CAR UK

Right. I get asked this approximately every 17 minutes, so let’s do this. What were my best drives of the year just gone, 2022? One or two stand out like a metallic red Nissan under a ferocious noonday Califor-nian sun. Blatting over the Los Angeles Crest in a Z(with a manual gearbox!) was far from the worst day I’ve ever had. Neither was navigating the best routes in the Peak District – on twisting, tumultuous tarmac and way, way off it – for our new Range Rov-er Giant Test back in the spring. And naturally more than a couple of last year’s most memorable drives involved the Porsche Cayman GT4 of which I had custo-dy for a few months through the summer. Last time I’d tackled Donington Park’s transcendental Craner…

CARS I PEOPLE I SCOOPS I MOTORSPORT I ANALYSIS – THE MONTH ACCORDING TO CAR For a company that’s perhaps best known for being expert at the careful evolution of a few timelessly simple ideas, Audi has also had more than its share of big bangs. Quattro may be the one that still resonates the most, but the TT and R8 have also shone a light on Audi’s strengths. The problem is, both those cars have been around a long time now – 25 years in production, in the case of the TT – and both are about to exit the range. Leaving the question: what next? Both the TT and R8 show what design teams and engineers can do when given a huge toolkit to work with and shielded…

JG: I was five when the original TT launched, and as a burgeoning car enthusiast I was hooked. It just looked so cool. Then when the R8 arrived in the mid-2000s, I didn’t care about the rivals Ferrari and Porsche were fielding at the time – Iwas so drawn in by it. I sometimes wonder if I’m wearing rose-tinted spectacles because those cars wowed me when I was young and impressionable. ATJ: I’ll miss what these cars stand for – but I won’t miss the TT at all. It looked cool but, given I’m a bit older than you, I remember when you could go into a Nissan dealer and get a 200bhp hooligan machine in the 200SX, for example. JG: Fine, there were sharper things to drive than a…

To mark the demise of its supercar, Audi is building 333 last-of-line R8 GTs. It’s a tasty recipe: a free-breathing 612bhp 5.2-litre V10, the rear-drive layout we learned to love in the even more radical Lamborghini Huracan STO and a 20kg diet thanks to forged wheels and carbon-ceramic brakes. It’s old-school even to sit in, with a ’70s-style supercar driving position involving stretched arms and legs akimbo. The footwell is too narrow to accommodate the three-pedal layout that helped make the Mk1 R8 4.2 V8 so memorable. And the instrument panel is still loaded with knobs, buttons and switches – and that’s for the better. The exterior includes a massive tail spoiler, various splitters and sideblades as well as new 10-spoke black wheels. Beneath the graceful skin, we find serious…

ITS OWN HEART Unlike the V10 that had to be shared with the Audi R8 (above), Lamborghini’s new V8 is entirely its own product and not derived from anything else. While the plug-in hybrid replacement for the Huracan will lose the signature 10-cylinder shriek, power will still be outrageous – and it’ll pass EU7 emissions regs. FUTURE, PROOFED The Huracan replacement, like the upcoming V12-powered Revuelto that replaces the larger Aventador, will have e-motors designed to supplement power and reduce lag. Lambo’s electrification plans are in full effect, and while the Sián (above) and its supercapacitors kicked it all off, now it’s time for the big guns. FACTFILE POWERTRAIN 4.0-litre V8 plus e-motors, all-wheel drive CHASSIS Aluminium and carbon monofuselage DUE 2024 TRIMMING THE TUB Lambo is going down the…

Isn’t it Ioniq? Hyundai’s noticed we love the Ioniq cars, so the styling is spreading. The Kona was always a wacky looking thing but now it has that same retro future vibe as Hyundai’s EVs. Hybrid, N-Line and EV versions have different looks. 8/10 Controversial to cool Freshly brewed How to go from derivative to daring in one generation. While the Astra could have also sat in this slot, Vauxhall’s brilliant new design direction kicked off with the current Mokka. 8/10 Boring not on the menu The one that got away Toyota’s Prius was always clever but got sneered at for its gawky looks. Just as the sleek new fifth generation arrives, Toyota says it’s not coming to the UK. We get the C-HR instead. 6/10 Roofline isn’t Uber friendly…