Volkswagen's new branding is part of company-wide reboot
2 HRS AGO - On the night the new logo is revealed at Frankfurt, the logo atop VW’s Wolfsburg HQ will be Expand
2 HRS AGO - On the night the new logo is revealed at Frankfurt, the logo atop VW’s Wolfsburg HQ will be switched for the new one
Volkswagen is transforming its entire business – including rebranding itself with a new logo next week
Volkswagen will unveil a new brand identity alongside the pivotal ID 3 electric car at the Frankfurt motor show next week, as it attempts to draw a line under the fallout from the dieselgate scandal.
The revelations in October 2015 about how the firm had cheated diesel emissions tests sparked a clear-out of its leadership group, and sparked a heavy investment in electric technology. The first result of that will be the ID 3, the first car based on the VW Group’s electric-only MEB platform.
Termed ‘New Volkswagen’, the design revamp goes far beyond a new logo. Chief operating officer Ralf Brandstätter calls it a “pivotal moment”, as significant as a new-car launch.
The roots of ‘New Volkswagen’ began following a board meeting after Herbert Diess took over the Collapse
Mazda CX-30 2019 review
8 HRS AGO - Not the most practical crossover hatchback, but it probably doesn’t need to be. Looks good, classy Expand
8 HRS AGO - Not the most practical crossover hatchback, but it probably doesn’t need to be. Looks good, classy inside, and impressive to drive – with the right engine
The Mazda CX-30 is yet more evidence that the third age of the crossover hatchback is in full swing. If you’re a car-maker it’s probably already too late to jump on the first age’s Qashqai-sized bandwagon, given that every industry player and his dog already has; and it’s getting too late, even, to launch a cheaper and more compact, Renault Captur-sized second-age one. With any luck it'll all be over soon.It’s the high-design, fashion-item crossovers that have become the growth area now: the likes of the Mini Countryman, Audi Q2, Citroen C3 Aircross, VW T-Roc and Toyota C-HR, which sacrifice a little bit of their added onboard practicality for extra visual appeal.Mazda is the latest to enter the sub-segment. The company’s sales pitch for the CX-30 claims that it offers the cabin space of a CX-5 in a footprint much closer to that Collapse
Volkswagen to launch new e-Up with longer range, lower price
13 HRS AGO - Electric city car will now offer 161 miles of range from batteries, with prices starting around Expand
13 HRS AGO - Electric city car will now offer 161 miles of range from batteries, with prices starting around £23,000
Volkswagen will launch a new version of the e-Up electric city car, with an increased range of 161 miles and a reduced base price, at the Frankfurt motor show.
The new model will switch the 18.7kWh lithium ion batteries from the current model, with a range of around 118 miles, for 32.3kWh batteries. VW says they will be capable of charging at 40kW, and will take 60 minutes to charge the battery to 80 per cent.
Power will come from a 82bhp electric motor, which can achieve 0-62mph in 11.9 secs and has a top speed of 81mph.
The firm says that the e-Up will feature air conditioning system, a ‘composition phone’ radio with a Bluetooth connection interface, Lane Assist. The firm also says it will offer a range of personalisation options.
Volkswagen says that the new e-Up will be cheaper than its predecessor, with a price of 21,975 euros in Germany. UK pricing is not confirmed, but is Collapse
New Toyota small car platform for 'engaging' next Yaris
15 HRS AGO - New GA-B modular architecture allows different small car bodystyles and a better driving Expand
15 HRS AGO - New GA-B modular architecture allows different small car bodystyles and a better driving experience
Toyota has begun the gradual build-up to the unveiling of its next-generation Yaris, due to be shown in 2020, by revealing the new platform that will underpin it.
The architecture, dubbed GA-B, is a development of the TNGA platform that underpins the bulk of Toyota’s European range, from the Prius and Corolla to the Camry and RAV4. The Japanese firm claims its focus is to “elevate the design and driving performance of small cars”.
Most significantly, though, the GA-B platform allows for variable wheelbase lengths, widths and heights, suggesting that Toyota will eventually expand its small car line-up beyond the Yaris with different bodystyles. Designers are said to have “the freedom to give each new model a distinctive and individual look” with the platform.
