As the current Countryman’s life draws to an end, MINI temps fleet buyers with a targeted special edition

An all-new MINI Countryman is set to be revealed in a little over a year, with sales starting in early 2017, but MINI’s focus is still firmly on the current model.

To boost its appeal with fleet buyers, it’s introduced the MINI Countryman Cooper D ALL4 Business, fitted with a huge standard equipment list for less than ordering the individual options, to keep monthly repayments low.

Priced at £22,455 to buy outright (£1,400 more than the standard Cooper D ALL4 model), or from £199 per month (based on six months deposit and 35 monthly payments) it includes four-wheel drive and a 110bhp 1.6-litre four-cylinder diesel engine returning 60.1mpg and 123g/km of CO2.

Standard kit includes 17-inch alloys, sat-nav, parking sensors, air-con and a three-spoke multifunction steering wheel. Auto headlights and wipers, a storage pack and velour floor mats are also thrown in.

Chris Brownridge, MINI’s UK boss said: “The new ALL4 Business model has been specifically developed to cater for the needs of businesses with high residual values and low emissions, while also offering something fun and exciting for drivers. MINI has grown in popularity within the UK fleet market since the launch of the 5-door hatchlast year, which has opened the brand up to new customers.”

See what the next MINI Countryman could look like here.

We hit the dunes in amazing MINI Countryman that won legendary Dakar Rally

As well as enjoying huge sales with its road cars, MINI has had considerable success in the world of motorsport – and rallying in particular.

has had considerable success in the world of motorsport – and rallying in particular. Its Countryman-based ALL4 Racing not only won the gruelling Dakar Rally earlier this year, but amazingly, 11 examples of the competition-spec MINI finished in the top 20 – and Auto Express got to put one of them through its paces in the sand dunes of Dubai.

Although it’s based on the Countryman, the Dakar model only shares the production car’s windscreen, door handles and lights. This bespoke creation has a steel roll cage and survival cell, and carbon fibre body panels. Indeed, the body is scaled up five per cent to make room for driver and co-driver, plus the supplies they need for the two-week, 5,500-mile-plus Dakar.

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Stand next to it, and it towers over you on its vast Michelin All-Terrain tyres. Heavy-duty suspension, with two shock absorbers at each corner and adjustable settings, means generous ground clearance, too.

You’d think this would make the ALL4 Racing soft and comfortable when blasting across level ground, but to maintain control of the 1,900kg rally car, it’s stiff and unyielding – hence the discomfort after every landing when we tackle a desert course. This is mostly twists and turns on big sand dunes, and to get a feel for it, I attempt to walk it. But the soft sand makes it near-impossible.

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Still, the car copes with ease. Its BMW535d-sourced 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel has been retuned for low-rev desert racing, so every time I pass 2,500rpm, my co-driver for the day shouts at me to change up. He’s not trying to protect the car, but tap into the peak torque, which arrives at 2,100rpm.

A six-speed Sadev sequential gearbox is operated via a large lever next to the steering wheel, and after each upchange the turbos spool up, then catapult the MINIforward again. In one of the tighter corners, where the sand is really soft and deep, I feel I’ve left it in too high a gear, but my co-driver suggests keeping the throttle buried, and sure enough the MINI finds traction and we blast out in a flurry of dramatic sand plumes. A loud roar adds to the raw experience.

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The high up seating position takes a lot of getting used to, as it feels like the MINI is going to topple over, but it never does – and a passenger ride with Dakar winner Joan ‘Nani’ Roma later in the day reveals how far we were from the MINI’s limits. He attacks the sand as if it’s insulted him, and on every landing I’m crushed against my harnesses. It’s an astounding display of his skill, the car’s ability... and a co-driver’s stamina.

To think the crews keep this up for six hours a day over the Dakar’s two weeks is mind-numbing. I was out of breath after half an hour and sore for days after. At least the regular Countryman doesn’t do that to you...

Q&A: Joan 'Nani' Roma

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Spaniard Roma won 2014’s Dakar for MINI, becoming only the third person to have triumphed on a bike and in a car.

What’s it like to drive the Dakar?

“In a way, it’s a lot like a World Rally Championship event, only much bigger. The stages [in South America] are shorter than they were in Africa, and you drive flat-out like the WRC. But the car is much stronger because endurance is very important.”

How does car compare to bike?

“With the car, you have your co-driver, and you work together to get to the finish. On a bike, you’re alone with no help, so it’s a lot harder.”

Can you win Dakar 2015?

“We have a new chassis, but the rest of the car doesn’t have any big changes, so if we have good luck we will be there at the end.”

The Magic of MINI: special feature

Exclusive: Volkswagen Golf Mk8 to lead the brand's dieselgate fightback

Last summer’s diesel emissions scandal rocked the motor industry and shook the VW Group.

Last summer’s diesel emissions scandal rocked the motor industry and shook the VW Group. Damage to the brand’s reputation and loss of customer confidence have been hard to quantify in recent months, but the consequences are set to be huge – and they’re likely to impact on the next-generation Golf, revealed in our exclusive images.

Volkswagenhas hatched a masterplan to save 1billion Euros per year, while making a clear commitment to electromobility and a new generation of ‘clean’ diesel engines.

Various all-electric VW projects are in the pipeline, with a new Phaetonand Microbus conceptsspearheading the brand’s emission-free future. On top of that, the German giant will now take a closer look at other areas of the business that it thinks can return significant savings – both financially and environmentally.

Top of that list is the next Golf. The current Mk7 caris available in several shapes and sizes, with power ranging from small turbo petrols to hot diesels and plug-in hybrids. There’s even an all-electric e-Golf, capable of up to 118 miles on battery power alone.

Although the Mk7 will get a mild facelift this year, the new car – due in 2018 – will build on this. It’ll be more practical, more powerful and, most importantly, more fuel efficient. VW will stick with its versatile MQB platform for the eighth-generation Golf, and despite the fact these underpinnings will be more than eight years old when the next model hits the market, the scalable platform is expected to live on until at least 2025.

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Auto Express understands the new Golf will be between 35kg and 70kg lighter than the current car, and like the new Tiguan, will be both lower and wider. Plus, there will be more space inside thanks to more efficient packaging, as well as innovative features like gesture control and the Passat’s TFT dash.

In terms of styling, the new Mk8 model is likely to follow VW’s pattern of evolution rather than revolution. As always, it’ll be immediately recognisable as a Golf, with smart LED headlamps and a sharper, more sculpted grille. We’re expecting to see some deeper creases in the bumper and bodywork, as well as a reprofiled rear end. Also set to appear is a more upmarket interior – with plenty of brushed metals, leathers and high-quality plastics.

Under the bonnet, VW will introduce a series of super-efficient three-cylinder 1.5-litre TDI diesels – ranging from 74bhp to 120bhp. These are likely to feature in the new Golf as well as numerous future models, and emit less than 85g/km of CO2. The engines will also be modular, meaning each cylinder of 500cc will make it more cost efficient for VW to develop larger and more powerful units such as 3.0-litre V6 diesels – for cars like the next TouaregSUV – at a later date.

The Golf Mk8 will, of course, arrive on the market as a hatchback first, but an Estate spin-off, as well as hotter GTI, GTD and R versions will follow. We’ve not heard about any plans for a Cabriolet model, though, and one is unlikely to arrive before at least 2020.

Elsewhere at the VW Group, bosses have outlined their intentions for an Audi Q6 SUVin 2018, followed by the Porsche Mission Esaloon before the end of the decade – both of which will adopt all-electric drivetrains.

The Group’s new electric MEB architecture to be employed by both the Audiand Porschewill also underpin the upcoming all-electric VW Phaeton limousine, which is due by 2020, too.

What do you think of our exclusive images of the new Mk8 Volkswagen Golf? Let us know in the comments section below...

Ola And Uber Launch Bike Taxi Service In Bangalore

Ola and Uber have almost simultaneously launched bike taxi service in Bangalore.

Ola and Uber have almost simultaneously launched bike taxi service in Bangalore. The service is set to become one of the most affordable ways to get around the city. It comes with the same features as booking a cab like instant booking, cashless payment, GPS tracking and sharing ride details with friends and family. Uber and Ola will be providing helmets for the pillion riders.

The service aims to be a very affordable way to travel and will cut travel time and congestion in metros

Uber is charging a base fare of INR 15. Every kilometre is charged INR 3 and every minute is charged INR 1. The minimum fare is INR 15. As of now, it is available only between 7 AM and 9 PM only in certain areas. The service will be extended slowly. The service has been called uberMOTO. The company says that the bikes used should not be more than six years old and they also say that the new service is mainly for short trips and provides last mile connectivity.

In contrast, Ola is offering their services at an introductory price of INR 2 per kilometre and INR 1 per minute. The minimum fare is INR 30. The service is available in Bangalore and will slowly move to other cities. The service is called Ola Bike. Riders will be given a disposable cap and mask to maintain hygiene. Ola has deployed 500 bikes initially.

All pillion riders will be provided with helmets for safety and it is a rule for pillion riders to wear a helmet in Bangalore

Uber and Ola have launched this bike taxi service to help decongest the metro cities. The service will be a very affordable way to travel around and will also cut commute time. Hopefully, the initiative kicks off and the service becomes widespread with more vehicles and moves to other cities as well.

Harley Davidson Showcases 1200 Custom at 2016 India Bike Week

Harley-Davidson showcased the 1200 Custom motorcycle at the 2016 India Bike Week.

Harley Davidson 1200 Custom

Harley-Davidson showcased the 1200 Custom motorcycle at the 2016 India Bike Week. It is powered by a 1202cc V-Twin engine and is priced at Rs. 8.90 lakhs before taxes. The American bike makers stall had other bikes like the Road King, Fat Bob, Forty Eight and many more customised bikes on display.

