Auto Expressの 1821 の目次

Alastair_Crooks@autovia.co.uk @AllieCrooks • Fresh models will all use ‘a single global platform’ • Electric, hybrid and ICE powertrains will feature THIS year marks the 125th anniversary of Fiat, and the famous Italian car maker has gone big for its birthday. To mark the occasion, no fewer than five new Panda-inspired concepts have been revealed, designed to showcase the firm’s future. The first concept previews a production model – a modern take on the ageing Panda city car – that’s expected to be fully revealed in July, with another due each year thereafter. Fiat CEO Olivier Francois said the five will “share the same philosophy: functionality should never exist without fun”. The cars will also use the same tech – a “single global platform where new models can be manufactured on…

Richard_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @rsp_ingram • Newly renamed EX40 driven on ice in dual-motor form • Performance pack adds 34bhp and alters throttle response TWO weeks ago (Issue 1,819), Volvo announced a series of 2025 model year updates for its 40-series SUVs. The C40 and XC40 Recharge became the EC40 and EX40 respectively, with dual-motor variants gaining an optional ‘Performance’ pack. Comprising little more than a 34bhp software tweak and an altered throttle map, the Performance pack will be available to existing MY24 customers via the Volvo app. New-build production will start in spring. To get an early taste of what’s in store, Volvo invited us to try the new EX40 Twin Performance in the icy climes of northern Sweden. While our drive was restricted to a few laps of a frozen lake,…

A RECENT test of the full-fat Microlino in Germany left us with a few conclusions. Firstly, it’s faster and more comfortable than the Citroen Ami (we saw over 80kph (50mph) during our brief drive). Secondly, the engineering is a delight, with plenty of money clearly spent on the side-hinged front-door mechanism. The bad news? It looks pricey, when £16k will soon buy you a Dacia Spring in the UK. Finding a graceful way of climbing in or out through the front end isn’t the work of a moment, either.…

Richard_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @rsp_ingram • Spring reveal for Grandland • Hybrid and EV to be offered VAUXHALL will take its assault on the SUV segment up a notch in the coming months with the launch of two new models. Leading the charge will be the Frontera, a replacement for the ageing Crossland. But the maker will hope to bolster profits further by overhauling its Grandland flagship – as previewed by our exclusive image (right). Based on the same STLA Medium platform as the forthcoming Peugeot 5008, the next-generation Grandland will grow in length to around 4,700mm. However, Auto Express understands Vauxhall won’t offer the option of seven seats, and will instead prioritise boot space and room for those in the second row. This will be boosted by lengthening the current car’s wheelbase.…

Alex_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @AxleIngram • Latest coupé makes debut as safety car • Aerodynamic tweaks boost on-track performance “Even the light bar is reshaped with a more aero-efficient unit” FOLLOWING the launch of the new Aston Martin Vantage in the middle of February, the British brand has confirmed that the new model will also take over from its predecessor as the official Formula 1 Safety Car. It’ll make its debut this weekend at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah. As before, Aston Martin will alternate course-car duties with Mercedes-AMG throughout the season. As with the outgoing model, the Vantage Safety Car gains a few subtle upgrades to make it suitable for leading the F1 pack around a circuit. Revised underfloor aerodynamics aim to smooth the airflow at high speeds, while an…

Chris_rosamond@autovia.co.uk Motor insurance premiums were 25 per cent more expensive in 2023, following a 50 per cent hike the year before EV insurance claims already take 14 per cent longer and cost 25 per cent more than internal-combustion equivalents WANT to know why your car insurance premiums are spiralling out of control, and what needs to be done about it? Our five-point plan to cut bills follows at the end of this exclusive Auto Express dive into a now-broken market, with multiple points of failure. It’s facing an array of new challenges, ranging from rampant recent inflation to almost uninsurable electric cars exported by Chinese manufacturers with insufficient spare parts back-up and a lack of critical repair information. From advances in car manufacturing and safety technology that are causing skill…

