As Discovery approaches its 30th birthday it has matured into a luxury cut price alternative to the flagship Range Rover series. That’s not a bad thing as a number of rivals have moved into this sector since the Range Rover laid down the challenge to produce a true luxury off-roader and now the Discovery can offer challengers a real battle for the business based on an immense off-road … [Read more...]
Roadtests
Volvo XC40 range rolls onwards
With the September new registration plate month over, Paris Motor Show finished, diesel engine vilification ongoing, not to mention Brexit and, oh yes the Government’ Autumn Budget, it's still that time of year when car manufacturers need to roll out their 2019 model ranges, writes David Miles. Volvo UK has just done that for their 2019 model year range, no totally new models yet, … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: VW Touareg R-Line 3.0V6
The trials and repercussions of the Volkswagen Group brands over emissions have been well documented but didn’t stop them becoming the world’s largest manufacturer of vehicles with 10.74-million vehicles produced last year and 4.1-million sold so far this year, writes David Miles. However for annual top-dog global sales it’s a close run thing with the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance for … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Skoda Rapid Spaceback SE Sport 110ps
Space is a confusing place, and it’s not been helped by the Skoda Rapid Spaceback landing in showrooms. The Rapid hatchback neatly filled a gap in the Skoda range between the Fabia and Octavia but then the Czech car maker added Spaceback, which not an estate but a hatchback as well. From the outset it has to be explained that the Rapid hatchback has a roomier boot but the Spaceback gains … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: Ford Fiesta ST-3 1.5
The Ford Fiesta range of three and five door hatchbacks, plus their recently introduced additional Active SUV inspired versions, are still the UK’s best selling cars, not just supermini sized cars but cars overall, reports David Miles. Flagship models for the extensive Fiesta range is the new high performance ST available in three or five door forms and this time around powered by a … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: BMW X4 2.0d M Sport
BMW has been in the driving seat of the SUV sector for a number of years, notably in America but also in Europe, writes Robin Roberts. It has gradually spread its experience through all sizes of cross-over models but it’s arguably in its element with the X4, the bigger stablemate to the X3 and without going into the higher priced and larger X5 family series. Up to now it’s range … [Read more...]
Piece of cake sales success for revised Skoda Fabia?
To coincide with the launch of the revised Fabia ‘superminis’, Skoda UK commissioned 2016 Great British Bake Off winner Candice Brown to produce a small-scale version of the iconic Fabia cake which starred in the hit 2007 TV advert which was nearly four metres long and one-and-a-half metres high. But the new cake reflects a slimmer market in today’s world of falling new car sales and … [Read more...]
VW GTI twins natural birth
Brits love their hot hatches and Volkswagen has turned back the clock to mark time for future success. Just over 40 years ago, the original Golf GTi was released to eager owners and over the decades that popularity has spread to create the Polo and up! GTi models, which are arguably more in tune with today’s needs in towns and congested country roads. The days of a hot hatch may have seemed … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: Citroen Grand C4 SpaceTourer 160 diesel
Citroen earlier this year announced that the Picasso name for their mid to large sized MPV people-carrier models would be changed to the C4 SpaceTourer for the five seater versions and Grand C4 SpaceTourer for the larger seven seat models. The range also includes the Citroen SpaceTourer which styling wise and sliding rear side doors looks as if it is based on a commercial … [Read more...]
Contrasting SUVs compared
On a regular basis the UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders get together the latest new models at one of their test days for accredited motoring journalists to briefly sample the latest new car offerings. At the most recent event, due to the fact that sales of SUVs of all sizes and prices are booming and accounting for one of every three new cars sold, I took the opportunity to … [Read more...]