Reviews

Hyundai’s new third-generation i30 has a tough job to compete in a fiercely competitive segment dominated by the Ford Focus, Vauxhall Astra and VW Golf. UK CEO Tony Whitehorn believes there is a compelling case for customers to buy the car with better design inside and out. Hyundai engineers have also worked hard on making the new i30 a much ...

As the car that set the hybrid ball rolling there’s a burden of expectation on each new version of the Toyota Prius. The latest model is the fourth generation having entered showrooms in 2016 with a new look and new technology. The high voltage hybrid battery is now more compact than before and boasts better durability and charging performance. This ...

Honda treated the CR-V to a mid-life makeover two years ago and the result is a car bursting with new technology and benefiting from improved styling.  The Swindon-built CR-V is a long established player in the compact SUV sector and rightly acclaimed for its build quality, robustness and practicality all of which are in evidence in this facelifted model. Exterior ...

Two years ago I sat down with Phil Crossman who was then CEO of Honda UK. At the time the carmaker was going through a tough patch as a result of the yen’s punishing exchange rate and a lack of new product. One of the forthcoming vehicles he mentioned at the time, which he believed would help turn around the ...

The Audi new model launch programme continues at a frenetic pace with the recent addition of the new A3, A4 Allroad, SQ7 and Q7 etron followed by the all-new Q2 which went on sale in November. The Q2 is a compact SUV, the first such vehicle from one of the premium brands, leading Audi to claim that with this car ...

Hyundai is claiming a world first with the Ioniq which comes in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and full electric options. In comparison, the Toyota Prius just offers hybrid and plug-in variants and the Nissan Leaf is an EV only. The Ioniq’s has a familiar look, a standard compact, long-roofed hatchback, its design driven by the requirements for good aerodynamics. Bar the ...

The Kodiaq, Skoda’s first full-size SUV crossover, is a bigger deal for Skoda than for the market as whole. There is no question that it is smart, spacious and well-equipped but, apart from some clever details, there is nothing really new here. The significance of the Kodiaq is that Skoda has an entry into a booming market sector where it ...

We’ve been running our long term Honda HR-V crossover since the summer, so we’re just starting to see how it is performing as winter takes hold. The first thing we noticed was the total absence of its idle stop function during a particularly cold spell that lasted several days. After some initial head scratching it became clear that with the ...

  The latest Honda HR-V, launched last year, marks a welcome return to a sector the brand helped create back in 1999. It exited the sector 10 years ago after which the success of Nissan’s Juke opened the floodgates of what is now the fastest growing part of the new car market. Honda needed to hit the ground running with ...

Volvo’s new product roll-out continues with the launch of the all-new top-end V90 estate, which goes on sale in December Volvo’s Chinese parent Geely has invested heavily in the historically solid but recently flagging Swedish brand to give it a fresh new design while restoring its front-running safety pedigree. The first of the new breed was the second-generation XC90 – ...