CAR Reviews

A new Defender! Though the old girl still looks much the same as she did 60 years ago You’re right – the Defender traces its ancestry back to 1948 and remains the granddaddy of off-roaders, the Morgan...

What's so special about this evil-looking bit of kit? It's a harder, faster and lighter Lamborghini Gallardo, a kind of pre-emptive strike against the Ferrari F430 Challenge Stradale due for launch...

A new Aston Martin convertible? Indeed, but don’t call it that, or even a Volante: this is the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster. Those five words will set you back £91,000, £8k more than the coupe.

Dodge’s European assault continues then? Sure does, after the introduction of the Caliber last year Dodge is now offering us its new Avenger. It’s the Caliber’s big brother, competing in the D-sector,...

Not exactly the shy and retiring sort is it? Come on, this is a product of Vauxhall’s VXR division, a sub-marque that makes a point of being ruder, lairier and louder than any of its rivals. So while...

Seven years since the last, an all-new C-Class. What are the highlights? Mercedes has gone back to basics with the new C. Keen to banish memories of the E-class quality/breakdown/recall debacle, it...

So what's Mercedes come up with to mark the SLK's first decade? The SLK Edition 10, a special version of the roadster with some very special paint. No different mechanically from the existing...

Is this the much vaunted ‘Jeep for ladies’ then? Well sort of. This is Jeep’s first ‘compact sport utility’ and it’s hoping the softer more modern lines will appeal to drivers who want a Jeep but...

Er, help me out, I’ve been staring at the picture, pen poised, for 20 minutes and I haven’t ringed a single difference See that big air intake under the bumper? See how the ends point upwards instead...

Hang on? Isn't the Vanquish about to end production? Yep, but it's going out fighting. First Aston Martin released details of an 'Ultimate' (read 'Final') edition Vanquish S, and now they have...

Calling it C4 'by Loeb' makes it sounds like some sort of perfume. What's it for and did the world's greatest rally driver really have anything to do with it? The C4 by Loeb (wouldn't 'Loeb edition'...

Skoda Octavia Scout: sounds a bit Dib Dib Dib? It’s Skoda’s way of describing mildly tweaked ‘off-road’ versions of its cars. With this model, it’s taken the Octavia 4x4 estate and made it longer,...

Doesn't look too bad. Someone said Hyundai Coupe facelift and all I could think of was that mess they made of the original Coupe seven years ago... We're equally relieved. This Coupe still looks...

What’s this – more power for the plutocrats? In a word, yes. The £341,585 Maybach 62S - the S stands for Special, should you be wondering – gets the same mighty 6.0-litre twin turbo V12 as last year’s...

Another week, another new Mazda concept car… I know what you mean. This is the Hakaze – that’s Japanese for leaf being blown in the wind – and it follows on from the Nagare shown at Los Angeles and...

The Peugeot 207 looks the same as the 206 CC. A bit unimaginative, isn’t it? Peugeot thinks style is a major selling factor, so the genes of the earlier 206 are obvious. The company could be accused...

Looks like the new Roomster, but without the cut-and-shut treatment That’s because the Fabia and Roomster are the only Skodas so far to wear the new corporate nose. The Czech firm wants to move away...

Are you telling me this beast has 722bhp under the bonnet? Not quite. The 722 – or the Mercedes-Benz McLaren SLR 722 Edition to quote its full name – is a limited run of tweaked SLRs, named after the...

A new Fiat Bravo! It replaces the Stilo but, given how unpopular the Stilo was, should anyone care? Yes, the old Stilo was one of those yawningly average cars that rather summed up Fiat’s problems.

So it's a Kia. And an MPV Okay, so it's not exactly high on your lottery win wish list but Kia is quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with in car circles thanks to cars like the Picanto and its...