Indice dei contenuti per January 07, 2026 in Autocar

Volkswagen has unveiled the interior of the new ID Polo ahead of the car’s launch later this year, showcasing the increased provision of physical buttons for key functions. The supermini is the firm’s vital new offering in the sub-£22,000 EV category. It is also the first model to encompass the brand’s new design language under the leadership of Andreas Mindt, who has vowed to expand the use of switchgear as a result of customer feedback. The ID Polo was previewed in 2023 by the ID 2all concept and the production model’s interior closely resembles that car’s, with what VW designers refer to as a “premium haptic” concept using touchscreens and physical controls. The dashboard features a 10.25in digital info display and a 13in landscape-mounted infotainment screen. The latter no…

SMART HAS BEGUN testing the #2, a Fortwo successor that will arrive later this year. The two-seat EV will be Smart’s new entry model and these photos show early mules testing the #2’s new Electric Compact Architecture. The platform is being developed jointly by parent companies Geely in China and Mercedes-Benz in Europe, given its European market focus. For this testing phase, the platform has been paired with a third-generation Fortwo body, which, said Smart, confirms that the #2 will offer similar proportions to the car it replaces. The production car will also retain the same two-door, rear-drive layout but sport a “fresh identity”.…

Mercedes-Benz design boss Gorden Wagener will step down in January, ending a 28-year career that radically reshaped both the styling of the production models and the internal design culture at the German car maker. The 56-year-old, who joined Mercedes in 1997 and has led its global design operations since 2008, will be replaced by Bastian Baudy, who currently leads design for the AMG performance brand. Wagener will leave the company on 31 January. It is at his own request and by mutual agreement. His departure closes a significant chapter in Mercedes’ design history. Under his direction, the design of the firm’s production cars underwent a comprehensive overhaul, moving from the conservative, engineer-led styling of the early 2000s to the more emotional and sculptural forms that define today’s line-up. Mercedes CEO…

THE SAFETY CONCEPT of vehicles communicating with each other and the surrounding infrastructure has been under development in Europe for more than 20 years. Now it has come of age. Volkswagen says more than two million of its vehicles have ‘Car2X’ technology, which enables them to take advantage of “local swarm intelligence”, warning of traffic hazards and other relevant factors. It is available as standard or an option in a range of VWs, including the Golf, T-Roc, Tiguan, Tayron, Passat, ID 3, ID 4, ID 5 and ID 7. In the noughties, there were a number of European projects working on what then was known as V2V (vehicle to vehicle), often supported by major car makers and the electronics sector. The principle of the original V2V concept was simple enough:…

This is our most revealing look yet at Bentley’s first EV, which is due to be unveiled at the end of this year. Spied testing in the freezing conditions of northern Sweden, this mule of Crewe’s so-called Luxury Urban SUV has lost the chunky camouflage used by previous prototypes. Without it, a Bentayga-like bonnet, productionspec front lights and a wide and low front end are all visible alongside a monolithic shape that is clearly inspired by the recent EXP 15 concept. The EV’s nose and much of its rear end are, however, still partially covered, hiding the final design. This is also the first time we have seen inside the EV. These pictures reveal a cabin that combines the features of the Bentayga (notably its round, metal air vents) with…

WRITE TO autocar@haymarket.com FAKE FORDS To my mind, the Renault platform deal reeks of desperation on the part of Ford. Sadly, it’s all too late to hold on to Fiesta customers, who will be long gone by the time these Renault-based EVs arrive in 2028. Ford of Europe or more likely Ford’s US management seem to have a death wish and certainly no interest in investing in Europe. I doubt whether their customers are going to be interested in a badge-engineered Renault, just as they have been lukewarm towards Ford’s late-to-the-market and very average Volkswagen-based EVs. Andrew Agnew Via Facebook ST ELSEWHERE The Renault deal is excellent news. Ford is going back to affordable hatchbacks, and the Ampr Small platform is already a great one to improve on. And the…