Toyota claims advanced structural build techniques give the GA-B a “highly rigid underbody”. It can accommodate different Collapse
Mazda details UK pricing for new CX-30 crossover
16 HRS AGO - New SUV will be a 'core model' in Mazda's range and is due on sale in the UK this year
Mazda has Expand
16 HRS AGO - New SUV will be a 'core model' in Mazda's range and is due on sale in the UK this year
Mazda has announced UK pricing and specifications for its new CX-30 mid-sized crossover.
Sitting between the CX-3 and CX-5, the new model is priced from £22,895, and is available initially with a choice of two petrol engines and five trims.
Entry-level SE-L trim comes equipped with 16in metallic alloy wheels, rear parking sensors, colour-coded electrically adjustable wing mirrors, chrome exhaust tips and automatic windscreen wipers as standard. Inside, standard models receive a cloth interior, manually adjustable front seats, head-up display and an electronic parking brake.
SE-L Lux trim adds £1300 to the model’s list price, and brings with it front parking sensors, heated front seats, a reversing camera and electrically assisted bootlid. Sport Lux, from £25,295, includes 18in alloy wheels, a black front grille and adaptive LED headlights.
GT Sport and GT Sport Tech head up the CX-30 range Collapse
New Volkswagen Golf Mk8: GTE variant seen for first time
20 HRS AGO - Volkswagen's eighth-generation Golf will be unveiled in the autumn, with significant developments Expand
20 HRS AGO - Volkswagen's eighth-generation Golf will be unveiled in the autumn, with significant developments in electrification
Volkswagen will unveil the new, eighth-generation Golf in the autumn, and now spy photographers have caught the plug-in hybrid GTE variant testing.
The standard car, which will feature a raft of mild-hybrid powertrains, has already been seen with virtually no disguise before. But now a prototype has been spotted with a charging port built within its front wing, suggesting it is the flagship PHEV model.
Specs for this variant have yet to be detailed, but we're expecting a boost in performance, electric range and efficiency from the new version, which wil make use of a 48v electrical system like other high-end Golf variants. It'll likely be revealed after the standard range, possibly in early 2020.
VW has already confirmed that it will unveil the eighth-generation Golf later this year, with the firm’s design chief promising that it will be a “genuine Collapse
Honda NSX 2019 UK review
1 DAY AGO - Honda’s rare, alternative, unconventional and understated supercar has been tweaked rather than Expand
1 DAY AGO - Honda’s rare, alternative, unconventional and understated supercar has been tweaked rather than overhauled. Seems a better drive for it, even though it’s still short on firepower.
This is a refreshed version of the second-generation Honda NSX: a car we liked, though we always recognised that it was highly unlikely to match the stature of its famous predecessor. The Ferrari 348 was a considerably easier benchmark to surpass in 1990, after all, than a McLaren 720S is today – and not just because of the passing of nearly 30 years.The original Honda NSX changed the landscape of the market niche into which it emerged – and expecting to do that twice in a row was a tall order. Today’s very best £200,000 supercars probably only have the usability, visibility, drivability and all-round completeness that they do as a result of the legacy of that 1990s Japanese lightning bolt.The 2016 version did what it could to rewrite the mid-engined rulebook again using electric motors and typical Collapse
Porsche 718 Cayman and Boxster are ‘right cars’ to lead electric sports car drive
1 DAY AGO - Entry-level Porsche sports cars are likely to offer electric variants from 2022
The Porsche 718 Expand
1 DAY AGO - Entry-level Porsche sports cars are likely to offer electric variants from 2022
The Porsche 718 Cayman and 718 Boxster are the “right cars to start electrification in [Porsche] sports cars”, according to Porsche deputy chairman Lutz Meschke.
Autocar first reported on a possible electric and hybrid 718 arriving in 2022 earlier this year, and while Meschke would not confirm the electrified model was coming, his comments strongly hinted that this is the case.
He said the 718 would certainly go down a pure-electric route rather than any form of hybrid. “We need to start thinking about electric cars in the sports car segment. An [electric] 718 could be a very good step in the future.”
