Table of contents for October 09, 2024 in Autocar

PEUGEOT HAS REVEALED the e-408, an electric variant of its saloon-cum-crossover that will take on the Tesla Model 3 and Polestar 2. Its addition means every car available to order in Peugeot’s UK line-up now offers a choice of petrol, hybrid and electric powertrains. Although it is closely related to the Peugeot e-308, which uses the same modular EMP2 platform, the larger e-408 adopts a slightly different powertrain. Notably, it draws power from a larger, 58.2kWh (usable) NMC battery pack – unique within the Stellantis group. The bigger battery could be accommodated because engineers “had more room to play with” within the fastback’s longer wheelbase, said Peugeot product director Jérôme Micheron. The 408’s slippery design, which enables a Cd of 0.28 (on a par with the Polestar 2 and only…

BACK IN THE dim and distant past, cars were just scrapped when they were too old, worn out or rusty to be economically repaired, but for over 30 years a more sustainable approach has been taken. Scrap cars became ‘end-of-life vehicles’ and the EU’s Endof-Life Vehicles Directive (ELV Directive) came into force in 2000. The rules are that 95% of a new car must be recoverable at the end of life and 85% recyclable. But before the ELV Directive, in 1994, BMW had already set up its Recycling and Dismantling Centre (RDC) to test and develop ways of recycling parts and reusing materials. These days, BMW is leading a consortium’s Car2Car research project, which aims to find ways of increasing the quantity of recyclable materials from end-of-life vehicles in the…

DACIAS ARE SO much more affordable than their rivals because they are designed, engineered and produced differently. Parts prices are set from the start, rather than at the end, allowing them to be designed and sourced accordingly and costs to be controlled. Cars are then not overloaded with kit, offering only what Dacia CEO Denis Le Vot calls the “essentials”. It’s 18 months since I last interviewed Le Vot, in his modern office in Paris, upon receipt of the Sturmey Award at the 2023 Autocar Awards. The trestle table and plastic chair set where we speak this time (at a Car of the Year testing event in Denmark, where Le Vot is making the case for the new Duster) feels a much more Dacia environment, and nothing in the time…

OVER INFLATION I read with interest the news article from Felix Page about the ‘progress’ the UK’s EV charger industry says it has been making (18 September). Much has been made of the slowing of EV sales, infrastructure is a major issue and the industry must hold itself more accountable than just by the number of chargers. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the following rampant increase in energy costs, firms represented by ChargeUK have increased their prices by 400% and maintained these increased prices in spite of the reduction in energy prices elsewhere. No doubt this increase in revenue and associated margin has expedited the business case of more infrastructure. But this has made electric travel more expensive than petrol or diesel travel. My high annual…

It’s been almost four years since Renault boss Luca de Meo outlined his ‘Renaulution’ plan to lift the brand’s desirability – and profitability – with a range of new models that reimagined some of its much-loved icons from the past. At the heart of it all was a stunning remake of the Renault 5. The brand hopes this returning supermini can do what the original R5 did by bringing affordable mobility to France, but this time using electric power. A starting price of around £23,000 is expected. In business and style terms, the idea is that the new R5 does for Renault what the 500 did for Fiat and Mini did for BMW. The concept version of the 5 looked incredible, and thankfully the production car has fully retained that…

VAUXHALL’S EV ONSLAUGHT continues with the new Grandland, which gets the familiar 73kWh NMC battery (which can take 160kW for a 10-80% charge in 25 minutes) and a 207bhp motor at the front for a 325-mile range. A 98kWh version is due next year with a 435-mile range. There are no differences in dashboard layout, infotainment and practicality to the ICE Grandland (other than the necessary charging information), so I won’t dwell on that. Suffice to say that some may be disappointed at the lack of a ‘frunk’ in the EV, but in truth the spacious boot with its underfloor storage will be more than good enough for most. Plus, the general sense of quality, classy appearance and airiness of the range-topping Ultimate model is good enough to make you…