Harley Davidson India MD Vikram Pawah

Goa had turned into a mecca for riders and motorcycle enthusiasts as Harley-Davidson India hosted the 4th edition of the H.O.G. India rally on February 18, 2016. More than 2500 H.O.G. members, from across 21 H.O.G. Chapters – some from as far as Chandigarh and Kolkata, came together for the most anticipated H.O.G. Rally of the year. The 4th H.O.G. India Rally is the biggest rally of the 5 rallies that are conducted all-round the year at regular intervals to provide great riding experiences to Harley-Davidson riders and their families. At the heart of these rallies lies the unforgettable sound of roaring V-twins and the wide variety of experiences encountered by riders, opportunities to meet like-minded people and the shared love for open roads.

Harley Davidson Softail Classic

The Roll of Honor from the 4th H.O.G. India rally included 125 H.O.G. members awarded the ‘Big 5 Patch’. The Big 5 Patch commends riders on their passion and spirit for biking and spanning thousands of kilometers across the country in a year. Tusker Chapter (Bangalore) was awarded the Chapter of the Year, for being the most active chapter, and for the collective effort and contributions made by the members of the chapter. Devendra Chugh of Tiger Chapter (Indore) won the much coveted H.O.G. Custom Contest with his exquisitely customized Heritage Softail Classic. Along with the title of the ‘Best Customized Bike of the Year’ he also received tickets for the 76th Annual 2016 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, South Dakota, U.S.A. With their jaw-dropping customized Harley-Davidson Iron 883™ Nine-Bridges Harley-Davidson wooed the judges and were declared the winners of the H.O.G. Dealer Custom Contest. The lucky winner also won tickets for the 76th Annual 2016 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, South Dakota, U.S.A.

Harley Davidson at 2016 India Bike Week Photo Gallery:

Is this the Clio of the future? We test super-efficient Renault EOLAB concept car

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Mahindra Mojo Scrambler Concept Shown at 2016 India Bike Week

Mahindra had on display 2 concept motorcycles based on their flagship Mojo namely the Mojo Scrambler concept and the Mojo Adventure Tourer Concept at the 2016 India Bike Week held in Goa.

Mahindra Mojo Scrambler Concept

Mahindra Mojo was launched late last year and since then has been selling pretty well for the company. The 2016 India Bike Week is one of the biggest platform in India and the company had displayed two concept bikes at their stall. The Mahindra Mojo Scrambler concept is a pukka scrambler bike with a classic round headlight a high set handlebar and a flat seat. The Mojo Adventure Tourer Concept on the other hand is an off road motorcycle with high ground clearance and a much higher seating position. The bike on display also had external fuel carriers attached on the sides which further enhances the off-road look.

Mahindra Mojo Adventure Tourer Concept

The above mentioned concepts were first showcased at the 2016 Delhi Auto Expo. The Mojo Scrambler concept would compete with the Ducati Scrambler and the Mojo Adventure Tourer will compete with the Royal Enfield Himalayan and Hero Impulse if ever launched in the future. Besides them were road going versions of the Mojo in a matte red shade and another one with a dual tone orange and white paint job. Going by the response Mahindra has received for the two concepts mentioned above, we hope that the company introduces them in the market some time in the future.

Mahindra Mojo

The Mahindra Mojo is powered by a 296cc, single cylinder engine that develops around 27PS of max power at 8,000RPM and 30Nm of torque at a high 6,500RPM. The engine is mated to a 6 speed manual gearbox and is tuned to deliver a mileage of around 25Km/L. The Mahindra Mojo comes with an Inverted fork Telescopic Hydraulic-damped front suspension and a horizontally mounted Mono-shock rear suspension. It sports 17-inch alloys both at the front and the rear.

Mahindra Two-Wheelers Stall at 2016 India Bike Week Photo Gallery:

Renault's fresh challenge to the dwindling people-carrier market needs to sell or "MPVs deserve to die" bosses cay

Renault made its mark at the Geneva Motor Show - not with a showy supercar, but with the new Scenic MPV.

MPV. The production model made its world debut in Switzerland ahead of its release towards the end of the year.

The original Renault Scenic was a notable trend-setter, but rivals like the Citroen C4 Picassohave knocked the current car down the pecking order. Alongside that, MPV sales are slowly dwindling as buyers favour crossovers and SUVs.

Step forward this bold new crossover-inspired design, for a car that chief designer Laurens van den Acker hopes will make parents “fall in love again” - as they did with the ground-breaking original all the way back in 1996.

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Talking to Auto Express at Geneva, van den Acker even went as far as saying "If this doesn't sell, then the sector deserves to die".

"If a car can breathe some life into the MPV sector, then this is it. If it doesn't sell what else can we do? We cannot do the same as our competitors. In some big countries in Europe, we just aren’t on people’s radar. We have a deficit to make up.”

Renaultis continuing its latest family car revolution - started with the KadjarSUV, new Meganehatch and forthcoming large SUV - with a thoroughly re-thought take on the people carrier. The brand has clearly taken inspiration from its Kadjargiving the car a crossoverlook thanks to bigger wheels and an elevated stance.

But it’s all an illusion. The standard-fit 20-inch wheels trick your mind into thinking Renault has pumped up the suspension and given the Scenic a raised ride height. But the roof is actually lower than before, while the windscreen has been raked forward by 100mm to give a sleeker, more desirable design. It’s a technique used on the not-for-UK Renault Espace, and one that has seen strong sales in mainland Europe.

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It will of course continue to be one of the safest cars on sale, with the Scenic marking introducing three new safety systems to the Renault range. Lane Keeping Assist, Active Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection and Tiredness Detection all feature on the MPV-cum-crossover.

New Renault Scenic design

The now-familiar oversized badge gives the car the latest Renault family face, while there’s also a lower roofline, longer wheelbase and shorter rear overhang than on the previous model. The wheels have been pushed right into the corners of the car, too, for a sportier appearance.

This all adds up to a car that’s less MPV and more family-focused SUV-crossover. Renault design boss Laurens van den Acker said: “It is a sexier and more modern take on the MPV, which carries over the outstanding modularity that has been paramount to the success of the model’s three previous generations.

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Van den Acker has also revealed that there will be more external differences between the five-seat Scenic and seven-seat Grand Scenic due for reveal later in the year. The Scenic, which is based on the same platform as the new Megane, will sit between Renault’s Capturand Kadjar SUVs in terms of overall size and pricing, with the Grand Scenic positioned alongside the company’s upcoming seven-seat flagship SUV.

New Renault Scenic interior

Inside, the new Scenic mirrors the new Megane, which we drove late last year. There are three dashboard screen setups, with the most lavishly-equipped cars utilising an 8.7-inch portrait display with R-Link 2 technology. It’s beautifully finished inside, too, with programme director Delphine de Andria telling Auto Express: “I want top-spec versions to compete with BMWand Mercedes”.

Owners will be able to “personalise their driving experience”, with a drive mode selector on the dash. This dial adjusts the throttle response, steering weight and even the interior ambient lighting, as the driver flicks through Neutral, Sport, Comfort, Perso and Eco modes.

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A full-colour heads-up display takes the new car further upmarket, while Renault’s tie-up with premium stereo maker Bose continues in the 2016 Scenic.

New Renault Scenic practicality

The wider body has allowed for a roomier and more flexible seating layout, while the Grand Scenic will offer more head and legroom in the third row. Boot space is also up on the previous version, boasting 572 litres with the rear seats in place (versus 555 litres in the outgoing car).

Renault also claims an additional 63 litres of stowage dotted around elsewhere in the car – including an 11.5-litre electric glovebox. There’s a sliding centre console, too, with a 13-litre pocket for assorted odds and ends.

There’s loads of room inside the cabin, and despite removing the three individual rear seats from the old car, there’s enough space to fit three adults across the back. The reason behind Renault’s apparent oversight is that the chairs can now be folded flat into the floor, rather than necessitating the cumbersome removal as seen on current cars. You can still slide the rear seats for and aft, but only in a 60:40 arrangement.

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New Renault Scenic engines

Powertrains will be shared pretty much wholesale with the Megane, so we will see a range of four-cylinder turbocharged petrol and diesel engines from launch. The dCi 95 and dCi 130 models will both come with a manual gearbox, while the mid-range dCi 110 will also be available with a seven-speed automatic gearbox. A dCi 160 flagship will come solely with the auto. Two petrols - a TCe 115 and TCe 130, will both be manual only.

However, Renault has also confirmed a diesel-electric hybrid option will debut on the dCi 110 engine before the end of the year. The car will - unusually for a hybrid - use a six-speed manual.

What do you think of the all-new Renault Scenic? Let us know in the comments section below...

The Talisman has made its public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show, but it's not coming to the UK

The Talisman is primed to go on sale at the start of 2016 after its debut, but sadly Renault has confirmed there are no current plans to bring it to the UK.

Renault earlier this year revealed the new Talisman saloon, a direct replacement for the Laguna, and now we've seen it in the flesh at the Frankfurt Motor Showfor the first time.

Renault bosses stated that, like the new EspaceMPV, it won't be engineered for right-hand drive due to the decline in the traditional saloon market. The previous Laguna was axed in this country in 2011 due to slow sales, while saloon rivals such as the Honda Accordhave also bowed out of the market.

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The new Talisman gets a sleeker, more executive profile in-line with market leaders such as the VW Passat and Mazda 6 . The front-end design is believed to be the new Renault family face that we'll eventually see on next year's new Megane hatch, and an adaptation of that currently seen on the Kadjar SUV. Both saloon and estate are 4.85 metres long, 70mm longer than the Passat, and 1.87 metres wide.

The sloping roofline is indicative of modern design trends, while the large LED rear lights give the back-end a distinctive look. The estate is surprisingly similar in style but with the usual upright glasshouse.

Inside, the Talisman gets an all-new dash design, with an 8.7-inch portrait-angled touchscreen system borrowed from the new Espace. New tech includes LED headlamps, a head-up display, BOSE surround sound and hands-free parking, and there''s a digital instrument cluster as standard.

