Auto Express 1637

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for all the latest new cars news OVER the 19 years Driver Power has been running, we’ve produced somewhere in the region of 1.5 million words, over around 2,000 pages, analysing roughly 20 million data points in the process – so it’s fair to say we’ve got a good idea of what works, and what doesn’t, as far as car ownership is concerned. This week, franchised dealerships go under the microscope, and sadly some of the themes are all too familiar. Too many dealers aren’t good enough at getting the basics right, with complaints about unreturned phone calls, overcrowded car parks, shabby waiting areas and service centres that are unable to fix faults. It’s also sad to see the same names propping up the table, once again. That’s…

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for your daily news updates “The coupé will share almost nothing with other models in the 2 Series range” James Brodie James_Brodie@dennis.co.uk @jimmybrods New sports car will be based on shrunken CLAR platform M2 flagship due to return with six-cylinders and a manual box BMW currently has a focus on developing a fleet of new electric vehicles, but the German manufacturer hasn’t forgotten its core customer base, because an all-new 2 Series Coupé is on the way. The new model is aimed squarely at the driving enthusiast, because it will be rear-wheel drive, while manual gearboxes and a straight-six petrol engine will appear. Coming in 2021, the arrival of the new coupé means the 2 Series model range will continue to be the most diverse in BMW’s line-up.…

James Brodie James_Brodie@dennis.co.uk @jimmybrods ELSEWHERE at BMW, preparations are being laid for a brand new, all-electric flagship SUV that will be quite unlike anything else in the brand’s line-up, according to one of the company’s top designers. Speaking with Auto Express, BMW Head of Design Domagoj Dukec shone a little more light on the electric SUV project. He confirmed its production name will be iNEXT, and it will be the “pinnacle” of the BMW line-up when it arrives in 2021. “The iNEXT will be a purpose-built product, and it stands for something different,” he explained, outlining how it won’t be an electric version of an existing BMW SUV. “It’s coming with a complete new electric system, a new interior, a completely new experience of SUVs. It’s not called i7 or…

“The EQE should be able to charge at 350KW, which will top up the battery to 80 per cent in 20 minutes” Jonathan Burn Jonathan_Burn@dennis.co.uk @Jonathan_burn Uses the MEA EV platform Fast charging, huge range MERCEDES is ramping up development of its fleet of electric-powered EQ models, as early prototypes of the EQE SUV hit the road in Germany for the first time. Mercedes’ ambition is to have a range of fully electric vehicles under the EQ brand (see below) that mirror the firm’s conventional line-up. The first was the EQC – an electric alternative to the GLC – and the more compact EQA and EQB models will arrive at the end of this year. Beyond that will be the EQE – a badge that will be shared across a…

Hybrids get a better e-range GTS power raised to 473bhp FIRST RIDE Dirk Branke PORSCHE has faced one of its toughest makeover challenges for years with the Panamera. The super-saloon has been honed over two generations, and the German firm seemed happy with its work on the current model. So which direction should it take with the facelift? Luckily, thanks to the 911, Porsche’s engineers have had plenty of experience of chipping away at a model over time. So the facelifted Panamera will get more performance, the chassis will be finely tuned, and smarter multimedia will be introduced for its autumn debut. What the Panamera will not get is a radical styling overhaul. There’s a new graphic in the rear light strip, a redesigned rear diffuser and, at the front…

JAGUAR Land Rover has teamed up with the University of Cambridge to produce an all-new, contactless touchscreen infotainment system, which the firm claims can keep drivers focused on the road and limit the spread of bacteria and viruses. The technology uses an array of driver monitoring technologies – including a vision-based gesture tracker, an eye-gaze tracer and radio frequency-based sensors. Drivers can select functions by hovering their finger roughly over a widget on the touchscreen and the car’s artificial intelligence system will figure out the user’s intent, even over bumpy roads. Lab tests and on-road trials have shown that JLR’s predictive touch technology could reduce the amount of time a driver spends physically interacting with the infotainment screen by as much as 50 per cent, in theory increasing the amount…