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2019 Hyundai i30 N Review – Hail to the New King

Hyundai’s i30 N came out of nowhere but landed to critical acclaim. It’s a muscular, fast, keenly-priced hot hatch. But is it the best?

For so long if you wanted a hot hatch, you had some tough choices to make. We’re in a continuing Golden Age of the hot hatch, from Ford’s excellent Fiesta ST through to BMW’s brilliant M140i. They’re all good. There isn’t a dud among them, even the older ones.

The sweet spot seems to be in the C-segment hot hatches. You can choose French, German and Japanese and it’s unlikely you’ll be unhappy.

The 308 GTI is excellent if with a whacky driving position. The recently-departed Focus ST was a rowdy street-brawler but always exhilarating. The Volkswagen Golf GTI is poised, quick and subtle but the least powerful of the lot. The RenaultSport Megane, for me, was the handling benchmark but had a hard ride, ropey interior (except the seats) and weird steering wheel angle.

South Korea had been largely silent. Oh, Hyundai had a few cracks with the Veloster, a warm i30 SR and Kia made some noise with the Pro’ceed GT. Died off pretty quickly, that last one, and we’re not sure why (although a new Ceed and Proceed GT are on the way).

It was odd that Hyundai hadn’t committed. Then N branding started appearing on the giant’s i20 rally cars and word quickly spread as the company made some important hires, including BMW M’s Albert Biermann.

That guy knows what he’s doing, he’s been responsible for some cracking cars.

Hyundai i30 N History

Pretty short, as it turns out. There wasn’t one and then there was one.

It was odd that it had taken so long for Hyundai to get into this part of the market. The bizarro-world Veloster (which I love) quietly chugged away getting better as new engines and suspension tunes found their way in. The SR Turbo was tremendous fun but spent most of its time bouncing off the suspension stops. That made it uncomfortable and nervous when you were on it.

It also had a very slow gearchange and a 1.6-litre turbo that kept running out of revs. Weirdly, the automatic was better because it could change gears more quickly.

Hyundai’s relationship with fast cars has been off and on over the past couple of decades. The company has run in the World Rally Championship a couple of times. It threw stacks of money at the first attempt with the stupid-looking Accent WRC, threw money at drivers and basically got diddly-squat for their trouble. So they left.

For nine years, nothing.

Then in 2014, the company returned with a more focused effort, hiring Thierry Neuville to spearhead the new effort. The team has been there or thereabouts, scoring points, wins and being ruthless with their drivers (as Hayden Paddon will tell you).

Then in 2016 came the RN30 Concept at the 2016 Paris Motor Show. I was there and saw that car, thinking that Hyundai’s N Division is super-serious. Don’t ask me why I thought that, I just did.

And finally, the i30 N made its world debut and the game changed. Everyone from Thierry Neuville down said it was good, a solid start.

Hyundai i30 N Drivetrain

The i30 N packs a Hyundai-developed 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo, part of the Theta II engine family. With direct injection and variable valve timing, the N Performance spec engine (we only get this engine in Australia) produces 202kW (275PS) and 353Nm. Flatten the throttle and you’ll get another 25Nm, taking the total to 378Nm.

The engine is out of the larger Sonata, but has new pistons, a new turbo and cooling system and overboost gear.

At the moment, you can only get a six-speed manual while N gets on with designing and developing an eight-speed twin-clutch. The six-speed addresses the drama of the slow shift of most Hyundai manuals by adding carbon fibre synchro rings for a very, very slick change.

The six-speeder box drives the front wheels which also has an electronically-controlled mechanical limited-slip differential.

A big part of the fun of the i30 N is the crackling exhaust – a two-stage exhaust system spits out a basso-profundo roar as well as some fantastic crackling.

The non-Performance spec cars have “just” 184kW (250PS) and 353Nm as well as missing out on the LSD and active exhaust.

Hyundai i30 N Chassis

You can have tons of power but if what’s underneath you isn’t much good, you’re in trouble. Biermann’s team started with the obvious multi-link equipped version of the i30 and went from there.

Stiffer springs, adaptive damping, 19-inch Pirelli P-Zero tyres (with HN coding so you know it’s for that car), torque vectoring and, of course, the LSD.

The electric steering is way sharper but weighted quite differently across the modes. The adaptive suspension is also quite different between the three modes, but nobody reading this is going to spend much time out of N mode. For Australian cars only, we get a slightly softer damper tune, but you’d never notice – our roads are so terrible, N’s management rescinded the “One tune to rule the road” edict. Thank goodness.

Driving

The basic i30 is good. The SR is excellent. They have to be because the C-segment hatch still holds its own in a world of SUVs and all of them are better than good, with a few exceptions.

You can feel from the first three seconds that the i30 N is different. It feels like a different car as soon as you fire up the 2.0-litre, the engine giving you a nice loud, “Booooooo!” on startup. Grab the chunky wheel and feel the weight and the bite of the tyres, even just getting out of a car park.

The clutch is light and is probably the only vague part of the technical package. Everything else is precise, oiled, assertive. Thumb the N button and the car feels properly serious, the exhaust blare goes from aggressive to angry, like you just said something rude about its mum.

