TGTV script writer Sam Philip wonders if the VW
ID.3’s screen will be just as baffling in 60 years
With a flicker of his pupils to activate the retina scanning
security system, Simon Coggle unlocks his garage. The graphene
door slides to reveal 12 gleaming cars of every age and silhouette.
And there, front and centre of the pack, is the car we’ve come
to see. The faintest patina troubling its Makena Turquoise paint,
but otherwise as pristine as the day it rolled off the factory line,
60 years ago. A Volkswagen ID.3.
“There she is,” he chuckles. “I know I’ve got faster cars, more
expensive cars...” he glances at the 2041 Lamborghini Pantaloni
Marroni lurking alongside the ID.3 with menacing intent, “...but
this is the one I keep coming back to. This is pure Twenties.”
Blipping the key fob – what a throwback! – Coggle slips behind
the ID.3’s wheel. Everything is period correct, down to the weird
off-white steering wheel. He presses the starter button, and the
ID.3 blinks to life. Coggle claps his hands with glee. “Here it
comes!” he chuckles. On the ID.3’s central screen, its infotainment
system laboriously boots into life, as laggy and unintuitive as
the day it rolled out the VW factory six decades ago. Ploddingly,
the system reveals its navigation screen, a bizarre spider’s web
of lines and boxes overlaid with reams of GPS coordinates.
“Just look at it,” he chuckles. “Isn’t it utterly... baffling?”
“COGGLE’S ISN’T THE ONLY ID.3
STILL RUNNING TODAY. BUT IT
I L L U S T R AT I O N : PAU L RY D I N G
MAY BE THE MOST AUTHENTIC”
Coggle’s isn’t the only ID.3 still running today. But it might be
the most authentic. Other period ID.3s have been restomodded,
their creaking, Twenties-spec infotainment firmware replaced by a
modern quantum system: an upgrade that makes the ID.3 a usable
day-to-day proposition even in modern late-21st century Britain.
But Coggle doesn’t care for this new-into-old approach, preferring
to keep his ID.3 authentic. He believes his to be the only ID.3 left
in the country still running its original infotainment system.
“Look at this,” he chuckles, running a hand over the base of the
screen. “These temperature sliders. How are you supposed to use
those? Not a rhetorical question. Genuinely, how do you use those?”
But, I ask, isn’t that incredibly inconvenient? “The old girl’s got
her foibles,” he chuckles. “But if I wanted a quiet, easy life, I’d have
a new Tesla Model 68. In fact, I do have a new Tesla Model 68.”
As he painstakingly traverses the ID.3’s submenus, delightedly
pointing out the inconsistent interfaces, Coggle’s enthusiasm for
the old EV – and the team that created it – is palpable.
“What were they thinking?” he chuckles, finally locating the
screen that displays battery charge percentage. “Simpler times, I
guess. What you have to remember about VW back then, it was just
a few young dreamers in a barn, making it up as they went along.”
Not that Coggle would change a thing. “For me, the flaws are
part of the charm,” he chuckles. “Ditch the infotainment, you ditch
the soul.” He pauses, eyes shimmering, seemingly lost in reverie.
“Now really, please, help me figure out how to turn down the
heater,” he chuckles, grimacing. “It’s literally cooking my arms!”
Sam Philip is the TopGear telly script editor, and a TG mag and
website regular for 15 years. Once wrote a Vauxhall Corsa joke
that Paddy McGuinness described as “not totally crap”
Need more of the TopGear telly show in your life?
All episodes are now free to stream on BBC iPlayer
TO P G E A R . C O M › DECEMBER 2021 031
A new concept
The new 210-piece limited edition C60 Concept celebrates
Christopher Ward’s ground-breaking five-day power-reserve
chronometer movement, Calibre SH21.
There are many fine Swiss-made skeletonised watches
available, but few have their movements hand-finished to the
exquisitely exacting standards of the C60 Concept, and none
come anywhere near matching its remarkable value: the result
of CW’s famously disruptive approach to luxury watchmaking.
If you relish the finer things in life and are understandably
sceptical about the pricing of many luxury watch brands,
you should have a look, a close one, at the C60 Concept.

