%
2012
2.65%
HONDA
2012
0.69%
HYUNDAI
MARKET SHARE
2013
5.88%
2012
6.24%
BMW
THIS WEEK
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.25%
2012
0.34%
ALFA ROMEO
MARKET SHARE
2013
3.53%
2012
3.60%
CITROEN
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.71%
2012
NA
DACIA
MARKET SHARE
2013
2.66%
2012
2.50%
FIAT
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.53%
2012
0.66%
CHEVROLET
MARKET SHARE
2013
13.80%
2012
13.79%
FORD
IT WAS A GOOD
YEAR TO BE…
Selling SUVs
Market share passed
11 per cent, making the
SUV sector the market’s
third-biggest.
Selling Japanese cars
After a terrible decade, the
falling yen made Japanese
imports more competitive.
IT WAS A BAD
YEAR TO BE…
Selling premium brands
without a German or
British badge
Volvo, Lexus and Infiniti
all had a difficult year.
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 23
MARKET SHA
2013
ALFA ROME
RE
RE MARKET SHARE
2013
071%
DACIA
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.53%
2012
0.66%
CHEVROLET
After a terrible decade, the
falling yen made Japanese
imports more competitive.
IT WAS A BAD
YEAR TO BE…
Selling premium brands
without a German or
British badge
Volvo, Lexus and Infiniti
all had a difficult year.
MARKET SHARE
2013
6.37%
2012
6.05%
AUDI
MARKET SHARE
2013
5.88%
2012
6.24%
THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25
∆ 500X-based ‘baby Jeep’. If
they fail, Jeep will become the
Lancia of off-roaders.
KIA
Like Hyundai, Kia paused this
year following an avalanche of
new models. However, it won’t
stay at that level for long. It,
too, wants to get to 100,000
cars a year in the UK (around
five per cent market share).
LAND ROVER
Overall share is not relevant.
Land Rover simply wants
to dominate the off-road
segments in which it operates
and make some of the best
profit margins in the global car
industry. Tick both boxes.
LEXUS
Lexus is in a chicken-and-egg
situation. Low sales mean it
makes no financial sense to
orientate its design for Europe,
but it can’t sell in decent
numbers here until it does.
LOTUS
The good news is that it still
exists, and a recent £10 million
grant from the UK government
will help. Owners are still to
decide if Lotus is about purist
enjoyment (see the Elise) or
about fighting Porsche (the
Evora suggests not).
MASERATI
Maserati’s expansion plans call
for 50,000 cars a year by 2015,
of which a couple of thousand
will come to the UK. This year’s
sales figures aren’t important,
but the figures for next year
certainly will be.
MAZDA
A weaker yen has given Mazda
a new lease of life in the UK,
and it hopes this will continue
with the new Mazda 3. It wants
to get back to the two per cent
share it once had.
MERCEDES-BENZ
Last year’s market share: 4.49
per cent. This year’s market
share: 4.87 per cent. The new
A-class at the bottom of the
range and the stupendous
S-class at the top signals that
Mercedes is back on form.
However, it is now a long way
behind Audi and BMW and is
unlikely to overtake either.
MG
There is much noise about new
models, but precious few sales.
Registrations have actually
halved since last year — not
ideal when you’re part-way
through launching a new range.
MINI
Relatively stable share shows
the strength of the brand. Mini
buyers in 2013 didn’t mind
that their new car is already
obsolete, as long as it is a Mini.
MITSUBISHI
Like Mazda, it is being helped
by the fall in the value of the
yen. However, it is hardly a
coherent range and the line-up
of cars looks pretty random.
NISSAN
The best turnaround story
of the century so far — from
selling Almeras and Primeras
to Jukes and Qashqais in one
generation. Nissan should call
its next model Phoenix.
PEUGEOT
The new 208 supermini is
doing okay, but stronger
competition means it can’t ◊
COUNTING THE FLEET
ASKED TO SAY which car maker has the highest proportion
of fleet sales, most people would probably guess Ford or
Vauxhall. In fact, Ford is a fair way down the table, and
Vauxhall is only fifth. Meanwhile, the German premium
brands sell more than half their cars to fleets, because not
many retail buyers can afford, say, a new BMW 5-series.
Thus it’s hard to say what is the ‘right’ share of fleet sales,
which made up 47.36 per cent of the total market. A share
of over 50 per cent does BMW’s image no harm at all, but
the numbers have to be seen in the context of rivals. What
is normal for that kind of brand? For example, why does
Chrysler, whose Ypsilons and Voyagers are hardly obvious
fleet cars, sell such a high proportion in that market?
Conversely, fleet share can be too low. For example, Jaguar
sells a smaller proportion into fleets than its German rivals.
That’s because its lowest-CO2 model produces 133g/km,
which is just above the tax write-down allowance of 130g/km.
The other big variable is the discount required to secure
any particular fleet share. Precise figures are hard to come
by, but a look at residual values gives a clue. If a model has a
markedly lower trade-in value than a direct rival, bigger fleet
discounts might be a reason why.
Highest fleet sales proportion: Volvo (67 per cent of sales),
Chrysler (57 per cent), BMW (56 per cent), Peugeot (55 per
cent), Vauxhall (55 per cent).
Lowest: Mini (32 per cent), Mazda (33 per cent), Fiat (34 per
cent), Toyota (39 per cent), Renault (40 per cent).
Selected others: VW (53 per cent), Jaguar (43 per cent),
Mercedes (51 per cent), Audi (50 per cent), Ford (50 per cent).
MARKET SHARE
2013
2.45%
2012
2.38%
LAND ROVER
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.40%
2012
0.41%
LEXUS
MARKET SHARE
2013
2.27%
2012
2.51%
MINI
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.39%
2012
0.32%
MITSUBISHI
MARKET SHARE
2013
5.18%
2012
5.25%
NISSAN
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.01%
2012
0.11%
JEEP
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.41%
2012
1.28%
MAZDA
MARKET SHARE
2013
3.23%
2012
3.26%
KIA
MARKET SHARE
2013
4.87%
2012
4.49%
MERCEDES-BENZ
THIS WEEK
MARKET SHARE
2013
2.45%
2012
2.38%
LAND ROVER
MARKET SHARE
2013
040%
LEXUS
5.18%
2012
5.25%
MARKET SHARE
2013
323%
KIA
MARKET SHARE
2013
4.87%
2012
449%
MERCEDES-BENZ
ARKET SHARE
2013
518%
NISSAN
4.49%
MA M
SPOTLIGHT
∆ single-handedly transform
the company the way the 205
did 30 years ago. The future
may lie in a tie-up with Chinese
company Dongfeng.
PORSCHE
Like Land Rover, as long as
each model has a strong share
of its sub-segment and enjoys
big profit margins, the company
is happy. Growth will come
through further integration
with Volkswagen.
RENAULT
Renault might finally have hit
rock bottom, having fallen like
a stone from a seven per cent
market share in 2005. The
Clio and Captur give a solid
foundation, but it’s hard to see
how it can ever get back above
three to four per cent.
ROLLS-ROYCE
The apparent fall this year is
due to rounding a very small
number. Sales are stable and
are likely to rise next year.
SEAT
The Volkswagen Group’s
problem child is starting to
improve, but Seat still needs
to find a clear proposition.
‘German engineering plus Latin
soul’ is still a bit woolly.
SKODA
Skoda is no longer really seen
as a value brand. It’s now more
of a sensible brand, and not a
million miles away from where
Volvo used to be.
SMART
An owner once said that
Smart is the ‘and’ car: you
buy another car and a Smart.
That is a limited market, so
hopes are now pinned on the
co-production with Renault for
the Twingo’s replacement.
SSANGYONG
With the new Korando,
SsangYong may have hoped
for better, but it is extremely
difficult for a new brand to
break through in today’s
super-competitive market.
SUBARU
US sales are soaring and will
hit 400,000 this year; Subaru
is even building a factory in
the US to meet the demand.
Makes you wonder if the piffling
numbers sold in the UK are
really worth the effort.
SUZUKI
The mirror image of Subaru:
surprisingly strong in Europe
(neck and neck with Honda) but
dead in the US. Expect more
small crossovers to build on
Suzuki’s 4x4 heritage.
TOYOTA
The GT86 shows where Toyota
wants to get to, but the latest
Auris shows how far it has to
go. The man at the top wants
dynamic cars, but the message
has to permeate through a
corporation used to making
automotive white goods.
VAUXHALL
The Adam is meant to herald a
new dawn, but the jury is still
out on whether it can have
the impact of the Citroën DS3
or Fiat 500. Vauxhall thinks
(dreams, perhaps?) the next
Corsa can topple the Fiesta.
VOLKSWAGEN
Don’t be misled by a slight fall
this year. Volkswagen has the
unique combination of massive
economies of scale and a semi-
premium brand. That means it
can make its cars for less and
sell them for more.
VOLVO
The Chinese owners hope to
transform the business with
clever new platforms and
engines. The next XC90 will be
key; it’s today’s equivalent of
the 1980s Volvo estate.
26 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
THE LEADER OF THE PACK
FORD IS THE UK market leader, and has been for more than 35 years. However, if you look at the
figures at a group level, Volkswagen is easily number one. The combined market share of Audi, Seat,
Skoda and VW (excluding the partly integrated Porsche), is 19.8 per cent, well ahead of Ford on 13.8
per cent. As individual brands, VW is now third and Audi fifth, while Skoda is just outside the top 10.
At a model level, the Golf is now only just behind the Astra, and the combined sales of the Passat
and CC are neck and neck with the Insignia for leadership in the large family car segment. At a
platform level, VW is now leader in small family cars and large family cars, and is second only to the
Fiesta in the supermini segment.
This reflects the situation across Europe as a whole. The VW Group is now out of sight of the rest
of the pack with 24.9 per cent of the total European market. Excluding the US, VW is now number
one, and is likely to become global leader, even with the US included, within three years.
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.10%
2012
0.10%
SUBARU
MARKET SHARE
2013
2.88%
2012
2.62%
SKODA
MARKET SHARE
2013
11.28%
2012
11.36%
VAUXHALL
MARKET SHARE
2013
4.70%
2012
4.87%
PEUGEOT
no longer really seen no longer
e brand. It’s now more
sible brand, and not a
miles away from where
sed to be.
T
er once said that
s the ‘and’ car: you
other car and a Smart.
a limited market, so
are now pinned on the
duction with Renault for
ingo’s replacement.
GYONG
he new Korando,
gYong may have hoped
tter, but it is extremely
ult for a new brand to
k through in today’s
r-competitive market.
ARU
ales are soaring and will
00,000 this year; Subaru
en building a factory in
US to meet the demand.
es you wonder if the piffling
mbers sold in the UK are
ly worth the effort.
ZUKI
e mirror image of Subaru:
prisingly strong in Europe
ck and neck with Honda) but
ad in the US. Expect more
small crossovers to build on small
Suzuki’s 4x4 heritage.
TOYOTA
The GT86 shows where Toyota
wants to get to, but the latest
Auris shows how far it has to
go. The man at the top wants
dynamic cars, but the message
has to permeate through a
corporation used to making
automotive white goods.
VAUXHALL
The Adam is meant to herald a
new dawn, but the jury is still
out on whether it can have
the impact of the Citroën DS3
or Fiat 500. Vauxhall thinks
(dreams, perhaps?) the next
Corsa can topple the Fiesta.
VOLKSWAGEN
Don’t be misled by a slight fall
this year. Volkswagen has the
unique combination of massive
economies of scale and a semi-
premium brand. That means it
can make its cars for less and
sell them for more.
VOLVO
The Chinese owners hope to
transform the business with
clever new platforms and
engines. The next XC90 will be
key; it’s today’s equivalent of
the 1980s Volvo estate.
ACK
nd has been for more than 35 years. However, if you look at the
en is easily number one. The combined market share of Audi, Seat,
t well ahead of Ford on 13.8
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.10%
2012
0.10%
SUBARU
VAUXHALL
MARKET SHARE
2013
4.70%
2012
4.87%
PEUGEOT
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.35%
2012
0.39%
PORSCHE
VAUXHALL VERSUS FORD
DUNCAN ALDRED, HEAD of Vauxhall, has
publicly said Vauxhall could overtake Ford
in the UK — and not simply by discounting
its way there. Aldred wants to get to the
top on merit, with better products and a
better image. He points to the Insignia as
an example of Vauxhall taking on Ford and
winning. However, elsewhere in the range
there are still big issues, in particular the
dated Corsa, whose replacement next year
is going to have to be a gigantic advance.
Then there is the question of image. Over
the past 15 years Ford’s image has slowly
improved thanks to better products and
smaller discounts. A recent study of non-
premium brands found that Ford was in
second place, almost equidistant between
first-placed VW and middling Vauxhall.
Vauxhall’s plan is to get people talking
about the brand by making bold moves,
such as the lifetime warranty and the
improbable ‘Adam’
moniker. The idea is
that everyone’s ‘car
expert’ friend in the
pub will say Vauxhall
is going places. It also
wants its ads to tap
into the long-term
affection towards the
company — all those
people who owned Astras, or whose dads
owned Cavaliers.
However, the problem with image is
that it always lags reality. Vauxhall has to
make better cars (with smaller discounts)
for many years until the message gets
through. It could overtake Ford eventually,
but planning to do it in just three years is
an ambitious move.
THIS WEEK
MARKET SHARE FOR OTHER MANUFACTURERS
COMPANY 2013 2012
ASTON MARTIN 0.04% 0.05%
BENTLEY 0.05% 0.06%
CHRYSLER 0.12% 0.16%
FERRARI 0.03% 0.03%
INFINITI 0.02% 0.03%
LOTUS 0.01% 0.01%
MASERATI 0.01% 0.02%
MG 0.02% 0.04%
ROLLS-ROYCE 0.01% 0.02%
SSANGYONG 0.03% 0.04%
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 27
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.93%
2012
1.99%
RENAULT
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.46%
2012
1.22%
SUZUKI
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.97%
2012
1.90%
SEAT
MARKET SHARE
2013
3.96%
2012
4.14%
TOYOTA
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.24%
2012
0.27%
SMART
MARKET SHARE
2013
8.54%
2012
8.96%
VOLKSWAGEN
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.43%
2012
1.55%
VOLVO
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.35%
2012
0.39%
PORSCHE
VAUXHALL VERSUS FORD
DUNCAN ALDRED, HEAD of Vauxhall, has
publicly said Vauxhall could overtake Ford
in the UK — and not simply by discounting
its way there. Aldred wants to get to the
top on merit, with better products and a
better image. He points to the Insignia as
an example of Vauxhall taking on Ford and
winning. However, elsewhere in the range
there are still big issues, in particular the
dated Corsa, whose replacement next year
is going to have to be a gigantic advance.
Then there is the question of image. Over
the past 15 years Ford’s image has slowly
improved thanks to better products and
smaller discounts. A recent study of non-
premium brands found that Ford was in
second place, almost equidistant between
first-placed VW and middling Vauxhall.
Vauxhall’s plan is to get people talking
about the brand by making bold moves,
such as the lifetime warranty and the
improbable ‘Adam’
moniker. The idea is
that everyone’s ‘car
expert’ friend in the
pub will say Vauxhall
is going places. It also
wants its ads to tap
into the long-term
affection towards the
company — all those
people who owned Astras, or whose dads
owned Cavaliers.
However, the problem with image is
that it always lags reality. Vauxhall has to
make better cars (with smaller discounts)
for many years until the message gets
through. It could overtake Ford eventually,
but planning to do it in just three years is
an ambitious move.
THIS WEEK
MARKET SHARE FOR OTHER MANUFACTURERS
COMPANY 2013 2012
ASTON MARTIN 0.04% 0.05%
BENTLEY 0.05% 0.06%
CHRYSLER 0.12% 0.16%
FERRARI 0.03% 0.03%
INFINITI 0.02% 0.03%
LOTUS 0.01% 0.01%
MASERATI 0.01% 0.02%
MG 0.02% 0.04%
ROLLS-ROYCE 0.01% 0.02%
SSANGYONG 0.03% 0.04%
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.93%
2012
1.99%
RENAULT
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.46%
2012
1.22%
SUZUKI
MARKET SHARE
2013
1.97%
2012
1.90%
SEAT
MARKET SHARE
2013
3.96%
2012
4.14%
TOYOTA
MARKET SHARE
2013
0.24%
2012
0.27%
SMART
VOLKSWAGEN
MARKET SHARE
VOLVO
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THIS WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 29
Unearthing the juiciest stories from the world of Formula 1 U
F
ormula 1 team principals
will have been busy in
the run-up to Christmas,
writing their annual letters
to Santa Claus. Some might
have asked for better drivers,
others for better engineers, but
most would be happy enough
to find a nice big sponsorship
contract in their stocking. No
doubt Santa will have ignored
all requests for assassinations…
In the gap between the end of
the season and the Christmas
break, the F1 world was fixated
on the question of money,
although a lot of fans got hot
under their collars about the
idea that the last grand prix
of the season should in future
count for double points, to keep
the championship spicy. Even
Sebastian Vettel ranted that it
was unacceptable – although
he would say that because it will
make his job of winning a fifth
title a little more difficult. No
one else said anything much.
I was interested to see some
of the other news that was
flying around, none of it related
to F1 teams. The first was the
announcement that Hollywood
star Leonardo DiCaprio is
getting involved in motorsport
– as predicted in these pages
back in August. The film star
is a well known environmental
activist and the Formula E
series is a pretty good place for
him to bash that drum.
He has chosen to partner
with someone who can afford
to go racing: Gildo Pastor, a
property tycoon from Monte
Carlo with a fortune that dates
back to the 1880s. The Pastor
family owns a lot of land in the
Principality and rents rather
than sells accommodation
to the world’s wealthy and
glamorous. Pastor is also head
of Venturi Automobiles, which
has been pioneering electric
cars for some years. Their team
is pretty much guaranteed to
be a sponsor magnet – as if
they needed the cash – because
there’s nothing like a bit of
Hollywood/Monaco glamour to
get big sponsors salivating.
It is the kind of backing that
middle-ranking F1 teams would
love to have. Unfortunately, for
the moment F1 is relying a bit
too much on pay drivers, and
that isn’t awfully healthy. One
hopes that the sport can brush
up its image and start pulling in
some more glittering names.
