Need a bit more Civic Type R drama in your Hyundai i30 N? Want a bit more AMG-style bling? Hyundai has you covered.
As you’re probably aware, I was quite a fan of the i30 N. It’s a cracker of a car, literally in the case of the exhaust system. While I’m a big fan of its restrained approach to styling, not everybody is.
Cars like this tend to attract the modder crowd so Hyundai’s N is going to offer a whole bunch of customisation options.
N Option Exterior
This is properly tasty, no? The usual stuff is here – wing, stripes, wheels, that sort of thing.
The carbon fibre rear wing features the N logo, there’s a vented carbon bonnet (hood for our American friends), a new grille with N logo and a set of lightweight cast alloys. Wrapped in semi-slicks, obviously, because Hyundai doesn’t mind you flinging the N around a track.
The quad muffler system should make the crackling even louder.
N Option Interior
I like what I see here.
Fat Alcantara steering wheel? Check. Complete with centre marker, too.
Racy bucket seats, again with Alcantara and N logos? Check. Those slots at the shoulders look very AMG, but I’ll survive.
Alcantara trim and carbon fibre dash inserts? Er, obviously. I quite like the dashtop covered in the ol‘ fake suede which also looks to be on the armrest.
The shifter looks a bit blingy, but hey, these are all options.
When and how much?
Ha, yeah. I don’t know about you, but the press release is a bit light-on for actual detail. Yes, it’s a show car (in its own shade of paint), but the press release says that N Option gear is coming soon. It doesn’t say if you can retrofit any of this stuff or even how much the bits will cost.
We’ve got a new 3 Series on the way. For some reason it feels like forever since the last one came out, but anyway. This time around, BMW seems more prepared and has a lot of M Performance bits to part you with more of your cash straight away.
English-speaking markets absolutely love their M Performance bits. Up until recently in Australia, the 330i M Sport was the 3 Series to have. Highest-selling individual model in the range. Amazing.
Anyway, BMW obviously caught on to that and instead of waiting a year or so to introduce performance bits, the brand is kicking off with them. It does help that during the old car’s life M Performance became a thing, but it’s nice to see that you can put a bit of grrr into your new 3.
Aero parts
The G20 is pretty sleek from the get-go – a Cd of 0.23 is super-low, although that’s probably not likely on the spec you or I would buy. Here you’ve got a choice of two diffusers, two front splitters and two rear wing styles.
Fancy.
BMW reckons all these bits reduce lift and therefore improve roadholding. Sure, why not?
The carbon mirror caps don’t do much, but they’re handmade and look good.
Brakes, Wheels, Tyres
The M Performance 18-inch brake set is fairly self-explanatory. The discs are 18-inches (46cm) and feature four-piston front calipers. The discs themselves are perforated and grooved. The press release says they have better thermal properties which seems fair enough to me.
You’ll also be able to choose several designs of 18-inch and 20-inch wheels.
And you can bag your wheels during winter or if you want to keep a spare set for track days.
Interior Parts
Now you’re talking. That lovely fat steering wheel looks the business. I’m a big fan of chunky M wheels and think every car on earth should have one. Silver stitching, red top marker and if you want, you can get a carbon and Alcantara treatment. Finish it off with a set of carbon fibre paddles if you’ve gone for the eight-speed auto.
There are also a nice set of alloy pedals, M puddle lights (they look terrific), M logos pretty much everywhere and some cool trim replacements.
What about the fast stuff?
So here’s the thing – there are some performance cars coming, even before we talk about the new M3/M4 pairing which are probably two years away, in typical BMW fashion.
The quickest launch cars are the 330i or 330d. None of them are slow (the slower ones are coming) but fast? No. Well, not yet.
There is definitely a six-cylinder petrol M340i xDrive – that thing has 275kW and 500Nm. The sprint to 100km/h (62mph) will be over in just 4.4 seconds, which is mighty quick. The M340i is meant to take on the Mercedes C43 AMG and Audi S4. With those figures, it’s quicker than both of them.
The car will also have a proper M Sport rear diff and a serious sporting chassis, just like a M140i. So, useable day to day, but tons of fun when you want to hammer it.
The M3 will have around 368kW (500PS), most likely with xDrive (switchable like the M5 we hope) and a sub 4-second run to 100km/h. And hopefully be as much fun as the M3 CS.
The G20 2019 BMW 3 Series is finally here. Unveiled at the Paris Motor Show, it’s bigger, cleaner and packed with new technologies. And it’s the basis of several forthcoming performance cars.
The seventh-generation 3 comes as the nameplate’s sales passed the 15 million mark. That’s a lot of Threes. Three times five million, in fact.
In typically modest fashion, BMW says the new 3 Series “moves the game on once again in its segment in terms of driving dynamics, premium quality and innovation.”
Right. We best have a look, then.
2019 BMW 3 Series Exterior
Let’s not muck about – from the side, the G20 looks barely different. Yesterday’s leak didn’t do the car any favours, but on the show floor and in these official pics, it looks a bit tougher.
A new, wider and sometimes lairy kidney grille is framed by new, more shapely headlights with a bit of a Peugeot slash to break up the lens. The lumpy bumpy front bumper is quite busy and the details differ between model specs.
The G20 is built on BMW’s new rear-wheel drive platform known as CLAR – cluster architecture. With the imminent demise of the rear-wheel drive 1 Series, the Three will be the smallest CLAR car.
The new car is longer by 85mm (4709mm), wider by 16mm (1827mm) and 1mm taller (1442mm). A 41mm longer wheelbase should deliver a bit more rear legroom and a better ride. Interestingly – and significantly – the front track is 43mm wider at the front and 21mm at the rear.
2019 BMW 3 Series Drivetrain
BMW is kicking off the non-M models with a bunch of engines and the option of all-wheel drive xDrive in the 320d.
While none of these machines has outstanding M-style power outputs, they’re not particularly slow. The 320d will crack 100km/h in 7.1 seconds.
BMW is offering a six-speed manual (hooray!) and an updated version of the eight-speed ZF auto. Only the 320d offers all-wheel drive, but there’s more to come, including the Mini’s (and 1 Series’) 1.5-litre turbo triple and a 368kW (500PS) M3.
Also on the way – according to the photos – are plug-in hybrids.
2019 BMW 3 Series Chassis
We don’t know a huge amount about the new car’s details, but BMW threw in a couple of interesting bits.
Optional adaptive dampers make a welcome return but BMW reckons the standard dampers are pretty clever. BMW calls them “lift-related dampers” which means that the rates vary depending on the spring compression. That means fewer compromises in the ride and handling department. Apparently.
As ever, the M Sport suspension option offers 10mm lower ride height and stiffer springs and dampers.
The new cars are up to 55kg lighter and in their slipperiest form, BMW claims a drag coefficient of just 0.23. Much work went into the aerodynamics, including a tricky air curtain around the fog lights (where fitted) to keep them clean.
You can also specify an M Sport differential with new torque vectoring software, new variable rate steering and M Sport brakes.
2019 BMW 3 Series Interior
Just like the exterior the cabin is bigger and it’s packed with some new stuff. iDrive 7.0, a brand new optional digital dashboard and some other bits and bobs. Looks good too.
The 2019 BMW 3 Series will go on sale around March 2019, depending on where you are. We’re hoping to drive it as soon as we can. In M Sport form, of course…
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.
i30 N steering wheeli30 N interiori30 N steering wheeli30 N interiori30 N steering wheeli30 N steering wheeli30 N steering wheeli30 N rear seatsi30 N button
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.
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.
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.
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
[table id=23 /]
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
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
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.
Manage Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
