Autocar Philippines August 2021

ANALYSIS: THE FRENCH REVOLUTION:

FRANCE’S AUTO INDUSTRY

MORE MOBILITY

August 2021 PHP 250.00 Est. 1895 | www.autocar.com.ph

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THE SUBCOMPACT THAT’S G4 ANYTHING!

NEW MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4

INSIGHT

How Bugatti Hit 300mph

F E AT U R E

Mixing Business with Pleasure

FIRST DRIVE

RUF CTR Anniversary

HOT NEWS: HONDA CIVIC TYPE R FK8 • LAMBORGHINI CELEBRATES 15,000TH URUS

THIS MONTH August 2021 | Volume 6

OPINIONS 2 4 6

Editor’s Note Ira Panganiban

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HondaPH brings in updated Civic Type R FK8

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MitsubishiPH’s June sales performance lead by the Xpander

My Week in Cars Steve Cropley Opposite Lock Binky Siddayao

NEWS

MitsubishiPH opens dealership in BGC

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Lamborghini celebrates the 15,000th Urus

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The Chery Tiggo is the ride for you this rainy season

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FordPH closes 1st half of 2021 with strong sales performance

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Driverless shuttles to use Goodyear airless tires Nissan shares latest updates on sustainability efforts

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Cleanfuel Adds More Stations in Bulacan with San Ildefonso Opening

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Cleanfuel Boosts Presence in Rizal with Tanay Station Opening

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CheryPH soon to open dealership along Commonwealth

MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4 26 ❝ TOP SPEED IS A RUF CALLING CARD. IT’S WHY NONE OF ITS CONVERSIONS HAVE ROOF GUTTERS: FOR THE AERO BENEFIT. ANOTHER WAY TO IDENTIFY A GENUINE RUF IS TO LOOK FOR THE ROLL-CAGE, WHICH SHOULD BE ARTFULLY INTEGRATED INTO THE A-PILLARS, HIDDEN BEHIND THE LEATHER.❞ RICHARD LANE

Phoenix PULSE Formula V1 Virtual Cup set to return

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Hyundai Motors introduces the Performance Elantra N

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RUF CTR Anniversary

FIRST DRIVE COVER STORY 26

Mitsubishi’s New Mirage G4: The Subcompact That’s G4 Anything

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Mixing Business With Pleasure

RUF CTR ANNIVERSARY 22

LAMBORGHINI URUS 13

COMPARISON Ultra-low CO2 ratings make the new Discovery Sport and two plug-in hybrid SUV rivals ideal company cars, but which is the best to drive and to own?

INSIGHT 44

Into The Unknown Bugatti recently became the first to reach the 300mph mark with a production car.

ANALYSIS 48

The French Revolution

BUGATTI HITS 300MPH 44 AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 1

THIS MONTH

Neil Pagulayan Managing Editor

EDITOR’S NOTE

he pandemic has still to show signs of abating, but despite the increase in daily infections, new variants of the virus and lockdowns, our auto industry is buoyed, thankfully, by the Filipino’s love for automobiles. New car purchases have shown slow but steady growth in the pandemic, and people who in turn, let go of their pre-loved rides open up the used car market for those who aren’t ready to take the leap with a brand new car.

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It goes without saying that this may be due to the fact that a car may be one of the safest spaces for you and your family on the way to work or supermarket in these scary times, which makes it a logical reason to get a car to lessen risk of exposure.

Whichever way you decide to go, brand new or used, you’ve got a bubble and you’re protected from infection.

Our main feature in this issue, Mitsubishi Motors Philippines launch of their updated subcompact sedan, the Mirage G4 has a handsome new look and cool new features, but what

hasn’t changed is its reliability and efficiency.

In this issue, we take a look at a very limited edition modded CTR Anniversary RUF 911, Plug In Hybrids or PHEVs as practical company vehicles, and bit about if a full EV’s makes sense. We get some insight as to what it’s like to get up to 300kph in the Bugatti Chiron. What’s going on in France? Groupe PSA, (manufacturers of Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Open and Vauxhall) and FCA or Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (makers of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Abarth, Lancia, and Maserati) have merged, what this spells for these brands and Renault’s renaissance will be interesting.

At AutocarPH, we strive to keep you abreast of the latest trends in the automotive industry and up to date on the latest promos your favorite brands have to offer to make sure you take advantage of the best deals when you decide to get that vehicle you’ve always wanted.

Stay safe, and we’ll all get through this!

❝ At AutocarPH, we strive to keep you abreast of the latest trends in the automotive industry and up to date on the latest promos your favorite brands have to offer to make sure you take advantage of the best deals when you decide to get that vehicle you’ve always wanted ❞ ✉ irapanganiban@wheelsph.com

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COMMENT

MY WEEK IN CARS

McLaren Artura PHEV replaces Sports Series

Seeing 1948 Ford took Cropley back to his youth

SUNDAY

Ford has had its share of unusual characters in a century of leaders, but its CEO today, Jim Farley, must surely be among the most remarkable.

While busily changing Ford’s whole fabric to embrace electrification (at a mighty cost to the bottom line, hopefully temporary), this incorrigible car nut, racer and Twitter jockey never loses a chance to boost his troops or spread the word that cars are good. Farley chose the night that the rest of America was glued to the Super Bowl football final to post pictures of his latest project (above). When requested, he sent word that you and I can get our own model GT40s by investing £295 plus six weeks of painstaking after-hours effort, just like he did. Amazing bloke.

TUESDAY

Driving 25 miles from home to get ‘the jab’ provided an unchallengeable opportunity for some miles in the Mitsubishi L200 Barbarian pick-up truck that I’ve been enjoying more than I should admit. I discover that simple appreciation of a fundamentally crude vehicle encourages you to reflect on the real-world qualities, picked from the usual suite of road testers’ strengths and weaknesses, that you really care about.

Forgive me, but I still like a strong, rattling diesel engine that starts pulling in the basement of its rev range, especially when it’s bolted to an ultra-smooth automatic gearbox.

I’m never going to tire of an elevated driving position, or the bulletproof trim, controls and switchgear, of a Japanese mainstream product.

(In the right places, the hard plastic that many road testers affect to hate actually implies ageless durability to me.)

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❝

It’s the best-proportioned, most beautiful McLaren yet ❞ I can also look past the jolting ride because, like many body-on-frame vehicles, the L200 creates remarkably little road noise – one reason people fondly remember their Mk3 and Mk4 Land Rover Discoverys. And the steering works well around the straight-ahead, where you would expect it to be lacking, so I can handle a bit of wheel-winding.

What’s special, though, is how quietly the L200 takes ruts and bumps compared with cars. It may not be smooth, but it feels tough enough to win the war. I like sitting on top of that.

THURSDAY

Putting the finishing touches to our McLaren Artura news story (p6) involved having an enjoyable chat with design chief Rob Melville, who reminded me that he has now been doing

AND ANOTHER THING… I’ve just learned from Twitter’s @365daysmotoring – a fantastic car trivia resource – that it’s exactly 68 years since Volkswagen changed the Beetle’s rear screen from a split design to an oval.

I’m so glad that I now know that…

McLarens for a dozen years. You can see this car is extremely tightly packaged, yet for me it’s the best-proportioned, most beautiful McLaren yet.

My main curiosity was to understand how designers maintain the freedom to shape a car as they think it should be while under continual pressure to accommodate very specifically positioned scoops, lights, shutlines and a whole suite of aerodynamic bits. Melville’s remarks about the project starting as “an invisible jigsaw” and ending as a prime example of “one-team mentality” reminded me firstly how eloquent great designers are and secondly that owning a car like this isn’t just about having something expensive and fast: it’s a chance to appreciate up close the fruits of many outrageous talents.

FRIDAY

Wonderful moment as a healthy-looking 1948 Ford V8 Beetleback appeared for sale on the Car & Classic website – the first I’ve seen since I owned a £50 example in outback Australia as a schoolboy. Manufactured either side of the war, the car was a failure commercially speaking, but for me and my friends it was a glorious success, teaching us how to slide a tall, huge, heavy and crudely suspended car with six turns lock to lock on rough dirt tracks and how to manage a sloppy column-change (‘three on the tree’) gearbox with a non-existent synchro. The ad says the car might be purchasable for £13,000 to £18,000, but I fear that the moment has gone. I hope the new owner doesn’t hot-rod it, though; these cars are rare.

GET IN TOUCH

✉ steve.cropley@haymarket.com

@stvcr

THIS MONTH Technical Editor

Binky P. Siddayao OPPOSITE LOCK

hen on the road your world can get dangerous when you least expect it.

There will always be a chance something wrong could happen when on the road so it is best to be always prepared, as the Scouts motto goes.

An injured person will need basic and quick medical response so a First Aid Kit becomes the single most important thing you should have. Basic First-Aid Kits are available at major drugstores while specific kits may be procured with the Philippine National Red Cross. Make sure to always check and update all items as some do expire.

Being able to see what you are fixing in the dark or the need to look around the engine of your car at night requires a flashlight. Get a good quality torch preferably with an ordinary bulb with ‘D’ or ‘AA’ batteries (and spares) they last longer than LED’s (make them your back-up) even when accidentally dropped. A wired service lamp clamped to your batteries is also handy.

Whatever the cause, having a dead battery is very frustrating, such a simple piece of equipment such as a jumper cable can get you back on the road and to the nearest parts store or shop. Remember to use and choose a proper cable

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size that suites your vehicle, the higher the cable gauge (numerically) the thinner the wire.

A fire extinguisher can stop something that could turn into a disaster. Make sure they are compact and easily accessible inside the vehicle.

Prevent under or over inflation-related blow-outs from happening by keeping tab on the pressure in your tires with a tire gauge. A proper tire pressure can maximize your fuel mileage and the life of the tires’ tread.

Pay particular attention to tire pressure when weather changes.

An accurate legit tire gauge may cost more but will pay-off in the

long-term.

One item even astronauts always have in outer space are Duct Tapes, generally those silvery gray color sticky cloth, can fix multitude of problems.

From a temporary fix of a damaged body work to quick fixes on hoses and other parts, the ever reliable duct tape can patch things up together to haul yourselves to the nearest service station. Make sure to get quality tape, as the more expensive stuff sticks better and in a wider range of temperatures and situations.

Always keep a roll handy on board.

Sometimes things come loose even on most modern

❝

cars, whether from vibration, age, or for other reasons. So a set of back wrench, sockets, screwdrivers and pliers will come in handy. A simple tightening of whatever is loose will solve the problem.

This can be especially helpful with a loose battery terminal connection, a slipped hose clamp, or other obvious problems under the hood. Keep them in Roll Tool Bag to save space and clattery noise.

This epitomizes a short list of items on some of the most functional and likely items you’ll need, requiring minimal mechanical or other knowledge to use. These are the basics.

There will always be a chance something wrong could happen when on the road so it is best to be always prepared, as the Scouts motto goes.

❞ GET IN TOUCH

✉ binkypsiddayao@gmail.com

6 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

Photo by Chinmay Jade on Unsplash

TOOL AROUND

The original car magazine, published since 1895 ‘in the interests of the mechanically propelled road carriage’ EDITORIAL TEAM IRA V. PANGANIBAN Editor-in-Chief EDGAR QUESADA Associate Editor EARL MANALANSAN Managing Editor NEIL PAGULAYAN Managing Editor Online BINKY SIDDAYAO Technical Editor OLSON CAMACHO Off Road Editor MATT PRIOR | KRIS LIM | BINKY SIDDAYAO Columnists JOHN REY SAN DIEGO Staff Writer WILLIAM HERRERA | LUIS GERONA Contributors ANJO PEREZ Senior Photographer BONG BOADO | KEITH MARK DADOR | LOUIE CAMACHO MARK QUESADA | ALAN RANCH SEVILLA ARNOLD RIODEQUE | BOBS JEROME | MEMERT MONTELOYOLA Photographers RAYMUND RAVANERA Graphic Designer ADVERTISING AND MARKETING SALES RUBY M. AGUSTIN | MAVHIC C. NATIVIDAD Account Manager C O R P O R AT E T E A M Chairman of the Board GEORGE APACIBLE President IRA V. PANGANIBAN Vice President RONALDO TRINIDAD Secretary OLSON CAMACHO Treasurer EDGAR QUESADA Executive Assistant MANEL CATINDIG

International Director Alastair Lewis alastair.lewis@haymarket.com Syndication Enquiries Isla Friend isla.friend@haymarket.com Editor Matt Burt Editorial Director, Automotive Jim Holder Managing Editor Allan Muir Reviews Editor Will Nightingale Chief tester Matt Saunders New Cars Editor Rory White Managing Director David Prasher Chief Operating Officer Brian Freeman Chief Executive Kevin Costello Chairman Rupert Heseltine Autocar magazine and the Autocar logo are trademarks of Haymarket Media Group Limited, United Kingdom and used under license by Autobrands Media Ventures, Inc. Content reproduced from Autocar magazine © Haymarket Media Group Limited 2011 all rights reserved.