If not, there may be a source
of more cash about to leap
on to the global stage. I was
fascinated to read that Kevin
Kalkhoven’s KVSH Racing
IndyCar team has done a
deal for 2014 and 2015 with a
company called Mistic, which
will be the sponsor of former F1
driver Sébastien Bourdais.
Mistic is a brand of
e-cigarettes, owned by a
company from North Carolina
called Ballantyne Brands,
which didn’t exist two years
ago. Already it is pulling in
sufficient cash to have some
to spare to go motor racing,
and in the blurb that came
with the announcement
was the astonishing piece of
information that the market for
e-cigarettes is expected to hit
the $1 billion mark by the end of
this year, having increased from
$150 million in 2011.
Tobacco was F1’s primary
supporter for more than 30
years from the late 1960s, and
it didn’t stop until legislation
made it impossible for the
cigarette firms to continue.
Word is that the big names in
tobacco are now piling into
e-cigarettes, with Lorillard,
British American Tobacco
and Imperial having bought
e-cigarette firms. You have
to wonder how long it will be
before we see e-tobacco in F1.
Smoking out F1’s new sponsors
Vettel thinks F1’s
points system
should stay as it is
DiCaprio and
friends are going
Formula E racing
Bourdais will race
in IndyCars with
e-cigarette money
[email protected] @joesaward
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The last grand prix of the
season could in future
count for double points
Joe Saward
KUBICA TO M-SPORT FOR WRC
Malcolm Wilson’s M-Sport squad will run a Ford
Fiesta RS WRC for ex-F1 star Robert Kubica in
next year’s WRC. The team will also field young
Welshman Elfyn Evans and Mikko Hirvonen, who
returns to the team after two years with Citroën.
HYUNDAI’S WORLD RALLY PLAN
Hyundai Motorsport will field four drivers during
its first season in the World Rally Championship
with the new i20 WRC. Thierry Neuville will drive
in all 13 events, while Dani Sordo, Chris Atkinson
and Juho Hänninen will share the second car.
30 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
FIRST DRIVES
BMW X5 xDrive30d SE
9.12.13, Surrey Can the mid-range X5 shine more brightly than the highly strung range-topper?
BMW’S RENEWED X5 range has
reached maturity. Production of the
xDrive40d, 25d and 35i models began
this month (the latter of which won’t
be offered in the UK), as did the only
two-wheel-drive derivative, the four-
cylinder, 149g/km sDrive25d.
We hope to bring you a verdict on
the 25d early in the new year, but
first, a chance to run the ruler over
what’s likely to the biggest-selling
X5 of the lot: the xDrive30d. For
those not initiated into the logic of
BMW’s naming regime, that means
a 3.0-litre, six-cylinder turbodiesel
with 255bhp and an appealing blend
of sub-7.0sec 0-62mph performance
and 40mpg-plus economy, allied to a
starting price under £50,000.
Those stats only begin to describe
the impressive versatility that this
car offers. It’s no reinvention of the
luxury 4x4 concept, or even the idea
of an X5, but it’s spacious, convenient,
refined and lavishly appointed.
Munich’s tried and tested approach
to model replacement also puts
QUICK FACTS
PRICE £47,895
ON SALE NOW
Responsive yet relatively economical 3.0-litre diesel straight six produces 255bhp
the X5 well ahead of the prevailing
class standard on performance, fuel
efficiency and handling precision.
It’s a relief to report as much just a
couple of months after our road test
of the xDrive M50d. The headline
376bhp diesel was too highly strung
for our tastes, falling a long way short
of what we expect from a big 4x4
on rolling refinement and lacking
consistency in its primary controls.
The xDrive30d is like a different car
entirely: much more proportionate
of response, much easier to drive and
still sufficiently wieldy and poised to
feel more athletic than the SUV norm.
It’s a difference that illustrates
perfectly what has become an
SO GOOD
NO GOOD
TESTER’S NOTE
Q Refined, responsive powertrain
Q Adaptable handling manners
Q Spacious, plush cabin
Q Impressive eco credentials
Q Over-complicated options list
Q Unambitious styling makeover
The front and rear
Surround View
cameras get dirty
quickly when the
roads are grimy. MS
FIRST VERDICT
Spacious, smooth and sporting on
request. Predictably good
AAAAC
This week’s new cars
QUICK FACTS
PRICE £47,895
ON SALE NOW
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 31
insoluble problem for anyone
ordering a premium German car, and
for BMW buyers more than most.
Munich has broken new ground even
by its own standards in complicating
the process of ordering an X5.
The car comes with a passive
coil suspension set-up as standard,
but there are no fewer than four
‘adaptive’ alternatives – Comfort,
Dynamic, Professional and M Sport
– which introduce active dampers,
a self-levelling air-sprung rear end,
stiffened and shortened springs,
active anti-roll bars and an active
‘Dynamic Performance Control’ rear
differential in varying combinations.
Depending on engine and equipment,
you can also add active variable-ratio
power steering and a Sport automatic
gearbox. And that’s before you choose
between 18, 19 or 20-inch wheels.
In the face of so much complication,
we’ll probably never know for sure
what the perfect rolling specification
for a new X5 is. The only certainty, as
the M50d demonstrated, is that there
are myriad ways to get it wrong.
Some reassurance comes with
the fact that our test car (Sport
transmission, adaptive Comfort
chassis, 19in rims) conducted itself
well. Always quiet-riding, the car
had gentle long-wave compliance
in Comfort mode, but it comes
with some body roll and some
deterioration in directional precision.
Select Sport mode and you get less
roll and pitch and quicker steering
response. The suspension does what
it says on the tin, in other words.
What it doesn’t have is an all-purpose
‘Auto’ or ‘Normal’ mode that splits the
difference between the two settings –
so you spend many journeys flicking
between them, wondering all the time
whether you’re in the right one.
It’s a minor flaw that takes nothing
away from the polished smoothness
of the X5’s powertrain or the
exceptional spaciousness and strong
material quality of its cabin. A Range
Rover Sport is more desirable, more
pleasant to be in and the X5’s dynamic
superior. A Porsche Cayenne Diesel
would probably likewise outshine the
BMW. But neither the Range Rover
nor the Porsche can match the X5 on
performance or fuel efficiency. Which
suggests that, even in an increasingly
crowded segment, there’s still a place
for the sporting SUV that started it all.
MATT SAUNDERS
A Range Rover Sport’s cabin may be nicer still, but the X5’s is exceptionally well executed and hardly lacking in premium allure
Bewildering options render the ideal set-up somewhat hit or miss, but our test car’s adaptive Comfort chassis worked well
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Price £47,895
0-62mph 6.9sec
Top speed 142mph
Economy 45.6mpg (combined)
CO2 162g/km
Kerb weight 2070kg
Engine 6 cyls in line, 2993cc,
turbodiesel
Installation Front, longitudinal, 4WD
Power 255bhp at 4000rpm
Torque 413lb ft at 1500-3000rpm
Gearbox 8-spd automatic
Fuel tank 85 litres
Boot 650-1870 litres
Wheels 8.5Jx19in
Tyres 255/50 R19
BMWX5xDRIVE30dSE
Cabin is spacious both front and rear
+IE LL+IÌ/+E IÌ
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FIRST DRIVE
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 33
Price £25,000 (est)
0-62mph 9.0sec (est)
Top speed 120mph (est)
Economy 53.7mpg (Japanese cycle)
C02 122g/km
Kerb weight 1540kg
Engine 4 cyls, 1995cc, petrol, plus
electric motor
Power 148bhp at 6000rpm (engine),
13bhp (electric motor)
Torque 145lb ft at 4200rpm
Gearbox 6-spd CVT
Japan-friendly chassis set-up is soft and errs to understeer; cabin space and functionality are unaffected by the hybrid gubbins
SUBARU HAS BEEN a late starter
in the hybrid race, but in Japan
and the US you can now walk into
a dealer and put money down for
this petrol-electric-powered XV. It’s
Subaru’s first production hybrid and
it turns out to be a clever adaptation
of its left-field crossover.
It’s clever in the sense that up to
quite a high point this is a standard,
uncompromised XV. It has Subaru’s
trademark 2.0-litre boxer engine
and symmetrical 4WD on board.
Packaging and utility are unchanged,
and that includes the XV’s usefully
high ground clearance.
Now look at the numbers. Good
for 54mpg and 122g/km on Japan’s
economy cycle, the XV Hybrid charts
a new green high for Subaru, whose
past petrol-engined cars have rarely
been noted for their economy.
The XV comes to market with a
motor-assist hybrid system that’s
designed entirely in-house. Its
1995cc flat-four engine links to a
Lineartronic CVT, with an electric
motor positioned behind the primary
pulley. Beneath the load bay floor sits
a nickel-metal hydride battery pack
weighing 89kg. All told, weight is up
by 150-160kg over a non-hybrid XV.
And to drive? The key here is
refinement. Subaru has stiffened the
body and tweaked the suspension to
cut noise levels, so the XV Hybrid is
impressively quiet and unfussed. Yet
despite the boxer engine’s 148bhp,
aided by the electric motor’s 13bhp
when it cuts in, it’s not that fast. For
overtaking, you’d want the lusty
258lb ft of the UK’s XV diesel every
time. And the whining noise of
the CVT on full chat is a turn-off,
although the six-speed paddle-shift
action is slick and works well.
As set up for the Japanese market,
the XV Hybrid rides well, but its
vague, overly light steering and
soft, understeery handling would
never get far in the UK and would
need a rethink if the model ever got
the green light here. For now, it’s
under evaluation.
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Subaru XV Hybrid
8.12.13, Tokyo Hard-working crossover gets a unique boxer/all-wheel drive hybrid powertrain
QUICK FACTS
PRICE £25,000 (EST)
ON SALE NA
There’s still plenty to like, however.
At start-up, the flat four fires with
a characteristic whirring sound.
The electric motor cuts in and out
unobstrusively, and from standstill
you can run at up to 20mph on battery
power alone for about a mile.
Inside, the instrumentation is
sharp and clear, with the multi-
function display showing the
continual energy flow between
engine, motor and battery. But this
gave us a reading equivalent to
34.5mpg on a run to Mount Fuji and
back – well down on the headline
economy figure. There’s also a £1770
premium for the hybrid in Japan,
so not for the first time, you have to
pay extra to go green.
First time out, the XV Hybrid
comes over as an intriguing and
likeable if low-key entry into the eco
car fray. Whether it’s significantly
different from or better than the
XVs currently on sale in the UK is
something else again.
PETER NUNN
SO GOOD
NO GOOD
TESTER’S NOTE
Q Relatively impressive economy
and emissions
Q Powertrain’s sophisticated feel
Q Practicality is uncompromised
Q Dynamically a touch soft
Q Not confirmed for UK (yet)
Subaru has built
several hybrid
concepts, but this XV
is the first to go into
production. PN
FIRST VERDICT
A compact SUV with a difference,
and Subaru’s greenest car yet
AAACC
SO GOOD
NO GOOD
TESTER’S NOTE
Q Chevy’s small-block engine
Q Knockout looks
Q Up-to-date cabin technology
Q Left-hand drive only
Q Unyielding ride on B-roads
Q 18mpg real-world thirst
This 2014 Camaro
has a notably more
unyielding ride than
the car we road
tested last year. MS
FIRST VERDICT
Bombastic, disarming, fast and
great fun on the right road
AAACC
Multimedia system is a welcome dose of modern tech inside; straight-line pace, steering and body control please, on smooth roads
IT’S EASY TO be won over by
the vivid charms of the Chevrolet
Camaro. And we have been. This
in-your-face American muscle coupé
earned a four-star road test verdict
from us last year.
We’re revisiting the Camaro now
for two reasons: primarily because
General Motors has updated it for the
2014 model year, changing its exterior
styling and augmenting its spec,
but secondly, to find out if its grand
touring manners are any greater with
a six-speed automatic transmission.
New front and rear bumper panels,
headlight and tail-light designs, a
new bootlid spoiler and a new bonnet
with an enlarged cooling louvre
comprise the exterior changes. Inside,
there’s now a multimedia navigation
system called Chevrolet MyLink, a
colour screen for the drive computer
and a colour head-up display system.
The styling changes are a bit
muddled but don’t undermine the
Camaro’s jaw-dropping impact. The
new bonnet adds even more muscle
and aggression to the Camaro’s
look, which suits it – but the chrome
trim on the headlights and radiator
simply doesn’t work. This is a brash,
brawny right hook of a car that
needs ornamental brightwork about
as much as a power lifter needs an
anklet. The new multimedia system
and instrumentation changes are
more welcome, though – a much-
needed injection of up-to-date
technology in an interior that still
lacks richness and tactile quality.
The mechanicals of the Camaro
haven’t changed, and neither has the
driving experience. The auto gearbox
functions well enough. It upshifts
early in ‘D’, but there’s a manual mode
(with wheel-mounted paddle shifters)
that delivers gearchanges slightly
ponderously but still faster than you
could change cogs in the manual. It
will also hold a gear even at the red
line in manual mode. We still prefer
the manual, though, because it’s more
powerful than the auto and offers a
more absorbing sense of interactivity.
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Price £36,820
0-62mph 5.4sec
Top speed 155mph
Economy 21.5mpg (combined)
CO2 304g/km
Kerb weight 1795kg
Engine V8, 6162cc, petrol
Power 400bhp at 5900rpm
Torque 410lb ft at 4300rpm
Gearbox 6-spd automatic
CHEVROLET CAMAROAUTO
Chevrolet Camaro auto
10.12.13, Bedfordshire Revised looks and updated spec freshen the appeal of this muscle coupé
QUICK FACTS
PRICE £36,820
ON SALE NOW
This isn’t a sports car. It’s much too
wide for even slightly narrow B-roads,
it feels cumbersome in tight confines,
and it rides bad surfaces unyieldingly.
But tackle smoother, wider asphalt
and there are rewards. The engine
serves up a wonderfully constant
spread of pace from 3500rpm, the car
steers precisely and controls body roll
well, and there’s enough power
through second and third gears to
alter your direction with the rear
wheels as well as with the front ones.
Cars like these have never been
about delicacy and finesse but rather
an immersive mechanical connection
with an oversized engine, offering a
strong sense of reward when you
master that venerable old lump and
make it – and the car to which it’s
connected – come to heel. And,
chrome and all, the Camaro is still the
same old brute it always was. For
those who want a more eccentric
option than the typical two-seater,
it’s a car to embrace, warts and all.
MATT SAUNDERS
34 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
FIRST DRIVE
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 35
SO GOOD
NO GOOD
TESTER’S NOTE
Q Ample, usable boot space
Q Comfortable and cosseting cabin
Q Excellent safety systems
Q Anonymous to drive
Q Expensive in higher trims
Q Less frugal than key rivals
Have you locked
your V70? Volvo’s
app lets you access
information about
your car. MB
FIRST VERDICT
Practical and comfortable, like
your favourite pair of slippers
AAACC
Well equipped cabin majors on comfort and safety; rolling refinement renders this established estate a masterful mile muncher
A MILD NIP and tuck has freshened
up Volvo’s V70 estate, which is about
to enter its seventh full year on sale.
For the 2014 model year, the updates
include exterior cosmetic tweaks
that make the front and rear appear
wider and lower, as well as some
extra chrome brightwork. Inside
there is uprated connectivity, a TFT
instrument display and further
enhancements to the safety systems.
Powering this top-specification D5
version is the five-cylinder, 2.4-litre
turbodiesel in its most powerful guise
and mated to a six-speed automatic
gearbox (a £1485 option).
In this spec the V70 offers 45.6mpg
combined and CO2 emissions of
164g/km. That’s lagging behind
rivals – a BMW 525d Touring returns
55.4mpg and 134g/km – and perhaps
indicates that the sweet spot in the
V70 range lies with a less powerful,
more frugal manual variant.
That said, this engine delivers
gutsy low-end thrust and can shift
the car from a standstill to 60mph
in 7.5sec. The unit is also hushed
and refined unless you venture past
2500rpm, where its distinctive thrum
gets noticeably harsher.
It’s easier to succumb to the
unflustered ambience offered by the
cosseting seats and spacious, well
appointed cabin and let the V70 play
to its strengths as a docile cruiser
that’s well suited to motorways.
At steady speeds the V70 is
unremarkable in the way it rides,
handles and steers. Damned with
faint praise that may be, but the
combination of light steering, top-
quality insulation from noise and
vibration and excellent comfort make
it one of the least taxing ways to cover
distances. It’s a slightly different
story in town, where uneven roads
highlight a less pliant ride and the
V70’s size can make it feel unwieldy.
That size brings its benefits when
it comes to load lugging, though. The
boot holds 575 litres, increasing to
1600 litres with the rear bench folded.
The Skoda Superb and Mercedes
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Price £37,455
0-60mph 7.5sec
Top speed 137mph
Economy 45.6mpg (combined)
CO2 164g/km
Kerb weight 1745kg
Engine 5 cyls, 1984cc, turbodiesel
Power 212bhp at 4000rpm
Torque 325lb ft at 1500-3000rpm
Gearbox 6-spd automatic
VOLVO V70D5SE LUXGEARTRONIC
Volvo V70 D5 SE Lux Geartronic
5.12.13, Hampshire Venerable estate aims to trump rivals with a safety-focused facelift
QUICK FACTS
PRICE £37,455
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E-class offer more than 600 litres
but the Volvo’s flat floor, wide boot
opening and plethora of hooks and
cubbies make it a versatile space.
If practicality has long been a Volvo
watchword, so has security. The
latest V70 features a host of systems
to warn you of the potential dangers
present in almost every conceivable
driving scenario, including blind spot
monitors, an audible lane departure
indicator and an auto braking system
that senses pedestrians and cyclists.
The whole suite comes as a £1900
option, but whether that represents
good value depends on how much
emphasis you put on such features.
The V70 comes well equipped, but
it is by no means cheap, particularly
with this engine and trim level. It
undercuts similar offerings from
BMW, Mercedes and Audi, however,
and although it is no match for the
German trio dynamically, its blend of
offbeat charm and impeccable safety
means it is not without appeal.