Alastair_Crooks@autovia.co.uk @AllieCrooks Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 690/1,920 litres A TOTAL of 34 million sales, a recent 50th birthday, and a Volkswagen family-car legend. You might think we’re talking about the Golf, but in fact we’re referring to the Passat, now in its ninth generation. Last week (Issue 1,820) we drove the all-new VW Tiguan. But unlike that car, which will live on into the EV era, the future isn’t certain for the Passat, despite it being the longest-standing model name in VW’s range. This latest version has to be more than just a good car, because it’ll need to sell well if it’s to convince the VW bigwigs that the Passat name should survive. No pressure, then. First off, the Passat is now offered only in estate guise. Even with…

Steve_Walker@autovia.co.uk COMPETITION for electric-car buyers has never been hotter – so Audi has taken steps to keep its mid-size Q4 e-tron electric SUV fresh and relevant. The old Q4 e-tron 40 and 50 models are no more, with the 45 and 55 designations taking over. Both still employ a 77kWh (usable) battery, but improved chemistry, a new electric motor and other modifications, bring boosts in power and efficiency. The base rear-wheel-drive Q4 e-tron 45 now pumps out 282bhp, which is enough for a 0-62mph sprint of 6.7 seconds. That’s quite a leap from the old 201bhp e-tron 40, which took 8.5 seconds Want to go quicker? Upgrade to dual motors for all-wheel drive and you can shave a tenth of a second from that acceleration time. Climb up to the…

MODEL TESTED: iX xDrive50 M Sport PRICE: £104,285 POWERTRAIN: 2x e-motors, 105.2kWh battery, 516bhp 516bhp Powertrain 2x e-motors 105.2kWh Battery/range 365 miles 4.6 seconds Performance 124mph 500 litres Seats up/down 1,750 litres THE BMW appears to be off to a strong start even before these cars have turned a wheel. At £104,285 (or £112,115 with the optional extras of our test car) it comfortably undercuts its rival on price. However, things aren’t so straightforward when finance costs are calculated (see page 49). Tech highlights IT doesn’t feel as though EVs have been around for that long, but BMW says the iX is already using the brand’s fifth-generation drivetrain tech. Here, that means a pair of electric motors that use no cobalt in their construction, and which are claimed to be…

THE Government’s Zero Emission Mandate has forced many manufacturers to offer aggressive finance deals to ensure they meet EV sales targets for 2024, and even these six-figure SUVs aren’t immune. It’s the Mercedes that comes with the strongest numbers at the moment. Buyers who order an EQE SUV before the end of March benefit from a £2,000 discount and zero per cent finance. So despite its higher starting price, the Mercedes manages to undercut the BMW (which benefits from its own £5,000 deposit contribution) by roughly £140 per month over three years. That’s based on an agreement with a £10,000 customer deposit and a 10,000-mile annual mileage limit. The BMW claws back ground elsewhere, though, most notably for its servicing costs. A four-year service plan (service intervals for the iX…

PREMIUM ELECTRIC SUVs Upmarket electric SUVs such as these are at the cutting edge of the latest EV technology John McIlroy Editor-at-large “ALTHOUGH the EQE SUV chomps through electrons quicker than we’d like, at least it replenishes them at an impressive speed. Without any pre-conditioning, we plugged the car into an Ionity charger and saw speeds of 130kW from 30-50 per cent – not bad at all.” Rich Ingram Deputy editor “THE EQE SUV feels like a bit of a stopgap in the Mercedes electric line-up. From 2025, the brand will release EV-only architectures – three different scalable platforms depending on the size of the car. For Merc’s sake, it needs to learn a lot from its earlier attempts if it’s to keep up.” Dawn Grant Picture editor “IT’S really…

Pete_Gibson@autovia.co.uk Running costs 42.7mpg (on test) £73 fill-up Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 351/1,026 litres “The impact hadn’t broken the paint, but it had put two dents into the door and popped the panel” THE cars featured in these long-term test pages really are driven every day, in all situations. Mostly that means that we get to share our enjoyment of them with you, but it also means that bad things can happen. Can there be any more upsetting part of car ownership than realising that your vehicle has been damaged? This happened to our Mazda 3 the other week; I’d taken my family and our dogs for a long walk in lovely Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, and we’d had a great day. But when we returned to the car park to go…