The views and opinions expressed within Autocar PH magazine are not necessarily those of Haymarket Media Group Limited or those of its contributors.

Autocar magazine is published in China, Greece, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, Thailand, and United Kingdom. www.haymarket.com

SPECIAL THANKS TO Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation Takeshi Hara President and CEO Takanobu Suzuki EVP - Sales and Marketing Mark Rainier Parulan AVP - Marketing Miko Dominik Hernandez Senior Manager

Batangas Racing Circuit

EDITORIAL TEAM Editor-in-Chief – Anjo Perez Columnist – Arnel Doria Contributors – Rica Sison, Joseph Bautista, Lara Camacho Pocholo Reyes, William Herrera, Neil Pagulayan, Earl Manalansan Photographers – Mark Quesada, Alan Ranch Sevilla Staff Writer – John Rey San Diego

All rights reserved. Printed in the Philippines. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission of Autobrands Media Ventures, Inc. is prohibited. For booking or inquiries on advertising, please call our advertising department at (02) 815-6519. For interested magazine distributors or magazine subscription please call (02) 815-6519 and look for Manel Catindig.

The views and opinions expressed within Autocar Magazine are not necessarily those of Autobrands Media Ventures, Inc. or those of its contributors. While every care has been taken in the preparation of this magazine, the publishers cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the information herein, or any consequences arising from it. In case of all product reviews, judgements have been made in the context of the product based on Philippines prices at the time of review, which are subject to fluctuation and only applicable to the Philippines market.

Published by

Graphic Designer – Jeff Infante

Contact us at info@wheelsph.com Wheels Magazine is published monthly, a registered trademark of Autobrands Media Ventures, Inc. in cooperation with Gulf News. Copyright 2015.

8 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

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HondaPH brings in updated Civic Type R FK8 H

onda Cars Philippines, Inc. officially launches the updated Honda Civic Type R. Four years since its Philippine unveil, the high performance Civic received refreshed exterior bits as well as mechanical updates for more exhilarating drives.

New color options were also introduced making the Type R more distinct

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on the road.

The first Type R badge to be sold in the country, the Civic Type R has been highly desired with the initial 100 units in 2017 being booked within 48 hours upon the announcement of its availability. The Honda Civic Type R continues to be one of the most sought after performance vehicles today.

Subtle yet sleek exterior updates The main differences in the new Civic Type R fascia is the new front grill design, now with thinner grill beam.

This new design provides 13% larger air intake.

Combined with the Type R’s updated radiator core, this decreases coolant temperature by up to 10 degrees (under Honda internal testing) during

high-demand situations, such as track driving.

The new Civic Type also receives new lower fog light surrounds which serve as sleek styling blades that complements the Civic Type R’s clean styling.

The sporty carbon fiber finish exterior bits, front splitter, side skirts, and rear diffuser which are all highlighted with red accent were carried over giving

that distinctive Type R look.

The Type R rear spoiler works in conjunction with vortex generators found by the rear edge of the roofline. Diverting air flow across the tail and generating additional downforce on the rear axle, the wing contributes to overall negative lift, and improves road-holding abilities, particularly through high-speed

On top of the center console sits an updated 7-inch Touch Screen Display Audio System with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability. The control functions for the infotainment and climate control system have been updated with additional physical buttons and tactile knobs for optimum usability and functionality.

corners for better highspeed stability.

Improved sporty cockpit bits Some of the latest updates that made it into the Civic Type R’s interior is the new steering wheel that is wrapped in Alcantara fabric and the new teardrop style shift knob which add sporty feel that is perfect in spirited drives.

A 7-inch full color Thin Film Transistor (TFT) LCD Display makes up the central section of the instrument cluster and can display a variety of different function readouts including, driving mode display (+R, Sport, Comfort), LED gearshift indicator light, turbo boost pressure gauge, throttle/ brake input display and G-Meter.

Performance updates Powering the new Civic Type R is the same potent inline-four cylinder 2.0-liter VTEC TURBO engine that is rated to output 310 PS at 6500rpm and 400 Nm torque from 2500rpm to 4500rpm. All this numbers are transferred to the front wheels via a 6-speed manual transmission with rev match control system.

The new Active Sound Control (ASC) has been introduced in the latest Civic Type R which complements the Type R’s exhaust note. With ASC, the Type R’s audio system provides an enhanced engine sound within the cabin during aggressive driving in Sport and +R modes, refining it during acceleration in Comfort mode.

The new Civic Type R also received improvements on the suspension and brake

systems for more responsive and sharper handling. The Civic Type R’s Adaptive Damper System’s control software has been upgraded to allow faster road condition evaluation, resulting in improved damper reactions for better handling response and ride quality.

In terms of braking, upfront, the New Civic Type R comes equipped with Brembo four-piston calipers paired to a new two-piece floating 350mm front brake discs and new brake pads. The enhancements in the Type R’s braking system not only improves thermal efficiency but also reduces brake fade for increased capabilities during high-intensity driving for optimized on-track performance.

Honda SENSING The New Civic Type R now comes with Honda’s SENSING suite of driver-assistive functions. Through a monocular camera and wave millimeter radar simultaneously working to monitor and assess various road conditions in front of the vehicle, Honda SENSING alerts the driver of potential hazards that may occur. Honda’s suite of driver-assistive features

provides an array of advanced safety features such as Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS), Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS), Road Departure Mitigation (RDM), and Lane Departure Warning (LDW).

Together with Honda SENSING, the New Civic Type R comes standard with an array of safety features such as Front Driver and Passenger Airbags, Side and Side Curtain Airbags, Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD), Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA), Hill Start Assist (HSA), and Multi-View Reverse Camera with Guidelines.

The new Civic Type R will be available at a suggested retail price of PHP 3,210,000 (exempted from the Safeguard Duty Bond) and will be available in three colors: • Championship White • Racing Blue (New Color) • Sonic Gray (New Color) The new Civic Type R is currently available in a special introductory offer of less PHP 100,000 until September 30, 2021. For more information, visit Honda’s official website at www.hondaphil.com or visit your nearest Honda car dealership today.

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 11

MitsubishiPH’s June sales performance lead by the Xpander

MitsubishiPH opens dealership in BGC J M

itsubishi Motors Philippines officially opened their 56th dealer outlet through their dealer partner Global Excellence Motors Inc. (GEM). The new Mitsubishi Motors dealership is located at the major business strip of Bonifacio Global City (BGC). It has a 5 car display showroom and ample service work bays to accommodate the servicing needs of its customers.

GEM is headed by Mr. Willy Teeten, a seasoned businessman and successful automotive dealership operator.

“It is with great pride and honor to have the Mitsubishi Brand in the Autohub Group. I am so excited to announce that we are opening 2 Mitsubishi Dealerships, one in the North: Mitsubishi Valenzuela and one in the South: Mitsubishi Global City.

With all the support from MMPC combined with the 22 years of automotive experience of the Autohub Group, I am very positive that we can contribute to the promise, positioning and prestige of the Mitsubishi brand here in the Philippines. Amidst this global pandemic, we are committed to serve as one to heal as one.” – says Mr. Teeten, President of Autohub group.

A 2nd Mitsubishi dealership is scheduled to start operation also within

the month of July. It will be situated at a highly developed area in Valenzuela City along McArthur Highway. The Dealership will be accessible to both commercial areas and residential communities.

“We are happy to have Global Excellence Motors as part of our dealer network. We look forward to build a strong partnership with them. We are confident that GEM will strengthen the Mitsubishi Motors presence in both BGC and Valenzuela.” – says Mr. Takeshi Hara, President and CEO of MMPC. To know more about the Mitsubishi Motors, its products and its promo offers, visit www.mitsubishi-motors. com.ph.

une proved to be a strong month for the Mitsubishi Xpander as it registered strong sales improvements versus the previous month. The Xpander closed the month with a total of 794 units which reflected a 62% increase versus May. The no.1 selling MPV in the country remains to be one of the strongest nameplate for the Mitsubishi Motors brand. The Xpander is a 7-seater MPV that has won several local awards as it provides both style and practicality; making it a value for money purchase.

MMPC finished with 2,933 units for the month of June and retained its strong no. 2 position in the Philippine automotive industry.

“We are very fortunate to receive such strong support from the market. We truly appreciate the trust and confidence that they show for our brand. We are also thankful for the amazing efforts that our dealer partners are making to reinforce the strong no. 2 position of Mitsubishi Motors. Our customers can trust that MMPC is committed to reciprocate the strong patronage by providing dedicated customer service.” – said by Mr. Takeshi Hara, President and CEO of MMPC. Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation has also extended the Downpour Deals Promo until July 31, 2020.

The promo provides easy ownership plans for the Mirage G4, Xpander, Strada, Montero Sport and L300. To know more about the Mitsubishi Motors promo and products, we encourage readers to visit the MMPC website: www. mitsubishi-motors.ph or set an appointment with their preferred dealer.

HYUNDAI MODERNIZE PUBLIC TRANSPO

LALAMOVE DRIVERS TO GET VACCINATED

Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. through Hyundai Trucks and Buses Cabanatuan sustains its support for the nationwide public vehicle modernization program (PUVMP) with the recent turnover of a fleet of Hyundai Modern PUVs in Northern and Central Luzon.

Lalamove launched their advocacy campaign entitled “Lalaligtas” which aims to provide information regarding the importance of getting vaccinated to make deliveries safe for their champions on the road.

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NEWS

Lamborghini celebrates the 15,000th Urus

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hree years following its global debut, the Lamborghini Urus Super SUV achieved an impressive milestone with the Lamborghini production line coming out with the 15,000th unit of the Urus. This set the record of the highest number of produced model in the shortest amount of time since its launch in the history of Lamborghini.

This was achieved just a few days after the sales record of the Italian supercar brand with 4,862 cars delivered globally in the first half of the year.

The Urus with chassis number 15,000, earmarked for the British market, is configured with the latest “Graphite Capsule” set of colors and finishes. The exterior is made in the new shade of Grigio Keres Matt, with Verde Scandal

details. The two-tone interior is dedicated to the new collection in Nero Ade/ Verde Scandal.

The Urus has significantly contributed to the overall increase in Automobili Lamborghini sales since its presentation in December 2017. The company’s total volumes doubled in 2019, the first year it was fully marketed.

Its extraordinary performance and absolute versatility, provided by an ability to merge the soul of a super sports car with the features of a SUV, continue to endorse it as the bestselling Lamborghini model today.

The Urus has a 4-liter twin-turbo V8 engine, delivering 650 HP (478 kW) at 6000 rpm (max.

6800 rpm), and a torque value of 850 Nm at 2250 rpm. With 162.7 HP/liter, it

boasts one of the highest specific power ratings in its class, as well as the best power-to-weight ratio at 3.38 kg/HP. What’s more, with acceleration of 0-100 km in 3.6 seconds and 0-200 km/h in 12.8 seconds, it achieves a top speed of 305 km/h, making

it one of the fastest Super SUVs currently on the market.

It is also absolutely the fastest car on ice. It was the Urus that set the speed record on the ice of Lake Baikal in Russia in March 2021, during the Days of Speed. With a top speed of

PORSCHE SOLD 31% MORE WORLDWIDE

HIDILYN DIAZ AS ‘ATLETANG MAGITING’

Porsche delivered 153,656 vehicles worldwide, showing an increase of 31 percent compared to the same period last year. The significant demand growth spanned all model series and global sales regions.

For her record-making and record-breaking achievement at the concluded 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

Hidilyn Diaz will receive a top of the line Kia Stonic as a gift of gratitude from AC Motors and Kia Philippines.

298 km/h and an average speed from a standing start of 114 km/h over 1000 meters, it demonstrated terrific performance and exceptional handling in spite of the reduced traction due to the ice and strong gusts of wind.

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 13

The Chery Tiggo is the ride for you this rainy season

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s the country is finally in the rainy season, flooded roads are what most motorists go through even with just a bit of a downpour. With a huge chunk of the year in wet season, one of the many considerations car buyers have when buying a new ride is its ground clearance and wading depth. This is one of the reasons why more Filipino car buyers are getting into SUVs or crossovers.

If you are in the market for your new ride looking for a crossover but has a budget for a subcompact car, Chery Auto Philippines might just have what you need.

Featuring stylish, fully equipped, capable, and affordable crossover SUVs, Chery Auto Philippines’ vehicle lineup offers sleek crossovers offering good value.

The most affordable Chery model is the Tiggo 2 with a P695,000 price

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tag that boasts 186 mm ground clearance. That’s 3-4 inches more than a typical hatchback or small sedan ground clearance.

Not only will the extra height allow the vehicle to traverse floodwaters with ease and without the water entering the cabin, but it also enables the engine to sit higher above the water, which in turn makes the vehicle more capable of crossing a flooded stretch without the engine stalling.