MATT BURT
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0|scorer more at µorsche.co.uk/macan
MONMOUTH
Penrith
Hamilton
Windermere
Thirsk
Glasgow
Birmingham
Bangor
Dolgellau
Llandovery
Macclesfield
Chesterfield
Some of the world’s best driving roads are here in the UK — so what’s
stopping you from going out and enjoying them? Andrew Frankel
takes a Porsche 911 GT3 on a 1200-mile thrash, just for the hell of it
PHOTOGRAPHY STUART PRICE
T H E R O U T E
Y O U R G U I D E T O
A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
40 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
W
e all like driving, otherwise your eyes
and my words would not be meeting
on this page now. But how often do
you go for a drive? The difference
between driving and going for a
drive is profound. Given our common
passion, you would have thought that we’d all be
out there, driving for the sake of driving. But that’s
not what happens; every drive is compromised,
usually by the destination. The hard facts are that
you are here and it is there. These are immovable
parameters within which you must work.
But what if you woke up one morning and just
drove, and not just for a few hours but a couple of
days? What if driving became not the means but
the end? Where would you go?
I thought I knew. We needed a car and, as the
Porsche 911 GT3 is our current Britain’s Best
Driver’s Car champion, that choice was not
difficult. But we also needed a route. This was
the delicious bit. To keep it relevant, the only limit
to this plan would be the shores of Great Britain.
Upon that canvas, I could doodle any damned
journey I chose, taking in the roads of England,
Wales and Scotland over which I’d most enjoyed
driving cars during 25 years in this job.
As most journeys tend to, this one starts at home.
I live in the Wye Valley, where, if you drive west
from London, the good roads start. With the GT3
parked outside my shed and my old Peugeot, older
Land Rover and ancient Fiat peering down upon it,
I fondly imagine startled gasps of French, English
and Italian as my blue-collar accumulation of
antediluvian wreckage behold the young German
nobleman in their midst.
Wingman is Autocar staff photographer Stuart
Price, picked not just for his talent with a camera
but also his tolerance of the kind of driving I have
in mind. He has done 200 miles just to get here,
so now it’s already lunchtime on day one, and our
journey has yet to commence. On the plus side,
Stu is lovingly constructing a tuna and Quavers
sandwich. If he can stomach that, he has nothing
to fear from my driving.
Where to go? I’d thought about the West
Country, but few memorable drives have come
on those roads – fewer still since a blanket speed
limit was draped over Dartmoor. So we go west
to objective one at Black Mountain, probably the
single most challenging road in Wales.
I wouldn’t say that the road from Brynamman to
Llangadog is perfect for the GT3 – its narrowness
makes it a more Caterham-friendly facility – but
the Porsche still flings itself at the mountain with
monumental conviction. There’s no time to relax
here; huge boulders line the road that can (and
have) ripped entire suspension assemblies off cars
conducted by drivers greedy for more than their
fair share of apex. But armed with a precision
instrument and taking care only to drive what you
can see, it presents an inspiring challenge. Of all
the roads for which we are heading, this presents
the toughest intellectual challenge. You might ◊
In Wales, you might chance upon some, er, brilliant Christmas lights, but there are also lots of roads that are dazzling in a different way, such as the A4086 Llanberis Pass
For such a trip, a bigger fuel tank wouldn’t go amiss; fixed wing does more than just keep GT3’s tail pinned down; livestock can have an effect on the amount of grip available
T H E S E B O U L D E R S H A V E R I P P E D S U S P E N S I O N O F F C A R S C O N D U C T E D
B Y D R I V E R S G R E E D Y F O R M O R E T H A N T H E I R F A I R S H A R E O F A P E X
Y O U R G U I D E T O
A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
I ’ V E W O R K E D O U T T H E B E S T C O N F I G U R A T I O N : S H O C K E R S O N S O F T ,
G E A R B O X I N S P O R T, E X H A U S T L E F T Q U I E T, S A F E T Y N E T S D I S E N G A G E D
Y O U R G U I D E T O
A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 43
∆ not whoop with joy at its conclusion, but that
quiet glow is no less satisfying for that.
We refuel for the first time in Llandovery and,
at just 3.30pm, the light is already failing. Photo
shoots usually stop around now at this time of
year, but this is not a shoot; it’s a drive during
which we’re taking some shots to prove we did it.
Besides, I love driving in the dark; roads you think
you know well become strange and new as your
journey through the night takes on an altogether
more intrepid quality.
So we hammer north, up the wonderful A483 to
Beulah and then the B4358 to Newbridge-on-Wye.
The A470 to Rhayader is fast, but the B4518 from
there to Llanidoes and on to Llanbynmair is simply
epic. Narrow, quick, full of crests and cambers, its
surfaces are made variable by the ingredients of
both its tarmac and the stomach contents of the
livestock that passes this way.
I’ve worked out the best configuration for the
GT3: shockers on soft, gearbox in Sport, exhaust
left quiet, all safety nets disengaged. On this
road, an old GT3 would be a handful; you’d need
to be in the right gear and mindful of its desire
to understeer. The new car is not like this. Both
physically and mentally, it asks a lot less of its
driver, although whether that comes at the price
of providing less pleasure in return is one of the
questions that I’m here to answer. We rejoin the
A470, head up to Dolgellau and then turn north
again on the A494 to Lake Bala.
Turn left from Bala town itself on the A4212 and
you will drive through the best corner in Britain.
Not the fastest, or toughest, just the best – an
endless, wide, open left through which there’s time
to load the GT3’s Dunlop Sport Maxx tyres to the
limit and then ease on and off the throttle to see
how it addresses the road. It adjusts its attitude
as if your foot were literally pulling and pushing
the nose toward and away from the apex. Clearly
beside himself with admiration for my talent, Stu
is staring at the stars and propounding a theory of
the universe that can only be the product of a brain
too long exposed to a diet of tuna and Quavers.
Soon my hidden agenda is revealed. Living
in Wales as I do, I know that when it comes to
heroically awful Christmas decorations, this
country is in a league of one, which is why I’ve
chosen to drive from its south to north coast under
cover of night. In Blaenau, our efforts are rewarded
by a single dwelling whose illuminations are almost
certainly visible from space, never mind the A470.
I’d like to stay, but time is pressing and Snowdonia
is waiting. At Betws-y-coed, we turn left to Capel
Curig and left again on to the A4086 and over the
magnificent Llanberis Pass. In most cars, you tend
to adopt higher gears as confidence builds, but not
this one. Because the engine is so mighty between
5000rpm and 7000rpm, you need to teach yourself
to use all of the 9000rpm that this extraordinary
motor provides. My only complaint is the choice of
ratios. First and second are too low, with too big a
gap to third. Fourth, fifth and sixth are too high,
especially since seventh is geared low enough to
ensure maximum speed occurs at peak power.
At Bangor, we take the A55 east, stopping only ◊
The option of heading to Fort William and beyond was ruled out by road closures, as were routes east and west, so the GT3 did an about-face and headed back south, at speed
After a brief overnight halt, a trail of overturned vehicles punctuated the next morning’s drive, victims of high winds that had little effect on the GT3 as it headed north
∆ in Llandudno when Stuart’s lustings for an
irradiated steak and kidney pudding become
insatiable, but in Rhyl we need more fuel. This tank
is far too small for this kind of work.
It’s past 10pm now, but I have neither the time
nor inclination to stop. The radio insists that we’re
heading into the worst weather that the north of
England and Scotland have seen in years, but I
figure that if we don’t sleep until Glasgow 280
miles away, by the time we wake up, it will have
passed. I say ‘we’; Stu announces that he’s going
to have a snooze, shuts his eyes and wakes up
four hours later in Scotland. In the meantime, I’ve
T H E R A D I O I N S I S T S T H A T W E A R E H E A D I N G I N T O T H E W O R S T W E A T H E R
Frankel shows Price what he has planned when they hit Yorkshire and the road from Castleton to Hutton-le-Hole
taken the A55, M53 and M56 to the M6 north and
crossed the Lake District in the dead of night. In
fact, despite the beauty of the scenery, the actual
driving to be done past Windermere and up past
Ullswater pales beside what we’ve seen in Wales.
From Penrith to Carlisle then through the borders,
I take the line of least resistance until lured by the
Holiday Inn Express in Hamilton at 2am.
Four hours later, we emerge to find Glasgow
apparently under water. For tyres with the word
‘race’ written on their sidewalls, the Dunlops are
remarkably good in these conditions, and despite
wind speeds of 70mph or more, the low, wide GT3
barely notices the gusts. Somewhere up a nearby
mountain, one hits 140mph. Every few miles, we
find some van, lorry or other vehicle that has been
blown on to its side, and each time I have to remind
myself how it got that way.
By Loch Lomond, the worst of the weather has
gone, but it has left behind a trail of destruction
that has felled thousands of trees, cut electricity to
entire communities and caused at least one fatality.
We try the west shore but are turned around before
Tarbet. The east is no better, so we end up on the
coast in Helensburgh, where the route north is also
blocked. The plan had always been to get to Fort
William and then turn up the A82 to Port Augustus
on one of the most beautiful roads in Europe.
I’d even fondly entertained hopes of getting to
Ullapool, because it is where I’d live if all I ever
had to do in life was drive.
But the weather has other plans. So we exercise
the only option we have. We fuel up – again –
and turn around.
Quantum mechanics, string theory and what
really goes on at Pine Gap in Australia are just
some of the wide and diverse range of topics
postulated by my valiant and now entirely
refreshed co-driver as we head back over the
border. We are fortunate in this currently United
Kingdom that despite its population density, you
can drive such a great distance, hit a dead end ◊
T H A T T H E N O R T H O F E N G L A N D A N D S C O T L A N D H A V E S E E N I N Y E A R S
Y O U R G U I D E T O
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46 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
∆ and still have so many other outstanding roads
on which to play. I am fortunate to have such an
original thinker by my side.
My target is clear: the moorland of North
Yorkshire is accessible by taking the A66 east
from Penrith to Scotch Corner. From there, we
should head south on the A1, but I’m bored, so
instead I thread my way freehand across to the
A19, and then up the A172 to Stokesley and across
to Castleton. Here commences my favourite single
road certainly in England and probably Great
Britain. The route south across Castleton Ridge
and Blakey Ridge to Kirkbymoorside is even more
of a challenge for a car than its driver. What’s
needed here is body control – an ability to maintain
ride height whatever the road throws at you. The
approaches are slushy and slippery and the light
is fading again, but once on top of the moor the
GT3 is in the environment for which it was born.
I’ve driven McLarens, Ferraris and, most
recently, a Mercedes-Benz SLS Black Series across
this road, but I’ve never known it devoured like
this. The impregnable poise, whip-crack gearshifts
and bewildering grip are enough to reduce even
Stu to awe-struck silence. More fuel is taken in
Kirkbymoorside as night descends again. But we’re
not done yet. Not quite, at least.
It’s dark as we hit the A1, M18 and M1 south,
but at Chesterfield we veer to the right and head
out across the Pennines again, into the Peak
District, the last great wilderness of our trip. We
overnight in Buxton. With its proud claim to be
England’s highest market town, it seems fitting
that it’s here where Stuart introduces me to the
dubious delights of combining England’s two
favourite foods. However bad curry and chips
sounds, it tastes worse.
Waking up at dawn, it hits me. My insides have
spent most of the night wrestling Buxton’s finest
balti into some semblance of submission, but for
the first time on the trip, I am truly tired. There’s a
thin veil of snow on the roof of the GT3 and for just
a moment, I’m ashamed to say, I’d have chosen my
bed over its thin, black carbonfibre bucket.
One crank of the motor blows such unworthy
thoughts to dust. It turns out that the GT3 is one of
those rare sports cars you don’t have to drive fast
to enjoy. It’s a special car just to be with, even if you
just drive it slowly through the morning commute.
Or over the Cat & Fiddle pass to Macclesfield.
Even in dry weather, this is reputedly Britain’s most
dangerous road, but in ice and slush and snow, in a
GT3 on summer tyres, it is lethal. One substantial
slither, too far and fast for the ESP to catch, is
enough to make me take the shortest route possible
to lower ground and head for home. When we get
back, the trip meter says we’ve done a little over
1200 miles in a little less than 25 hours’ driving.
Not much, is it? An average of just 50mph.
I once covered almost double that distance in
24 hours in a 90bhp Ford Mondeo. But it is enough
– enough to confirm the greatness of the GT3 and
its worthiness as the next in a long and illustrious
line. Is it more fun than the car it replaces?
Probably not. But if, like me, you believe that a
car’s enjoyment is defined by how much fun it is
to drive multiplied by how often you feel inclined
to drive it, over a lifetime it would be the more
satisfying car to own.
More important, those 1200 miles showed that
most people who live on this land mass are never
actually that far from truly great driving roads.
Overpopulated though this island is, for the length,
breadth, quality and sheer accessibility of its best
roads, if all you want to do is drive, this is still one
of the best places on earth to do it. L
I ’ V E D R I V E N M c L A R E N S , F E R R A R I S A N D A N S L S B L A C K S E R I E S O N
T H I S R O A D , B U T I ’ V E N E V E R K N O W N I T D E V O U R E D L I K E T H I S
Stats rarely convey the essence of a drive like this but, for the record, its mpg was what Frankel’s Landie might do
A match made in heaven: one focusing on great driver’s roads, the other just focusing; Cat & Fiddle pass was icy
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 47
£10,000
2002 Lotus Elise Series 2
More civilised on a long run
than many might expect and
very reliable if you’ve chosen
carefully. For the money, the
best combination of ride and
handling in existence.
I F W E D I D T H I S J O U R N E Y A G A I N B U T O N L Y H A D . . .
£30,000
2008 Nissan GT-R
Not to all tastes and expensive
to maintain if thrashed. But
on the right road, where grip,
traction and mid-range punch
matter most, probably the
quickest point to point.
£20,000
2007 Porsche Cayman S
If you read this magazine,
you’ll already know why this is
here. The engine is fabulous,
but you’d buy it for its
mesmerising handling. And it
steers better than the GT3…
£15,000
2006 BMW M3 (E46)
Stunning value. With its
screaming straight six motor,
this was one of the last of
the traditional M cars. A
world-class driving machine.
Avoid the SMGs, though.
£7500
2002 Ford Focus RS Mk1
A criminally undervalued car,
one of the great hot hatches
of any era and more fun on a
decent road than you’d think
possible for a car with front-
wheel drive.
If you enjoyed this feature, go to
autocar.co.uk/puredriving, where we’ve
teamed up with Dunlop to celebrate some
of the world’s best driving experiences
48 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
St age a pr i vat e dr i v i ng day
Hi r e a s peci al car
L ear n t o dr i v e ( bet t er )
Get your compet i t i on l i cence
Meet your her oes
Take your car on hol i day
L ear n mor e about mot or i ng hi st or y
Vi s i t hi st or i c s i t es
Buy a ver y s i l l y car
Vi s i t a car pl ant
Vi s i t f amous car mus eums
E xpl or e hi st or i c ci r cui t s
Dr i ve f amous r out es
J oi n a car cl ub
You’re on holiday. The new year is just
days away. You’re determined to do a
better job of planning your driving life
next year. Right now there’s an all-too-
brief opportunity to lay plans for next
year, and this time you’re going to stick
to them. But where to start?
For 2014, we’ve done some of the
thinking for you. We’ve come up
with a list of car activities, ideas and
destinations that should suit a variety
of motoring palates and encourage
fresh thinking. All you need to do is grab
the idea and lift the phone, or engage
the clutch. Steve Cropley is your guide
You’re o h
TICK LIST
HI RE A SPECI AL CAR
Why go through life regretting that your chances didn’t make you a
billionaire? You can still have that special car – by renting it for a day or a
week. Your advantage over the billionaire is that you’ve given it back long
before deterioration or depreciation take hold.
O Hire a holiday Ford Mustang
Hertz has a special ‘Adrenaline
Collection’ for people like us. Dodge
Challenger and Chevy Camaro also
available. Go to hertz.com/rentacar.
O Get a Morgan from the factory
Hire a Plus Four or 3 Wheeler direct
from the marque, or from selected
dealers. Go to morgan-motor.co.uk
or phone 01684 573104.
O Drive a Ferrari at Goodwood
Or even a Jaguar D-type replica,
thanks to Mithril Racing. Go to
mithril.co.uk or email them on
[email protected] for more.
O Climb Mt Ventoux Inspirational
European drives are plentiful, but this
famous hillclimb on public roads in
southern France is one of the greatest.
STAGE A PRI VAT E
DRI VI NG DAY
Whether we’re talking
Volkswagen Up, Range Rover
Evoque or Lamborghini Gallardo,
car makers work hard to create a
special character in every car, yet
few of us ever set out to appreciate
what we own. Try it. Clean the
windscreen, check your tyres,
secure rattling objects, choose
a great route. Even wearing the
right shoes can make a difference.
You’ll be amazed at the rewards.
O Drive the A272 The 90-mile,
two-hour trip from Winchester to
Heathfield is a delight on rolling
English roads. Correct timing is vital.
O Visit Crickhowell Autocar’s
car-testing domain at the base of
Wales’s Black Mountains offers
superb drives in every direction.
OUR SUGGESTIONS
OUR SUGGESTIONS
P
H
O
T
O
J
A
M
E
S

C
L
A
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Y O U R G U I D E T O
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50 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
GE T YOUR
COMPE T I T I ON
L I CE NCE
Car competition beckons us all, but
many are spooked by the start with
a driving test under the beady eye
of assessors. However, for many
competition codes, getting started
involves simply filling in a form and
paying a fee.
O Hillclimbing and sprinting Explosive
speed events that let drive your car flat
out against the clock. Precision and
good technique are needed; driving
schools are advisable.
O Navigation rallies The winners are
those who keep up a brisk (but legal)
pace while avoiding getting lost. It’s
quick and fun, but WRC it ain’t.
O Autotests Spectacular to watch
and a terrific test of precision and skill
for competitors. Involves driving an
agile car through a tight and complex
set of manoeuvres against the clock.
L E ARN TO DRI VE ( BE T T E R)
One of the Great Truths of motoring is that the best-value
pound is probably spent on driving tuition, not on
enhancing your engine’s power. Tennis stars have
full-time coaches; airline pilots can’t fly unless
they’re regularly assessed. Adopt the same
attitude and you’ll be a
better driver.
OUR SUGGESTIONS
O The Institute of Advanced Motorists
is ditching its fuddy-duddy image to
become an important provider of road
driving modules such as parking and
manoeuvring, motorway driving and
winter driving. Go to iam.org.uk.
O Drive a BMW M3 flat out
Palmersport will teach you at
Bedford Autodrome. Try an M3,
Atom, Caterham, Le Mans-style
sportscar and single-seater.
Contact [email protected].
