BBC Top Gear Magazine May-22

@jack_rix editor@bbctopgearmagazine.com Excuse me while I pop another Werther’s Original in my mouth, lean back on my rocking chair and remember a time when a car company announcing a new all-electric car was Big News. It was about three years ago. Things are moving at such a pace that rarely a day goes by without some manufacturer proclaiming it will produce a pure electric version of each model in its line-up by 2025, and a switch to nothing but electricity by 2030. They might as well save their breath and send out a release saying “Hello! We’re still in business!” Maserati is the latest, announcing a tri-motor, 1,200bhp GranTurismo will be the first pure EV Maser when it goes on sale in 2023, swiftly followed by an EV Grecale, MC20, Quattroporte and Levante,…

This is the end. Aston has revealed the last Vantage that’ll carry a 12-cylinder engine, bringing this unique line of over-endowed small sports cars to a close. Welcome to the last ever Aston Martin V12 Vantage. Aston calls it the “fastest” and “fiercest”, though judging by the er, ‘bold’ silhouette, perhaps it’s more aligned to the cinematic universe that also starts with ‘fast’. Y’know, the one with the tuna crusts. These muscular little Astons have always been engine cars. This Vantage gets the company’s 5.2-litre twin turbo V12, here producing 690bhp and 555lb ft of torque; figures you’ll agree are suitably voluminous. Indeed, its power to weight ratio stands at 385bhp per tonne. The quad-cam 60° V12 is mounted up front of course, matched to a rear mid-mounted eight-speed auto powering the rear…

What we’re watching/listening/doing, while we should be working Morbius, in cinemas now Jared Leto stars in the next film set in the Spiderman universe. A biochemist inadvertently infects himself with a form of vampirism. Next slide please. World Snooker Championship Yes there’s the F1. Yes there’s rugby. Yes there’s football. But when it comes down to fast-paced athleticism in dapper waistcoats, this is still the best. Seriously, it’s great fun. Starts 16 April. Masterchef, BBC ONE So, 40 homecooks are whittled down to one winner. Another year goes by without our own Masterchef Ollie M’s dish of shredded rubber with a hot tarmac sauce being represented. Record Store Day, 23 April The best day of the year if you love vinyl. Even if you just love music and want something extra special and tactile, take a look and…

In this global, interconnected world, it’s notoriously tricky to come up with a new car name that’s (a) catchy, (b) original and (c) employable around the world without offending literally millions of people. Mitsubishi’s Pajero may have sounded jaunty to English ears, but Spanish speakers didn’t appreciate the insult. So maybe ridiculing the Celerio for its absurd, vegetably name is a blinkered, Anglophone viewpoint. Maybe Celerio sounds entirely sensible to non-English ears. After all, Suzuki claims the name derives from the Latin root ‘celer’, meaning ‘swift’ or ‘fast’, as in ‘accelerate’. Maybe, outside the Anglosphere, ‘Celerio’ conjures images of great speed and potency. Problem with this theory is: celery’s celery in a whole bunch of other languages. In German, French, Swedish, Uzbek, Walloon and many tongues beside, the word for celery is… celery.…

Ever get that strange feeling that you’re being watched from somewhere on high? Well, in the Polestar O2 concept you probably are. You see, this is Polestar’s new concept car that it says “envisions a new age for electric roadsters”. Looks the business, doesn’t it? That rear deck houses an “autonomous cinematic drone” developed by Hoco Flow that can be launched on the move (thanks to an area of negative pressure) and will follow the car at speeds of up to 56mph, filming you as you go. The drone even has drive modes, with ‘atmospheric’ apparently “great for a coastline cruise” and a sport mode that’ll major on action. This is Polestar we’re talking about, so there’s also plenty of focus on sustainability and recycling. For example, recycled polyester is the…

RESPECT THE DESERT No two days are the same even in the same area of desert, the wind picks up overnight and blows the top layer of sand which can completely reshape a dune. The sun also plays tricks on you – at midday when it’s directly above you, it creates the illusion that dunes are flatter than they are. Locals’ tip: hit the dunes before 11am, and after 3pm; you’ll miss the heat and if you’re in Arabia, enjoy some of the best hummus of your life for lunch. HANG OUT ON THE RIDGE The TV cameras don’t do the dunes justice. They are seriously intimidating. If you’ve watched the Dakar rally, you’ll have seen drivers turn and roll a few metres along the ridge, before diving down it. They do this…