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Motoring News
Yesterday, 10 October 2016Gordon Murray's Shell Concept Car driven
Reducing friction, weight and drag are the keys to Shell's new 107mpg concept car. We take it for a spin
If all petrol-powered cars were like the diminutive Shell Concept Car, we’d all be getting an effortless 100mpg-plus on the way to work, while our cars’ tailpipes emitted a third less CO2 than even the cleanest city car.
These are the conclusions of a two-year project that has produced a three-seat prototype combining the talents of Gordon Murray’s prolific Guildford-based automotive design group, Japanese engine consultant Geo Technology and Shell’s own advanced lubricant engineers, based in Belgium.
The car, powered by a 660cc in-line three-cylinder engine that started life as a regular Mitsubishi offering but has since been heavily revised, sits under the tiny car’s boot floor, driving the rear wheels. It is so frugal that it could be built and driven for more than 60,000 miles while using less energy than it takes to make and ship a typical SUV to the showroom.
Shell’s concept began life as Murray’s well-publicised T25, one of several prototypes built to prove Murray’s rule-breaking iStream manufacturing process. The yellow-white-red paint job is jauntier and there are spats over the rear wheel housings, but the relationship is obvious.
 read moreNissan GT-R Nismo prices revealed
The flagship Nissan GT-R goes on sale at the beginning of November, priced from £149,995
The Nissan GT-R Nismo will be priced from £149,995 when it goes on sale in the UK.
The new Nismo sits near the top of the latest GT-R range, which was first previewed at the New York motor show earlier this year sporting a facelifted look rather than the overhaul associated with an all-new car.
The standard GT-R costs £79,995 in entry-level Pure edition, meaning that in Nismo spec the price is close to double that of the entry-level model.
Nissan’s £149,995 price tag for the GT-R Nismo also puts it in league with the Honda NSX and McLaren 570S, although these are priced slightly lower than the GT-R Nismo and have slightly less-impressive performance to match.
The next most expensive GT-R is the Track Edition, at £91,995, which bridges the gap between the standard GT-R and the more hardcore Nismo car.
In Germany and France the GT-R costs €184,950 (around £166,874), which is more than £18,000 more than Nissan charges for UK cars.
New to the GT-R is a subtle refresh to the exterior bodywork, which Nissan claims generates more downforce than that of any other Nissan in history, while the interior has been tweaked to include a redesigned, more modern-looking dashboard and a more premium feel.
read moreCitroen C3 review: definitely quirky, but is it any good? Four cylinders in both Kieran's front- and four-wheel drive choices, addressed by a huge RWD V12!
read moreSeven weird, wacky and wonderful cars you might have missed in Paris
The focus at the 2016 Paris motor show was predominantly on SUVs and EVs, but there were plenty of other interesting machines to see
The 2016 Paris motor show presented plenty of new metal to gawk at, but while the SUVs and electric cars stole the headlines, there were still plenty of other interesting models that caught our attention.
We run through seven of our favourites below.
Fiat 124 Spider America
Somewhat ironically, the Fiat 124 Spider America won’t be sold in the good ol’ USA. Instead, its name pays homage to the 1981 Fiat 124 Spider Pininfarina 50th Anniversary, a limited-edition car commissioned by Fiat USA to celebrate the Italian design house’s then golden anniversary.
Like that original car, the America stands out from the regular Spider thanks to its magnetic bronze paint, tobacco-coloured interior and truly gorgeous four-spoke alloy wheels. Small touches, such as silver mirror caps and a celebratory plaque, help add to an already distinctive package, but the best feature is without a doubt the optional vintage-look luggage rack.
Ultimately, we can’t quite work out if it’s wrong or right to like this car, but that doesn’t stop us from wanting one.
