Toyota GT 86 prices announced – Toyota GT 86 prices announced Toyota has announced that the new GT 86 will start from £24,995
The Toyota GT 86 will be priced from £24,995 when it goes on sale in June. This means that the 197bhp 2.0-litre rear-wheel-drive sports car can be yours for £5,000 less than a Nissan 370Z, £3,000 less than an entry-level Lotus Elise and £300 less than a VW Golf GTI.

The GT 86 was developed by Subaru and Toyota as a joint project, and it uses a direct-injection four-cylinder boxer engine mated to either a six-speed manual or six-speed sequential gearbox. The rear-wheel-drive machine draws inspiration from Toyota’s AE 86 from the Eighties, which has gained cult status among Japanese car fans.

Our first drive in Japan revealed that the Toyota was somewhat true to its inspiration – thanks to its sharp turn-in, minimal body roll and excellent grip. It’ was clear that the chassis can handle more power, and that’s precisely what Toyota claims it intended, as the GT 86 is designed to provide a foundation for customisation and, in the process, deliver the brand some much needed credibility among enthusiasts.

Toyota expects to sell around 4,000 GT 86s in the UK each year, while Subaru has forecast 1,000 annual sales for its BRZ. Prices have not been announced for the BRZ, which also goes on sale in June. 

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MINI Highgate Convertible MINI reveals another special-edition model, named after Highgate in north London
This is the MINI Convertible Highgate special edition. It takes its name from the exclusive residential area of London and offers a number of unique visual cues to distinguish it from the standard MINI. 

They include a distinctive Ice Chocolate metallic paint that has a blue lustre in direct sunlight, matched with a dark brown soft-top that also has a metallic shine in bright light. The Highgate can also be chosen in Midnight Black metallic or White Silver metallic, with mirror caps in your chosen hue.

Regardless of colour, the Highgate’s bonnet features brown and black stripes with light blue edging. There’s also an exclusive ‘Union Jack inspired’ 17-inch double-cross alloy wheel design with an aluminium finish that, together with Highgate badging, completes the exterior treatment.

Inside the Highgate has Dark Truffle leather with light contrasting stitching and blue piping. Again, blue detailing extends to the gear lever and handbrake stitching, while there’s also a set of stainless steel pedals and MINI’s Chrome Line interior package fitted.

The Highgate package is offered on the MINI Cooper, Cooper S, Cooper D and Cooper SD Convertibles, in either six-speed manual or automatic form.

The MINI Convertible Highgate will be available from March, with an expected price premium of £1500. This means a starting price of £18,735 for the Cooper Highgate Convertible manual.

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Gas-powered Jaguar C-X75 Coventry factory tasked with building turbines for Jaguar C-X75 is opened

Jaguar’s parent company, Tata, has formally opened the factory that will build the gas turbines for the Jaguar C-X75 supercar. The Bladon Jets Engineering Centre in Coventry will employ 15 people and house the equipment for the production of micro gas turbines, which the company has a patent for. 

The 95bhp turbines weigh 35kg each, have fewer moving parts than an internal combustion engine and don’t need oil lubrication or water cooling, which offers packaging and weight advantages. In the C-X75, they will combine with four independent electric motors at each wheel to send the Jaguar from 0-62mph in 3.4sec, give it a range of 560 miles and emit a mere 28g/km of CO2.

Only a handful of C-X75s will be fitted with the turbines, despite Tata owning a stake in Bladon. The majority of cars, which aren’t expected to arrive until 2015, instead will run a four-cylinder turbo engine developed by Formula One team Williams.

 

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Audi A3 spy pictures – Audi A3 spy pictures Our spies have caught the new Audi A3 testing
The third-generation Audi A3 has been spotted testing largely undisguised. These pictures show the three-door A3 – one of four body styles set to appear – with sharper lines and a more progressive waistline.

The Audi family face remains but there’s a more dynamic headlight design, similar to those seen on the new Q3. The theme continues at the rear, with a tail-light design that steps up towards the car’s waistline and wraps around the side of the car.

The spy pictures also shows an aggressive front bumper design, which could be a sign of the S line package.

The new A3 will be built on the new Volkswagen Group MQB platform, which will also form the basis for the next VW Golf. Thanks to the new platform’s technology and packaging advantages, the new A3 will be lighter, safer and offer a host of drive and infotainment options.

Engines are expected to range from a 1.2 turbo four-cylinder, through to a 211hp 2.0-litre petrol as well as 1.6 and 2.0-litre diesels. The new A3 will also be offered as a frugal TDIe and a hybrid, as reported by Auto Express.

