Autocar October 12, 2022

NEW CAR PRICES have risen 9.9% since January, according to What Car? data. Used car prices increased by 27% in the first six months year on year, says dealer group Lookers. The average price of petrol last month was 162.89p a litre – down from a couple of months ago but far from reasonably priced. The cost of charging an electric car ad hoc using public charge points is up 42%, to 63.29p per kWh, compared with four months ago, reports the RAC. All in all, it’s not the prettiest picture for motoring (or anything) right now. In response, we’re introducing a series of budget-beating articles over the next few months that aim to inspire you to keep on motoring, despite the challenges. There’s no better way to start off than with some…

NEW CAR PRICES have risen 9.9% since January, according to What Car? data. Used car prices increased by 27% in the first six months year on year, says dealer group Lookers. The average price of petrol last month was 162.89p a litre – down from a couple of months ago but far from reasonably priced. The cost of charging an electric car ad hoc using public charge points is up 42%, to 63.29p per kWh, compared with four months ago, reports the RAC. All in all, it’s not the prettiest picture for motoring (or anything) right now. In response, we’re introducing a series of budget-beating articles over the next few months that aim to inspire you to keep on motoring, despite the challenges. There’s no better way to start off…

“The M2 has been designed to be more ‘extroverted and bold’ than its M stablemates” The second-generation BMW M2 Coupé is the final pure-combustion offering from Munich’s storied M division, seeing out the era with drastic increases in power, performance and poise compared with its acclaimed predecessor. Its unveiling rounds off a particularly busy year for BMW’s M division, which has celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022 with the debuts of the hardcore M4 CSL, the first-ever M3 Touring, the M Hybrid V8 endurance racer, the updated M8 and – most recently – the XM SUV, its first plug-in hybrid and only its second-ever bespoke model. The M2 is what division boss Frank van Meel calls “the entry drug” to the now sprawling line-up of M cars, slotting in below the M3 and…

Forget the 740bhp, 2710kg XM SUV: this M2 is the kind of M car I can get behind. It’s as if I had sat down and drawn up what my ideal M car would be – mostly. It’s relatively small, it’s rear-driven, it has a straight six with all the usual slippy differential stuff going on and, with the 50:50 weight distribution that BMW loves so much, I suspect that it will be an absolute riot. Certainly, road test editor Matt Saunders saw pretty good signs when he drove a prototype earlier this year. However, back to that ‘mostly’. In olden times, BMWs were rear-driven through and through, so the 1 Series hatchback and coupé were small and reardriven, and so the 1 Series M Coupé could easily be both of those things…

“The M2 has been designed to be more ‘extroverted and bold’ than its M stablemates” The second-generation BMW M2 Coupé is the final pure-combustion offering from Munich’s storied M division, seeing out the era with drastic increases in power, performance and poise compared with its acclaimed predecessor. Its unveiling rounds off a particularly busy year for BMW’s M division, which has celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022 with the debuts of the hardcore M4 CSL, the first-ever M3 Touring, the M Hybrid V8 endurance racer, the updated M8 and – most recently – the XM SUV, its first plug-in hybrid and only its second-ever bespoke model. The M2 is what division boss Frank van Meel calls “the entry drug” to the now sprawling line-up of M cars, slotting in below…

The Skoda Superb is on track to be heavily updated for a fourth generation, returning in 2024 to take the fight to the Peugeot 508 with a choice of ICE and hybrid powertrains in a practical estate body. Skoda recently detailed a bold electrification plan under which it will introduce a new flagship electric SUV, an electric city car and an electric alternative to the Karoq crossover by 2026. However, it will maintain – and refresh – its ICE product offering in the run-up to the 2030 ban, when it estimates that such cars will still account for 30% of sales. A new-generation Superb with predominantly ICE propulsion will play a core role in maintaining that share. In 2021, the Superb accounted for more than 66,000 of Skoda’s 878,000 global sales. Given that…