Auto Express 1620

WE may not be able to get out and enjoy our favourite car on our favourite road right now, but one thing we can do is something we may well have been putting off for a while. To coincide with our Car Care Special, we’ve designated this week Car Care Week. So join us as we head out onto our driveways – taking social distancing into account, obviously – and use some of the kit recommended from page 51 onwards to make our cars look as good as new. Many of the products we’re recommending are available online and can be safely delivered to your door. Head to www.autoexpress.co.uk/product-reviews and we’ll have handy links to where you can buy them. And don’t stop when you’re done. We’d like to see…

THE Audi A3 is a staple of the premium hatchback segment, racking up more than 600,000 sales in the UK since its arrival in 1997. These days it faces stiff competition from the BMW 1 Series and Mercedes A-Class, not to mention rivalry from within the Volkswagen Group in the form of the Golf. Now into its fourth generation, the A3 benefits from a more striking exterior design, with greater differentiation between trims, right down to the style of the lighting. The three-door A3 hatchback is no more, leaving the five-door Sportback and yet-to-be-revealed four-door A3 Saloon in the range. In time you’ll be able to choose your new A3 with almost any kind of engine, because petrol and diesel versions will be joined by a 48-volt mild hybrid and,…

VOLKSWAGEN GOLF MK8 Price from: £23,875 THE Golf has long been the go-to option for buyers wanting an affordable, premium and practical family car. With the eighth-generation model, VW decided to build on what the outgoing hatch did best, rather than totally reinvent it. It doesn’t look a whole lot different, but there’s more passenger space than before and more tech inside. On the move, it’s safe and secure rather than truly involving, but a range of new hybrid engines will only increase its appeal. MERCEDES A-CLASS Price from: £23,710 RE-ENGINEERED from top to bottom, the latest A-Class is a huge step on from what went before it. The highlight is the cabin, which wouldn’t look out of place in an executive saloon. It’s trimmed in plush leather and cool…

James_Brodie@dennis.co.uk @jimmybrods ● 200bhp hot hatch on way ● Aimed squarely at Ford’s pack leader HYUNDAI is looking to establish itself as a big player in the performance car market, with a hot version of its i20 supermini. Due to be officially revealed this year and set to arrive in showrooms in the next 12 months, the i20 N will have the Ford Fiesta ST firmly in its sights. The small hot hatchback market is facing an increasingly uncertain future, with manufacturers desperate to cut fleet emissions or face hefty fines. The cost of engineering these cars, and being able to sell them at a profitable but affordable price, has proved too much for some; there are no plans to introduce new Volkswagen Polo GTI, Cupra Ibiza or Renaultsport Clio…

THE i20 N isn’t the only hot Hyundai on the horizon. Also coming in 2021 is the Kona N performance SUV. It will be positioned as a car designed to undercut the Volkswagen T-Roc R. First scooped by Auto Express in May 2018 (right), the Kona N will use the same running gear as the existing i30 N, but its turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine is likely to be capped at 247bhp, rather than the 271bhp of the i30 N Performance version. It’s expected to be priced from around £30,000 when it arrives next year.…

HOT versions of existing cars aren’t the only thing on N division’s radar. Hyundai will release a bespoke halo model in the next decade, too, which could make use of a mid-mounted electrified, all-wheel-drive powertrain. Hyundai has created concepts and development vehicles, like the RM 16 N and RM 19, but neither of these vehicles points to the production car. Another prototype, dubbed RM 20, will emerge later this year as a strong pointer to where the brand’s halo car project is heading, before a reveal late in 2021.…