The firm is also claiming the larger saloon offers best-in-class passenger space, and an impressive 608-litre boot. As you'd expect with a Renault, the latest active safety systems feature aiming it up with the best in its class.

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Under the skin Renault has pushed the boat out, claiming the Talisman is the only car in its class to offer both four-wheel steering and adaptive damping combined for "dynamic, agile handling" and "outstanding ride comfort".

At launch there will be two petrol and three diesel engines on offer; a 148bhp and 197bhp TCe turbo petrol, mated exclusively to a seven-speed dual clutch automatic, while there's 109bhp, 128bhp and 158bhp dCI diesels with either a six-speed manual or six-speed dual-clutch autobox. Renault claims the lowest-powered diesel emits as low as 95g/km of CO2.

Renault bosses have claimed we'll be seeing the Talisman in Europe at the beginning of 2016, before it is rolled out in Turkey and North African markets later on.

Do you think Renault should bring the Talisman to the UK? Let us know in the comments below.

With a new Megane coming, the Renaultsport version is on the way out - with two new models to mark the occasion

The new Cup-S includes air-con, cruise control and a 20-watt sound system with Bluetooth and auxiliary input as standard.

Renaultsport has unveiled a pair of high-spec run-out specials of the range-topping Renault Megane RS.

The new Cup-S includes air-con, cruise control and a 20-watt sound system with Bluetooth and auxiliary input as standard. It also makes use of the mechanical limited-slip differential, red Brembo brake calipers, firmer springs and dampers and stiffer anti-roll bar offered by the Cup Chassis Pack. With the uprated Cup chassis as standard, the 275 Cup-S costs from £23,935.

For an extra £2,000, the 275 Nav model adds an upgraded infotainment system, automatic lights and wipers, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry and rear parking sensors with a colour reversing camera. However, buyers can spec the 275 Nav with the Cup Chassis Pack for £1,350.

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The extended wheel arches, F1-style front blade, rear diffuser and extended spoiler all form part of the aerodynamic styling that helps identify both versions from the standard Megane. Options for both cars include 19-inch wheels (£1,000) and Recaro leather seats (£1,300), while the Cup-S is available with a titanium exhaust (£2,500) and Öhlins adjustable dampers (£2,000). The Öhlins Road & Track adjustable dampers offer 20 positions at the front and 30 at the rear to help provide additional damping with heavy braking or upon hitting a bump.

The Megane 275 Cup-S and 275 Nav use the same 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine and six-speed manual gearbox. Both are capable of 0-62mph in 6.0 seconds, while they feature stop/start technology to claim 37.7mpg fuel economy and 174g/km CO2 emissions.

Now read our review of the Renault Megane RS 275 Trophy.

Triumph Motorcycles Launches New Bonneville Range at 2016 India Bike Week (88 Photos)

Triumph India has unveiled its new range of Bonneville motorcycles in India.

Triumph India has unveiled its new range of Bonneville motorcycles in India. This included the Street Twin, T120 and Thruxton R.

Triumph Street Twin

Triumph Motorcycles India had one of the most busiest stands at the 2016 India Bike Week. The company has unveiled its new Bonneville range of motorcycles in India which will go on sale in the country in the coming months. The India Bike Week 2016 saw almost 1000 proud Triumph customers coming from across the country and most of them participated in the 2nd Annual R.A.Ts Ride organized by Triumph Motorcycles India. The ride promoted the cause of safe riding among its participants in association with SaveLife Foundation, Goa Traffic Police and Goa Municipal Corporation.

Triumph Thruxton R

Amongst the motorcycles that were launched, the Street Twin will be the earliest to hit showrooms with a price tag of Rs. 6.90 lakhs. It is powered by a 900cc motor and is set to hit the roads in March 2016. Following the Street Twin will be the T120 that will be begin deliveries in April 2016. It draws power from a 1200cc motor with a high torque specification and comes with features like rider modes, traction control and ABS as standard. Prices for the Thruxton R have not been announced as yet but Triumph has confirmed a July 2016 launch. So the next three months are definitely action packed for the British motorcycle maker.

Triumph Bonneville T120

Vimal Sumbly, MD, Triumph Motorcycles India, said, “India Bike Week is a hugely exciting platform for riders across the industry. It is a great way to associate with brands and network with renowned bikers to enhance their riding knowledge. The festival is also an adrenaline charged music and lifestyle event adding a touch of entertainment to the entire experience. We are thrilled to be celebrating our new range of Bonneville bikes with our esteemed customers and biking enthusiasts. With this iconic bikes making way into India, the range is sure to win hearts in the country!”

Triumph Motorcycles at 2016 India Bike Week Photo Gallery:

Ducati Launches Panigale 959 at 2016 India Bike Week in Goa (50 Photos)

Ducati India has launched the Panigale 959 at Rs.

Ducati India has launched the Panigale 959 at Rs. 14.04 lakhs Ex-showroom, Delhi at the 2016 India Bike Week. The festival will be celebrated over two days on the 19th and 20th of February 2016 in Goa.

Ducati Panigale 959 Launch

Amidst the roar of superbikes and cruisers, Ducati unveiled the beautiful Panigale 959 at the 2016 India Bike Week in Goa. The bike is a mid-performance motorcycle and follows the mantra of the bigger more powerful Panigale 1299. The looks of the bike is in line with rest of the Panigale range with mean looking front and twin pod headlights. The bike is fully faired and comes with Ducati’s traditional red paint shade. The new Italian bike has been designed for accessible performance for everyday riding along with an occasional thrill on the race track.

Ducati Panigale 959

The Ducati Panigale 959 is powered by a 955cc L-Twin motor that develops 155BHP and is the first Superquadro with Euro 4 emissions approval. The engines is mated to a 6-speed gearbox and comes with a slipper clutch. Ravi Avalur, Managing Director of Ducati India said, “We are very excited to bring the new super-mid Ducati Superbike to India. The Ducati 959 Panigale is the perfect balance between impressive design and breath-taking performance and it embodies Ducati’s premium sportbike culture.” Bookings for the bike have opened at all Ducati dealerships in India with deliveries to begin in July 2016.

Ducati Diavel Carbon

Ducati’s stall at the 2016 India Bike Week consisted of bikes from the Scrambler range, Hyperstrada, Multistrada 1200S and the Diavel Carbon. The Scrambler is the most affordable Ducati you can currently buy in India while the Hyperstrada and Multistrada are off road bikes. The Diavel Carbon is Ducati’s range topping tourer bike and comes with a 1198cc L-Twin engine that develops 160BHP. The bikes comes with a ultra wide 240-section rear tyre which are Pirelli Diablo Rosso’s. The tank panels, passenger seat cover and front mudguard of the Diavel Carbon are made in carbon fibre which sets it apart from the standard Diavel. Ducati currently has dealerships in Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai and Bangalore with plans to introduce more of them this year.

Ducati at 2016 India Bike Week Photo Gallery:

DSK Benelli Unveils Tornado 302 and TRK 502 at 2016 India Bike Week (55 Photos)

DSK Benelli unveiled four new motorcycles at the 2016 India Bike Week which included the Tornado 302 and the TRK 502.

DSK Benelli unveiled four new motorcycles at the 2016 India Bike Week which included the Tornado 302 and the TRK 502. Other bikes that were showcased in India for the first time were the T-135 and BX 250.

DSK Benelli TRK 502 and TNT 302 Launch

The 4th edition of the India Bike Week is underway and has a few launches already on its platform. DSK Benelli, the Italian bike maker has unveiled four new models here, which will make it to the Indian market in the near future. The showstoppers were the TRK 502 and the Tornado 302. The TRK 502 is an off-road bike with a 500cc engine while the Tornado 302 is a fully faired motorcycle based on the TNT 300 with a 300cc engine. These are the two variants that will come to India first, sometime later this year.

DSK Benelli TNT 302

Mr. Shirish Kulkarni, Chairman, DSK Motowheels said, “It is once again our pleasure to be a part of India’s largest festival of bikes and bikers. IBW is a platform that brings together riders from all walks of life, therefore marking our presence and showcasing our latest marvels here was inevitable. We are extremely elated to showcase the upcoming range of DSK Benelli superbikes, especially as the audience already includes many proud owners of our current superbike range. We are certain that with every new showcase from the house of Benelli, we are adding charm to this biking extravaganza, and giving our customers the opportunity to Bond with Benelli.”

DSK Benelli TRK 502

In addition, DSK Benelli also showcased the soon to arrive ABS variants of the TNT 600i and TNT 600 GT superbikes with an aim to heat up the competition. Currently these bikes do not offer these safety features and we hope Benelli introduces these variants soon. DSK Benelli currently has 15 showrooms across India, which includes – Pune, Mumbai, Goa, Ahmedabad, Surat, Thane, Indore, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Delhi, Chandigarh, Jaipur and Kolkata, with 15 more coming up in 2016.

DSK Benelli Stall at 2016 India Bike Week Photo Gallery:

Harley Davidson Inaugurates 1st Dealership for Coimbatore, 2nd in Tamil Nadu

Harley-Davidson India today announced the opening of its 21st dealership facility, The Western Ghats Harley-Davidson in Coimbatore.

The Western Ghats Harley Davidson

Harley-Davidson India today announced the opening of its 21st dealership facility, The Western Ghats Harley-Davidson in Coimbatore. It is the second Harley-Davidson dealership in the state of Tamil Nadu, with the first being Coromandel Harley-Davidson in Chennai. The latest facility, which is located at 1018, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore is spread across 8,000 sq. ft. and is a 3S facility.

This outlet will provide sales and after sales service to new and existing Harley-Davidson customers. Customers will also be able to choose from a wide range of parts and accessories to customize their respective bikes including the latest Black Label Collection. The company currently has a lineup of 13 motorcycles which include the Street 750, Iron 883, 1200 Custom, Forty-Eight, Street Bob, Fat Bob, Fat Boy, Breakout, Heritage Softail Classic, Night Rod Special, Road King, Street Glide Special and CVO Limited.