Trecently had something of a reorganisation of its model derivative nomenclature, and VZ now stands for ‘veloz’ (‘fast’ in the marque’s native Spanish tongue). Confused? If you have thus far assumed that all Cupras were supposed to be fast, you might be. This marque was launched as a performance sub-brand, of course, but has spread its wings since first appearing in 2018, producing pseudo-premium mainstream cars with a sporting edge. VZ is its new special model suffix with which to identify those cars with an extra hit of dynamic excitement, then. The first is the Born VZ. Designed to sit above the rest of the Born showroom line-up, this car benefits from the improvements that the VW Group has been making to its toolkit of EV powertrain technology, drafting in…

“You could have a VW Golf GTI, which would do everything better, for similar money” WHY WE RAN IT To find out if this EV could be the future of hot hatches The story around Abarth’s first electric car has changed quite substantially since we took delivery just a few months ago. When this warmed-up Fiat 500e was launched, the electric hot hatch segment was barely in existence, and those cars that were on offer were much bigger, more familyfocused propositions like the Cupra Born and Smart #1 Brabus. But since then, Mini has come to market with the Cooper SE, the Renault 5-based Alpine A290 is inbound and Volkswagen is working on an electric follow-up to the Polo GTI. And just a few weeks ago, it emerged that Stellantis…

AN OWNER’S VIEW CHLOE AITCHISON “I bought my 2015 Polo 1.2 TSI back in 2017 and have loved owning it ever since. I like how easy it is to drive and it makes the perfect runaround, especially in town. It’s comfortable too, so I’m happy driving it on long journeys. I’ve had to pay for a few expensive repairs, including new condensers for the aircon and new suspension arms. While it has at times been costly to maintain, I don’t think I’ll be swapping into anything else any time soon. I love it as it’s small, economical and fun to drive.” BUYER BEWARE… ■ ENGINE A blocked diesel particulate filter can affect all TDI models because it doesn’t clear itself on short journeys around town. Be sure to take any…

“The W1’s 0-62mph time is 2.7sec and 0-186mph is 12.7sec. Top speed is limited to 217mph” The successor to the McLaren P1 mixes Formula 1 aerodynamics with a mighty new V8 hybrid drivetrain that sends all of its 1258bhp to the rear wheels. Although the Senna and Speedtail have followed in the decade since the P1, the £2 million McLaren W1 is considered by its maker to be the true successor to that hypercar, which was itself a follow-up to the seminal McLaren F1. The W1 breaks all records for the company in terms of power and performance. It laps circuits quicker than the aero-focused Senna and accelerates faster than the speed-focused Speedtail, all in a package that weighs 1399kg thanks to a forensic approach to weight-saving for every component,…

Ford is committed to making performance models in the future despite the slimming down of the Ford Performance range for ST and RS models in recent years. With the Focus ST soon to follow the Fiesta ST into retirement, only the Puma ST and the Mustang will remain on sale. Autocar spoke to Ford of Europe design director Amko Leenarts in a wideranging interview on the firm’s future (see below). Asked if there is still a future for fast Fords, particularly in the electric era, Leenarts said: “Definitely. If you look at Ford Performance, we’ve been bigger than ever: Formula 1, Dakar, WRC, Pikes Peak, Nascar. I can’t think of another brand that is present everywhere, so that must have an influence on our daily cars.” He added: “If we’re…

“Weight reduction is key to its promise of enjoyable driving” The production version of the Honda 0 Series Saloon concept will deliver around 482bhp and a range of more than 300 miles when it arrives in 2026 – and Honda promises that it will also offer engaging driving dynamics. The 0 Series Saloon, unveiled in January, previewed the first of seven EVs that will use an all-new platform, and Honda has now shared early details at a special preview event before it reveals a car that will be “the embodiment” of the technologies next January. The Saloon will be offered with both rear- and fourwheel-drive powertrains, which will feature newly developed compact e-axles incorporating a smaller inverter than current Honda electric motors. These can be mounted much lower in the…

The new Renault Embleme concept shows how hydrogen fuel cell technology could be used to offer long-range transport while emitting 90% fewer lifetime emissions than today’s petrol Captur and 80% fewer emissions than even the Megane BEV. The follow-up to the Scenic Vision Concept, it is powered by a similar hydrogen-fuelled rangeextender powertrain, pairing a 30kW fuel cell with a nickel-manganesecobalt battery. Unlike the Toyota Mirai and Hyundai Nexo, whose batteries are smaller than 2kWh, the Embleme is designed to minimise the use of its fuel cell. Battery power is used around town, while hydrogen is consumed to refill its reserves as needed. Renault said the system would allow the Embleme to do 1000km (621 miles) in the same time as a current ICE car, assuming two fiveminute stops…

