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‘EACH GEARSHIFT ROCKS the cabin with a violent convulsion, relenting cogs are swapped for fresh ones while torque, seemingly unbridled, ravages its way to the tyres. My ears can’t consume the noise quickly enough, my nose and eyes sting with the acrid vapour of spent smoke and petrol’. That’s a line from nothing in particular, but could have been lifted from at least three features in this issue. There’s the V8-powered Nissan Navara cross-country rally machine I was lashed into on page 78, the BMW M4 GTS that Aaron conquered four mountain passes in and ultimately an SVR, the crackling Jaguar F-Type that Peter used to somewhat unsuccessfully pursue top-end thrills in at an unsuspecting Mahikeng airport. In a country that is languishing amidst fees that must fall and a…

Stuff BMW says ‘The rear lights reach deep into the sides of the car, creating a visual connection between its flanks and rear end.’ Who writes this stuff? Light has dawned Lamp glass has merged with the kidney grille. Standard LEDs can be optioned up to adaptive status, with Selective Beam and anti-dazzle functions with a range of up to 500 metres Ultimate what? The ultimate driving machine becomes ultimate self-driving machine? Active cruise and lane-assist now joined by cameras, radar and ultrasound sensors A heads-up Great to know BMW’s superb full-colour head-up display is featured in here, along with impressive kit including surround sound and WiFi for up to 10 devices Your next 5 Series will be lighter, more aerodynamic and bring the latest generation of BMW’s high-tech features…

Light, fantastic Despite the show car feel of the Trezor, the design and engineering team worked hard to take weight out of the vehicle. The chassis incorporates a central carbonfibre cell with tubular steel frames front and back. Jaw-dropping lifting lid is carbonfibre too. The concept weighs in at 1600kg and is fully functional. Satsuma bags Imagine a satsuma bag lit with red lasers and you’ll get some idea of how the Trezor’s tail lights are constructed. Actually made up of countless fibre-optic strands twisted under tension, they increase in light intensity under braking and look awesome tucked into the concept’s super-slim rear apertures. A pane in the dash The floating infotainment screen is the cabin’s most real-world feature. Using OLED tech and thin curved glass, it offers a drag-and-sweep…

01 Preparation is key ‘Every small detail matters. Before a launch, I do a burnout to leave strips of rubber on the start line. As I’m backing up I’m adjusting the fuel pump, then I’ll light a signal to say we’re ready to go. These cars have a very limited time before components overheat. I release the clutch, hold the car on the handbrake and watch the lights.’ 02 Absolute power ‘The car is built just to fit me, and it’s perfect – I’m like a hand in a glove. On the line I can feel if someone is touching the car, even if I can’t see it. So I’m driving the car by feel, like driving in the snow. When I launch the car it’s lifting the front axle…

1 A Ferrari with less power? Technically yes, this is a less powerful GTC4 Lusso, but not by much. Ferrari has inserted a version of its V8 3.9-litre turbo, delivering 448kW and 760Nm – actually more torque than the V12 version. Expect fur to fly… 2 What else do I have to give up? Just the four-wheel-drive system. Clever though it is, ditching the hardware and sending power solely to the rear saves weight and shifts the weight bias rearward to compensate for the reduced traction. 3 Will I gain anything over the V12? You can expect more money in your wallet, relatively speaking. Increased efficiency and reduced weight should improve the V12’s 15L/100km combined figure, perhaps to 11.2L/100km 4 Sounds great, can I buy one? Probably, though pricing and…

I’M FROM NEW ZEALAND, Auckland. I grew up with my mom – no brothers, no sisters just a big dream to take on the world’s best. All the women in my family had horses so I got dragged out to the farms on the weekend, every weekend. At the age of six I was given an old clapped-out dirt bike by my mum. She had no idea how to operate it, fix it or ride it so I kind of had to figure it out as I went along, so I’m kind of self-taught, the story of my whole career in fact. I raced motocross, got good results, second place in New Zealand. Racing was getting too expensive, replacing clutch plates, tyres and all that stuff. I saw the Crusty…