Table of contents for 1843 in Auto Express

Richard_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @rsp_ingram All-electric executive gets a new look to take on BMW i5 Sportback and Avant bodystyles are offered, plus sporty S6 “The A6 displays strong visual links with its sister Q6 e-tron SUV” THE new Audi A6 is here, and the company-car favourite has been given a new lease of life with an aero-optimised design and a range of electric powertrains. The A6 e-tron Sportback and A6 e-tron Avant have been revealed in tandem, ahead of their UK launch later this year. Headline stats include up to 750km (466 miles) of range, 270kW ultra-rapid charging, and a set of advanced digital lights with eight customisable designs. Rear and quattro four-wheel drive models will be offered, as well as a near-500bhp S6 capable of 0-62mph in 3.9 seconds. As with…

Chris_rosamond@autovia.co.uk New figures show annual increase in UK EV charging network, but regions lag behind the capital THE latest figures from the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) show there’s been a 47 per cent increase in the number of electric car chargepoint installations across the UK in the last 12 months. However, the numbers also highlight the huge regional disparity in provision of this vital infrastructure for electric-car drivers. As of early July 2024, there were 64,632 chargers installed across the UK, says OZEV. Yet, while Londoners enjoy 234 chargepoints per 100,000 of population and there are 96 chargers per 100k across the UK as a whole, the figure for chargepoints in Northern Ireland is a woeful 32 chargers per 100,000. Other regions that are behind the average include…

CAR buyers who were mis-sold finance may have to wait for compensation, because the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has delayed its investigation into broker arrangements until May next year – eight months later than expected. Often described as the ‘next PPI scandal’, the whole issue surrounds the concept of non-disclosed Discretionary Commission Agreements: an arrangement between a finance lender and dealer, which allows the latter to secretly and artificially adjust interest rates to rake in more commission. This practice was banned in 2021, but the Financial Ombudsman, along with tens of thousands of complainants, called on the FCA to investigate. The review was announced in January 2024, with results expected to be published in September. However, the FCA has decided to delay its verdict until May 2025. It has also…

Chris_Rosamond@autovia.co.uk WE’VE already published our new-car model winners from the 2024 Driver Power customer-satisfaction survey (Issue 1,835). Now the UK’s major brands take their turn in the spotlight, as we crunch the numbers to rank those that provide the greatest level of satisfaction to their owners, based on the thousands of responses to the Driver Power poll. The format is similar to the new-car survey, but instead of comparing and ranking responses for individual models, we collate data for a range of vehicles from respective brands to give a picture of the overall satisfaction level each provides. As with the new-model poll, responses are generated across 10 Driver Power categories, with each score made up from a variety of responses to detailed questions about vehicle or ownership attributes that are…

Dean_Gibson@autovia.co.uk @DeanGbsn Running costs 42.1mpg (official) £65 fill-up Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 570/2,162 litres IF you’re looking for practical family transport, it might seem as if the only options available these days are SUVs. But delve a little deeper and there are niches out there that can offer more space per pound than the average crossover. And one that delivers the best ratio of all is the van-based MPV. With car makers ditching their dedicated people carriers in favour of 4x4-themed family models, it’s been left to these commercial-vehicle derivatives to take up the mantle for buyers looking for as much space as possible. Whether you’re loading up with dogs, bikes or wheelchairs, these models make cargo and passenger carrying a breeze. But there have been changes in the van-based…

MODEL TESTED: Juke Hybrid 143 Tekna+ PRICE: £31,995 POWERTRAIN: 1.6-litre 4cyl petrol hybrid, 141bhp 141bhp Powertrain 1.6 litre 4cyl hybrid 46 litres Fuel tank £67 fill up 10.1 seconds Performance 103mph 354 litres Seats up/down 1,237 litres AN update introduced earlier in 2024 saw yellow return to the Juke’s colour options, but most of the other changes took place inside, although the hybrid powertrain is now offered across a broader range of trim levels. The hybrid we’re testing here is in top-spec Tekna+ guise. Tech highlights THE Juke is based on the same CMF-B platform as sister brand Renault’s Captur, and Nissan’s hybrid system uses a variation of the French car’s petrol-electric powertrain. Here it comprises a 93bhp 1.6-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine and a 48bhp electric motor, and together…