christopherward.com
 Being eco doesn’t mean pulling the wool over
our eyes, says TG contributing editor Paul Horrell
Volvo has announced an end to leather for trimming its
electric cars. Which means all its cars, because EVs is all it’ll
make shortly. It says it’s doing it because of animal welfare
and carbon reduction. I think it’s doing it because of virtue
signalling tokenism. The urban dwellers who build cars seem
to have a lot of illusions about farming. But I guess Volvo is
pandering to the prejudices of a subset of car buyers, most
of whom are urban dwellers too of course.
Let’s clear up some myths. No cattle are bred for leather
production. Leather is a by-product. Cattle farming is a system.
It produces meat, milk, cheese, butter and other foodstuffs plus
leather and bits of this ’n’ that such as gelatin and the glues and
varnishes used in violin production and art restoration. So
unless we’re to eschew all the things on that list we might as
well enjoy the leather.
Volvo says it’ll investigate upholstery part-made from wool
instead. What does it think happens to the rest of that animal?
Sheep farming is also a system. It produces meat, milk, lovely
sheep’s cheese and at the end of each sheep’s life, er, leather too.
Look, I’m not trying to dodge an issue. A lot of cattle
farming is bad. Most people eat too much red meat, and
“PERHAPS VOLVO WOULD
LIKE TO TRY CULTIVATING
I L L U S T R AT I O N : PAU L RY D I N G
AVOCADOS ON A HILL FARM?”
want it cheap. To make that happen, cattle are kept indoors and
fed grain grown on land that could be used to grow cereals or
vegetables that would feed humans directly. It can be bad for
welfare and it’s inefficient land use, and the cattle emit climate
gases. This is the problem Volvo highlights. But some meat and
dairy is good. The livestock happily graze upland pasture, and
their manure fertilises other arable land. I implore you to eat
less meat, but to eat good meat like that. Perhaps someone
from Volvo would like to try cultivating pulses or avocados
on a Welsh or West Country hill farm? I wish them well.
I’m all in favour of Volvo’s attempts to find new more
sustainable materials. As I write this I’m wearing a T-shirt,
socks and underduds (sorry if that’s too much info) made
predominately of bamboo, because this sequesters carbon
rapidly, restores soil, and uses less water than cotton – though
you’ve got to watch how the fibres are processed. Many car
companies are using materials made of recycled plastics.
Although obviously no Volvo driver would dream of drinking
water out of a disposable plastic bottle.
These days car companies are mostly pretty good at
accurately declaring the impact of their industrial processes.
They have to be because they live in the spotlight, unlike the
manufacturers of smaller consumer electronics or clothes,
who mostly get away with less scrutiny. So I hope they’ll
continue concentrating on the big stuff, like the impact of
battery manufacture. To be fair, Volvo has produced a 60-page
report on new sustainable materials so it’s trying hard. But it
still can’t resist occasionally slipping into greenwash.
TG’s eco-conscious megabrain, Paul Horrell is one of the world’s
most respected and experienced car writers. He has attended
every significant car launch since the Model T
TO P G E A R . C O M › DECEMBER 2021 033
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 SKODA ENYAQ IV AUDI Q4 E-TRON
80 SPORTLINE 40 LAUNCH EDITION
£42,915/£48,045 as tested £49,875/£51,165 as tested

The big test:

electric family crossovers
Skoda and Audi have shared VW parts for a while, but when it comes to the brave
new world of electric pseudo-SUVs, is there any point in paying a premium?
WORDS OLLIE KEW PHOTOGRAPHY JONNY FLEETWOOD

038 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
I
f I could just appeal to your better
nature for one moment, don’t flip past
and sink your teeth into all things
Bugatti and Ferrari shaped just yet.
I know this looks like two pleasant,
middle-of-the-road cars in the middle of a
pleasant B-road. But what I present to you
here is nothing less than an epoch-shaping
cataclysm in the future of car sales.
Buying a premium car has, for some time,
not been for the rarity. Thanks to cunning lease
deals and the sheer proliferation of bodystyle
niches, the likes of an Audi, BMW or Mercedes-
Benz are wantonly attainable. The Ford Mondeo
dies this year. The 3-Series is BMW’s bedrock,
its core model. Because two generations ago,
‘Mondeo man’ was morphing inexorably
into a baby Beemer.
That was around the time Skoda crawled out
of Christmas cracker joke status and began to
get its VW-bankrolled act together. And in the
same way that a human being shares 85 per
cent of its DNA with a zebrafish, you’re aware a
Skoda Octavia is genetically identical behind the
grille to an Audi A3. Most of what makes an Audi
A1 could be swapped wholesale into a Fabia.
Skoda is now a legitimate, likeable purveyor of
common sense machinery that doesn’t require
excuses. Audis still have some cachet. Day
follows night. The world makes sense.
TO P G E A R . C O M
But as we enter the electric age, the premium
set is going to have to work an awful lot harder
to justify its continued existence. Case in point:
this twinned offspring of the Volkswagen
Group’s MEB platform. The bespoke battery
powered, stretchable architecture that supports
VW’s own ID.3 hatch and ID.4 crossover has,
as you’d expect, been recycled into two new
stepchildren. The Enyaq iV – Skoda’s first
fully electric SUV – and the Q4 e-tron: Audi’s
smallest, cheapest EV to date.
And the hard facts are these: the Skoda
uses the same batteries as the Audi. It’s offered
with the same motors which deliver identically
seamless performance. They’re almost equally
› DECEMBER 2021 039
 “AREN’T PREMIUM PRODUCTS SUPPOSED
TO BE SLICK AND EFFORTLESS TO
USE, LIKE AN IPOD?”

