Autocar August 07, 2019

AFTER ALMOST A decade of build-up, we’ve had our first official contact with the reborn Land Rover Defender (p42). While tantalisingly under camouflage, the Defender still revealed many of its secrets and off-road prowess in our ride. How the Defender will ultimately be judged is on that off-road mettle, that toughness, that durability. To that end, as Matt Saunders discovers, Land Rover has overhauled its development process to give this car a kicking of epic proportions, to really push that durability and make sure it gets back up for more. For the car’s credibility, long-term success and viability, it simply had to be done. The company’s perception on reliability remains a long way from the industry’s best, to put it kindly, not only for its latest high-tech models but also on the…

“The 500 family will carry premium pricing to absorb the extra cost of the all-electric drivetrain” Fiat is planning a major two-pronged renewal of its European range centred around its two biggest sellers: the 500 and Panda. The new 500 is due to be launched as a pure-electric model in the middle of 2020. Also on the way are the 500 Giardiniera estate, a new 500X and a Tipo replacement that’s likely to be an SUV. The latest elements of the strategy were debated at a high-level meeting in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Turin design centre late last month, led by Fiat CEO Olivier François. Talking to Autocar about that meeting, François said: “Fiat has a double mission. Urban mobility is core today, but at the same time, it means family transportation. In southern Europe,…

AFTER ALMOST A decade of build-up, we’ve had our first official contact with the reborn Land Rover Defender (p42). While tantalisingly under camouflage, the Defender still revealed many of its secrets and off-road prowess in our ride. How the Defender will ultimately be judged is on that off-road mettle, that toughness, that durability. To that end, as Matt Saunders discovers, Land Rover has overhauled its development process to give this car a kicking of epic proportions, to really push that durability and make sure it gets back up for more. For the car’s credibility, long-term success and viability, it simply had to be done. The company’s perception on reliability remains a long way from the industry’s best, to put it kindly, not only for its latest high-tech models but also…

A new version of the Fiat and Abarth 124 Spider is unlikely, according to Fiat CEO Olivier François. Although the Fiat and Abarth 124 Spiders have been withdrawn from UK sale, both loss makers here, the two continue to be offered in mainland Europe and the US. Despite sharing a platform and factory with Mazda, which assembles the 124 Spiders alongside the MX-5 upon which they’re based, these economies of scale are not enough to overcome the perils of currency fluctuations, nor the cost of shipping Fiat engines to Japan for the cars. Sports cars are notoriously inconsistent money makers, but François’s suggestion that the brand has “no legitimacy” in this field is surprising, given the Fiat Barchetta, Coupé, X1/9, 124 Spider, 124 Coupé and 850 Spider from its past. That said, these…

“The 500 family will carry premium pricing to absorb the extra cost of the all-electric drivetrain” Fiat is planning a major two-pronged renewal of its European range centred around its two biggest sellers: the 500 and Panda. The new 500 is due to be launched as a pure-electric model in the middle of 2020. Also on the way are the 500 Giardiniera estate, a new 500X and a Tipo replacement that’s likely to be an SUV. The latest elements of the strategy were debated at a high-level meeting in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Turin design centre late last month, led by Fiat CEO Olivier François. Talking to Autocar about that meeting, François said: “Fiat has a double mission. Urban mobility is core today, but at the same time, it means family…

Horacio Pagani, the founder of Italy’s most extravagant hypercar maker, has confirmed that a fully electric hypercar is in the works – but the highly regarded V12 engine will stick around for some time. Pagani is a man who has always found it difficult to say no to his customers. His company’s first hypercar, the Zonda, had its retirement delayed for years because affluent buyers, including Lewis Hamilton, begged for the chance to buy one. Now we’re facing what is meant to be the last version of the Huayra, the BC Roadster, although Pagani himself admits that plan may slip. “It is scheduled to be the last production model,” he told Autocar. “But I am also listening to some private collectors who are asking maybe for a one-off or a limited edition, which…