first drive
Heart and Seoul
If you’d never seen a car before, I’d show you the i30 to show demonstrate all a car should be in its simplest form.
Sure, there are cooler cars, faster cars, bigger cars and more desirable cars but of course few people would choose a two-seater sports car for the school run (unless you’re a schoolboy). Better then to look at practical measures: space, accessibility, performance, reliability and drivability. By that measure the stock of the Hyundai i30 rallies to an all time high.
The i30 isn’t without style. The exterior appears to have been gently stretched and provides a tidy profile. The side panel scooping adds to the feel of lean design and prevents the car from looking overly austere; it’s smart without the sophisticated; no bad thing: Sophisticated doesn’t carry the shopping. (more…)
First Drive: Skoda Yeti – In From The Cold
The Skoda Yeti has taken everyone by surprise. Surely a car that can behave itself in the rarefied avenues of the city and yet clamber through pothole infested back roads with good grace couldn’t possibly exist.
The Yeti on the face of it appears to be able to do anything. With many legends, the reality can be somewhat different, somewhat disappointing. Here then is an example of a car that is able to live up to its hype and more. The first trick is that the Yeti looks fairly compact on the outside, for a 4×4 anyway, but a quick peek inside and things become much clearer with the interior stretching way back giving legroom in spades for everyone.
Describing some of the features is a little bit like trying to convince a sceptic that I found a two foot long, man-like footprint in the snow during a recent visit to Nepal. The interior space is incredible. It’s no exaggeration to state that a compact wheelchair could be folded to fit into the foot well of the passenger seat which is great for anyone that self transfers from wheelchair to driver’s seat. Unlike with other 4×4’s getting in is an easy manoeuvre because the Yeti has a lower step up. What defies logic is how the seat itself is still high enough to give a decent view beyond the bonnet – but it does.
A conservative control panel provides all you need but no more. Although there are gadgets that can be bolted on as extras, including automatic park assist and parking sensors the Yeti is a simple machine with a simple attitude. What would be extras on other vehicles are added in but quietly, without the fanfare or fuss about nothing that manufacturers are often guilty of. (more…)
Fiat 500 – Bella Bambino!
Italy could rule the world if they tried a little harder. Walk around any major Italian city and be inspired by great food, great architecture, great art and great cars. Is it possible that the Fiat 500 is the very greatest of them all? After all they not bettered it in over 50 years.
The original model was launched in 1957 and was a so beloved by the Italian people that it bestowed huge wealth and prestige on the ‘Rake of the Riviera’ himself, Gianni Agnelli. During his distinguished tenure as President of the family firm he controlled 4.4% of Italy’s GDP. I guess that’s a genuine case of cumulative small gains.
The 2007 reinvention marking 50 years of Italian struggle to build a better city car (Punto and Panda weren’t even close) was strikingly similar to the original but perhaps had more of an air of Agnelli about it. It certainly was as smooth as Gianni; after all this was a guy famed for a string of affairs with socialites and movie stars alike: a playboy if you will.
Classic or contemporary
The Fiat 500 may be diminutive in size, again as Agnelli was and is fitted out with personality, style and panache. If any Fiat carries the legacy of Gianni Agnelli here it is. The Fiat 500 is trim and unafraid to show that Turin style; the baby blue finish debuts with the twin air version although my feeling is that the Rake would have preferred the classic white with the canvas coloured soft top, reminiscent of a Burberry Macintosh.
Despite having a fun loving side, it’s still as though the boss is in the boardroom demanding the very best results, even from his most favoured staff members; efficiency is therefore excellent and the emissions, not surprisingly from a vehicle of this nature are tiny. It adds up to a job well done. (more…)
Citroen C4 – Motoring Feature
The latest Citroen C4 is a bit of a superhero, although it’s more Clark Kent than Superman.
CITROEN have been producing the C4 for the best part of a decade, during which time they’ve tried several incarnations as it competes with arch rival, the Ford Focus. Here then is the heroic latest; clean cut and contemporary on the outside but full of hidden strengths on the inside.
Citroen have toyed in the past with fashion and passion and fallen foul. Could the Picasso have reminded you less of any artist than the fabled Spanish genius? Thought not; the Citroen C4 now comes instead with bodywork reminiscent of a classic crisp cut suit, right down to the attractive creases and folds down the flanks. We’re not stepping into sports car territory here but we are turning up for work looking like we mean to do business. Unobtrusive and tidy: let’s get on with the job.
(more…)
Mitsubishi Colt – More Dancing Pony than Bucking Bronco
What; another Mitsubishi review in Able? So soon after looking over the iX? Yup! Mitsubishi have really got the hang of this ’making cars’ thing – they lend themselves very well to adaptations too.
Normally I’d have to start off by telling you what kind of review this is by briefly explaining which box this car fits into. It’s got to be somewhere between hot-hatch and super-mini but it really could be either. From the outside the scale determines that it must be super-mini but stick your beak inside and you’ll be astonished at the room, especially the height.
Decisions
I’m going to plump for large super-mini rather than small hot-hatch, simply because for the purposes of the debate it’s likely to be the interior that’ll hold sway over the practical decisions disabled people need to make when purchasing a car.
So there we are; the first point is that there’s ample room for four curiously tall adults. The second is that the driving position is much more convenient than it looks at first glance and well worth shuffling your bum around in the showroom model to see if it suits. Even if you’re really short, a low driving cushion will give you a really good vista. The steering wheel is adjustable for that ‘just so’ fitting and the cabin is functional with everything within easy reach. In fact, some critics will no doubt be caustic on the subject of the ‘empty space’ finishing on display here. I could equally describe it as plain and smart or just sparse; half full, or half empty. (more…)
First Drive: Kia Cee’d
Last year saw the introduction into the UK of the Kia cee’d hatchback. Yes, that’s how its name is spelled – the cee’d. Makers seem to be enjoying giving new models strange names now; perhaps it makes a new model stand out, but I won’t express a judgement on that. (more…)