The weight of a Fabia vRS is potentially resting on this car’s shoulders. Should demand for the new Fabia 130 version be sufficient, Skoda might well decide to go the whole hog with its supermini. Does it do a good enough job to warrant a full-fat version? Yes. Would a vRS make it almost irrelevant? Also yes. The 130 gets its name from two sources: it makes 130kW (174bhp) and Skoda turned 130 last year. To get to that figure (a 26bhp improvement), Skoda has made some subtle upgrades to the 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo ‘Evo2’ engine found in a throng of other Volkswagen Group products. Its ECU has been modified and various bits have been upgraded to cope with the additional power in a curiously global parts bin special kind…

The EV5 is Kia’s vegan sausage roll. Much like the pork-filled pastry, the combustion-engined Sportage is a firm favourite of the British public (more than 45,000 left showrooms across the UK last year, making it the nation’s second-best-selling new car), but now it’s time for a more ‘socially conscious’ version, giving the Korean brand a competitor in the burgeoning class of family-sized electric SUVs. The EV5 has been a long time coming: it was launched in China two years ago but its journey to these shores was delayed by the development of a new 81.4kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt battery. The car sits on the entry-level version of the well-established E-GMP platform that underpins Kia’s EV3 and EV4. Here, though, it has been stretched to measure 4610mm long, 1875mm wide and 1675mm tall,…

BMW i3 On sale December MERCEDES-BENZ C-CLASS EQ On sale August The rivalry between the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class has always been vindaloo-hot, but this year it’s getting turned up to phaal proportions. Both the executive saloons will go electric for the first time – each offering around 500 miles of range – and will reinterpret design cues from their makers’ back catalogues. The new C-Class EQ is due first, majoring on interior tech. It’s expected to reprise the cabin layout from the new GLC EQ, offering the biggest touchscreen yet fitted in one of the brand’s cars. Elsewhere, expect powertrains ranging from a 335bhp rear-driven option to a 482bhp 4Matic, and charging speeds of up to 400kW. The new i3, meanwhile, promises to be the keen driver’s…

AUDI RS3 ULTIMATE SPY SHOTS On sale June Track-focused special will be a snarling last hurrah for the five-cylinder hot A3. Expect it to bring a hefty bump in power, taking it beyond the current 401bhp. CUPRA BORN VZ On sale May Electric hatch is getting a new look to bring it into line with the new Raval supermini. Flagship VZ – one of our favourite fast EVs – could also get extra power and range. CUPRA FORMENTOR VZ5 On sale August The ultimate sleeper? This subtle five-cylinder version of Martorell’s sporty crossover is finally coming to the UK – although only around 250 examples are due over here, so move quickly. CUPRA LEON VZ TCR On sale November Limited-run special will follow the Leon VZ and draws on Cupra’s…

GOLF HYBRID On sale October With demand still surging for combustion cars and at least another decade until they must be taken off sale in Europe, car makers are racing to clean up their ICE offerings to shore up sales – and keep emissions down – in the build-up to full electrification. That’s why Volkswagen is making the landmark decision to introduce a full-hybrid powertrain to the huge-selling Golf next year. This new series-parallel system – coming first to the new T-Roc – will work a bit like the Honda Civic’s, in that the Golf Hybrid will be able to drive on electric or petrol power at any one time or both when called for, with up to 170bhp at its disposal. ID TIGUAN On sale August It’s not often…

“I couldn’t stop remarking on how lovely it is to drive” WHY WE RAN IT Is this sensible, long-legged compact SUV the perfect beginner’s electric car? I ’m 38,000ft in the air, halfway through a delayed and extremely busy flight home from a frantic, tiring work trip abroad. In about five hours, I will stumble, dazed and deflated, through the gloomy drizzle from the airport exit to the short stay car park, my pace quickening and my mood lightening as I edge closer to the happy reunion I’ve been craving for days. It’s been a pretty hardcore week and the prospect of home comfort is tantalisingly close. But I don’t even have to wait until I actually get back to my house. Sure, I’m looking forward to whipping up a…