O Learn to drive at the limit of grip
Silverstone Rally School has both half
and full-day courses to teach you how
to get to grips with the loose stuff.
Have a look at silverstonerally.co.uk
or phone 01327 857413.
OUR SUGGESTIONS
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 51
MAKI NG THE MOST OF YOUR TI ME
What do you do if you’ve got an automotive itch to scratch and limited time in which to do it? Here are three suggestions
ME E T YOUR HE ROE S
Gone are the days, people say, when you could casually rub
shoulders with your heroes from motorsport and the motor
industry. Yet it’s still possible for the persistent.
O Goodwood Festival of Speed Car heroes love the event and gather for a day
off. They’re away from their patch, not ‘fenced in’. Hang around the Driver’s
Club and you’ll see many familiar faces.
O Autosport Awards End-of-year do
features old heroes, team moguls and
stars of tomorrow. Join them for about
£450 a ticket or hang around London’s
Grosvenor House hotel as they arrive.
O Le Mans Classic You’re in luck.
This biennial event is held in 2014.
It’s like the Goodwood Festival of
Speed with added fatigue. But the
stars come out, for sure.
TAKE YOUR CAR ON HOL I DAY
When airfares used to be cheap, it made sense to go on
Continental holidays by air. But taxes and demand have
sent fares soaring, and airport frustrations have made the
convenience of your own car a downright privilege.
OSpain Sure, it’s quite a long way, but
when you arrive the roads (especially
the new major arteries financed with
EU dosh) are quick and fun. No hire car
aggravation, either.
OFrance This wonderful country is
criss-crossed by some of the best
motorways anywhere in the world (but
watch out for speed cops), plus superb
driving roads and great scenery.
OScandinavia It’s a day’s drive to
Denmark, and then the world’s your
oyster. Depending on the time of year,
you can enjoy ice driving, dirt driving
or scenic drives along fjords.
SEVEN HEAVEN
If the day is to be all about reinvigorating
your relationship with the open road
rather than reaching the end of your talent, you
could hardly do better than borrow a Seven.
Caterham will give you seven hours to do 120
miles, starting from £175. I’d buy a bit more
time and punt across Sussex to Petworth, use
its market square as a stop-off and then let the
Seven’s nose show me around the South Downs.
When fatigue sets in, it’s only a short spit to the
National Motor Museum at Beaulieu, for a stroll
among the ironmongery. Linger in the New Forest
and the sun will set on the rear axle as you saunter
home. Soup for the soul. NIC CACKETT
ENDURANCE TEST
If you’re going to Le Mans for the racing
rather than the après-motorsport, it’s
possible to do the trip in 48 hours. Set off before
sunrise, catch the first train through the tunnel
and hit France with the nav set for the campsite.
You’ll get there in time for the start, but the
beauty of Le Mans is that there’s so much to do:
food, drink, funfair or just watch the racing. Head
to the pit grandstand in the early hours for an
eerie spectacle like no other, or go to the nearby
Dunlop Curves to see the brakes glow cherry red.
Grab a bit of sleep, watch the winning car cross
the line, jump in the car and head back to Calais.
This year’s race is on 14-15 June. STUART MILNE
MULL THIS OVER
The Mull Rally runs from 10-12 October,
but you’d be advised to set aside a week
to appreciate the Hebridean isle.
Reaching Mull makes for a fantastic day-long
road trip punctuated by breathtaking scenery and
a couple of short ferry crossings. Once on Mull,
you can drive the roads that form the rally route.
Then there’s the rally itself. I’ve yet to
experience anything in motorsport to match the
atmosphere of sitting on a stone wall under a star-
filled sky at 2am, watching headlights strafe the
horizon and hearing the oncoming scream of a
flat-out rally car. Recovery might require staying
on for a few more days. MATT BURT
OUR SUGGESTIONS
24 HOURS 48 HOURS A WEEK
OUR SUGGESTIONS
Y O U R G U I D E T O
A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
52 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
DO AS WE DO. . .
Some of the more, er, experienced members of the Autocar team can recommend certain things based on first-hand experience
SCRATCH THE ITCH
Motorsport doesn’t have to be something
that other people do. Many years ago
I went racing (motorcycles, not cars) in the
pre-track day era, and I can still recall vividly my
first race at Brands. To this day, racing changed
the way I think about riding and driving. It will with
you, too. So compete. Circuit racing, hillclimbs, a
sprint. Something. Just try it. TIM DICKSON
WINTER WONDERLAND
Sorry, you’ll need a budget for this one.
But everyone should trample through
6ft-deep snow drifts, slide across a frozen (but
still noisily cracking) lake and then stand in a
snow-covered forest to watch a WRC car come
flying by broadside at 90mph, spinning its
studded tyres to find unimaginable grip. Rally
Sweden takes place on 9 February. JIM HOLDER
APPRECIATE THE PIONEERS
In the deep freeze at the beginning of
this year, I trekked up to a farm in North
Yorkshire to see what’s believed to be the first
Morris ever built. It was unrestored, completely
original and 100 years old. It made me think about
the inventiveness of the pioneers and the miracle
that is the modern motor. My advice: seek out the
very oldest cars, and marvel. HILTON HOLLOWAY
L E ARN
MORE
ABOUT
MOTORI NG
HI STORY
Wikipedia is fine, but there’s no
substitute for reading the great
books of motoring to see how
cars and the industry evolved.
Well known book dealer Kenneth
Ball ([email protected])
recommends these three ‘starter’
titles – but he could go much further.
O Encyclopaedia
of European
Sports and GT
Cars, 1945 to
1980, £25
A comprehensive,
well researched
book by prolific
author Graham
Robson.
O Encyclopaedia
of Motor Sport,
£45 A massive
book by eminent
historian Nick
Georgano with
500 entries on
cars, 360 driver
biographies and
160 race reports.
O Mostly Motor
Racing, £20
This fascinating
book spans the
author Rivers
Fletcher’s life,
the industry and
driving in the
vintage years.
VI SI T HI STORI C SI TES
Historic sites abound in Europe, but several have special relevance to 2014.
For instance, Charles Rolls met Henry Royce 110 years ago next year, and two
years later on the same site the pair decided to build cars together. Other such
sites with motoring significance abound.
O Maserati factory, Modena, Italy
The company, founded in 1914 by
four Maserati brothers, started life
in Bologna but moved to its present
home in Modena in 1940, where all
current Maseratis are built.
O Midland Hotel, Manchester
Charles Rolls and Henry Royce
met here 110 years ago to discuss
building cars together. A plaque
(pictured above) outside the hotel
commemorates the fact.
O Peugeot museum, Mulhouse, France
See where Peugeot built its first-ever
vehicle — a steam-powered three-
wheeler — no less than 125 years ago.
Its fine museum is not far from the
famous Schlumpf collection.
P
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BUY A VE RY SI L LY CAR
Sounds expensive, right? But if the desire for an irrational car purchase is
nagging away at you, may we suggest you apply the age-old test: ‘If not now,
when?’ In any case, silly cars are often inexpensive. Some are cheap to buy;
some hold their value. Many do both.
O A supercar The term covers a
multitude of sins, but winners such
as the Ferrari 308GT4 cost around
£30,000 and hold their value well.
O A track day car If performance is
your bag, Atoms or Caterhams are
low-loss options. Avoid cars with no
pedigree and your cash should be safe.
O An affordable classic The first
Ford Capri, Europe’s very own ‘pony
car’, is 45 years old in 2014. Decent
examples cost less than £5000.
VI SI T A CAR
FACTORY
Britain is blessed with an
extraordinary selection of
fascinating car plants. If big-scale
manufacturing is your bag, there’s
500,000-a-year Nissan Sunderland,
which rivals any in Japan or the US.
If traditional construction is your
interest, there’s Morgan, right at the
other end of the scale. Or Rolls-Royce.
O Mini It’s fascinating that a car
as modern as the new Mini should
be made in Britain’s oldest plant,
Longbridge, in Oxford. Book a tour
at mini.co.uk (click ‘about us’).
O Nissan The Japanese car maker
built 500,000 cars last year at its
Sunderland plant, which makes the
Juke, Note, Qashqai and now the
electric Leaf. Contact planttours@
nissan-nmuk.co.uk.
O Rolls-Royce Its Goodwood facility
entertains visitors in groups. It could
take a few weeks to arrange and you
might be asked for a small charitable
donation. Register your interest at
[email protected].
OUR SUGGESTIONS
OUR SUGGESTIONS
Y O U R G U I D E T O
A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
54 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 26 SEPTEMBER 2012
Coxxson | Pexxxxx xx
E XPL ORE HI STORI C CI RCUI TS
The world’s first permanent race circuit, the Brooklands
banked oval, was opened in 1907 by a millionaire owner who
fretted about British car makers having nowhere to test cars to
the full. Other early tracks have diverse, fascinating stories.
OUR SUGGESTIONS
O Jim Clark Room, Duns Trophy room
in the main street of Duns, Scotland,
has properties honouring the life and
achievements of the double world
champion. Go to duns.bordernet.co.uk.
O Donington Grand Prix Exhibition
World’s finest collection of historic
and significant single-seat racers and
motorcycles, latterly joined by a fine
collection of military vehicles.
O Coventry Transport Museum
Based in the centre of Britain’s motor
city, the museum charts the industry’s
history; it has many ‘ordinary’ cars.
More at transport-museum.com.
VI SI T FAMOUS
CAR MUSE UMS
UK car making may at last be
successful again, but we have the
‘advantage’ of a car industry that
30 to 40 years ago imploded under
the weight of products that were
ingenious but extremely badly made
and developed. That legacy provides
lots of meat for intriguing, nostalgic
museum exhibits.
O Pikes Peak Famous 12.4-mile high-
altitude hillclimb above Colorado
Springs in the US began life as a
scenic drive, became a race venue
and was only fully sealed three years
ago. Find out more at ppihc.com.
O Reims, France Famous triangular
French public road circuit hosted 26
French grands prix. Its reinforced
concrete pits still stand on either
side of its longest straight. More
at reims-tourism.com.
O Brooklands Hugh Fortescue Locke-
King’s huge banked track on London’s
south-western approaches influenced
many, including Indianapolis.
OUR SUGGESTIONS
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 55
TO HELL WI TH COMMON SENSE
Sometimes we find ourselves dreaming of owning or driving the most irrational of vehicles. For these chaps, the secret is out
MAN WITH A VAN
Ever since I saw Inspector Clouseau drive
one into a swimming pool in The Return
of Pink Panther nearly 40 years ago, I have
wanted a 1950s Citroën 2CV AZU van complete
with 18bhp, 425cc motor. Problem is they only
seat two. How bad is my addiction now? Put it this
way: I’ll have one in the shed within a week of the
last child leaving home. ANDREW FRANKEL
FRENCH FANCY
I hanker after the sales disaster that
was the Patrick Le Quément-designed
Renault Avantime. So futuristic did this strangely
B-pillarless MPV-cum-coupé look at the time that
the production designers of the 2006 science-
fiction movie Children of Men cast the Renault
as the mode of transport for the unfortunate UK
residents of Earth circa 2027. GARY LORD
BACK TO REALITY
I’d like to drive a DeLorean DMC-12 up to
88mph because part of me deep down
thinks it really could travel in time. Please don’t
think less of me when you’re trying to trust my
judgement on an Astra diesel. But hey, when
you’ve watched the Back to the Future films as
many times as I have, you start to think that it
really might be possible. MARK TISSHAW
DRI VE FAMOUS ROUT E S
A big component in an enjoyable drive is having a special
destination that many have enjoyed, written about and
perhaps filmed. Makes it feels like hallowed ground. There
are hundreds of examples, but here’s a popular threesome.
O Hardknott Pass A superb piece of Cumbrian open road between Elkdale and
Duddon Valley (below) that often lets a driver see two or even three corners
ahead. Steep in places, but surprisingly well surfaced. Go to visitcumbria.com.
O Mt Panorama A famous Aussie
racing circuit a couple of weekends
of the year, the scenic road above
Bathurst is exciting, even at 40mph.
O Route 66 Well trodden path for
car-borne travellers linking Chicago
with Los Angeles. Once called ‘The
Main Street of America’.
O Brooklands Trust A club that bases most of its activities at the historic
circuit site in Weybridge, Surrey, and raises money for its preservation.
See more at brooklandsmembers.co.uk.
O Goodwood Road Racing Club Competition-based club holds a variety of
activities for owners and offers members parking and viewing privileges at the
Goodwood circuit’s often oversubscribed flagship motoring events. More at
goodwood.co.uk.
O Vintage Sports Car Club Hugely energetic club that keeps its members’
love of pre-war (mostly pre-1931) cars very much alive. Organises trials, races,
hillclimbs, sprints and much more. Details at vscc.co.uk.
JOI N A CAR CL UB
It makes sense to bond, through clubs, with car enthusiasts who share your
desires and enthusiasm, but that doesn’t mean you need be restricted to the
one-make clubs that abound. Some are relevant whatever you drive.
OUR SUGGESTIONS
OUR SUGGESTIONS
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Y O U R G U I D E T O
A B E T T E R 2 0 1 4
56 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
P
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O The vastly different
company may officially
be called MG Motor, but
its venerable badge hasn’t
changed a bit.
O Daytime running lights are firmly
established as a model identifier. The
designers have done well to make the MG 3’s
stand out for the right reasons.
O If alloy wheels are important
to you, it’s worth noting that the
MG 3 gets 16-inch examples at
a cheaper price point than just
about any car currently for sale.
O Not all of the MG 3’s bodywork comes as
standard across the range, but the sporty front
bumper is a fixture for all four trim levels.
MG Motor’s first supermini has price on its side, but what else?
No 5145
ROAD TEST
MG 3
1.5 3Form Sport
O Price £9549 O Power 105bhp O Torque 101lb ft O 0-60mph 11.4sec
O Fuel economy 36.7mpg O CO2 emissions 136g/km O 70-0mph 50.8m O Skidpan 0.93g
WE LIKE The dainty, darty handling Q Compelling list price Q Simple but effective styling
Y
ou might not have seen MG
Motor’s previous effort, the 6,
around your way much, but rest
assured, the Chinese/British
hybrid badge is not going away.
Sizeable investment in Longbridge
has put some genuine meat back on
the manufacturer’s borrowed bones
and the second model to be (re)built
on the fledgling line has the potential
to generate far more public attention
than the initial offering.
Aside from crossovers, B-segment
superminis are a downsizing decade’s
sweet spot, and with four doors,
snappy styling and a remarkably
MODEL TESTED
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 57
DESIGN AND ENGINEERING
AAACC
The MG 3 was dreamed up and
developed at the SAIC Design Centre
at Longbridge. The pen strokes and
proficiency of about 60 designers and
300 engineers vault the first critical
hurdle with room to spare: the 3 looks
good. Unencumbered by a direct
forebear to tediously reference, the
company has sought (and found) a
clean, snappy look. At 2520mm, the
car gets a slightly longer wheelbase ◊
Rover Streetwise can be found on MG 3’s family tree
HISTORY
There’s a whole heap of
heritage here if you feel
inclined to trace the MG 3’s
line back through the
extended family tree.
Distressingly, for those who
recall it, the closest relative
(by virtue of it being sold in
China in rebadged guise)
is the Rover Streetwise, a
big-bumpered version of
the Rover 25. By extension, that puts it in the Rover 200-series bloodline, a
lineage that can be reverse engineered all the way back, via the Acclaim and
the Dolomite, to the Triumph Herald, another snappily dressed dinky Brit.
O There’s no trim-specific badging on
the bootlid (or anywhere else, for that
matter). Only the model name gets
emblazoned on the body.
O A high shoulder line and
vertically stacked tail-lights
create a classic supermini
wedge profile.
O These side skirts are the preserve of the Sport
model. Because it’s likely to form the bulk of
sales, expect most MG 3s you encounter to be
wearing them.
O The exhaust is so teeny that the
designers might just as well have
tucked it out of sight. Instead,
in the interests of sportiness,
they’ve squared it off.
WE DON’T LIKE Laboured performance Q Previous-generation efficiency Q Limp gearchange
affordable sticker price, the new MG
3 appears perfectly positioned to
make respectable waves. But to do
so, MG Motor will have had to learn
very quickly from the easily identified
limitations that pigeonholed its 6 as a
likeable novelty rather than a serious
contender. The small hatch market
is, if anything, even tougher ground
than the C-segment because of the
proliferation of household names,
ever-rising standards and seriously
high-volume sales figures. In short,
if MG Motor can hold its head high
here, it might just signal the difference
between surviving and thriving.
58 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
O Heating and ventilation controls are simple and feel
chunky and robust. We’re not sure why MG hides the door
lock buttons down here as well.
O Gearlever is a cheap-looking
item, and its shift quality is a bit
limp and poorly defined.
O Oddment storage is augmented by a cubby ahead of
the cupholders, which are themselves big enough for a
drinks can but too small for a travel mug.
COMMUNICATIONS
No Bluetooth on the entry-level
3Time model, but it was included
as standard on our test car. Pairing
takes a moment or two, because
of the monochrome display screen
and various menu functions, but the
connection is reliable enough. Audio
quality during calls is only adequate.
NAVIGATION
No fitted system is offered, but if you
have your own TomTom or Garmin,
MG will sell you a mounting kit for the
roller-covered connectivity cubby
for £15. Likewise, MG will do you one
for an iPhone or offer you a universal
smartphone mount. The same cubby
is also where the USB and aux-in
jacks are, potentially providing power
for your phone while it’s navigating.
ENTERTAINMENT
The 3Time model gets a simple four-
speaker audio system with an AM/FM
CD tuner and USB and 3.5mm inputs.
The six-speaker set-up on our test car
gains extra tweeters, DAB, Bluetooth
audio streaming and steering wheel-
mounted controls. Which seems a lot
for under £10k. The audio quality is
more than passable, too.
ON THE INSIDE
285-
1262 litres
2520mm 859mm 639mm
4018mm
39%
1
5
0
7
m
m
61% 39%
8
3
0
m
m
m
in
1
0
8
0
m
m
m
a
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8
9
0
m
m
m
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0
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m
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6
3
0
m
m
m
in
9
2
0
m
m
m
a
x
9
1
0
m
m

0.34
1
7
2
9
m
m
T
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g
c
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c
le
:
1
0
.4
m
1513mm 1501mm
140mm
10mm
Centre
100mm 30mm
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 59
HOW BIG IS IT?
