What happens on the oldest Autocar news page

I happened to be cruising the pages of Autocars website as I regularly do to check out the latest news stories happening today (This is not an ad it’s just what I do) and rather than pressing the next page button on the website I accidentally miss clicked and pressed the last page.

Now where and when does the original Autocar news pages go, well all the way back to March 2003 on page 3425, where you’ll find out that there is a new cheaper Porsche Cayenne coming with a cheaper V6 engine and manual gearbox, thought to be due to low sales of the V8 Auto models. The price for this cheap Porsche 4×4 is just £34,350, certainly prices have increased these days as the current V6 Cayenne costs a frightening £59,150.

In other news there have been a number of ‘old shape’ BMW 5 Series spotted in the classified pages, with eagle eyed Autocar reader Dave taking advantage after he bagged a 2002 530d Sport Auto with just 1,000 miles on the clock for only £26,000. Dave could have waited 18 years and bagged himself a bargain as 2002 530d Sport Autos are available now for just £6,500, admittedly this car has slightly more miles at 130,000 but a bargain by comparison.

Also on the oldest Autocar news page is the news that the Audi A2 will be getting a faster model in Spring 2004 with a whopping 90bhp from the 1.4 litre turbo diesel three cylinder engine. Up from 75bhp the more powerful A2 is expected to be on sale for £15,000. Quite a sad reminder of the long dead A2, which has become a bit of an enthusiast’s favourite since it was killed off in August of 2005.

Car news was clearly more spread out in the early days of the internet as apparently there was no news until May, when “Honda caused a stir with its first in-house diesel engine, announcing figures for its 2.2 i-CDTI Accord that puts it straight to the top of the class.” And Hyundai revealed a convertible concept version of its well-liked Coupe.

Clearly the Autocar website has grown up a lot since the early days of the internet, becoming one of the go to resources for motoring enthusiasts around the world. Feel free to check out the early days of the site as it’s all freely available here.

What do you think of the early Autocar News cycle, let me know in the comments.

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Geneva Motor Show 2018

So its Geneva Motor Show time again, the greatest week of the year for petrol heads. A time when the great and the good from around the world travel to Switzerland to show off what they’ve been working on and what will possibly be seen on the roads in the future. As with every year there seems to be so many notable cars on show that to go through all of them would mean you wouldn’t have finished by next years Geneva Motor Show. So I’ve chosen 5 cars that I think are the highlights of this years show to give you a glimpse of what is going on in the world of motoring.

Polestar 1

The Polestar 1 is the first car from the company that was formally the tuner of some of the greatest Volvos the world had ever seen (I know its not a long list). The Volvo DNA is still unmistakably present in the Polestar 1, and sticking a Volvo badge on would be completely understandable. But that’s not what Volvo want for Polestar, Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath (who is also Volvo’s Design director) said “Polestar will become Volvo’s technological spearhead that, after the 1 hits the market, will make only all-electric performance cars.” the Polestar 1 is currently a hybrid with a 2.0 litre turbo engine and twin electric motors on the rear axle producing just under 600BHP, not bad for a first outing.

Toyota Supra

Toyota is determined to keep the final production version of the Supra under wraps for as long as possible, what’s on show at Geneva is the racing version. It may have a giant rear wing, frighteningly wide arches and large rear diffuser but the racing supra does give us a glance at what the future may hold for our long craved 90’s icon. Autocar are reporting the new Supra will have a 3.0 litre turbocharged straight 6 up front making 330BHP and a sub 4 second 0-60 time. All of that’s very good but isn’t as much as I was expecting, the Nissan Skyline was always the Supra’s biggest rival in Japan and nowadays the Nissan GTR has by far out grown those number making it a super car killer not just a sporty coupe/midlife crisis mobile.

VW ID Vizzion

And now for something completely different, the VW brand has been going through some significant struggles since diesel gate and has been trying to change the subject in many different ways for a long time, one of those ways was the reveal of the VW ID concepts, a series of concepts designed to show the VW range when both autonomous driving and electric cars have really taken off. The ID Vizzion is the next in line and VW say it will go on sale in 2021 as the first VW without a steering wheel or pedals, relying solely on autonomous tech to keep it on the straight and narrow. The ID Vizzion is designed to be the replacement for the phaeton and joins the other ID cars, the Buzz, Crozz and imaginatively named Hatchback.