FIRST TEST Thule Allax Price: from £489.99 Contact: thule.com Rating: OUR dogs are rightly thought of as members of the family, so it’s crucial to make sure they are safe and comfortable while travelling in the car. Thule’s new Allax is certainly a premium option for moving your mutt, but it has been thoroughly crash tested and has the certificates to prove it. Unlike cheaper solid crates, this Thule design incorporates a crumple zone, so the Allax compresses in a rear-end impact to minimise the risk of injury for back-seat passengers, while ensuring that your dog stays safe. The rest of the Allax feels just as well designed. It’s rattle-free and the door opens smoothly, helped by a hydraulic strut, just like the kind you find holding open your car’s tailgate.…

SS Jaguar 100 Chas Parker (Porter Press, porterpress.co.uk) Price: £35 Rating: A HISTORY of both the SS Jaguar as a whole and this particular 100 model, which has history in competitions spanning more than eight decades. As ever with this series, one of the big draws is the specially commissioned photo gallery at the end, but the remainder is interesting and well presented, too. A good addition for any Jaguar or inter-war car fan. Rivals on the Track William Whitfield (Independently published, amazon.co.uk) Price: £12.49 Rating: RIVALRIES are part of what’s made Formula One such a thrilling sport over the years, and this book details some of the most famous, including Prost and Senna, Schumacher and Hakkinen, plus Hamilton and Verstappen. It’s written with a love for the sport and…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy • New small EV will slot below MG3 in line-up • Part of MG range revamp, including sportier trim MG is lining up a £20,000 electric car that will take on the likes of the new Citroen e-C3, Volkswagen ID.2 and the next-generation Fiat Panda (page 10) – and it could arrive as soon as the end of next year. The Chinese-owned British brand launched an all-new generation of its MG3 supermini at last week’s Geneva Motor Show. It brings in a full-hybrid powertrain and is likely to be more expensive than its predecessors, while still undercutting the likes of the Toyota Yaris and Renault Clio in the electrified market. But speaking at the show, MG Motor UK’s head of product and planning, David Allison, revealed that the…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy • Unique layout hints at 4WD • R4 likely to share 5’s batteries THE forthcoming Renault 4 is poised to make use of space in its AmpR Small platform to offer versions with four-wheel drive, Auto Express can reveal. The jacked-up model shares its platform with the new Renault 5, which has a multilink back axle taken from the 4x4 Duster. Vittorio d’Arienzo, chief of the AmpR Small platform division, said that the design was necessary to accommodate the larger of the 5’s batteries, which would have fouled against a cheaper torsion-beam layout. But speaking from Geneva he admitted: “The platform is ready for four-wheel drive, and yes, we would consider it in the future.” Plus Frédéric Morelle, engineering lead on the 5 project, told us: “The 4…

THE successor to Bugatti’s iconic W16 engine has been announced via a short teaser video online. It showcases yet another 16-cylinder engine – this time in a ‘V’ formation. The maker calls the V16 “a new automotive pinnacle” and a “pure embodiment of Bugatti’s DNA”. In the official announcement, Bugatti confirmed the engine will use hybrid tech, although it’s not yet known how it’ll be implemented. There’s no mention of turbos, but the short clip allows us to listen to the motor revving through the gears, with a note that suggests the new engine will be naturally aspirated. As for the V16 itself (below), the video shows off not only the top section in full, but copious amounts of carbon fibre, too.…

ITALIAN design house Pininfarina has revealed the Enigma GT (right), a far-out concept car that features a 2.5-litre turbo V6 hydrogen-powered engine and rear-wheel drive. Pininfarina must think gullwing doors aren’t interesting enough, because the Enigma GT features a fully opening canopy – an idea the company keeps returning to, having used it for the Abarth 2000 Coupé, Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Speciale and Maserati Birdcage 75th concept cars. Inside there’s a 2+2 layout, and a screen that stretches the width of the dash. The Enigma GT gets an autonomous driving mode, but Pininfarina insists this is just a design study for now.…

We want to hear your views. Send your questions or opinions to the E-mail address below Contact Chris Rosamond mail@autoexpress.co.uk @AutoExpress Spring’s in the air, and so are EV price cuts FROM: Rupert Swan A £16K Dacia Spring EV looks very interesting and I predict it’ll sell like hot cakes to people who realise they don’t need mega-range from a little city car or runaround. No wonder Vauxhall chopped £5k off the Corsa EV’s price in response. Who else will cut prices? Daughter fell victim to key-clone crooks FROM: Robert Smith MY daughter’s Mercedes was stolen after criminals visited and pretended to be interested in buying it. Instead they scanned the key. Tutorials on YouTube show how to do this for many cars, and the police aren’t interested, basically leaving…