SAME CLASS Renault Captur A RECENT facelift helps the Captur stay at the front of the small SUV pack. There are sharper looks and a boost to the in-car tech, with Google-based infotainment providing a welcome upgrade when compared with the old car’s system. The hybrid set-up is just as effective here as it is in the Nissan, although the 1.0 TCe model is a little underpowered in comparison. What hasn’t changed is the Captur’s relative practicality, because while it shares its running gear with the Juke, there’s more space on offer. It’s not quite as big as the T-Roc, but a 422-litre boot in five-seat mode can be expanded to 536 litres with the sliding bench fully forwards. • Competitive pricing• Decent space• Efficient hybrid • Ordinary to drive•…

Paul_Adam@autovia.co.uk I’M usually pretty good at making up my mind about whether I like something or not; films, music, sport – I’ve got strong opinions on most of life’s more divisive topics. Normally, that would include everything to do with cars, too, but I’ve reached an unusual impasse with my Toyota C-HR long-term test car. After almost three months and 1,600 miles of driving, I just can’t decide on my true feelings towards the funky hybrid SUV. When the C-HR was delivered back in April, my first impressions were largely positive; its dramatic styling and smart Midnight Teal metallic paintwork are a classy combination, while the distinctive 19-inch machined alloys add a more muscular look that works well with the C-HR’s squat, sporty exterior. It’s a striking design that definitely…

WE return to one of the UK’s biggest-selling tyre sizes for our 2024 summer tyre test: 225/45 R17. It’s three years since we put this size through the comprehensive Auto Express test mill, and as you’d expect of such a high-volume sector, some brands have launched replacements for tyres that competed last time. These include Michelin, Goodyear, Continental and Bridgestone, while Pirelli, Vredestein and reigning champion Hankook return with ostensibly the same tyres, and Falken joins the fray. As ever, our long-established and exhaustive test delivers all the data you need to help you make an informed choice when replacing your car’s tyres. This year we’ve increased the scope of the test; in addition to recording cabin noise levels, we have made a subjective assessment of refinement – road noise…

I SERIOUSLY wonder if car manufacturers, train operators, opportunist politicians and others charging inflation-shattering prices for their goods and ‘services’ will ever understand that – increasingly and idiotically – they’re pricing their customers out of the market. It’s not that consumers don’t want to buy new cars, travel on rush-hour trains or get a foot on the housing ladder. Instead, it’s more a case of them being financially prohibited from doing so – regardless of how hard they study, work and save. They’re innocent, hopelessly stuck victims paralysed by a new British ‘system’ that denies them the spending power their parents had in decades past. When I was in my late teens/early twenties, my modest salary as a junior reporter was enough to get me a mortgage and the ability…

Ellis_Hyde@autovia.co.uk @EllisDrives Petrol and plug-in hybrid on sale now; full hybrid is due in 2025 Starting price of £24,995 undercuts Qashqai, Sportage and Kuga MG has been keeping us on our toes in 2024 with a new-car blitz that includes the excellent MG3 hybrid supermini and long-awaited Cyberster sports car. But while the second-generation MG HS might not capture the imagination in the way a pure-electric roadster can, it’s arguably more important for the brand. The outgoing car was MG UK’s most popular model, and so far this year is mixing it with the top-10 best-selling cars in the country. It has appealed, first and foremost, to budget-conscious buyers by dramatically undercutting competition in the popular mid-size SUV class. And so does the new version; prices start from £24,995, which…

Jordan_Katsianis@autovia.co.uk EV4 reveal expected this year Shares much with EV3 SUV THE funky Kia EV3 SUV is about to get a sleek fastback sibling, with the new EV4 soon to join the Korean brand’s rapidly growing electric-car line up. Spied undergoing testing on European roads, the new car has yet to be confirmed for UK sale. However, if it does arrive here, it’ll be one of the few sub-Tesla Model 3-sized saloons on the market. While few official details have been released regarding the production version of the EV4, we do have two solid reference points that give us a pretty clear picture of what’s in store. The recently launched EV3 reveals the technical details we can expect, while the EV4 concept from 2023 gives us plenty of clues about…