Unlike the Golf, it’s an alpha car. While the styling is hardly look-at-me RS Megane (another alpha), its on-road demeanour feels a lot more like Dieppe’s madness. The Golf never feels like it has its elbows out, but the i30 N starts that way. It’s reassuring, but you want to know if it has the bite to match the bark.

Yep. Five good corners in and you know exactly what makes the i30 N tick. It revs to almost 7000rpm, which is welcome – smaller displacement turbos run out of puff and you spend so much time changing gears. The N lets you choose to row it along or relax on the torque wave.

But good gracious me, this thing has a tremendous front end. The way you can pile into a corner way too hot (like the Civic Type R) is hilarious. Stand on the brakes then get on the throttle early is never not fun.

While you won’t be chucking this thing sideways, as a road car, this is the one to beat. It’s more liveable than the old Megane, it’s braver than the 308 GTI, more composed than the old Focus ST.

And it’s way, way more interesting than the Golf GTI. And that makes it the best hot hatch in the world.

Want more Hyundai stories? Click here

Want more hot hatches? Click here

Hyundai i30 N Exterior Images

Hyundai i30 N Interior Images

i30 N steering wheel

i30 N interior

i30 N steering wheel

i30 N interior

i30 N steering wheel

i30 N steering wheel

i30 N steering wheel

i30 N rear seats

i30 N button

All images by Matthew Hatton Photography.

September 17, 2018
Ferrari Portofino 2018 Review

The Ferrari Portofino is Maranello’s follow-up to the California T. Like rival Lamborghini’s Huracan, the Cali had some inane detractors who said it wasn’t a real Ferrari.

The V8-powered California and then the California T were meant to open up new markets for the Prancing Horse. And the company was expecting a lot of women as well as new customers to buy into the Ferrari brand.

Boom. Off went the nutcases. And they were all mostly wrong.

California Dreams

Rumour has it that the first modern California (it’s a name Ferrari has used more than once) was originally meant to be a Maserati. It probably wasn’t the greatest car ever made – well it wasn’t – but it did things for the brand.

For ages, Ferrari had been without a relaxed car. The last even vaguely relaxed machine the company produced would have been the 348 GTB. Oh, there was the 456 GT, but that was a properly expensive V12 GT, not a cruiser. First-time Ferrari buyers didn’t have an easy entry to the brand until the California arrived.

I liked California – it was a tad gawky and bug-eyed, yes, but it was fast and sounded amazing. It also carried two plus two people and you could take it anywhere without worrying about it. The fact the roof came off was a bonus. Handling was way above anything Maserati could muster, but it was also a bit more placid than what we had come to expect from Ferrari.

And that’s where the California struck trouble. Fans of the brand who didn’t understand its history said it was too soft. Too easy. The same sort of people who say the Huracan isn’t dangerous enough.

Women bought it, new customers came to the brand, it made money but people sniffed at it, said it was a girl’s car.

Whatever the hell that means.

As usual, a good number of people who said the more idiotic things about California never even sat in it, let alone drove it.

Would it be my Ferrari? No. Does that mean it’s not a good car? Absolutely not.

California T

The California T was better-looking, way more powerful if a little less characterful. To drive it was certainly better and it kept selling. The final years of the California saw the introduction of the Handling Speciale, a result customer requests. It was popular, so the Cali T was a bit firmer.

It was also more fun to drive. While the scream of the old, high-revving V8 was gone, the new twin-turbo powerplant introduced a colossal whip-crack on the upshift. And lots of torque – 755Nm. My wife loved the California T for its effortless power delivery and easy demeanour in normal driving.

I loved it because it was less understeery, looked better and was better.

(We both loved it for the whip crack)

With the end of the Cali, the time has come for Ferrari to make the return journey across the Atlantic, touching down in the Mediterranean in Portofino.

Ferrari Portofino

Ferrari launched the Portofino to the world almost exactly a year ago. Imaginitively, Ferrari chose the eponymous Italian town in which to do it, with Piero Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel and the late Sergio Marchionne on hand.

It looks amazing. I didn’t mind the California T but the Portofino is properly beautiful. Ferraris don’t actually have to be pretty but it certainly helps when the car is meant to lure in new customers.

The backside is far less prominent despite still housing a folding hardtop. The front end is much stronger, more aggressive, less gawping. The body looks lithe and athletic. It looks super-modern. You’d struggle to place the original California – it could be anywhere from the mid-90s to the mid-2000s – but the Portofino looks like it’s from the current stable and is all the better for it.

There was little wrong with the Cali T’s interior so the two look similar. Ferrari cabins are minimalist in a good way but the Portofino’s 10.25-inch screen is a recent concession to bling and includes a hugely expensive Apple CarPlay option.

The seats are tremendous – accommodating but grippy, the leather is tactile and wonderful to the touch.

Ferrari Portofino Drivetrain

Ferrari’s twin-turbo V8 now graces several cars in the range and one more to come. In the 488 GTB and Spyder it’s an incredibly powerful and flexible powerplant that makes that car an unbelievably fast machine. In the GTC4 Lusso T it’s an express train. No doubt it will find a home in the sacrilegious SUV (it’s not, but we’re still getting used to the idea).

The 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8 puts out 441kW (600PS), which is up 30kW (40PS) on the California T. With its flat plane crank (like the McLaren 570S and 540C), it delivers its power at a wonderful 7500rpm.