040 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
 01
02
03
1 1. Remember those DIN
radios from the Nineties with the
lights that ‘bounced’ along to the
bass? Audi’s put them on a car
2. Say what? One-piece
backrests? In a Skoda?
3. That’s because this is
an Enyaq Sportline, with
black trim and a bodykit. Like
an S-line, but for nice people
heavy. Both are festooned with digital displays, LED
illuminations and the same fleet of assistance aids.
And yet while the cheapest Q4 e-tron is yours from
just over £40,000, the entry level Enyaq’s sticker price is
£8,000 cheaper. For that the Skoda goes slightly further
on a charge, recharges marginally quicker and qualifies
for the sub-£35k only £2,500 government grant, which
no electric Audi does.
These, predictably, are not entry level cars. This Q4
e-tron is a Launch Edition, sporting the bigger of the
two available battery packs (77kWh usable) and the
most powerful motor: a 204bhp rear-drive unit. If you
want a faster Q4, you need to go all-wheel drive, which
curiously isn’t allowed on the debut model.
Anyway, festooned with goodies, this is a £50,000
car. The Skoda, meanwhile, also 77kWh, also 204bhp,
in high-end Sportline trim, is a smidge under £43,000
before options.
Here’s where the lines start to blur. Skoda has done
an Audi. Too many of the Enyaq’s talents are cost-extra
add-ons. Upping charge speed from a lethargic 50kW to
125kW (meaning an 80 per cent charge is onboard in 34
minutes) costs £440. Adaptive cruise control with lane
and blind spot assist – which doesn’t half take the pain
out of a stressful five-up family long-haul – is a £685
extra you can only select once you’ve added a heated
steering wheel with flappy paddles for winding up the
regen braking. Strange. Rather flies in the face of all
that ‘simply clever’ marketing Skoda drapes over its
unpretentious wares.
Course, the Enyaq has all that. Umbrellas are hidden
in the front doors. The tailgate conceals an ice scraper,
the cupholders are shaped to grip a bottle for one-
handed opening, and best of all, the rear headrests
feature fold-out wings to support your bonce if you
fancy a sleep. So, well rested passengers and no cricked
necks. Genius. None of the above comes as standard
– or optionally – in the austere Audi.
But whereas Audi cabins used to be infallibly plush,
here there are missteps. The shiny piano-black effect
trim around the drive selector lozenge and volume
touchpad was already starting to attract dust, scratches
and finger smears in this sub-1,000 miler. Access to the
stowage beneath is compromised by this jutting Pride
Rock of plastic.
Then there’s the steering wheel, which features two
utterly baffling decisions. The first is the shape, which is
weird, and the second is the touch-sensitive control pads
on the upper spokes. Upping volume or switching radio
station are eyes-off-the-road tasks as a result. I thought
‘premium’ meant a product that was slick and effortless
to use, like an iPod Nano or a Pure radio?
Tell you what though, you’d struggle to point to an
area where the Skoda feels, looks or smells palpably less
expensive than the Audi. So there are a couple fewer
metal fillets about the vents. Perhaps the Q4’s door
releases with a more assured thunk. But a several
thousand quid gulf? Not here.
We’re tumbling headlong towards the final page
and still haven’t addressed fundamentals like boot
space, packaging or what-it’s-like-to-drive? The good
reason for that is they’re nigh-on impossible to split.
The Skoda’s more squared-off posterior makes for
a larger boot and the subterranean well to stow the
TO P G E A R . C O M › DECEMBER 2021 041
 AUDI
Q4 E-TRON
04
01

05

02

03
06

SKODA
ENYAQ IV

04

01

02

05

06 03

042 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
 Specifications
charging cables is easier to access, but both cars would
have benefitted from leaving space under their long
bonnets for a cable tidy. Instead, they’re full of electrical
1 SKODA
ENYAQ IV 2 AUDI
Q4 E-TRON