Commenting on the launch, Vikram Pawah, Managing Director, Harley-Davidson India said, “The passion, enthusiasm and respect Harley-Davidson brand has received from customers and enthusiasts in the Southern region continues to inspire our growth plans. The Western Ghats Harley-Davidson in Coimbatore is part of our natural progression to reach out to more brand enthusiasts and cultivate the sport of leisure motorcycling in the region. We look forward to solidifying our presence in India by growing through a trusted network of independently owned dealerships.”

Commenting on the opening of the dealership, Mr. Anandakrishnan C R Dealer Principal, The Western Ghats Harley-Davidson added, “We are delighted to bring the iconic Harley-Davidson brand to Coimbatore. The dealership will prove to be the one-stop destination for all motorcycle and brand enthusiasts who wish to experience the Harley-Davidson lifestyle and culture.”

Harley-Davidson, the iconic American bike maker entered India in 2009 and opened its first dealership a year later in 2010. The company’s bestseller in India is the Street 750 which does not come as a surprise as this bike is the entry-level offering from the company in India.

RE: Range Rover 5.0 Autobiography: PH Fleet

Tuesday 5th August 2014
Range Rover 5.0 Autobiography: PH Fleet
The Series I needed towing.

The Series I needed towing. The Range Rover was bought for towing. All Harris needs is a tow hook...

I needed to tow my trailer and so confidently grabbed the keys to the Rangie, only to be dismayed at the lack of a tow bar. You might remember that I'm the mug who bought an L322 for general pottering and towing duties, agreed a price in the knowledge that the removable hook had been taken by the previous owner and failed to check the price of a replacement. However, I didn't remember any of this.

A project that never quite got off the ground

So, stunned by a fact I was entirely in possession of I phoned Guy Salmon in Bristol and they quoted me £620 for a small lump of iron containing a cheap lock. Pillaging swines. Proving that my dismal mental abilities hadn't improved since the original purchase I succumbed to the transaction with pathetic ease, then moaned about the process on Twitter, only to receive replies suggesting that a non-Land Rover part would have saved me around £500. Balls.

The hook arrived the following day, I spent a while fiddling with it, managed to mate male and female parts, secured the Brian James electrics and went off to do some towing. I thoroughly enjoy occasional towing, much as I do occasional van driving - in small doses they both mark an escape from the norm and that makes me smile. The concentration, the thrill of doing something unfamiliar to the best of one's abilities. The threat of public shame if you don't - or if your abilities are a bit rubbish.

The purpose of this trip was to do something about thethat has been rotting under my stewardship these past four years. It was bought with the intention of underpinning with a new chassis and then bumbling around lanes and collecting wood, but my old 2CV now covers the first role and I've not done much wooding of late so haven't really needed a flat-bed. With a bent rally car (more on that soon, and another silly project on-the-go; I don't really have the appetite right now, so I wanted to discover if this thing might be easily fixed, or if I should simply offload it).

Bought for £900, sold for £200...

The process nearly didn't happen because I managed to ding the trailer during the loading process and naturally blamed the inanimate lump of metal which needed transporting for the shunt - and to exact revenge I decided to go and dump it at the scrap yard forthwith. Then I reminded myself that it owed me £900 and giving it away out of spite probably wasn't clever.

Next stop, eBay. Here I looked for similar 107-inch models and my heart sank a little. The chassis and mechanical work needed would surely cost more than the end value - not an insurmountable issue, but hardly information that persuades you to persevere when the decision is marginal. And then I saw it - a small advert telling of expertise in these matters near Bristol. I phoned and messaged, he replied; four hours later I was outside his house asking questions. He was called Nick Davey. Nice chap. Knows his Landies.

"How much to do the chassis?"
"Probably three grand because it's a Series One"
"What about a clutch and the other stuff?"
"Can price a clutch, but the rest you just have to wait and see."

Small problem when a Series 1 needs moving

I had little appetite for waiting and seeing. "What'll you give me for it?", I asked, expecting some well-judged anti-107 invective, which duly arrived. As his opening gambit Nick was kind enough to suggest the front grille was worth £50 and, this being a week after the event, I can only congratulate him on the manner in which he strolled around the old heap uttering the odd hmmmmm, tssking and occasionally shaking his head. It was a masterful performance: dismissive but never disrespectful. Other traders could learn a thing-or-two from Nick's valuation body theatre.

"Two hundred quid" he proffered, with just the faintest suggestion that he might be concerned by my reaction.

"Done!" I beamed, heartily shaking his hand. After all, what's a £700 loss in the context of an audience with such sublime valuation skills?

The beauty of towing with a supercharged V8 petrol Range Rover is that you don't have to wait long to spend the £200 reward - ten minutes later I was fleeced of another £120 for a tank of unleaded and headed home with £80 to show for my adventure.

Solved £600 (!) later

In all this excitement, I've forgotten to tell you what it's like to tow with a 500hp Rangie - it's actually a bit good. Even with a big old trailer and a chunky Landie out back it still feels brisk. Gearchanges are slick and the handling is solid. I cannot tell you how nervous I was about this whole escapade because the last two 322-based towing events I instigated ended in mechanical disaster. This one didn't, but equally I still didn't feel that sense of mechanical indomitability you associate with a Land Cruiser Amazon. But maybe I'm being harsh.

Minus a trailer, I really do adore pottering about in this truck. It scorches away from the lights if you need such histrionics, but at this time of year I tend to just waft around listening to the cricket. It worries me that the UK has completely abandoned the traditional estate car for these behemoths, but when you're tooling around in one it's so hard to deny the appeal of V8, the view from up-high, the gorgeous cabin and the odd scrabble off-road. Hypocrisy rules.

Now there's this to contend with

There is a small problem looming though. Yesterday I went to grab something from the boot and when the sunlight caught the corner of the upper tailgate, there were bubbles in the paintwork. Closer inspection revealed loads of corrosion on the outside and inside the panel. It's a right old mess and a bit of a shambles in a four year-old car. I'm normally completely laid-back about paint defects and other blemishes, but rampant tin-worm in something that cost £37K, is under four years old, has covered less than 25K miles and spends most of its time in a dry shed is a worry. I took it to Guy Salmon with my best quizzical face and they're coming back to me.

But the sheer charm of this 322 will continue to shine through regardless of the outcome. I love the styling, the discreet performance, the ride comfort, the beautiful caramel leather, the effortless towing, the integrated dog-tether and the fact that, unlike the new 405 series machine, it looks just like a Range Rover should.

I shall report back on the rust. I still cannot believe that it hasn't depreciated a bean. And, since you will all ask, about 13mpg.

FACT SHEET
Car: 2010 Range Rover 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography
Run by: Chris Harris
Bought: December 2013
Mileage: Less than 25,000
Purchase price: £38,000 (before man maths, haggling and finance...)
Last month at a glance: The Range Rover finally does some towing. Of another Harris Land Rover.

RE: Chris Harris video: drift school

Thursday 31st July 2014
Chris Harris video: drift school
You wait for one drifty video and then two come along at once; here Harris shares tricks of the trade
I've broken it down into what I hope are logical steps and tried to highlight some common mistakes.

BMW has been allowing people to abuse itsin a publicity stunt, so we thought it time to run a little sliding tutorial.

Hands-up, BMW helped us with this vid, so it stays on the free DRIVE channel, which is slightly ironic!

I've broken it down into what I hope are logical steps and tried to highlight some common mistakes. Regardless of whether you think drifting is childish or the greatest thing since the sliced loaf, there is no denying that the car control you learn from it will make you a better driver. Extreme car control becomes instinctive and in a sudden emergency you will have an advantage over other drivers.

But really this is about cutting great big slides and learning how to indulge in the sheer fun to be had from spoiling rear tyres. I'm a very lucky chap who gets to do this the whole time, and I never, ever stop grinning through each and every slide. Quite simply it's the best feeling to be had in a car.

And I have to say this bit - do it somewhere safe!

RE: Harris buys a Ducati: PH Blog

Wednesday 23rd July 2014
Harris buys a Ducati: PH Blog
Having sold the Ferrari there was room for another noisy Italian in Chris's life
"You've effectively just passed your driving test and just bought an E63 as your first car," said a pal who knows rather a lot about motorcycles.

and just bought an E63 as your first car," said a pal who knows rather a lot about motorcycles. And, I have to concede, to the casual observer my choice of motorcycle for my initial foray onto the public highway does appear to be a touch foolhardy. It's a Ducati Monster 1200, and it has enough performance to contort time.

"How much is that Ducati in the window..."

But there was much thought that went into the purchase process. I was a little obsessed with seat-heights - being a very small chap with very little legs, I hate the feeling that I can't get both feet onto the ground should I need to. A small point of confidence I know, but one that reflects the fact that most early wobbles happen as you learn low-speed balance. So I wanted a very low seat.

I also wanted a twin because Iand enjoyed the lazy, torquey delivery and rumble-rumble soundtrack. But this was set against the fact that experientially I wanted something quite different from motorcycling than I did car ownership and driving. I wanted something to own and stare at - I wanted the man/machine relationship to be deliberately superficial one and didn't feel any sense of shame at not being able to access the majority of the performance. Looks mattered. Cars and bikes only go as fast as you ask them to.

So I went to look at some Ducatis. I'll admit to sitting on a Panigale, but all it did was confirm that I'd rather be more upright and then I hopped onto some Monsters. There were old ones, new ones, red ones and black ones - and it would appear that the engine sizes have covered pretty much every conceivable combination of three-figure number. Plus the odd four-digit number. I then saw a brandand thought it looked the patella of the bumble-bee.

Obviously Chris was sensible and started small...

Jason the smiley salesman then whipped out his multi-tool and dropped the adjustable seat to its lowest position, whereupon I could rest both of my heels on the ground and the wide bars didn't feel dissimilar to those of my mountain bike. It just felt absolutely spot-on. I didn't have my pass certificate with me, and my youngest son could easily destroy Riders' Bristol showroom in the 15 minutes I'd have to leave him for a test ride. So I just thought balls to it and said I'd like to buy one.