AFTER months of teaser images and a steady drip-feed of information, say hi to the all-new Volkswagen Transporter van and Shuttle MPV (pictured, right). This is the latest iteration of VW’s popular medium panel van, and the sister model to the best-selling Ford Transit Custom. It’s available in two body lengths and heights; the standard version is 5,050mm long – a 146mm increase over the outgoing version. The regular roof height is still less than two metres tall, though, so drivers can access multi-storey car parks. The basic Transporter now offers 5.8 cubic metres of load space. However, versions with the extended wheelbase and high roof can accommodate up to nine cubic metres of cargo, and boast a maximum load length of 3,002mm. As well as the traditional van, a…

mail@autoexpress.co.uk @AutoExpress Overgrowth is a sign of poor maintenance FROM: Jeff Gregory RECENTLY after travelling through several counties in the north, I encountered road signs obstructed with foliage on numerous occasions. If it wasn’t for my sat-nav, I would have missed my turning. It all comes down to a lack of maintenance, and don’t get me started on potholes! Ford Capri continues to make waves FROM: Keith Partridge FROM the publicity photos issued so far, the new Ford Capri appears to be a design disaster. It just looks like an extension of the company’s Kuga and Puma models. The sleek MG Cyber GTS concept (Issue 1,840) is exactly what the Capri should have looked like. Luxury car tax: what about PHEVs? FROM: Bob Jackson I HAVE just read your article…

Alastair_Crooks@autovia.co.uk @AllieCrooks Performance 0-62mph/top speed 9.7 seconds/113mph Running costs 42.2mpg (official) £97 fill-up SITTING at the top of Kia’s internal-combustion engine range is the seven-seat Sorento SUV, which has just been given a nip and tuck for 2024. The pre-facelift model was one of our favourite family SUVs, partly thanks to the breadth of choice in its range, with diesel, hybrid and plug-in hybrid power offered. The trim choice shrunk towards the end of the outgoing car’s life to just a single ‘Edition’ spec, but thankfully Kia has now expanded the Sorento line-up to nine different configurations, with 2, 3 and 4 trim levels offered in conjunction with any of the three engine options. So it’s a good start for the Sorento, then. We’ve driven the facelifted SUV in the…

Paul.Barker@carwow.co.uk @paulbarkerauto VOLKSWAGEN’s range-topping electric car has a new flagship version, with the arrival of this ID. Buzz GTX. The GTX branding, already seen on the ID.4 and ID.5 and coming soon to the ID.3 and ID.7, is a more powerful alternative to the regular models, yet it’s not a full-on electric GTI. So there’s more power and a stronger kit list, but nothing else to make it quicker through the corners. The Buzz is unlike anything else on sale, with its head-turning retro styling, huge space and practicality, and hefty price tag. The GTX lifts two of those three elements: the looks courtesy of some new alloy wheel options, colour choices and interior upgrades, and the price – estimated (but not finalised) to be more than £70,000. That’s at…

MODEL TESTED: T-Roc 1.5 TSI 150PS DSG Match PRICE: £31,815 POWERTRAIN: 1.5-litre 4cyl turbo petrol, 148bhp 148bhp Powertrain 1.5 litre 4cyl 50 litres Fuel tank £72 fill up 8.4 secs Performance 129mph 445 litres Seats up/down 1,290 litres WHILE we’re assessing the top-spec Juke here, Match trim on the Volkswagen T-Roc is a special edition that slots in just above the entry-level Style model. We’re testing it with a DSG automatic gearbox for consistency when compared with the Nissan, although the T-Roc in our pictures features VW’s six-speed manual. Tech highlights THE T-Roc is based on the VW Group’s tried-and-tested MQB scalable architecture for transverse engines, and it shares common parts with the SEAT Ateca, Skoda Karoq and Audi Q2. As with those cars, front and four-wheel-drive set-ups are offered,…