As with the 488, the V8 won’t give you all of its 760Nm of torque until you reach seventh gear in the twin clutch transmission. This is down to some clever trickery with the electronic wastegate control.

Even without all that torque, the new car accelerates from 0-100km/h in just 3.5 seconds.

The exhaust itself is one piece which saves weight and Ferrari says it sounds even better than before, partly because of a set of valves regulates the sound. We’ll see…

Ferrari also promises zero turbo lag and throttle response of under one second. Not the telepathy of the old naturally-aspirated V8, but you don’t have the rev the guts out of it to leave the driveway.

Ferrari Portofino Chassis

There is a lot going on here, of course.

The new car is much lighter than before – American models weight far closer to two tonnes than perhaps was sensible. The Portofino is lighter partly through the greater use of aluminium but also simpler structures. The windscreen surround was made of 21 separate pieces on the California, the Portofino’s just two.

It’s an impressive 35% stiffer as a result of this sort of simplification.

Ferrari’s active electronic differential passes the power between the rear wheels but does a whole lot more than just that. It reads the attitude of the car, throttle position and, of course, the position of the manettino on the steering wheel.

The Portofino’s manettino has just three settings – comfort, sport and ECT Off. While also affecting the setting of the diff and engine behaviour and throttle response, the magneto-rheological dampers also respond to a turn of the switch.

Driving the Ferrari Portofino

Right from the get-go, you know this is a better machine than the California T. With the extra power and a few more Nm, it’s quicker. It’s quicker again because it weighs less.

It’s quicker still because it’s just better.

If Ferrari hadn’t told me the car had electric steering, I’d probably know but still wouldn’t care. Nothing feels like a beautifully wrought hydraulic system (like McLaren’s) but a Ferrari electric system is a thing of beauty.

There’s no corruption, just a connected purity to the road surface. Since the success of the 458’s light, direct steering, all Ferraris have this wonderful, light feel.

One of the biggest differences to the California is the way the Portofino turns in. With the California, there was always this moment of hesitance – as though it wanted to understeer.

It didn’t really. All you had to do was stay with it and keep your foot in. Where the California would roll a little, the Portofino stays flat. It turns in without that moment, the tyres biting immediately and the nose heading in the direction you’re looking. It’s a big change to the feel of the car and it makes the Portofino feel much more agile.

The ride is also improved, as is the perception of the ride. The California could squeak a bit on bigger bumps with the roof down, but with the extra stiffness came a fundamentally better platform.

A stiffer chassis means fewer compromises. You only have to (again) spend some time in a McLaren 570S Spyder to know that if you get the guts right, taking off the roof doesn’t hurt the car.

The basic ride is terrific and even stepping up to Sport doesn’t ruin it. In the old car you needed to hit the bumpy road button around town but I didn’t feel the need in the Portofino. That, for me, is a step-change and one that suggests changing the name was wise.

The Portofino is a very different car to the California but it has all the things that made the old car loveable. The things people didn’t like – whether they had driven it or not – are now a thing of the past.

September 12, 2018
2019 X2 M35i – Fast BMW compact SUV on the way

BMW’s X2 has the looks but not the go. Or does it? Those crazy Bavarians have finally dropped the go-faster version of the lifestyle compact SUV, the X2 M35i, and it should be rather fleet of foot…

At first glance, the X2 looked like a dumb idea, but it has grown on me. I didn’t see the point of having the X1 and the X2. I drove the latter and the penny dropped. The X2 is the lifestyle choice, the pretty one.

Given its sporty looks, you’d reasonably expect a bit of go. The X2 is built on the Mini, so it has that inbuilt bouncy agility that so annoys my wife. But up until now, you’ve had a limited choice of fun but hardly fast petrol and diesel engines.

The X2 M35i is here to create the hot compact SUV. I know, right?

X2 M35i Drivetrain

The X2 M35i scores the BMW 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder but turned right up to 225kW (306PS). This, I think you’ll agree, is a lot of power from a two-litre. In fact, it’s up there with the Honda Civic Type R‘s output.

The torque figure blows past the nutty Honda to 450Nm. So it shouldn’t be slow.

Obviously it’s not very similar to the Honda. It’s bound to be heavier and packs all-wheel drive driven by a ZF eight-speed auto. With launch control.

BMW says (or is that “signalises”, which was in the press release) the X2 M35i will accelerate from rest 100km/h (62mph) in 4.9 seconds.

X2 M35i Chassis

The launch press release was a bit light on for specific details. What we do know is that there are optional two-stage adaptive dampers to add to the M Sport suspension tune. The M35i is lower (no details) and stiffer (ditto).

You can see in the photos a tasty set of BMW blue-calipered brakes. The press release reckons the front discs are 18-inches (45.7cm) and 17-inches at the rear (43.2cm), which seems quite large.

The front axle has an M Sport differential to help make things a bit more interesting. The X2 M35i rolls on 19s as standard, with 20-inch rims available as an option.

X2 M35i Interior

I don’t know about you, but I am absolutely on board with this red interior. The seats look spectacular and, hopefully, are comfortable. I’m also hopeful they’re standard.

iDrive is along for the ride and there is a lengthy options list that includes a head-up display and wireless Apple CarPlay.