The Audi A3 will be revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in March. A slight increase in prices is expected, starting at around £15,500.

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Fiat 500L revealed Fiat has released first official pictures of its new 500L MPV ahead of the Geneva Motor Show
First pictures of the new Fiat 500L MPV have been released ahead of its debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month.

The Fiat 500L – the L stands for ‘Large’ – is a larger and more practical people carrier version of the Fiat 500 on which it is based. It replaces the Multipla and will rival the MINI Countryman and Nissan Note.

Auto Express first scooped the new model late last year and, as our exclusive renderings predicted, the new model gets a 500-style nose, with large lights flanked by lower spotlamps and a simple, single-bar upper grille.

Details are scarce but Fiat has said that buyers will be able to choose from two petrol engines – the two-cylinder TwinAir and 1.4-litre turbo – and the 1.3-litre MutliJet diesel engine.

The new MPV is based on a modified Panda platform, and is expected to be offered with five or seven seats. Front-wheel drive will be standard, but a 4×4 option will also be offered. 

The Fiat 500L will go on sale in Europe at the end of the year, with prices expected to start from £13,000. Further details are likely to be revealed nearer to the Geneva Motor Show at the beginning of March.

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Citroen DS5 prices Citroen DS5 prices to start from £22,400 and top out at £32,200 for the diesel-electric hybrid model
The Citroen DS5 will cost from £22,400 when it goes on sale in April, but range-topping Hybrid4 models will cost as much as £32,200. 

Citroen sees the DS5 as an alternative to models like the BMW 3 Series, boasting a luxurious cabin and sporty drive. The range kicks off with a 1.6-litre e-HDi engine with 109bhp, but a 158bhp 2.0-litre diesel and 197bhp turbocharged petrol engine are also available. Topping the range is the diesel-electric hybrid variant. 

DSign is the most basic trim-level and comes equipped with keyless go, cruise control, electric windows all-round, air con and Bluetooth. DStyle models get part leather seats, sat-nav and a reversing camera. The flagship DSport models get full leather massage seats and front parking sensors. 

Citroen predicts the 2.0-litre diesel with 158bhp in DStyle trim, which costs £25,900, will be the most popular model. 

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Smart Fortwo facelift Updated Smart Fortwo gets a new look and updated interior trim options
The Smart ForTwo city car has been given a facelift, and these are the first pictures of the updated model. 

The main changes are to the front of the car, where a redesigned grille prominently incorporates the Smart logo. The air inlets – which used to be on either side of the bumper – are now one single unit. 

Inside, the updates are limited to new trim options such as a leather/fabric combination for the seats. 

No changes have been made to engines in the ForTwo line-up, so the 1.0-litre three–cylinder petrol engine comes with 60bhp, 70bhp or 101bhp in the Brabus model. The only diesel option is the 54bhp 0.8-litre unit.

The facelifted Smart ForTwo will be available from April 2012.

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Smart ForTwo facelift Updated Smart ForTwo gets a new look and updated interior trim options
The Smart ForTwo city car has been given a facelift, and these are the first pictures of the updated model. 

The main changes are to the front of the car, where a redesigned grille prominently incorporates the Smart logo. The air inlets – which used to be on either side of the bumper – are now one single unit. 

Inside, the updates are limited to new trim options such as a leather/fabric combination for the seats. 

No changes have been made to engines in the ForTwo line-up, so the 1.0-litre three–cylinder petrol engine comes with 60bhp, 70bhp or 101bhp in the Brabus model. The only diesel option is the 54bhp 0.8-litre unit.

The facelifted Smart ForTwo will be available from April 2012.

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New VW MQB unveiled Volkswagen reveals the new platform that will form the basis of the next Golf and Audi A3
This is the new VW Golf – and the new Audi A3 and new Skoda Octavia. In fact, this chassis will pretty much underpin the majority of VW Group models, from Polo-sized superminis to those as big as the next Passat. 

Called MQB, the new platform represents much more than a chassis that can be adapted for use in a wide variety of models. VW calls it “the backbone of light and safe cars” as it also encapsulates new lightweight drivetrains, hi-tech safety equipment and even iPad-style infotainment systems.  
 
It moves the game on from simply offering a chassis that can be stretched or shortened to fit different cars, to one that shares its electrical wiring, engines, transmissions, air-conditioning systems, seat backs and infotainment systems. It even includes the factories the cars will be built in – for the first time allowing VW, Audi and Skoda models to be built on the same production line.
 
But the most important car of the lot is the new Golf. And the Mk7 will represent a huge leap forward. Thanks to hot formed steel that’s six-times stronger than conventional steel, more aluminium in the suspension, together with lightweight air-con, it will weigh up to 60kg less than the Mk6. VW says it will weigh as much as the Mk4. 
 