It occurred to me that I know so little about bikes and my riding skill is so undeveloped that I could research every new bike and even if I got it right for me now, it might not be in six months or next year. So I might as well just buy something that has a low seat, no fairing to keep speeds low and a very low seat. Naturally I asked if I could have the fancy S model with the gold suspension components and fancy exhaust but was told they were all sold out.

The cost was £10,695. I defy anyone who has a solid addiction to fast cars not to walk around a Ducati showroom grinning at how cheap everything looks. The sense of value is horribly skewed, but you can't help but act on it.

To be fair after the FF anything would look cheap

So what exactly had I done here? Had I made the classic mistake of simply buying something because it looked good and fitted my desires, and then constructed some laughable narrative to justify it based on a low seating position? Could well be. Or had I read all the press on it, decided that the two-stage engine map which offered a Billy-spec 100hp mode as well as the full 135hp was probably ideal?

Maybe a bit of both. You see I had this underlying sense that unless I owned a bike I craved, one that made me tingle with pride and I-can't-believe-it's actually-mine radiance, I might not actually want to ride it. Biking for me will be purely recreational, done for the love of it, so it stands to reason that the machine shouldn't generate in me feelings of quiet respect and other sterile emotions. I looked at the single-sided swing arm on the 1200 and thought, "I want some of that."

Two weeks later I rode it home. I have now covered 700 miles, which feels like many hours riding, but is of course nothing in the car world.

Low seat? Check. Throbbing V-twin? Check...

It's a harder bike to ride than the Gladius, even in 100hp 'Urban' mode. The clutch is no heavier, but the initial power delivery is sharper and of course it's way more potent. The first 350 miles were extremely sedate and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed myself riding rather slowly on my bright red Ducati. To the hardcore I'm sure I was and remain a figure of fun, but the simple joy of mooching along at 55mph with that V-twin spluttering away underneath you defies description. For me it's an escape to another place. I'm not worrying about work or other crap, my mind is focused on riding - albeit rather slowly.

There are two running-in periods for this bike, the first is an oil change at around 450 miles, up to which point you should stay below 5,000rpm. As a novice, even in 100hp mode, this limit presents no problems - save the fact that the funky colour electronic dash doesn't actually have a rev counter in that mode, so you're kind of guessing. In reality, shifting at 4,000rpm still left me thinking it was damn fast.

Unashamedly it had to look good...

I added most of those miles on the trip to the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Cruising at the legal limit, or thereabouts, is fine. You just lean your body into the airflow and it's held there. It's noisy and after an hour my bits were a touch sore, but I'd always imagined that biking was supposed to include such hardships. I rather enjoyed stopping for tea and flapjacks and not being bothered by timings. That last point is very liberating for someone who always seems to find himself sprinting to an airport.

The trip home was magnificent - my first chance to filter through the post-Goodwood Sunday evening gridlock. There weren't too many wobbles, and I would be lying if I said great waves of smugness didn't wash over me as I slid past all those stationary cars. Karma was just around the corner mind - a cloudburst on the M4 forced me into the services and I probably lost much of the time I'd gained. But when I arrived home I was tired and sweaty and excited and smiley and I felt like I'd been on an adventure. All this from a journey that wouldn't have even registered in a car. And all in 100hp mode.

No rev counter in Urban mode - annoying

Post service I felt a little more confident, but remained very cautious. After five weeks I had to try the more powerful engine map purely to see the rev-counter. Go figure. Ducati advises around 7,000rpm for the next 500 miles, and that's plenty for me. The motor is lumpy below 2,000rpm, then just pummels its way beyond 3,500rpm. Even if I could use the last 2,500rpm, I'm not man enough yet. Nor, strangely, am I that interested. The thing is a complete weapon already.

That'll do for now. Next up some thoughts on being a novice, sharing the highway with other road users, corners and why overhanging fruit trees now terrify me.

Chris

RE: Pay per view: PH Blog

Wednesday 30th July 2014
Pay per view: PH Blog
Chris Harris explains why the full edits of his YouTube Drive vids are moving to subscription only
In October 2011 an American chap called JF Musial called me and said he was about to get funding from YouTube for a motoring channel - and did I fancy being a part of it.

In October 2011 an American chap called JF Musial called me and said he was about to get funding from YouTube for a motoring channel - and did I fancy being a part of it. Two weeks later we shook hands over a beer at the Nurburgring, and so began the most enjoyable period of my working life.

YouTube underwrote two years of DRIVE programming and I loved every minute of it. At the end of 2013 the funding ended and we had to look for ways to keep DRIVE alive.

Forthcoming vids to include Chris's M3 rally car

All YouTube videos monetise through advertising, so it should have been easy to simply raise a production budget and then watch the advertising dollars roll in. The problem is, the dollars never really have rolled in and the revenue share with YouTube itself allows us to retain just 55 per cent of earnings. So it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that we need other revenue streams, one of which is a subscription service for longer-form videos.

Now I'm fully aware that just the notion of me and my colleagues attempting to charge for video content will cause much unrest. It's not greed; just basic mathematics.

Remember that rather lovelywe shot at Angelsey? It cost £9,000 to shoot, and despite amassing two million views, to date has grossed us just £4,800. The maths is pretty stark across the board - evenhas racked up plenty of views, over 3.6 million in fact, but its total revenue is £9,200. That means we're in profit, but only because it was an official launch event and Woking paid for mine and Neil's flights, and JF who was second camera used his air miles to get from the US!

And the D-Type at Le Mans ... at a cost though

Don't misconstrue any of this as me moaning either - like I said, I've loved shooting DRIVE videos, but that was a two-year project and now we need to try something different. It's a pretty simple choice too: we either succeed in persuading a certain percentage of viewers that our content is worth some loose change every month. Or we don't, and we stop making films.

Of course I want it to work, and of course I feel pretty strongly that the sterling efforts of the entire DRIVE team are worth a small outlay each month on our new subscription channel called DRIVE+, but what I think doesn't really matter. We'll continue to air free content on the regular DRIVE YouTube channel, and shorter teaser edits of the long-form films will broadcast there too. [Chris will continue to introduce the vids here on PH too - Ed.]

Yes, there's lots of great free content already out there. But we'll be adding more with our films - going further with the tests and reviews and hopefully proving that content can be worth paying for.

Thanks to everyone who subscribed to DRIVE and shared the videos since 2012. I've no doubt this will generate some fairly potent rhetoric in the forums, but we've got to give it a go because the days of simply giving expensive content away for free are probably numbered.

The first subscription video goes live on Thursday. It's. The car is stunning.

Chris

; free to view edit on LaFerrari coming soon

Drive+ will cost £2.49 per month or £24.99 per year -

RE: Ferrari FF: PH Fleet

Tuesday 22nd July 2014
Ferrari FF: PH Fleet
A rather melancholy Harris looks back on a fantastic but fleeting stint with the FF
Buy a car with the express intention of using it as regularly as possible and it will sit motionless in the garage most of its life; do the same and expect to add mileage sparingly and you won't quite believe the speed with which the odometer adds numbers.

Buy a car with the express intention of using it as regularly as possible and it will sit motionless in the garage most of its life; do the same and expect to add mileage sparingly and you won't quite believe the speed with which the odometer adds numbers. For this and more besides, we thank you Mr Murphy.

Not great for something used so often!

Beyond all the compliments I want to lavish on the FF, the one that perhaps says the most is that I simply have to sell it. So happy have I been sat behind the massive V12 that I have raced through and beyond the mileage I was always going to allow myself. And I really had no idea I was using it so much - with over 11,000 miles now showing, it's covered nearly 6,000 miles in four months, and much as I'm a strong advocate of using cars the way the development engineers intended, the threat of seismic depreciation always lurks in the background.

There are not many people in the UK who would buy an FF to use everyday and accrue mileage in the conventional sense. I know of one on the continent that has covered 50,000km, but I couldn't afford to cover 30K miles in this car over one year and bought it in the knowledge that I have several other cars of my own and assorted test cars to help spread the mileage burden. But this proved to be a flawed strategy. When you have an FF outside the door, you tend to use the FF. An unsurprising discovery in hindsight.

FF was perfect for a European jaunt...

This is the first FF trick - it makes all journeys special. It barks from start-up, the V12 sounds indescribably expensive even when it hunts for a clutch to engage first gear and from then on it just makes me smile. It seems many PHers couldn't understand why anyone would buy a four-seat Ferrari over a 458 - the answer is children. I have many of these creatures and I love the fact that I can share the whole Ferrari thing with them. The opportunities to go and drive on my own for fun are limited to weekdays, and frankly I much prefer the front-engined Ferrari species anyway.

That I happen to think the FF is one of the best looking cars on sale makes many people laugh in derision, but such is life. Without ever knowing it I seem to have contracted some kind of 'bread-van' fetish: 145 Cloverleaf, M Coupe, FF - the truncated arse does it for me.

The FF certainly sits on the outer limits of how large a performance car can be before it is rendered unusable. I never just climb into it and don't consider its sheer width. The first few miles are always spent adjusting to the fast steering and gauging your road positioning. Once there, I'm completely happy, but you never have to acclimatise in a CLS 63 or an RS6. Some will find this process part of the car's 'specialness' - I can see it both ways.

... or indeed for Harris the golfist. Superb!

The very-fast-German-estatey-thing comparison is valid in the context of the used FF. It is now quite possible to spec one of those machines from new to £120K, and the cheapest FFs are now within £30K of that figure. Once Ferrari Financial Services (or Beelzebub, as they're known at chez Harris) get involved with a tasty residual, the cost of purchase is surprisingly close. The Germans are larger, more practical and cheaper to run, but as objects to own and enjoy they just don't come close. And I'm not convinced they'd be any cheaper to run either. And to reiterate, I'm talking about used FFs - dropping £300K on a new one is liable to result in some moderate depreciation (coughs for effect), but once a very rich person has swallowed that loss, the pickings are very appealing.