If you’re after a tiny, frugal, practical city runaround, your choices on the new car market are currently quite limited. Razor-thin margins in this segment and increasingly costly regulations sent most manufacturers hurtling towards the exit door a few years back, leaving only a few faithful defenders to choose from today. Toyota is one of these holdouts, and its Aygo X happens to be among the best of the breed – but if you haven’t bought a new car in a while, the new hybrid model’s £21,500 price might come as a bit of a shock. Happily, you can pick up a four-year-old pure-petrol model for as little as £6500. These pre-facelift cars are still capable of 60mpg on a run, and most have a snickety five-speed manual gearbox that…

Among the many surprises Cameron Peters has up his sleeve is that although his 2002-reg Audi S8 is classed as Euro 3 for emissions purposes, it is, he tells me, exempt from London’s ULEZ charge. Generally speaking, only petrol cars certified as being Euro 4 and above (the classification was introduced in 2005) satisfy the NOx emissions standard used to determine the charge, making them exempt. However, so long as it meets the NOx standard, a Euro 3 car is also exempt. Cameron’s 23-year-old Euro 3 S8 is just such a vehicle. Transport for London’s ULEZ registration checker confirms it. Cameron, who is a year younger than his S8, bought it three years ago as his first car. He was just 19. So why did he buy a high-performance saloon…

British car industry breaks silence over sales figures In the past, British car “ manufacturers have been rather reluctant to issue any clear figures on their actual model production,” we reported in May 1969. “Now the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has compiled detailed statistics for the Big Four – British Leyland, Ford, Rootes and Vauxhall.” Car production and export figures had been obtainable as early as the 1900s, extracted from government trade documentation, but they were expressed in financial terms and didn’t distinguish between makers, let alone individual vehicle types. Before long, the SMMT started to release its own statistics. In 1923, for instance, the British industry made 153k vehicles, of which 29k, or 19%, were exported (primarily to Australia, if you’re interested). Whether statistics on makes and…

BMW is working on a new 4 Series to serve as a more stylefocused and dynamic alternative to the bold Neue Klasse 3 Series – and it’s set once again to spawn a potent M4 coupé. The 4 Series was launched in 2013 as a more rakish take on the stalwart 3 Series, with the option of two-door coupé and convertible bodystyles as well as a four-door fastback called the Gran Coupé. It entered its second generation in 2020 and went on to provide the basis for the i4, which is essentially today’s electric alternative to the 3 Series. It has consistently been a strong seller for BMW, albeit with an inherently more niche market position than its more mainstream saloon/estate sibling. But the future of the model line had…

SKODA ISN’T RULING out a full-blown vRS comeback for the Fabia – even though the hot hatch was axed in 2014 because of sluggish sales. Sources have told Autocar that the recently unveiled warmed-up Fabia 130 (driven, p22), which produces 174bhp and marks the brand’s 130th anniversary, could help justify the business case for a fully fledged vRS. Behind the scenes, engineers are understood to be enthusiastic about the idea. A vRS would give Skoda the chance to demonstrate the potential of the Fabia’s platform while tapping into the firm’s impressive motorsport heritage, which includes eight WRC2 drivers’ championships in Fabias between 2015 and 2023. Autocar understands that a revival remains possible if market conditions swing back in favour of small performance models and the brand will “continue to monitor…

A DECISION ON whether the Renault 4 Savane 4x4 concept car will enter production will be taken within the coming weeks. Renault CEO Fabrice Cambolive said he “will be pushing” for the four-wheel-drive model to make production as one of the “cherries on top of the cake” of Renault’s new range of small EVs. Speaking at the Car of the Year 2026 final event in Barcelona, Spain, Cambolive said the model would also extend the market appeal of the 4 in certain northern European countries where four-wheel drive is more desirable. That’s because its drivetrain adopts an additional electric motor to power the rear axle. The only delay in the decision to date had been one of making strategic priorities, said Cambolive.…