In response to the letter from Andrew Pearson regarding the bus gates in Aberdeen (18 September), I can assure him, as one of the “good people of Aberdeen”, that we are not in the slightest bit proud! He should, presumably as only a visitor, be grateful that he doesn’t have to live with this ridiculous system on a daily basis. Most of us are furious with this – as well as the misguided recently introduced low-emission zone. Despite numerous polls showing overwhelming opposition from the good people of the city against both schemes, the council [led by the SNP and Liberal Democrats] has refused to listen and will continue its ongoing policies of destroying the businesses of the city centre and raising revenue. Equally annoying is that at the time…

When Mini electrified its previous-generation hatchback, it called it the Cooper SE in most markets but decided to go simply with Electric in the UK in order to avoid confusion with what was a common trim level name. Lamborghini has no such qualms with its new Urus SE, which isn’t a fleet-friendly version with 17in wheels and cloth seats but effectively the facelift of the Italian brand’s controversial but predictably successful SUV. Like the Bentley Continental GT Speed that we reviewed last week (with which it shares its platform and a drivetrain), the Urus has also become a plug-in hybrid. So I suppose it does actually make more sense as a company car than before. However, the 37-mile electriconly range and low official CO 2 emissions aren’t the primary improvements…

The car industry had never seen a rise like Tesla’s and probably never will see another. Just a decade ago, this was a new firm introducing a car with a novel propulsion method and minimal supporting infrastructure. Today, it’s the maker of the world’s best-selling car. Rivals never rest, though, and so for 2024 Tesla has replaced the Model Y crossover’s 60kWh battery in the single-motor RWD variant with a new pack. We think it’s the 75kWh battery from the AWD Long Range but Tesla always refuses to discuss capacity, annoyingly. Whatever it is, it has increased the starting price slightly from £44,990 to £46,990 but boosted the official range from 283 right up to 373 miles (or 351 miles on the bigger alloys), with official efficiency remaining at 4.0mpkWh.…

The Ferrari nearly fails to materialise. With the official press car out of action, locating a good, representative Roma is proving to be a proper head-scratcher, something we can’t understand. Since 2020 the model has been the ‘affordable’ departure point into Ferrari-land and sells steadily in the UK. It’s not like we’re sniffing about for a 166 MM. But then, with days to go, a solid lead surfaces, followed by a friendly phone call, and an arrangement is made to borrow the rather beautiful junior Ferrari GT before you: Abu Dhabi Blue, low miles, factory-correct Michelins. The group test of the year can now commence. The Roma simply had to be here. For those in the business of building super-coupés with not only prodigious long-range chops but also the potential…

MILEAGE 10,157 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To see if this really is Italy’s answer to McLaren People who adore cars also often happen to be musos, and perhaps this isn’t too surprising. That which leads an individual to be moved by music can also make them dangerously susceptible to the charms of a Cosworth BDA being thrashed through a Welsh forest. Herbert von Karajan once owned not just a nice little Porsche 911 but a 911 Turbo RS. Enough said. But romance and soul aren’t only to be found in the engine bay. It’s in the whole show. It’s in the height of the beltline; in the way the seats hold you; in the specific shape of the windscreen aperture; in the manner of the steering; in the particular vibrations…

My most memorable “ drive? The time I drove it without brakes from Weybridge to Woking,” replies Tim Barrett, owner and restorer of the 1979, T-reg Stratos Silver Ford Capri 3.0 S Mk3 you see here. “I used the handbrake, but the braking power was no different from the brakes themselves!” he says. It makes you wonder how Bodie, one half of The Professionals, the TV series that ran from 1977-83, managed to perform the high-speed stunts in his Stratos Silver 3.0 S that the show was known for if the thing had no stoppers… Whatever, we liked Bodie (Doyle, his ‘colleague’, fancied himself too much, and anyway, his 3.0 S was gold) and we especially liked his Capri. Tim liked it, too, which is why he bought his own…