Porsche Mission E Cross Turismo

One of the big surprises at the show this year was the reveal of the Cross Turismo, a car designed to reach production in 2021. The Cross Turismo is based on the same tech Porsche have used on the also still in development Mission E high performance saloon based off of the Panamera. The Mission E cars are Porsches examples of electric cars and will supposedly be Porsches future once the electric revolution really takes off. The Cross Turismo is a rather odd looking SUV, rather than being based on Porsches previous 4×4 off roaders the Macan and Cayenne the Cross Turismo appears to have been based on the Panamera again leading to a rather lifted saloon look rather than a full on off roader similar to that of the Volvo cross country estate cars.

Aston Martin Lagonda

Yet another electric car was shown off as seems to be the trend at this years show, this time it was the Aston Martin Lagonda. The fully electric concept is Astons attempt to yet again reanimate the corpse of uber luxury brand Lagonda. The Lagonda name is set to be used on two new cars by 2021, one an electric saloon seen here, the other an SUV. The Lagonda Saloon is set to be the most radical car Aston has ever made, just as the original Lagonda was back in the mid 70’s. The new Lagonda won’t even have a bonnet to open, thanks to the electric motors it’s simply unnecessary. The Lagonda is still planning on being a conventional car however rather than an autonomous car like the VW Vizzion.

What’s your favourite car from this years Geneva Motor Show, let us know in the comments.

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Rolls Royce takes aim at Bentley

You may be pleased to hear that this week I’m not going to talk about electric cars, emissions or even the electric revolution. What I am going to talk about is the shots Rolls Royce CEO took at Bentley this week. Age old rivals Rolls and Bentley have been battling it out for the king of luxury for decades. But it’s a war that for the past ten years Rolls have been winning and Rolls Royce CEO Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes puts it down to the fact that Rolls Royce aren’t taking the base for its cars from lesser manufacturers.

It’s true the Bentley of today has taken the Audi Q7 and put a new set of clothes on it to call it the Bentayga, but this is the first major shot heard from Rolls in a long while. Most car companies will remain polite about their competition saying things like, “we enjoy the competition and wish them every success” meanwhile behind the scenes they are plotting every way to put them out of business.

Mueller-Oetvoes made these comments at the European launch of the new Rolls Royce Phantom VIII, saying: “We are not using mass-manufactured body shells. That limits what you can do on the design side, and it undermines exclusivity massively. You don’t want a camouflaged Q7 in that segment. You want to have a true Rolls-Royce.” What this means is that all new Rolls Royces will have their own bespoke underpinning rather than sharing them with the likes of the BMW 7 series which was the basis for the original Ghost.

Rolls are calling this new idea the ‘Architecture of Luxury’ and can be seen in the Phantom VIII, new SUV the Cullinan and future generations of the Ghost, Dawn and Wraith. In a press release about the new Phantom VIII whilst not mentioning them by name Rolls went as far to say, “No future Rolls-Royce will be of monocoque construction as used by mass-manufacturers and some mass-luxury brands.”

Rolls are determined to be the only Luxury car brand there is even if it means tearing down their competition with hurtful words. Bentley are transitioning away from the Audi platform over to the Porsche platform but seems to refuse to make a fully bespoke luxury car of their early years, Bentleys market has changed, the Continental GT is proof their aim is footballers not Lords and Ladies.

What do you think of the luxury battle between Bentley and Rolls Royce, let us know in the comments.

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Porsche reveal the new GT2 RS at E3

Porsche took an unusual step to reveal the new 911 GT2 RS, rather than unveil the car at one of the larger shows such as Detroit or Geneva, Porsche decided to reveal the GT2 RS at the Electronic Entertainment Expo or E3 for short. E3 is a video game event where the great and the good of the industry reveal their new projects. During an onstage press conference the Porsche 911 GT2 RS was revealed as the new cover car for racing game Forza Motorsport 7 as part of a new deal between Porsche and Microsoft.

Dan Greenawalt, Creative director for Forza 7 unveiled the car, calling it the most powerful 911 Porsche have ever built. The GT2 RS uses a turbocharged flat 6 engine producing close to 700BHP. The GT2 RS, which is due a full reveal by Porsche themselves later in the year has a 0-62 time of just over 2.5 seconds and on to a top speed in excess of 205MPH. The 911 GT2 RS is a big step for the partnership between Porsche and Microsoft, as the deal was only announced earlier this year. (See more on the deal here)

Previous cover cars for the Forza Series include a Subaru Impreza, Nissan 350Z, Ferrari 458 Italia, Audi R8, Mclaren P1 and the new Ford GT, so the 911 GT2 RS is certainly in welcome company. The game is to be released on October 3^rd and we are expected to see more of the GT2 RS later in the year, with it going on sale in 2018.