Ducati 1299 Panigale S Anniversario
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read more2017 Citroen C3 1.2 Puretech 110 Flair review
Citroën's core small car is reinvented in the Cactus mould, with an emphasis on comfort and being different from the herd
If Citroën's C4 Cactus represents the French brand's reinvention for a laterally thinking, post-premium world, then the new C3 writes the next sentence. Both models major on bluff-nosed, 'urban capsule' looks which, with their bash-proof Airbumps, are recognisably different from the opposition, and both woo a tech-savvy clientèle with the use of touchscreen controls, a coolly minimalist dashboard design and proper co-ordination with everyone's hand-held devices.As well as aiming to do things differently from other manufacturers by returning to its past specialities of original thinking and ensuring its cars are properly recognisable as Citroëns, the company cites the likes of IKEA and John Lewis as examples of the brand values it is chasing. The C3 is intended to offer something not found in rival small cars, and amid all the marketing brainstorming is one very solid attribute: the promise of a car more comfortable than any rival.The new C3 has a longer wheelbase (by 75mm) than the last one, despite being based on broadly the same PF1 platform, but its overhangs are shorter. Bigger wheels and black plastic wheel arches help give it a slightly SUV look even though the new C3 is slightly wider and lower than its predecessors. It weighs almost exactly the same as before. Optional two-tone paint emphasises the 'floating' roof separated from the main body colour by black windscreen pillars, but the vast panoramic windscreen option of the previous C3 isn't available on this one.All three petrol engines offered have three
read moreVideo: Ford Fiesta ST200 vs eRally Renault Zoe vs Go-kart
Winner of our best affordable sub-£25k driver's car crown, the Ford Fiesta ST200 takes to the track to battle it out against the eRally Renault Zoe and a go-kart
The Ford Fiesta ST200 is our favourite affordable performance car, having beaten the likes of the Mazda MX-5 and Renault Clio RS 220 Trophy to earn our sub-£25k driver's car crown.
But when up against two very different cars, an electric Renault Zoe rally car and a go-kart, is it still our pick of the bunch?
We put these three eclectic offerings up against each other at Glan-y-Gors race track in Wales to find out.
read moreWhy the Mercedes-Benz Unimog’s 70th birthday is a big deal
The latest Unimog evolves a 70-year-old design
Mercedes-Benz's iconic workhorse entered its eighth decade yesterday; we consider why the Unimog is so important
The first Mercedes-Benz Unimog, a bodyless prototype called Unimog Prototype 1, rumbled into life 70 years ago on 9 October 1946.
Remarkably, that original post-war development model still serves as a template for new Unimogs that are produced today, and while back then it represented a recovering Germany, today the model illustrates the strength of the world’s leading automotive nation.
Since that defining prototype run, 400,000 Unimogs – or Universally Applicable Motorised Machines - have been built, with more than 30 different versions being used for essential transportation of goods, food and industrial products in every far-flung corner of the world.
The car’s then innovative four-wheel drive system featured front and rear differential locks, as it does today, enabling the Unimog to transport products through the toughest of terrains and be used in jungles, mountains and deserts in roles including military vehicles.
Some countries have also provided their fire fighters with Unimogs, and off-road competitions like the Dakar Rally have featured several.
Of course, you’d be hard pressed to describe a Unimog as luxurious, and even harder pressed to describe one as pretty, but it
read moreGerman states want to ban petrol and diesel cars by 2030
Following the words of the German deputy economy minister, all 16 German federal states have stated they want to ban petrol and diesel cars by 2030
German federal states have called for a ban on all petrol and diesel cars by the start of the year 2030, leaving only zero-emissions vehicles on the road.
A report by Spiegel Online says that all sixteen federal states have taken a vote confirming they want to ban petrol and diesel cars within 14 years, and that this would help to reach the up to 95% reduction in emissions agreed for 2050. However, it did not specify whether the proposed ban would take them off the roads, or simply halt their sales.
The German magazine also reported that despite a €1.2 billion (around £1.07bn) scheme to boost public interest in electrified vehicles, just 1800 drivers had registered interest. A €4000 (around £3594) grant is offered to those buying an electric car, and €3000 (around £2695) is offered to prospective plug-in hybrid buyers.
Germany aims to have 300,000 electric cars on the road by 2019, and half a million the following year. By 2030, it hopes to have six million electrified vehicles – hybrids and pure EVs – on its roads.
The states’ desire to be fossil fuel-free by 2030 was kickstarted by the deputy economy minister of Germany, Rainer Baake, who called for 100% of all new car registrations to be for emissions-free models by 2030.
Other countries have recently considered banning fossil-
read moreJaguar returns to racing with an electric car Four cylinders in both Kieran's front- and four-wheel drive choices, addressed by a huge RWD V12!
read more2017 Mercedes-AMG C 63 R to rival BMW M4 GTS
A more performance-focused version of Mercedes’ C 63 will get a big rear wing and an anticipated 577bhp
A Mercedes-AMG C 63 R is on the way to fight it out with the BMW M4 GTS next year, as shown by these pictures of a development car testing at the Nürburgring.
The car wears a large rear wing and a prominent front spoiler, suggesting it will produce genuine downforce to enhance track performance and hinting at a more powerful version of the C 63’s ‘hot-vee’ twin-turbocharged V8 under the bonnet.