MGB GT 1980, 93,500 miles, £3850 Cheap classics are hard to come by these days, so it’s reassuring that one of the most popular coupés of yesteryear is still reasonably priced. The GT is ULEZ and road tax exempt, too, and one of a handful of classics you can still drive in London. PORSCHE 928 1980, 121,000 miles, £19,900 Don’t be put off by the mileage, this 928 has been well cared for by its previous keeper, who had the car from 2007. Since then it has had a fresh V8 engine, a full body respray and a refreshed interior. It has a clean MOT history and, like the Capri (left), is tax and ULEZ exempt. FERRARI 400 1979, 42,000 miles, £39,500 The 400 is regarded as one of Ferrari’s…

The Bigster is Dacia’s largest model yet and kick-starts the Romanian brand’s ambitious plans to expand into the ultra-competitive C-segment market. Claimed by Dacia to make the “C-SUV more affordable”, the longawaited Bigster will sit above the technically related Duster crossover and is set to arrive next year at a sub-£30,000 price that will undercut key rivals such as the Skoda Kodiaq, Peugeot 5008 and Ford Kuga. Positioned as a cut-price alternative to the Land Rover Defender, the Bigster comes with four-wheel drive, “genuine off-road capabilities” and a rugged exterior design that remains largely faithful to the concept first shown in 2021. Protruding wheel arches, sharp-looking LED headlights and large, 19in alloy wheels endow the Bigster with a brawny appearance that’s similar in vein to the recently overhauled Duster. The…

JOB CUTS AND a scaling back of expansion plans at automotive battery company Northvolt are threatening to disrupt the launch of the fifthgeneration Porsche 718 Boxster. Scheduled to go on sale by the end of 2025, the new electric-powered roadster is set to be the first car to use a unique battery pack jointly developed by Porsche and Northvolt. However, issues at Northvolt’s plant in Skellefteå, Sweden – resulting from plans to shed 1600 jobs and shelve expansion proposals – have led Porsche to secure alternative battery deals in case the original falls through, sources have revealed to Autocar. “If we go to a fallback position, it will almost certainly mean a delay in production,” Autocar was told. Such a delay looks more likely given that Northvolt is no longer…

SKODA HAS DELAYED a crucial new electric car and extended the lifespan of its small combustionengined models in response to waning demand for EVs across Europe. The Czech brand had previously planned to launch six new electric cars over the next two years: the Elroq and Epiq crossovers, a production version of the Vision 7S seven-seat SUV concept, a 4.7m-long estate and facelifted versions of the Enyaq and Enyaq Coupé SUVs. However, it has now delayed the estate – all but confirmed to inherit the Octavia name – until late 2027 or 2028. Skoda CEO Klaus Zellmer told Autocar: “To be totally honest, with the slowdown of the transformation into battery-electric vehicles, we’re revisiting that [timeline].” Meanwhile, the petrolengined Fabia supermini, Kamiq crossover and Scala hatchback have been given a…

TAIWANESE TECH GIANT Foxconn’s automotive division has revealed a radical electric MPV designed by Pininfarina. Majoring on connectivity and aerodynamics, it is called the Foxtron Model D, after its positioning in the D-segment. It measures 5.13m long and 1.99m wide. Foxconn claims that it will achieve a range of more than 410 miles on the WLTP test cycle and that it will do so using a 100-120kWh lithium-iron phosphate battery. That would make it the longestrange electric sevenseater on sale, pipping the Peugeot e-5008, which gets exactly 410 miles from its 98kWh battery. Key to this range is aerodynamic efficiency, claims Foxconn: there’s a variety of holes and creases in the bodywork in order to smooth the flow of air through and around it. A gap in the front grille…

100-PAGE SPECIAL BEST OF BRITISH We celebrate British automotive engineering with a road trip in some of the finest UK-built cars, from the Mini Cooper to the Nissan Qashqai FEATURE HOME-GROWN HEROES Autocar staffers pick their all-time favourite British cars (spoiler above) UK VERDICT ALFA ROMEO JUNIOR Sporty brand’s new baby crossover reaches the UK. Just how good is it? EVERY WEEK ROAD TEST HYUNDAI SANTA FE Large SUV has been given an attention-grabbing makeover. Is it now a budget Range Rover? USED GUIDE MITSUBISHI LANCER EVOLUTION IV Road version of ’90s rally weapon is now an affordable gamble…

