Author: Robin Roberts

With an electric motor assisting to provide added smoothness and boost, the powertrain is surprisingly strong for an engine of fractionally under 2.0 litres. The Jaguar XE series was introduced in 2015 to replace the X-Type and has been refreshed over six years so it now comprises more than a dozen models using the same four-door saloon body with petrol or diesel engines in rear or all-wheel-drive and five trim levels from standard to highly sporting as befits Jaguar’s heritage. It still makes sense if you drive a lot of miles to choose a turbo-diesel and the Ingenium unit made…

We are increasingly being implored to get out into the fresh air to reduce the chance of catching Coronavirus but there are few true family four-seater convertibles on the market at this price. You don’t want to be cooped up in a tin-top on a hot day, or any day for that matter, and a the very modern T-Roc Cabriolet blends the best of both worlds with its snug-fitting electrically powered multi-layered fabric roof and unrestricted open roof revealed in approximately nine-seconds. The T-Roc Cabriolet is Volkswagen’s first foray into this sub-compact sector of open-air living and heavily draws on…

The Kia Sorento 4 is full of surprises in a market which often delivers nothing out of the ordinary, writes Robin Roberts. I mean; what car comes with an beach, a wood-burner, a café or its own forest? They are part of the “nat sounds” available in the highly sophisticated infotainment system and are a calming or relaxing influence in a car which is already in the lowest stress sector of driving. The Sorento 4 tested is the top of the three trim levels in this large seven-seat SUV launched last year with petrol or diesel engines and self-charging battery…

As many manufacturers fall over themselves to produce what are essentially the same pure electric cars in hatchbacks or saloon styles, the MG5 stands out from a crowd of challengers because it has none, at least no pure electric estate cars in this price bracket. The MG5 estate sounds unremarkable but that really shouts out about its ability to be a very roomy, easy to drive and practical car for families or business users. Using its stablemate SUV MGZS EV as a starting point, the MG engineers have produced a more nimble and enhanced model which will find greater favour…

The VW Golf has often been held up as the benchmark for family hatchbacks and is frequently the best selling car in Europe, although not always in Britain. After the Beetle which rebuilt VW’s brand and fortune following WW2, the Golf was really the model that put the German company on the road to success in the 1970s and provided the funds for its massive range expansion into all sectors. VW has never forgotten the importance of the Golf and it’s gone through a few generations, embellishing each and emerging as a serious player at the cutting edge of the…

Global leading Welsh automotive engineer Prof Richard Parry-Jones CBE has died following an accident at his home on Friday morning. The current chairman of the Welsh Automotive Forum was born in 1951 in Bangor and rose to become Group Vice-President-Global Product Development, Chief Technical Officer and Head of Global R&D Operations at Ford Motor Company with 30,000 engineers and technical staff working to his directions. During his career over 30 years with Ford, Parry-Jones influenced the Escort, Sierra, Ka, Fiesta, Puma, Cougar and Galaxy and particularly the Mondeo and Focus as well as several American models for Lincoln. As Ford…

The most successful Skoda ever sold in Britain with over 500,000 delivered in four generations has picked up a clutch of awards, notably the latest for its family values as selected by an international group of Women Car of the Year judges. As part of the Volkswagen Group, Skoda has made 100,000 traction batteries for the hybrid models sold by the various brands and includes its own Octavia iV we have been testing in estate form. The Skoda Octavia iV plug-in hybrid electric estate delivers simplicity with substance and practicality with performance. Skoda has wisely decided to include as standard…

Diversity has driven the car industry for over a century responding to the changing society it serves, so we shouldn’t be surprised when a traditional sporting brand looks at something different,writes Robin Roberts. Premium brands including Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Jaguar, Maserati and Porsche are examples which come to mind, but there is also the more affordable sporting Italian marque of Alfa Romeo and its Giulia saloon-derived Stelvio compact SUV, which may have been overlooked by many in this sector. AR made a military and civilian general purpose model resembling the Jeep in the 1950s and teased the world…

The Government is immediately slashing the grant for battery electric vehicles, lowering the price ceiling while altering the qualification for electric vans and further reductions will come. It’s unheralded announcement about the changes effective today have been criticised by car makers, dealers, motoring organisations and fleet companies who say it sends the wrong message to motorists who want to move to zero emission vehicles and are struggling with funds as the country faces a major recession following the lockdowns since March 2020. The plug-in car grant introduced a decade ago to reduce the price of electric cars, which generally cost…

When a car-maker refreshes and updates one of its best selling models their rivals and customers had better take notice and the new Citroen C3 deserves that attention. It underwent an extensive makeover last year but global events overshadowed it so it was good to catch up with the compact five-door model a short time ago. The third generation C3 was launched in 2016 and has secured over 800,000 sales. Time and technology waits for no-one and Citroen has now given it a new look with the latest corporate front-end styling, some tastefully topical interiors and under their bonnets the…