Author: Robin Roberts

KIA sales are soaring in Britain and to keep ahead it has seemingly taken a step back with the latest generation of the popular Soul EV. KIA Soul was launched in 2008 after the company looked to its Californian styling studio for a new model to appeal to the 18-35 year old American buyer market and its concept creation debuted at the Detroit motor show in 2006. The production model broke cover at the 2008 Paris Motor Show but a completely new second generation with larger proportions was shown in New York and Frankfurt motor shows in 2013 and went…

We tested the double-cab Musso back in late 2022 and were impressed with its room and practical points and as we were giving it the once over, SsangYong Motor UK announced a little extension to the range. Actually it added 12-inches to the loadbed of the top specification Saracen, adding a + sign to denote its growth. Some may think that 12-inches is hardly worth adding but for those who really use the pick up as intended it transforms the Musso Saracen+ into a model with the greatest payload in its class and when you are working to a budget…

Two Welsh enthusiasts behind the world’s largest private members’ supercar club have partnered with exclusive villa and country-house businesses and brought the business back to Wales for a growing number of local members. Auto Vivendi supercar club members from around the world will now be able to select breaks at luxury rental properties throughout the UK and have a supercar at their disposal for part or all the time they are away. Auto Vivendi is the brainchild of Maesteg-born Richard Thomas and Craig Williams, from Usk, and they have built it up with a collection of 30+ cars which are…

The Nissan Juke has been with us for over a decade but it can still hold its own against rivals now it has been given a Hybrid powertrain. It has just picked up five-stars for safety as well so it’s not lacking where it matters for many families. In production since 2010, the Juke crossover sits below the larger Qashqai and was intended to have a more sporting appeal than its stable-mate with which it shares powertrains but there have only been two generations of the series with the current debuting in 2019. Over the years, the Nissan Juke has…

Every now and again a car comes along which immediately turns heads, raises eyebrows and the game; then becomes a standard setter or cult model for many years, such as the Honda Civic Type R. Now a quarter of a century on from its introduction it is still one of the fastest cars on road, has been a podium contender in the very tough British Touring Car Championship over the years and this year retook the lap record for a front wheel drive production car around the demanding Green Hell of Nurburgring Ring. Those inspired engineers at Honda haven’t rested…

A huge multi-million pound investment, new management with encouragement for a brand that has uncompromisingly delivered drivers’ cars, has now enabled, embraced and enriched the latest hybrid powertrain technology. But, of course, being McLaren it always does things a differently, distinctively – the McLaren way – and the new Artura is not only a technical tour-de-force but retains that basic drive to satisfy enthusiastic owners and put in their hands a car which can be taken to the shops or slingshot around a circuit. A good car should always be an easy car to drive, to use and enjoy without…

From initially resisting the new technology on cost grounds including writing off established investments in petrol and diesel engine technology and having to develop hybrid or pure electric powertrains, along with making tens of thousands of workers redundant, manufacturers have struggled to convince buyers into showrooms or on-line. It’s not helped that the recharging network has been a piecemeal development which has shown up under-capacity and cost and in some cases the simple inability to provide a home charger at all. Alongside these are questions over the real environmental costs of mining materials and building the batteries and electric motors.…

With so many vehicles looking almost identical, its refreshing to review the impressive Isuzu D-Max AT35. Put simply, there is very little else on or off road quite like it. What’s more it is not just frills without purpose as it comes with pedigree and practicality. Isuzu is one of Japan’s oldest vehicle makers founded in 1916, came to the UK in 1987 with the Trooper SUV and then introduced the first pick-up the following year, the TF. The D-Max launched in 2012 and has been refreshed mid-term in 2017 before the all-new D-Max appeared in 2021. To build on…

However you look at it, the Toyota Corolla is remarkable among models and, perhaps not surprisingly as a result, is the world’s best-selling nameplate over six decades. Now in its 12th generation, the Corolla is the first to use the company’s fifth generation hybrid petrol electric technology in its 1.8 engines coming from North Wales and all assembled in its Burnaston, Derby plant, so it’s one of the British motor industry’ success stories. The latest Corolla Hybrid comes with intelligent cruise control; improved pre-collision system, cross-over avoidance; emergency driving stop and over the air updates to essential data, as well…

With motoring costs soaring a lot of drivers are downsizing and face the dilemma of what to buy, yet do not realize how good a modern small car can be. In fact, a recent study found the typical family car today has over £32,700 of features fitted as standard which were not there a decade ago and after adjusting for inflation. We recently found ourselves facing a 400 miles trip with our Kia Picanto 1.0 triple-pot engined five-speed manual test car and began with some apprehension but also excitement at the opportunity to give a decent run to a modern…