FORD HAS BECOME the strongest voice among UK car companies in calling for the government to follow the European Union in softening EV targets. The European Commission brought forward proposals in December that would allow combustion-engined cars to remain on sale after 2035 in the EU. The new laws are expected to be signed off by EU members and would require total tailpipe CO2 emissions from 2035 to be reduced by 90%, rather than 100%, compared with 2021. The previous 100% level effectively banned the sale of all non-EVs. In response, the majority of car firms in the UK have either been restrained or declined to comment when approached by Autocar. But Ford UK managing director Lisa Brankin said: “Following the EU ruling, it is clearer than ever that the…

With manufacturers under pressure to sell more EVs, more brands than ever competing within the market, and sellers looking to cut through today’s cost of living crisis, 2026 promises to be “the year of the deal” for buyers, the boss of one of the country’s top dealers has told Autocar. Robert Forrester, CEO of Vertu Motors, also said: “The offers for consumers will be unbelievable and, in my opinion, even uneconomic for dealers and OEMs. They’ll be that good.” Evidence to support Forrester’s prediction could be seen in some of the deals on offer before the turn of the year, as car makers and dealers continued to fight to win sales against a backdrop of a sluggish economy. Deals included discounts approaching 27% on some Seat Leons, almost 30% on…

BYD WILL BRING plugin hybrid power to the supermini class when it launches the Dolphin G as the UK’s smallest and cheapest PHEV this year. It is described as a B-segment hatchback and will effectively serve as a PHEV alternative to the Dolphin Surf EV, measuring around 4m long and roughly 1.5m tall. Other electrified options of this size – the Toyota Yaris, Renault Clio and MG 3 to name a few – use full hybrid systems, which are typically more space- and cost-effective. Technical details are scarce, but the Dolphin G’s powertrain is expected to be closely related to that in the new Atto 2 DM-i PHEV. This pairs a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and an electric motor up front and can operate either as a series hybrid (with…

MALCOLM WILSON’S LAKES TOUR M-Sport founder and rally legend takes us for a blast down his finest local roads in an Aston Martin DBX, Audi Quattro and Toyota GR Yaris TOYOTA AYGO X While rival city cars go electric, the Aygo becomes a 74mpg hybrid GENESIS TURNS UP THE HEAT Luxury brand is forging a performance-led future. We find out why EVERY WEEK POLESTAR 3 Definitive final verdict on what it’s like to live with this stylish EV and its cast of gremlins SKODA SUPERB You will struggle to get a more refined, comfy and real-world practical used car for the money…

Being the inheritor of a long line of memorable hot hatches, the Cupra Leon has been suffering with something of a hierarchy problem. For the past few years you’ve had to buy the bigger Leon Estate if you’ve wanted the 329bhp, Volkswagen Golf R-spec engine. For 2026 that problem has been resolved, as two new variants put the five-door Leon back on top of the performance pile, namely the VZ and VZ TCR. Both are limited editions, out to commemorate the Leon’s success in global TCR touring car racing. Both have more power and torque than any Leon hatch of recent years (although, perhaps a little annoyingly, neither quite as much as the 2.0 TSI 333 4Drive estate). Both get mechanical and cosmetic upgrades over the series-production 2.0 TSI 300…

It’s a sign of the times how important SUVs have become to the business of German premium car maker Audi. Among all of its model lines, its Q-badged cars now have the most global success. And, now entering its third model generation, the little Q3 has become one of its most strategically important. Only the Q5 and A6 commercially outperformed this car in 2024. In 2026, as this third-generation version spreads its wings and registers its first full calendar year of sales, it could well turn out to be the most popular Audi of them all. The production lines at Ingolstadt are, in fact, all teed up to provide extra capacity over and above the circa-250,000 annual volume that the car’s long-standing base at Gyor, Hungary, can churn out. The…