Under the bonnet will be a range of new engines, all of which will have the same angle of tilt – whether petrol or diesel – in the engine bay. This will speed up the production line and allow the same transmissions to be used throughout. In fact, engine and gearbox variants have been reduced by 88 per cent. 

The petrol line-up consists of a new 1.2 TSI turbo four-cylinder with 84bhp or 104bhp, and a 1.4 TSI with 120bhp or 138bhp. The latter has already appeared in the Audi A1 Sportback, and features cylinder deactivation, so it can run on two cylinders under a light throttle, saving fuel. Thanks to lightweight aluminium, the engine weighs 16kg less than the 1.4 TSi in the current Golf. 
 
The new Golf will also be available as a hybrid, with the 1.4 TSI boosted by a 20kW electric motor. It produces 145bhp and 250Nm of torque. This will also be available as a plug-in hybrid, this time with an 80kW electric motor. This can return up to 141mpg and emit less than 46g/km of CO2. 
 
As for diesels, there will be a new line-up of 1.6 and 2.0-litre TDI diesels with power ranging from 89bhp to 187bhp. There is no word on a BlueMotion variant, but VW says even the basic engines reduce CO2 emissions by 7g/km, so expect a new Golf BlueMotion to emit less than 90g/km of CO2 and achieve more than 80mpg. There will also be a low-capacity 800cc diesel appearing in the future. Seven-speed DSG automatic and six-speed manual gearboxes will feature, too. 

The new Golf will also be far safer. Thanks to a camera mounted above the rear-view mirror, it will have road sign recognition, lane keep assistance, light assist – which automatically dims the lights to prevent dazzling oncoming traffic – and adaptive cruise control. It will also have a Mercedes-style fatigue assist system, which warns the driver if he or she is about to fall asleep at the wheel. 
 
Other Mercedes-style safety equipment includes pre-crash – which shuts the windows and pre-tensions the seatbelts if it senses a crash is imminent – as well as a system that can help avoid multiple crashes. In other words, it will automatically apply the brakes after the first collision if the car senses it is at risk of a secondary collision – a typical motorway crash situation. This is in addition to low-speed crash mitigation for use in towns. 
 
VW will also launch its next-generation automatic parking system, which not only steers the car into a parellel parking space, but reverses it into a multi-storey car parking space, too.  
 
To aid handling, the Golf will get a development of a new electronically-controlled differential which was significantly tested in a VW Scirocco race car at the Nurburgring 24 Hours. In addition to traction control and the XDS electronic differential, it offers torque vectoring, and is said to help turn-in and allow the Golf to hold on to its line better when cornering. There is also a new electric steering system.
 
Inside, the MK7 Golf will get a new touchscreen interface on the centre console which works in a similar way to an iPad, allowing the driver to use a ‘sweep’ gesture to access different information. It will be available with five and eight-inch screens.
 
The MQB platform will also allow the next Golf to be better looking: “Because of the position of the engine, MQB means shorter front overhangs, which in turn allows us to lengthen the look of the car and make it more sporty with a lower centre of gravity,” said head of exterior design Andreas Mindt. Better packaging will allow larger wheels and a longer wheelbase. Mindt also said that the Cross Coupe concept’s wider ‘face’, with its radiator grille integrated with the headlights and daytime running lights, would be a big feature of upcoming models.
 
The first VW Group model to get MQB will be the new Audi A3, which debuts in the summer – we’ll then see it in the new Mk7 Golf, which is set to arrive at the Paris Motor Show in September, before going on sale in 2013.

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SsangYong Korando LE Limited-edition SsangYong Korando LE adds extra equipment and costs £17,995

SsangYong has released details of a new limited-edition version of its VW Tiguan-sized Korando. Called the Korando LE, it adds extra equipment and is being offered with a new finance deal and five-years free servicing thrown in.

Available in Grand White, Vitamin Red or Space Black, additional exterior kit includes 18-inch alloy wheels, a rear spoiler and privacy glass. On the inside, it gets heated front seats, a leather steering wheel and gearlever, cruise control and parking sensors. The only engine choice is a 173bhp 2.0-litre diesel with CO2 emissions of 157g/km

Based on a cash price of £17,995, the 4.5 per cent APR finance deal is based on 60 monthly payments of £259 with a deposit of £3,744.78. On top of SsangYong‘s five-year unlimited mileage warranty, five-years free servicing is included too, based on an annual mileage of 12,500.

The SsangYong Korando LE is on sale now and limited to 150 units.

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