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Everything you need to know about cars this week: 29 Mar '20
Reviews of the new Defender, Ford Kuga and Porsche Taycan, plus Aston shows us its new V6
Mountune’s Ford Focus ST has 325bhp
"Fast Ford specialist Mountune has just come out with its first upgrade pack for the current Focus ST. And it might just be a bit of a no-brainer, assuming you don’t mind your Ford warranty taking a hit."
Advertisement - Page continues belowFord Puma ST-line X EcoBoost review: the new crossover king?
"Put it this way – this might be the last crossover review you ever have to read. The Ford Puma is like a Golf or a 3 Series Touring. It’s one of those very satisfying all-things-to-all-folks kinda cars."
Of course Lamborghini’s new track car sounds excellent
"Set to be built in limited numbers, of course, the car is set to be revealed this summer. And be in no doubt, it’ll cost millions. There are mumblings Lambo could be preparing an entry into Le Mans’ new hypercar class. Could this be it? "
Advertisement - Page continues belowVideo: driving the new Land Rover Defender across Namibia
When Britain’s most iconic off-roader gets rebooted it needs a proper test. So we took the new Defender to Namibia.
This is actually a brand-new BMW 7 Series
"Finally – a way to own a brand-new BMW 7 Series without having to put up with that outrageous grille. And what a 7 Series – an E38-era 740i, complete with a 282bhp, 4.4-litre nat-asp V8, small wheels, and finished in dark green over cream leather with wood trim. 7 Series BMWs simply do not get better than this. And if your opinion differs, your opinion is wrong."
Review: Land Rover Defender
"The new Defender has a mountain to climb. Yeah, a real mountain, of course, because awesome off-road ability is an absolute necessity. But also a metaphorical mountain. It’s got to replace the old one. A vehicle that was very widely adored, for the exact same reasons it was almost impossible to justify buying."
Review: Ford Kuga
"A supremely complete crossover. Actually better to drive than it strictly needs to be."
Advertisement - Page continues belowThe Aston Martin Valhalla will get a very special V6
"This is the engine that will power the Aston Martin Valhalla. It’s the first engine designed in-house by Aston Martin itself – rather than wheeled in on crates from elsewhere – since 1968. England still had possession of the World Cup back then…"
What are your thoughts on Liberty Walk’s Lexus LC500?
"The panels can be had in either fibreglass reinforced plastic or CFRP, with the former costing between £10,000 - £12,000 in the UK and the latter between £13,000 and £15,000. The final price depends on which rear wing design you choose – naturally."
Advertisement - Page continues below20 dogs in cars to help take your mind off things
"Cars and dogs. We’re 99 per cent sure that this ancient relationship stretches as far back as the very dawn of time itself. Indeed, Greek historian Herodotus – considered the ‘father of history’ – famously never said how the boot floor of a Land Rover Discovery was the perfect shape and size for a muddy Labrador."
This restomod 911 has been built with trackdays in mind
"Properly cool isn’t it? The original S/T was produced in super small numbers and was essentially the precursor to the Carrera RS and RSR of the early 1970s. dp’s creation is designed to be far more useable, though, with the company making clear that it has been designed with track days in mind. Yes please."
Alpine duel: Audi RS6 vs Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo
"Well this has been thoroughly pleasant. Skiing, mountains, fresh snow, sun, beer and Netflix in the evenings, 600bhp estates and no motor show to ruin the end. We’re going to have to keep this quiet or people are going to think we’ve been away on holiday."
Here's how the Koenigsegg Gemera's 600bhp camless engine works
"One critical part of the Koenigsegg Gemera’s brain-scrambling powertrain is its ‘Freevalve’ petrol engine. You might have glossed over it while trying to compute the outputs, and they way that engine combines with three electric motors to produce, er, 1700bhp in all. Or in metric, 1.27 Megawatts. Or the power draw of a couple of hundred houses cooking dinner."
The amazing Mercedes C111 is 50 years old
"To call the C111 a concept car is to do it a bit of a disservice. You see, there were a whole series of C111s, built as a testbed for Mercedes’ most outlandish ideas and theories. And, as testbeds go, you have to agree that it’s one of the most beautiful."
Porsche Taycan Turbo review: first UK test
"You’ll be seeing enough of these around in the next few months to start accepting them as part of our motoring landscape. Which in this instance means a silent 680bhp and 0-124mph in 10.6 seconds is the new normal. Porsche’s normal at any rate."
Drag race!* Bloodhound vs F1 vs Bugatti Chiron
"Here’s a bit of fun. The Bloodhound team has done a cheeky bit of jiggery-pokery to create a virtual drag race between their land speed record car, a Formula One car and a Bugatti Chiron. And a regular family car, but you won’t be looking at that as it barely moves. Don’t take it too seriously and bombard our comments board with thoughts on slick tyre traction in the desert, just sit back and enjoy some virtual lines spearing across the desert."
How to look after your car when you’re not using it
"Much like a camera pointing the wrong way at an adult film shoot, COVID-19 was something we just didn’t see coming. But now that we can add ‘worldwide pandemic’ to the global horror show that has been the past five years, let’s talk about the practical things that you can do while you’re at home to make sure that your car doesn’t disintegrate as quickly as the social order outside your door."
Here's why the Koenigsegg Gemera looks like it does
"Here, with the help of Koenigsegg’s Head of Design, Sasha Selipanov, and a load of never-before-seen images pulled from the archive, we can finally see how this monster evolved from a seed of an idea, to the finished article."
You can strip out your new Porsche 911 Turbo S
"The Lightweight package removes the rear seats, swaps the front pair for sports buckets, thins some of the glass, heaves out some sound deadening and ticks the option boxes for 10mm-lower sports suspension and the sports exhaust. Don’t expect it to be a cheap package, and it’s only available on the coupe."
Chris Harris on... underwhelming expensive cars
"We live in a world of blurred boundaries and confusing overlap. No one knows what a thing is supposed to be any more; because everything wants to be everything. And by that I mean every sports car wants to comfortable and usable, and every off-roader wants to be a sports car, and every hot hatch wants to outgun a super-saloon. "
Jaguar F-Type R review: £100k sports car tested
"The R is now all-wheel-drive only – perhaps for the best given how frisky and TVR-ish the earliest V8 F-Types were – and it’s gained the 567bhp tune of supercharged 5.0-litre that was found in the old F-Type SVR. Which means it tops Jag’s new-for-2020 sports car range, with a Special Vehicle Operations version not confirmed and likely some way off."
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