TOYOTA GR GT On sale December After years of rumours, teasers and concepts, Toyota’s thoroughbred is finally here. Packing a hybridised, twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8, the GR GT puts out 641bhp and 627lb ft – although Toyota has said these numbers could increase as development continues. It’s targeting a top speed of 198mph and is the company’s first car to have an all-aluminium body. Notably, there isn’t a single Toyota badge on it. We’re keenly awaiting our first go, but we expect it to become a mainstay of the race track before hitting the road in significant numbers. MERCEDES-AMG CLA 45 On sale September Hot version of new electric CLA saloon will be a 500bhp BMW M3 chaser with a drift mode and a hydraulically actuated rear wing. ALPINE A110 ULTIME…

BENTLEY URBAN SUV On sale December Every Bentley of the modern era has been a game-changing proposition that has sought to rewrite the rules of the luxury car market in some way – but none has promised to be as transformative as this. Crewe refers to its first EV as an ‘urban SUV’, reflecting the fact that it’s slightly smaller than the best-selling Bentayga. It’s all relative, though: this will still be a hefty thing, at just under five metres long and weighing the thick end of three tonnes. And the big numbers don’t stop there: it will be capable of adding 100 miles of range in less than seven minutes at a charger, could pack north of 1000bhp in its most potent form and will top out beyond 200mph.…

Ted Kravitz has been pounding the pit lanes in Formula 1 for the past 23 years in his role as a TV reporter. In that time, he has witnessed all the big moments first hand: controversial races, thrilling victories, the trauma and tragedy of major accidents, the tears and raw emotion of championships won and lost. But as he quickly admits, it’s not about him and what he has seen but rather what he has relayed to us, you, the fan, in those high-intensity moments. He has one job. “It hasn’t changed too much in this otherwise fast-changing F1 world,” says Kravitz. “From broadcaster to viewer, we are there to inform, entertain and bring people from their screens to as close to the action as possible, to make them feel…

MILEAGE 5678 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT To check in on a car that we really liked and a brand that has gone rather quiet I will admit that it’s actually proving quite hard to think of things to write about my HR-V. Not because it’s a poor car, by any means. In fact, it’s the opposite. It takes everything I throw at it happily in its stride. I’ve racked up fewer miles than usual this month, but with just as much gear on board as it would normally have. In fact, on account of me needing to shed some more light on my photographic subjects now that the days are becoming ever shorter, it has been happily carting around a 4ft-long light stick, which is too wide for the boot but…

AN OWNER’S VIEW JAMES SMYTH “I bought my Aygo X Edge in 2022 as a runabout for the city, and it has been brilliant. It looks fantastic – much more premium than other small cars – and the high driving position gives great visibility. It’s surprisingly comfortable on longer trips too, although the engine does need to be worked hard on motorways. The infotainment is a big step up from my old Aygo. And fuel economy is excellent: I regularly see 60mpg without trying. Servicing has been cheap and reliability faultless so far. It’s a small car that doesn’t feel cheap, which is exactly what I wanted.” BUYER BEWARE… ■ WARRANTY Toyota has a great reputation for reliability and – as you will see in this section – the Aygo…

Even if different-shaped derivatives are not as popular or profitable as the mainstream model on which they are based, BMW’s Joachim Post said it is relatively easy to sign off the business case because of the vastly reduced development costs they incur. “It’s not [as] expensive [as] making a completely new car – and whenever we make a 3 Series or X3, we still think about the 4 Series or X4, to make it with synergies so that a derivative can be easily built out of the base,” he said. Indeed, BMW is just months away from unveiling a new-generation X4, spotted in prototype guise recently (pictured) and expected to have ICE and EV powertrains shared with the X3 and iX3 – and Post said the larger X6 is likely…