VISIBILITY TEST
WHEEL AND PEDAL ALIGNMENT
∆ than the class norm, but it doesn’t
render an oversized presence in the
flesh. From the outside, the 3 appears
every bit the modern supermini.
Underneath, it’s more indebted to
conventionalism. Like most small
cars built to a strict budget, the 3
is stock-standard hatchback fare.
The all-new front-drive platform is
underpinned by MacPherson struts at
the front and a torsion bar at the rear,
with different, sportier damper and
spring settings applied for the UK.
Likewise, the throwback hydraulic
rack has been tuned for a little less
assistance than would be found on
the Chinese-spec model, and the disc
front/drum rear brakes benefit from
uprated components.
Continuing the rather rudimentary
theme is the imaginatively named
four-cylinder VTi-Tech petrol engine
up front. The chain-driven 1.5-litre
unit, tuned for EU5 compliance, is the
sole choice and produces a modest
105bhp of naturally aspirated power
at 6000rpm without the aid of direct
injection or a turbocharger. A five-
speed manual gearbox is the only
transmission yet bolted to the motor.
Bolting the engine to the car is done
at Longbridge as well, but it would be
stretching matters to describe the 3
as British built. At the moment, each
example arrives in the hallowed halls
direct from China as a knocked-down
kit to be reassembled by a smaller
workforce (see Under the Skin).
INTERIOR
AAABC
Familiarity with the 6 gave us low
expectations of the 3’s interior, but
the smaller car exceeds the standards
of its bigger sibling by a distance.
Between material quality, space,
equipment and even a peppy sort of
style, there is very little to find serious
fault with here and quite a lot to like.
With its black and grey seats, red
stitching and matching red fascia
highlights, our test car did a lot to
conjure the memory of the MG ZR,
and even the MG Metro and Maestro
before it. Dubious reference points
they may be, but they’re about all that
Longbridge has got to refer back to.
And the 3 is sufficiently stylish and
well turned out to feel connected with
those cars but, more important, also ◊
O Red highlights with black and grey trim are classic MG cues. The seats are a
good size and it’s easy to find a decent driving position. Space is generous, too.
O There’s also plenty of legroom in the rear, and the amount of available
headroom is much better than the kinked C-pillar would lead you to think.
O The loading lip hides a large boot that’s deep enough to beat most in the class,
and that’s with room for a full-sized spare wheel as well. Rear seats split and fold.
Height 530-840mm
Length 620-1500mm
Width 1010-1190mm
Typical rear
legroom 830mm
Front
No lab test, but we’d
expect an average
result. Pillars are
pretty standard on
width; rear view is
reasonable.
Headlights
They work but are
not exceptional.
Adequately
powerful on main,
well aimed on dip.
No corners cut for right-hand drive
here; everything is where it should be.
Steering column is minutely offset, but
you won’t notice it, and there’s plenty
of reach and rake adjustment on it.
Start/finish
T1
T2
T3
T4
T5
T6
T7
Start/finish
T1
T2
T4
T3
T5
T6
T7
T8
30mph 40 50mph 60mph 70mph 80mph 90mph 100mph
3.7s 5.9s 15.2s 8.1s 11.4s 39.1s 20.3s 28.3s
20s 10s 0 30s
30mph 40 50mph 60mph 70mph 80mph 90mph 100mph
3.7s 5.8s 15.3s 8.1s 11.4s 41.5s 19.9s 28.7s
20s 10s 0 30s 40s
30mph-0
30mph-0
50mph-0
50mph-0 70mph-0
70mph-0
50.8m
57.1m 27.9m
25.5m
10.0m
9.2m DRY
WET
20m 10m 40m 50m 30m 0
60 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
ON THE ROAD
Track notes
O Tiny bit of power-on understeer out of T4, but the
throttle allows you to feather it out accurately.
O Great steering feedback
through the hairpin tells you
exactly how hard you can
lean on the front end.
O The 3’s intelligent stability control
doesn’t stop you from powering out of
a slide around T6.
O MG even dodges understeer
around T2, tucking its nose in and
going beautifully neutral mid-corner.
On the limit
The MG 3 is an exceptional-handling
car when you consider the budget that
MG Motor must have had. The fact
that we drove the doors off it on both
MIRA’s wet and dry handling circuits
without encountering so much as
a hint of brake fade — never mind a
disappointing stability control system
or anything else that might betray
a shortage of development spend —
speaks volumes about it. And we had a
ball every single lap.
Its cornering line remains admirably
accurate as you up the pace. Its body
control is very good and its balance of
grip likewise, allowing you to attack
apexes with the kind of gusto that
you’d normally reserve for much
more expensive specialist machinery.
On the limit of grip, the car gently
nudges into understeer, but its ESP
is fully switchable and its cornering
attitude is even a little adjustable if
you’re smooth with your inputs.
In low-grip conditions, that chassis
balance only makes for greater
amusement, aided by the feelsome,
honest steering system.
DRY CIRCUIT
MG 3 1.5 3Form Sport
1min 29.3sec
Kia Rio 1.4 (2011)
1min 28.1sec
A giggle. Great body
control and directional
agility, well balanced grip,
precise handling and even
a little bit of off-throttle
adjustability of line if
you’re smooth with
the controls.
WET CIRCUIT
MG 3 1.5 3Form Sport
1min 18.0sec
Kia Rio 1.4 (2011)
1min 18.9sec
Even more of a giggle.
ESP feels quite
sophisticated, but it also
switches out completely —
when the chassis balance
really shines. Tyres handle
standing water well.
MG 3 1.5 3Form Sport
Standing quarter mile 18.4sec at 77.2mph, standing km 33.8sec at 94.5mph, 30-70mph 11.6sec, 30-70mph in fourth 24.9sec
ACCELERATION 9deg C, damp
Kia Rio 1.4 (2011)
Standing quarter mile 18.3sec at 76.9mph, standing km 33.7sec at 95.8mph, 30-70mph 11.5sec, 30-70mph in fourth 21.0sec
BRAKING 60-0mph: 2.75sec
∆ to look and feel like a typical
modern European supermini.
The car’s driving position is sound,
its seats providing good lateral
support and long-distance comfort.
There are no ergonomic howlers to
report: plenty of adjustment on the
steering wheel, well sited secondary
controls and readable instruments.
The cupholders are a bit small, but if
MG commits any more serious crime
in here, it’s only in making an interior
that looks slightly dated. It’s still quite
racy and appealing in its own way.
A few of the materials aren’t up to
prevailing class standards, but only a
few. There’s certainly no austerity feel.
It’s also a spacious cabin. The
maximum headroom and legroom
measurements that we took beat those
of plenty of much more expensive
superminis, and the boot is wider and
taller than that of a Dacia Sandero,
which – aside from being another
budget supermini – is also one of
the most accommodating small
hatchbacks of its kind.
PERFORMANCE
AAACC
Fifty feet’s worth of interaction with
the 3 is enough to find out where the
car is most vulnerable to criticism. Its
105bhp and 101lb ft of torque are both
a lot for a package priced from £4000
less than a 59bhp Ford Fiesta five-
door, but they are maximum outputs
delivered in such a way as to make
this budget supermini feel ‘budget’.
Decidedly 20th century, in fact.
The MG’s engine feels thin and slow
to pick up from low revs, although it
hauls from close to tickover cleanly
enough. It also finds its feet in slightly
uneven strides as the revs rise. By the
time you’re getting the benefit of peak
torque, at about 4500rpm, you’re also
feeling quite a lot of buzzing vibration
and harshness from the engine. The
0
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MG 3 1.5
Skoda Fabia 1.2 12v
Dacia Sandero 0.9TCe
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 61
Under the skin
THE LONGBRIDGE FINISHING SCHOOL
Although it might seem a somewhat convoluted
process to an outsider, the current MG Motor system
of building 3s allows it the flexibility to build a
European-spec model without the need to replicate the
really expensive parts of the construction process.
This primary phase of production occurs at
SAIC’s facility in Lingang, China, on a line capable of
producing both fully built cars and the semi-knocked-
down versions of the sort that are shipped to the UK at
approximately 65 per cent of final assembly.
At Longbridge, the final 35 per cent is completed
on a duplication of the remaining production line, with
the engine, gearbox, front assembly, rear assembly,
wheels and all optional parts yet to be added to the
painted shell.
Depending on the specification, MG Motor allows
two months for shipping, plus another month for
completion in the UK.
O According to our sources, the 3 will
shed at least £1000 more over three
years than the class average.
DEPRECIATION
ruckus is entirely bearable – and it’s
far less noisy than a Sandero 1.2 in the
same circumstances – but it wouldn’t
make it past sign-off on anything from
the big European brands.
It’s a pity that the angry buzz isn’t
part of a more sporting crescendo.
The engine pulls averagely well past
4000rpm but runs out of breath
quickly after 5500rpm. It’s as if that
105bhp appears for the blink of an eye.
Below 4000rpm, you miss the
likes of variable valve lift technology,
light-pressure turbocharging and
direct injection – advances that
hit supermini engine bays long
after SAIC acquired MG Rover’s
assets – because the 3’s low-range
performance is quite pedestrian. A
79bhp 1.2-litre Nissan Micra is faster
from 30-70mph in fourth gear.
On top of that, the drivetrain
feels underdeveloped in a tactile
sense. The gearchange is a little
limp and imprecise and the clutch
has an unpleasant dead fraction
of travel right at the top of the pedal.
It’s enough to make you wonder,
for the first few miles, if you’ve
engaged the clutch fully every time
you come off the pedal.
RIDE AND HANDLING
AAAAB
The primitive feel of the 3’s driveline
contrasts with the responses of its
highly tuned chassis as starkly as
the bright red of its cabin stands out
against the black fascia to which it is
fixed. No £9000 car has any right to
handle as keenly as this. For that price,
simple dynamic adequacy is what you
hope for – and it’s what you get in the
likes of the Dacia Sandero and, just
about, in a Proton Savvy.
Compared with those cars, the
MG offers something genuinely
remarkable. The car has body control
to burn, generates plenty of grip in dry
conditions and is as clean, direct and
precise in its responses to your control
inputs as many a warm hatchback. It
also has consistent, perfectly judged
steering weight and real feedback
through the rim. Thank the old-
fashioned hydraulic power assistance.
On top of all that, the incisive front
end of a junior performance machine
adds something quietly compelling
into the 3’s handling mix, and it’s
absolutely the last thing that you
expect to get from a car this cheap:
driver reward. This isn’t what you’d
call any proper sort of driver’s car,
but only because the powertrain
isn’t distinguished enough to justify
the billing. The taut, engaging
suspension tune – a credit to the skill
of MG Motor’s UK engineering outfit
– is easily good enough for a junior
hot hatch. It could handle another
50bhp as it is.
But as powerfully tempting as a
half-price hot supermini will sound
to many potential buyers, the 3’s
chassis tune won’t suit everyone.
Those sporting spring rates impose
a jostling high-frequency ride on the
car over less than perfect surfaces, as
well as a slight shortage of low-speed
compliance around town.
Those factors, combined with
the engine noise, can make the 3 a
wearing car after a while, when you’re
not in the mood to take pleasure in its
genuine handling verve.
BUYING AND OWNING
AAABC
In a four-model line-up, starting at
just £8399 for the lightly equipped
3Time, no 3 will set you back more
than £10,000. That makes the range-
topping 3Style – a car with cruise
control, automatic lights and wipers
and reverse parking sensors – appear
better at face value than not just the
Polo, Clio, Fiesta, Ibiza, Corsa et al
but also much of the opposition in the
city car segment below.
Clearly, the rub is that buyers
will not encounter quite the same
standard across the board that they
might expect from an established
brand. Leaving aside the obvious
differences in interior finish and
sophistication already covered, the 3’s
unsophisticated petrol motor is going
to make it more expensive to run.
Where some of the opposition can
offer a likely tax-free three-pot capable
of keeping combined economy in the
60mpg region, the Chinese chugger
is stuck fast at 48.7mpg (we managed
just 41.4mpg on a gentle tour) and
emits 136g/km of CO2 from the
back – about the same as an entry-
level petrol-powered Volkswagen
Passat. It’s quite possible that this
fact, as much as the likely onerous
depreciation and potential badge
snobbery, will be the reason why some
punters are put off the otherwise
eminently affordable MG. ◊
Some will crave a
more pliant and
settled ride quality
45 litres
0
40
20
100
60
120
0
2000 4000 8000 6000 0
Engine (rpm)
101lb ft at
4750rpm
105bhp at
6000rpm
P
o
w
e
r

o
u
t
p
u
t

(
b
h
p
)
T
o
r
q
u
e

(
l
b

f
t
)
40
60
80 80
20
120
100
1 3 5
35mph
6800rpm
91mph
6800rpm
108mph*
4863rpm
*claimed
62mph
6800rpm
108mph
5952rpm
2 4
62 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
DATA LOG
TECHNICAL LAYOUT
MG 3 1.5 3FORM SPORT
On-the-road price £9549
Price as tested £10,136
Value after 3yrs/36k miles £3150
Contract hire pcm na
Cost per mile na
Insurance/typical quote 4E/£301
EQUIPMENT CHECKLIST
Front, side and curtain airbags Q
6-speaker stereo CD AM/FM tuner with
DAB, MP3 compatability, Bluetooth Q
Passenger airbag cut-off switch Q
Leather steering wheel, red stitching Q
Immobiliser Q
Halogen headlamps Q
LED daytime running lights Q
Sport Design grille and valance Q
Electric windows, front and rear Q
Non-metallic paint, Red Rose NCO
16in Diamond Cut alloy wheels £449
Piano Black Red interior pack £99
Newton Black door mirror caps £39
‘Hope and Glory’ union flag
roof graphics £199
iPhone 5 mounting bracket £29
5-year/100,000-mile
extended warranty £629
Options in bold fitted to test car
Q = Standard na = not available
RANGE AT A GLANCE
ENGINES POWER FROM
1.5 3Time 105bhp £8399

TRANSMISSIONS
5-spd manual Q
Steel monocoque with transverse 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine driving the front wheels via a five-speed manual
gearbox, with independent MacPherson strut suspension at the front and a torsion beam at the rear. Weight
distribution, as tested, is 61/39 per cent front to rear.
Engine’s low-end torque shortage really
shows up in fourth-gear 30-70mph sprint.
MG 3 is this much slower than a Kia Rio 1.4.
How much less CO2 a 0.9 tCe Dacia
Sandero emits than the MG 3. It’s the
difference between £30 and £105 VED.
ENGINE
Installation Front, transverse,
front-wheel drive
Type 4 cyls, 1498cc, petrol
Made of Iron block, aluminium head
Bore/stroke 75.0mm/84.8mm
Compression ratio 10.5:1
Valve gear 4 per cyl
Power 105bhp at 6000rpm
Torque 101lb ft at 4750rpm
Red line 6800rpm
Power to weight 91bhp per tonne
Torque to weight 88lb ft per tonne
Specific output 70bhp per litre
POWER & TORQUE
BRAKES
Front 257mm ventilated discs
Rear 203mm drums
Anti-lock Standard with EBD and Brake Assist
CABIN NOISE
Idle 44dB Max revs in third gear 78dB
30mph 61dB 50mph 65dB 70mph 69dB
SAFETY
ABS, SCS, EBD, EBA, Brake Disc Wiping
Euro NCAP crash rating Not tested
EMISSIONS & TAX
CO2 emissions 136g/km
Tax at 20/40% pcm £30/£60
CHASSIS & BODY
Construction Steel monocoque
Weight/as tested 1150kg/1240kg
Drag coefficient 0.34
Wheels 7Jx16in
Tyres 195/55 R16 87V,
Goodyear EfficientGrip
Performance
Spare Full size
TRANSMISSION
Type 5-spd manual
Ratios/mph per 1000rpm
1st 3.46/5.1 2nd 1.95/9.0 3rd 1.32/13.3
4th 0.97/18.1 5th 0.80/22.2
Final drive ratio 4.12
SUSPENSION
Front MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar
Rear Torsion beam, coil springs, anti-roll bar
STEERING
Type Hydraulically assisted, rack and pinion
Turns lock to lock 2.5
Turning circle 10.4m
ECONOMY
TEST
CLAIMED
Average 36.7mpg
Touring 41.4mpg
Track 20.3mpg
Urban 37.7mpg
Extra-urban 57.6mpg
Combined 48.7mpg
Tank size 45 litres
Test range 363 miles
ACCELERATION ACCELERATION IN GEAR MAX SPEEDS IN GEAR
MPH 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
20-40 4.6 7.6 11.9 -
30-50 4.5 7.5 11.3 17.2
40-60 - 7.6 12.3 17.0
50-70 - 7.7 13.6 19.6
60-80 - 8.8 14.6 24.5
70-90 - - 16.5 -
80-100 - - - -
90-110 - - - -
100-120 - - - -
110-130 - - - -
120-140 - - - -
130-150 - - - -
140-160 - - - -
MPH TIME (sec)
0-30 3.7
0-40 5.8
0-50 8.1
0-60 11.4
0-70 15.3
0-80 19.9
0-90 28.7
0-100 41.5
0-110 -
0-120 -
0-130 -
0-140 -
0-150 -
3.9sec
20g/km
Read all of our road tests autocar.co.uk
ROAD TEST
RPM in 5th @ 70/80mph = 3152/3602
THE SMALL PRINT Power-to-weight and torque-to-weight figures are calculated using manufacturer’s claimed kerb weight. © 2013, Haymarket
Media Group Ltd. Test results may not be reproduced without editor’s written permission. For information on the MG 3, contact MG Motor
UK Ltd, Main Gate, Lowhill Lane, Longbridge, Birmingham, B31 2BQ (0845 303 6464, mg.co.uk). Cost-per-mile figures calculated over three
years/36,000 miles, including depreciation and maintenance but not insurance; Lex Autolease (0800 389 3690). Insurance quote covers
35-year-old professional male with clean licence and full no-claims bonus living in Swindon. Quote from Liverpool Victoria (0800 066 5161,
lv.com). Contract hire figure based on a three-year lease/36,000-mile contract including maintenance; Wessex Fleet Solutions (01722 322888).