When and how much?

The X2 M35i starts production in November 2018 and will be on the road in Europe and selected markets by the end of March 2019.

September 7, 2018
Lister Claims World’s Fastest SUV

Hoo boy. British Jaguar tuner Lister reckons it has the world’s fastest SUV, based on the sleek Jaguar F-Type SVR. The LFP is the second new Lister this year after the LFT 666 (formerly Thunder) heralded Lister’s return.

Lister says the LFT-666 is the fastest-selling car in Lister’s history, which is heartening. There’s nothing worse than cool car companies dying because they can’t flog their stuff.

The LFP, as you can well see, is based on the Jaguar F-Pace. The press release only has the headline figures, but they’re worth a read.

Lister says the carbon-fibre modified machine (they don’t say what is made from the magic material) will hit 100km/h (62mph) in just 3.5 seconds.

Top speed is a terrifying 324km/h (200mph). And that’s all we know.

Looking at the pictures, the car is obviously substantially lower and the front brakes, in particular, look massive.

Father and son team Andrew and Lawrence Whittaker bought Lister in 2013 and set to work. Job one was a run of Knobby “continuation cars” (where have we seen that recently?) and things went on from there.

Lister is taking deposits of £1,000 to secure a slot. The company says it will make 250 of these machines and the current estimated price is £140,000.

“We kicked-off 2018 where we left 2017, as the UK’s fastest-growing company in the competitive motor industry business sector. Over the past six months, the Lister Motor Company has been working very hard, developing our Tuning Division, starting with modifying the Jaguar F-Type, the Lister LFT-666, and setting up our new headquarters in Lancashire. The imminent release of our new monster killer LFP promises to see this healthy situation continue for the remainder of this year, and beyond.”Lawrence Whittaker, CEO Lister Motor Company

Fair enough. We’ve no idea if we’ll ever get to drive a Lister, but you’ll know about it if we do.

September 6, 2018
2019 Ford Focus ST-Line Review

The fourth-generation Focus made its debut earlier in 2018 and Peter Anderson got to drive the new Focus ST-Line version on the Côte d’Azur.

A new Focus is always a little bit exciting. From the day the first car hit the road, it was an entirely new approach for the Blue Oval. The Focus arrived around the time of the first Mondeo and the Ka, three massively important cars.

Those cars still echo through to this very day, even if the Ka is now a pale imitation of its former self. But Mondeo and Focus have stayed strong and true.

For the fourth-generation, Ford went with a clean-sheet design, including a new exterior look from Australian designer Justin Demkiw. The Focus range is powered by a range of three-cylinder turbo petrols and diesels.

But we’re only interested in one of the slightly expanded range and it’s the tantalisingly-titled ST-Line.

Focus ST-Line History

Technically, there isn’t one. The ST-Line isn’t a direct replacement for a previous Focus variant. The Sport wasn’t really a sport and if you wanted something with a bit of bite, you had to jump to the mad ST or RS versions.

Peugeot and Renault hit on the idea of a warm hatch for the rest of us, without having to pile on the upfront and ongoing cost of a hot hatch. Both French makers added GT-Line models to their smaller offerings – 208 and Clio – to capitalise on the hot hatch halo models.

And it worked. So Ford has followed suit, trading on the cult following of the rapid, scary Focus ST.

What is it?

The ST-Line fits in the range between the Titanium and the Vignale. Some markets won’t get all four levels of the range and certainly won’t get all available engines.

The ST-Line comes with a six-speed manual or the eight-speed, Ford developed torque converter automatic. These transmissions are both fitted with the new 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo. I can’t guarantee you’ll be able to choose which gearbox you can have where you live. Australia, for instance, missed out on the manual.

The titchy triple spins out 134kW (183PS) and 240Nm, which isn’t bad for an engine of this size, not bad at all.

0-100km/h (0-62mph) is somewhere in the region of nine seconds, so don’t get too excited. This car is all about the chassis.

Focus ST-Line

And it’s a good one. It’s just a touch lower than the standard car – 10mm or less than half an inch – but with fatter rubber and bigger wheels.

It also misses out on the Vignale’s active damping and that is a good thing. That system makes the Focus fidgety and less comfortable than the ST-Line, which is weird. Maybe that needs some more work.

Anyway. The ST-Line really does fit the warm hatch philosophy. It’s not quick, the clutch is soft but the engine spins and spins happily. Sounds good, too, if you like that three-cylinder growl.

The steering is fairly light but has a reasonable amount of feel. Ford says the team has reduced the friction and I’m inclined to believe that. The previous “normal” Focuses did feel a bit like they got tighter as you wound on lock, the new car doesn’t have that.

The front end is pretty keen to change direction and it hangs on very nicely in corners. This car is all about momentum and holding it. You never really punch out of corners – you have neither the torque nor the power to elicit much more than a scrabble from the fronts.

The manual transmission is excellent – you’ll have to use it a bit to keep the engine on the boil in the twisties because the gearing is tall and the spacing wide. It’s lovely and slick, although not quite as smooth as the old Fiesta ST.