What do you think of the new 911 GT2 RS? Sound off in the comments

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The London Motor Show

I attended the London Motor Show this week end and whilst its not exactly first on the list of priority motor shows (it may not have even made the list) that doesn’t mean it wasn’t great. Whilst it doesn’t have unveiling of new concepts or stunning live show its small size makes it a lot less tiring to get around. As time has gone on the London Motor Show has shrunk a lot in size and admittedly in quality. This years event took place at Battersea park and the small venue certainly hurt the event, a few years ago I attended the show at the Excel centre, a much larger arena and it also had a live show going on at the same time. This years show was less than half the size of that event and I feel the London Motor Shows days may be numbered.

The cars though didn’t disappoint, a strong showing from Aston Martin led the show with the Vantage, Rapide, Vanquish, DB11 and the new concept the Valkyrie all in attendance. Aston was one of the few major manufacturers to make the trip but Porsche also attended, with a Cayenne, Panamera, 718 Boxter and 911 Turbo S. the star of the show however and the car that drew the most eyes was from the little company called David Brown Automotive, with their newly unveiled Mini Remastered. The little car was swarmed with people through out the event with a neighbouring Rolls Royce Ghost and Lamborghini Aventador being left in the corner to sit and sulk.

The show also saw the new Alpine A110 on show, another popular choice among the attendees the stunning white example drew eyes all over. The Abarth 124 Spyder looked great in an impressive shade of blue. Outside the building the Chelsea Cars showroom put out a selection of gorgeous classic to look at including a Mercedes 190SL convertible, and Aston Martin DB6 and a Jaguar XK140.

Whilst I doubt this event will be the last, I do suspect it may be one of the last, the show struggles to gain the attention of the major manufacturers and is barely scraping the number of attendees it needs to succeed. The show is basically forgotten internationally, being overtaken by the likes of Detroit and Tokyo auto shows even the Paris Motor show.

What did you think of the London Motor Show, Sound off in the comments

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The Geneva Motorshow 2017

So the Geneva Motor show is in full swing and the great and the good of the motor industry are out in force at the Swiss event. If I were to go through everything at the show I would be here for three days straight so I thought I would just bring you the highlights of the greatest show on the motoring calendar.

McLaren 720S

McLaren are releasing cars thick and fast right now and they have been working hard on the new replacement for the 650S. So here we have the long rumoured 720S. Boasting a new 4.0 litre twin turbocharged V8 engine (upped from the 3.8 in the 650S) the 720S has 710BHP and 770Nm of torque. McLaren tasked themselves with doubling the aerodynamic efficiency of the 650S for the new 720S. Which has led to the distinctive look of the new car with its hidden headlights and aerodynamic streaks down the side, certainly an impressive machine to behold. Prices start from £208,000 and its on sale now.

Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo

Finally they did it, the Panamera estate has been in development for what seems like years now. There were spy shots and camo cars but finally Porsche revealed the Sport Turismo. The extra boot accessory gives the Sport Turismo 20 litres more boot space over the original and also means the Panamera has room for an extra seat in the back, now making it a five seater, prices start at £84,000 and go all the way up to £138,000 through all models from the S to the big bad Turbo model.

Honda Civic Type R

Its seems like just last week the new Type R was rolling into showrooms but Honda already have a new version ready for the new shape Civic, and while I’m not a Civic fan I can still safely say that the new Type R Civic is hideous. Looks aside though the new Type R has 316BHP, ten more than the previous model but still 30 less than the out going Ford Focus RS. Honda still plan on going back to the Nurburgring to try and break records again.

Bentley EXP12 Speed 6

One of the more beautiful cars on the show floor is the new Bentley EXP12 Speed 6. Whilst only being a concept of things to come from the company, the EXP12 is still paving the way forward in being a fully electric Roadster, an area even Tesla seem to have left well alone. The EXP12 isn’t expected to make production any time soon but after a good response from press and the public Bentley may be forced to change their mind on the subject.

Aston Martin Valkyrie

We at long last have a new name for the AM RB001 hyper car from Aston Martin and Red Bull, the new car called the Valkyrie will have over 900BHP from a naturally aspirated 6.5 litre V12. The Valkyrie uses an F1 style ERS system to harvest Kinetic Energy from braking. Only 150 road models will ever be made, along with 25 track only versions costing in the region of £2-3 million with deliveries expected to take place in early 2019.

What are your favourites from Geneva 2017, Sound off in the comments.

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Jim on Cars 2016 Car of the year

So its that time of year again, the time where I wrack my brains for everything that came out in 2016 and narrow it down to 4 fantastic cars and one amazing one, that’s right its car of the year time.