The Chery Tiggo’s high ride height and bigger windows also grant better outward vision. Something that can be crucial when driving in heavy rain or fog with limited clarity. This also makes driving on long road trips that much more pleasurable.

The Chery crossover lineup is composed of the subcompact Tiggo 2 and Tiggo 5X, the all-new compact Tiggo 7 Pro, and the midsize 7-seater Tiggo 8. These crossovers boast

ground clearances as high as 200mm which are even higher than several of its crossover competition, and almost as high as much bigger SUVs. Floods also spell trouble for drivers. Aside from the high ground clearance, Chery also designed the Tiggo lineup for crossing higher levels of water with a wading depth measuring up to 600

MM. This safety feature enables the car to safely brave through floods and potholes in the Philippines’ unpredictable roads.

All Tiggo models are made in Chery ’s worldclass state-of-the-art fully robotized plants and feature luxury car amenities like 10-inch UHD touchscreen displays, footsensing automatic power tailgates, automatic LED

headlamps, LED taillamps, cruise control, Smart Key Entry System, 6-way power-adjustable seats, LCD instrument panel, panoramic sunroof, leather seats, 18” alloy wheels, and much more.

Chery Auto Philippines offers an industry-leading 10-Year/1 Million-km Powertrain Warranty on top of a 5-Year General Vehicle Warranty and 3-Year Roadside Assistance. And to sweeten the purchase, Chery Auto Philippines is offering a 3-year FREE Preventive Maintenance Service (PMS) on all Tiggo models.

Prices for the new models start at P695,000 for the Tiggo 2, P818,000 for the Tiggo 5X, P1,195,000 for the Tiggo 7, and P1,280,000 for the 7-seater Tiggo 8. Low down-payment and low monthly financing promos are available (subject to bank approval).

NEWS

FordPH closes 1st half of 2021 with strong sales performance E nding the first half of the year with strong sales performance, Ford Philippines posted sales growth by as much as 84% from last year that translates to 9,855 units sold which mostly consisting of Ford Ranger and Ford Territory sales.

The Ford Ranger was the top-selling Ford vehicle with sales rising 13% from a year ago to 4,515 units. The 4×4 pickup segment remained Ford’s sweet spot, with sales reaching 2,588 units, or a 28% increase from last year’s sales. The Ranger Raptor continues to drive overall 4×4 sales for the automotive brand.

The Ford Territory also delivered robust sales in the first half of 2021 and retained its leadership in the small SUV segment.

Sales reached 3,323 units, cornering a 56% market share in the segment. The Ford Territory also recently reached its 5,000th customer milestone after

greater security when transporting cargo.

selling 5,248 units from August 2020 to June 2021, on the back of a growing demand among customers looking for a practical, stylish, and feature-packed SUV. “The Ranger and Territory’s strong sales in the first half of the year is a testament to its sustained popularity in the market, and we thank our customers for their continued trust and preference towards our pickups and SUVs,”

shares Ford Philippines managing director Michael Breen.

EXPANDED 4X4 PICKUP PORTFOLIO Ford expanded its 4×4 pickup offerings with the launches of the Ranger FX4 MAX in March and the Ranger Wildtrak 4×4 with power roller shutter in June. The FX4 MAX offers greater off-road capability with FOXTM shocks off-road suspension and 17-

inch alloy wheels with BFGoodrich all-terrain tires. The iconic F-O-R-D grille, tubular sports bar, leather seats with carbon accents and Miko suede inserts, and all-weather floor mats give the FX4 MAX a tough look outside and premium feel inside.

Ford also enhanced the functionality of the Ranger Wildtrak 4×4 with the power roller shutter, a segment-first original equipment manufactured product that offers

RAPTOR X ARRIVES IN FORD DEALERSHIPS Sustaining momentum into the second half of year and further boosting its 4×4 pickup portfolio, Ford unveiled the limited-edition Ranger Raptor X, arriving in Ford dealerships starting July 28. The Raptor X features overthe-top (OTT) and body side stripes, extended leg sports bar, red front tow hooks, and matte black wheels with BFGoodrich™ all-terrain tires, giving the Raptor a more rugged and sporty look. Only 200 Raptor X units will be made available to customers throughout the year.

“As we aim to sustain our strong performance in the second half of the year, we remain committed to creating and bringing products and services attuned to the needs and lifestyles of our customers,” adds Breen.

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 15

Driverless shuttles to use Goodyear airless tires

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n an industry first, Goodyear has developed a nonpneumatic (airless) tire (NPT) and wheel assembly to support autonomous vehicle transportation in a city setting for in-field use with the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA).

For the past three years, Goodyear and Local Motors have tested an Olli shuttle supported by the NPT at Goodyear testing facilities and other locations reaching several performance targets with respect to load, speed and durability.

In 2019, Goodyear pivoted its NPT concentration to on-road testing and a growing

relationship with Local Motors. While this testing phase will reveal more about non-pneumatic tires, airless tires may offer sustainable, maintenance-free and longer-lasting options.

The urban transportation environment provides an ideal testing scenario for the alternative tire architecture given its lower speed and less variable travel paths.

Goodyear and Local Motors will gather experiential data from the JTA, looking for viewpoints on ride comfort, noise and other variables.

“As mobility evolves, we feel that tires can transform the way we move and alternative airless architectures

are ideal, particularly in the emerging autonomous transportation environment,” said Michael Rachita, Goodyear’s senior program manager, non-pneumatic tires. “This is

an important milestone as we look to advance mobility today and as we look to introduce the first completely sustainable and maintenance-free tires by the end of the decade.”

Nissan shares latest updates on sustainability efforts

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taying true to its commitment of making the world a better place with its own efforts, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. published its Sustainability Report 2021. For almost two decades now, the brand has been transparent to the public with regards to its efforts by publishing reports annually. The report contains summary of Nissan’s approach and activities related to sustainability.

This year’s sustainability report provides detailed information relating areas of environment, traffic safety, diversity and inclusion, quality, supply chain, employees, community engagement, and corporate governance and compliance.

Nissan has issued a sustainability report

16 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

since 2004 to increase the transparency of its business activities.

By making information publicly available, Nissan aims to use external feedback to improve and to contribute to the development of a sustainable society.

Coinciding with the issuing of this year’s report, Nissan cohosted an online, public seminar to further boost transparency and

discussion on the subject of sustainability.

Nissan has long positioned sustainability at the core of its business operations and in 2018 announced a new sustainability strategy, Nissan Sustainability 2022.

The strategy outlines Nissan’s commitment to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. Through its mid-term environmental

action plan, Nissan Green Program 2022, Nissan is also addressing climate change, resource dependency, air quality, and water scarcity.

Nissan President and Chief Executive Officer Makoto Uchida said: “The products, technologies and services that Nissan provides reach people all over the world, and we are connected to society in various ways. We are expected to address

environmental and social issues, such as achieving carbon neutrality across our operations, preserving natural resources, and working to protect the human rights of people connected to our supply chain.

Through innovation and sound business activities, Nissan will continue to respond by providing products and technologies that enrich people’s lives, thereby aiming to provide solutions and contribute to the development of a sustainable society.”

Under its corporate purpose of “driving innovation to enrich people’s lives”, Nissan will continue to contribute to the building of a cleaner, safer and more inclusive society as part of its efforts to develop a sustainable society.

NEWS

Cleanfuel Adds More Stations in Bulacan with San Ildefonso Opening

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eading independent oil firm Cleanfuel announced the latest addition to its growing network with the inauguration of its San Ildefonso branch in the province of Central Luzon, Bulacan.

Strategically located at Barangay Sapang Putol, in the heart of San Ildefonso, Bulacan, the newest Cleanfuel Station aims to provide better access to quality fuel for less for more Bulakenyos.

The opening of the San Ildefonso station despite the declaration of the reimposition of stricter community quarantine due to the Delta Variant of the COVID 19 Virus is proof of the confidence of Cleanfuel in the Filipino resiliency, according to Cleanfuel President Atty. Jesus “Bong” Suntay.

“Since the inception of Cleanfuel, we always taken pride in providing high quality and affordable fuel products that will help more Filipino motorists add

more kilometers on every fuel purchased. Cleanfuel continues to remain committed to bringing more economic opportunities in every city”, Suntay said.

In addition, Cleanfuel San Ildefonso will help the residents of the 36 barangays in the area and aid in boosting the local agribusiness, logistics, cement, manufacturing, and metalcraft industries for the good of the country.

Motorists in the area can now load their vehicles with top-notch Cleanfuel products such as Clean 91, Premium 95, and highgrade diesel.

Apart from these, the new station offers firstclass amenities including clean and spacious airconditioned restrooms, air and water services, and other top quality products that local motorists can experience and enjoy. Also available is Cleanfuel’s rewards program and cashless payments that accommodate multiple

payment solutions.

Meanwhile, Suntay also bared the plans of opening another station in the municipality to basically cover the towns in between and nearby.

“We are glad that many Filipino motorists are patronizing our fuel products which we help them enjoy quality fuel at a fraction of the price,” Suntay added.

Now, more than ever, Cleanfuel assures that the service staff of the newly-opened station follows the strictest safety

protocols for the protection of customers and its workforce by the wearing of face masks and face shields, thermal scanning of personnel, social distancing, disinfection of workstations, and hand washing.

The company promises to add more retail stations in NCR, South, East, and Northern region. “There are more to expect in the coming months for Cleanfuel. We are set to open yun more stations in Rizal (Tanay), Los Baños, San Pablo, Batangas, Quezon (Sariaya),

Mandaluyong, and another in Pangasinan (Urdaneta) hopefully as soon as the stricter lockdown protocols are lifted,” added Suntay.

At present, Cleanfuel offers Quality Fuel for Less nationwide, covering National Capital Region (NCR), Southern and Northern Luzon area.

Their stations, as well as their onsite facilities, are maintained with the highest standards of cleanliness and hygiene to make sure every customer enjoys their experience every time they drive through.

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 17

Cleanfuel Boosts Presence in Rizal with Tanay Station Opening

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ast Luzon’s well-known twisties and scenic spots will serve as the latest home for independent oil company Cleanfuel, as the company recently inaugurated the latest addition to its retail network branch in the municipality of Tanay in Rizal province.

In social distancing fashion, Cleanfuel President and CEO Atty. Jesus “Bong” Suntay led the opening of the new Cleanfuel station in Tanay, Rizal in solidarity and support of the people in the area amid the challenging situation due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases.

Strategically-located on F.T. Catapusan Road, in Plaza Aldea, Cleanfuel Tanay is the company’s fourth station in the Rizal area, adding to the stations in Antipolo and in Cainta to cover the major thoroughfares such as Sumulong and Marcos Highway.

“We want to send the message that we are committed to helping Filipinos access Quality Fuel for Less during these tough

18 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

times,” Suntay said. “This is our way of telling our kababayans that we are with them and that we believe in the Filipino resiliency in the face of any challenge.

Understanding that the majority of Tanay households depend on the industries of fishing, agriculture, and local commerce, the new station guarantees the residents and commercial establishments in the area the support that they need for daily transport, providing quality fuel products at an affordable price. Motorists can fuel up at the Cleanfuel Tanay station with Clean 91, Premium 95, and highgrade diesel products.

During the station opening in Tanay, motorists were able to take advantage of freebies, including FREE face shields, energy drinks, and limited dri-fit Cleanfuel shirts for the customer who will gas up 15 liters and above.

As with other Cleanfuel stations around the country, Cleanfuel Tanay also brings premium amenities to its customers, including clean and spacious airconditioned restrooms, air and water services, leasing, and other top quality products that local motorists can experience and enjoy.

The new station is also ready with the new normal payment solution as it is

also equipped to provide cashless payments to its clients. Furthermore, Cleanfuel assures safety with every transaction as the whole service staff follows highly stringent safety protocols such as wearing of face masks and face shields, thermal scanning of personnel, social distancing, disinfection of workstations, and hand washing.

The fuel company, which is known for its clean and air-conditioned restrooms, offers motorists FREE VIP cards, a rewards program of Cleanfuel which offers a variety of incentives for purchase such as appliances, electronic gadgets, and new normal

products. On every top-up, customers will enjoy more benefits when they earn and redeem exciting items.

This is also followed by discounts from Cleanfuel’s establishment partners.

Meanwhile, the chief executive reiterated the company’s plans to cover more ground as the year progresses. “We are expanding and opening more stations in cities where transportation is vital in the development of trade and commerce. Even in the face of this pandemic, we assure our patrons that we will provide quality fuels and the highest level of customer service, along with our unique rewards program,” Suntay said.

NEWS

CheryPH soon to open dealership along Commonwealth

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ried, tested, and trusted.” is how CHERY Auto Philippines President Rommel Sytin described the brand’s rapid dealer network growth, “CHERY might sound like a rookie in the local industry, but the team behind our expansion showcases an over 15year expertise in network management.”