The ST-Line comes in both the hatch and wagon and, truth be told, it’s pretty good in both. Obviously, the wagon is slightly less quick and less agile, but it’s not a huge deal – again, it’s all about the chassis (the wagon rolls with a modified multi-link rear end).

ST-Line Competition

You can get a couple of Euro hatches and wagons in warm hatch form. The Renault Megane GT-Line is the most obvious. Peugeot also sells the 308 hatch and wagon with the GT-Line badge too. I can’t speak for either of them, but they exist. Which means Ford is on to something if you ask me.

Soon there will be a Hyundai i30 N Line in some countries, too. That will be interesting…

Ford Focus ST-Line Pricing

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Peter Anderson travelled to France for the fourth-generation Ford Focus launch as a guest of Ford Australia. He was there mostly for carsguide.com.au

September 3, 2018
McLaren 540C Review – Why wouldn’t you?

I have a vague memory of the launch of the 540C. For some reason, I remember other motoring media being a bit condescending about it. The C stood for China, they claimed (the subtext being “nobody there can drive”), which seemed dumb to me because wealthy Chinese are quite happy to spend big bucks. Generally speaking, the Chinese market isn’t interested in “entry level” or cut-price supercars.

Anyway, because I’m an idiot, I’d sort of resisted the idea of driving one. I don’t know why. I briefly drove it after my CarsGuide colleague James Cleary very kindly threw me the keys for a lap of a well-known spot free of cops and other idiots.

I liked it a lot, but just wanted to drive the 570S. What a fool I’ve been.

McLaren 540C Drivetrain

As the name suggests, the 540C is less powerful than the 570S. Power from the 3.8-litre twin-turbo McLaren V8 is still a hefty 397 kW (540PS) and 540 Nm. Which is a lot of power.

Everything else is pretty much the same, including the seven-speed twin-clutch transmission.

Mounted behind the driver, the V8 propels the entry-level 540C from 0-200km/h (124mph) in 10.5 seconds. 0-100km/h (0-62mph) arrives in 3.5 seconds. That is not messing about.

Its low mounting is helped by the dry sump and when you can hear it (tunnels are awesome), the flat-plane crank sound is unmistakable.

While it’s good for sound (and bad for vibration), it also reduces inertia, meaning the M838TE can spin to 8500rpm. And still push two turbos. Nice.

McLaren 540C Chassis and aero

Of course, the chassis is the same as the 570S in that it’s built around the carbon fibre Monocell II. As we already know, it weighs about 80kg and forms the core of every McLaren on sale. Except maybe the Speedtail.

The Monocell is insanely stiff and loses nothing when the roof comes off, as it does in the 570S Spyder. Such a stiff, light structure also means that McLaren’s engineers have plenty of scope to play with. The total dry weight is just over 1315kg, which isn’t much at all.

Front and rear suspension are both double wishbone setups with plenty of weight-saving aluminium. McLaren’s Active Dynamic Control system adds dynamic damping to the mix, and just like the 570S, it’s amazing.

The steel brakes are perhaps the biggest difference between the 540C and 570S. On the road, they’re just not a problem.

The 540C’s bodywork is ever-so-slightly different to the 570S, but they’re very difficult to tell apart. So, uh, the question has to be, “Why?”

Driving

From the get-go, the 540C feels just like the 570S. The cabin is virtually identical, including McLaren’s wrong-way IRIS system with the hopeless sat-nav and terrible (now replaced) reversing camera.

As in the 570, you sit low in the chassis – I reckon few road cars could boast such a low hip point. Those lovely doors make getting in and out easy, the memories of the 12C’s high and wide sills now banished.

The brake pedal has that same centimetre (or what feels like that much) of play at the top of its travel. The throttle is just the right weight and the same switches set up the drivetrain and chassis. Confusingly you have to press Active before the switches have any effect. I’ve never really worked out why.

What always amazes me is the way McLarens ride. They’re so smooth. My wife, who is generally not a fan of these sorts of cars, always concedes they’re super-comfortable to ride in.

I can’t get my head around it. Anyway. I know I go on about it, but it’s extraordinary.

Oh, the speed.

I really can’t think of a good reason not to buy 540C. It’s incredible. The 3.8-litre might be a little down on power compared to the 570s but it just doesn’t matter. The way this car grips and goes is nothing short of astonishing.

When you turn off a boring road an on to a good one, it’s hard to believe this is the same car. Flick those weird toggle switches to Track, warm up your left-foot braking technique, and the 540C comes to you quickly and effortlessly.

It’s like an excitable puppy, it runs up to you and then leads you down to where something amazing is happening. Follow its lead, fix your eyes ahead and wind down the windows.

The electro-hydraulic steering communicates everything you need to know and nothing you don’t. The brakes perform time and again, hauling you down from crazy speeds. Its seamless power is always there and always ready to hurl you to the horizon.

I can’t really work out why a sane human would insist on a much more expensive 488 and the hassle the badge brings with it. The only car that comes close to it for involvement is the Audi R8 RWS. And forget about the Huracan rear-wheel drive – it’s not as comfortable or (gasp!) practical.

I don’t understand why the 540C isn’t loved and adored the world over. I don’t understand why it isn’t sold in the US. Perhaps it’s too close to the 570S?