gubbins and not a single litre of useful frunk-age. The same, but cheaper. Feels better built
Yours for about £100 than VW’s ID.4 twin,
Adults seated behind adults: a doddle in both cars. less a month than the but struggles for
VERDICT Audi. Pragmatic car for a USP beyond
The Skoda is a tad glassier. A ‘coupe’ version of the Audi pragmatic folks badge mit grille
is already on sale, called the Sportback. A swoopier Skoda
copycat comes later. Surprise!
POWERTRAIN 1 e-motor, RWD 1 e-motor, RWD
After a day of driving these cars back-to-back, their POWER 204bhp 204bhp
manners became more blurred. Both are swift from
standstill but not overtake-hungry. The Audi rides a ACCELERATION 0–62 8.2secs 0–62 8.5secs
fraction more firmly. This Skoda’s (optional) adaptive TORQUE 228lb ft 228lb ft
dampers have a deeper plushness in Comfort mode.
The battery’s low centre of gravity counteracts the CLAIMED
lofty ride height to a point, but neither resists body roll. RANGE
326 miles WLTP 305 miles WLTP
Neither is dramatically more engaging or grippy than a
Q5 or a Kodiaq. Both are equally impressively quiet. Only
rustle around their bulky mirrors disturbs the peace. TOP
SPEED 99 mph
99 mph
Both cars averaged 2.8 miles per kWh at a motorway
cruise, and quickly bumped that up to 3.0 miles per
kWh when some slower in-town running afforded regen
opportunities, and neither can be driven as ‘one-pedal’ WEIGHT

cars, because it doesn’t do to overegg the regen when 2,090kg 2,050kg

you’ve only got a motor out back. Real-world range on
BATTERY
a mild autumn day was 230–240 miles for both cars: / USABLE 82kWh / 77kWh net 82kWh / 77kWh net
this Audi claims 305 miles, the Skoda 326.
So, two chronically well matched cars marred by a
BOOT
couple of design stumbles, but fundamentally sound CAPACITY 585 litres 520 litres
high-riding family transport. But if you demanded a 1,710 litres (seats down) 1,490 litres (seats down)

reason of me to buy a premium badged EV versus a badge

8 7
engineered supermarket own-brand version of the same
ingredients, I’m blank. Where does premium go from

10 10
here? How much does badge cachet matter to you? Funny
how owning a Skoda used to mean you didn’t know SCORE

anything or particularly care about cars. With the Enyaq,

it’s the exact opposite. It’s the thinking parents’ EV.

TO P G E A R . C O M › DECEMBER 2021 043

 8 10

TESLA
MODEL Y

Y the
long wait?
£54,990 Photoshop-made-real stretched version of, The Performance drops that to 298 miles.
but the new slope-roofed hatchback crossover With only one day in the car it’s impossible
CO2
shares 75 per cent of its parts with the hugely to be definitive, but 270 miles should be a safe
75kWh 434 1spd 5.0 314 0 popular notchback saloon. Including, at launch, bet, easily trumping the VW ID.4 and Audi Q4
battery bhp AWD secs miles g/km
a single option of a 75kWh battery with dual e-tron. Ford’s Mustang Mach-E Extended Range
motor AWD, offering 434bhp. A 563bhp Model runs it closer, but doesn’t have 6,500 dedicated
FOR Clever interior space, Y Performance comes next year, snipping the rapid chargers in Europe as a deal sweetener.
seamless performance 0–60mph time from 5.0secs dead to an internet Inside there’s room for five adults and
AGAINST Handling and detail pleasing 3.5 seconds. all their luggage. The glass roof carves out
oversights smack of immaturity If you’re holding out for the seven-seater, impressive headroom that negates the swooping
maybe buy a Merc EQB instead. Tesla says it has roofline, though rear visibility is appalling and
“no timeline for other seat configurations”. So, there’s no back wiper. Odd really: in some ways

E
ighteen months after Tesla’s fourth
four-door went on sale in the USA, the
entry level Tesla crossover is beginning
to trickle into Europe. But even now we’re
stuck with a left-hand-drive Dutch-registered
demonstrator, as fully fledged European Model
Y deliveries don’t kick off until Tesla’s brand
new Berlin ‘Gigafactory’ is up and running. So,
2022 then. Barring any supply chain disasters.
The Model Y is longer and wider than the
Model 3 it looks like a somewhat ungainly,
as per the Cybertruck, the Semi, the Roadster,
the quad bike (and the Y itself), expect a wait.
If you’ve pre-ordered one of these based
on the Model 3’s hype, you’ll like it. Same 15in
touchscreen for all functions and features,
whether you like it or not. Same inert, arcade
game lightness to the controls. Same actual
video games built into the monitor. Better build
quality than the last few 3s we’ve had, on the
evidence of this particular Y – a Long Range Dual
Motor with a claimed WLTP range of 314 miles.
this is a deeply practical car. But spotting the
extremities while parking or simply adjusting
the mirrors is a royal pain.
The ride’s unsettled too: lazily sprung,
as if Tesla thinks its audience won’t care about
dynamic polish because they’ll be too distracted
by the gimmicks, foolproof infrastructure,
clever packaging and sublime performance.
It may well be correct. Been a while coming,
but these hunched teardrops are going to be
everywhere within months. Ollie Kew

044 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
 LIKE NOWHERE ELSE

Get in Touch and Book Now !