AFTER Formula 1’s curtain-raiser last weekend, it’s now the turn of the US IndyCar series to host its opening round of the season. The challenging St Petersburg street circuit in Florida will see Alex Palou commencing the defence of his second Indycar title. He continues with the Chip Ganassi Honda squad, but his car will be sporting a new red and yellow livery this year, courtesy of new title sponsor DHL. The Spaniard will face a stern challenge from a host of drivers who will be aiming for overall glory this year. One stand-out performer in preseason was Marcus Ericsson. The 2022 Indianapolis 500 champion and ex-Sauber F1 driver set the pace in the final day of testing at Sebring Raceway – a promising start for his new partnership with…

Chris_rosamond@autovia.co.uk A perfect storm of issues on top of general inflationary pressures is driving insurance premiums sky-high, but what can be done about it? Here’s our take on remedies needed to fix a broken insurance sector: 1. Chinese makers must step up NEW brands importing to the UK need to understand how our market works and act accordingly, while the UK insurance industry needs to take a much tougher stance on any brands that don’t provide effective parts and information support. In the interests of fairness, high insurance group ratings and policy premiums must be applied by underwriters directly to those models or brands that can’t be repaired affordably, or cover should not be offered in the first place. Drivers of more insurable cars must not be forced to subsidise…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy Electric motor Power/range 308bhp/269 miles Performance 0-62mph/top speed 5.6 seconds/112mph MINI’S product offensive is really taking off. The petrol and electric Cooper is due any day now, the Aceman crossover is set to be revealed next month, and then there’s the fresh Countryman – tested here. It may be larger than ever and therefore further away from the MINI rationale, but we were impressed with the new family SUV in petrol-powered JCW spec when we drove that last week (Issue 1,820). Now it’s time to see how the electric version stacks up. The old Countryman was available with petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid power, but the new model makes full use of the BMW Group’s UKL2 platform (also the base for the X1 and X2) to deliver a…

WINNER 1st BMW iX ALMOST three years on from its launch, the competition is still yet to catch up with the BMW iX. It’s not just impressive as an SUV, but as a luxury car in general; ride comfort, refinement, interior space, tech and build quality are all brilliant. Also consider that the iX feels so much more agile and is more efficient than its rival here, its range is great and charging speeds are rapid, and it’s incredibly hard to fault. If you’re able to overlook its challenging design, it’s still the best luxury electric SUV out there. • Ride and handling• Performance• Refinement• Relative efficiency • Heavy depreciation• Over-light steering• Low towing capacity• Divisive looks INTERESTED? Scan the code for further information RUNNER-UP 2nd Mercedes EQE SUV THE EQE SUV…

SAME CLASS BMW iX xDrive40 IF BMW’s brand-new SUV is just a financial step too far, then you can take advantage of the iX’s competitive used values instead. Three-year-old versions of the entry-level xDrive40 are now edging towards the £40,000 mark, and while it misses out on a little of the performance and range of the xDrive50, you’re getting the same fabulous cabin and superb driving experience. It’s a huge amount of car and tech for the cash. • Same smart cabin as 50…• …and even sharper to drive • Smaller battery size• Limited warranty remaining CUT PRICE Tesla Model X THE Model X arrived in 2015, and while that can be felt in a chassis which lacks the sophistication and refinement of either the BMW’s or Mercedes’, it’s testament…

Dean_Gibson@autovia.co.uk @DeanGbsn Running costs Official range/tax 186 miles/£0 Practicality Cargo capacity 3.3 cubic metres “The Kangoo borrows kit from other models to help boost its upmarket appeal” THERE’S a saying that goes ‘dress for the job you want, not the job you’ve got’, and if you apply it to our Renault Kangoo, it clearly has ideas above its station. From the outside it’s pure white van, with its black plastic bumpers ready to shrug off any knocks that might come their way. But climb aboard, and there’s an air of business-class quality about the cabin that belies the utilitarian exterior. First, there’s the upholstery, which is hard-wearing, but has a bit of style to it, courtesy of the two-tone black and grey finish and bright-yellow piping. The drive selector is…