Reliability. Yes, that old Italian chestnut. In my care, the FF failed to complete two journeys, which is an un-stellar performance from a car of this type. Both events appear to have been the fault of the fuel system losing pressurisation- the second took several days to fix but all the work was covered under warranty. I suppose each time I pop the bonnet I'm struck by just how many sensors and widgets there are to potentially go wrong. Factor in the immense heat that the V12 generates against the fact the car spent several days in sub-zero temperatures and you have a very harsh environment. Still, it's the same for all carmakers. Why I feel so sanguine about the FF needing an off-games note for a couple of days, where I'd be livid if a new M5 did the same can probably be explained by quoting Jules from Pulp Fiction's explanation of the pig. Personality goes a long way.

Dimensions always an issue

On the recentthere was a bizarre 'meeting' arranged for some journos with Ferrari CEO Amedeo Felisa. The Papal audience was about as unrelaxing as you could imagine, but The Boss was surprisingly open with his thoughts on Ferrari's GT cars. He agreed with me that the FF's exhaust is too loud on start up and under full load when the valves are open. He also agreed that the tyre noise at the rear axle made travelling in the back a little more wearisome than was strictly ideal. But he offered a rare grin when I said I thought it was a very special car and outrageously fast for a four-seater - he just nodded: "I know."

I also told him that I though the fuel tank was too small and its positioning spoiled the load space. "What do you think of the new California?" he replied, looking into the space over my left shoulder, giving me the clearest indication possible that he'd had enough of my FF feedback.

Hopefully more on the other car to follow!

Great satisfaction comes from knowing that I've really used this car to the fullness of its abilities. It's cruised beyond 180mph with people sat in the back and the boot crammed full of luggage. At those speeds, it's the most stable car I've driven. It's carted muddy mountain bikes, mewling children and several loads of shopping. In TDF blue it always looked perfect to me and its departure has left a rather sad hole in my life that is only compensated by the fact that I no longer have to give FFS £1,500 every month for the pleasure of keeping it (I know the PH finance police won't sanction any suggestion of ownership with just £45K of equity!)

So, to anyone considering something spacious, conventionally German and super-heated, or maybe a 991 Turbo, I'd implore them to try an FF before making a purchase. It has space for four adults (but not all their luggage) and it looks, feels and drives like a £300,000 car. Because it was a £300,000 car which you can now own for a little more than half the original asking price.

It isn't perfect. The double DIN sat-nav thing is a bit crap in a £20K Fiat, the fuel filler thing is pants and occasionally bits of trim make a break for freedom, but who cares?

It's miles better than my old 612, and I haven't once thought about the 599 since I took delivery.

Better to have loved and lost, and all that.

FACT SHEET
Car: 2012 Ferrari FF
Bought: February 2014
Mileage: 11,609
Purchase price: Quite a lot
Last month at a glance: Having pondered doing a Ferris Bueller on the big number on the odometer Harris faces the inevitable and regretfully chops the FF in

Previous reports:
Harris makes the man maths work and welcomes Ferrari no.2

RE: BMW M235i Performance: PH Blog

Thursday 17th July 2014
BMW M235i Performance: PH Blog
Two sets of tyres in and Chris is very much still enjoying the M235i
Here's how the automotive media actually works - on an extremely superficial and unimportant level.

Here's how the automotive media actually works - on an extremely superficial and unimportant level. I asked BMW if I could runfor a few months, it said "yes". I then added it might be fun to take a look at the M Performance options, especially the optional locking differential. It said "Sounds like a plan". I then added that none of the cosmetic stuff interested me, in fact it would probably actively annoy me, but BMW Germany still sent a lovely chap over to adhere the most dreadful stickers to the sides of the car. I duly said they were foul; BMW wasn't happy. I suppose I should just tear them off, but I watched dear Toby apply them with such love that I haven't the heart.

Diff proving its worth!

Funny old world.

But I really can forgive the stickers, because this is one hell of a machine. It will do battle with the new Golf R on video soon (yes, we're coming back!) but in isolation it's everything I could want in a small rear-wheel drive coupe. BMW is still considered the master of naturally aspirated high-performance six-cylinder motors, but it has seamlessly transferred its skills to turbocharging. Yes, it's not a full M-car, but for response, outright shove and music, this blown-six makes a compelling case for being one of the best engines on sale.

It hits hard from 2,500rpm, sings all the way to 6,500rpm and is connected to a very slick six-speed manual and now a locking rear differential. For me, that's the perfect recipe for fun. Other rivals in this fast emerging sub-M3 performance category are faster point-to-point, but none gives you that delicious feeling of adjusting cornering line with your right foot, or fills the cabin with straight-six sonics. Again, I like the fake-ish noise, but then I'm a Human League fan.

Isn't it strange how a gearlever can make a gearshift feel quite different? The optional, stumpy M Performance item somehow gives the sensation of a more direct shift - and I've grown to like the look of it too. Would I pay £172 for it? Of course not.

Chris and the fancy wheel getting on here

Likewise much of the interior Alcantara and carbon trimmings which are actually very tastefully executed but sadly do nothing for an aesthetic-vacuum like myself. I suppose I can only sanction wasting money on visual tat if I feel I've exhausted the spend on stuff that adds to the driving experience. So the differential is a must, but the upgraded brakes are actually no bigger, so I can't really see the point. If I was BMW M Performance, I'd have left the rears standard and offered a big steel, vented rotor to fit behind a 19-inch wheel.

I do however love the silly steering wheel and its illegible readout and controls that caused me to invent new swear words during a shoot earlier this week. It's the definition of a cool gadget, and I'd probably waste £1,250 just for the way it looks and feels in the hand.

If I happen to think the stickers look like a dog's dinner, the population under the age of 30 appears to disagree. Neil bought the car along to the Nurburgring 24-hour and ended up being folk hero for the weekend, a role I suspect he quietly enjoyed. The Germans just loved the bodykit and the M Performance logos and the fruity exhaust burble. For me, colour plays a big part - BMW Cardiff has an M235i demo in black, with all the same body mods as this car, but without the stripe and with bigger 19-inch rims. It looks the conkers.

"Where's the Michelin man gone?"

We're up on 7,000 miles now - there has been no request for a slurp of oil, the brakes have taken a beating but do not judder and I can't really comment on tyre wear because two video shoots meant beasting two sets of rears. As a dual-role tyre that allows you to drive on the road in any weather, but then tolerate hard track use, I think Michelin Pilot Super Sports are flipping brilliant.

I remain an iDrive sceptic. The interface just doesn't work for me, and the new track-pad simply adds to the confusion, but the counterpoint is Neil who simply adores it. What I do enjoy is stepping inside the car and immediately having it Bluetooth to my phone and music. But then all modern cars seem to do that these days.

Where BMW manages to just raise itself above the competition is making the cabin feel more driver focused than the others: the dash is canted toward the driver, just like in Bimmers of old. And the seat, wheel, pedals relationship is spot on. Those few remaining three-pedal performance cars (god I hate writing that) seem to have no understanding of the importance of the height of the brake pedal in relation to the throttle - in the M235i, rolling onto the accelerator for downshifts couldn't be more natural. It's a small point, but one that I enjoy countless times even on the shortest drives.

This comparison is coming very soon

Fuel consumption fluctuates wildly according to how it's driven, but I see mid 30s on longer journeys and can suppress that in to the mid 20s whenever the mood takes me.

I suppose the last point of discussion is size. Small coupes are now what we used to call big coupes, but this remains a car you can thread with confidence on UK roads. It's the key ingredient in making it a great car over here. Take that engine, the fun chassis, the sheer performance and then allow the driver not to worry about width and you have something very special.

With or without stickers.

Full breakdown of the M235i M Performance options here.

Sharad Agarwal to lead Lamborghini India

Lamborghini India operation will be headed by Sharad Agarwal who was former Audi India head of field forces.

Sharad Agarwal previously worked with Zuari Industries, TVS Motors, and Mahindra First Choice. In May 2012, Audi made him head of corporate sales, fleet and leasing, and financial services with and elevation to the post of head of field forces in 2013.

At Lamborghini India, Mr. Agarwal will be responsible for  sales, marketing, after sales and network development, the company said in a statement.

“It’s indeed a pleasure to welcome Sharad as the head of Lamborghini India. Sharad comes with 15 years of experience in the automotive industry and his expertise and contribution will allow us to further strengthen the brand in a market Lamborghini considers strategic and one of the most promising thanks to the already announced arrival of the Lamborghini SUV, URUS, announced in 2018,” says Andrea Baldi, general manager of Automobili Lamborghini Asia-Pacific.

Lamborghini currently has two models on sale in India. The entry level Huracan and the Aventador. Lamborghini recently launched the RWD Huracan LP 580-2 in India. It has been priced at INR 2.99 crores (ex-showroom, New Delhi) which is a full 44 lakhs cheaper than the AWD version.  The Huracan LP 580-2 is powered by a 5.2 litre naturally aspirated V10 engine producing 580 bhp and 540 Nm of torque. It is mated to a Lamborghini Doppia Frizione (LDF) 7-speed dual clutch automatic transmission and power is sent to the rear wheels.

The Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 starts at 5.05 crore and is powered by a massive 6.5-litre engine developing 700 bhp @ 8250 RPM and 690 Nm @ 5500 RPM. There are many variations in the Aventador lineup with the roadster and the powerful SV versions. The Super Veloce is powered by the same 6.5-liter V12 that churns out 750bhp @ 8400 rpm and an unchanged torque of 690 Nm @ 5500 rpm. The SV’s manually operated, automated seven-speed gearbox has been adopted from the standard Aventador. These improvements precipitate into a top speed of more than 217 mph and a 0-62 mph in 2.8 seconds.

The company will launch its first ever SUV, the Urus in 2018.

5 lakh for a Porsche 911 themed chair !!!

Limited edition range of any object becomes instantly a lot desirable.