+44 (0) 1473 557 504
 8 10

AUDI RS3
SPORTBACK

Less
is more
£50,900 and a 7spd Steptronic auto, and similar seven different settings. After that, the
performance figures to the last one – albeit RS Individual mode allows a triplet of
CO2
P
with a 180mph top speed option with the adjustments to the drive system, suspension,
2.5T 398 7spd 3.8 31.4 207 optional Dynamic Pack. steering, engine sound, and stability control
5cyl bhp DCT secs mpg g/km
But look a bit closer and there are proper intervention thresholds. And yes, while this
changes. The car itself is bigger in every offers a good deal of personal fine-tuning,
FOR Damping, engine, direction. The body is 10mm lower than the it’s also a bit annoying.
confidence inspiring S3, the front track is widened by 33mm (with And yet, when you do take the time to
AGAINST Complicated initially, an extra 10mm in the rear for this ‘Sportback’), commit to figuring out what the right combos
needs a noisy exhaust mode and there are unsubtle arch flares, twin are (and loading them into the RS button on
exhausts, and those various vents and grilles. the wheel), the results are gently extraordinary.
And yes, the two black oval exhausts are The engine is strong and faithful, the grip

T
his is the third generation of Audi’s
superfast megahatch (the second
gen of the saloon), and at first glance,
you’d think it had just sprouted some extra
bodywork and Audi had called it done. The
motor is the familiar 2.5-litre 5cyl, this time
boasting the same just-under-400bhp and a
whisper of an increase to 369lb ft of torque,
accessed a bit lower in the rev range. Marginal
gains there. Similarly, the broad strokes of the
drivetrain consists of quattro all-wheel drive
actually part of the bumper trim – the actual
exhausts are very obviously sat behind. Gah.
All cars get adaptive damping, and an ‘RS
torque splitter’ that vectors torque to
whichever rear wheel needs it, and also
overspeeds an outside rear to quell understeer.
There’s even an ‘RS torque rear’ mode that
spins the loaded wheel so that you can drift,
though that feels like a party trick.
And yes, there are many modes. As an
example, the Audi Drive Select now features
intense. And the damping is utterly brilliant.
Better than a Mercedes-AMG A45 S? Different.
Where the Merc is angry and pointy and hard,
the Audi is more cultured, better damped and
less aggressive. I wouldn’t say it was slower
though, and especially not on a bouncy B-road.
The Merc you wrestle, the Audi is an ally.
There’s a deeply impressive car here, buried
under a landslide of data, adjustability, and the
choice that it brings with it. But it’s damn good
on the right kind of wrong road. Tom Ford

046 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
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 7 10
J
BMW iX ust when you thought BMW couldn’t
xDRI VE50 M SPORT get any more controversial, here comes
a really controversial BMW. It’s hyped
as the flagship for technology, lightweight
Paradox construction and sustainability through low
CO2 resourcing and manufacturing. But did
mindset
it have to be a hulking two-and-a-half tonne
SUV? An independent audit by TUV shows its
lifetime carbon footprint is 45 per cent less
than an X5’s. Another hulking SUV isn’t the
£94,905 best point of comparison, guys.
Anyway that’s not the end of the
CO2
controversy. Did it really need a whole new
operating system that demands hours of
105kWh 523 1spd 4.6 380 0 learning? And did it have to look like... this?
battery bhp AWD secs miles g/km
To be fair, when you approach the thing in
the street it’s actually less offensive than the
FOR Comfortable, fast, pictures suggest.
long range, good cabin. Inside, it’s as distinctive as the i3’s cabin
Sustainable was (and remains) and aims for the same
sort of atmosphere: to invoke a lounge, and
AGAINST Well, about a roomy one, not a car. Unusual materials
as sustainable as a include matte wood with lit graphics showing
vast SUV can be through, a glass iDrive knob, and even an
optional denim-like recycled fabric, which
is fun if hilariously hipster.
Since this is a new operating system and
this is 2021, there has of course been a bonfire
of the switchgear. Much control has been ceded
to the screen. Or voice, provided you don’t
mind being misunderstood one time
in three. Fortunately the iDrive controller
048 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
remains, and is a great way to do many tasks.
Several of the remaining switches have three
horizontal bars in their icon. With these, a long
press will summon a relevant menu on the
screen. Excellently there’s also one of those for
the driver assist menu. Otherwise turning off
the default-on lane assist steering interference
system needs multiple jabs at the screen. Phone
integration is superb: it’s the first car that can
project your phone’s maps onto the HUD.
It’s really roomy, with a flat floor and one
of those multi-level central storage consoles
common to EVs. In the back three fit abreast
easily, and the boot is a cavern. But open the
bonnet and you’ll find no frunk.
The iX is a wholly bespoke structure. The
cabin sits in a three-dimensional box-frame
of carbon fibre. There’s a lot of aluminium too.
But the electric bits are shared. The motors,
battery design and high voltage electronics
are modular versions of what’s used in the iX3
and i4. They’re critical to efficiency, smooth
running and charging speed.
Both iX versions are twin-motor AWD. The
xDrive 40 has 71kWh usable capacity, for a
WLTP range of 257 miles. We tested the iX
xDrive 50, which has 105kWh, for a range of
374 miles on the wheels mine used. Both iXs
have the same motors, but the 50 releases more
power because its bigger battery can deliver
higher current. So it’s 523bhp, for a 0–62 time
of 4.6secs. I got 310 miles of range, and I was

