Author: Robin Roberts

Wales saw a fall in new car registrations last month, the only part of Britain suffering as the cost of living rose.  The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reported 8,342 new cars were registered by Welsh dealerships last month compared with 8,637 a year ago. That’s a decline of 3.42% on the year to date. The top ten models sold in Wales in September were: Nissan Qashqai, Ford Puma, and VW Polo, Ford Kuga, Ford Fiesta, Kia Sportage, MG ZS, Dacia Sandero, Toyota Aygo X and Toyota Yaris. In the whole of the UK, car sales went up 4.59%…

Like every other manufacturer, Ford is struggling to fulfill orders in the current climate of confusion but it’s worth waiting to get your hands on the latest Focus ST. The market is changing for petrol-heads but the Focus ST still remains very desirable, particularly in the six-speed manual specification we tried as opposed the seven-speed automatic option. Our test car was fitted with £2,775 of extras comprising special body colour, Performance Pack of additional Track Mode and selectable Continuously controlled Damping, driver assistance pack with intelligent cruise control, Head-up display and Active Park Assist with rear wide view camera. Fast…

The UK Automotive industry is unlikely to return to previous high levels of production and component suppliers in Wales must look elsewhere to survive, delegates to the Autolink 2022 conference were told this week. The gloomy outlook and warning was given by Prof Ian Henry, managing director of AutoAnalysis and a HM Government advisor on the motor industry speaking at the annual Welsh Automotive Forum event in Cardiff Stadium. Over 200 member delegates, supplier and service representatives attended the only Welsh networking event for the automotive sector. Prof Henry said that a combination of Brexit changes, Covid and chip shortages…

There has been a long line of highly acclaimed Audi RS3 models, higher performance versions of the popular A3 series which launched in 1996 and included the S derivatives three years later before the original Audi RS3 appeared in dealerships in 2011. The revised RS then ran from 2015 until 2020 and in late 2021 we saw the current third generation unveiled. I believe the newcomer will become a future classic with its phenomenal five-cylinder 400ps petrol engine punching out 500Nm for something like two-thirds of its power range. Aligned with an incredibly smooth seven-speed automatic/manual transmission and long legged…

Toyota’s original SUV is now its flagship hybrid and most powerful. However, it’s not all about power as it also delivers excellent economy and a long electric-only range with good real-world performance. For MY2023 it’s sold in Design, Dynamic and Dynamic Premium specifications, a far cry from when it hit our roads in the mid-1990s. Prices start at £44,140 and equipment fitted and option packs push this up, so our test car was from £45,755, meaning it does not get the Gov. assistance grant and you pay more in subsequent years for road tax. We have always appreciated the RAV4…

After being launched in Britain in 2016, the Kia Niro has risen to become the marque’s second best seller in the UK and the third most popular in Europe, consistently increasing sales each year. Constant improvement has seen the core of the range remain the same but every update really is a step forward in terms of equipment and sophistication for each of the 2, 3 or 4 Grades of trim. It has also been one of the first ranges to embrace low carbon emissions so it is now sold with hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric drivetrains. Our self-charging…

Launching as a five seater, it will expand next year with two more seats and take on the CX 80 identifier. For now we have the CX 60 at the flagship and it’s brimming with technology, both in the powertrain and also the driving and comfort areas. We briefly tesed all three trim levels from Exclusive to Homura and Takima and saw between 30 and 42 mpg over various main roads and some dual carriageway roads in North Wales. The petrol engine was fairly quiet idling but noise level became more noticeable at higher revolutions while the electric motor hummed…

The new Mazda CX-60 now going on sale is the most powerful model ever from the company. The range-topping SUV is Mazda’s first plug-in hybrid and it combines their acclaimed Skyactiv-G 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with a 100 kW electric motor and a 17.8 kWh high-capacity battery. Together these produce 327ps and use an eight-speed automatic transmission to put down power to all four wheels as it’s needed. This head-turning powertrain offers a choice of drive modes: Normal, Sport, Off-Road, Towing and EV, with the latter making it possible to drive under electric power for over 39 miles, comfortably more…

Jaguar Land Rover is facing assembly problems at its plants in September. Ironically, its only full electric model, the I-Pace assembled by Magna International in Graz, Austria, is also on stop at a time when demand for electric cars is surging. No Land Rover Discovery, Evoque and Velar models will be built through September due to parts shortages but some production continues with the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Defender. Jaguar XE, XF and F-Pace models are also on stop but F-Type will still be assembled. Jaguar indicated earlier this year that its next generation and much more up-market…

Lexus has always been the quiet executive car brand and reaches a new level of refinement with its 300e pure battery version of the existing hybrid SUV. Some 15 years experience building hybrid cars were brought to bear when it created the UX 300e and it lacks nothing its stablemates have but adds 2020s propulsion, safety and communications technology. There are four versions with the standard car priced from £44,095, rising to £47,595 for the UX300e with Premium Plus Pack on 17-inch wheels and the 18-inch shod version at £48,345, while the range is topped with the Takumi Pack retailing…