News

Grammy-winning DJ Black Coffee has won a court battle against Maserati South Africa over a bespoke MC20 Cielo that was never delivered. Left with no firm delivery date, he sued, and a Johannesburg judge ordered Maserati to repay his 7 million rand trade-in, about 375,000 euros, with 10.5 percent interest. The saga underlines the chaos at a struggling Maserati.

Suzuki has unveiled the e-Sky, an electric kei car weighing just 1,030 kg with a 26 kWh battery, up to 310 km of range on Japan's cycle and 63 hp. It reaches the UK and mainland Europe in 2027 for an expected sub-20,000 euros, targeting the Renault Twingo and Dacia Spring. It is exactly the kind of light, cheap small EV Europe keeps saying it needs.

Renault has updated the Renault 5 E-Tech Electric for 2026 with a new, cheaper entry model, more range and a smarter cabin. The new Five trim uses a 36.5 kWh LFP battery with 110 hp and up to 305 km of range, while the Urban and Comfort versions rise to 315 km and 430 km respectively. Belgian pricing starts at €28,100, with new tech including a Smart driving mode, a Qi2 wireless charger and Gemini AI replacing Google Assistant. Orders opened on 28 August.

Toyota is marking 60 years of the Corolla, the best-selling car in history with over 57 million sold across twelve generations, with a 60th Anniversary edition of the hatchback, Touring Sports and sedan. It adds exclusive blue paint, 17-inch alloys and anniversary detailing to the hybrid range (140 or 178 hp). Unusually, it is on sale across Europe now, with only the US getting a 2,500-unit limit.

The US Army has raised its order for the Infantry Squad Vehicle roughly eighteen-fold, from 649 to 11,582, after soldiers demanded more. Built by GM Defense on the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 with about 90 percent off-the-shelf parts and a 186 hp Duramax diesel, the doorless nine-seater is light enough to sling under a Black Hawk, a modern echo of the WWII Jeep.

Opel has signed Mitch Evans, the most successful driver in Formula E history with 16 wins, to lead its new Opel GSE Formula E Team from the 2026/27 season, alongside former F2 champion Theo Pourchaire and development driver Sophia Florsch. The works entry is tied to Opel's GSE electric-performance brand and hot EVs like the Corsa GSE and Mokka GSE.

Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume has called the carmaker's situation 'more than critical', warning of the biggest upheaval in its history. Overhead costs run more than 30 percent above rivals, margins have slipped below 4 percent, up to 50,000 jobs are on the line and Chinese sales fell another 31.6 percent. With unions in revolt, VW's crisis is really Europe's.

Donald Trump has threatened a 50 percent US tariff on all cars, trucks and parts built in Canada from January 2027, after a deal that would have cut tariffs collapsed last week. Toyota and Honda, which build most of Canada's cars, are most exposed, though US makers and buyers would pay more too. It is another sign the car industry's free-trade era is ending.

We got an early, up-close look at the all-new electric BMW iX5 60 xDrive in a blackbox at BMW Belux in Bornem. The 570 hp dual-motor SUV targets around 700 km of range from a 144 kWh 800-volt battery and charges at up to 460 kW. In the metal it feels a clear step above the outgoing X5, dazzling tech let down only by a gimmicky passenger screen.