Motoring News

Milan verdict in stolen information case
Case in Milan against Pirelli chairman, who denies charges and is to appeal, relates to when Telecom Italia was competing for control of Brasil Telecom

In pictures: 60 years of Matchbox cars
As Matchbox celebrates its 60th anniversary, we examine a few of the models that have led to its huge success.    read more

2013 Mercedes-Benz S-class in pictures
Images of the latest Mercedes-Benz S-class, which is as technologically advanced as ever.    read more

Skoda Octavia vRS
We test the all-new version of Skoda's Octavia vRS, which combines Golf GTI performance with practicality and a reasonable price tag The third generation of the Skoda Octavia vRS has become a car made rightly popular by its tangy mix of Golf GTI running gear, hatchback (or estate) body, big engines and decidedly reasonable pricing.On paper at least, the latest model continues doggedly along the same lines; it may share the 15mm longer wheelbase of its MQB range siblings, but the car is instantly recognisable as the kind of practical performance bargain that gets Skoda fans in a justifiable tizzy. Starting at £23,000 for a 217bhp 2.0-litre TSI with a manual six-speed gearbox, rising to  — coincidentally, the car tested here (although an oil burner and DSG are available) — the vRS is only eclipsed by the entry-level Ford Focus ST at the business end of the bargain basement.Standard kit includes 18-inch alloys, rear parking sensors, Bluetooth, DAB tuner and dual-zone air-con, although what you’re really buying is the superior rear legroom and a 590-litre boot. Skoda will also tell you that petrol models with a manual gearbox are the fastest production Octavias ever; and with 0-62mph falling from 7.2sec to 6.8, and top speed eked out to 154mph, it isn’t fibbing, but gains made in economy (now at a claimed 45.6mpg) and a 20 per cent drop in CO2 emissions to 142g/km will probably leave an equally big impression on British buyers.Potential buyers excited by those last couple of figures, will be even more impressed by the diesel. The oil-burner records CO2 emissions of 119g/km and the promise of 61.4mpg on the combined cycle

Suzuki S-Cross prices and specs
News 17 Jul, 2013 Suzuki S-Cross goes on sale on October 1, with prices starting from £14,999

What Americans have done for us
Ever thought the Special Relationship was a one-way street? TG sets the record straight…

Goodwood Festival of Speed 2013 - retrospective gallery
Highlights from this year's spectacular Goodwood Festival of Speed Even the gods of weather know about Goodwood’s place in the world. The sun was never going to refuse to shine on the 21st Festival of Speed.This year it cast a vintage glow on all four days of the world’s greatest motoring festival, which returned the favour by entertaining bumper crowds with a magic mixture of dazzling new arrivals, oddballs and spectacular stalwarts.Each festival starts by commemorating anniversaries and setting themes. This year’s highlights included 50 years of the Porsche 911 (the subject of Gerry Judah’s soaring, three-pronged sculpture at Goodwood House), plus the centenary of Aston Martin, the 50th anniversary of McLaren Racing, the 50th anniversary of Jim Clark’s first world championship in 1963, and the event’s own special anniversary. It is two decades since founder-kingpin Lord March looked out of his bedroom window to estimate crowd numbers at the first festival — held for a bunch of friends who owned nice cars and bikes — expecting 2500 people, only to be greeted by 25,000 instead.As it has done for the past three years, the festival began on Thursday with the Moving Motor Show, a ‘selling’ event for car makers that makes it possible for invited customers to test production cars on a route around the estate. This Thursday event strug

JLR success threatened by worker division
Expansion at the British carmaker has required the development of an outsourcing system, but disparities in wages and conditions are causing discord

Mercedes-Benz S-class review
The 2013 Mercedes-Benz S-class is packed full of advanced technology, but is it really the best car in the world?    read more