The most powerful C 63 on sale at the moment is the C 63 S, which produces 503bhp from its 4.0-litre unit. But as shown by the hardcore 577bhp GT R, significantly more power can be extracted from this engine.
The GT R’s 4.0-litre petrol engine uses different turbochargers, reworked engine mapping and a higher compression ratio to offer the additional grunt, but it's not yet known whether the C 63 R will get exactly the same specification of engine.
We do know that, like the AMG GT R, the C 63 R will shed some weight due to the use of carbonfibre parts and possibly a set of aluminium wheels and a titanium exhaust system.
The results will make for a car that’s both significantly quicker off the line and faster around corners than the C 63 S, which reaches 62mph in 3.9sec. The C 63 R’s arch rival, the BMW M4 GTS, manages the same sprint in 3.8s
read moreMazda MX-5 RF prices and specs revealed
Mazda has released pricing and spec info for its folding hard-top MX-5 RF; it starts from £22,195 and goes on sale on 4 March 2017
The Mazda MX-5 RF folding hard-top will go on sale on 4 March 2017, with prices starting at £22,195 for the 1.5-litre, SE-L Nav spec car.
The range will be topped by the Launch Edition, which will cost £28,995, and includes a raft of extra equipment including a two-tone roof, BBS alloys and black exterior trim. Production for this edition will be limited to 500 units.
Once the 500 Launch Edition MX-5s have been sold, the £27,095 2.0-litre Sport Nav Auto will top the range. A like-for-like MX-5 RF is £2000 more expensive than the standard soft-top, although the range-topping RF is offered with an automatic gearbox, which is unavailable on the standard car. The automatic ‘box is only available on the Sport Nav, rather than lower-spec RFs, though.
Also exclusive to the RF is an electric mechanism for opening and closing the roof – the standard soft-top opens and closes manually.
The previous-generation folding hard-top MX-5 accounted for around 80% of UK sales, with drivers opting for the refinement and extra insulation it offered over the standard car’s cloth roof. The same sales split is expected this time round.
First examples of the standard MX-5 RF will reach dealers in May, in 1.5-litre SE-L Nav and Sport Nav trim levels. The rest of the RF line-up will appear after this.
The RF went into production on 5 October, and was first revealed at the read more Four-door Mahindra e2o Plus electric model confirmed in official images
Mahindra’s all-electric e2o will gain a four-door variant, badged e2o Plus; styling has been partially revealed in images released by the Indian car manufacturer
The Mahindra e2o Plus has been confirmed in images released by the Indian automotive giant.
Two images of the car have been released; one showing the rear of the car and the other showing the car’s profile, which is notably longer than that of its two-door sibling.
A third image shows the front styling of the car, but this appears unchanged from the standard e2o. The teaser website for the model hints that more of the car’s styling will be revealed in the coming days.
The standard two-door four-seater e2o has a claimed range of 79 miles, and costs from £12,995 after UK plug-in grants, which rises to £15,995 for the higher-spec TechX car.
It’s likely that the entry-level price of the e2o Plus will fit between these, so a price of around £14,500 is likely, but not confirmed. Specs will mirror those of the standard e2o, so a TechX trim will top the e2o Plus range, and cost around £3000 more than the entry-level car.
The top speed of the standard e2o is 63mph, and 25mph is reached in 4.9sec, with a 13.9kWh battery pack doing the work. The e2o Plus is highly likely to be mechanically identical to the standard e2o, so performance will be much the same, if slightly hindered by the extra weight. If anything, extra range will be adde
read more2016 Mazda 6 2.2 Skyactiv-D 175 Sport Nav review
This range-topping Mazda 6 Saloon gets better engine refinement and chassis tweaks; it remains a strong contender in the class
The Mazda 6 Saloon was only facelifted last year, but the Japanese manufacturer has seen fit to deliver another nip and tuck to add tech and improve refinement.The main addition is G-Vectoring Control, or GVC. It might sound like a hopeful X-Factor boyband, but GVC is a system designed to help cornering and high-speed stability, and it’s being rolled out on every new Mazda 6 - in time every Mazda will get it. Other tweaks to the 6 for 2016 include better engine refinement and a more positive throttle response.Cars in this segment need to keep fresh to stop buyers flocking to SUVs, and there’s plenty of competition for the Mazda 6 in the form of the Ford Mondeo, Skoda Superb, and Volkswagen Passat - even if they are all more practical than fun.
read moreVolkswagen Golf 1.0 TSI long-term test review: practicality test
Our hatchback proves it’s even more versatile than it’s cracked up to be
Some unusual demands have been made of the Golf in the past few weeks.