And that really is the point. It’s so good that unless you need the extra 30 horses or the bragging rights. McLaren isn’t about that prancing horse carry-on. It’s about technical brilliance.

Like the photos? They were all taken by the amazing Rhys Vandersyde from insydemedia.com.au

Watch our McLaren 570S review:

September 1, 2018
McLaren Announces F1 Certified, GTR 25R Resto

F1 Certified. I mean, dammit, how long has this taken?

We’ve all been there, sleeping peacefully. It was a fun day out on the superyacht, dinner on the beach of a gorgeous, uninhabited Mediterranean Island.

It’s 2, maybe 3 am. You sit bolt upright in bed. Suddenly, you’re in a cold sweat. You flip open your laptop and access pictures of one of your prized automotive possessions. It’s your McLaren F1 road car.

You stare at the images then throw your head back, looking to the starry heavens. You let out an anguished cry – “Is my McLaren F1 authentic?”

There are only 106 people on this Earth today who can honestly have this problem and quite frankly, I don’t care if you do. You own a McLaren F1 and until you offer me a drive, I can’t care.

Anyway.

F1 Certified

For some reason, McLaren felt the need to create F1 Certified. The program aims to provide reassurance and peace of mind to buyers.

So, basically, you’ll get a certificate telling you that it’s real, it was serviced and how many times Rowan Atkinson crashed it. If it’s a racing version, you’ll be able to show your friends that your $12 million purchase won this or that race.

Alright, I’m being a bit mean here. When you do lay out the cash, you want to know where the car has been and what’s been done to it. A few owners may have taken the car to some idiot like Mansoury and made a huge mess of perfection.

When you’ve taken it back to MSO and spent a truckload of moolah to return it to a tasteful state, you want a certificate to prove it. And the next owner can see you’ve saved it from a gold foil wrap and a hideous interior colour scheme.

It seems to me that it’s answering a question few people ask, but hey, it gave the company an excuse to unveil McLaren Special Operations’ latest project.

1997 25R F1 GTR Longtail

The first of the Certified F1 cars made its world debut at the Hampton Court Concours of Elegance. A Tudor castle hosting a car show is never not funny.

The 25R was one of three Gulf-Davidoff Longtails that ran in the 1997 Le Mans. Sadly, this one cracked an oil line two hours from the finish, catching fire and grinding to a halt.

McLaren patched her up and sent her back out racing in the hands of a Japanese owner. 25R was retired from racing in 2005 and put on display.

An anonymous owner bought the car and shipped it back to the UK, handing it over to MSO for a full restoration. That meant diving into the McLaren parts bin and fitting 1997-spec parts. Now it’s just as it was before taking to the La Sarthe 21 years ago.

“McLaren cherishes its rich heritage of iconic and world-beating cars such as the F1. 25R presented us with a unique opportunity to demonstrate this by restoring it to precisely how it was when it raced at Le Mans in 1997, thus ensuring its future. Maintaining the integrity of these historically significant cars is paramount and F1 Certified will play a big role in allowing us to do that for the peace of mind of owners today as well as preserving a wonderful heritage for future generations of car lovers.”McLaren Automotive Chief Executive Officer Mike Flewitt.

I would very much like to meet the person who paid for this and shake them by the hand. What a legend.

September 1, 2018
Hot Take: Halo Hides F1’s Bigger Problem

While the people who wish F1 killed as many people as it did in the 60s rage over the introduction of the halo, F1 actually has a real problem it needs to address.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuRRLkc4qUo&index=8&list=PLfoNZDHitwjVujqlQcgPpsKnXYHTiiBiV&t=0s The turn one, lap one crash unleashed the idiots on the line

At last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc got very, very lucky. Assisted by Renault’s Nico RosbergHulkenberg, Fernando Alonso’s McLaren found itself airborne and careening over the top of Le Clerc’s Sauber at the La Source hairpin moments after the start of the race.

LeClerc’s halo – a newly-mandated for 2018 safety device that sits above the driver’s head, and admittedly looks a bit like a toilet seat or the Hyundai A-League trophy – kept the McLaren from removing his head from his shoulders in what would have been an extremely graphic demonstration of the “motorsport is dangerous” line you see printed on the back of your ticket.

WOW 👀 😮 🙈 💥#BelgianGP 🇧🇪 #F1 @Charles_Leclerc pic.twitter.com/GOy3Jfszhd

— Formula 1 (@F1) August 27, 2018

Every angle more pants-wittingly terrifying than the last.

And since Sunday night’s race, the debate has re-emerged over the halo, for someone reason. I don’t really care who started it, but “The halo is crap, ruins F1 and this is why it’s not interesting because the cars are ugly” takes and the “well, actually it saved a life” takes are both tedious.

The halo has made no difference to anyone’s enjoyment of F1. And if it has, it’s because you’re denying the fact F1 actually has a much bigger problem then a safety device which, at worst, can be easily ignored by anyone who doesn’t have a firm addiction to varnish remover.

What is making trouble for F1, is that it has become much more a multi-class series this year than we’ve seen in quite some time.

Now more than ever F1 is a competition between three teams that have and seven teams that have not.

Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull are all haves. It doesn’t matter where they start on the grid, you can guarantee those three teams will occupy the top six placings come the end of the race.