Nissan has chosen the name Wave for its version of the Renault Twingo electric city car and will rework the design with influence from its Pike retro cars, Autocar has learned. The Wave is due next year and will be built by Renault alongside the Twingo. It is expected to hit the same sub-£20,000 price point as the Twingo, thanks to the use of cheaper, lithiumiron-phosphate chemistry for its 27.5kWh battery. Nissan Europe head of design Giovanny Arroba has told Autocar the car’s design will be inspired by Nissan’s late-1980s and early-1990s retro small cars known as Pike cars, after the firm’s Pike Factory special project group. The Wave name was confirmed by a separate source at Nissan. The Pike cars were based on the first-generation Nissan Micra and sparked…

Mitsubishi will sell the Outlander plug-in hybrid SUV (pictured) and L200 pick-up truck in the UK when it returns this summer. The two models were mainstays of the brand’s line-up before it exited the UK in 2021. The Outlander will employ a 2.4-litre petrol engine and two electric motors, giving it four-wheel drive. The L200 will be powered by a 2.4-litre twin-turbo diesel. ■ READ ABOUT EVERY OTHER NEW CAR ARRIVING IN 2026 IN OUR 15-PAGE SPECIAL REPORT STARTING ON P35…

CLS (C219, 2004) Created by Wagener before he became design boss, the four-door coupé instantly reshaped expectations of the styling of a Merc saloon. S-Class (W222, 2013) It redefined top-end Mercedes-Benz luxury through its greater presence and deliberate design restraint. A-Class (W176, 2012) It marked a break from conservatism, using a hatchback silhouette and flamboyant surfaces to attract younger, image-conscious buyers. AMG GT (C190, 2014) A sports car shaped by Merc motorsport history: long-bonnet proportions and a stance that signalled instant intent. G-Class (W463, 2018) It proved contemporary design and regulatory compliance could coexist with authenticity and historical design continuity.…

A GLOBAL COMPANY with the incredible technical and organisational skill to make cars at scale should be able to monetise a car in more ways than just selling it to a dealer. This core belief has gripped the car industry for the past decade but so far has met with little success. Alternative forms of ownership in particular have been pursued with a single-mindedness whipped into fever pitch by consultants. Dull but worthy financing divisions have been rebranded as mobility arms, complete with polished logos, snappy slogans and ambitious profit contribution targets. The likes of Renault Mobilize, Toyota Kinto and Stellantis Free2Move exemplified the digital-led rebrand of car makers’ direct-to-consumer activities and explored the liminal space between car ownership and daily rental. But a competence in manufacturing and supply chain…

Renault and Ford’s deal to collaborate on small EVs (News, 31 December 2025) feels like a bleak glimpse of where EVs and maybe cars in general are heading. Everything risks becoming the same underlying platform with a different body bolted on and the motors coming from the same small handful of suppliers. It’s hard not to see that as a loss for the industry. Sure, I know I will get a load of hate from the EV diehards, who will point to examples like the Fiat 500 and Ford Ka or the Ford Galaxy and the Volkswagen Sharan, but those were the exception rather than the rule. The problem is that as collaboration and parts-sharing becomes the norm, the unique advantages and quirks that you used to get from different…

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Xpeng has been in the UK for less than a year, yet it has already updated its initial offering. The Chinese EV firm claims to have made “over 20,000 incremental developments” to the G6’s design, interior, handling and refinement. You have to look hard to spot the new full-width front light bar and more raked rear end, so the G6 remains fairly inconspicuous. The technical changes are far more interesting. When the G6 landed in February, you could have a Standard Range car with a 65kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery or a Long Range car with a 87.5kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) battery, both of them with single-motor rear-wheel drive. Now Xpeng has added a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive Performance model and ditched the NMC battery in favour of an 80.8kWh LFP pack. The benefits…

RENAULT TWINGO On sale November City car revived as entry-level EV with 163-mile range and circa-£17k price.  How is it possible? Take the Renault 5’s platform, strip out some tech, fit a smaller battery and push through development in less than two years. HONDA SUPER-N On sale July Spiritual successor to the Honda E aims for the enthusiast vote with an imitation gearbox and a fake exhaust note.  How is it possible? Lightly rework the electric version of a popular Japanese kei car, adding a few sporty touches to try to win over UK buyers. Read our first drive SMART #2 On sale December New two-seat city car will revive the spirit of the original Smart car. And yes, it’s smaller than the #1 (don’t think about it too much).…