Meschke added that a new electric platform would be created for an electric 718, which would then be shared with the wider Volkswagen Group, rather than sitting on the Taycan’s existing PPE platform, shared with Audi.
“Sports cars are part of our history; we can't just offer electrified SUVs.”
Porsche Collapse
Opinion: Does Porsche have the brand appeal of Tesla?
1 DAY AGO - Porsche has a brilliant past and present, but Tesla’s reign as the cool kid of EVs means brand Expand
1 DAY AGO - Porsche has a brilliant past and present, but Tesla’s reign as the cool kid of EVs means brand competition is fierce
Porsche, purveyor of extraordinary sports cars. Tesla, purveyor of sometimes-questionable-quality electric cars.
Today, the day which many Porsche traditionalists might never have thought would come, marks the arrival of Porsche’s first electric car, the Taycan. Suddenly, two of the most aspirational brands in motoring collide.
New Porsche Taycan arrives as pivotal electric sports car
But for all of Porsche’s history and brilliance, does it have the brand cache of Tesla, the (relatively) new kid on the block?
On the matter of the product - which should be the most important thing, but rarely wins against brand appeal - the Taycan promises to be a force for good. Contributing ed Frankel, having driven the prototype, said “shut your eyes and you could almost be in a 911”.
The Stuttgart maker is also pushing the Taycan’s repeatability - that it can continue to perform Collapse
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Matt Prior: What defines a true 'quality' car?
2 HRS AGO - The perceived quality is high, but the actual quality? Time will tell
Clarifying the difference Expand
2 HRS AGO - The perceived quality is high, but the actual quality? Time will tell
Clarifying the difference between 'perceived' and 'actual' is essential when discussing the fit and finish of an interior
Define ‘quality’. I got asked it once, during a lecture about materials or production or something. I forget exactly.
But I do remember the lecturer and his love for the way metal coat hangers were made. It was his favourite topic: he was fascinated by this long piece of wire, complexly bent to make a cheap, reliable and efficient product. He thought it was one of the world’s greatest inventions.
And I think that, in relation to the quality question, its relevance was: how would a basic wire coat hanger fare if you asked people whether it was of good quality?
Answer: it wouldn’t do well. Wire coat hangers are cheap. You can buy 50 of them for £7. They’re very basic and there are far more luxurious examples of coat hangers that do a better job at hanging. You can get wooden ones, or padded Collapse
New Skoda Octavia vRS hits the road ahead of 2020 debut
9 HRS AGO - Skoda's hottest Octavia is seen ahead of standard car's debut later this year and will share Expand
9 HRS AGO - Skoda's hottest Octavia is seen ahead of standard car's debut later this year and will share engines with Mk8 Golf GTI
Skoda has begun testing the hot vRS version of the next Octavia, set to arrive in 2020 after the standard car is unveiled in the coming weeks.
Despite the prototype's camouflage, there are a number of signs that this isn't a standard Octavia, such as the enlarged front intakes, a lower stance, chunkier side sills and bigger brakes with red painted calipers.
A vRS-style twin-exit exhaust also features on this estate variant, which appears to be towing dynamometer equipment. There will also be vRS hatchback model, as before.
We've no official confirmation of which engine will power the Octavia vRS, but it'll almost certainly be closely related to the upcoming Mk8 Volkswagen Golf GTI's. That means a development of the current EA888 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, which in the Golf will offer around 252bhp in standard form and 286bhp in a TCR variant.
It's Collapse
Honda CR-V Hybrid 2019 long-term review
14 HRS AGO - Hybrid version of the world's best-selling SUV joins the fleet. Will it prove as dynamic as the Expand
14 HRS AGO - Hybrid version of the world's best-selling SUV joins the fleet. Will it prove as dynamic as the petrol version? We have six months to find out
Why we’re running it: Is the world’s best-selling SUV still as comfy, refined, spacious and dynamically competent in hybrid form?