Poor Vauxhall Grandland: not only does the new Mk2 need to find a place among its many, many rivals (which include everything from the BMW X1 at the premium end to the MG HS at the budget end and the Kia Sportage in the middle), but it also needs to justify its existence in the expansive Stellantis stable of mechanically similar cars. In the latter challenge, it does at least have the benefit of being at the front of the queue. The Grandland is only the third model to use the new STLA Medium platform, which was designed from the ground up for EVs (see opposite page) and long-range plug-in hybrids as well as petrol and hybrid versions. The Grandland follows hot on the heels of the Peugeot 3008 and…

While you were looking the other way, the Mk2 Audi Q7 entered its 10th year on sale, making it one of the UK market’s oldest cars. This latest update has been devised with the aim of sustaining the seven-seat SUV’s appeal until a new-generation version (likely to be Ingolstadt’s last combustionengined car) lands in 2026. With a bold new design language presently filtering its way across the Audi line-up, not to mention a whole new family of engines, heavily overhauled platforms and a totally new approach to cabin layout, no doubt that Mk3 Q7 will be related to this Mk2 in little more than name. So it’s understandable that these tweaks for the car’s final couple of years are rather more subtle. New LED lights (optionally customisable) flank a lightly…

Being technologically and stylistically progressive, the EV6 was a badge of honour for Kia when it came along in 2021 – and a key indicator that the time of the midmarket electric car had arrived. The EV6 became the first Korean Car of the Year winner in 2022. It advanced our expectations of how spacious and innovatively packaged an EV at its size and price could be, but also how engaging to drive, thanks to assertive performance and a fairly agile rear-drive chassis. Standards have developed quickly among mid-sized EVs since then, of course. So now to scrutinise Kia’s response to the competition that the EV6 has attracted since 2021, represented by cars as different as the Renault Scenic and regrettably short-lived Fisker Ocean. Has the firm done enough to…

“The shows helped to increase people’s interest in cars and show them they could be fun and exciting – qualities especially important to BMW and Mini. Importantly, the shows also appealed to young people – the drivers of tomorrow.”Graham Biggs, corporate comms director, BMW Group So that’s it: after 22 years, the Top Gear and The Grand Tour eras of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May are over. And what a journey it has been. We have seen the trio attempt to sail across the Channel in cars (Clarkson’s Nissank was the only one that succeeded), insult Americans and May’s hair come within touching distance of his ankles; Hammond was nearly killed and Clarkson actually fired. On top of that, both series have achieved record viewing figures and earned…

The Polo of 2009-2017 was a landmark model for Volkswagen because this was the one where it finally cracked the supermini code. Today, this fifth-generation Polo can be had for as little as £1500 – a bargain, especially when you consider this was the car that eclipsed the hitherto pre-eminent Ford Fiesta in so many of the ways that really matter in everyday use. Four generations of Polo had arrived between 1975 and 2009, and all had fallen short on performance, refinement, style and fun. So Volkswagen and its then design boss, Walter de Silva, sought to change this by injecting the Mk5 Polo with added ‘Golf-ness’. As a result, the Polo looked just like a shrunken Golf, with a hint of Scirocco to give it a sharper front end…

“A dvertising on racing cars in England doesn’t exactly seem to have taken place by storm, but I gather that several people are working hard behind the scenes with sponsorship deals,” wrote Autocar’s motorsport columnist, Eoin Young, in December 1967. “It’s interesting that the Rhodesian Gunston tobacco company is considering John Love [reigning champion of the high-profile South African Formula 1 series] for a season on the World Championship circuits.” And indeed it would be Love and fellow Rhodesian Sam Tingle who would make history at the 1968 season-opening South African Grand Prix as the first drivers of sponsored cars, their Brabham and LDS machinery painted in the bright orange of Gunston’s cigarette packets. Teams were in a tricky spot financially after BP, Shell and Firestone pulled their support, and…