Through United Asia Automotive Group, Inc. (UAAGI), CHERY Auto Philippines announced the future opening of its 6th and newest home in Metro Manila: CHERY Commonwealth. “It will be under the command of Luzon Industry Movers, Inc. (LIMI) and is set to open in the 4th quarter of this year,” Sytin noted.

Considered as one

of the country’s most populous cities, Quezon City (QC) boasts of a diverse and robust economy, hosting businesses in a broad range of professional and cultural fields. Along with North EDSA and Quezon Avenue, CHERY Commonwealth serves as the 3rd CHERY dealer in QC. Strategically located along the stretch of the busy avenue, CHERY Commonwealth is seated on a 1,800-sqm dealership area inclusive of a crossover showroom, sales, and service facilities.

To date, CHERY Auto Philippines has a total of 19 fully operational dealerships. The institution targets to inaugurate eight (8) more dealerships, particularly in Fairview,

Quezon City; Pasay City; Bacolor, Pampanga; Subic, Zambales; Calasiao, Pangasinan; Lipa, Batangas; Gorordo, Cebu; and Kauswagan, Cagayan De Oro.

Sytin closed, “We are overwhelmed with the acceptance of our market.

CHERY Auto Philippines will remain aggressive in tapping more automotive rows not just in the metro

but also in the local provinces to ensure that businesses, families, and the Filipino lifestyles get to experience the fun and function in every journey with CHERY.”

Phoenix PULSE Formula V1 Virtual Cup set to return

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ll set for another season of exciting virtual racing action, the Phoenix PULSE Formula V1 Virtual Cup is back to showcase the some of the talented esport races in the country.

An online campaign that started out as a form of relief from the pandemic situation for racers and racing fans, the first homegrown Filipino esport racing series is now on its second year. From being Tuason Racing’s pandemic baby, the virtual racing series has matured to being a virtual motorsports program that created a platform for talented esport racers and aspiring esport stars to showcase their sim racing prowess. The virtual racing series also gave motorsport enthusiasts a racing series to support during the hard lockdown period of the pandemic.

Presented by Phoenix

Fuels, powered by PLDT Home and backed by Limitless, Family Mart, and Apex Sim Racing, the first round of the 2021 FV1 Virtual Cup’s will happen on August 14 followed by round 2 on October 2 and round 3 on November 20.

Aspiring Filipino and international esport racers aged 14 years old and above are eligible to join the race against other participants, win amazing prizes and get a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be trained by the best in the industry, Tuason Racing.

Participants in the Formula V1 Virtual Cup will get the ultimate racing experience via PC-based game Assetto Corsa and will drive a Formula V1 inspired race car to race for their future as the next FV1 Virtual Cup Champion.

The Formula V1 Virtual Cup is divided into two race classes, the Promotional

Class which includes professional esport racers with vast experience in virtual racing, and the AM Class which is intended for aspiring racers who has little to no experience with regards to sim racing.

Open to all aspiring esport racers, Tuason Racing is inviting everyone who has what it takes to be the next Phoenix PULSE Formula V1 Virtual Cup champion to sign up using the QR code provided on the series’ poster.

Interested participants may also contact Tuason Racing’s Aileen Urgelles at 09175967580.

Phoenix PULSE Formula V1 Virtual Cup updates will also be up on Tuason Racing’s Facebook page – fb.com/tuasonracing and Instagram – instagram.com/ tuasonracing so be sure to follow them on their social media pages.

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 19

Hyundai Motors introduces the Performance Elantra N H

yundai Motor Company’s highperformance N brand just unveiled its Elantra N (sold as Avante N in Korea) in a digital world premiere (https://www.youtube.com/ hyundainworldwide). The hot sedan completes the N brand lineup of ‘everyday sports cars.’

Elantra N is a highperformance variant of the All New Elantra, released in April 2020. It adds strong, dynamic driving capability and aggressive design elements on top of the sporty standard model.

Hyundai Motor Company’s high-performance N brand just unveiled its Elantra N (sold as Avante N in Korea) in a digital world premiere (https://www.youtube.com/ hyundainworldwide). The hot sedan completes the N brand lineup of ‘everyday sports cars.’

Elantra N is a highperformance variant of the All New Elantra, released in April 2020. It adds strong, dynamic driving capability and aggressive design

20 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

elements on top of the sporty standard model.

In a video released today, Hyundai Motor’s N brand provides details of over 40 N elements applied to Elantra N through a story about a boy falling in love with cars, and visually reveals the excellence of this everyday sports car, which has been tuned precisely to enhance driving performance.

At the end of the video, N brand teases that it will participate in another endurance race with a car that combines a hydrogen fuel cell and an electric battery.

“Pairing hydrogen and battery power could open up very interesting future options for Hyundai in motorsports and beyond,” said Thomas Schemera, Executive Vice President and Head of Customer Experience Division at Hyundai Motor Company.

“Hydrogen can be used as a range extender or a power booster. We have the technology available and I

am quite confident that we will make this happen.”

FIRST HIGHPERFORMANCE N SEDAN TAKES DRIVING ENTHUSIASTS FROM STREET TO CIRCUIT Elantra N is powered by a 2.0-liter turbo flat power engine with a 52-mm turbine wheel, which is 5 mm larger in diameter than before, and a 12.5-mm2 turbine passage with an area increased by 2.5 mm2.

These enhancements, along with the optimization of the shape and material of the cylinder lock, improve both the performance and durability of the engine.

As a result, the flat power technology maintains the maximum output from about 5,500 rpm for brisk acceleration.

Elantra N’s flat power engine is mated with an 8-speed wet dual clutch transmission (DCT), delivering maximum output of 280 horsepower (ps) and maximum torque of 40 kgf·m. With N Grin Shift

(NGS), the boost pressure increases, temporarily enhancing output up to 290 ps. As a result, Elantra N achieves a top speed of 250 km/h and runs 0-100 km/h in just 5.3 seconds.

Elantra N’s spirited performance is further supported by N Corner Carving Differential (e-LSD, electronic Limited Slip Differential), Variable Exhaust Valve System and Launch Control—all of which are specialized, highperformance features that are applied as standard.

For DCT models, N Grin Shift (NGS), N Power Shift (NPS) and N Track Sense

Shift (NTS) are provided as standard features to maximize driving pleasure.

To shine in the corners, Elantra N provides robust braking performance.

The 360-mm brake discs are equipped with highfriction material pads to ensure best-in-class braking performance for high-performance vehicles.

Furthermore, a cooling hole is applied to the dust cover along with a brake air guide structure to improve cooling efficiency and the area is also optimized to vent heat from braking friction. Attention has been paid to every detail so that

NEWS consistent braking force can be maintained even in harsh driving conditions.

In Elantra N, there are features implemented for the first time in an N model that also stand out.

For the first time ever in a Hyundai, Elantra N applies an integrated drive axle (IDA), inspired by technology used in WRC rally cars. By integrating drive shaft, wheel hub and bearing, weight reduction of 1.7 kg enables a ‘lighter and stronger’ car. This is also beneficial in terms of withstanding extreme lateral g-force.

By integrating the intake duct and air cleaner in the intake compartment, Elantra N’s engine response is sharpened while the intake system’s weight is reduced, and suction pressure reduced by about 10 percent or more. The shape of the powertrain mount is optimized to improve integration of movement between the powertrain and the body while driving and increase handling responsiveness.

In addition, Hyundai Motor applied for the first time a dual compound insulator to the front suspension. This, together with the dual compound trailing arm bush achieves optimal performance in ride and handling as well as noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) by separating front/rear and left/right characteristics.

Elantra N applies four-point strut rings and rear stiff bars to strengthen body rigidity.

Torque feedback R-MDPS is applied to provide a consistent steering feel even when the external environment changes, such as temperature.

These highperformance technologies developed through N have been applied to general mass-produced vehicles and are expected to lead to improvement in the overall performance of the product lineup in the future.

Elantra N adds a special feature for driving pleasure.

N Sound Equalizer (NSE) is a virtual engine sound that not only provides driving sounds that represent Hyundai Motorsports, such as TCR race car sounds, but also has an equalizer function that allows the

driver to adjust details for each range (whine, throat, bass), with consideration for personal preference. This allows the driver to hear a more realistic and dynamic engine sound while driving.

In addition, the variable exhaust valve system, which delivers N’s distinctive ‘popcorn’ and ‘bang’ sounds, now uses a linear control method to reduce the booming sound during idling while maintaining the distinctive N exhaust note for the driver’s enjoyment.

Lastly, Elantra N is the first N vehicle to use 245-size Michelin PS4S tires on 19-inch wheels in support of dynamic driving performance.

HIGH-PERFORMANCE N-ONLY INFOTAINMENT SYSTEM PROVIDES NEW CIRCUIT DRIVING EXPERIENCE Elantra N’s advanced infotainment system is equipped with a graphic interface dedicated to N, so driving enthusiasts can intuitively enjoy the car’s dynamic performance.

Information needed for high-performance circuit driving, such as oil and coolant temperatures, torque and turbo pressure, which are difficult to check in most cars, is displayed in numbers on the cluster so that the driver can feel more engaged with Elantra N’s performance.

In addition, the lap

timer, a high-performance dedicated infotainment function, measures the time it takes to drive a lap on the racetrack and the ‘N Track Map’ records the driver’s location and movement on the circuit in real time. This allows the driver to record their performance without the need for additional specialized equipment and helps them analyze and improve on their performance.

In Korea, Hyundai Motor also is releasing the ‘Hyundai N’ app for highperformance N customers.

The app allows users who join the Bluelink (connected car service) to conveniently browse the highperformance infotainment functions of the Elantra N on personal smartphones and tablets. By providing analysis functions based on G-Force, RPM, torque output and lap time, it helps drivers to improve their driving skills in an easy, fun way.

Hyundai Motor plans to expand the function of the Hyundai N app so that it can be used not only by customers who purchase Elantra N with Bluelink, but also by customers who have an existing N vehicle.

In addition, it is expected that more customers with high-performance N models will be able to enjoy racetrack driving as if it were a game by applying

a ranking system for each circuit in Korea that allows comparison of an N customer’s records with those of others.

STRONG, DYNAMIC DRIVING SENSIBILITY HARMONIZES WITH SPORTY CHARACTER Building on the already sporty styling of the All New Elantra, Elantra N adds many performanceenhancing parts that further maximize its dynamic driving capability and aggressive appearance.

Elantra N’s front fascia takes inspiration from the battle-ready appearance of a driver’s race helmet, and the lip spoiler that runs low across the lower part of the bumper conveys a low-slung stance with performance intent.

The N-exclusive red strip at the bottom of the front bumper continues along Elantra N’s side skirts, giving the hot sedan a racetrack-ready look.

The prominent, N-only wing-type spoiler, along with rear diffuser, help control airflow to support optimal aerodynamic performance, further highlighting Elantra N’s high-performance capability and adding to its aggressive styling.

In addition, an inverted triangle type N-only reflector and dual single muffler tip, reminiscent of a Formula One car, neatly

finish Elantra N’s highperformance image.

The N-specific interior neatly conveys the N family look with the application of N-branded elements, including the steering wheel, shifter, seats, door scuff panels and metal pedals, etc.

On the steering wheel with paddle shifters, the NGS button (DCT only) that raises horsepower by 10 ps for up to 20 seconds and two N buttons that set the desired drive mode are arranged to suit the driver’s preference. Driving modes can be customized and matched to each button in various combinations to maximize Elantra N’s fun driving spirit.

The N seat has reinforced bolsters, so that even if strong lateral acceleration occurs during sharp cornering, it firmly supports the upper and lower body to maintain a stable driving posture at all times. In addition, an optional N bucket seat with N emblem lighting has a position that is lower by 10 mm compared to the basic specification, designed for customers who pursue high-performance drivability.

The N light bucket seat reduces the seat back thickness by 50 mm compared to the base model, further highlighting best-in-class rear seat roominess and practicality.

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 21

F I R ST D R I V E S N E W C A R S T E ST E D A N D R AT E D

TESTED PFAFFENHAUSEN, GERMANY ON SALE NOW PRICE £750,000

RUF CTR ANNIVERSARY

It may look like yet another restomodded Porsche 911, but this homage to a 1980s legend is actually Ruf’s first bespoke creation 22 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

can remember reading an observation made by one amazed early reviewer of the McLaren F1. He’d discovered that when sixth gear was selected at almost 200mph and the V12’s throttle bodies were subsequently prised back open, the car surged forth. There’s no shortage of confounding facts about the greatest supercar ever made, but I never got my head around that one. How was the Mac capable of generating so much thrust just at the point the body of air ahead of it would be solidifying into a wall?

I also found it difficult to imagine the synaptic hit and adrenaline rush the driver must have enjoyed.

