20
List
Everything you need to know about cars this week: 9 May '21
A new Ferrari, plus we drive the new Defender van and hydrogen-powered Toyota Mirai
Review: Volkswagen Golf Estate (Mk8)
"A fantastic looking car with a myriad of drivetrain options. Shame the Skoda Octavia exists"
Advertisement - Page continues belowThe EV concepts we were promised and are still waiting for
"At some point in the near future, we will actually see 2,000bhp electric hypercars such as the Lotus Evija, the Rimac C_Two and the Pininfarina Batista on our roads. We can scarcely believe it’s true."
Meet Uncle Buck, the man who'll help make your dream classic
"Saying you’ll own a Ferrari by the time you’re 40 is a well-worn life goal. In fact, in this era of ‘live, laugh, love’ holistic Instagram quotes, it’s less of a life goal and more of a cliche. But for Kevin Agnew, it was literally a matter of life or death."
Advertisement - Page continues belowReview: Maserati Quattroporte
"Before it says ‘salve’ to electric, Maserati’s having one last 580bhp V8 hurrah. The ultimate flaw-door saloon"
When will the Volkswagen ID3 kill off the iconic VW Golf?
"Can the Golf and the ID3 learn to peacefully co-exist? How long can Volkswagen go on splitting its investments and building two cars that are supposed to be best-in-class hatchbacks without tripping over each other? "
Review: Toyota Mirai
"The culmination of decades of work for Toyota, but it's for very specialist cases and hydrogen cheerleaders only"
Is this £350k electric Bentley S1 the future of classic cars?
"Weddings, bar mitzvahs, the odd car industry awards ceremony. I don’t put The Suit on lightly, the occasion has to call for it. Driving and being driven around by my faithful chauffeur Jeeves in a near-half-million-quid Bentley is one such occasion, especially when it’s not your run-of-the-mill 1961 Bentley Continental Flying Spur by HJ Mulliner… those are 10 a penny and stuck in the past. This is the future."
Advertisement - Page continues belowProgress report: Mercedes 450 SEL 6.9 vs Mercedes S500
"Of course the W116 and 223 don’t feel very similar, because they’re separated by 50 years and seismic technological shifts. But these two big Benzes do share a common confidence. "
Hyundai-Kia's posh brand Genesis is coming to Britain
"Genesis, Hyundai-Kia’s posh brand, has given more details of its European and British launch. It kicks off with a £35,000-ish luxury saloon, the G80, and an even bigger £50k SUV, the GV80. They’ll be here in summer."
Advertisement - Page continues belowUber and Arrival are building an electric car
"The Arrival Car - which follows the similarly does-what-it-says-on-the-tin Arrival Bus and Van - is due to arrive in the latter stages of 2023, but not before Uber drivers have had their say on exactly what they need from an electric cab."
Land Rover Defender Hard Top review: commercial-spec tested
"Available in both short-wheelbase 90 and long-wheelbase 110 bodystyles, the Hard Top is the new Defender at its most utilitarian. Engineered to safely transport heavy, bulky, important cargo over terrain likely to flummox even the hardiest all-wheel drive Mercedes Sprinter or Ford Transit, and maybe even tough pick-ups like the Toyota Hilux and Isuzu D-Max."
Check out the brand-new Skoda Fabia
"Just kidding, but this is actually all nice and simple. Volkswagen has just facelifted the Polo, but its Skoda sibling is half a generation behind, so this is the Fabia catching up and joining the Polo on the Group’s modular MQB-A0 platform."
Bentley Continental GT Speed review: a Bentley that drifts
"The Speed badge first adorned the Conti GT in 2007, and since then has represented a mild performance enhancement over standard, but not much more. This time, provided you care about driving as well as stately swanning about, it’s different."
VW: “we’ll sell you Level 4 autonomous driving for €7 an hour”
"Volkswagen has told TopGear.com it’s eyeing a bold future. A future of cars crammed full of tech and features which the car’s owner / user / subscriber can turn on and off as and when they need them – but only pay for while the gadget is being used."
This is the Ferrari 812 Competizione and Competizione A
"The 812 Competizione is, rather unsurprisingly, a version of the 812 Superfast; a sort of alternate-reality Superfast where everything has been turned up to 11. And as with any self-respecting Ferrari, we venture once more unto the breach of that mesmerising V12."
The Ferrari 812 Competizione and Aperta have sold out
"Ferrari will build just 999 examples of the wild new 812 Competizione, and even fewer of its sister car, the Competizione ‘Aperta’ – just 599 of those will be built. And, to literally nobody’s surprise, both models have sold out. So, welcome to the two new supernaturally powerful, naturally-aspirated V12 Ferraris you can’t actually buy."
Romain Grosjean will get an F1 farewell with Mercedes
"Romain Grosjean will drive Mercedes’ 2019 F1 car in a special, one-off test at Paul Ricard on 29 June, seven months to the day since his horror crash at the Bahrain Grand Prix."
The Citroen Ami Cargo is a van for teenagers
"What if we told you the cutest car you’ll see today is also – quite probably – the cheapest? And that it’s not even a car? This is the Citroen Ami Cargo, and it’s an electric van that costs 25 euros per month. Most phone contracts are more. Most phones won’t transport you and 140 kilos of your favourite possessions up to 47 miles, either…"
Ferrari: naturally aspirated V12 is “the heart” of the company
"That’s right, Ferrari’s hard at work to keep one of its key ‘pillars’ – the big V12 – gym-honed and ready for action. A quick glance at the modifications applied to the 812 Competizione’s V12 over the Superfast’s shows just how hard Michael Leiters – Ferrari’s chief technology officer – and his team worked."
Range Rover Evoque D200 review: hybrid diesel mini-Rangie tested
"The styling hasn’t changed at all. What has is the engines: they’re now all hybrids, so long as you spec the automatic gearbox… which everyone does. Electric boost comes as standard on everything except the ultra-basic 163bhp D165 diesel."
Check out NASCAR’s all-new Next Gen racers
"For our non-American readers, NASCAR currently has three manufacturers in the sport; Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota. Attracting more manufacturers to join is a simple way of improving the spectacle, but that’s easier said than done…"
Red Bull's engine is ‘biggest investment since buying Jaguar’
"Not since the opening of the A5 dual carriageway has there been this much excitement in Milton Keynes. Red Bull Racing is building its own Formula 1 engine; building it from its base in a town famous for… having a load of roundabouts."
Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 review: 750bhp ‘Stang driven in the UK
"Down a B-road, you never forget the width, but it’ll cope with bumps, ties itself down with surprising ability. This isn’t just an engine with a Mustang attached, because where the motor asks lots of pointed questions, this is a chassis that has answers. It won’t ever be quite as joyous as it could be down a small-ish road, and Track mode on the suspension causes it to actually bounce, but there’s a sweet spot on a larger road and in some of the settings that makes this import frankly, incredible. It’s different to European offerings, yes, but that doesn’t make it worse."
Trending this week
- Car Review
- Long Term Review