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 63
MAKE
Model
Price
Power
Torque
0-60mph
Top speed (claimed)
Fuel economy (combined)
Kerb weight (claimed)
CO2/tax band
RENAULT
Clio 0.9 TCe 90 Dynamique 5dr
£14,195
89bh p at 5000rpm
99lb ft at 2500rpm
13.4sec
113mph
62.8mpg
1009kg
104g/km, 12 per cent
VOLKSWAGEN
Polo 1.4 Match Edition 5dr
£14,140
84bhp at 5000rpm
97lb ft at 3800rpm
11.9sec (claimed, to 62mph)
110mph
47.9mpg
1070kg
139g/km, 19 per cent
HONDA
Jazz 1.4 Si 5dr
£14,760
98bhp at 6000rpm
94lb ft at 4800rpm
11.9sec (claimed, to 62mph)
113mph
50.4mpg
1112kg
129g/km, 17 per cent
KIA
Rio 1.4 3 5dr
£13,595
107bhp at 6300rpm
101lb ft at 4200rpm
11.4sec
114mph
51.4mpg
1234kg
124g/km, 16 per cent
Better on rolling refinement
and desirability than anything
else in the class. Impressive.
++++C
Stalwart Polo has solidity and
class in spades. Roomy, liveable
and holds its value well.
++++C
Clever packaging makes this
the practical pick. Obliging to
drive and high on quality.
++++C
European supermini style and
charm done well by Korea —
and for a knock-down price.
+++BC
FORD
Fiesta 1.0T Zetec 5dr
£14,495
99bhp at 6000rpm
125lb ft at 1400-4000rpm
11.2sec (claimed, to 62mph)
112mph
65.7mpg
1101kg
99g/km, 11 per cent
Gem of an engine, marvel of a
chassis; both wrapped up in a
stylish and usable package.
++++B
ROAD TEST
MG 3
AUTOCAR VERDICT AAABC
No slayer of the best mainstream giants, but cheap done very cheerfully
TOP 5
2nd
3rd 4th 5th
Verdicts on every
new car, p80
MATT
SAUNDERS
You don’t
see square
exhaust
pipes too often, but I
like the MG 3’s. I’d go so
far as to say that it’s a
good-looking car: subtly
sporting, modern and
anything but cheap.
NIC
CACKETT
The optional
iPod dock in
the centre of
the dashboard is a great
idea, but it could do with
a longer, retractable
cable. The standard Apple
connector is so naff that
you’re endlessly straining
forward to make running
repairs to the link-up.
SPEC ADVICE
It is tempting, given the
pricing, to recommend
opting for the range-
topper. However, MG
reckons the 3Form Sport
will be the most popular
option and, given the
decent kit list, that’s
fine, too. Avoid the lairy
graphic packs if you ever
plan to resell the car.
JOBS FOR
THE FACELIFT
O Beg, borrow or steal a
new engine.
O Improve the odd
material choice inside.
O Do both without adding
£2500 to the list price.
Easy, huh?
W
e’ve paid MG Motor the compliment of ranking its new supermini alongside the best in
the class below – because, as it stands, there isn’t really a class to slot this car into. The
sub-£9000, full-sized supermini market consists of the Proton Satria Neo and Dacia
Sandero – and neither offers anything like the sporting appeal of this car. For the record,
the MG 3 beats the Dacia in our book – and makes it look pretty ordinary in the process.
MG wouldn’t expect the 3 to rank higher than a Ford Fiesta, Renault Clio or Volkswagen Polo
or probably even appear in a top five. But we’d place it in a top 10. And it would be there on merit,
not just because it’s five grand cheaper. Its powertrain isn’t up to European standards, and it
isn’t as refined as a volume-selling supermini must be, but it’s big enough, good-looking enough
and seems sufficiently well built to stand comparison. On handling and driver engagement
alone, it’s an outstanding buy.
1st
No 5145
TESTERS’ NOTES
2nndddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd
64 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
Why are so many governments pushing
car makers so firmly down the wrong road
in terms of the future of the car?
It seems everyone is pushing to limit
corporate CO2 levels (a cynic might say
that this has nothing to do with global
warming but is just an easy tax win). This
is making manufacturers spend valuable
R&D money on the wrong technology,
namely battery and hybrid.
Why is this wrong? Well, batteries will
never have the necessary energy density
to replace fossil fuel for longer journeys
and they are inconvenient to recharge.
Hybrids don’t work well since whichever
powerplant they are using necessitates
lugging around one that they are not.
The answer is the hydrogen fuel cell.
A culture needs creating where all of the
above wasted R&D money gets spent on
the challenges of cheap production and
safe distribution of hydrogen.
Roy Bush
Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
BARKING UP THE WRONG TREE
MAD MERC MAKES SENSE
Having recently bought a Mercedes-
Benz C63 AMG 507 Edition, I read
your comparison with the Alpina
D3 (‘Who Said Diesels are Dull?’,
27 November) with interest. I also
considered buying an Alpina and drove
the B3 and loved it.
However, the B3 is over £500 a
month more expensive to ‘buy’. After
three years, the C63’s predicted value
was £32,000 and the B3 £17,000. The
C63 was available on much lower-rate
finance and a discount was offered. I
calculated that the C63 is actually over
£20k cheaper to ‘buy’ on a personal
contract purchase scheme, which is
why I bought one. You can buy a lot of
fuel with that sort of saving. The car is
marvellous fun and a great replacement
for my Porsche 911 Carrera (991).
Simon Thompson
London
KEEPING IT SIMPLE
In a recent issue, Gordon Murray was
quoted as saying that mainstream
manufacturers attempt to sell cars
overloaded with expensive and
unnecessary gadgets in order to
maintain profits (‘Why Yamaha
Has Embraced Murray’s Vision’,
20 November). He further says that this
is not a sustainable business model.
The effect of the credit crunch
on the motor industry supports his
view, highlighting how it has great
difficulty in adjusting to large changes
(particularly a drop) in demand. Its
effect on the US industry in particular
brought the issue into focus.
In the same issue, Steve Sutcliffe
remarked that the £2100 Comand
system in his new long-term Mercedes-
Benz A45 AMG is a must-have option.
I would only say expensive technology
on vehicles is a ‘must-have’ item if it is
safety related, which this isn’t.
Your writers often recommend a
large dose of options on long-term
cars to maintain resale value. I am not
convinced, since the more you spend, the
more you lose on resale. Is it Autocar’s
view that the increasing complexity
and cost of technology on mainstream
cars is a sustainable model, and that
alternatives such as the Yamaha Motiv
proposed by Murray are not required?
Paul Levio
via email
We’ve championed Gordon Murray’s
philosophy from the start, Paul, but we
also don’t expect wholesale industry
change overnight — MB
WRC BEATS FORMULA 1
Robert Cullen (Your Views, 27
November) says the action in the current
WRC is anodyne. I think he is very much
mistaken and his comment should more
properly be applied to Formula 1.
Did he see the riveting action in
Wales Rally GB? I never watch F1 live
nowadays; it isn’t worth two hours of my
time to watch a procession.
Even the one-hour highlights package
on BBC television is often not enough to
keep my attention. A pitstop competition
is not what I want.
Tim Grundey
Inverurie, Aberdeenshire
Hopefully the new-for-2014 technical
regulations will give Formula 1 the shot
in the arm it badly needs — MB
NISSAN NOT NICE
In response to the poser on the cover
of the 27 November issue, no, Nissan
should not build the IDx concept. It
appears to have been modelled on
the Hensen M30. Which is a rare but
spectacularly ugly kit car.
Adam Collins
via email
MORE LIGHT TALK
To add to the daytime running lights
debate, it has been stated on your letters
One reader found a
way to get a good
deal on the C63
WRC vs F1: which is more entertaining?
WIN
Letter of the week wins a selection
of car care products from
Car-Skin worth over £65.
pro-valets.co.uk
YOUR VIEWS
Write to Autocar, Teddington Studios, Broom Road,
Teddington TW11 9BE or email [email protected]
LETTER OF THE WEEK
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 65
LETTERS
page that LED lights are required by
European law. Daytime running lights
are required by European law, but these
do not have to be LED.
I think LEDs are much too bright,
making it very difficult to see anything
close to them. On some cars the LEDs
are dimmed when the indicators are on;
if the lights had been designed properly,
this would not be necessary.
This is illustrated in the letter in the
27 November issue from Kris McInally,
as some drivers find their LEDs so
bright that they continue to drive with
them at night, which means they have no
rear lights. Perhaps LEDs should only
be fitted to cars with automatic lights.
Alastair Henry
via email
CIVIC RECEPTION
I got over-excited when I read you had a
feature on the new Honda Civic Type R
in the 27 November issue. On the pages
prior, I saw that a non-production
Volkswagen Golf is apparently a better
car than the near-production Civic.
Not only is the Golf Design Vision
GTI ugly, pointless, unrealistic and just
an advertising ploy, but you think it is
better than a production-set car, and an
exciting one at that.
I’ll accept you call the last two Civics
not very ergonomically friendly, but why
do you love German metal so much?
Alexander Pettitt
via email
The Civic Type R we drove was a work in
progress and our definitive verdict will
arrive when we drive the final car next
year. And we’re German-biased? Did
you notice the four pages devoted to the
4.5-star Nissan GT-R Nismo? — MB
CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE
I loved Richard Bremner’s piece on the
Lexus 2054 (Concept to Completion,
27 November). I thought at first I was
looking at a back-to-front Chrysler
Crossfire, a car whose looks I’m finally
starting to appreciate. Nurse, nurse,
they’re stealing my stuff again…
Peter Burke
Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
SAY NO TO SQUEAKS
Steve Cropley’s latest comments on his
long-term-fleet Range Rover (Our Cars,
27 November) show the esteem with
which he regards the car. However, “a
couple of squeaks” are unacceptable in
a £95,000 car. My Audi S6 has no such
squeaks; modern standards in this
sector are now so high that vault-like
build quality should be a given.
Paul Wright
Ilford, Essex
No German bias
here; we can’t wait
for new Civic Type R
Nearly two years of writing these
emails to the management and only
now have I thought of writing to you.
An apology is in order.
Why? Because I should have taken
the opportunity very early on to
write to you to thank you for what you
have done for the British motorist
since you founded the Association
(now renamed Alliance) of British
Drivers in late 1992. I remember
reading your first press release and
thinking, “At last someone is standing
up for the driver”.
At the time our main concern was
speed cameras, but since then you
have campaigned on numerous issues
from the state of our roads to unfair
taxes on the motorists, wonky science
about the effects of the motor car on
the environment and most famously
on road pricing, which, thanks to your
2007 campaign gaining 1.8 million
signatures on a petition, kicked the
idea into touch.
I remember once speaking to you
on the telephone to congratulate
Goodwin’s Email to the management
To: Brian Gregory, chairman, Alliance of British Drivers
Subject: An apology
Dear Brian,
Yours sincerely,
C Goodwin
you on your stance, but that’s rather
a feeble way to thank someone for
standing up for what I believe in. And of
course helping to protect my livelihood.
So having prevaricated over the past
20 years, I have at last joined the ABD
and have coughed up my 25 quid.
I’m exceedingly ashamed not to have
done so right at the beginning, and I’m
also embarrassed that many of my
colleagues in the world of motoring
journalism have also not joined.
I note that your patron (or perhaps
that is now our patron) is Steve Baker
MP. He sounds like a good egg. He
rides a KTM 950 Supermoto and
is also a member of the Motorcyle
Action Group — another group close
to my heart and one that I have also
failed to support.
GOT ANY SUGGESTIONS? Contact Colin at [email protected]
ROAD TEST
Audi Q3 RS
First SUV to be given the RS
treatment reviewed and rated.
SPECIAL FEATURE
New cars of 2014
Full guide to what’s coming when
during the next 12 months.
OUR CARS
Mitsubishi Outlander
We bid a fond farewell to our
hard-working seven-seat SUV.
BUYING USED
Mercedes-Benz SLK
How to buy a used compact
roadster for as little as £1500.
NEXT
WEEK
INSIDE THE MAGAZINE
On sale 2 January
C
O
N
T
E
N
T
S
S
U
B
J
E
C
T
T
O
C
H
A
N
G
E
ABD campaigns for
better conditions
for British drivers
Nic Cackett Allan Muir Andrew Frankel Steve Sutcliffe Matt Prior Richard Bremner Lewis Kingston Gary Lord Jim Holder
CATERHAM
SEVEN
AUDI
RS4
MERCEDES
CLS SHOOTING
BRAKE
MERCEDES
A45 AMG
JAGUAR
F-TYPE
KIA
PROCEE’D
MAZDA
6
FORD
FIESTA ST
DACIA
SANDERO
L
ife with the Shooting Brake had been
continuing in untroubled, serene
fashion. I had a long journey north
to do and, as ever, I was looking
forward to it. These journeys provide
time to cocoon yourself away from the
world inside the steel vault that is this
Mercedes. I knew the seats wouldn’t
trouble my over-sensitive lower back
and I looked forward to its refinement,
surround-sound music system, digital
radio broadcasts and, above all, its
spectacular ride quality.
Fizz, ripple, fizz. Those were the most
un-Mercedes-like feelings received by
my fingers through its leather-lined
wheel as I accelerated out on to the
motorway network. There was a distinct
vibration evident from around 65mph
that I’d hitherto not noticed, either
because it hadn’t happened before or
because in the past few days on the
school run, I’d not got the car up to
sufficient speed for the problem to
become apparent. I discovered that
if I accelerated some more there was
a speed at which the wobble would
leave the wheel, but this left me with an
entirely unsatisfactory choice: go slow
and arrive late, go fast and risk the points
or cruise at the speed I wanted to cruise
at and put up with a slight but significant
shaking of the wheel.
In the end I did a combination of all
three, learned to live with it and was only
mildly troubled there and back. Even
so, the next time the car moved it was
to visit the ever-excellent Paul Jarrold
Tyres in Monmouth in a bid to confirm
what I suspected, namely that a wheel
weight had fallen off, putting a wheel out
of balance and causing the vibration.
I know I’ve said this before, but finding
a decent local tyre supplier will, over
time, save you hundreds and possibly
even thousands of pounds. I know of
someone with an Audi R8 who got a
puncture in London and, because his
other tyres were genuinely well worn,
got a big-name tyre company to give
an estimate to replace all four. Stunned
by the quote, he rang Paul Jarrold,
who offered to supply and fit the tyres
for little more than half the money —
including driving from Monmouth to
London to do the work.
I digress. It turns out the problem was
not a wheel weight at all, but the wheel
itself, which was no longer round. “We
see it all the time these days,” I was told.
“The roads around here are so bad these
days and tyre profiles so short that you
only need to hit one big pothole to buckle
the wheel. There’s just not enough
sidewall to soak up the impact.” And
suddenly I remembered exactly where
and when this damage had occurred.
One new £535 wheel later and the
Shooting Brake vibrated no more.
So now winter is upon us, the Brake is
66 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
A week in the life of Autocar’s fleet
OUR CARS
Mercedes-Benz CLS
Shooting Brake
Mileage | 17,400 Mercedes’ distinctly stylish Shooting Brake is fitting perfectly into our man’s
long-distance life, but our crumbled roads have taken their toll on this smooth-riding wagon
For me, speed, comfort and range are the
most important commodities a car can
have, and this one has them in spades
LANDROVER
DEFENDER
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Steve Cropley Jim Holder Allan Muir Darren Moss Matt Burt Mark Tisshaw Stuart Milne Stuart Price Matt Prior James Ruppert Lewis Kingston
MORGAN
PLUS 8
RANGE ROVER
TDV6
MITSUBISHI
OUTLANDER
RENAULT
TWIZY
TOYOTA
AURIS
MG
6
SEAT
LEON FR
VAUXHALL
ADAM
VAUXHALL
ADAM
MAZDA
MX-5
SKODA
OCTAVIA
RENAULT
CLIO
BMW
728i
Steve Cropley Hilton Holloway
OUR CARS
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 67
going to be heading back to Paul Jarrold
to get some proper winter tyres fitted.
Its current Conti SportContact boots
have coped perfectly with the merely
cold weather they’ve encountered to
date (and worn spectacularly slowly),
but I’m under no illusions as to what
they’ll be like when it snows. If you were
to spec the worst possible car to drive
in snow, it would be heavy, rear drive,
front engined, fat tyred and automatic.
It would be my Shooting Brake.
That said, I suspect that by the time
the winter tyres come off it, it will be
someone else’s Shooting Brake. To me,
the true measure of how well a car fits
your life is how quickly you come to take
it entirely for granted. And if the speed at
which the months the car has been mine
have flown by is any guide, I’ve taken the
Brake more for granted than any other
car I’ve run on this fleet. For someone
like me who seems always to need to be
a long way away in not much time, speed,
comfort, refinement and range are the
most important commodities a car can
have, and this one has them in spades.
One last thing: what sort of drop-off
in fuel consumption do you expect in
cold weather? In the summer my 10-mile
school run can be completed at an
indicated average of over 40mpg. In the
winter, with the lights and heating on
and a stone-cold 3.0-litre diesel, it can
be difficult to beat 30mpg. The amount
of time it takes diesels to reach their
operating temperature relative to petrol
engines has a real impact on short-
journey fuel consumption — one more
reason to treat official figures not just
with suspicion, but contempt.
[email protected]
Comfy cabin and a
great engine suit
Andrew perfectly
A wonky wheel
briefly marred the
Merc’s magical ride
OPTIONS PRICING
I know this is where the profit
comes, but you have to be careful
when box ticking to make sure you
don’t spend big on worthless items.
PRACTICAL BEAUTY
Beneath those slinky lines lies a
genuinely practical estate with a
vast and sensible load area.
CHASSIS
Front air suspension is a four-figure
option (rear is standard), but ride
quality is almost beyond belief.
ERGONOMICS
The driving environment is
so intuitive that I never need to
look for anything.
LENGTH
A car can’t be both capacious and
short, but if I’ve a town centre to park
in, I’ll try not to take the Brake.
LOVE IT
LOATHE IT
Price £55,995 Price as tested £70,375
Economy 39.7mpg Faults Incorrectly set
service interval light, air suspension recall
Expenses Pothole-damaged nearside front
wheel replaced, £535 Last seen 13.11.13
Mercedes-Benz CLS350 CDI
AMG Sport Shooting Brake
OUR CARS
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 69
T
here has rarely been an instance
where I’ve not wanted or been
unable to drive my Mazda MX-5.
Considering that it’s a small
convertible, that’s quite an achievement.