clattering along, including some wonderfully
silly autobahn speeds. Kerbweight is 2,510kg.
Acceleration is ruddy forceful from a
standstill and typically EV-precise in its
answer to the right pedal. But unlike most of
them, BMW’s magnet-free motors are able to
sustain the shove in the back right up to any
legal British speed and beyond. Traction of
course is immense, but not so much that it
can’t be overcome on a tightish corner even
in the dry. Whereupon the traction control
and front-rear torque vectoring keep you
proceeding in the direction you’re steering.
The steering itself is surprisingly quick,
presumably to make this behemoth feel agile.
You soon get used to it. Cornering, like the
“IN THE STREET
IT’S ACTUALLY LESS
OFFENSIVE THAN THE
PICTURES SUGGEST”
accelerating and braking, is accurate. But
it doesn’t have much feedback. It’s a car
you direct, rather than engage with.
The ride is flat and well controlled, and
reasonably supple with it. That said, I was
on smooth German roads. It’s also extremely
quiet. You can call up a synthesised sound
that varies in pitch, tone and volume
according to accelerator position and speed.
That cue does help judge your approach to
corners actually. But mostly you will be
cruising with it turned off, in eerie silence.
In cold weather heat is recovered from
the motors and electronics and used to warm
the battery and people, so range shouldn’t
collapse. For DC rapid stops, the iX 50
TO P G E A R . C O M
No corners cut in here:
the iX wants to be your
next home from home
can take nearly 200kW, or just over half an
hour from 10 to 80 per cent if you’ve found
a charger that powerful. If the charger is your
nav destination, the car gets the battery to its
ideal temperature for max charge power just
as you arrive. But on the more common 50kW
posts, any battery this big takes two hours.
The iX is a big comfy home-on-wheels, and
a vast amount of technology makes sure the
driver is soothed while the passengers kick
back. It’s efficient for a full-size e-SUV. The
range is impressive, and it can recharge pretty
rapidly too. Choose carefully from among the
visual option packs, wheels and paint. Then
you might find an iX you can like the look of.
There’s a lot else to like. Paul Horrell
› DECEMBER 2021 049
 7 10

P E U G E O T 3 0 8 H Y B R I D 18 0
ALLURE PREMIUM

C’est
si bon
£33,900 the whole lot can be endlessly configured to suit than handling smarts. The generous
personal preference. Eight drivers can set their soundproofing helps and only a modest
CO2
P
profile, there’s wireless screen mirroring, and amount of kerfuffle around the A-pillars
1.6 4cyl 177 8spd 7.6 213 24 two phones can be connected to the Bluetooth and door mirrors upsets the calm. Especially
hybrid bhp auto secs mpg g/km
simultaneously. The steering wheel still looks in full electric mode, in which the promised
like a small spaceship, and it sits so low you 37 miles of range seems realistic.
FOR Striking looks, refined, could drive the 308 with your kneecaps. But the A little panel and raised controller on
well made, efficiency seats are superb, especially in top GT Line trim the driver’s side allows you to flick between
AGAINST Chassis lacks sparkle, where they’ve won a certification of excellence reverse, neutral and drive. There’s also a
interior still polarises opinion from some German chiropractors. ‘driving style selector’ that governs various
We spent most time in the Hybrid 180 – from modes: electric, hybrid, eco, normal and sport,
£33,900 in Allure Premium spec. It’s powered by depending on powertrain.

