Renault is playing it smart. At a time when car brands are sprinting en masse towards the future, Renault takes a quick look in the rear-view mirror and breathes new life into one of its most iconic models. The new Renault 5 E-Tech is instantly recognisable, charmingly retro and at the same time surprisingly modern. It is exactly that mix that appeals to so many people. Because admit it: retro simply stirs emotions. And the R5 does that brilliantly.
Audi Sport has a consistent habit of reworking RS models during their lifespan, and they often make you wonder why the car didn’t start off like that to begin with. The 2024 Audi RS 4 Competition Plus is no different.
There are cars that touch you. And there are cars that temporarily switch off your brain, reset your heart rate and make you wonder for a few seconds whether you are still living in the same physical dimension. The McLaren 750S Spider belongs to the second category. A car that looks like a facelift of the 720S, but in reality feels like a new chapter in hypercar thinking, wrapped in a supercar silhouette.
Some cars you should not try to understand. You should feel them. The new Mercedes-AMG SL 55 4MATIC+ is exactly such a car. A roadster that balances somewhere between reason and desire, and that quietly asks a question no number can answer: how much is enough?
There are cars you feel something for before you even pick up the key. The Golf GTI is one of them. An icon, heritage, a reference that has been around for almost fifty years. But honestly: in recent years it all got a bit… well-behaved. Faster, yes. But less character. Less bite. Less soul.
Mercedes built the CLE 53 to replace both the C-Class and E-Class Coupe, and it mostly succeeds. A 445 hp straight-six, huge presence and clever AMG Active Ride Control make a near-two-tonne coupe feel nimble and special. The synthesised soundtrack and a steep price are the catches, but as a modern do-it-all AMG it works.
Tesla's third-ever model, the Model X, rolled into the market back in 2015 and has since seen many powertrains powering it. There's been a 60D, a 75D, a 90D, and a 100D since then
The Range Rover is available with seven seats for the first time, and the king loses none of its magic. The P530's new 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 is far cleaner than the old supercharged unit (11.5 l/100km on our run), the third row is genuinely usable, and the ride wafts like an S-Class. For a small premium over the standard car, it is close to faultless, if only it offered a hybrid.
From a V6 soundtrack to silent electrons, the Mercedes-AMG EQE 43 is Affalterbach's first proper high-performance EV saloon. At 2.5 tonnes it is heavy, but 476 hp, a rear-biased AWD system and a seriously reworked chassis hide it well. It is no V6 C 43, but it lives up to the AMG badge and points clearly to the future.
The 3 Series is a segment benchmark, and the plug-in 320e Touring makes a quietly convincing case for it as a daily driver. A 204 hp plug-in hybrid with 50 to 60 km of EV range, it still averaged under 5 l/100km on longer trips, stays practical and comfortable, and drives with more involvement than its rivals. The C-Class is comfier, but the BMW is the better driver's car.
The long-awaited second-generation BMW M2 arrived to criticism before anyone had driven it. Then you drive it, ideally with the manual gearbox, and it surprises you. Small, rear-driven and endlessly capable, the manual M2 might just be the best compact sports car on sale today.
We test the three-door Defender 90 with the 400 hp petrol straight-six and ask whether it makes sense. Practically it does not, the boot is tiny and it drinks 13 l/100km, but the short wheelbase brings the chassis alive, the six sounds sweet and it charms you completely. This is the Defender you buy with your heart.