JEEP RECON On sale November Not merely an electrified Wrangler but Jeep’s first purpose-built electric off-roader. A pivotal model for America’s favourite 4x4 purveyor, the Recon features a sparky 670bhp, 620lb ft, dual-motor powertrain that, according to Jeep’s CEO, proves that “electrification isn’t just compatible” with off-roading but can actually “elevate it”. Naturally, though, the Recon has a lot to prove as an electric take on the beloved Wrangler. Removable doors are a good start. TOYOTA LAND CRUISER HYBRID 48V On sale March Defender rival is now exclusively a mild hybrid. You lose the third row of seats but Toyota claims the 2.8-litre diesel four now offers smoother and more comfortable performance. Yours for… £80k. ARIEL E-NOMAD On sale December Somerset’s wild off-road super-buggy quietens down – but only in…

Reports of the manual gearbox’s death are greatly exaggerated. Or at least they appear to be. While Mini no longer sells a manual and the retirement of attainable heroes such as the Ford Fiesta and Focus has eroded some of the affordable driving fun from our showrooms, there’s still plenty of joy to be found if you look hard enough. A vaguely scientific sweep of the configurators identifies 66 mainstream models still sold on British shores with a manual transmission as standard. We’re not talking unobtanium GMA T50s and stratospheric Singer restogods, nor even the Porsche 718 and 911 or BMW M2. This is all sub-£40k, honest-to-goodness stuff. Eight out of the UK’s 10 best-sellers of 2025 offer DIY gearshifting. Hyundai and Volkswagen appear to be the unlikely champions of…

MILEAGE 1072 WHY WE’RE RUNNING IT Do you need all the bells and whistles to create a good premium commuter? When I switched into Will Rimell’s Q6 E-tron, it was because he wanted to borrow my seven-seat Volkswagen Tayron for a weekend en masse with his friends (report coming soon), rather than because I considered the two cars to be potentially compelling comparison subjects. However, as I approached them parked side by side, I was surprised how big the Q6 looked next to the Tayron. At 4792mm long, the Tayron feels quite unwieldy to drive, so I was looking forward to downsizing for a few days, but it turns out there’s not much between them. In fact, the Q6 is wider by 86mm. So perhaps not the respite I was…

BMW i7 60 105.7KWH M SPORT XDRIVE 2023, 34,000 miles, £67,935 The i7 is the benchmark for ride comfort among luxury EVs and low-speed isolation and high-speed stability are first-rate. It’s loaded with luxuries too, such as a Bowers & Wilkins stereo and a 31in theatre screen in the back. JAGUAR XJR 4.2 V8 LWB 2006, 51,000 miles, £13,995 This immaculate, supercharged XJ comes with a full Jaguar service history. There’s plenty of kit on board, including adaptive cruise control, heated memory seats, walnut wood interior trim and ruched leather seats. It’s just been given a fresh MOT and full service as well. ROLLS-ROYCE GHOST 2011, 84,000 miles, £56,950 Despite being one of the cheapest Ghosts in the classifieds, this example has been looked after by a Rolls dealer from…

Looking through the Autocar Archive for brilliant old stories to share on our social media channels, I’ve come across my fair share of iconic car adverts. Many use taglines that are designed to shock or that are dripping in double entendre (Mini, I’m looking at you), but for the most part these old ads are relics from a golden age of automotive promotion and I wish that modern car commercials tapped into that spirit a bit more. I’m sure most people picture the old VW ads when they think ‘iconic’: you know, the ones with a simple, unadorned image of a car and a bold, no-nonsense headline. The legendary ‘Think Small’ Beetle ad from 1959 was a revolution in advertising practice for its time, for example, and holds up today…