I’ve stringently tested its boot and back seat space and required it to have the gentlest ride possible. At times its passengers have numbered more than 20,000 – and they don’t like to be jostled about.
It’s been helping us out with a fairly new hobby: beekeeping. We first used the Golf to collect an ancient pair of unwanted hives from a nearby farm. Each hive was made up of a base, roof and four large sections that fit in between. Even though there were more large wooden sections than we’d imagined, I can confirm that the Golf can accommodate two people and two whole beehives – just.
Next was the daunting task of collecting 20,000 very stressed honey bees in a cardboard box and driving them to their new home.
Concerned about the security of the box, we drove home with our bee suits on, but again the Golf complied with another strange demand: head room was a bit tight for two beekeeper’s hats, but I was able to drive. We attracted a few strange looks, but I could cope with driving around Surrey looking a bit daft if it eliminated the possibility of being stung by tens of thousands of bees.
I’m relieved to say the Golf’s ride was beautifully compliant over the county’s most scarred roads, although I did drive carefully and, whenever possible, around anything that might send a big jolt through the cabin. In contrast to its juddery ride over the con
read moreIs the Volkswagen ID a game-changer?
Volkswagen recently revealed its ID concept at the Paris motor show, but will it really live up to its hype?
Volkswagen’s dire reputation post-Dieselgate required some kind of bells and whistles statement in a bid to re-establish the brand’s credentials.
But, motor show buzz aside, is the ID concept really the smash-hit game-changer VW’s headlines claim it is? I’m an advocate of electric cars, to the point that I lease one (a Renault Zoe), and I’m excited by VW’s vision of the future, but I need to see more before I’m convinced that the ID is the leap forward that its maker wants us to believe it is.
Of course, the ID concept car has more range, more space, more autonomous functions and more connectivity possibilities than any car on sale today. But so it should: it won’t spawn production vehicles until around 2020, four long years from now.
Today, barely a car (electric or otherwise) is launched that doesn’t have more range, more space, more autonomous functions and more connectivity possibilities. The devil is in the detail, but in four years’ time, I can’t help thinking the whole industry will have redefined itself in all of those areas and more, and every manufacturer will have a car in the ballpark of VW’s — or something more exciting again.
I don’t want to be needlessly negative or knock such a bold, exciting initiative, but I do need t
read more2018 Jeep Wrangler could get pick-up variant
Pick-up version of the next-generation Jeep Wrangler, due in 2018, could be among the UK line-up
Jeep UK is building a business case to sell a new pick-up version of the next-generation Wrangler SUV in the UK as part of a major sales expansion when an all-new model goes on sale in 2018.
“We are seriously considering that model for the UK,” Jeep boss Damien Dally told Autocar at an event last week. “It won’t be big sales numbers but more of a lifestyle model.”
The arrival of a Jeep pick-up in the UK would be the first time the US brand has offered this bodystyle in the UK.
The new Wrangler pick-up is understood to feature a single cab, rather than the doublecab design that Jeep showed as the Crew Chief 715 Kaiser concept earlier this year.
The Kaiser concept had a 5ft bed built onto a fourdoor body, but its unwieldy dimensions didn’t find favour among reviewers who drove it.
Kaiser is one of the dormant brands that Jeep parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) acquired when it bought AMC in 1987. Kaiser owned Willys, originator of the Jeep.
The new Wrangler pick-up will contribute to a significant increase in UK sales, as FCA invests in a new ‘C9’ model and increases right-hand drive production at the home of Jeep in Toledo, Ohio.
The C9 incorporates multiple technical advances for a Jeep, although the styling will remain true to its heritage.
The steel frame is all ne
read moreTOTD: Lands End to John o'Groats With no motorways allowed and 958 miles to cover, what would you drive?
read moreNissan GT-R NISMO: £150,000 Facelifted version of the ultimate GT-R pitches it squarely at the 911 Turbo S
read more£50K E46 M3! Another day, another crazy used car valuation
read moreMazda MX-5 RF prices and spec From £22K for the hard top MX-5, with cars on sale from March next year
read moreFiat 124 Spider Eibach kits Fancy a 124 but worried an MX-5 is better to drive? Eibach may have a solution
read moreBMW Z4: PH Carpool Suzuki Wagon R to Z4 is quite some upgrade for this PHer!
read moreIntermot 2016 - the PH2 follow up! PH2 mops up after the Cologne bike show, not least after someone spilled something they shouldn't have...
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