But then Autocar secured some time in what’s known as the CTR Anniversary – the car currently

being hand-assembled by Ruf in Pfaffenhausen at a rate of three examples per month. Only 50 will exist and the price is prohibitive, but when you’re talking about what is still the most respected thirdparty Porsche tuner in what is an increasingly saturated market, new projects are impossible to ignore.

It’s a curious thing, the CTR – a real departure from Ruf’s usual approach of modifying Porsches both historic and new for wildly fast but finessed road driving. For one thing, aside from the Hans Mezgerdesigned block for the 3.6-litre flat six, there’s very little Porsche in it. Not even the chassis. And as for the Anniversary bit, along with the Blossom Yellow paint job, fivespoke wheels and the bodywork, it merely references the original

Ruf CTR Yellowbird, which in 1987 was the fastest road car on the planet, capable of 213mph.

Over the years, we’ve also seen the 993-based 520bhp CTR2 and mid-engined CTR3, whose spaceship form and 691bhp made it an alternative to the Ferrari Enzo and Pagani Zonda. But neither the CTR2 nor the CTR3 sought to revive the spirit of the Yellowbird, as this new CTR does – and in fairness, Ruf’s timing could hardly be better. The current fetishisation of all things retro-911 shows no sign of letting up, so why not join in?

Not that there is anything especially retro about the hardware beneath the cartoonishly smooth, fully carbonfibre body, which was styled by Freeman Thomas of original Audi TT fame.

For one thing, the CTR is built around Ruf’s new proprietary carbonfibre tub, developed at a cost of around ¤10 million. It’s made

by Gerg, which has experience in DTM and at the very highest level in the WEC. To this are affixed steel subframes that support doublewishbone suspension controlled by ‘active’ pushrod-operated Tractive Autosport dampers that can manipulate pitch, squat and roll movements on the fly.

It’s all fully adjustable and beautifully finished, with some whimsical touches, such as the spring casings, which are coloured Ruf’s familiar forest green.

At each corner then sits a carbonceramic Brembo brake disc that, while similar to what you find on the 911 GT2 RS, is unique to Ruf. à

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 23

The 19in wheels that fill their arches so generously are forged centre-locking items whose relatively small diameter is a reflection of the CTR’s compact stature. Not that you would want to leave it there, but you could get this car up into an NCP without hassle. I should probably mention now, in the context of the car’s modest size, its official power output: 700bhp.

So, although the CTR may appear to be an anachronism (its glasshouse is exactly to 993 specification) and may sound like an old 911 (albeit an absurdly fruity one), its chassis has more in common with modern Le Mans prototypes than the classic Carrera 3.2 that its bodywork plays on. It’s an undiluted supercar, based on nothing other than Alois Ruf’s desire to do something fresh.

As for the powertrain, it could almost have come from a Group C racer. The 700bhp is paired with 649lb ft of torque, both developed with the help of Ruf’s own titanium internals, new top-end and electronic management. The figures give pause for thought even before you consider the fact that it all flows not through some reinforced torque converter or beefed-up dual-clutch gearbox but through a seven-speed manual.

Ruf’s industry connections meant German engineering heavyweight ZF provided the tiny number of bespoke ’boxes needed, which pair with a dual-mass flywheel in the more ‘rounded’ CTR but a single-

mass flywheel in the sabre-sharp SCR – the CTR’s naturally aspirated sibling. Downstream sits a limitedslip differential, entirely necessary.

Settle into the cockpit and the dissonance that stems from being inside something novel, but that also feels so familiar, hits you. Were it not for the modern Porsche wheel and exposed carbonfibre weave of the tub around your knees, you could be in any old 911 – although of course any level of customisation is possible.

No surprise that it’s quite tight in here, then, although the panoramic glasshouse makes it feel like you’re wearing an astronaut’s flight helmet. This is miles from the often claustrophobic cabins of mainstream

supercars and thus an environment much better suited for the purpose of uncorking Ruf’s monstrous engine.

Still, get going and the CTR allows you to acclimatise. The clutch pedal is reassuringly heavy but no more.

Off boost, the twin-turbo engine is much more mildly mannered than its breathy, cammy, fidgety idle and low-rev soundscape suggest. And the steering: it’s hydraulically assisted but only lightly so, and it quickly graduates from reasonable heft to almost guide-by-your-fingertips delicacy. At this stage, you will also clock how reactive the rack is as you put in those first few degrees of lock.

Most of all, though, the Ruf CTR immediately feels wonderfully light.

Development car’s cabin is business-like; most CTRs will be more colourful

❝

It feels a small and precise car, but one that’s also explosively over-endowed

❞

Pushrod suspension helps keep the body narrow and dampers can be relaxed for calmer driving 24 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

It glides down the road carefree, its body seeming to barely work its sophisticated suspension, but when it does, doing so with total precision, like a modern McLaren. Three years of fine-tuning on the move and the result is as easy-going as you like.

However, up the ante and you’re obliged to properly engage your brain. The gearbox is tight enough in its action but not the most intuitive.

The top-row gates are closely stacked, so it’s easy to overshoot third and snatch fifth while you’re still trying to compute just how far up the road you might be in half-a-second’s time.

Which is quite far. Fluff it and the CTR would still embarrass plenty of serious sports cars in a straight drag race, but get it right and it accelerates with an outright malevolence that leaves you feeling foggy.

The motor itself is so strong that the level of forced-induction assistance is sympathetic, rather than intentionally barbaric, and fittingly the delivery is responsive and linear to the very end, with a serrated, yowling engine note that wouldn’t feel out of place in the old 911 GT3. There are no nasty surprises here: traction is excellent, driveline shunt is minimal and there’s plenty of throttle-pedal travel.

As for the handling, getting the best out of the CTR isn’t so easy.

It feels almost mid-engined in its balance, right up to the moment you try to do something ambitious, when it dispenses with the disguise and

FIRST DRIVES

TESTER’S NOTE Top speed is a Ruf calling card. It’s why none of its conversions have roof gutters: for the aero benefit. Another way to identify a genuine Ruf is to look for the roll-cage, which should be artfully integrated into the A-pillars, hidden behind the leather. RL

Wheelbase is 70mm longer than that of 1987 Yellowbird but small footprint is largely the same reverts to 911 traits. Once loaded up, it’s fiercely responsive to a lifted throttle and before that point shoots up on its toes under a trailing brake.

Stability out of bends is immense for the most part, but I was reluctant to throw the kitchen sink at this treasured development car. During the CTR’s gestation, Ruf shifted from Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres to Dunlop SportMaxx Race 2s, because the car was too edgy and reactive, and that underlying nervous energy is still palpable. The CTR bristles, although always in the context of remarkably flat body control, once the dampers are in the appropriate setting, and disarmingly delicate

steering. Just a touch more feedback and it would be world-class. Driven very quickly, the overall sensation is of a small and precise car, but one that’s explosively over-endowed and almost uncomfortably agile at times.

And then you get the CTR on a properly quick road, which is why I finally understand what the driver of that F1 understood. Slotting seventh gear then reapplying the power with almost 205mph on the dial results in the car slamming its goggle-eyed face into ambient autobahn air harder than you thought possible. Imagine an air-tanker dropping not water onto a blazing forest but kerosene.

It may not be an F1 but, in this

respect, the CTR can do what the F1 can do, and perhaps that’s not surprising. The two cars are very similar in their dimensions and technologies, and at 1200kg dry the Ruf is also unusually light, weighing 270kg less than even the 911 GT2 RS, which is the car Ruf benchmarked for performance, and only 50kg more than the original 1987 Yellowbird.

The asking price is £750,000. Or rather it was: every example is now spoken for. If you have the means, there’s still the 4.0-litre SCR, which lacks the CTR’s cachet but is arguably even more exciting and isn’t limited.

Both cars are something completely extraordinary, though: charismatic,

suckerpunch-quick, multifaceted in their dynamics and analogue.

Analogue. Because the manual ’box makes the CTR. In 2021, there is no shortage of superbly well-honed, carbonfibre-tubbed supercars with this much power, but none demands so much from their driver. As with the Noble M600 and Porsche Carrera GT, owners will need to master their machine but will revel in what is sure to be a spectacular bonding period.

This car makes you feel glad to be alive, and so even for those lucky enough to have just a taste, the CTR experience isn’t one easily forgotten.

RICHARD LANE

@_rlane_

RUF CTR ANNIVERSARY Rich in character and more engaging than any mainstream supercar. Rare skill is required to get the best from it

AAAAB Price Engine

Twin-turbocharged flat six is hand-built by Ruf itself

£750,000 6 cyls, 3600cc, twinturbocharged, petrol Power 700bhp at 6750rpm Torque 649lb ft at 2750-4000rpm Gearbox 7-spd manual Dry weight 1200kg 0-62mph Less than 3.5sec Top speed 233mph Economy 22.1mpg CO2, tax band 305g/km, 37% RIVALS Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, Singer Porsche 911

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 25

26 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

THE SUBCOMPACT THAT’S G4 ANYTHING! AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 27

M

Driver-centric Dashboard

itsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC) produces quality vehicles which last many years. A great example is the L300 platform that has been seen on Philippine roads for four decades.

This shows how proudly Philippine made vehicles and parts stand the test of time.

The Mirage hatch and G4 sedan are relatively new products on our roads, but has already amassed a good following.

Right before launch of the 2022 Mitsubishi Mirage G4, we got dibs and took it for a spin around the Mitsubishi plant in Sta. Rosa Laguna.

EXTERIOR STYLING This subcompact sedan looks really good for “only” a model refresh. Mitsubishi updated the Mirage G4 with the Dynamic Shield concept which gives it a completely new look. It’s got a new fascia, which gives

INVECS-III CVT Transmission

it a sharper and sportier look with a new front bumper, headlight and grille combo, plus a new rear bumper design. The alloy rims are also a new design, wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza S001’s which not only gives a sportier look but better control as well.

7-inch Smartphone Link Display Audio 3 with Apple Carplay/ Android Auto and automatic climate control.

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MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 29

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MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4

1.2-liter 3-cylinder MIVEC engine

INTERIOR The New Mirage G4 features an updated seat upholstery design, The interior remains spacious, able to accommodate 5 adults while maintaining a sizeable trunk capacity. It has a height adjustable driver seat and the tilt adjust, leather wrapped, electric power assisted steering wheel has audio controls. The instrument cluster has a new look, with a new high contrast meter design highlighted with a carbon fiber look and a Multi-information Display Monitor. The new info-tainment system is

White-lit high contrast meter design

a 7” touchscreen smartphone link display audio (SDA) with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto connectivity with Bluetooth, Tuner and USB port.

POWERPLANT Powering the new Mirage G4 is the trusty MIVEC 1.2-liter three-cylinder engine that puts out maximum power of 78 hp at 6000rpm with100nm of torque at 4000rpm, this is mated to the INVECS-III CVT or a 5-speed manual transmission.

Engine Push Start system

Steering wheel audio controls and voice command with hands-free function

Door Trim

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 31

CONVENIENCE AND SAFETY The Keyless Operation System (KOS) smartkey unlocks the door, opens the trunk, and starts the engine with the Push Start button with the key fob in your pocket. The new Mitsubishi Mirage G4 has many safety features such as the Reinforced Impact Safety Evolution (RISE) Body, Dual SRS Airbags, Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD), ISOfix anchor points, Reverse Camera, auto climate control Auto Off headlights and emergency stop signal - the hazard lights automatically flash in hard braking situations.

IMPRESSIONS It was a nice surprise how much better this new Mirage drove with its new set of sportier Bridgestone tires. The ride was smooth and gave it a balanced feel, giving you added confidence that that comes with better grip on the road.

It’s interior space accommodates more than just the average Filipino, I stand 6’4” and the New Mirage is one of the roomier in its class, as I comfortably fit in both the front and rear seats.

Overall, We feel, this New Mirage G4 is a solid choice for car buyers. It’s not too

different from the Mirage that won the 2012-2013 Philippine Car of the Year to prove it’s worh.

Fabric Seats

Rear Seat Cupholders

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MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4

❝ It’s got a new fascia, which gives it a sharper and sportier look with a new front bumper, headlight and grille combo, plus a new rear bumper design.

❞ AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 33

❝ With this recent refresh of the Mirage G4, Mitsubishi has found the right formula to outlast its competitors in this category.

This Mirage is proudly ‘built by Filipinos for the Filipinos’.

