The all-new Ford Mondeo range is huge in the number of models with the price list showed 56 versions with prices starting at £21,095 and ranging up to £33,310.Core versions are either five door hatchbacks or estates with Style, Zetec, Titanium and Titanium X levels of spec depending on the engine chosen and there again there are numerous options from 1.0-litre petrol to 2.0-litre turbodiesel. … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Honda Civic 1600 DTEC SR diesel manual
The Honda Civic is synonymous with Swindon and the 10th generation of the series is the lifeblood of its global manufacturing plant, so its good to find the newcomer is in good shape after a facelift.In fact, style is what the Civic is all about and it’s arguably one of the most immediately recognizable five-doors on the road and now enhanced by new nose and tail styling with a revised … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: Kia Venga rejuvenated
Kia is on target for another record year of sales in the UK in 2015.For the first six months of this year their new car sales have reached a total of 42,248 units, an increase over last year of 3.5%. Their goal is to exceed 80,000 sales this year, around 3,000 units more than last year’s all-time record.One of those Kia model ranges finding approval from UK customers is the rejuvenated … [Read more...]
Weekend Roadtest: Jaguar XE will rewrite rule books
The Jaguar XE is rewriting rule books.The unwritten law which states Germany’s dominance of the premium small executive saloon sector is unchallengable is about to be broken.Pitching into the premium small executive sector, the four-door XE is up against long established rivals from Germany. It can beat them with 3,000 orders on the books in just a few weeks.The brand is seen as making … [Read more...]
Weekend Roadtest: Kia Sorento 2.2 CRDI KX2
Kia has mounted its strongest challenge yet to Europe’s premium brand SUVs with the latest Sorento.Boasting a completely new design with the latest cleaner engines, sophisticated equipment and a sharper quality edge, the third generation Sorento has also moved up the price brackets.Six models in the seven-seat series comprise three trim levels with a choice of six-speed manual or six-speed … [Read more...]
Sunday Drive: Renault Twingo Dynamique ENERGY TCe 90
The City Car sector of the new car market is awash with fuel efficient, low running cost, cheap-ish small cars.But only around 85,000 of them were sold in the UK last year and the Fiat 500 family is the only City Car to appear in the UK’s top ten sales chart.Customers prefer the roomier ‘Supermini’ sector which sold ten times as many cars last year compared to City Cars and are not that … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Nissan Juke Nismo RS 1.6Dig-t 2WD
A little bit of what you fancy really can do you good, particularly in the case of the Nissan Juke RS.The quirky-styled but award-winning Juke was given a serious make-over towards the end of 2014 and the RS was the result.A more powerful engine, tauter steering, revised suspension and bigger brakes, sitting in a strengthened chassis with a bigger boot under the bulbous bodywork has … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Ford Kuga Titanium X 1.5 EcoBoost man
Kuga has been a tremendous success for Ford since it was launched, taking the family-focused brand into the sporting sector.There are diesel and petrol versions and the latter now comes with the newest 1.5 EcoBoost engine built in Bridgend supplied in two power outputs, and we tested the lower version.It replaced the 1.6 EcoBoost with a greener version 1498cc four-cylinder and matched to a … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Volkswagen Golf EV
“It’s quiet”, said nearly everyone who travelled in the Volkswagen e-Golf.Some were even heard to exclaim the word “Electric!” when told this is the latest Golf to join the range and the silence is deafening and enduring as the miles silently roll by under the low friction tyres.The fact is that up to a point there is no compromise in driving the Volkswagen e-Golf, it’s as straightforward … [Read more...]
Sunday Drive: Vauxhall Adam S
Keeping the product fresh with additional or revised specification in the small car sectors is as important as the price.Take the Vauxhall Adam family of models. There is the Adam from £11,360 with its offspring the Adam Jam and Adam Slam. Next up the family tree is Adam Rocks at £13,995 and now head of the family is the £16,995 Adam S which has deposed the Adam Grand Slam for Pan European … [Read more...]