Pair combine to hunt for top design talent POLESTAR has teamed up with Hot Wheels for its 2024 Design Contest, inviting submissions from designers that are “propelled by the imagination of their youth”. The winning design will become a regular Hot Wheels offering, so the only requirement is that all designs must be able to be translated into a 1:64-scale die-cast vehicle. Previous winners have included an airship, prosthetic walking blades and a micro-treehouse, so truly anything goes. Entries must be submitted by 16 April – search online for ‘2024 Polestar Design Contest’ to find out more. Little Car Co’s famous five blitz St Moritz THE Little Car Company showcased five of its top models at the Concours of Elegance in St Moritz, Switzerland. On display were the newly released…

WITH caution, I can announce that new cars at cost price (allegedly) are making a bit of a comeback in early 2024. The outlet responsible for this is the Hendy Group of franchised dealerships, representing more than a dozen manufacturers, including Renault, Nissan, Skoda, SEAT, Ford, Hyundai, Vauxhall and Land Rover. The company’s intriguing Cost Price + £1 Event was launched quietly on 1 March. The offer is aimed more at retail customers and private motorists than business or fleet buyers, so that’s good news for drivers whose wages are struggling to keep up with the ever-growing cost of new vehicles. But interested consumers will have to be quick off the mark, because their written orders must be placed with Hendy by next Monday (11 March). Why such an early…

Maserati soft-top will open up this summer MASERATI has revealed its GranCabrio drop-top (above). Based on the fixed-roof GranTurismo, the new car gets a fabric roof that can be folded in 14 seconds and at speeds of up to 30mph. First out of the blocks is the top Trofeo edition, with a 542bhp twin-turbo V6, good for 0-62mph in 3.6 seconds. It’ll cost a chunk more than the £165k coupé when it arrives in the summer. Poor potential profits spark Apple car’s end THE much-mooted Apple car is dead. According to a report by Bloomberg, the 2,000-strong team that was working on Project Titan – widely rumoured to be a self-driving EV – will be repurposed to work on AI, following some layoffs. Reports said that bosses were worried that…

THE following provide help with motoring problems. Some services are free, others charge a fee or operate on premium-rate lines (p), while some offer advice for members only (m) Legal AA: 0345 850 1130 (m) RAC: 0330 159 1446 (m) Citizens Advice Consumer helpline: 03454 040506 Local Trading Standards Local Citizens Advice Bureau Used car inspections AA: 0800 056 8040 RAC: 0330 159 0720 Technical advice AA: 0370 142 0002 (m) Driving licences DVLA: 0300 790 6801 Car registration/history HPI: 0113 222 2010 AA: 0800 316 3564 DVLA: 0300 790 6802 RAC: 0808 164 1923 Traffic information AA: 0906 888 4322 RAC: 09003 444999 (p) Problems with dealers The Motor Ombudsman: 0345 241 3008 Consumer Ombudsman: www.consumer-ombudsman.org RMIF: 0845 305 4230 Scottish Motor Trade Assoc. 0131 331 5510 Problems with makers…

ASTON Martin has definitively killed off any bid to revive the Lagonda badge, with boss Lawrence Stroll declaring that the proposed luxury sub-brand “is not connected in any way” to plans for future electric or plug-in hybrid sports cars and SUVs. Stroll believes Aston’s positioning is sufficient to fulfil customer needs. “There’s enough luxury in our sports cars,” he said, “so we’re not considering a ‘less-performance, higher-luxury’ car. We have the right level of luxury in our products.”…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy CAR fans were promised a very different experience when the Geneva Motor Show returned last week – and that’s what they got, from the moment they breezed through the traditionally crowded hallway and entered the Swiss exhibition centre. Traditionally Europe’s ‘neutral’ show, with none of the national pride that often clouds participation in France or Germany, Geneva disappeared amid 2020’s first Covid-19 outbreak. Organisers have had to fight for more than three years to bring it back – but they will have been hoping for greater manufacturer support than that present in the halls last week. With Renault, Dacia, BYD and MG the only major players in attendance, pre-show hopes that public ticket receipts can play a more significant role in the event’s revenue will be under intense…