❞

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MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4 power side mirrors with LED-Type turn signals

MITSUBISHI MIRAGE G4 Price Colors

Engine Power Torque Transmission Displacement Fuel Capacity Front Suspension Rear Suspension Front Brakes Rear Brakes

PHP 769,000 Red Mettalic Cool Silver Metallic White Solid Titanium Gray Metallic 1.2L DOHC MIVEC Engine (3A92) 76.4 hp @ 6,000 rpm 100 Nm @ 4,000 rpm INVECS-III CVT 1,193 cc 42 Liters MacPherson Strut Coil Spring with Stabilizer Torsion Beam

14-inch Ventilated Disk 8-inch Leading and Trailing Drum Tire Size 185 / 55 R15 Wheels 15-inch Alloy Steering Electronic Power Steering Steering Wheel 3-Spoke Leather-Wrapped/ 3-Spoke Urethane Length 4,305 mm Width 1,670 mm Height 1,515 mm Curb Weight 940 kg Gross Weight 1,335 kg Safety Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Brake Override System, Immobilizer, Front SRS Airbags (Driver and Passenger), Front Seatbelts: 3P ELR with Pretensioner (Double for Driver, Single for Passenger), Rear Seatbelts: 3P ELR x3 Seating Capacity 5

With this recent refresh of the Mirage G4, Mitsubishi has found the right formula to outlast its competitors in this category. This Mirage is proudly ‘built by Filipinos for the Filipinos’.

PRICE AND COLORS The New Mirage G4 comes in three variants priced at PHP 769,000 for the Mirage G4 GLX M/T, the PHP 819,000 for the Mirage G4 GLX CVT, and PHP 899,000 for the Mirage G4 GLS CVT. Colors are Red Metallic, Cool Silver Metallic, and Titanium Gray Metallic. White Solid is available exclusively for CVT variants on special order basis only.

New 15-inch Alloy Wheels

Rear Bumper Reflectors

Multi-reflector halogen headlamps and foglamps which sports a new design Exterior colors

For those who want to give their New Mirage G4 some added flair, MitsubishiPH has Genuine Accessories like the Front Under Grille Garnish, Front Airdam, Rear Airdam and Side Airdams.

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MIXING BUSINESS WITH PLEASURE

Ultra-low CO2 ratings make the new Discovery Sport and two plug-in hybrid SUV rivals ideal company cars, but which is the best to drive and to own? By Matt Saunders PHOTOGRAPHY OLGUN KORDAL

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PHEV SUVs COMPARISON

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 37

Volvo’s minimalist interior still looks fresh years later hey say that dog owners become like their pets. I wonder if something similar can fairly be said of car makers and their products. Modern Land Rovers have many qualities, but they aren’t the most responsive or agile of modern family cars; and neither, as a company, is Land Rover.

Remember the Land-e concept?

Some years ago, I spent a happy couple of hours being told all about it in the airy lobby at Land Rover’s Gaydon headquarters. It was a technological showcase intended to give prominence to all the little things the firm was either doing or developing at the time to make its showroom models more fuel efficient. As such, I dare say it served its primary purpose perfectly well.

But it was also a Freelander-sized car with a downsized engine, hybrid drive and an electric rear axle, and it was shown way back in 2006.

Perhaps the management couldn’t see the wood for the trees back then, or maybe they just didn’t see a demand for an electrified Land Rover at all. Well, there should certainly be demand for one now.

After quite the wait, then, the plugin hybrid Discovery Sport is finally with us, just in time for the inevitable frenzied plug-in panic buying. It isn’t Land Rover’s first PHEV, nor the first medium-sized SUV to the plug-in party either. While Solihull was stroking its beard and plumping its various padded apparel, its rivals were simply getting on with launching their own alternatives; and, from Ford to Audi and Volvo to Volkswagen, most already have.

So what impact can this new Discovery Sport P300e have on what is becoming a quite well-

T

At 6ft 3in, Saunders is still comfy in the Landie

PHEV means no third row in the Discovery

Hybrid tech steals a bit of X3’s boot space

Like Discovery, XC60 has plenty of space established part of the SUV market?

And what can it consequently do for Land Rover’s millstone-like fleetaverage corporate CO2 emissions?

Well, the short answer to both questions ought to be ‘plenty’.

Globally, the Discovery Sport is still the best-selling model in the whole Jaguar Land Rover stable.

Like most electrified options, the P300e won’t be one of the cheaper options within the model range (although it’s better-priced than most of its key rivals), but to businesses and to fleet drivers who can save on their tax bills by running one, it should make very good financial sense.

Will it make such a convincing case to own, to use and to drive, though?

Well, after some back-to-back testing and interrogating

XC60 aims to give the most relaxed drive of our trio

PHEV SUVs COMPARISON

❝ The Discovery Sport rams home its electric-only efficiency advantage with a king-sized drive battery ❞ alongside a couple of plug-in rivals, the BMW X3 xDrive30e and Volvo XC60 T6 Recharge, I can tell you with some confidence that it should. As well as having the right kind of vital statistics on paper, this new-breed Land Rover turns out to be a bit of a peach to drive: refined, responsive and very pleasant indeed. To some, it might not be the fuel-saver in practice that it promises to be on paper – but, as with all PHEVs, that will depend on how you use it as much as anything. Ah yes, the perfect get-outof-jail-free card: blame the end user.

That the Land Rover is technically more alike to the Volvo than the BMW represents something of a risk for Gaydon. Since it’s effectively a front-wheel-drive car with four-wheel

There’s a likeable simplicity to the Volvo’s tuning and control regime.

It doesn’t have gearshift paddles or a Sport mode, and does a necessarily complicated car really need either?

drive delivered by an electrically driven rear axle (like the XC60), it doesn’t technically have permanent mechanical four-wheel drive (unlike the BMW – although even the X3’s system is a switchable clutchbased set-up rather than a centraldifferential-based one). Given its core values, I’m surprised that Land Rover went down that route, but the reward is a better running efficiency for the car in electric-only mode, because driveline friction is much lower than it would otherwise be.

That’s an advantage that the Discovery Sport then rams home with a king-sized drive battery.

Here, 15kWh for the Land Rover plays 12kWh for the BMW and 11.6kWh for the Volvo. So it’s the Land Rover that has the greatest claim for electric-only range of the trio (see spec panels on p49), and it delivers a good-sized advantage on electric range in real-world testing.

Our comparison started with back-to-back road loops taking in a mix of urban and country roads.

These suggested that you might get a genuine 30 miles of electric running in the Land Rover on a fully charged battery, compared with 25 from the Volvo and only 20 from the BMW. And if you happen to live about 30 miles from the office, that could

make all the difference to what a car like this might cost you to own.

Come to think of it, it could also make quite a difference to how much fuel you might use in an environment in which legislators could conceivably start hiking up fuel duty sooner rather than later – although let’s hope they don’t.

For practicality, the Land Rover does equally well. It’s not, somehow, a car that you expect to be particularly roomy. It looks narrower, shorter and more upright than its rivals. But because you sit less recumbently inside it (and because it offers sliding back seats, while neither the BMW nor the Volvo does), there’s a lot of occupant space within. A taller adult could travel in the back in any of à

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 39

ß these cars happily enough, but

they would be comfiest by a notable margin in the Discovery Sport, and they would have a better view of the world outside.

For bigger families, sadly none of these three comes with even the option of a third row of seats. For boot space, there’s little to choose

Update to Discovery Sport has improved its interior no end “That Land Rover isn’t a proper 4x4, you know”

S H O U L D YO U R N E X T C O M PA N Y C A R B E P L U G - I N H Y B R I D O R F U L LY E L E C T R I C? The company car market is already fuelling plenty of the growth in UK registrations of electric vehicles, and that should accelerate again in 2021. To see why that might be, take a look below at the fleet car cost breakdown of two of the plug-in hybrids in this test compared with two fully electric alternatives.

While the high price of the electric cars may still put off private buyers, you only need to be a fleet driver who typically pays for a couple of tanks of fuel every month out of your own pocket (fuel costs aren’t factored into our table) to already be able to realise a cost saving by switching to an electric SUV rather than a PHEV. For employers, current capital allowances mean that 100% of the

3 W X 0e BM rive3 xD £49,250 £420 10%, 11%

List price Monthly contract hire BIK tax rate: 20/21, 21/22 Monthly BIK liability for a 40% taxpayer: 20/21, 21/22 £164, £181 Potential monthly cost to fleet driver: 20/21, 21/22 £584, £601

40 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

cost of any electric or sub-50g/km PHEV fleet car bought new and outright by a business can be offset against tax liability until April this year. It’s likely that some businesses will be buying a certain number of new EVs and PHEVs outright right now, with a view to selling them later and driving down their business fleet costs considerably over time.

The costs that we’ve given apply to entry-level versions of the cars without options – which can drive up BIK tax liability on PHEVs as well as price, remember.

All contract hire quotes are business ones exclusive of VAT, calculated over 48 months and for 8000 miles per year after a six-month deposit. ry ove e i s c 30 0 e Pa c D r ILR r t P i X3 a u W g Sp o BM Ja £47,000 £61,900 £65,195 £400 £662 £651 10%, 11% 0%, 1% 0%, 1% £157, £172

£0, £21

£0, £22

£557, £572

£662, £683

£651, £673

between the Land Rover and Volvo, but the BMW surrenders about three inches of loadbay height, due to the positioning of some of its hybrid gubbins just above the rear axle.

Although that still leaves you with a sizeable carrying space, it’s pretty disappointing to see these days.

Up front, the Discovery Sport has definitely polished up its act on luxury-level interior appeal.

Far from being the slightly drab and unlovely place it used to be, this interior now has a bit of material lustre and technological pizzazz.

Our test car combined lighter leathers and mouldings with paler, natural-looking wood veneers, while its new digital

PHEV SUVs COMPARISON instrument screen and glossy, multifunction centre stack both looked great and worked well.

On this score, the BMW and Volvo have plenty going for them too, though. The XC60’s interior design somehow still seems bold and refreshing, even though we should be well used to it by now, while the X3’s impression of builtin quality remains striking. So as places in which to simply travel, our cars are now evenly matched.

You sit up high in the Discovery Sport, taking in your surroundings upright and meerkat-like, in contrast to the estate-car-like lowness of the BMW’s hip point. The XC60’s perch is more like the BMW’s than the Land Rover’s. If you don’t like lofty-

Disco Sport handles a lot more crisply than you might expect

In real-world testing, the Land Rover’s 30-mile electric-only range beat the Volvo’s (25) and the BMW’s (20) by a healthy margin, and DC rapid charging compatibility boosts its electric credentials.

❝ The BMW and Volvo struggle somewhat to reconcile their ambitions with their physical capabilities ❞

feeling cars, then, you won’t like the Discovery Sport much. But then if you’re shopping for a car like this in the first place, I can’t see why you wouldn’t.

Dynamically, the Land Rover aims for a very modern and luxurious SUV character: supple ride comfort and manageable but wieldy big-car handling, delivered along with super-easy, electrically torquefilled drivability and distinguishing isolation from the outside world.

Neither the Volvo nor the BMW really targets the same qualities; they’re both clearly intended as slightly lower, leaner and crisperhandling crossovers that have SUV-like space and versatility but don’t handle like traditional SUVs. But while the Land Rover plays the quiet, torquey, suave luxury operator surprisingly effectively, its opponents struggle somewhat to reconcile their ambitions with

their physical capabilities.

Here’s one of the reasons why.

While the X3 xDrive30e can be had in sportily styled M Sport equipment specification, it doesn’t run with the lowered, stiffened suspension that other M Sport variants of the X3 get. That may be considered BMW’s tacit admission that there’s a limit to the handling dynamism that can be successfully tuned into a two-tonne X3.

You can have adaptive dampers as an option on the BMW, just as you can on the Land Rover, while adaptively damped air suspension is optional on the Volvo. But it just so happened that none of our test cars had optional adaptive suspension fitted, which made them very simple to compare.

The Discovery Sport aims at fluid-feeling, bump-smothering handling fluency and pretty well aces it. It’s remarkably sweet-handling and precise through corners too, though, with its chassis somehow using that little bit of complianceà

Each of the cars was specified in sporty-looking trim AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 41

ß and body roll at everyday speeds

to enhance B-road agility and composure rather than undermine it.

It’s darned clever how Land Rovers do that these days. They certainly didn’t always.

The BMW, by contrast, aims for lowness, tautness and a much less isolating, more connected ride. It has less turn-in agility than the Land Rover but better mid-corner balance, grip and stability, so you drive it with more confidence at speed.

It has better vertical body control too, but it’s busier-riding and nowhere near as comfortable. It’s gunning for ready poise and an understated sense of handling purpose, then, but it doesn’t quite create it as cleverly.

The Volvo’s ride and handling seem just to be aiming at intuitive simplicity. It’s the only car here without gearshift paddles or a Sport driving mode squirrelled away somewhere. Because, I dunno, with two independently operating powerplants in the car, perhaps the driving experience is already necessarily complicated enough?

You’ve got to salute the instinct.

