News

A 1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sports once owned by Belgium's King Leopold III will headline the 2026 Zoute Concours d'Elegance by ING Private Banking, held on the Approach Golf in Knokke-Heist on 10 and 11 October. Finished in the Belgian national colours of black with a yellow stripe, the car won Best of Show at Pebble Beach in 2024. It joins around 50 historic cars competing across nine categories during Zoute Grand Prix Car Week.

Lynk & Co has revealed the 07 GT, a low-slung shooting brake confirmed for Europe in 2027 after its Chinese debut. Rather than another SUV, it is a sport touring estate with a sloping roofline, muscular arches and a driver-focused cabin. The Chinese version uses a plug-in hybrid combining a 1.5-litre turbo engine and an electric motor for around 408 hp, in rear- and all-wheel-drive forms. European specs are still to be confirmed.

BMW took the most segment awards of any brand in J.D. Power's 2026 US Initial Quality Study, with six winners: the 2 Series Coupe, 5 Series, 8 Series, X2, X6 and X7. With 178 problems per 100 vehicles it landed just three above the industry average, but it comfortably beat Mercedes (182) and crushed Audi (225). Porsche led the entire industry on 138, ahead of Genesis, Ford and Lexus.

Jeep has opened orders for two new Compass variants on the STLA Medium platform. The headline is the Full Electric Long Range, with 231 hp, a 96.3 kWh usable battery and up to 674 km of range, priced from €47,495. Alongside it is a 375 hp 4xe plug-in hybrid with dual motors, serious off-road numbers and a starting price of €50,495. Both fast-charge from 20 to 80 percent in 27 minutes.

BMW has teased the next-generation X5 (codenamed G65) ahead of its 30 June reveal, showing bold new X-shaped daytime running lights and a cleaner, Neue Klasse-inspired front that closely echoes the new iX3. The slimmer grille marks a clear move away from oversized kidneys. The X5 will be offered with five powertrains: petrol, diesel, plug-in hybrid, a fully electric iX5 and, from 2028, a hydrogen fuel-cell version.

Lacoste and Alpine have revealed a one-off electric hot hatch: the A290 Rallye, nicknamed Beware of the Crocodile. Based on the most extreme A290, it pairs full rally addenda with a monochrome red interior hiding 290 crocodiles and seats trimmed in Lacoste's iconic petit pique fabric. It is a one-of-a-kind car, launched alongside a Lacoste capsule clothing collection and a short film starring Pierre Niney and F1 driver Pierre Gasly.

Lionspeed GP's Porsche 911 GT3 R has won the 2026 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa after starting from the pitlane following an engine change. The number 80 car, shared by Ricardo Feller, Thomas Preining and Bastian Buus, beat the Winward Mercedes-AMG of Auer, Engel and Stolz, with an AF Corse Ferrari third. It is the first overall Spa win for the 992-generation 911 GT3 R, and Porsche's first since 2020, in front of a record 132,000 fans.

Land Rover Classic has built four matching V8-powered classic Defenders for a single client, each finished in a colour-shifting Spectral Green paint that flips between green, purple and gold. The commission also debuts a new 110 Double Cab Pick-Up body style. Each car uses a 405 hp 5.0-litre V8 with an eight-speed automatic, and the colour-changing paint alone takes nearly 400 hours per vehicle.

Hyundai has confirmed it will not build a successor to the i30, its C-segment family hatchback. Europe CEO Xavier Martinet cited falling segment demand and the model's heavy reliance on low-margin fleet sales as the core reasons. The i30 joins the Ford Focus, Kia Ceed and Renault Megane in abandoning the class, leaving the Volkswagen Golf, Peugeot 308 and Toyota Corolla as the last significant players.