5. Mercedes AMG GTR

Last year it was a toss up between the standard AMG GT and the Mazda MX5, the MX5 just beat out the Merc thanks to its giant killing nature and world-beating amount of fun for such a small cheap car. This year however Mercedes has upped their game, the AMG GTR retains all of the amazing features of the standard car but now with a 585BHP twin turbo V8 under the bonnet and suspension tuned at the Nurburgring the AMG GTR earns its place on this list. And with a paint job called AMG Green Hell Magno how could it not make it.

4. Porsche 911R

I have been very critical of the 911 for a while now, even naming it the most overrated car in history (Click Here) I never liked the way it hadn’t changed in over 50 years and Porsche stubbornly kept it rear engined (although its moving forward at a frightening pace). Its quite clearly holding Porsche back as the brilliant Cayman GT4 showed last year, if Porsche gave the engineers the opportunity to push themselves they could create the greatest drivers car the world has ever seen, but no we just get the 911 year after year. But the 911R could be a sign of change from the Germans, doing away with the flashy rear wings of the GT3 GT2 and Turbo models in favour of a much more subtle design, favouring mechanincal grip over downforce. The 911R is a mechanical marvel taking the driver back to the old days, where it was a drivers skill that kept him on the road rather than the electronic aids. The 911R is the best 911 ever and will hopefully show the way Porsche are going rather than being a reminder of the good ole days.

3. Ford Focus RS

Weirdly the difficult decision this year was not choosing what the top car would be but rather the podium finishers. It was a choice of either my heart or my head, but I feel I’ve made the right choice in putting the RS in third. I am a massive Ford fan and the Focus RS is a fantastic car, it’s the rally bred monster we’ve been wanting for years. Its 2.3 litre turbocharged ecoboost engine along with All wheel drive make it a true hot hatch rivalling that of the Mercedes A45 AMG and the Golf R. And its got Drift mode! The Focus RS is one of my favourite cars this year, its handling and power combined make it a true world beater and all this starting at just over £30,000.

2. BMW M2

Just beating out the Focus RS is the BMW M2 and as you may have guessed this was my heads choice rather than my hearts. The M2’s predecessor the 1M Coupe was a really impressive car both on the track and on the road but somehow the M2 is even better its 370BHP engine powers the car to 62 in 4.3 seconds and on to the electronically limited top speed of 155MPH. the M2 is reminiscent of so many great cars, the 2002 Turbo, the original M3 even out side the Bavarian Motor Works in the MK2 VW Golf. The M2’s strength comes from its past, it carries the characteristics of some fantastic car and combines them into a greatest hits album for the ages.

1. Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio

Yes the car with the most Italian name in history has come out on top. When Alfa announced they were making a sports car to rival the M3 many laughed, they thought it would be a Chrysler 300C in drag and would fall far below the par set by the BMW, but those people were wrong. The Giulia is a bespoke Alfa Romeo with style and performance combined into sheer magnificence. The 2.9 litre biturbo V6 is operatic in comparison to the M3’s rather drab straight 6. The 510 horse power of the Alfa are some of the most boisterous rampant horses seen in recent times. Whereas the BMW M2 wins your head and the Focus RS wins your heart the Alfa wins both, its one of the most interesting and exciting cars on the road today and is truly deserving of my car of the year award

Congratulations Alfa Romeo

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The Big names join together for Electric cars

The car industry has reached a major milestone this week, by coming together to share knowledge and capabilities to further the evolution of electric cars. the BMW group, Daimler, Ford and the VW group including Audi and Porsche have come together to provide an ultra fast high power charging network across Europe. The plan is to evolve the charging process to the point that it is as quick and convenient as filling up a conventional car.

BMW: “This high-power charging network provides motorists with another strong argument to move towards electric mobility”, says Harald Krüger, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG.“The BMW Group has initiated numerous public charging infrastructure projects over the last years. The joint project is another major milestone clearly demonstrating that competitors are combining forces to ramp-up e-mobility.”

Daimler: “The breakthrough of e-mobility requires two things: convincing vehicles and a comprehensive charging infrastructure. With our new brand EQ, we are launching our electric product offensive: by 2025, our portfolio will include more than ten fully electric passenger cars. Together with our partners, we are now installing the highest-powered charging infrastructure in Europe”, says Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars. “The availability of high-power stations allows long-distance e-mobility for the first time and will convince more and more customers to opt for an electric vehicle.”

Ford: A reliable, ultra-fast charging infrastructure is important for mass consumer adoption and has the potential to transform the possibilities for electric driving”, says Mark Fields, president and CEO, Ford Motor Company. “Ford is committed to developing vehicles and technologies that make people’s lives better, and this charging network will make it easier and more practical for customers across Europe to own electrified vehicles.”

