Toyota dominated this year’s World Rally Championship and hopes some of this success will spread into its sophisticated city car, the Yaris. It launched the Yaris GR Sport about 12 months ago and my test drive really took me back, more than a year, to a time when hot-hatchbacks were all the rage and any car which had a rally or racing pedigree was guaranteed to be a winner on a Monday after a … [Read more...]
New Lexus RX 500h extends performance
The benefits of electrification are not just about making cars cleaner and more fuel efficient. There are also real opportunities to deliver a more exciting driving experience, as Lexus’s radical new RX 500h F Sport Performance model proves. This exclusive member of the all-new RX family of large luxury SUVs is a new kind of hybrid electric model – one with a primary focus on performance. The … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: KIA Niro 1.6 GDI HEV 4
After being launched in Britain in 2016, the Kia Niro has risen to become the marque’s second best seller in the UK and the third most popular in Europe, consistently increasing sales each year. Part of that success is down to being right sized for the UK but also careful marketing has ensured its high specification appeals to retail buyers while its running costs make it attractive to businesses … [Read more...]
First drive: Honda Civic e:HEV Sport
If you’ve ever spent a night sleeping in your car it can be a very disconcerting place to wake up, but that was one of the tests engineers set themselves creating the new Honda Civic e:HEV. Sleeping on the job took on a whole new purpose for them to evaluate the interior and the view out of it after a night’s kip in the car. What is seen when opening the eyes, how relaxing it is and what does … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Honda CR-V 2.0i MMD AWD hybrid
Honda tends to hide its qualities very well, which probably explains why it may not be the first go-to brand for an SUV, and that would be a mistake for any motorist to make. Korean, German and British brands tend to hog the limelight and sales in this section of the market but the reality is the Honda CR-V can hold its own against some better-known names and is not only superior in certain … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Honda Jazz Crosstar EX
Among the Japanese automotive brands, Honda stands out as being a bit different, not afraid to have a go at something while remaining fiercely independent, even if it tends to change its mind from time to time. One of the enduring models in its UK lineup for two decades has been the Jazz series of supermini’s, which morphed into the Jazz Crosstar crossover model, effectively a taller hatchback a … [Read more...]
EV-eryone is planning for 2030
A tsunami of technology is sweeping over the automotive industry. It’s washing away the very foundations of many automotive companies and bringing together manufacturers and different technologies as a new order emerges. It’s also become time critical as governments around the world have largely said they want zero emission vehicles by 2030 to 2050. The rush is on. Here we look at what we know … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Honda HR-V Advance Style
The new Honda HR-V is a step-change for this conservative car-maker. While its head-turning but now discontinued NSX and still in production hot Civics stand out from more run of mill models in showrooms, they made progress with the new Jazz but have really ramped up styling in the new HR-V launched last autumn. It’s bigger than the last generation and there is much more room inside the … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Toyota RAV4 Hybrid Excel AWD
It's the original Toyota SUV and the latest RAV4 is still one of the best you can buy in this booming sector. The Recreational Activity Vehicle 4 was launched in the mid-1990s as Toyota's first SUV intended to offer more space and luggage room for families who liked an out-door lifestyle. It was available with a 2.0 petrol engine and choice of front or all-wheel-drive in three or five-door body … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Toyota Camry Excel
After 15 years out of the UK market, the new generation Toyota Camry is turning heads with its striking saloon shape. While hatchbacks and SUVs have come to dominate registrations and estate cars are few and far between, the once highly popular saloon stands out as a distinctive offering. But beauty is more than skin-deep in the Toyota Camry as it uses the Toyota New Global Architecture … [Read more...]
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