Month 2 - Month 1 - Specs
Life with a Honda CR-V Hybrid: Month 2
Getting to grips with our hybrid SUV’s biggest potential drawback - 14th August 2019
I knew I wouldn’t get away with it. You caught me. In the opening report on our long-term Honda CR-V Hybrid, I omitted the car’s towing limit. It was with good reason.
Paying the issue the necessary lipservice was always in my plans, but I hadn’t expected the flurry of letters and emails that would arrive from our scrupulous readers. A big ‘thank you’ to those who took the time to write in – your own real-world experiences are a joy to read and reflecting those is the raison d’être for our long-term tests.
The quoted maximum braked towing weight of the Honda CR-V Collapse
New car registrations 2019: Market down 1.6% as electric car sales
15 HRS AGO - New car registrations declined by 1.6 per cent in August, but EVs rocketed to a record market Expand
15 HRS AGO - New car registrations declined by 1.6 per cent in August, but EVs rocketed to a record market share of 3.4 per cent Collapse
Volvo V60 Cross Country T5 2019 UK review
18 HRS AGO - Volvo's handsome V60 Cross Country touches down in the UK in T5 petrol guise. We put it to the Expand
18 HRS AGO - Volvo's handsome V60 Cross Country touches down in the UK in T5 petrol guise. We put it to the test
This is a Volvo V60 Cross Country - a car we’ve had a fair amount of experience in now, and have actually come to like quite a lot for its laid-back demeanour and soft-edged, staunchly comfort-oriented on-road dynamics. While we’ve driven the D4 diesel model on UK roads before, this is the first time we’ve had a go in its gasoline-burning sibling, the T5, on home soil. Being a Volvo, the technical specification of this powertrain makes for familiar reading: it’s got an engine with four cylinders that displace some 2.0 litres, there’s a turbocharger in the mix, and an eight-speed Aisin automatic transmission is used to direct its 247bhp and 258lb ft drive to all four wheels.This is all housed within the confines of Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture platform. Like the regular V60, suspension is by way of double wishbones and coil springs up front, with a multi-link arrangement and Collapse
New Smart EQ Fortwo and Forfour begin brand’s EV future
1 DAY AGO - Updated two and four-seat city cars are now electric-only, with styling and technology Expand
1 DAY AGO - Updated two and four-seat city cars are now electric-only, with styling and technology upgrades
Smart has become the first mass market manufacturer to go electric-only with the new EQ Fortwo and Forfour, revealed ahead of their Frankfurt motor show public debut next week.
The updated EQ models are said to allow the brand to “return to its origins”: sister firm Mercedes-Benz first envisaged an urban vehicle powered by a local emissions-free powertrain long before Smart was even formed.
After offering EV versions of its models in every generation since 2007, Smart announced in 2018 it would transition to a “fully electric urban mobility brand” as its leadership was overhauled, ditching the three-cylinder petrol options.
The exterior of the new EQ models, described as “radically simple” by Daimler design boss Gorden Wagener, is an evolution of the outgoing car’s look. The grille has been lowered and grows in size, albeit with much of the surface area blanked off as EVs require Collapse
Porsche Cayman 718 Review: Sublime GT4 is worthy of Silverstone
1 DAY AGO - Porsche's new Cayman 718 GT4 - a 4 litre, 414bhp supercar - is as at home on the racetrack as on Expand
1 DAY AGO - Porsche's new Cayman 718 GT4 - a 4 litre, 414bhp supercar - is as at home on the racetrack as on the road Collapse
Top 10 best supercars 2019
1 DAY AGO - Our top ten supercars blends a mix of exotic metal stand out performance with stunning dynamics, Expand
1 DAY AGO - Our top ten supercars blends a mix of exotic metal stand out performance with stunning dynamics, but in an intensely competitive market who takes top spot?
The definition of a supercar may have changed over the past two decades, but that fact hardly makes the metal content that makes up this class any less sensational.
Here, it’s the world’s greatest mid-engined, upper-level performance machines we’re celebrating: not the very highest echelon of the performance car market, but rather the kind of cars you think about when you picture a modern Ferrari, McLaren or Lamborghini.