Chris_rosamond@autovia.co.uk MY first ‘proper’ electric car was a radio-controlled Tamiya Sand Scorcher, and I still remember my disappointment reading the small print that said playing with it on actual sand dunes risked destroying the running gear and motor. Luckily, such issues needn’t sour anyone’s taste for adventure in a Skoda Enyaq 85x Sportline Plus, and to prove it we’ve just driven one more than 300 miles from the Noor solar station in Ouarzazate, Morocco, to the fringes of the Sahara desert and back, followed by a further 180 miles over the Atlas Mountains to Marrakech. The trip was designed to showcase the qualities of Skoda’s range-topping electric SUV, and perhaps even to encourage us to start thinking about it in a different way. Different, in that the spectacular route made…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy “There’s enough punch for the 600e to feel comfortable without needing Sport mode” ANOTHER month, another small SUV from the Stellantis Group, which continues to roll out countless new models across its multitude of brands. This time it’s the Fiat 600e, which has landed in the UK to take on siblings like the Jeep Avenger. Fiat does have history in this area of the market, given that the 600e is the spiritual successor to the 500X. That car broke few conventions about the tiny city car, but sold usefully enough. Yet the world has moved on; MINI now produces a car longer than a Nissan Qashqai and taller than a Range Rover Evoque (Page 30). So why shouldn’t Fiat give the 500 brand a healthy stretch? It’s not…

MODEL TESTED: EQE 500 SUV AMG Line Premium Plus PRICE: £121,760 POWERTRAIN: 2x e-motors, 91kWh battery, 402bhp 402bhp Powertrain 2x e-motors 91kWh Battery/range 307 miles 4.9 seconds Performance 130mph 520 litres Seats up/down 1,675 litres IT really hammers home the premium positioning of the Mercedes EV line-up that the EQE 500 SUV, tested here in £121,760 AMG Line Premium Plus trim, sits below the even larger and pricier EQS SUV. Tech highlights THE EQE SUV was designed as a ground-up pure-electric vehicle, and is the fourth model to use the brand’s modular EV architecture, after the EQS and EQE saloons, as well as the EQS SUV. All four cars have a distinctive look that has been dictated by aerodynamics, which is why the tall, large EQE SUV is still able…

Got a query? products@autoexpress.co.uk THIS is a question posed by automotive lighting specialist Ring, which is part of original equipment supplier Osram’s group. It comes after Ring ran a series of benchmarking tests of rival products at its Leeds lab, which we’ve used for our annual headlamp bulb tests. These found that some bulbs sold in the UK fail to comply with legislation and are not road legal. Car bulbs need to meet ECE Regulation 37, which covers light output, filament geometry, voltage and wattage. We use elements of this to form part of our assessment, particularly overall output, plus the maximum and minimum light levels, which are key to allowing drivers to see correctly and preventing others being dazzled. Ring used multiple samples from the same brand and found…

IF you’re charging your electric car at home regularly, we’d always recommend you install a dedicated wallbox. But there will be times when you might want to make use of a normal three-pin socket for a slower charge, perhaps while you are at work or visiting a relative. However, domestic plugs aren’t designed to deliver high loads for long periods, and overheating can cause the main fuse board to trip or blow the charger’s fuse. If this happens while you are sleeping, it means you’ll miss out on valuable hours of charging. WAI’s new charger aims to stop this from happening by using a thermal cut out, which will turn the unit off when it is too hot and then automatically switch it back on when the lead has cooled.…

mail@autoexpress.co.uk THE first Lexus NX isn’t one of the Japanese luxury brand’s star performers in the Driver Power new-car survey – last year it fell into the final third of our top 75 cars. A fifth place for its generally lavish interior was the model’s best result, while it netted 10th position for both reliability and safety features. Exterior design was rated a very decent 13th, too, while practicality came in at a respectable 26th. However, a 74th for the NX’s infotainment system dragged the overall scores down, with owners finding it hard to use, difficult to see and less than intuitive. The Lexus also scored very poorly for running costs, with fuel economy and insurance near the bottom. WE SAID “It’s well equipped, safe, reliable, efficient and very distinctive.…