GENEROUS deposit contributions are available on both cars tested here, with VW offering the bigger incentive. There’s an extra £2,250 towards the T-Roc, while the Juke has an additional £1,500 put forward by the dealer. Come up with a £3,000 deposit, and the monthly repayments on a 36-month PCP with a 10,000-mile annual limit come to £440 for the VW and £453 for the Nissan. That means Juke buyers will pay £451 extra over three years, but when you factor in other costs, the VW’s advantage is cancelled out. Chief among them will be fuel, because if you match our test figures, then the Juke will save buyers around £350 over the same three-year period, while the car’s hybrid status means that road tax is £10 a year cheaper. Our…

SMALL SUVs These models try to offer style and substance in an affordable package, with varying degrees of success John McIlroy Editor-at-large “IF you’re a fan of the bright-yellow finish of the Juke in our test, then new N-Sport trim could be for you. It adds a yellow flash across the top of the dashboard (although how it reflects in the windscreen remains to be seen), plus yellow stitching and seat trim.” Rich Ingram Deputy editor “IT’S good to see that Nissan is reviving the sporting Nismo badge with the Ariya electric SUV, but if there are plans for a revival of the Juke Nismo, it’ll need to be a lot better than the old one. That car was too uncomfortable to be practical and failed to deliver the ability…

MG’S UK product boss has hinted to Auto Express that the new ZS could be unveiled as early as the end of August. The incoming Mk2 version of the popular compact SUV would complete MG’s onslaught of new models for 2024. Since February it has introduced the MG3 hybrid supermini, Cyberster sports car and HS mid-size SUV (left). But head of product and planning for MG UK, David Allison, told us: “I’ve got to say, of all of the cars that we’re launching or will have launched this year, as an overall package I think the new ZS is actually the best of them all. It’s packaged really well, the interior is lovely and It drives extremely well.” He also revealed that from launch, the new ZS will feature the…

Mazda duo get extra kit, stronger engine MAZDA has updated its 3 and CX-30 models for the 2025 model year. The big news for the pair (above) is the introduction of a more powerful 2.5-litre Skyactiv-G engine with 138bhp, which replaces the old 120bhp 2.0-litre. Elsewhere, every variant features integrated Amazon Alexa, and cloud-based navigation updates; the Mazda 3 is available to order now, with the CX-30 crossover arriving in the autumn. Tesla has new look for Model Y in the works A PAIR of spy pictures of the facelifted Tesla Model Y have surfaced online, just months after CEO Elon Musk told us “no refresh is coming out this year”. Dubbed ‘Juniper’, the new Model Y is expected to take design inspiration from the updated Model 3, with the…

Legal AA: 0345 850 1130 (m) RAC: 0330 159 1446 (m) Citizens Advice Consumer helpline: 03454 040506 Local Trading Standards Local Citizens Advice Bureau Used car inspections AA: 0800 056 8040 RAC: 0330 159 0720 Technical advice AA: 0370 142 0002 (m) Driving licences DVLA: 0300 790 6801 Car registration/history HPI: 0113 222 2010 AA: 0800 316 3564 DVLA: 0300 790 6802 RAC: 0808 164 1923 Traffic information AA: 0906 888 4322 RAC: 09003 444999 (p) Problems with dealers The Motor Ombudsman: 0345 241 3008 Consumer Ombudsman: www.consumer-ombudsman.org RMIF: 0845 305 4230 Scottish Motor Trade Assoc. 0131 331 5510 Problems with makers The Motor Ombudsman: 0345 241 3008 Financial problems Financial Ombudsman: 0800 023 4567 Safety concerns/recalls www.check-mot.service.gov.uk…