Topping this class means demonstrating that your designers and engineers can master an inherently tricky dynamic brief, stand the heat of particularly intense competition, and satisfy some of the most demanding customers in motordom.
1. McLaren 720S
The McLaren 720S has succeeded where both of its predecessors (650S and MP4-12C) fell short in our supercar class chart: purely and simply, by topping it.
There are Collapse
Governments must give owners “the right” to charge EVs, says car
1 DAY AGO - European car industry body calls for the mass rollout of smart EV charging infrastructure across Expand
1 DAY AGO - European car industry body calls for the mass rollout of smart EV charging infrastructure across the EU Collapse
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Mini to revive Traveller name for BMW i3-based MPV
2 HRS AGO - Traveller will be Mini’s version of a BMW 2 Series Active Tourer
Mini will take on Mercedes Expand
2 HRS AGO - Traveller will be Mini’s version of a BMW 2 Series Active Tourer
Mini will take on Mercedes B-Class with a five-seat electric people carrier in 2023
Mini plans to enter the shrinking market for small MPVs with a new electric model. It will be the brand’s most practical car yet, and it’s thought it will revive the Traveller name.
The new Mini MPV has been conceived to appeal to family car buyers seeking greater levels of interior versatility and space than the existing Clubman and Countryman.
It will be based on parent company BMW’s FAAR platform, which supports front- and four-wheel drive. There will be versions powered by internal combustion engines, a plug-in hybrid and, later in its seven-year life cycle, a battery-electric driveline in a Traveller SE model. It will rival the Volkswagen ID 3, which will be revealed next month.
In pure-electric form, the new Mini model is set to be twinned with the successor to the BMW i3. That means it will be offered with the very latest in Collapse
Williams reveals lighter yet longer-range EV battery module
11 HRS AGO - New energy-dense cells would be suitable for high performance electric sports cars; series Expand
11 HRS AGO - New energy-dense cells would be suitable for high performance electric sports cars; series production could begin in 2020
Williams Advanced Engineering has developed a new type of lithium ion battery module that could make automotive battery packs up to 30 percent lighter and 37 percent more energy dense.
The new module, unveiled at the annual Cenex low carbon vehicle event in Bedforshire, could have wide-reaching benefits if the tech is licenced to EV manufacturers.
The innovation means a battery of the same weight as a conventional unit can deliver longer range without compromising power, or higher power without compromising range. A test battery using 16 modules has a storage capacity of 60kWh, produces peak power of 550kW for 20 seconds and peak regeneration of 550kW for 10 seconds.
The Adaptive Multi-Chem module is in the development phase and, says Williams Advanced Engineering Technical Director, Paul McNamara, “we could be manufacturing in a small series of around 50 units Collapse
Drivers avoid using open hard shoulder on smart motorways
14 HRS AGO - More than half of UK drivers avoid the open hard shoulder on all lane running smart motorways, Expand
14 HRS AGO - More than half of UK drivers avoid the open hard shoulder on all lane running smart motorways, research shows Collapse
Car industry encouraged by rising EV sales
16 HRS AGO - UK new car registrations continued to decline in August, but electric and hybrid sales surged
UK Expand
16 HRS AGO - UK new car registrations continued to decline in August, but electric and hybrid sales surged
UK new car sales dipped by just 1.6% in August, while sales of electric and hybrid cars continued to surge.
In total, 92,573 cars were registered last month, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), 1521 fewer than in August 2018.
While the decline is notably lower than the 3.4% average decline for 2019 to date, Autocar understands that the numbers might have been raised by manufacturers pre-registering cars ahead of the next phase of tighter EU emissions regulations that came into force this month.
Demand for petrol cars remained stable, with the 59,019 registrations, up 1% year on year and accounting for 65.5% of all cars registered this year. By contrast, diesel registrations fell by 12.2%, the 29th consecutive month of decline. Diesel cars now account for 27.0% of all cars registered in the UK so far this year.
