Autocar magazine 27 March: on sale now
This week in Autocar...
BMW's template for its next electric SUVs, finding 2024's best affordable EV, is the small car saved?
This week in Autocar, we look at the car that will set the template for BMW's next electric SUVs, find the best affordable EV in 2024, and ask whether Suzuki has saved the small car.
*News*
The BMW Vision Neue Klasse X Concept not only sets the template for the brand's next electric SUVs, but previews a boldly-styled successor for the iX3 - we have all you need to know about its platform, drivetrain and tech.
Staying in Germany, Mercedes has treated the G-Class to a major update, giving it a hybrid power boost, efficiency gains and new technology – including a touchscreen. The AMG G63 has also been given even more power and a sophisticated new suspension system - we bring you the lowdown.
Potholes on UK roads are more rife today than they have ever been, and because councils aren't spending the government's Potholes Fund, only 47% of English and Welsh roads are in a good condition. John Evans gets to the heart of the issue.
Renault is considering reviving the Espace MPV, thanks to the flexibility of the its EV platforms - we show you what it could be like.
*Reviews*
Has Suzuki saved the small car with the new Swift? The fourth-gen supermini has been given a fresh look, a new electrified engine and Suzuki’s trademark lightness and compactness. Matt Prior gets behind the wheel.
The Polestar 4 is set to arrive as the Swedish EV specialist's fourth model, taking the fight to the Porsche Macan EV - should it be worried? Felix Page drives a prototype for a first taste.
We raved about the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N when we first drove it as a prototype, so how does the final production version perform? Richard Lane visits a Castelloli Circuit in Barcelona to find out.
We're also driving the Jeep Avenger eHybrid, and, for road test 5667 we've got the Fiat 600.
*Features*
We’ve gathered the 12 finest electric cars currently on sale for less than £40,000 – and our crack team of testers – to choose Britain’s best affordable EV in 2024. Who will take the crown?
*Opinion*
Matt Prior riffs on Lotus' new programme, Chapman Bespoke, and wonders whether its founder, Colin Chapman, would have approved. He also talks about bin-cramming, and why litter ends up on the roads because of simple thoughtlessness rather than malice.
Steve Cropley, meanwhile, looks back at his visit to Mathewsons classic car auction business in North Yorkshire, asks how different life would have been without the Lamborghini Countach, and takes his Alpine A110 for its first MOT.
*Used*
The Citroen Grand C4 Picasso and Spacetourer are both roomy, practical and handsome - John Evans looks at why they're great people-movers for families on a tight budget.