Skoda has an admirable tradition of building cars which fit wonderfully in your daily motoring life. They are dependable, sturdy, practical and roomy. Last but not least, they offer a lot of value for money. Over the years, Skoda’s have also become a hallmark of elegant styling, and indeed the rakish, clean lines of this latest Scala are also quite inspiring. Needless to say that we were quite interested to take the car through its paces in a full test…
Electrification is amongst us, and the oldest manufacturer in the world has the panache and experience to come up with a truly stunning vehicle. The EQC 400. An impressive Mercedes in every aspect. Aimed at the higher market segments, and rightly so. It creates first of all an upmarket image for fully electric vehicles, and it targets a well to do clientele which has invariably charging points at home and at the office or workplace, making them less dependent on the public charging infrastructure, which is still seen to be (very) deficient in some EU countries.
A prudent strategy adopted also by other premium car manufacturers, like Audi for instance with their e-tron.
After driving a few days – a full battery charge – with this superb car with the star, we can say that this car sets indeed the standards for what electric driving can be… Just read further!
We drove for you the new 2020 Stelvio and Giulia in Puglia: revised interiors, infotainment and advanced driver assistance systems make Alfa driving even more stunning… Here we parked it in fort of the Borgo Egnazia Hotel, where the event was held…
Driving an Alfa should be on the bucket list of every car enthusiast, and indeed blessed are those who can sit in their daily life behind the iconic three spoked steering wheel of an Alfa, and even more, can call it their own.
The ever more elegant Giulia in the alleys of Borgo Egnazio Resort…
This unique driving pleasure is now further brought into the digital age, adding to the sheer driving dynamics and bringing it to an even higher level.
Alberto Cavvagioni, Head of Alfa Romeo Brand EMEA, presented to us the further steps of Alfa entering into the digital age…
We flew to beautiful Puglia to see and try it out for you, and soon you will read in these columns here the full report of our delightful Alfa experience in the stunning surroundings of Bari and the Borgo Egnezia resort hotel.
Hans Knol ten Bensel
The Giulia and Stelvio now benefit from a new interior, revised materials and dashboard layouts. The infotainment has also been overhauled with connected services, touchscreen, completely redesigned human-machine interface, and new ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) and level 2 autonomous driving systems, of which (much) more soon.
The iconic names used on the Alfa’s of the sixties and seventies are also back, and sound wonderful to the Alfa connoisseurs’ ears: Veloce, Veloce TI and Sprint for the Stelvio, and TI, Super for the Giulia, with a Business badge thrown in to suit the fleet market in these modern times.
Last but not least, there is also a whole new colour range, to fully express new emotions, closely linked to the brand’s tradition.
At the event, Leasys and FCA Bank introduced “I-Link” by Leasys, a service designed to strengthen the link between Alfa Romeo customers and the new forms of shared mobility.
Marcella Merli, Head of Sales and Marketing, FCA Bank, explains to us the merits of sharing the Alfa experience through i-Link…
Indeed, sharing the Alfa Romeo driving experience could or should be on the cards, we think!
Much more of all this later in depth with separate reports…
Of course, we had the opportunity to drive classic Alfa’s too…
The original Jeep has grown into an absolute icon. One loves its shape, its purposeful compactness, its go anywhere usability. Modern urban dwellers love to inject its pure, outdoorish character into their lifestyle, and therefore what better thing to do than to choose this Jeep Renegade. It approaches the dimensions of the original, and also the body contours and cabin design take you fully into the Jeep world.
Like its veteran original, the Renegade we
tested has also a small four cylinder petrol engine under the hood, but that is
where, so many decades later, all comparison ends. Because this Renegade is
crammed with the very latest state of the art technology the FCA group has to
offer, and then we are not even talking about the PHEV version, which we recently
announced in these columns.
This Renegade has impressed us, and quite
frankly, it does the Jeep name (very) proud. Just read on…
We already told you, dear reader, in our “teaser” about our venue to the “Luigi Ridolfi” Federal Technical Centre in Coverciano (FIorence), to have a stint at the wheel of the new Fiat 500X Sport.
The 500 X is the most global model of the
Fiat range. This iconic compact crossover is designed and engineered in Italy
and built in the FCA factory in Melfi. It was launched in 2014, but has lost
none of its appeal, as it has been renewed last year. Now the 500 X accentuates
sportsmanship, and emerges as an alternative to compact C-segment cars with a
sporty look.
If you want to experience what Lexus really stands for, than get behind the wheel of this sleek and stylish ES300h: smooth comfort and roominess, technical perfection, sleek and velvety power, a full luxury cabin, and totally stunning economy. It embodies it all, in a masterful and very attractive way.
Of course, you must like sedans. We still
do, and let us tell you right away, we were totally sold on this Lexus. We
drove it extensively, and took it also to the French capital of light. We
couldn’t think of a more appropriate transport to the city of elegance and
savoir vivre…
Driving the future. Now. Literally, without any strings or plugs attached. That is what Lexus driving is all about. Superbly engineered, dramatically styled. With an eye for quality and modern day luxury: this is what Lexus’s most compact SUV offers you.
It runs on the new GA-C-platform, which is also seen in the new
Corolla. It shares also (most) of its drivetrain. Indeed, the well known 2
litre Atkinson Cycle four cylinder plays here the fiddle in harmony with its
electric cousin under the bonnet, in clever hybrid fashion, just like in the
Corolla. This means absolute technical perfection and utmost reliability is
yours to enjoy. But that is not all. The bodywork of this SUV has what it takes
to please you, both inside and out. Just read further…
There are cars which are true benchmarks,
and when it comes to a dynamic sedan, then the BMW 3 series is the absolute
standard to which all others are judged. It embodies all BMW stands for, and it
is also their most successful model. Therefore it is carefully honed to
perfection by its maker with every new generation they build. The 3 series is now
in its seventh generation, introduced at the Paris Salon last year. We can tell
you, it is and remains a true joy to drive and own.
We drove the economical and smooth 2 litre Diesel
unit, which has with 190 HP enough zest to let the car display its sportiness
and handling.
The truth is now known to us all: to save our planet we need a lot more trees. We would add, we also need a good car to go with it: and this could very well be the clever and superbly built Subaru Forester…
It is a car which continues to surprise and
amaze us. The engineering is top notch, it performs like a dream, has terrific
4WD, gets you wherever you want to go, in all seasons, in all circumstances and
weather conditions, is indestructible and getting ever more frugal too.
Toyota and Lexus are friends of the earth since decades. They offer E power in hybrid form across their whole range now, and this started already back in 1997 with the Prius, a car which has been a star on Californian (and many other) roads worldwide ever since.
The hybrid drivetrain of this car is
nothing short of a stroke of genius, and therefore hardly surprising that it is
also seen on the Lexus range. Faithful readers know that I am the happy owner
of a Lexus CT 200h, a car which is running around with an average consumption
between 3.9 and 4.6 litres/100 km.
The subject of this test is also to find out whether the continuously further developed hybrid system brings further gains in efficiency compared to my faithful Lexus.
Autoprova - for the Connaisseur 