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AS we were going to press with this issue, news filtered through that the Government was axing some of the incentives that have been in place to encourage us to buy more environmentally friendly cars. You can read the full story on Page 15, but my overriding emotion right now is one of deep sadness. We’ve long thought that our government – both national and local – doesn’t understand cars, car buyers or the car industry. But now I’m convinced that it just doesn’t care. In the week that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) made a stark warning on global warming (which we should all heed), our Government chooses to reduce incentives on cars that help to solve that very problem. That makes the announcement’s timing all the…

● All-wheel-drive monster SUV arrives in Britain next March ● Six-cylinder diesel and petrol engines offered at launch James_Brodie@dennis.co.uk @jimmybrods “BMW has been in the SUV business for less than 20 years, but they make up more than a third of all its new cars leaving showrooms” BMW is going after the Range Rover and Mercedes GLS with its new X7 SUV, revealed here in full ahead of its launch in Britain next March. It’s the largest SUV BMW has ever built and is a real sign of where the new car market has been moving in recent times. The brand has been in the SUV business for less than 20 years, but it already produces seven separate models, and this type of car accounts for more than a third…

Jonathan_Burn@dennis.co.uk @Jonathan_burn THE new convertible version of the Volkswagen T-Roc has been caught testing in public for the first time, ahead of going on sale in the next 18 months. Previewed back at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show with the T-Cross Breeze concept (right), the drop-top, captured on the road by our spy photographers (below), will enter a segment currently only occupied by the soon-to-be-axed Range Rover Evoque Convertible; it will be VW’s only soft-top model because it replaces the defunct Golf Cabriolet. While the Breeze concept initially previewed a drop-top variant of VW’s smallest SUV, the forthcoming T-Cross, the production vehicle will instead form part of the larger T-Roc range. The spy shots reveal the production model will be a three-door, just like the concept, and will use a…

Richard_Ingram@dennis.co.uk @rsp_ingram ● OFFICIAL VAUXHALL is set to completely overhaul its product range, introducing eight all-new or updated models by 2020. The plan will also see the Adam and Viva city cars axed from the line-up in a bid to boost profitability. The product refresh brings with it a big electrification push. Vauxhall says that four fully electric or hybrid cars will be available to buy from the start of the next decade, while every car in its range will offer an electrified version by 2024. Two of the most significant launches will take place next year, with debuts of the all-new Corsa supermini and Vivaro van. As part of the brand’s position within the PSA group, the next Corsa will be based on the Common Modular Platform (CMP), which…

“Basic level of equipment across every car in the new MINI line-up is the same” MINI has launched three new trim levels to replace the One, Cooper and Cooper S classifications it currently uses. From November those names will remain part of the ordering process – but only in reference to the engine selected. Instead, the way your MINI will look and what equipment it’ll have depends on which one of three new ‘styles’ you choose and what option packs you specify it with. The Classic style is the new entry-level MINI, priced from £16,190 for the MINI three-door hatch with a 101bhp One-badged three-cylinder engine. As an example of how the system works, you get the base Classic with a 189bhp Cooper S engine, priced from £20,660. Sitting above…

A NEW telephone hotline will help UK car industry small businesses prepare for a potential hard Brexit. The helpline is part of the first phase of a Brexit Readiness Programme being developed by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). The trade body says 69 per cent of companies involved in the UK automotive supply chain employ 10 people or fewer, and it’s concerned such firms may not have the resources to properly prepare for leaving the EU without a trade deal. Five leading law and accountancy firms will join forces with the SMMT to help deliver advice on tax arrangements, regulation changes and other post-Brexit trade subjects. SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes explained local supply chains form the “backbone” of manufacturing, and the UK car industry had “thrived” thanks…