Vauxhall Cascada
The Vauxhall Cascada is a four-seat convertible with some desirable touches, but does it have the allure to coax buyers away from options like the Audi A5 Cabriolet? The Vauxhall Cascada is a very effective litmus test of a car. If you can drive one of these spacious, comfortable, quietly handsome cruiser convertibles and still judge it inferior to similarly priced drop-tops such as the BMW 1-series, ask yourself why. Chances are you’ve fallen prone to a touch of badge snobbery.Which, in connection with a mid-sized convertible, would be entirely forgivable. Brand allure counts for a lot to your typical fashion-conscious cabrio buyer, after all – a lot more than the Vauxhall badge counts for. But those who can see past such things will find a well-judged, adroitly tuned, skillfully executed new car here – one that definitely rewards a bit of enlightened thinking.Value for money is at the heart of the car’s appeal. Although it’s based on the same platform that underpins the current Astra hatchback, the Cascada is, in fact, a D-segment drop-top for the price of a C-segment model.That means you get four adult-sized seats and a reasonable boot of up to 350 litres, but you only pay as much as you would for a Volkswagen Golf-sized premium-brand ragtop typically offering notably less everyday usability.Practicality looks like the wrong weapon with which to lure convertible buyers away from the German brands, who tend to be shopping for second cars anyway. But in actuality, when you slide into the Cascada’s sensibly sized cabin, you do begin to visualise all the ways you’d get more use out of the car than you expected to.With the roof up, second row headroom’s a

How are you keeping cool in this heatwave?
James is suffering with the heat, so needs your suggestions on keeping, and looking, cool So what is the coolest car to drive in these conditions? Well obviously it needs air conditioning, or so you might think. The obvious choice is a convertible, except that you really do need head gear otherwise heat stroke is a real possibility. I rather think that a French Foreign Legion hat with that neck flap arrangement, which kiddies wear, may be the answer. You will still be very hot, though. Sunroofs have gone out of fashion a bit but they still have their place, in the roof. The panoramic ones are wonderful but you really need a re-gas of your air-con to ensure that you can survive that one. You may just be able to pull over a cover though, but know that there are all sorts of clever photochromic devices. You can also get fans in seats, but I am not sure if you can easily retro fit one from a salvage Mercedes S-class into your Vauxhall Cavalier.Now. Targas are wonderful and so underrated, even if they should not technically be called targas, or even togas. It is just the right combination of exposure to the elements and protection. I’d still buy some warp-factor sun lotion though and probably a sturdy hat, too. I’ve just been out in my hot tin-box that is otherwise known as a Land Rover Serie

New 2014 Porsche 911 Turbo S cabriolet spotted undisguised
Latest spy shots show the Porsche 911 Turbo S cabriolet undisguised for the first time Porsche's 911 Turbo S cabriolet has been spotted undisguised for the first time.These latest spy images show the car testing at the Nürburgring with its soft-top closed, ahead of a planned launch next year.The Turbo S uses the same 3.8-litre flat six as the current 911 Turbo, tuned to give 30bhp more than the previous version at 552bhp. Such performance would give the Turbo S Cabriolet performance to rival the McLaren 12C, with a 0-62mph time of 3.1sec and a 198mph top speed.The Turbo S cabriolet sports the same large side air intakes and rear spoiler as the 911 Turbo, while the front spoiler is believed to be unique to the Turbo S.The Turbo S cabriolet is expected to make most of its underpinnings from the standard 911 Turbo. That means four-wheel drive and a lightweight body structure of aluminium, weighing around 1570kg. Also in line with the standard Turbo, the S cabriolet is likely to get four-wheel steering. Porsche says the system provides the car with new agility through corners - perhaps explaining why the car has been spending so much time at the Nürburgring.

Ford releases Mountune upgrades for Focus and Fiesta ST
New power upgrades increase output and torque for both models Ford has released official Mountune power upgrades for its Focus and Fiesta ST models.Costing from £1225 for the Focus ST upgrade and £599 for the Fiesta ST, and taking under 90 minutes to install, the upgrades significantly improve power and torque on both models.The Focus ST upgrade - which includes a cast alloy inlet duct, high-flow air filter and a larger intercooler - boosts power from the 2.0-litre EcoBoost engine to 271bhp, while torque is improved to 295 lb ft. The upgraded car can sprint from 0-62mph in less than 6.0sec, more than half a second faster than the standard Focus ST.Upgrades for the Fiesta ST - based around a remodelled air box with a new secondary inlet duct - improve power to 212bhp and torque to 236 lb ft. Sprint time for 0-62mph falls to 6.7seco, compared to 6.9sec on the standard car.Both upgrades can be applied from 120 Ford-appointed Mountune dealers. 