We’ve seen it multiple times this season. The ones that immediately spring to mind are Hamilton at Silverstone where he was punted off the road at turn two, and recovered to finish second. And Belgium just this weekend gone with Bottas starting in 17th before finishing fourth.

Over the course of this season the only real times we see anyone outside the top three teams feature towards the front of the results page is when the latter hits problems. Like the two Red Bulls having their moment at Baku, Vettel falling off the road at Hockenheim, or Verstappen having engine trouble in Hungary.

So how do you solve the problem of disparity between the front and middle of the grid getting ever wider?

Open the rule book.

Halo. Is it me you’re looking for?

Well, there’s actually one simple regulation that could change to facilitate not only a grid full of better cars, but perhaps even the likelihood of more cars on the grid.

The part in question can be found in the Formula One Sporting Regulations, and is detailed in Appendix 6 of said document. In short, a team must own all the intellectual property (IP) of the car they’re competing in. That is, they have to have designed it built it themselves, or by a contractor like Haas Automation or Dallara, who don’t compete themselves in F1.

This means you can’t have customer cars. So Force India, for instance, can’t run the same car as Mercedes, Red Bull can’t run the same car as Renault and Haas can’t run the same car as Ferrari. They have to spend the money to design and build their own car.

What’s wrong with a B-team?

But what, exactly, is wrong with having “B” teams, that are closely aligned with a manufacturer?

Formula One is constantly in a spin trying to work out if they want to be a go-for-broke technical showcase (which costs a lot of money, meaning fewer teams have the budget to take part) or dial it back with the introduction of cost-caps and some spec parts.

That would take away from the technical showcase because if you’re limited by how much you can spend, then you’re not going to go on a deep dive into some new way of doing things that might be quicker/louder/better.

Customer cars are common in a lot of different series. Think Australia’s own Supercars series, the DTM, the World Endurance Championship’s GT-E Pro class, MotoGP, and most famously at the moment, GT3.

A GT3 car – they’re great to watch and the racing is hard.

Customer cars, and B-Teams, allow manufacturers to better recoup the costs of developing a top flight racing car. They allow smaller teams access to better design and construction work than they might be able to do themselves.

And by reducing barriers to entry like that, you’re likely to see more cars on the grid. More cars generally leads to better racing, particularly if those cars have a bit more parity than what we’re seeing now.

You don’t have to limit the technical showcase aspect of F1 in order to make it financially viable for teams to compete. Simply here’s some regulations, build a car, if someone wants to buy that car then you can sell it to them, now lets go racing.

Even though Formula One is talking about introducing a $150 million cost cap next year, that’s unlikely to achieve what they want it to…if it even goes ahead – F1 has a long history with cost caps and it isn’t pretty. A cost-cap is also likely to be exploited, because that’s how these things work.

Customer cars and b-teams seem, to me, like the most sensible step forward F1 could make to lift the level of the show without compromising the principles that make F1 F1.

August 30, 2018
Aventador SVJ – V12 Lamborghini Insanity

The Lamborghini Aventador SVJ has had its official world debut during Monterey Car Week. It’s wild, it’s limited and it’s expensive. It’s also incredibly quick, bowel-emptyingly expensive but bound to be the greatest V12 supercar from Sant’ Agata.

We drove the Lamborghini Aventador for the very first Redline video. Its colossal V12 and old-school Lambo feel mixed with impressive tech made it an imposing proposition.

And like the Huracan Performante we drove, the Aventador SVJ takes the already-excellent package and ramps it up. Right up.

The SVJ takes two classic Lamborghini names and mashes them together – SV for Super Veloce and J for Jota. Which is how you say J in Spanish. Because years ago oh never mind.

It is also worth knowing that the full name of the car is Lamborghini Aventador LP770-4 Super Veloce Jota. Catchy.

Drivetrain

Like the Aventador S, the SVJ carries Lamborghini’s 6.5-litre naturally-aspirated V12. Oh, the revs. The revs!

Power rises to 566 kW (770PS), up from 544kW (740PS) and arrives at 8500rpm. Torque also rises, with 720Nm arriving at 6750rpm, an increase of 30Nm. Like the Performante, these aren’t huge increases, just useful.

100km/h (62mph) arrives in 2.8 seconds courtesy of all-wheel drive and Lambo’s ancient single-clutch ISR seven-speed transmission. The sprint from rest to 200km/h (124mph) is over in 8.6 seconds and on to a top speed of 350km/h. Well, the press release says, “more than 350km/h”. Gulp.

The extra power and torque come courtesy of a new titanium intake valve with a new-shape intake runner and length as well as a freer-flowing intake cylinder head duct. The V12 is even louder as a result of a new lightweight exhaust system.

Chassis and Aero

The SVJ’s chassis weighs just 1525kg (dry), a drop of about 50kg. The SVJ shares the standard car’s carbon monocoque.

Once again, a litany of detail changes contribute to the car’s improved performance. More torque heads to the back, the LDVA on-board systems have been recalibrated and the all-wheel steer has a few tweaked settings.

Anti-roll stiffness has increased by half – that won’t help the bone-shaking ride – and the magneto-rheological suspension also further improved.