P
eugeot is pushing upmarket and
reasserting its commitment to la
différence. The new 308’s dramatic
aesthetic keeps the faith with the quasi-concept
car look of its crossover siblings, and premieres
a punchy new grille and logo.
Inside, the i-Cockpit has been reworked,
while the standard 10in touchscreen is easier to
use and newly available with a row of i-Toggle
shortcut buttons. GT and GT Premium Lines
get a cool but faddish 3D floating display, and
a 1.6-litre PureTech petrol engine augmented by
an 81kW (109bhp) electric motor and a 12kWh
lithium-ion battery, hooked up to an 8spd auto.
The 308 uses an updated version of the
EMP2 platform that underpinned the previous
model and uses MacPherson struts upfront and
a torsion beam rear. On paper it’s off the pace
compared with the Ford Focus and pricier
versions of the Merc A-Class, but in reality you
barely notice. The Hybrid 180 majors on modish
qualities like refinement and efficiency rather
On a near 40-mile loop, we stayed in electric
mode for about half the distance, resulting in
fuel consumption equivalent to about 80mpg
(note the claimed figure is 213mpg). Fitted
with the optional 7.4kW onboard charger, it
takes 1hr 55mins to fully replenish the battery
using a 7.4kW wall box; otherwise it’s 3hrs
50mins. Remote charging and preheating
can be done via an app.
Despite the outré looks and madcap interior,
this is a seriously solid effort. Jason Barlow

050 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
 COMING
NEXT
MONTH

+ AN AMAZING GIANT CALENDAR* WITH EVERY ISSUE!

* UK M A G A ZINE S ONLY
 MUST TRY
HARDER
ABARTH 595
COMPETIZIONE

£23,595
P
CO2 7 10
1.4T 178 5spd 6.7 40.9 156
4cyl bhp man secs mpg g/km

CUPRA 0–62mph in 7.0secs) or with the Born’s

THE 595 (PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS THE ABARTH
500) has been on sale in the UK for well over
a decade now. Sure, it’s had various facelifts
and many, many special editions over the
years, but both the recipe and the main
ingredients have barely changed.
All 595s get a 1.4-litre turbo four-pot that
sends its power to the front wheels through
a five-speed manual gearbox. This one is
the punchy 178bhp Competizione, which
manages 0–62mph in 6.7 seconds and isn’t
afraid to shout about it through the quad-
exit ‘Record Monza’ exhaust. It’s loud.
The Competizione is similar in size to a
VW Up GTI, but the power and price puts it
closer to proper baby hot hatches like the
Ford Fiesta ST and Hyundai i20N. Dynamically
it won’t hold a candle to either of those,
though. You only get a proper mechanical
limited-slip diff in the top spec (£27k+)
esseesse, and without it the front wheels
scrabble for grip while the traction control
mid-sized 58kWh unit for its quickest 0–62mph
BORN
sprint (6.6secs and around 260 miles of range).
However, so far we’ve only driven what will
Born probably be the bestseller when the Born makes
it to the UK – the 201bhp, 58kWh spec without
e-Boost or the optional adaptive suspension –
again and in this form you’d need to be a stickler for
detail to spot much of a difference between the
Cupra and its German sibling. They’re very
similar, despite the Spaniard getting slightly
£35,000 est wider tyres and suspension that’s 15mm lower
on the front axle and 10mm at the rear.
CO2 The Born is a long way from the all-electric
58kWh 201 1spd 7.3 263 0
hot hatch we wanted it to be, and we’re not sure
battery bhp auto secs miles g/km a temporary power boost could transform that.
There’s no drama to the power delivery and no
FOR Sharper styling, more playfulness in twisty stuff. It’s not sluggish, but
expensive feeling than an ID.3 the brake pedal is spongy and it’s so quiet and
composed that it doesn’t quite meet Cupra’s
AGAINST Not enough speed
claims of “electrifying performance”.
or drama to be a hot hatch Don’t get us wrong, it’s very good. The RWD
layout and low-mounted battery pack mean it

works hard to rein it all in.
It’s a busy thing to drive. The steering is
artificially heavy in Sport mode and the ride
is crazy firm. The short wheelbase means
mid-corner bumps easily unsettle it too.
The interior is cramped, dated and the
touchscreen feels like a relic from the late
Noughties. And yet for some intangible
reason, we still struggle to drive one without
a giddy little smile on our faces. Greg Potts
I
t’s been a long time coming, the Cupra
Born. In fact, we first saw it as the Seat el
Born concept way back in March 2019, so
why the brand change?
Well, if it had been Born a Seat – ahem – it
would have had to be slightly cheaper than an
ID.3. If you’ve sat in a lower-spec ID.3 and poked
some of the cheap plastics, you’ll know that the
VW has already been built on a budget. It’s all to
do with battery costs and profit margins being
much tighter for EVs. As a Cupra, the VW Group
turns in sharply, has a neat turning circle and
limits body roll well, while the more expensive
purchase price compared with an ID.3 means
you get more premium feeling materials inside.
Think of the Born as a more upmarket VW
alternative with copper detailing and a sharp
snout, then. We’ll have to wait for the twin-
motor, 4WD version to experience a proper
Golf R/Cupra Leon rival. Greg Potts