Limited edition range of any object becomes instantly a lot desirable. People love the exclusivity around it.  We have seen works of art go for millions of dollars. But how far are you willing to go for as mundane as an office chair?

If your answer is $6,750 then congratulations!  You can now own a Porsche 911 office chair. Porsche has made this chair as out of the regular 911 Carera GTS and GT3 for optimal performance! From the video, it looks more like a car seat on rolling castors. This 35 kg chair will take good care of your bum with Alcantara leather with contrast red stitching along with adjustable height, electrically adjustable backrest with integrated rechargeable battery and even ‘3D’ controlled armrest, which not only moves up or down but also front to back, giving the best possible position to rest your arms.

On the back there is a hook to hang you $10000 suit and 5 castors for ‘optimal traction’. Giving it the Porsche exclusive touch is the embossed Porsche crest on the headrest making it flaunt-worthy.

If you are a man of means and a Porsche fanatic at the same time you might also want to consider the Porsche 911 Turbo wheel rim clock which retails for $2,299 or a GT3 Cup shelf that goes for $4,230.

Talking about the Porsche 911, the car is a new turbocharged flat-six 3.0-litre engine producing more power and torque. In the Carrera, it produces 370 bhp and 450 Nm of torque, while in the Carrera S, it produces 420 bhp and 500 Nm of torque. The engine is mated to a 7- speed manual or a 7-speed PDK automatic transmission and power is sent to the rear wheels.

The acceleration, top speed and fuel economy figures have also improved. The 0-100 kmph acceleration time is 4.2 seconds for the Carrera and 3.9 seconds for the Carrera S. The sports cars will go on to a top speed of 295 kmph and 308 kmph respectively. The Carrera returns 13.51 kms to a litre of fuel while the Carrera S returns 12.98 kmpl.

Watch the video here:

Alfa Romeo Stelvio Seen Testing For The First Time

The SUV is expected to take design elements from the Giulia.

Alfa Romeo’s new SUV, which has been christened the Stelvio, has been spotted testing with heavy camouflage for the first time.

This is the first time that the SUV has been spotted testing in its own body

The SUV is expected to take design elements from the Giulia. The interior is also expected to be very similar to the sedan. The roofline of the SUV is expected sloped like a coupe just like the Maserati Levante, which has been dubbed to be its sister car. Not many details can be seen due to the heavy camouflage on the car but the traditional Alfa Romeo grille can be seen at the front. The grille, front bumper air intakes and the headlights seem to be taken from the Giulia.

The SUV is expected to get the same powertrain as the sedan. It will get a diesel engine in different states of tune (150 bhp, 180 bhp and 210 bhp) and a new GME (Global Medium Engine) 2.0-litre petrol engine in different states of tune (200 bhp, 250 bhp and 280 bhp). Just like the sedan, a much more powerful version of the SUV is expected. That will be powered by a 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine producing 500 bhp. This is the same engine that powers the hot performance version.

The Alfa Romeo Stelvio will compete against the BMW X3, Audi Q5, Mercedes-Benz GLC, Range Rover Evoque, Land Rover Discovery Sport and the Volvo XC60. It will be launched later on in the year. Production will begin by the end of the year and will go on sale in 2017.

Alfa Romeo Stelvio spy shot image gallery

Image source – Autocar UK

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Mercedes-Benz C-Class Facelift Seen Testing

Mercedes-Benz has already begun testing the facelift version of their C-Class sedan.

While the spy shots suggested changes to the headlights and minor changes to the front bumper, the car is expected to get some changes to the tail lights and the rear bumpers as well. The headlights looks like it will get an LED setup similar to the E-Class sedan. The sedan also gets swooping design around the grille and chrome highlights on the side skirts and rear bumper. The interior will also see some upgrades. It will be getting some features from the new E-Class including the twin-display screens seen on the bigger models and maybe a new sound system as well.

The details of the powertrain have not been confirmed. Although no changes are expected, some rumors suggest that the sedan could get the new, more efficient 2.0-litre diesel engines from the E-Class to replace the old 2.1-litre diesel engines.

The facelift version of the compact premium sedan will come out only in the second half of 2017.

In India, the C-Class is powered by a petrol engine and a diesel engine. The petrol is a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine producing 184 bhp and 300 Nm of torque. The diesel is a 2.1-litre four-cylinder diesel engine in two states of tune – 170 bhp and 400 Nm of torque and 204 bhp and 500 Nm of torque. The engines are paired to a 7-speed automatic gearbox or a 9-speed automatic gearbox and power is sent to the rear wheels.

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class starts at INR 37.90 lakhs (ex-showroom, New Delhi) and goes up to INR 44.36 lakhs (ex-showroom, New Delhi) and it competes with the Jaguar XE, Audi A4, Volvo S60 and the BMW 3-series.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class facelift spy shot image gallery

Source – Auto Express UK

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RE: Porsche 944 Turbo: PH Heroes

Tuesday 29th March
Porsche 944 Turbo: PH Heroes
40 years of transaxle Porsches - a landmark worth celebrating?

40 years of transaxle Porsches - a landmark worth celebrating? Time to drive one of the best and find out!

Bad ideas deserve to die, but good ones aren't immune from failure either. The first thing that strikes you about a well-preserved Porsche 944 is how modern it looks and feels despite being 30 years old. The second is how much fresher and better designed it was than the 911s that Porsche was knocking out at the time.Yet while the company's arse-engined, air-cooled dinosaur has long since had its classic status confirmed by the sort of prices that make London property look undervalued, the 944 remains one of those 'other' Porsches. Like its close relatives the 924 and 968 it's widely regarded as an also-ran. It failed in its mission to replace the 911 for the simple fact that buyers never formed the same emotional connection with it, yet maybe it's time for a reassessment.

This 944 Turbo might well be one of very best. There's just enough patina to confirm the odometer's admission to 21,000 miles, but in every other regard its near immaculate and in what seems to be completely original nick. It's even wearing its original main dealer sales sticker on the back window. It's being sold by respected Porsche fettlers Autofarm for a chunky price that we'll get to later, but one that a day in its company comes dangerously close to justifying.

Four-cylinder Porsches?
In 2016 the idea of a turbocharged four-cylinder Porsche is enough to get some people into a froth of, but in the 1980s the concept caused far less alarm. The 924 and its descendants were all four-cylinder and when Porsche decided to try and extract more power from the not especially muscular Audi-derived engine strapping a blower onto it was the obvious answer - this was the era that gave us 'Turbo' aftershave, after all.

The 924 Turbo had boasted 170hp, but in the 944 Porsche boosted that to 220hp; the later Turbo S managed 250hp. Serious stuff back then, and enough to make the 944 something of a performance bargain, especially given how easily it could be tuned to build substantially on those numbers.

It feels odd to see the familiar lower case 'turbo' script writ large on the back of something that so obviously isn't a 911; or these days a Cayenne or Macan. The 944's styling has aged well - it's hard not to like any car with pop-up headlamps - but it is pretty much a design synthesis of the 911 and the uber 928.

It's been so long since I sat in a 944 I had completely forgotten how nice the interior is; this was an era when most manufacturers less attention to ergonomics than they did to vinyl go-faster stripes, yet the cabin is a model of clarity and - by the standards of the age - loaded with kit. There's even a sort of proto climate control system. The instruments look gorgeous, red needles and crisp white fonts, and with a turbo boost gauge integrated into the rev counter. Because you needed to know your turbo was boosting, right?

Turbo, charge!
Heading onto some local roads and the first dynamic impression is of the 944's laid-back nature. The gearshift has a long action and notchy detents that don't like to be rushed, the clutch is heavy and bites high and even at manoeuvering velocities the steering feels low-geared. The engine is a bit grumbly low down, pulling cleanly but without much in the way of either torque or enthusiasm.

This isn't the sort of turbo lag that affected many of the 944's forced induction contemporaries, the sort that makes a binary transition between nothing and everything. The boost starts to build relatively low in the rev range, you can feel it by 3,000rpm, but it takes a long time for the turbine to spool up to full puff, and it's still pulling harder at 6,000rpm. The result is a car that's deceptively fast, with the way the power delivery sneaks up on you making it easy to find yourself cruising well beyond wrist-slapping territory.

For pictures we choose to use the B4011 between Bicester and Long Crendon, a favourite bit of Buckinghamshire, but cold and greasy when we visit. The sort of conditions that, in a 1986 911, would create either an urge to travel at the sort of cautious pace that would see you labelled as a wuss, or alternatively a brisker trot that would risk some fairly substantial gusset staining if the grip gave out.

Easy Company
The 944 Turbo couldn't be more different. The steering still feels leisurely at speed, the front end only starts to respond with a surprising amount of lock applied and feedback is muted at best. It doesn't take much to get the front edging wide on the slippery surface, but beyond that it's very secure; the back end refusing to be baited into slip even with big throttle applications despite the lack of any kind of stability control. It can carry serious speed - there's no way I'd travel this quickly in a contemporary 911 on a slippery road - but it's definitely a GT rather than an adrenaline-spiking sportscar.

Does the 944 Turbo deserve hero status? That's a finely balanced call, and one that you'll have your own instinctive take on. For me, not quite - I can think of several more exciting ways to spend a similar amount of money on a contemporary alternative. But this one is still a particularly nice way to travel.

Many people have grown poorer - in relative terms - by predicting that non-911 Porsches are overdue an increase in value. The 924, 944 and even 968 languished in the doldrums for years, with rougher examples dropping into outright bangerdom. Prices being asked for good ones have started to go up recently, but not to anything like the extent of even some of the least desirable 911s of the same era. It's not the sort of car you get into one expecting to fill your pockets with speculative gold.

This 944 Turbo is on sale with a "region of" £45,000 pricetag, supported by a recent mild restoration that's brought it back to pretty much as-new standard; that's a serious amount to pay for any 944, even one that can claim to be possibly the best surviving example. Compared to what you'd have to pay for a 911 Turbo of the same era and it's suddenly an outrageous bargain, of course...

