Ad Feature
List
Everything you need to know about cars this week: 30 Aug '20
This week we get a go in the new Bugatti Divo, and much besides
Seven things we learned about the new VW Golf GTI Mk8
"The Mk8 Golf GTI is four seconds faster around VW’s internal handling track at Ehra-Lessien than the Mk7. Some of that is down to its new tyres, but Volkswagen insists a big player in the new car going quicker despite having the same 242bhp as the old one is… the computer."
Advertisement - Page continues belowChange our mind: MPVs should come back from the dead
"You may paint me as an incredibly sad individual, but I think MPVs rule. With the increased consumption of crossovers and the rise of the now-ubiquitous SUV, the poor MPV has become remarkably unfashionable to both marketing departments and consumers. Which is a shame, as we love a good ol’ MPV."
Review: BMW M8 Gran Coupe
"A big-mile GT bruiser that feels hugely impressive, if not outright exhilarating"
Advertisement - Page continues belowHere's Nissan's boss on the future of the GT-R and Z
"It’s not easy being Makoto Uchida. He took over as president and CEO at the turn of 2020, as the company plunged towards a colossal loss of £5bn for the year. He soon announced an intention to close factories to try to save some dough."
This tuned Mercedes G63 has a troubling 927bhp
"Using the already overpowered Mercedes G63, it rolled up its sleeves and managed to unlock a further 350bhp - that’s right, an entire hot hatch more - out of the 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8, taking the total to 927bhp and 943lb ft of torque. How? With a pair of larger custom turbochargers, as well as newly ported cylinder heads, improved valve seats, a new exhaust system, and scant regard for societal norms."
Why the Land Rover Defender should change SUVs
"The Land Rover Defender. I don’t wish to be contrary, but I’m not really into it. I think I’m immune to the apparently insatiable excitement that surrounds its great comeback - the one that’s seemingly years and arguably decades late. Yet after spending a few days with a D240 110, I hope it inspires a sea change in the SUV market."
This is the base for McLaren’s new hybrid supercars
"It has been designed specifically to accommodate hybrid powertrains, allowing the British supercar company to transition to 100 per cent electrified supercars. 'For us, lightweighting and electrification go hand-in-hand to achieve better performance as well as more efficient vehicles,' McLaren boss Mike Flewitt said."
Advertisement - Page continues belowGaming review: Project CARS 3 is totally remixed
"Project CARS 3 is a game in the midst of an identity crisis. Whereas the previous two games in the series were pitched as hardcore motorsport simulators for the sort of people who wear their racing boots to bed, this third game, out now on Xbox One, PS4 and PC, has been remixed as a more accessible, arcadey take. It’s like Black Sabbath releasing an album full of bubblegum pop songs."
Porsche 718 Boxster GTS 4.0 review: first UK drive
"There you are in third, at the national speed limit, and the engine hasn’t even properly got into its stride. You want to be using the third/fourth plane on all your great local roads, but if you want to have the engine singing, you’ve got to deal with a dogleg. It’s plain irritating. But more than that it makes the car feel more sluggish than it should. This nat asp GTS, which replaces the outgoing turbo’d 2.5 four cylinder, should be snappy and alert but the most vivacious bit of the rev band is more difficult to visit in the gear you want to be in than it should be."
Advertisement - Page continues belowR-Reforged will make ‘continuation’ cars road-legal
"Here’s the amusing thing about ‘continuation’ cars like Aston Martin’s gorgeous £1.5m DB4 GT. The headlines might be all LOOK AT AMAZING SHINY NEW OLD THING, but the small print usually runs along the lines of amazing shiny new old thing not allowed on road."
This is the newly facelifted Range Rover Evoque
"Land Rover only introduced us to the second generation Evoque in 2018, but it’s already given the baby of the Range Rover family a mid-life update with a new Autobiography spec and some fresh diesel engines."
The new Porsche Panamera now has a Turbo S version
"Let us run you through the new model range for the facelifted Porsche Panamera. Deep breath; there’s now the Panamera, Panamera 4, Panamera 4 Executive, Panamera 4 Sport Turismo, Panamera GTS, Panamera GTS Sport Turismo, Panamera Turbo S, Panamera Turbo S Executive, Panamera Turbo S Sport Turismo, Panamera 4S E-Hybrid, Panamera 4S E-Hybrid Executive and the Panamera 4S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo. Crikey."
Watch this Tesla Model 3 qualify third at Pikes Peak
"We know Teslas are quick to 60mph. And they’re pretty handy around a track, too. But what about in a sprint up the most formidable mountain in motorsport?"
The 666bhp Lister Stealth is a 195mph modified Jag F-Pace
"We did warn you it was coming. Like, two years ago, when Lister first revealed its intention to take a Jaguar F-Pace SVR – not what you’d call ‘slow’ – and give it a little boost. Said boost comes via a custom intercooler and air filtration system, plus upgraded dual supercharger pulleys bolted onto Jag’s 5.0-litre supercharged V8, delivering a whopping 666bhp and 650lb ft of torque."
New Aston Martin DB5 is a kid's dream come true
"The DB5 Junior is 3m long and 1.1m wide and designed to fit an adult and child alongside each other. An electric motor sends 5kW of power to the rear wheels and will propel the car to a 30mph top speed. That’s quite fast when you’re 4, although do make sure they can reach the pedals before you let them loose – the DB5 Junior costs £35,000 before taxes."
Meet the Team Fordzilla P1, a new Ford hypercar
"It was designed in collaboration with Ford fans, 225,000 of which voted online on such things as the seating position, cockpit style and drivetrain. The latter – at least judging by the teaser video released by Ford – appears to suggest some form of combustion engine. Considering Ford designer Arturo Ariño’s explicit referencing of the Ford GT, TopGear.com speculates it could well be that supercar’s 3.5-litre EcoBoost V6."
Here’s your first look at the new Mercedes-AMG SL Roadster
"The Mercedes-Benz SL will soon become the Mercedes-AMG SL. That’s right, AMG has been tasked with building one of Mercedes-Benz’s most iconic cars, here undergoing “wide-ranging dynamic driving tests” in prototype form."
AC Schnitzer’s wild M8 Gran Coupe has 720bhp
"A new control unit means AC’s M8 GC (that’s a tongue twister) has 720bhp and 627lb ft. Crikey. There’s no word on what that does to the standard car’s low threes 0-62mph or its near 190mph top speed, but we reckon the former drops significantly and the latter rises towards the double-tonne."
Bugatti Divo review: £5.4m hyper GT driven
"You quickly realise the engineering genius of this car is that its capabilities are so far removed from normality and yet it’s as easy to see out of and drive normally as (cliché incoming) a DSG Golf. Honestly, it’s ability to cope easily with less than perfect roads is out of this world."
Yes, you must buy this rally-spec Fiat Panda 4x4
"Panda Raid embodies the spirit of the original Dakar and invites over 300 amateur teams each year to travel 3,000km across Spain and Morocco without any internet access or GPS. Oh, and of course that all has to be done in either two- or four-wheel drive first-generation Fiat Pandas. Fantastic. "
Mugen has tuned the adorable Honda S660
"Adorable kei car news from Japan! This is a Honda S660 modified by Mugen, and we need little else in our lives. Any possessions that won’t fit in its diminutive storage areas aren’t worth hanging onto. Let’s call it the Marie Kondo car."
TG's big EV glossary: the A to Z of what every electric car term means
"Much like clowns, making sense of electric vehicle terminology can seem daunting, and even downright scary. But, unlike clowns, electric vehicles can actually be really entertaining and are unlikely to emotionally scar your children for life."
Trending this week
- Car Review