The market was boosted by the continued rise in Collapse
Nearly-new buying guide: Volvo XC90
20 HRS AGO - Build quality is good and equipment levels are high with an XC90
The XC90 makes even more sense Expand
20 HRS AGO - Build quality is good and equipment levels are high with an XC90
The XC90 makes even more sense as a used buy, once someone else has swallowed the depreciation
Four years ago, the all-new Volvo XC90 arrived in a blaze of ice-cool Scandi glory – if that’s not a contradiction – and a price tag to match: £68,785 for the D5 First Edition. This limited-edition version was a showcase for the new Land Rover Discovery rival and featured air suspension, nappa leather and a 1400W Bowers & Wilkins sound system, in addition to the model’s impressive and appealing roster of standard-fit safety kit.
It was a lot of money, but then Volvo has always had an inflated sense of its own worth. Not so the used car market. It has a different view of the Chinese-owned Swedish brand, and the result is that today you can pick up a one-owner, 2015-reg First Edition with 52,000 miles and a panoramic sunroof for just £33,500. That’s more like it, but it gets better: if you’re happy to forego the First Collapse
Racing lines: The joy of motor racing without corners
1 DAY AGO - Anita Mäkelä beat rival Maja Udtian at Santa Pod back in May
High-speed motorsport doesn't need Expand
1 DAY AGO - Anita Mäkelä beat rival Maja Udtian at Santa Pod back in May
High-speed motorsport doesn't need hairpin turns and run-off zones to be incredibly exciting
There’s something primal about motor racing in a straight line. Sheer power, traction, top speed… who needs corners? So this weekend, be sure to catch not one but a pair of the best and most raw spectacles on four wheels (and two).
On Saturday, the Brighton and Hove Motor Club runs its annual National Speed Trials over a quarter-mile on the seaside town’s Victorian promenade. The trials on Madeira Drive claim to be the world’s oldest-running motorsport event, if you don’t count the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, the first having been held in 1905. The history is hardly continuous – its cost and inherent threat to mortality left big patches in its early history – but an act of parliament in the 1920s made the Speed Trials exempt from a UK mainland ban on closed public road motorsport that was only overturned in 2017.
Like Collapse
Top 10 best hybrid SUVs 2019
1 DAY AGO - We pick the very best hybrid SUVs on the road today, with compact, family and luxury models all Expand
1 DAY AGO - We pick the very best hybrid SUVs on the road today, with compact, family and luxury models all making the cut
Hybrid powertrains combine the silent, emission-free driving of an EV with a traditional fuel tank that eliminates range anxiety. If you’re not quite ready to make the switch to an electric car, they are the perfect compromise.
The Government may not give you a grant to buy one any more, but the differences to your wallet still make a hybrid worth the investment, whether you opt for a traditional hybrid system that uses electric motors to assist the petrol engine, or a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) that uses the engine exclusively to recharge its batteries.
They make particular financial sense in an SUV, where the equivalent diesel or petrol model can cost significantly more to keep on the road. Taller, larger SUVs have more room than hatchbacks, too, so the complex hybrid systems don’t eat into cabin or boot space.
We’ve driven every hybrid SUV on sale in the UK Collapse
2021 Mercedes-Benz EQS confirmed for Frankfurt reveal
1 DAY AGO - Preview images of forthcoming EQ electric car range's luxury flagship show fastback-style sloping Expand
1 DAY AGO - Preview images of forthcoming EQ electric car range's luxury flagship show fastback-style sloping roofline
Mercedes-Benz is preparing to take on the Tesla Model S, Porsche Taycan and next-generation Jaguar XJ with its plush new EQS electric saloon, and has confirmed it will make its debut at next week's Frankfurt motor show.
The announcement follows Porsche's unveiling earlier today of the new Taycan, which will compete with the EQS in the flourishing electric premium saloon segment. Accompanying preview images give little away, but the silhouette sketch shows off a low, swooping roofline, while a slim headlight design is visible on the covered-up show car.
The latest addition to Mercedes' forthcoming EQ electric vehicle line-up will join the EQC mid-sized SUV and EQA family hatchback in showrooms in 2021. According to officials, the EQS name implies a level of luxury, comfort and features consummate to the company’s traditional S-Class.
It will head what the engineering boss of Collapse
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