PORSCHE 944 TURBO
Engine : 2,479cc, Inline-4 Turbo
Transmission : 5-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp) : 220@5,800rpm
Torque (lb ft) : 243@3,500rpm
0-60mph : 5.9sec
Top speed : 157mph
Weight : 1320kg
MPG : 15.2mpg
CO2 : N/A
Price new : £34,168

[Specs:]

RE: 911 R supply needs to be limited: TMIW

Thursday 17th March
911 R supply needs to be limited: TMIW
Angry you can't get a 911 R?

Angry you can't get a 911 R? Here's why Porsche isn't losing any sleep over it

Guilty as charged, we at PH, along with the rest of the motoring media, are entirely complicit in Porsche's skillfully managed hype programme supporting the launch of the. They're not daft. Put some stripes on a 911, a howling flat-six in the back and a few lightweight bits to tempt the purists, wheel out blokes' blokefor the adoring hacks to discuss lightweight flywheels with then sit back and see the limited production run fly off the shelves.

Job jobbed.

Also compulsory in the cycle of such things is a huge backlash of extremely angry people spurned by their Official Porsche Centre and unable to secure a car. Not having £140K to spend on a 911 I'm not sure how I'd feel about this. But those in a position to do so seem very, very cross about being refused the opportunity to hand over a six-figure sum to a Porsche dealership, as if this were some basic human right.

The gift that keeps on giving!

Flip ya for real
Allegations of dodgy deals between salesmen and the hated 'flippers' or closed-door conspiracies between OPCs and favoured customers are prevalent, likewise a sense of betrayal that ownership of previous limited edition Porsches doesn't necessarily 'entitle' you to buy the next. Basically I think this comes down to a particularly British hatred of queue jumpers, especially if they happen to be foreign (an alleged 'first dibs' offer for American 918 Spyder owners included) and/or 'new money', able to pay their way into their dealer's good books rather than graft away dutifully buying one GT3 after another. Because that'd be such an onerous process to have to go through, right?

Nice as the 911 R sounds I like to think if I were denied the 'right' to buy one I'd be a little more gracious in defeat and enjoy pondering how or where else I might spend my £140K. As a pal did when he failed to secure afrom the last round of indignant huffing about limited Porsche availability. His response was to go out and spend the money on a 997 GT3 instead, proving Preuninger right that those disillusioned with the current mainstream Porsche range are spending their money on classics from the back catalogue. If Porsche can be seen to cater to a select number of those people with a new car while underpinning values (financial and dynamic) of those older models it's simply smart brand management.

Collectors or enthusiasts in the 991 customers?

Demand less supply
But why (oh why, oh why, etc) doesn't Porsche just build as many 911 Rs as people claim to want to buy? Preuninger told us they're physically limited by the allocation of spots on a production line shared with Carreras, Targas, Turbos and Cabriolets, and there are only so many cars Zuffenhausen can build. But he admitted a car like the R also has to have an air of exclusivity about it. In order for it to work there has to be a sizeable number of people denied the ability to buy one.

In the fascinating thread that followed our Preuninger interview there were many interesting contributions. I don't agree with everything regular poster CMoose puts up but he nailed it in one particular post, basically saying if Porsche had just quietly introduced these features as options for the regular Carrera for the purists out there to spec as desired it wouldn't have sold 91 cars so-equipped, never mind 991. And Porsche will be only too aware of previous examples of manufacturers offering critically acclaimed, driver-focused and purist-friendly models to the market only to find buyers actually didn't give a flying one - reference the sluggish sales of the E46 M3 CSL and Renault failing to find customers for its full UK allocation of R26.Rs as proof. Closer to home thelanguished unloved more or less ignored by the mainstream for close on two decades.

Well we have been here before...

Know your enemy
Prime examples of all these cars are now seen as appreciating assets among collectors and enthusiasts. But only on the basis there aren't many around. Unless demand outstrips supply cars like this remain on the fringes, most OPC customers happily oblivious and speccing up their Carreras with PDK, rear wipers, sunroofs and all manner of baubles purists sneer at a few years down the line when looking for a 'pure' examples to hype as the next sure-fire investment.

For all the romanticised gushing Porsche is, in the end, a business. One whose strength permits the enthusiasts among its ranks like Preuninger licence to build a few cars that help shore up the legend and protect the brand. So long as a few of those cars make it into the hands of like-minded folk and get driven as intended it's mission accomplished. Clearly, being denied the chance to be one of them will annoy a few folk. But in the grand scheme of things worse has happened.

Enjoy pondering how far your £140K will get youif you need any further convincing...

[Cayman GT4/ GT3 RS image: Sim Mainey]

RE: Split the diff: GKN winter workshop

Monday 14th March
Split the diff: GKN winter workshop
Where does GKN go after the Twinster axle in the Focus RS?

Where does GKN go after the Twinster axle in the Focus RS? To the Arctic Circle to find out!

You're right; it's another frozen lake story. This is definitely the season for them, a time when automotive PRs realise they can make both their products and even the grubby journalists they invite to drive them look heroic by putting them onto a surface with almost no grip and nothing hard to hit. In this case, we've come all the way to a well-populated lake near Arjeplog in northern Sweden, where Fiat, GM, Jaguar, Land Rover and others all come for their winter testing operations.

Yet this one - organised by British transmission giant GKN - is also different. For a start because there are lots of different cars here for us to hoon around in, from ato a Jeep Compass. But also because there's a risk that we might actually learn something beyond sideways equals good.

Because while driving on ice and snow tells you pretty much nothing about how a car deals with any challenge other than ice and snow, it does enable some entertaining comparison of the way different systems work, and to experience some that haven't even been launched yet.

Focus RS in 'fun on ice' shocker

Who? What? Why?
GKN is well in the running for being the most successful British company most people have never heard of. It can trace its origins to the industrial revolution and grew from an ironworks into the sort of industrial conglomerate that smaller conglomerates cross the road to avoid. It employs 55,000 people around the world, 25,000 of who work for the GKN Driveline division that engineers and builds gearboxes, couplings and transmission components.

I know, this reads like I've cut and pasted Wikipedia. Stop yawning at the back. What renders GKN's recent work more compelling is the fact it's the company behind the very trick Twinster unit that underpins the Focus RS's dynamic abilities: the twin-clutch rear axle that allows the Ford to send different amounts of torque to each wheel for full-on biasing and general sideways driftiness. And having experienced just how far sideways the RS's much vaunted Drift Mode can get it on dry tarmac I'm very keen to see what it manages on a frozen lake.

There's an itinerary to stick to, though - and first up I'm in a BMW i8, which uses a GKN-made electric front axle. There's no chance to experience the ability of this to switch between two ratios; apparently low gear is inhibited in freezing temperatures. But I can report it puts on an impressively neutral display on ice as the 'leccy motor tries to offset the internally combusted power being sent to the back end.

i8 does a decent job of juggling power supply

Chip off the frozen block
The Focus RS comes next, and it's every bit as much fun as you'd imagine it to be. Forget Drift Mode, even with the dynamic controller left in normal and the stability control working the Ford is happy to kick its tail out on the 200m diameter ice circle. Switch the sentinels off and - although the angles increase - the Focus stays as friendly and predictable as a spaniel anticipating sausages for lunch. On the two-mile handling course that's been carved into the frozen surface I'm soon trying to live out my fantasies of being a Scandinavian rally driver (at about 50 per cent speed.)

Sorry, was this meant to be educational?

Hoonery over, now there's a chance for two back-to-back comparisons, the first featuring a pair of Evoques, one fitted with the Twinster rear axle and one with the standard system. As you'd imagine, the Twinster version feels far more agile when asked to change direction, although considerably less exciting than the Focus RS, proving just how much of transmission development is down to tuning.

Here's the magic GKN can work!

Charge of the heavy brigade
Then things get new, with a transmission system that hasn't been launched yet. As its name suggests the e-Twinster is basically an electric version of the twin-clutch back axle, allowing hybrids with an electrically powered rear axle (or EVs) to get the same torque-swerving abilities. It's another with-and-without test, with two Volvo XC90 T8s, one fitted with the standard electric rear axle (which is also produced by GKN) and the other getting the twin-clutch system.

As with the Twinster each coupling can go from open to fully locked in under a tenth of a second, allowing torque to be shifted between wheels very quickly. Drive comes from a 60kW motor which also produces 177lb ft of torque, but which features 10:1 gearing to multiply this to a peak potential of 885lb ft on each axle; and unlike the standard Twinster it can operate even when there's no power coming from the engine, quickening response time.

The standard XC90 feels large and bus-like on the lake, finding some grip on its winter tyres, but with the front end nudging wide as soon as loadings increase. Like acid, it can be neutralized, but it's a messy process - shifting momentum with by either backing off the throttle abruptly or with a cack-handed attempt at a Scandinavian flick, but the resultant drifts don't last for long and it probably wouldn't work on the school run.

Evoque noticeably improved by Twinster set-up

The e-Twinster feels radically different. This is a prototype installation with three different levels of assistance designed to show off the system rather than demonstrate how a finished car would perform; hence the polite covering of the Volvo badging with gaffer tape. Even the most gentle setting makes the XC90 feel far more responsive, with almost no understeer and the sensation of the back end helping out as soon as throttle is applied. The punchier settings - selected by a dash-mounted iPad - increase this dramatically, in the most extreme the T8 is doing an unlikely impression of a vast Focus RS. GKN says the same technology will be in production cars in 2017, and it's not hard to see the XC90 as the obvious first candidate.

It's so much fun that, after mounting my own Festival of Terminal Understeer in a Jeep Compass, I beg another go in instead of having to experience a Fiat 500X.

The future's bright
So, what did I learn? That it's fun to go sideways, even if you have to travel to practically the Arctic Circle to do so. But also that, as the car industry gets greener and more sensible, serious consideration is still being given to making sure that cars will handle as well as the ones they're set to replace.