Although I may not be entirely sold on
the way it looks or performs, it actually
does very little to annoy or restrict me.
For example, it has a moderately
useful boot. It’s more than capable of
accommodating a pair of travel cases,
or a week’s shopping and then some.
There’s enough storage space in the
cabin, too, and the cupholders serve as a
useful improvised phone holder.
As previously mentioned, I’m unable
to find a perfect driving position. Even
on longer trips, though, it’s perfectly
tolerable. I don’t hesitate to pick up the
keys for it if I’ve got a few hundred miles
to cover, and I’m quite happy to jump
Mileage | 15,215 It’s hard to fault the MX-5’s everyday usability, even at this time of year
Mazda MX-5
back in it and repeat the drive once I’ve
reached my destination.
It even has enough creature comforts
— an auxiliary connection for music
players, climate control and heated seats
— to stave off boredom and discomfort.
It’s dry inside, even after sitting in the
pouring rain for days, demists and
de-ices quickly in the mornings, and the
roof operates quickly and easily.
I’m rarely in the position where I have
more than one passenger, so its two-seat
layout is not a huge bugbear. The cabin
is refined enough to hold a conversation
without having to raise your voice at
higher speeds as well, although there
is some intrusive wind noise from the
trailing edges of the A-pillars.
The Mazda also impresses when
it comes to range. Driven without
any concerted effort to extract the
maximum economy from it, it’ll do about
320 miles to a tank. Again, for a compact
cabriolet, that’s more than acceptable
and especially welcome on long journeys.
As an all-round daily proposition, for
the price, it’s consequently difficult to
beat. After all, a car that doesn’t irritate
or inhibit you frequently is quite a rare
thing. That alone makes the MX-5 a
worthwhile candidate if you’re in the
market for a small convertible.
[email protected]
Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupé 2.0i
Seat Leon FR 2.0 TDI 150
Price new (2011) £22,635 Price now £15,000
Options None Economy 34.2mpg Faults ‘Check
engine’ light Expenses None Last seen 27.11.13
Price £21,385 Price as tested £23,405
Economy 47.1mpg Faults None
Expenses None Last seen 6.11.13
Mileage 15,820
THE SEAT LEON was pressed into
service for the first long-distance family
outing recently. That meant filling the
boot with parental paraphernalia and
the back seats with wife and child.
The 102-mile journey from Essex to
Hampshire would take 1hr 55min on
the quickest route, according to the
nav. Even on a Saturday morning, the
shorter route through the centre of
London would be ill-advised. Not that
choosing the quickest route is always
straightforward. Unless you disable it
(I now have), the nav senses when you
move your hand near the screen and
Seat Leon
changes the layout. So if you try to jab
a button quickly, the motion makes the
screen move and it’s easy to select the
wrong option.
With the nav programmed and half
a tank of fuel, we embarked. Baby
appeared to approve of the car’s well
judged ride and faint hum of road noise;
she fell asleep and happily snoozed for
the entire journey.
Responsibility for your family is
the best possible speed restrictor, so
sticking to the lorry-cut grooves in lane
one was the only choice. Unwittingly,
I had entered a kind of fuel economy
marathon. How close could I come to
the claimed combined cycle average of
68.9mpg while sticking to 70mph?
The result was unexpected. My usual
commute — stop-start M25 and grinding
to a halt over various Thames bridges —
yields 50mpg with a little care. But here,
more than 55mpg was a tough gig. I hit
55.9mpg briefly but arrived home with
an indicated 54.4mpg. At a slower pace,
I’d have improved significantly, but at
the cost of a grumpy baby.
I’ve also noticed, during low-
speed manoeuvres, that it can be
easy to re-engage reverse rather
than select first. It can take two or
three attempts on occasion. Maybe
I’m not being firm enough, but it
feels correctly engaged. A service
is approaching and I’ll ask for an
investigation, but has anyone else
noticed this?
[email protected]
It’s easy to reach 320 miles on one tank
Occupant of this seat slept all the way
The seats are heated, the cabin is leak-free (roof up, obviously) and it de-ices well
OUR CARS
25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 71
I
’m not prone to wearing kaftans,
eating mung beans or indulging in
group hugs, but you’ll have to excuse
me if I get a little philosophical for a
moment. To ask a question that has
been doing the rounds, what is Morgan
Motor Company without Charles
Morgan, or at least a member of the
Morgan family acting as a figurehead?
Judging by correspondence that
I’ve received from owners, the answer
is not as straightforward as you might
immediately conclude. Sure, the owners
are without exception disappointed,
but they are equally keen to emphasise
that Morgan Motor Company is about
far more than a man. Above all, what
they care about is that the end product
remains unique, charming and a little bit
left-field of what else is on offer.
I have pressed a few on whether the
fact that Morgan was family-run went
some way to covering the inarguably
premium prices of its products. Here,
the answer became more muddled.
They liked the fact that Charles could be
seen wandering the workshops. Some
had even shaken his hand. One had got
his car signed. Undoubtedly, having a
Morgan family member at Pickering
Road was a good thing and had swayed
some sales. But as one wrote: “It wasn’t
Mileage | 6221 Away from the political machinations at Morgan, our car still enchants
Morgan Plus 8
Morgan Plus 8
Price £85,200 Price as tested £91,722 Faults
Recurring engine warning light; roof popper
adrift twice Expenses None Last seen 23.10.13
like I could take Charles home with me.
Not sure I’d want to, either.”
For now, we are where we are.
Charles Morgan is no longer fronting the
company that he partly owns. The new
management team is forging onwards,
and impressively so. From afar, we must
wonder why they can’t have the best
of both worlds and return Charles to an
ambassadorial role, something that he
wants but the company dismisses.
Ultimately, though, how much
can a spot of company
politics interfere with your
enjoyment of a car? Even
Ferrari has retained its
mystique — amplified it,
even — without a Ferrari at
the helm. Why? Because
when you thumb the starter
button (or turn the key, or
both), the cars transcend
the arguments. And in that,
Ferrari and Morgan have
something in common.
That’s because when all
is said and done, the Plus 8
remains the same mish-mash
THE LOG BOOK
Charles Morgan
(on left) has now
left the building
A Morgan remains a Morgan without a Morgan at Morgan
Audi RS4 Avant
Mileage 5650 Last seen 13.11.13
Had to add a litre of oil to the RS4’s
V8 at about the 3000-mile mark
after the warning light pinged on. I
was slightly worried about that and
the fact that the engine clatters like a
diesel when started from cold (it’s to
do with emissions), but Audi checked
it over and gave it the all clear. Since
then, it’s been fine. Still noisy first
thing in the morning, though… AM
Land Rover Defender
Mileage 100,868 Last seen 13.11.13
A flick of the wipers one morning got
no response. That’s not condensation;
it’s frost, and they’re stuck. Eek.
Unsticking them produced a lazy half
arc and nothing else. I checked fuses
and spent hours wondering about
relays and switches until, much
later, I gave the wipers a frustrated
yank and they sparked back into life.
Nothing to see here. Carry on. MP
MG 6
Mileage 7085 Last seen 13.11.13
The MG is an impressive performer,
chiefly because it has 258lb ft from
1500rpm. It also cruises motorways
at 2000rpm and 75-80mph in sixth,
always returning 47-48mpg. But it
shook our faith recently by conking
unexpectedly in traffic and refusing
to restart. Seems a camshaft position
sensor went on the blink. We’re
watching its successor carefully. SC
of surprise, delight and contradictions
that it always was. Charles didn’t
bolt it together himself, and he didn’t
accompany me as I drove it away
from the factory. It was the rumbling
soundtrack, eye-watering performance
and evocative body style that made me
fall in love with this car and its makers.
Every time I drive the Plus 8, it makes
me smile. Whether Charles Morgan’s
departure from Morgan Motor Company
will become a major issue for existing
and potential customers, I can’t predict.
Likewise, I can’t tell you the rights and
wrongs of the arguments. But what I can
tell you is that its cars retain the same
qualities that they always did. They
come at a price, and with compromises,
but they still have qualities that set
them apart from the rest of the world.
And we should celebrate that.
[email protected]
Bargain new
and used motors
DEALS
BRAKES
Other than regular maintenance, the
brakes shouldn’t cause any problems.
Check that the ABS light goes out when
driving. If it doesn’t, a sensor will need
replacing. A new set of front discs costs
about £90 per pair, pads from £30 and
rear discs £82 a pair. It’s worth getting
braided lines for improved performance,
kits costing from £70.
72 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
ENGINE
Official UK cars came with a 3.0-litre
engine, either normally aspirated or
turbocharged. The Turbo is coded
‘7MGTE’ and the atmo unit ‘7MGE’.
UK cars came with the chassis code
‘MA70’. Imports will have either
2.5-litre or 2.0-litre twin-turbo
engines with code ‘1JZGTE’ or ‘1GGTE’.
The UK Turbo delivers 232bhp and
the non-turbo 201bhp.
TRANSMISSION
A choice of five-speed manual or four-
speed automatic. Both are robust, the
auto having a dipstick to check on its
fluid level. Fluids in both should be
changed at about 60,000 miles. The
manual isn’t the smoothest shifting
out there. A new clutch costs from
about £180 before fitting and VAT.
Toyota’s answer to the Porsche 944 was, and remains, a performance bargain, says Kyle Fortune
A
fter Toyota’s Celica and MR2,
Autocar had high expectations
of the Mk3 Supra Turbo. The
standard Supra, which made do
with natural aspiration for the 3.0-litre
in-line six-cylinder unit, was more brisk
grand tourer than sports car. The Turbo
promised Porsche 944 Turbo-chasing
potential — at almost half the price.
The result wasn’t quite as impressive
as hoped, although the Supra was
undeniably rapid. Its 232bhp blown
3.0-litre six allowed a 0-60mph time
of 6.9sec, but that was not such a
leap against the clock compared with
its non-turbo relative. Flexibility is
where that turbo was felt, the forced
induction dropping three seconds off the
0-100mph time, and six seconds if you
ran it up to 120mph. Not much use in the
UK, admittedly, but some nice stats to
utter over a pint and some peanuts.
You might just pick one up for the
price of a decent round now, too, with
Supras in the beer money category for
a basketcase. Just don’t expect to get
it sorted out for peanuts. It’s better to
buy a good one, because even the nicest
examples aren’t likely to break the bank;
£3000 should buy you a good, fully
historied example with sensible mileage.
The testers might have complained
about a lack of sophistication from
the chassis back in 1989 — “The tail
will slide around without provocation,”
they said — but that sounds like a lot of
fun for a few grand today.
UK cars are all ‘7MGTE’ coded for
Turbos (the non-turbo loses the ‘T’),
and the chassis code should be ‘MA70’.
Japanese-market models included 2.0
and 2.5-litre twin-turbo models, the
option of a removable roof section and
TEMS adjustable dampers. In standard
form, the Turbo produced 232bhp at
5600rpm and 254lb ft of torque at
3200rpm. Autocar noted the straight
six as being a bit raucous at higher
revs, although most of its useful urge is
produced before 5000rpm.
“The biggest issue with the Supra is
the head gasket,” says Tony Charles
of Toyota specialist Fensport (01354
696968, fensport.co.uk). It’s known to
be a problem with the Turbos, Toyota’s
original stretch bolts and torquing
requirements seemingly not up to the
task. Charles says: “With an HKS metal
gasket and ARP head studs, it shouldn’t
be a problem again.” (It’s wise to tighten
the studs to higher than Toyota’s
recommendations — 75lb ft is the figure
recommended in Supra circles.) Do
that and it’ll cost about £600, although
you’re unlikely to find a car that has not
had remedial work done to the head.
Fensport still services a few Mk3
Supras, but Charles says they’re
becoming rarer. Rust is an increasing
problem as the cars age; the rear
wheel arches are prone to rotting, a
good-looking body potentially hiding
all sorts of issues. It’s worth having a
good look around underneath, as well
as under the carpets inside and in the
rear spare wheel well. Age causes the
Supraheavyweight champ
TOYOTA SUPRA MK3 FROM £1500
CHASSIS
The suspension is durable, although
the front wishbone bushes wear. A new
set for the top costs about £105 for
both sides and the lower ones are £75
before fitting. Many ride on lowered
suspension; check who did what when.
USED CAR EXPERT
James Ruppert
Why the Nissan GT-R and
its predecessors are such
great value secondhand p76
DATA EXPERT
Nic Cackett
Our data custodian keeps his
eye on the new car line-ups
and Top Five rankings p80
NEW CAR EXPERT
Lewis Kingston
Choosing between a new BMW
120d xDrive and a used Bentley
Continental GT for £25k p79
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“The tail will slide around without
provocation,” said the testers. That
sounds like a lot of fun for a few grand
Check the filler cap and dipstick for any water in the oil. If
there’s any ‘mayonnaise’, it’s likely that the head gasket is on
its way out. They’re notorious for head gaskets, so check if it
has been done and that the bolts have been torqued correctly.
Bodywork is increasingly an issue on UK cars. Rot sets in
around the rear arches and can be fairly extensive (and
expensive). Be sure to have a good look underneath at the rear
for any corrosion and under the carpets for dampness.
Make sure that you test drive the car from cold. If the owner has
it warm, it could be hiding blowing exhausts or leaky manifolds,
because these expand when warm.
The limited-slip differential (standard on the Turbo and optional
on the normally aspirated Supra) is known to leak. Check
underneath for any weeping or juddering/noise when moving.
Check the idling speed — about 1200rpm from cold and about
800rpm when hot. If it’s stalling or hesitant when lifting off the
throttle, it’s likely to be related to the throttle position sensor.
Black smoke means that it’s running rich.
What to look out for
seals to diminish, particularly in those
open-topped imports, and the body
mouldings and rear spoiler can hide rust
and trap water.
Find a good one, though, and it should
be reliable. Regular servicing is a must:
12,000 miles or annually for a small
service and 24,000 miles or every two
years for a larger one. Expect to spend
£175-£225 on a small service and
anywhere between £350 and £400 on
a larger one. Cambelts need changing
every 60,000 miles or five years, at
a cost of about £350. Fensport does
Evans waterless coolant to help with
the cooling and head gasket problems.
It costs £34 for the preparation fluid
and the coolant itself is £55 for five
litres. Toyota recommended oil change
intervals of 6000 miles, but many
fastidious owners halve that.
Modifications on the Mk3 aren’t
uncommon, with the fitment of a bigger
turbo a quick route to increased power.
Find out who did the work and when.
Stainless steel exhausts, sports air
filters and strut braces in the engine
bay and boot aren’t unusual, either, ◊
The cabin design
changed little
over the car’s life
CABIN
Given that the oldest cars are more
than 15 years old, many interiors
will look tired. Retrimming seats
isn’t cheap, although you could get
a replacement one from a breakers.
Upholstery aside, the interior should all
work, although it’s shiny and plasticky.
Check the heater and air-con work, and
inspect under the carpets for damp.
WHEELS, TYRES
AND BODYWORK
Outside usual wear and tear, wheels
and tyres should be fine, although the
bodywork is prone to rust. It’s common
around the rear wheel arches and inner
arches. The doors also rot. Check the
spare wheel well and the front scuttle
panel, inner front wings and suspension
mounts for wear.
Turbo version
has 232bhp
and 254lb ft

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DEALS
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Design and engineering
The big, heavy, US-inspired Supra has until now filled
the easy role of fully loaded luxury grand tourer. That
changes with the arrival of the Supra Turbo. Toyota’s
claims for its top speed and 0-60mph time are an exact
match for those of the Porsche 944 Turbo, which is
almost twice the price.
Interior
The cabin looks the part in a butch, transatlantic sort of
way. The driver’s seat, as comfortable and supportive as
it looks, could benefit from slightly more fore/aft travel. Set
fairly low, it offers a great relationship with the pedals and
steering wheel. The rear lacks adult-sized room, though.
Performance
The Turbo claims 9mph more top speed and a 0.75sec
advantage in its 0-60mph sprint time over the normally
aspirated Supra. Not much, but the overall performance
tells a different story. There are solid benefits in flexibility,
three seconds are shaved off the 0-100mph time, and by the
time that you reach 120mph the Turbo is six seconds ahead.
Ride and handling
Some who hanker after the tail-happiness of a big-engined
Capri might find appeal here, but anyone used to the grip of
a modern, well sorted chassis will find the Supra a handful.
The Turbo’s tail will slide around without provocation. As for
the ride quality, it’s very poor.
∆ although it’s the unmolested, standard
cars in the best condition that command
the biggest money, by virtue of the fact
that they’re increasingly rare.
The interior offers four seats, but the
rear ones are, at best, for very occasional
use only. Fuel consumption will be in the
mid to late teens, depending on how it’s
driven — and the type of transmission.
There are two: a standard five-speed
manual and a four-speed auto, which
was a £900 option. Both are robust, says
Charles, even on cars not running stock
outputs. In fact, the Supra’s ’box is a
popular one among people doing engine
conversions, such is its strength.
Changes throughout the Mk3
Supra’s seven-year production run
were few and discreet, with moderate
changes to the instrumentation,
centre console and some switchgear
inside. An airbag-equipped steering
wheel featured on later models and
three-point rear seatbelts arrived in
1989. Exterior changes centred around
rear light revisions in 1989, any other
modifications relating to the engine
management and engine specification.
Any alterations did little to improve
its competitiveness against the best
European rivals, or Nissan’s 300ZX,
although the Supra sold relatively well
in the UK, building up quite a fan base.
For under £2000, it’s easier to forgive
its dynamic shortcomings (such as
its poor ride quality), and the idea of
that wayward tail and still-respectable
performance for so little cash is tempting
indeed. Perhaps not worth seeking out,
but should you chance on a good one, a
moment of weakness wouldn’t be such a
bad thing. Would it? L
ONES WE FOUND
Price £2700 (1986, 30,530 miles)
Garaged for 14 years, genuine
mileage, fully documented. Tax and
MOT until June 2014. Very clean
inside and out. Recent brakes and
new windscreen.
Call 07732 702464
Price £6995 (1987, 36,000 miles)
One-owner, non-Turbo Supra auto with
full service history. Never driven in the
rain. Grey cloth interior, cruise control,
air-con and ESP. Virtually as new.
Call 01732 883113
Price £2195 (1990, 67,000 miles)
Red Turbo with automatic gearbox.
MOT and tax to March 2014. Low-
mileage car with full service history.
Interior needs retrimming but in good
nick mechanically and cosmetically.