Audi:
“We intend to create a network that allows our customers on long-distance trips to use a coffee break for recharging”, says Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG. “Reliable fast charging services are a key factor for drivers to choose an electric vehicle. With this cooperation we want to boost a broader market adoption of e-mobility and speed up the shift towards emission-free driving.”

Porsche: “There are two decisive aspects for us: ultra-fast charging and placing the charging stations at the right positions”, says Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board of Porsche AG. “Together, these two factors enable us to travel in an all-electrically powered car as in a conventional combustion engine vehicle. As automobile manufacturer, we actively shape our future, not only by developing all-electrically powered vehicles but by building up the necessary infrastructure as well.”

This is certainly a huge step for the electric car, a unified motor industry is almost unstoppable in terms of innovation, creativity and design and if the companies can maintain this partnership, the forward thinking nature of the group will finally bring the electric car into being a viable option for everyone on the road, not just little old ladies who only go out once a week and have an annual mileage of less than 1000 miles.

Top 5 convertibles for a summer of topless fun

So summer is finally here, are we must grab hold of that sunlight while it lasts, because we know what the UK is like. But you don’t want to be all cooped up in a hard top during these gorgeous summer months, you want to be outside with a million miles of headroom and a fun sports car to spend your time in, so here are my top five cheap convertibles for a summer of fun.

5. Toyota MR2

Now the MR2 has always been a rather forgotten little convertible, far over shadowed by its Japanese brother the Mazda MX5, but it shouldn’t be, because the MR2 is a great little car for the summer, fun to drive and still nice to look at, it combines everything you want in a sports car. Although later models didn’t come with some essentials, like a boot which is insane these days, its still a great car, and to be honest one I think Toyota could do with bringing back.

4. Honda S2000

The Honda S2000 may be long gone and dead, but it can still hang with even the newest of the convertibles, and is likely to be a classic someday. More powerful and bigger than the MX5 it still managed to keep the tight handling and fun of it. Again this is certainly a car that could be brought back by Honda, and its hard to understand why they haven’t yet. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a new one in the coming years, but in the meantime you can pick up an old one for less than £5,000.

3. Porsche Boxster

if you were one of those people who thought the only reason you bought a Boxster was because you could afford a 911, then you missed out on probably one of the best cars of the last 10 years, the Boxster was fun as hell to drive, yet comfortable enough to be a daily driver. The Boxster is certainly in the 911 shadow though, and now even the Caymans, I even had someone come and ask me why Porsche don’t do a convertible Cayman. I swiftly slapped them for forgetting a great little car, then pointed them in the direction of the nearest Porsche dealer.

2. Fiat Barchetta

The Fiat Barchetta is a fantastic car, plain and simple. I could just stop there but I don’t want to. The Barchetta is a car you love, you know it has flaws like being front wheel drive, and being quite unreliable. But you completely forget about those flaws, when your bumbling down the road, with the sun in the sky, the open road laid out in front of you, and your in a bright yellow Italian sports car, perfect day? I think so.

1. Mazda MX5

Of course it was, there’s not much about the MX5 I could say that hasn’t been said before, I could tell you about the great handling, or the pretty looks, or the way it harks back to the classic British sports cars of the 50’s and 60’s. but all you need to know is that you need to drive own, it is a bucket list for about the price of a bucket. Even as it gets older Mazda still find a way to keep it at the top, in price spec looks and handling the MX5 is number one on any list.

Ferrari LaFerrari Spider Confirmed

 

The Ferrari LaFerrari is one of the top cars in the world right now and is set to get a little bit better in 2017. In an interview with Automobile, Sergio Marchionne CEO of Ferrari confirmed that the Spider was in development and that potential customers had already been approached. One of these customers is professional Chef and swearing enthusiast Gordon Ramsey, who on the debut episode of Top Gear confirmed he would be getting one, and was able to show off the key given to him by Ferrari.

Practically nothing is known about the Spider as Ferrari has only just confirmed it themselves, but Autocar magazine speculates that it will have a similar electric folding roof arrangement as both the California and 488 Spider. Another option for the Spider would be a removable targa top similar to Koenigseggs much of the other options for the LaFerrari will likely be the same including the 950BHP V12 hybrid engine.

This will also leave Ferrari rivals McLaren as the only company of the big three to not have a convertible version of their hyper car as the Porsche 918 Spyder had a removable roof from launch. While no convertible P1 has been announced it is likely we will see one emerge by the end of the year in concept form at least as McLaren will just be leaving money on the table for the other players to just pick up.

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