The steering is moderately paced, the ride medium-firm, the controls medium-light, filtered and easy to twiddle. The car could have been more agile, clearly, but Volvo would rather it did a bit of everything. It’s just a shame that it doesn’t ride better because, despite clearly being softersprung than the X3, it’s somehow even less settled, quiet and smooth than the BMW when the surface deteriorates. While it’s comfy enough around town and on the motorway, there’s a loose, underdamped feel to its close body control, which allows it to pitch and fuss over bumps and to loll quite suddenly onto its outside wheels if you hurry it through a bend.

Advantage Land Rover, then. And how do those hybrid powertrains feel? Quite different from each other, you might be surprised to learn. The BMW gets mixed up with its sporting pretentions again: it’s a noisier operator than the other two and performs strongly in outright terms, although it seems to struggle a little for outright electric-only oomph.

The Volvo’s performance feels smoother and slightly torquier at low

BMW and Volvo can both sprint quicker than the Land Rover

42 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

speeds, and it’s a little more pleasing to drive around town in EV mode, although its mask of composure and refinement slips under greater throttle loads, when progress can start to seem a bit clunky, flustered and hesitant.

But really it’s only the eerily smooth, remarkably quiet and effortlessly torquey Land Rover that makes the Volvo and BMW suddenly seem second-rate. Its electric rear axle combines spookily well with the combustive half of its propulsion system, the latter composed of a silken eight-speed automatic gearbox and a turbocharged three-cylinder engine that remains really wellmannered, even when it’s revving.

The Discovery Sport isn’t only more responsive than its rivals from low speeds but also feels more urgent when getting up to the national limit.

But what’s really striking about it

We liked the black-and-white treatment

Tall adults have enough space in the X3…

…and XC60, but Discovery is the roomiest is the seamless togetherness of its electric and combustive double act.

You don’t feel the gearshifts even under full power. The effect is really very EV-like indeed.

And the fuel economy? Perhaps not. While the Land Rover’s electric range stands to make it an economical car for those who can charge it plenty (and, unlike the majority of PHEVs, it supports DC rapid charging for fast battery topups when you’re out and about), in range-extended hybrid mode it’s a car that – verified again by the same back-to-back road-loop testing – might return only 32mpg or 33mpg.

That compares with about 36mpg for the Volvo and 38mpg for the BMW. If you’re a high-mileage

driver and you pay for your own fuel, that’s a difference big enough that it might begin to offset your company car tax savings, so it’s well worth considering.

It’s not enough to deny Land Rover an impressive win here, mind you.

Gaydon has tuned and executed this all-important plug-in hybrid powertrain very cleverly. It gives the Discovery Sport not only outstanding electric performance and range but real strength under power too – and amazing smoothness, refinement and comfort.

This is the newly configured, petrol-electric, premium family SUV as most would surely want it. Maybe all that beard-stroking and giletplumping was worth it after all. L

PHEV SUVs COMPARISON

2nd

Has some sporting presence and purpose but isn’t one of the better-handling X3s. Its practicality is slightly compromised, too.

3rd

1st

A better short-range EV than the X3 but bland to drive, and the ride compromise disappoints.

Nice to travel in and to drive gently, however.

Disco Sport has the comfort, drivability and luxury aura to rise above rivals, plus distinguishing electric range and charging flexibility. Thirsty in petrol mode, though.

BMW X3 xDrive30e Land Rover Discovery Sport P300e R-Dynamic S M Sport RATING Price Engine

BMW interiors continue to impress for looks and quality

Power Torque Gearbox Kerb weight 0-62mph Top speed Battery Economy Electric range CO2, tax band

AAAAB £47,000 3 cyls in line, 1497cc, turbo, petrol, plus rearmounted electric motor 305bhp at 5500rpm 398lb ft at 2000-2500rpm 8-spd automatic 2093kg 6.6sec 130mph 15.0kWh, lithium ion 141.0mpg 38 miles 44g/km, 10%

AAAAC £51,900 4 cyls in line, 1998cc, turbo, petrol, plus frontmounted electric motor 288bhp at 5000-6500rpm 310lb ft at 1350-4000rpm 8-spd automatic 1990kg 6.1sec 130mph 12.0kWh, lithium ion 141.2mpg 30 miles 46g/km, 10%

Volvo XC60 T6 Recharge AWD R-Design AAAAC £52,570 4 cyls in line, 1969cc, turbo, petrol, plus rearmounted electric motor 250bhp (ICE), 88bhp (motor) 258lb ft (ICE), 177lb ft (motor) 8-spd automatic 2099kg 5.9sec 112mph (governed) 11.6kWh, lithium ion 113.0mpg 32 miles 56g/km, 14%

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 43

INTO THE UNKNOWN

Bugatti recently became the first to reach the 300mph mark with a production car. The Chiron’s driver tells Mike Duff what it was like.

44 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

HOW BUGATTI HIT 300 INSIGHT hen Bugatti broke the 300mph barrier with the Chiron last year, it looked like a record that might stand forever. Reaching the unlikely peak of 304.77mph had required considerable engineering effort – and the creation of what became the Chiron 300+ special edition – but also exclusive use of the 12-mile highspeed track at Volkswagen’s EhraLessien proving ground in Germany.

It took driver Andy Wallace nearly a week to build up to the record speed, and he only reached his target on the final run of the last day. When Bugatti boss Stephan Winkelmann announced the record, he also said the firm wouldn’t seek to defend it.

Then in October, relative minnow SSC from the US announced that it had not just broken the Chiron’s record but smashed it. Its 1750bhp Tuatara, running on public roads in Nevada, had reportedly been driven to a two-way average of 316.11mph by British racer Oliver Webb, having hit 331.15mph in one direction.

That seemingly impossible figure soon had internet sleuths exhaustively analysing the video footage of the run, with some reckoning the car hadn’t gone nearly as fast. SSC stands by its numbers, blaming a video editing error, but boss Jerod Shelby has now said his company will answer the doubters by doing the whole thing again.

This interview with Wallace took place last September, when his claim to be the world’s fastest man in a production car was still undisputed.

The 59-year-old Brit is actually a two-time holder of the record, having driven the McLaren F1 to 240.1mph in 1998, with his career highlights also including an outright win at the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1988.

Frenchman Pierre-Henri Raphanel, who is also 59 and a successful sports car racer and Le Mans victor (1997), drove the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport to its record 267.9mph in 2010. These days, both he and Wallace work for Bugatti

W

as ambassadors and test drivers.

Both have well-stocked trophy cabinets at home and are quick to acknowledge that travelling quickly in a production car is less challenging than sharp-end motorsport. But the risks of going so fast are still very real.

“It’s a mental exercise,” says Raphanel. “It’s a straight line and you have to stay straight and keep the power on. But you also know that if anything is happening at that speed, you’re unlikely to come back to the engineer to say ‘there was something wrong’. It’s more likely that you will not come back.”

“You do think about the risks, but not when you’re actually driving,” Wallace adds. “You need to have confidence in the car but also in the people who have built it and who are looking after the stuff you can’t control.”

Any record attempt brings the weight of expectations. Raphanel says he was given a target based on what Bugatti’s engineers believed the car was capable of: more than 425kph (264mph). “But you arrive on the day of the record and there are 100 people there – you can’t go ‘sorry guys, I don’t feel like doing it today’,” he says. Wallace’s Chiron run nine years later came with a substantially higher target – that of breaking the 300mph barrier.

The big issue being, as he explains, that entering the last day the top speed had stalled at a tantalisingly close 299.8mph. That, as he admits, “would have been a PR disaster”.

Both runs were carried out at Ehra-Lessien, with ultra-high speeds magnifying the effect of even tiny imperfections in the ultra-smooth surface. Raphanel’s attempt was done to satisfy the requirement for a two-way average. “You realise that just going the opposite way to the direction the track is used in makes a difference,” he remembers.

“It’s like when you shave the wrong way: one way is smooth and the other is like the Tarmac makes little teeth, and these change the way the car feels and behaves.” à

Pierre-Henri Raphanel set a new speed record with the Veyron in 2010

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 45

Going essentially the wrong way also negated the effectiveness of much of Ehra-Lessien’s carefully designed protection system. The high-speed track has a single barrier where speeds are lowest, rising to double then triple height along the REF straight. So on his reverse run, Raphanel’s peak speed came with the least protection. “If anything had happened where the speed was highest, I would have been in the forest,” he says.

Wallace went in only one direction, as Volkswagen subsequently decided to ban wrong-way high-speed running on safety grounds. But the Chiron’s greater velocities still revealed a more dramatic issue: a join between two different track surfaces that Wallace began to call ‘the jump’.

“The engineers didn’t believe me,” he says, “then they looked at the data and realised that when the car was hitting it at 447kph (277.8mph) or so, it really was taking off.”

Any pioneer has to venture into the unknown – something that became more of an issue to Wallace as the Chiron’s peak speeds rose.

“Before long at 400kph (248.5mph), my heart rate was normal, because we did 1000km (621 miles) of testing during the week to validate the simulated aero numbers that Dallara had done, and most of it was around there,” he says. “400kph still felt really calm and comfortable. But 450kph (279.6mph) never did.”

Wallace grew used to ‘the jump’ and to the tendency of the Chiron to wander on the more worn track surface that followed it, as well as the increasing influence of even modest crosswinds. But as the speeds rose, he found himself facing a new and

Andy Wallace says he’s comfortable driving at 400kph

46 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

I reached that speed, I needed all three lanes,” Wallace remembers. “Over dinner, I said: ‘I’m just going to stay with my foot on the floor tomorrow until it passes the magic number, even if that means it’s too late to 8.0-litre W16 o slow down for the banking. urb d-t qua p 8bh 157 a s Chiron SS use I’m going to do that because you can’t have a supercar that goes 299.8mph.’” unfamiliar one: the gyroscopic forces Fortunately, it didn’t come to that. developed by the huge rotational On his final run, Wallace carried speeds of the Chiron’s wheels. more speed onto the straight than he “I’d liken it to a child’s spinning had before, felt more confident after top,” Wallace explains. “When you the jump, then stayed flat out for steer a car normally, you have some as long as he dared (“at 135 metres self-centring from the caster. But the per second, it’s really hard to judge gyroscopic forces mean that if the car braking distances”), slowing down is going left, it wants to carry on and just enough for the banking at the will continue until you make another far end of the track and returning input. So you steer the other way to the staging area to discover that and, unless you get it perfect, the he had managed nearly 305mph. effect is magnified.”

Raphanel acknowledges that That’s why the limiting factor setting his record was considerably for the Chiron wasn’t performance less fraught but admits to having but rather Wallace’s confidence had worries about tyre life. He in keeping it on the road. “By the explains: “They had tested them Thursday night, I was stuck. I just on a bench machine at 435kph couldn’t go faster because, every time (270.2mph), because that’s all the

HOW BUGATTI HIT 300 INSIGHT T H E 1 0 FA S T E S T P R O D U C T I O N C A R S (S O R T O F ) While overall speed records are recorded and verified by the FIA, the production car title has always been subject to looser criteria and, like boxing, runs under what are effectively a variety of codes and self-appointed sanctioning bodies.

The big ideological division is now one that dates to the very beginning of record-setting: whether a car needs to run a course in two directions for an average time. Although Pierre-Henri Raphanel’s Bugatti Veyron Super

Sport record was run in two directions at Ehra-Lessien, Volkswagen has since stopped these, meaning that two-way runs can only take place on either lesser tracks or public roads. Guinness World Records recognised Raphanel’s run as a record but not Andy Wallace’s later effort; instead, the Chiron’s time was validated by Germany’s TUV Technical Inspection Association.

Production status is another thorny issue, with some dissent as to whether the record-setting Chiron qualified;

the modifications carried out to it inspired a Super Sport 300+ limited run, but it came after the record was set. The SSC Tuatara also struggles with the definition, as no customer cars have been delivered yet. Then there’s the matter of permitted modification, which was more liberal in the past; the acknowledged records of both the Jaguar XJ220 and McLaren F1 were set with raised rev limits.

With that in mind and with copious use of provisos, here are the top 10.

SSC TUATARA Year Speed Driver Location Guinness World Record?

Proviso

2020 316.11mph Oliver Webb Public road, Nevada, US No Claimed and awaiting verification. SSC plans to repeat due to controversy

1

BUGATTI CHIRON SS 300+

2

3

Year Speed Driver Location GWR?

machine could do: 435kph and a 20-second cycle. They said after six cycles, the tyres will probably explode, which of course means two minutes. But then when I broke the record, I noticed that the tyres were the same as I had used the day before; they said ‘you’re still in the window’.

All I could do was hope: it’s not a window you want to fall out of.”

Bugatti says that it won’t defend its title, but if the company were to change its mind, would either of its record-setters be tempted to try again if Winkelmann phoned to offer them another go? “‘Hello? Hello? Stephan? It’s a bad line, I can’t hear you,’” jokes Raphanel. “Personally, I was very happy to do this, to be part of history – but in my case, one time was enough.

We did the records to show that Bugattis are the best cars in the world, not because we’re the best drivers.”