Call 0121 327 8777
Price £2990 (1992, 69,000 miles)
White, automatic Supra Turbo with low
miles, full service history and a recent
head gasket replacement. MOT to May
and taxed until March. Leather interior
in excellent condition.
Call 07974 232059
Price £2595 (1993, 117,000 miles)
Late-model Turbo in good condition.
Red body and black leather interior.
Modified with lower suspension, boost
controller and gauge, sports air filter,
exhaust and short-shift kit.
Call 07043 239848
Toyota Supra 3.0i Turbo
Years produced 1986-1993 Total made 108,565 Price £22,060
Engine 6 cyls in line, 2954cc, turbo, petrol Power 232bhp at 5600rpm
Torque 254lb ft at 3200rpm 0-60mph 6.9sec 0-100mph 18.2sec
Top speed 146mph Fuel economy 18.8mpg
Buying and owning
The list of standard kit is long and includes a familiar range
of electrically powered goodies. However, Toyota’s TEMS
adjustable dampers are not fitted. Nor are heated seats. Both
items are available in other markets. You must pay extra for a
sunroof and, curiously, there is no remote boot lock control.
Verdict
The fastest Japanese car sold in the UK is a flawed machine.
The tail can get
quite wayward
with little effort
What we said then Test date | 11.1.89
The Turbo brings welcome extra flexibility to the Supra’s performance but is lacking in finesse
Head to autocar.co.uk
for more used car
buying advice
76 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
Never mind the Micra; a used GT-R is super-cheap by supercar standards
O
kay, so Nissan makes shopping-
run Micras and farmer-friendly
Navaras, but who cares when it also
goes bat-poo crazy and builds the
truly wonderful GT-R? The 2014 model
will cost more — the latest ones always
do — but the GT-R’s rivals will be even
more expensive, slower and not nearly
as exhilarating, which is why Nissan’s
super-fast super-coupé is such brilliant
value used. So put those cravings for a
Porsche or Ferrari on hold and wrestle
with a real-world performance icon.
For £34,995 you’re getting towards
early Aston Martin DB9 territory, but
you’d be far better off with a rather more
rare — and clearly bonkers — GT-R Black
Edition. It will be a 2008-09 model, it
won’t necessarily be
black and you’ll have to
sift through imports and
conversions that have
upped the horsepower
to something ridiculous,
but that doesn’t have
to be a bad thing. For
many, Japanese-spec
Skylines that have
been tuned to infinity
are perfect. Don’t
expect to get any sort
of warranty, but the
owners are likely to be
enthusiasts, and that’s
always a good thing.
Be aware, though, that dragon-themed
paint jobs aren’t great for resale.
Up your budget to £50,000 and there
is a bunch of 2010 and 2011 examples with
around 30,000 miles and a full history.
Even better, seek out an approved dealer
such as Middlehurst Garage and you’ll
even get a proper warranty that you
can rely on. Middlehurst had a couple of
£54,995 examples, which is still small
change in supercar terms.
If that’s all too expensive and far too
safe for you, how about exploring the
riskier territory populated by previously
imported Skylines? The specifications
are often confusing and complex, but
a reasonable entry point is an R33 or
R34 built in the mid to late 1990s and
priced from around £4000-£4500. I
rather like the dull V35 from 2002, a
model that many believe isn’t much of a
Skyline at all, even though it has a 350Z
engine. It’s just a well built Japanese
coupé that looks a little like a tasteful
Lexus SC. But Skylines really shouldn’t
be tasteful at all.
If you’re feeling brave, you could try
dipping your toes in the scary world of
modified older Skylines. Not sure if a
1996 example with 500bhp and a body
kit designed by Hades at £13,995 is a
good idea. But perhaps that’s the point
of a bat-poo-crazy Nissan.
James Ruppert Used car bargains
For more used car advice, go to
jamesruppert.com
Claim victory with a V-Spec
V-Spec versions of the R33 featured drivetrain
tweaks, bigger brakes and 17-inch alloys. This
56,000-mile example has lost its original wheels
but it’s in excellent condition, has 12 months’ MOT
and six months’ tax. A dealer wants £9985 for it.
Call 01347 878539
Secure a souped-up Skyline
This 1992 R32 Skyline GT-R has had some serious
modifications, but they’re sensible and of a high
quality and it’s reputed to make 430bhp. It’s done
44,010 miles and comes with a new MOT and 12
months’ warranty. The dealer is asking £13,895.
Call 020 7193 3979
Supercar pace, sensible price
This 2009 GT-R Black Edition has done 35,000
miles and has had three previous owners, but it’s
in excellent condition. It has a fully documented
service history, nearly new tyres, recent discs and
pads, and six months’ tax. That’s £36,000 to you.
Call 07507 780613
The Nissan that’s
not so sensible
Three that caught my eye
GT-R owners
are likely to be
enthusiasts, and
that’s always a
good thing
BENTLEY BROOKLANDS R, LWB, 1998, Mulliner
body, 24 of 100, Crewe build, Blue, Tan hide, Burr
Walnut woodork, 71,600 miles, Annual service
done, MOT to October 2014, Superb Condition,
Kent address. £18,000 - Phone 07811 306434
MASERATI GRANSPORT V8 AUTO 2008, 12,941
miles, coupe, petrol, main dealer service history, MOT
until Aug 2014, tax until 31/12/2013, 19” G.Mercury Alloys
GranSport, nero leather interior, Skyhook suspension.
Exterior sealed with Zaino Z8 Protection system.
Immaculate inside and out. £35,495 - T:07538 102697
MERCEDES-BENZ A-CLASS A200 Blueefficiency Sport
1.6 5d Hatchback, Auto, Petrol, 13/13, 6,600 miles, cirrus
white w/ lava black weather, 7 speed auto, rear view camera,
cruise control, automatic lane recognition, 17” alloys wheels.
£24,950 - www.cummingsofbodmin.co.uk
01208 73784 / 01208 73145
JAGUAR XK 5.0 LT, V8, Supercharged, coupe,
auto, 2009, showroom condition, 24,300 miles,
recent service, yrs Mot, 2 owners, FSH, EW, AC,
Sat nav, CD, leather trim, htd sport seats, Isofix,
CL, alarm/immob. £32,500 T:07759 530300
DEALS
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25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 77
And another thing…
THERE ARE INCREASING numbers of car-finding services
online, so I looked at one that puts you in touch with a trader
once you’ve entered your details. But I haven’t used it, so I
won’t mention it by name. In theory it’s a nice idea, but really
the interweb is awash with
search engines that allow
you to pretty much do that
anyway. What’s the hassle
in looking for a used car?
It’s a lot of fun for people
like us, and it has never been
easier, whether you go online
or out on foot.
IT’S HARD TO deny the appeal of
Toyota’s fourth-generation Supra.
It was designed and put together by
people who really knew what they
were doing and it was — in twin-turbo
form — devastatingly quick.
Prices for twin-turbo Supras vary
depending on condition, mileage,
transmission and whether or not
they’re higher-spec UK cars.
Pay around £15k for an
immaculate UK car with a six-speed
manual gearbox. Autos can be had
for around £9k. Later Tiptronics are
preferable, although these ’boxes are
only available in imports made from
1997 onwards. Look for an extensive
service history, too, including
records of cambelt changes.
Just try to buy one that’s not been
mucked about with. It’ll allow you to
fettle the car to your preferences,
rather than having to undo any cheap
or nasty modifications.
THE MITSUBISHI LANCER Evolution
was built to grant the manufacturer
a Group A entry into the World Rally
Championship. The saloon featured a
2.0-litre turbocharged engine and an
advanced four-wheel drive system.
Thanks to 244bhp and 228lb ft,
the Evo could sprint from 0-60mph
in 5.1sec and reach 143mph. More
powerful models followed, with the
last version to date, the Evo X, being
revealed in 2007.
Look through the classifieds and
you’ll find immaculate examples of
the earlier Evo 5 with less than
80,000 miles on the clock for
around £6000. Because of
their high-performance nature
and short service intervals,
it’s best to seek out ones with
comprehensive service folders.
Many will have had a prang at
some point, so look for signs of
damage and get a history check
for further reassurance.
Battle traction in a twin-turbo Supra
Rally-bred thrills with Mitsubishi’s Evo
Don’t like those? Try these...
CAUGHT IN THE CLASSIFIEDS More quality used cars and cherished numbers on p95 | To advertise here, call 020 8267 5706
Prices for R35
GT-Rs start at
around £35k
9-10 January Trade Only Days
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25 DECEMBER 2013 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 79
Practical and sensible four-wheel-drive BMW, or W12-engined luxury GT?
It’s the popular and practical BMW 1-series with a four-wheel drive
system. As well as offering an interesting alternative to myriad
quattro-equipped Audi alternatives, xDrive boosts the 1-series’
usability even further. So if you’re looking for an all-weather
1-series, the £25k xDrive variant might be just the ticket.
On the road, in general driving, you’ll be hard pushed to tell the difference
between it and a normal rear-wheel-drive 1-series. It rides well, there’s a decent
amount of feedback, nicely weighted steering and a flexible diesel engine. The
additional traction and stability offered by the xDrive system boosts driver
confidence in poor conditions, while decent brakes bring it to a stop with ease.
Just like any other 1-series. The cabin offers up room for four adults
and on the move it’s quiet and refined. Only under load does the diesel’s
grumble really permeate into the cabin. Thanks to a decent boot and a
substantial range, it’s a particularly practical choice, too. You even get a
decent roster of kit, including niceties such as Bluetooth and a DAB radio.
Into a sensible and dependable car that shouldn’t
unexpectedly throw you off the road. A claimed 60.1mpg
combined and relatively low CO2 emissions will help to
keep running costs down, while a standard three-year/
unlimited mileage warranty grants peace of mind.
Some might be put off by the idea of a BMW that’s not rear-wheel drive, but
there’s a lot to like about this more sure-footed 1-series. Opting for the xDrive
version doesn’t result in many compromises, either. While it commands a
premium of £1500 over the standard model, the additional traction will
no doubt prove beneficial for many come the winter months.
The Continental GT is a powerful, cosseting and capable luxury
coupé. It’s powered by a twin-turbo 6.0-litre W12 that drives all
four wheels via a six-speed automatic gearbox. For £26k, you can
buy a 2005 example with under 100,000 miles on the clock. Dig
around and you might find a private example with a lower mileage.
At its launch, Bentley claimed the Continental GT was the fastest production
car in the world. It was capable of smoothly sprinting from 0-62mph in
4.8sec, and 488lb ft granted impressive in-gear acceleration. Despite its
2350kg kerb weight, it corners well, although handling isn’t really the car’s
forte, while superb brakes bring it to a rest without trouble.
As luxurious as you might hope. It’s packed with soft leather, aluminium, chrome
and wood trims, all of which contribute to a delightfully rich feel. The attention
to detail is superb, too, further bolstering the Bentley’s quality air. You can just
about fit four adults in, and the boot is of a substantial size. There’s lots of kit,
including sat-nav, multi-zone climate control and electric heated seats.
Into a reliable but inefficient upmarket coupé. Repairs will
be costly, too. Try to find one with a warranty of some form,
or pay for aftermarket cover. The Conti will depreciate, but
more slowly than the new 1-series. Not much consolation,
but it might go some way to justifying the running costs.
Because the Bentley Continental GT is one of the best grand tourers
on the market, and one that’s ideal for motorway commutes or
cross-country jaunts. The badge also carries a substantial amount
of cachet, and you’ll be living with a luxury GT bought for the price
of a conventional diesel hatchback.
BMW 120d xDrive Bentley Continental GT
WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DRIVE?
WHAT IS IT?
WHAT’S IT LIKE INSIDE?
WHERE’S MY MONEY GOING?
WHY SHOULD I BUY ONE?
Lewis Kingston New vs used
Who wouldn’t want a Bentley? Well, those who realise that a mechanical failure could
deduct a four-figure sum from their bank account. It’s a cool car, but the potential for a
ruinous bill could be too much for some. So let’s stick with a sensible BMW. For a change.
WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE? Let us know at autocar.co.uk/facebook
NEW: £25,190 USED: £26,000
AND THE WINNER IS… NEW
Power 181bhp Torque 280lb ft 0-62mph 7.2sec Top speed 140mph Economy 60.1mpg Power 552bhp Torque 488lb ft 0-62mph 4.8sec Top speed 198mph Economy 17mpg
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SEASONS GREETINGS
The Hollybrook team would like to thank everyone who have supported and encouraged us over
the last period and we would like to take this opportunity to wish all our customers a very Happy
and Peacelul Christmas and a Healthy and Prosperous New Year, and we hope you will enjoy the
holiday period with lamily and lriends.
This is a small selection ol our stock,
lor a lull listing please visit our website:
www.hallyhraakspartscars.cam
Ferrari 355 GTS · Mol|cu|ous|y
mu|nlu|noo, chor|shoo oxump|o w|lh
o|sl|ncl|vo Tub| oxhuusl.
Land Pover Delender 90 XS
Chor|shoo oxump|o, nol wor|oo,
w|lh £1,CCC's oí oxlru's.
TvP Grilhth 5.0 · A |ulo
upproc|ul|ng ussol, co||oclor's
m||ougo w|lh v|ow|ng ossonl|u|.
Alla Pomeo 14? GTA
lmmucu|ulo, w|lh un unropoulub|o
h|slory. Bosl |n ÜK.
BMW X5 · Oulsluno|ng cono|l|on,
FBMWSH, 7 soulor w|lh up·gruooo
2C¨ u||oys.
Penault Clio v6 · An |con|c íuluro
c|uss|c, unmoo|íoo w|lh |ow
m||ougo.
Pange Pover vogue 4.4
Prov|ous|y ownoo by Ho||ybroo|,
ono oí bosl uvu||ub|o.
Porsche 99? C4S · E|ogunl |n
s||vor, ono oí bosl uvu||ub|o. (cho|co
oí 911's uvu||ub|o)
Ford Ps2000 · lmmucu|ulo
cono|l|on, |urgo|y or|g|nu|
lhroughoul.
Porsche Boxster 2.? · As now
cono|l|on, |ow m||ougo, rouoy íor
spr|ng.
kJZ 8
kJZ 8888
kJZ 888
kJZ 88
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/n c¡.·ì·n¡ oppo·ìvn·ì, ìo pv·.nv.c v .c·, ·v·c {vìì .cì o{ ! nvnìc· pìvìc..
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** All plales ready lor immediale lransler and will nol be sold separalely.
** No adverlisers or re-sellers please.
555 FFF
1we very uuique ÞerseuaI uumber µIates
333 YYY
£4u,uuu for the pair
ÞIease ceutact: u77óó u8uuI2 (6Ies)
(great on a Ierrari)
hß6 5
£S,uuu each
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0I227 720306
07860 232232
Marshall Motor Group is part of a
unique family owned group of
companies. We are seeking talented
individuals to join our teamat Marshall
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lf you share our values and passion
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Ccmbridge
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We recognise that
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To app|y p|ease oa||
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01223 377385
lf you stand out,
you'll fit right in.
Ta|ented Peop|e Requ|red
To Jo|n Our Car Fac|||ty at
Marsha|| Used Car Centre
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SELL YOUR
CHERISHED NUMBER
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Tel 020 8267 5574 or Fax 020 8267 5312
PUBLICATION DATE: Every Wednesday
DEADLINE: Friday 17:30 prior to publication
98 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 25 DECEMBER 2013
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The cabin, as with the exterior, revealed the fingerprints of Esprit creator Giugiaro
No 95 Lotus Etna
A technologically ambitious supercar dream that fell into a perpetual slumber
NEXT WEEK Lamborghini Marzal
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nrealised promises have become a
bit of a Lotus speciality these days.
No concept conceived during Dany
Bahar’s boldly tumultuous reign
has yet been realised, and the new Esprit
that was developing before he got there
seems as distant as ever.
But this is hardly the first time that
Lotus has been all about delicious
promise and unrealised reality. There
was the pretty, stillborn pre-Evora
M250, and 30 years ago Hethel surprised
Birmingham show-goers with its Etna
concept, an all-new supercar designed by
Esprit creator Giorgetto Giugiaro.
The Etna was powered by a brand-new
V8 and packed with the kind of complex
electronic technologies that were
nosing over 1984’s automotive horizon.
They included vacuum fluorescent
instruments, flush glazing, traction
control and ABS (still a supercar rarity
back then), an engine management
system and even active noise cancelling.
Still more exciting was an active
suspension system that continuously
adjusted spring and damper rates to
near-instantaneously adapt to the
topography scudding below.
True, anyone witnessing the
uncertain skywards grind of an Esprit
electric window might have viewed the
Etna’s electronic content with unease,
especially as Lotus’s active-suspension-
equipped 92 Formula 1 car had proved
a little troublesome. But what we didn’t
know then was that F1 active ride
would eventually work. Lotus also got
it functioning in road car prototypes,
including a red Lotus Excel that your
reporter was lucky enough to try in
1987. To this day, it remains the most
extraordinary dynamic experience I’ve
ever had in a car. The Lotus was able
to drive over a modest-sized log as if it
wasn’t there, while deftly clawing its way
through bends at brain-rebooting speeds.
And all with a big Citroën’s velvet ride.
These were delights that a prospective
Etna driver might enjoy, and in the
euphoria of its Birmingham motor show
unveiling there were hopes that Lotus
might yet produce this hugely advanced
Esprit successor. This was a vibrant sign
of life from a company that had apparently
lost boss Colin Chapman two years earlier
(‘apparently’, because there were rumours
that he had actually performed a law-
evading disappearing act) while struggling
with recession-decimated sales.
Development of the Etna and its
V8 proceeded, but the project was stalled
by General Motors’ 1986 takeover
and the decision to develop the new
front-drive Elan instead. The Etna was
abandoned in a Hethel backroom and
didn’t re-emerge until 2001, when it was
auctioned with various historic Lotuses.
It was bought by enthusiast Olav Glasius,
who had it transformed from stationary
model to semi-functioning car when
its restorers unexpectedly discovered
a prototype V8 drivetrain buried deep
beneath the stylists’ clay. Although the
Etna is a massively overweight wood,
clay and steel model, it does move, to
remain a fine example of Lotus’s often
vaulting ambition.
Restorers discovered
a prototype V8 engine
buried deep beneath
the stylists’ clay
Richard Bremner
THEY WERE THE FUTURE, ONCE T
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