WHO could ever forget the Citroen Xsara Picasso, one of the least pretty vehicles to hit UK showrooms in the past decade or so.
It was a car that never wanted to go out unless it was dark, and even dealers realised it was so hideous they would have to offer big discounts just to get them off their forecourts.
But it served a purpose. It was cost effective motoring back in 1999 for the larger family and as such was popular.
YOU could never accuse Audi of not giving a you a wide choice – and now they’ve unveiled their 47th model range.
Not bad for a manufacturer who back in the 1990s had just a handful, and you didn’t have to take your shoes and socks off to count them.
OH dear. Oh dear oh dear. Looking for a decent crossover? Then your task just got a whole lot more difficult with the introduction of the Suzuki SX4 S-Cross.
Contrary to popular perception, they don’t just make motor bikes, and are now taking on the daddy of all crossover vehicles, Nissan’s Qashqai, with a vehicle that looks rather similar.
YOU’D like to think that Kia‘s latest version of the Carens has a stonking great big heavy duty battery under the bonnet.
Why? Because there are so many electrical sockets inside the commodious seven seater you could effectively run a small mobile office from in there.
PEUGEOT’S best selling 208 has been putting on a bit of weight of late so it can mix it with the bigger boys in the car park.
Enter, in the bleu corner, the 2008 Crossover – the little brother of the already popular 3008 of the same ilk.
EVER needed proof that slapping a big black number on a white circle and hooning round a racetrack improves what you and I get into to go to work on a Monday morning?
Take a look at Honda’s neat Civic, a car that took Gordon Shedden to the British Touring Car Championship last year – and his team mate Matt Neal to the same title 12 months before if my memory serves.
IF there was ever a true definition of squeaky bum time, it has to be standing by your car with a fuel filler that won’t open, 90 miles showing on the range with over 360 to go to get home – and you don’t speak the local language.
Happily I didn’t have to elicit help from a passing Glaswegian as miraculously, after much cursing and prodding, the recalcitrant flap decided to open and save the day.
EVER wondered what goes through F1 safety car driver Bernd Maylander’s mind as he sits at the head of a snake of multi million pound machinery when things go breasts up on a Sunday afternoon?
So do I. And one of the topics might well be how do I get out of this gull wing doored beast in a hurry if I need to.
The upward pivoting doors on the £165,000 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT Coupe – the car he drives for work – can be a trifle deceptive.
SEAT’s new Leon created a very favourable impression when it was rolled out earlier this year.
And while they say you never get a second chance to make a first impression, in this case we thought we’d make an exception and give the Spanish newcomer a bit more than just a gentle amble round the Cotswolds.
LET’S get one thing straight from the outset with this one – it’s not a car that’s going to get you over-excited.
The SEAT Toledo is the sort of car that does exactly what you expect it to do without raising your expectations any higher than that.
It’s a faithful Labrador in a world when there are many other more popular designer breeds. And a few exotic options thrown in for good measure. But I’ll tell you what. There aren’t many other cars around for the money that will give you this sort of usability for your family.