“When you’re a racing driver, if somebody asks you a question like that, you’ll always put on this persona of everything being good and say ‘bring it on’,” adds Wallace.

“It’s easy to stand here knowing that we’re not going to do it and say ‘of

KOENIGSEGG AGERA RS

2019 304.77mph Andy Wallace Ehra-Lessien, Germany No

5

4

Year Speed Driver Location GWR? Proviso

BUGATTI VEYRON SS

2017 277.87mph Niklas Lilja Public road, Nevada, US No Record request submitted but seemingly never given

2010 267.9mph Pierre-Henri Raphanel Ehra-Lessien, Germany Yes

Year Speed Driver Location GWR?

KOENIGSEGG CCR

8 Year Speed Driver Location GWR? Proviso

GWR? Proviso

BUGATTI VEYRON

2007 256mph Chuck Bigelow Public road, Washington, US Yes

Year Speed Driver Location GWR?

McLAREN F1

Year Speed Driver Location GWR? Proviso

2014 270.49mph Brian Smith Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US No Not really series-production

7

9 2005 241.1mph Loris Bicocchi Nardò, Italy Yes Rev limit raised and no cats

Year Speed Driver Location

SSC ULTIMATE AERO TT

6

Year Speed Driver Location GWR?

HENNESSEY VENOM GT

2005 253.8mph Uwe Novacki Ehra-Lessien, Germany No JAGUAR XJ220

10 1998 240.1mph Andy Wallace Ehra-Lessien, Germany Yes Rev limit raised, having previously done 231mph

Year Speed Driver Location GWR? Proviso

1992 217.1mph Martin Brundle Fort Stockton, Texas, US Yes Rev limit raised and no cats

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 47

THE FRENCH REVOLUTION The PSA Group has merged with FCA while Renault is reinventing itself, so what does the future hold for France? By James Attwood he ‘under new management’ signs – or ‘changement de direction’, if you prefer – have been up across the French car industry lately.

Following the spectacular downfall of Carlos Ghosn, former Seat boss Luca de Meo took the helm at the Renault Group. Meanwhile,

T

Carlos Tavares has taken control of Stellantis, the new, Dutch-registered firm created by the French PSA Group’s merger with the ItalianAmerican Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

Both men have strong track records, but they face formidable challenges in ensuring that some of the world’s most storied car brands can thrive in a new era of motoring.

STELLANTIS The recent merger of the PSA Group and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has created the world’s fourth-largest car maker, with its 8.1 million global sales in 2019 behind only Toyota, the Volkswagen Group and Ford. But there’s one area in which Stellantis dwarfs those rivals: brands.

Stellantis encompasses 14 of them, covering every major market segment from electric city cars to mainstream hatchbacks and SUVs, sports cars, supercars and even the booming US pickup truck market. Not even the Volkswagen Group’s many marques can match such breadth, which for Stellantis presents both opportunities and challenges.

48 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

The opportunities lie in the reach of those brands, and the heritage of names such as Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Jeep, Peugeot and Vauxhall.

“We have with those iconic brands a high diversity of models,” says Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares. “With this brand portfolio, we’re present in the most significant markets and profit pool areas of the market.”

The challenges come from ensuring the brands don’t encroach on one other and thus cannibalise sales. Equally, their disparity can militate against economics of scale: you can hardly build a Maserati sports car on a Ram truck platform.

Tavares successfully revived PSA fortunes These are challenges that FCA battled with. While the American side of the business thrived, fuelled by the success of Ram, the Italian side struggled. Where common ground could be found, the results – such as Jeep’s Italian-built Renegade, based on a platform shared with the Fiat 500L – were indifferent.

Meanwhile, as FCA focused resources on successful brands and those in lucrative markets, particularly Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Ram, it neglected others. Fiat struggled to find success with any model beyond the 500 city car, while Chrysler and Lancia withered: the only Chrysler still being sold is the Pacifica minivan, while the sole Lancia, the ancient Ypsilon, is now offered only in Italy.

That contrasts with the recent success of PSA since Tavares took the helm in 2015. At that time, Citroën and Peugeot had similar model lines competing for a similar audience.

He pushed the brands further apart and found room to spin off DS as a

FUTURE OF FRANCE ANALYSIS One aim will be to exploit global profile of brands like Jeep

THE STELLANTIS BRAND PORTFOLIO

Jeep

Chrysler

Dodge

Ram

Abarth

Citroën

Fiat

Peugeot

Opel

premium marque while still increasing shared development and platforms. Tavares led the purchase of Opel and Vauxhall from General Motors in 2017 and, through similar measures, quickly made them profitable.

Alfa Romeo is set for model line expansion Tavares will apply the same philosophy of integrating platforms and development while separating brand identities engineering and increased to Stellantis. “Our purpose is to use purchasing power. That will be power and scale to do great things,” vital as Stellantis faces the costs he says. “Stellantis needs to be great, of electrification and autonomy rather than big.” in the years ahead.

Some division is likely to remain; Those synergies will also boost there are signs that the successful brands that “for prioritisation American arm will continue as a reasons in the past we couldn’t invest largely separate entity (headed by in as much as we wished”, according former FCA boss Mike Manley), to Tavares. “We can make sister cars although with greater use of shared with smaller entry tickets, which can resources and common components. make the business plans fly,” he says.

Tavares has set a goal of saving The brands that could benefit are ¤5 billion (£4.4bn) within five clear: Fiat in particular could quickly years, chiefly through common introduce a long-overdue range of

cars on proven PSA platforms and there could be crossover between Alfa Romeo, Maserati and larger PSA models. The key will be ensuring that each brand has its place. “You will see some brands rebound based on positioning and understanding of what each brand stands for,” says Tavares.

He insists Stellantis plans to keep all of its marques – something that’s particularly intriguing for Lancia, which has been listed alongside Alfa Romeo and DS as a premium brand.

The sheer scale of Stellantis should help it to handle the vast changes that the industry is undergoing. But to do that, the company needs to react with a rapidity that belies its size.

Tavares therefore has to find a way to create a single, harmonious company while embracing the diversity of its many subsidiaries. à

Vauxhall

Alfa Romeo

DS

Lancia

Maserati

Free2Move

Leasys

Stellantis aims to prioritise quality over sales volume

New platforms have revitalised PSA brands such as Vauxhall AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 49

RENAULT GROUP The idea of reviving the Renault 5 has been floating around the firm’s Boulogne-Billancourt headquarters since soon after production of the hatchback ended more than 25 years ago. There have been ideas, sketches and apparently the odd concept, but it has never gone further. Until now.

It took Luca de Meo just six months from starting as Renault Group boss to approve the revival of the 5 as an EV, sign off a design and reveal the resulting concept to the world.

While the headline attraction at the launch of de Meo’s ‘Renaulution’ business plan, the new 5 won’t singlehandedly save Renault. However, the project’s rapid approval is indicative of how fast the Italian has identified the ailing firm’s issues and moved to correct them. “The diagnostic is pretty cut and dried,” he says.

The major issues for the Renault Group were, in de Meo’s words, “the immoderate quest for volume and an unresolved approach to market and portfolio management”.

Put simply, the firm became too focused on selling as many cars as possible and let its Dacia and Renault brands drift too close together.

Former boss Carlos Ghosn set a target of five million sales a year by 2022, resulting in a push to expand

production capacity and spending on research and development. But sales reached only 3.6 million in 2019, below projections and resulting in a 50% reduction in Renault’s capital investment return over a five-year period. “We grew bigger, not better,” says de Meo. That push for volume also led to Renault expanding outside its heartland – but it joined entry-level segments in developing markets offering lower profit margins.

The result: the Renault Group sells cars in more than 130 countries, yet 50% of its sales and 75% of its profit come from 30 in Europe – with 50% of its profit from just five.

Nearly half of Renault’s sales are region-specific models, resulting in a ballooning number of parts. This has also led to the convergence of Dacia and Renault, with the two splitting sales in several regions rather than reaching different customer bases.

That uneven growth has been compounded by a decline in the vital C- and D-segments. Renault’s recent success has been driven by hatchbacks and small SUVs, with B-segment models accounting for 68% of its sales. Just 20% of its sales were of C-segment models, around half that of comparable rivals. Now

A110 sports car will be last nonelectric Alpine

consider that C-segment cars offer margins around 30% higher than B-segment models. “If you compare our performance over the past five years with benchmark firms, half of the difference is here,” says de Meo. While the group’s problems are clear, so are its many strengths: strong brands, long experience of electric cars and, crucially, the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance.

While Franco-Japanese relations were strained following the downfall of Ghosn, the Alliance’s two giants have since reworked their deal to include greater platform and

powertrain sharing plus joint development and production.

De Meo’s plan is as simple as his diagnosis: sell fewer cars. Or, more precisely, shift focus from maximising sales to maximising profit by reducing development and production costs and regaining a footing in more profitable markets and segments.

To do that, he’s aiming to repeat some past successes. That can be seen in the new 5, which echoes how de Meo led the revival of the 500 as a retro city car while at Fiat. And the push to grow C-segment sales

❝ The major issues have been ‘immoderate quest for volume and

R E N AU LT ’ S SEGMENT SPLIT*

12%

20%

68%

B-segment C-segment Other segments *in 2019

50 AUTOCAR.COM.PH AUGUST 2021

FUTURE OF FRANCE ANALYSIS

De Meo aims to repeat Seat success reflects how he led Seat to record growth, through clever use of shared Volkswagen Group platforms and the success of the third-generation Leon and game-changing Ateca SUV. Even with the considerable benefit of Volkswagen Group shared engineering, there was no certainty that buyers would consider a Seat when the Ateca was launched.

De Meo plans to trim Renault’s line-up, with a focus on cutting the many low-profit region-specific models. The aim is to shift 80% of the firm’s models to three Alliance platforms: CMF-B (and its CMF-B EV

variant) for small cars, CMF-CF for medium and large cars, and CMF-EV for EVs. The number of parts used will be considerably reduced as well.

“With Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi, these three platforms contribute more than six million vehicles per year,” says de Meo. “When it comes to scale, that puts us in the Champions League.”

Renault will also move from eight powertrain families to four: one battery-electric, one hydrogen fuel cell, one petrol and hybrid, and one diesel. As de Meo notes, the development of all four is essentially done already, further cutting costs.

While reducing costs, the group will also aim to separate its brands.

Dacia will retain its focus as a budget-conscious marque and is now paired with Russian brand Lada, which Renault took control of in 2016 but has effectively run as a separate concern. While they have similar market positions, the two brands largely operate in different countries, so there’s little risk of crossover.

With Dacia retaining its positioning, the focus will be on shifting Renault to a more premium position, increasing the potential profit on each car and enabling it to regain its footing in the C-segment.

The aim is to achieve that through a focus on design and technology, a change in emphasis that predated de Meo’s arrival but will now accelerate.

Crucial to that will be stylefocused models such as the 5 and the new Mégane electric crossover.

The latter will be one of seven C- and D-segment Renaults launched in the next five years, starting with the Western European version of the Arkana coupé-crossover.

De Meo has also set a bold course for Alpine, which Renault hasn’t seemed to know what to do with since launching the A110 in 2017. It will become an electric-only performance brand, bidding for an audience above Renault. If that sounds familiar, it’s essentially how de Meo turned Seat’s Cupra model line into a full brand.

Sounds simple, then, and de Meo is clear that “we know what we have to do and have already started doing it”.

The challenges will be ensuring that the Renault Group fully harnesses the economies of scale the Alliance can afford, successfully pushes Renault upmarket and finds market share in larger segments. It won’t be easy, but de Meo has a record of achieving similar goals. And he has a very stylish new concept car to prove just how fast he can act. L

R E N AU LT ’ S S A L E S AND PROFIT SPLITS Sales (2019)

50%

50%

Profit (2019)

25%

75%

an unresolved approach to market and portfolio management’ ❞

W H AT I S R E N AU LT ’ S N E W M O B I L I Z E A R M ?

The Renault Group’s revamped business rests on four pillars: Renault, Alpine, Dacia and the new Mobilize brand. The new arm will encompass all of the group’s efforts in the nascent and fast-developing mobility, energy and data services markets.

Demand for ride-sharing and subscription schemes is growing in the internet age, and de Meo is convinced that the area could become a significant source of revenue in the future. The initial job of Mobilize is to work out how.

Significantly, Mobilize will have its

own range of vehicles designed for shared use, starting with the EZ-1, effectively a next-generation Renault Twizy. But it will also investigate ways of generating revenue from data, battery recycling and other areas.

It’s part of a wider push by de Meo to position Renault at the forefront of the French technology movement, likely to ensure continued support from the French government to help that industry develop. He says: “Today we’re a car maker integrating tech. Tomorrow we want to be a tech company integrating vehicles.”

AUGUST 2021 AUTOCAR.COM.PH 51

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