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Press Centre > CAPtivate > CAP Blog
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Mar
10
Written by:
Martin Ward
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
This week’s manufacturer news
FORD – Has announced that it intends to introduce five new vehicles with either hybrid or full-electric drive to Europe by 2013 as part of its global electric vehicles plan. A Transit Connect electric will be the first vehicle to be introduced, launching in 2011, followed by a Focus electric in 2012. Two hybrid-electric models and a plug-in hybrid-electric model will follow in 2013.
LUXGEN – Established in 2008, Luxgen are the first automobile brand from Taiwan. Having successfully completed its international debut at the 2009 Dubai Motor Show, the brand is set to introduce vehicles that are programmed to ‘think ahead’ for the consumer, using IT technology to create a new generation of intelligent vehicles. The cars will feature a state-of-the-art on-board computer called ‘think+’, which for the first time ever, combines HTC’s Smart Technology with Windows CE Automotive Interface to pre-empt road conditions and potential hazards. Luxgen intend to target markets around the world including the Middle East, Central America, Russia, China and South East Asia.
SKODA – After making their debut last week at the Geneva Motor Show, pricing has been announced this week for the new Fabia and Roomster models. The new Fabia will be priced from £9,330 on the road and the new Roomster, at £11,260 on the road.
 TOYOTA – The new RAV4 was unveiled at last week’s Geneva Motor Show, revealing exterior changes to the front end and a new leather/alcantara upholstery. It is due to go on sale in the UK in spring.
Test car – Toyota Prius T-Spirit
 I was putting the child seat in the back of the Prius when Sue said to me “is that car safe?” She, like so many others, has been following the hype in the press and particularly the news stories on TV. Just a few nights before she had been watching the lead story on News At Ten and thought that all Toyota Prius models were not fit to be on the road. This is absolute nonsense. Yes, there may have been a few small problems with a few cars in North America, but there is nothing to worry about with this Prius and 99.999% of all Toyota models. The whole episode has been blown out of all proportion. It is fair to say though, that this particular Prius is not ‘child-friendly’. This is not due to any safety concerns, but the colour of the seats. They were a very light grey and would stain easily with water, chocolate or dirt from the child’s shoes. It would certainly not be my first choice for an interior colour.
The new Prius is powered by a 1.8 litre petrol engine that produces 98bhp, combined with electric motors that produce the equivalent of 36bhp, giving the Prius a total of output of 134. It goes from 0-62mph in 10.4 seconds and has CO2 emissions of 92g/km, which means that the Prius sits in band A for VED.
This Toyota is different to drive than any other Toyota, although the forthcoming Auris HSD will have similar technology. It is only available with automatic transmission, so provides a fairly smooth drive, but the difference in driving this car is the different modes that can be used: Eco, Sport and EV. When you select Eco mode, the car is as frugal with fuel as it can be and it doesn’t set off from traffic lights in any great hurry. When you select Sport mode, it is noticeably quicker, both at setting off from standstill and during acceleration when on the move. The EV mode is for driving on electric power only and this can be used at slow speeds for about a distance of two miles before the petrol engine starts up and takes over. The engine is quiet and refined, despite it only having an output of 98bhp, but this amount of power does seem to be sufficient and is noticeably plentiful, especially when in Sport mode.
 The Hybrid Synergy Drive system on the Prius is fairly complicated, but the car informs you of what it is doing at any stage, as it is displayed on the screen in the centre of the dashboard. It tells you if it is running on battery power alone, if the battery is being charged or discharged, if the battery is assisting the petrol engine, if power is being replaced into the battery by brake regeneration; all very clever and complicated, but it does work well. The danger with this screen is that you can spend too much time paying attention to it and not enough on the road. The other danger is that you are constantly trying to get that extra one mile per gallon in fuel consumption, so you drive accordingly. If that means driving at 27mph in a 30mph zone or 65mph on the motorway then you do, just to try and get the MPG figure up. It’s almost like a game. The problem is that other road users are not playing the same game and they just want to get home.
 The T-Spirit comes fully loaded with a long list of equipment including alloy wheels, satellite navigation, Bluetooth and keyless ignition.
During the time we had the Prius we achieved an average of 54.4 MPG, but on a long motorway run at motorway speeds, it achieved 62 MPG compared to the official figure of 70.6 MPG. I don’t know how you have to drive the car to get this sort of fuel consumption figure but it must be very slowly.
Toyota has been one of the main pioneers in hybrid technology and with the new Prius they have turned what was a good idea, into an even better one. It really does work extremely well and it is as good as most economical diesel engines that produce similar power outputs. The cost of the Prius T-Spirit is £22,610 on the road.
Test car – Volkswagen Golf R DSG three door
 The Golf GTi is the icon of all icons in the car world. It has been around for many years and we are now onto the MK6. The MK1 was a classic and every new model has progressed in terms of style, build quality and performance. There are many who say that the GTi has gone backwards over the years and that the first ones were the best. Whoever is right doesn’t really matter, whether it be purist or modernist. However, I’m sure that the hearts of both sides will be pounding when they drive the next step up from the Golf GTi; the all new R model. The R is a sort of replacement for the R32, but is much more refined, more powerful and much more economical.
It is powered by a 2.0 litre TSI engine that produces a whopping 270ps compared to the GTi’s 210ps. The car we tested was fitted with the DSG automatic gearbox with steering wheel paddle-shift. It goes from 0-62mph in 5.5 seconds and has a restricted top speed of 155mph. The combined fuel figure is 33.6 MPG but on a long journey, mainly on motorways, our R model achieved 29.2 MPG according to the on-board computer.
 All this power is coupled to Volkswagen’s 4MOTION four wheel drive system, which does mean that the car sticks to the road and has superb handling. Despite it being 4WD, the steering is very positive and precise, and the DSG automatic gearbox is so quick to either change up or down; it seems to instinctively know what you are going to do next. The steering wheel paddles are easy to use and literally at your finger tips, but you don’t have to use these if you don’t want to. If you want to keep your mind on the road and not on gear-changing, you just put it into drive and leave it there; the car will do the rest.
Most hot-hatches have firm suspension and some have hard suspension, but the Golf R is both firm and hard. You feel every single bump in the road and after the winter, there are plenty of those around all over the country. You find yourself looking ahead for minor bumps and pot-holes, trying to drive around them to avoid unnecessary discomfort. However, the Golf R is a driver’s car and if you want comfort then buy a large saloon.
The R is certainly quick off the mark. The 0-62mph time of 5.5 seconds really does throw you back in your seat and your passenger doesn’t seem to say much while you are under heavy acceleration. Its acceleration from 50-70mph is also staggering and you really have to be careful not to break any speed limits, which is so easy to do.
 Leather upholstery comes as standard, with a small R logo on the back of the seats, which is a nice touch. It has piano black and silver highlights to the interior, a new 3 spoke steering wheel and white back-lit dials with electric blue needles.
The front end has new front bumpers with a trio of deep air-dams, LED running lights and xenon headlamps. It also has sill extensions and 18” five spoke ‘Talladega’ alloy wheels, with 19” wheels being an optional extra. At the rear it has a roof mounted spoiler, twin exhausts and unique LED lights with a very distinctive design. This certainly differentiates the R from other Golf models. The cost of the test car was £30,235 on the road.
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