Alex_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @AxleIngram Practicality Boot (seats up/down) 570/1,700 litres Electric motor Power/range 335bhp/329 miles SO far in 2024, roughly 16 per cent of the new-car market has been accounted for by fully electric vehicles. With not far shy of one in five cars sold taking their energy solely from a plug, it’s not surprising to find a wide range of EV bodystyles available; from superminis to saloons with a vast number of SUVs between, there’s plenty of choice. However, there is one area that has been rather neglected: estate cars. Regardless of your budget, if you want an EV estate, you’ll find slim pickings. Stellantis recently doubled the choice on offer by releasing two in quick succession: the Peugeot E-308 and Vauxhall Astra Electric. The other two are the MG5 (great…

WINNER Volkswagen T-Roc 1st THE big advantage that the T-Roc has over the Juke is the space that it offers. Its exterior dimensions are manageable, but there’s enough space on board that it can be considered a practical family car. While the 1.5 TSI engine isn’t the most efficient unit around, and it’s not as smooth as the Nissan’s hybrid system, it still offers plenty of pulling power and the DSG gearbox is a slick shifter. It has a decent balance between handling and comfort, too. • Decent space• Responsive engine• Smooth DSG gearbox• Comfortable ride • Fiddly climate controls• Hesitancy at lower revs• Petrol engine’s efficiency• Doesn’t offer much over a Golf INTERESTED? Scan the code for further information RUNNER-UP Nissan Juke 2nd THERE’S no doubt that the hybrid powertrain…

SAME MONEY Volkswagen Tiguan AN all-new Tiguan has just hit showrooms, so prices for the outgoing car have dropped. As a result you can get behind the wheel of a 12-month-old model that features the same 148bhp 1.5 TSI and DSG gearbox as the T-Roc for a similar price. You’ll get more space for your money and there’s similar tech on board, while the driving experience will also be familiar, although the larger car won’t be quite as efficient. • Practical family transport• Decent equipment • Dull to drive• Nondescript looks SAME MONEY Nissan Qashqai AS with the Tiguan, the Qashqai has also been subject to an update, and there are pre-facelift cars available for prices that match the Juke’s. The Qashqai also comes as a hybrid, but it’s a…

Alastair_Crooks@autovia.co.uk @AllieCrooks OUR Vauxhall Corsa has been hard at work since it arrived on fleet in April, covering 4,569 miles in the months since. But it’s time to put it into neutral, stick the handbrake on (yes, it’s got an old-school physical lever instead of a button) and soak up the Corsa’s updated look. To my eyes at least, automotive facelifts rarely work. I’m purely talking about subjective visual elements here rather than the technical side, and when it comes to design, surely the original is always best? Well, not when it comes to the facelifted current-generation Corsa. And yes, I know we’re not exactly talking about a masterpiece in automotive design, but bear with me. We reported recently on the new Lancia Ypsilon (sadly not destined for the UK),…

TYRE TESTING AT ITS VERY BEST EIGHT TYRES, 10 DISCIPLINES, ONE WINNER WHAT WE TESTED TO circumvent problems with supply and stock in the UK, we sourced all eight tyres from the open market via an independent wholesale supplier in Germany. Each maker nominated the tyre for us to test, the majority opting for a speed rating of Y (up to 186mph), and the rest W (168mph), with weight ratings from 90 to 94. EU label ratings are included for fuel economy (RR – rolling resistance) and wet grip (WG). These range from A to E, with A best. We also give pass-by noise (N), which is measured in decibels, so the lower the number the better. Bridgestone Potenza Sport 94Y RR: D WG: A N: B (72) Continental PremiumContact…

mail@autoexpress.co.uk IN spite of the A1’s premium feel, the smallest car in the Audi line-up only manages to scrape into the top half of our survey in a couple of subcategories, ranking 17th for drivetrain smoothness and 18th for visibility from the driver’s seat. Front-seat comfort is only 36th, though, while interior quality and finish is 45th, one place ahead of the A1’s rating for exterior style. Ride quality and braking responsiveness/smoothness are 48th and driving pleasure 47th. Value for money isn’t great, at 42nd, but owners quite like the supermini’s safety systems and sat-nav, which are ranked 26th and 27th respectively. Practicality is definitely not a strong point, with a 47th placing overall. WE SAID “The A1 looks sporty, but the reality is less exciting on the road, although it…