It’s here: the new Mercedes S63 AMG
585bhp and a whopping 664lb ft of torque for new 5.5-litre twin-turbo super-limo

Aston Martin Vanquish Volante to launch at Pebble Beach
Aston Martin's V12 Vanquish Volante will be shown at US auto show Aston Martin's new Vanquish Volante will have its global debut at the Pebble Beach Automotive Week next month in California.The £200,000 car, which was recently spotted testing at the Nürburgring, will have its debut alongside the 2015 V12 Vantage S and Aston's CC100 Speedster concept.Power for the Vanquish Volante comes from the same 6.0-litre V12 as the coupé, with a reported 0-62mph time of 4.5sec and a top speed of 180mph. The Vanquish Volante uses Aston Martin's fourth-generation VH platform.Meanwhile, the 2015 V12 Vantage S makes its first appearance in the US. The 205mph car is powered by a 565bhp 6.0-litre V12 and can reach 0-60mph in 3.7sec. The car is rear-wheel drive, with the engine's 457 lb ft of torque being managed through Aston Martin's Sportshift III automatic gearbox.Pebble Beach Automotive week takes place between 14-18 August. For all the latest news from the event, stay tuned to Autocar.co.uk.

Mountune upgrades for hot Fords
Mountune upgrades for hot Fords

Mercedes S63 AMG revealed
New 577bhp S63 AMG revealed ahead of Frankfurt debut Mercedes-Benz has officially revealed its new 577bhp S63 AMG in a series of photographs ahead of a planned public debut for the rapid luxury saloon at the Frankfurt motor show in September.Distinguished from other recently introduced new S-class models by a number of traditional AMG styling tweaks, including a deep new front bumper, heavily chromed blade grille, 'twin-turbo V8' badges along its flanks and beefed up sills among other changes, the new S63 AMG is planned to go on sale in the UK in rear-wheel drive guise only next year at a price of around £120,000.  Building on initiatives taken with the standard S-class, the performance variant of the big Mercedes-Benz saloon benefits from a further range of weight saving measures, including the adoption of a 78Ah lithium-ion battery and a spare wheel recess made of carbonfibre.In long wheelbase guise, as sold in the UK, the new rear-wheel drive S63 AMG is said to weigh 1995kg – 100kg less than its predecessor, despite a moderate increase in dimensions and greater level of standard equipment. Significantly, Mercedes-Benz claims the four-wheel drive S63 AMG hits the scales at the very same figure of 1995kg, owing in part to a more straightforward sus

Top Gear magazine: Performance Car of the Year 2013
5,489bhp, 87 cylinders, many tyres and a tanker of super-unleaded.... Plus exclusive video of Stig’s new lawnmower…

Sixty years of Matchbox cars
This year marks the 60th anniversary of Matchbox die-cast models, which have gone from child's toys to collector's items.    read more

Chris Harris video: M135i vs A45 AMG
That BMW meets much tougher competition from Merc's A45 AMG - can it still prevail?

New cars announced for Wilton House 2013
Because you can never see enough supercars, right?

W Motors Lykan Hypersport
All new Lebanese supercar reveals essential novelty doors in latest studio photos

Honda Mean Mower
Honda and Team Dynamics use the BTCC summer break to create a 100mph lawnmower

GT Academy wildcard event launched
Are you the next Jann Mardenborough? Find out at the O2 this weekend

Audi RS7 Sportback: Review
Like the RS6 but not so keen on the fast dog basket Avant shape? Sign here!

Mercedes S63 AMG revealed
585hp mega barge variant of all-new S-Class revealed; future classified hero status assured

Volkswagen XL1: the tech
Inspired by penguins says VW - bulls**t says the designer. PH gets to the truth...

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