5
can price the Born slightly higher than an ID.3
– charging a little bit more for some sharper
10 design and a touch more sportiness. Apparently.
There’ll be four different iterations of the
Born from launch, with the most powerful pair
being offered with the ‘e-Boost performance
pack’. Tick that box and the rear-mounted
electric motor is able to produce a maximum of
228bhp for up to 30 seconds under full throttle,
and you can combine your extra power with a
77kWh battery for max range (335 miles and

052 DECEMBER 2021 › TO P G E A R . C O M

 The overrun
Small but perfectly formed reviews. The best of the rest from this month’s drives

8 10
7 10

MOUNTUNE The Essex-based tuner describes MERCEDES-BENZ EQV Not much choice for shuttling
this as “a Mountune for a different seven electrically, but the EQV
PUMA ST M260 300 SPORT PREMIUM
generation” but the most potent offers a smart badge and saves
m260 upgrade still bumps power many thousands over a smaller
£675 (Bluetooth engine upgrade only) to 256bhp. It’s combined with a £73,910 Model X. A van to car conversion’s
new induction kit and intercooler, dodgy enough, but the swap from
FOR Rapid, and more fun than while our test car was weirdly FOR Room for seven, still a petrol to electric also means a few
the standard car wearing prototype springs that decent boot, solid range unrefinements. The smooth, pillowy
AGAINST You can fit pretty much drop the ride height by 25mm. AGAINST Very expensive, road ride helps you ignore those,
all the upgrades to a Fiesta ST More grunt lower down in the rev and wind noise can be intrusive though it means lean through
range is the most noticeable corners and a ginger approach
D CO2 difference here, and Mountune’s CO2 to roundabouts. Acceleration is
new ‘no-lift shift’ function for the stately, but the EQV cruises well
1.3T 256 c6.0 n/a n/a 90kWh 201 12.1 211 0
3cyl bhp secs mpg g/km 6spd manual is addictive. GP battery bhp secs miles g/km and 200 miles is possible. SB

9 10
8 10

A L P I N E A1 10 You’re looking at the first Alpine to DACIA DUSTER The gen2 Duster’s been facelifted,
marry the softer suspension of the and now costs £14k. But no one
LÉGENDE GT 2021 T C e 15 0 E D C
stock A110 with the ballsier engine really bought the UN-esque entry
of the A110S, though the LGT feels models, so Dacia’s dropped them
£61,655 far closer to the former than the £18,845 and made all engines modern
latter. The power hike (up to turbos, with an LPG bi-fuel option
FOR Proof positive you can’t 288bhp) needs revs to untap FOR Mild mid-life facelift keeps offering nearly 800 miles of range.
buy an un-lovely Alpine and the biggest character shift the Duster a TG bargain hero What’s not changed is the Duster’s
AGAINST The £12k cheaper between stock and S was never AGAINST Lacks glamour wilfully prosaic approach to life; it’s
A110 Pure is lovely too in terms of speed, it was firmness. compared with crossover rivals a delightfully no frills car, save for
A £49k base Alpine is as plushly the fact you can have a twin-clutch
P CO2 suspended, though the LGT gets P CO2 automatic now. Though shifting
nicer trim inside and limited run gears yourself still feels far more in
1.8T 288 4.4 41.5 153 1.3T 148 9.7 44.8 142
4cyl bhp secs mpg g/km status to help justify its premium. SD 4cyl bhp secs mpg g/km line with the proletarian vibe... SD

054 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
 BRAND
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058 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M
 CHIRON SUPER SPORT

SPORTS
DAY
A Bugatti Chiron Super
Sport, derestricted
autobahn and a trip
to the Nordschleife?
Should’ve checked the
weather forecast...
WORDS JACK RIX
PHOTOGRAPHY DENNIS NOTEN

TO P G E A R . C O M › DECEMBER 2021 059

 That whole ‘everything slows down when you’re about to die or
have a massive shunt’ thing? It’s true – this entire lap has turned
into one of Chris Harris’ signature, gratuitous slo-mo drift shots...
and not in a good way. I’m in the process of having a 10-minute
accident and there’s not a massive amount I can do about it, besides
cling on and wait for the crunch. I’m dialling in every degree of
steering lock and millimetre of throttle travel with the caution of a
safe cracker, but we’re still all over the place. Forget understeer and
oversteer, how about no steer? I’m not totally without blame here.

Nuts. Tunnel’s three miles

behind you before the
windows are down

060 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 › T O P G E A R . C O M