The aero, though – that’s where the action is. The SVJ has what Lamborghini calls Aerodyamica Lamborghini Attiva (ALA) 2.0. This active aero system was very effective on the Hurcan, propelling it to a Ring record.

Lambo reckons that the Aventador’s aerodynamics have improved by 70 percent, which isn’t mucking around. Downforce has increased by a staggering 40 percent. That’s deadly serious. That’s teacher-hit-by-a-spitball-in-maths-class serious.

The system uses movable aerodynamic elements to reduce drag in a straight line and increase downforce in corners.

When the front flaps open, the air is channeled into a vortex generator in the modified floor for increased stability.

The rear wing features aero vectoring. The system reads the steering input and stalls the outside of the wing to increase downforce on the inside. ALA 2.0 apparently increases the aero loading by 30 percent compared to the Huracan Performante.

The front wheels are 20-inch lightweight forged alloys with 255/40s, with 21-inch rears wrapped in 355/25.

The result? A Nurburgring lap time of 6:44.97, bettering the 911 GT2’s 6:47.25.

For the record run, the SVJ was fitted with a roll cage, Pirelli P Zero Corsas (the standard tyre) and driven by Marco Mapelli. P Zero Trofeos are optional.

Aventador SVJ 63

While the Aventador SVJ is limited to 900 units, Lamborghini will also sell you the one of 63 SVJ 63s.

The 63 bristles with carbon fibre, big stickers that say 63 and the name salutes the year 1963, the year of Automobili Lamborghini’s birth.

[table id=14 /]

August 25, 2018
Audi PB18 – Light Electric Supercar

The Audi PB18 was unveiled yesterday at the annual poshfest at Pebble Beach. Ingolstadts’s commitment to electric cars continues with a very pretty – and working – electric supercar concept. Despite almost nobody buying the R8 e-tron, Audi persists. And thank goodness for that.

Much like the Infiniti Prototype 10, the PB18 is a monoposto single-seater, but that’s pretty much where the similarities end. For a start the PB18 has a roof.

Looking at it, you can clearly see the design elements pinched from the limited edition Aicon as well as the R8 V10 supercar. But this is a supercar built around its electric drivetrain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el-4dupoIWg Audi’s official trailer for the PB18

The PB18 its more shooting brake than mid-engine sportscar. With all the electric gear down low, the car’s design is much more race-car oriented.

It has a real boot but things go a bit weird in the cabin itself. With just a single seat, the whole setup is mounted on a sliding system. Saves money on right-hand drive/left-hand drive conversion but I like taking people with me in fast cars.

The new-look dash is something to behold, though, a fully digital setup and some cool detailing. Very concept car.

Audi PB18 Drivetrain

Three electric motors push the PB18 down the road, with two at the rear and one at the front. The forward motor drives each front wheel via half-shafts and has 150kW (204PS). Together, the rears spin up 350kW (476PS) with a combined 500kW (680PS) on offer. Hit the boost button and, in F1 parlance, you’ll deploy another 70kW (96PS) for a total of 570kW (775PS).

That’s a lot.

And there’s more – maximum torque is an impressive 830Nm. Audi says that the PB18 will zip from 0-100km (0-62mph) in “scarcely more than two seconds.”

All of this entirely believable, by the way, although I am left wondering about the tyres’ longevity.

Power comes from a liquid-cooled, 95kWh solid-state battery. Audi claims a full charge delivers 502km (310 miles) on the WLTP cycle, which is a good indicator. If you can find an 800-volt power source, you have full charge in just 15 minutes.

For charging at home, the Audi PB18 e-tron can be charged wirelessly with Audi’s induction pad (real-world existence TBC).

Audi PB18 Chassis and Aero

The PB18 sports independent suspension all-round, with upper and lower transverse control arms. The front axle features pushrods while the rear has pull-rods, both familiar to race car fans. Audi says its off the R18 e-tron Le Mans car.

The huge 22-inch wheels are wrapped in 275/35s up front ad 315/30s at the back. The 19-inch carbon discs

Massive wheels measure 22 inches in diameter and are fitted with 275/35 tyres in the front and 315/30 in the back. Large carbon brake discs with a 19-inch (482mm!) diameter should serve you extremely well. Especially when you consider the extra engine braking from the recovery system.

The chassis itself is made of a mix of aluminium, carbon and “multi-material composites”, meaning the weight is “less than 1550kg.” Audi credits the lightweight solid-state battery for much of the weight-saving.

PB18’s aggressive aero certainly looks the part. The gaping hexagonal grille funnels air up over the windscreen, so there’s no front boot. For that full-on race-car feel, the suspension is exposed. The huge rear wing helps glue the rear down and you can bet your bottom dollar it has a flat…er…bottom.

What’s its point, though?

Well, it’s a concept, pure and simple. While it runs and there are bits of that are production-ready – like the electric motors – at best, this will be a limited run sportscar. The Aicon from last year will have a limited production run, so stranger things have happened.

The whacky sliding driving position is a good clue that this isn’t really a production car. With just one seat that slides from side to side to let you out, it’s not really something that normal customers would want.

Then again, for the kind of money Audi could charge for the PB18, normal customers aren’t really in the mix.

Think it’s dumb? Matt probably agree – read his concept car Hot Take

And here is all our Audi coverage.

August 25, 2018