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COMMENT WILL McLAREN SUCCEED WHERE ASTON STRUGGLES? The bombshell news that McLaren Automotive and tech-savvy British luxury start-up Forseven are joining forces to create a greatly expanded car-making operation is fantastic for a pressurised specialist industry and a country that wants to thrive on hightech enterprise (see p4). Forseven has been secretive until now but we already know its talent pool is seriously impressive. But do you remember when McLaren said it would never make an SUV? The inference was that this would be a boring product direction. Today, it ’s quite a mind-stretcher to imagine how a McLaren off-roader might look. Perhaps the company and its Middle Eastern backers might even be encouraged to get into luxury limousines. (Move over, Bentley.) Amid all this, how must beleaguered Aston Martin feel as it struggles for profitability while building market-leading cars? British companies constantly prove they can make wonderful cars, but financial viability remains the holy grail and the UK’s finest sports car firms have lagged behind Ferrari on that. So while New McLaren’s next era will be endlessly exciting – perhaps as exciting as the McLaren F1 (p84) that started it all in the creative, go-ahead 1990s we also celebrate in this issue (p42) – the way McLaren sells its cars, and who it targets as buyers, will present the biggest challenge of all. Rachel Burgess, magazine editor rachel.burgess@haymarket.com Meanwhile, online… autocar.co.uk Dacia’s £25k Defender rival The Bigster is Dacia’s largest, most expensive model yet. Is it still a proper Dacia? Join Richard Lane on YouTube to find out . Most powerful Rolls tested The electric Spectre Black Badge is an unprecedented Rolls-Royce: 650bhp, 0-62mph in 4.1sec and £400,000. Matt Prior drives it . The sounds of the ’90s Not Oasis versus Blur. Sit back and listen to the nostalgic sounds of some proper 1990s machinery being given a workout. I MAG ES : G E T T Y COV E R Autocar (ISSN 1355-8293 USPS 25-185) is published weekly by Haymarket Media Group, Bridge House, 69 London Road, Twickenham, TW1 3SP, United Kingdom; haymarket.com; tel +44 (0)20 8267 5000 The US annual subscription price is $190.00. Airfreight and mailing in the US by agent named World Container Inc, 150-15, 183rd Street, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Brooklyn, NY 11256. US postmaster: Send address changes to Autocar, Air Business Ltd, c/o World Container Inc, 150-15, 183rd Street, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Subscription records are maintained at the above address. Air Business Ltd is acting as our mailing agent. Autocar magazine is also published in Estonia, Greece, India, Japan, Latvia, Korea and Thailand. Autocar is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think we haven’t met those standards and want to make a complaint, contact autocar@haymarket.com. For more information, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk Haymarket is certified by BSI to environmental standard ISO14001 and energy management standard ISO50001 PEFC/16-33-795 PEFC Certified This product is from sustainably managed forests and controlled sources www.pefc.co.uk Autocar is a member of the organising committee of Car Of The Year caroftheyear.org Issues with your mag? For subscriber issues, call 0344 848 8816. I f you can’t fi nd a news-stand copy of Autocar in your local area, email autocar@haymarket.com T H I S W E E K 42 MEGA-TEST KICKS OFF OUR ’90S SPECIAL Issue 6666 | Volume 324 | No 5 NEWSMcLaren’s bombshell merger 4 Futuristic Chevrolet Corvette 10 Sleek new look for Hyundai Ioniq 6 12 Skoda Elroq vRS: 335bhp and 4WD 14 ‘Cartel’ car firms fined £460m 16 FIRST DRIVES Audi A6 Avant 24 Leapmotor C10 REEV 27 Nissan Qashqai e-Power 27 Skoda Enyaq and Enyaq Coupé 28 ROAD TESTS Jaecoo 7 SHS 2WD Luxury 30 Range Rover P550e Autobiography 36 FEATURES12-page mega-test of ’90s stars 42 Inside story of ’90s car mag wars 54 David Coulthard’s candid F1 tales 58 Our staff’s standout ’90s moments 62 Best ’90s cars you can buy today 64 106 GTi vs Saxo VTS: the rematch 68 The golden era of the BTCC relived 72 LONG-TERMERSAudi A3 Sportback 76 Jeep Wrangler 78 Tesla Model 3 79 Cupra Tavascan 81 Ineos Grenadier 81 Volkswagen Tiguan 83 Skoda Superb Estate 83 COLUMNSMark Tisshaw 9 Jesse Crosse 13 Steve Cropley 17 Matt Prior 18 Damien Smith 19 Testing, testing 41 Why I love… 98 EVERY WEEK Your Views 20 How to subscribe 22 Lost in the archive 88 Road test results 91 USED CARS McLaren F1 buying guide 84 My car & I 86 Caught in the classifieds 87 36 RANGE ROVER P550E PHEV: ROAD TEST 9 APRIL 2025 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 3

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COMMENT

WILL McLAREN SUCCEED WHERE ASTON STRUGGLES?

The bombshell news that McLaren Automotive and tech-savvy British luxury start-up Forseven are joining forces to create a greatly expanded car-making operation is fantastic for a pressurised specialist industry and a country that wants to thrive on hightech enterprise (see p4). Forseven has been secretive until now but we already know its talent pool is seriously impressive.

But do you remember when McLaren said it would never make an SUV? The inference was that this would be a boring product direction. Today, it ’s quite a mind-stretcher to imagine how a McLaren off-roader might look. Perhaps the company and its Middle Eastern backers might even be encouraged to get into luxury limousines. (Move over, Bentley.) Amid all this, how must beleaguered Aston Martin feel as it struggles for profitability while building market-leading cars? British companies constantly prove they can make wonderful cars, but financial viability remains the holy grail and the UK’s finest sports car firms have lagged behind Ferrari on that.

So while New McLaren’s next era will be endlessly exciting – perhaps as exciting as the McLaren F1 (p84) that started it all in the creative, go-ahead 1990s we also celebrate in this issue (p42) – the way McLaren sells its cars, and who it targets as buyers, will present the biggest challenge of all.

Rachel Burgess, magazine editor rachel.burgess@haymarket.com

Meanwhile, online…

autocar.co.uk

Dacia’s £25k Defender rival The Bigster is Dacia’s largest, most expensive model yet. Is it still a proper Dacia? Join Richard Lane on YouTube to find out .

Most powerful Rolls tested The electric Spectre Black Badge is an unprecedented Rolls-Royce: 650bhp, 0-62mph in 4.1sec and £400,000. Matt Prior drives it .

The sounds of the ’90s Not Oasis versus Blur. Sit back and listen to the nostalgic sounds of some proper 1990s machinery being given a workout.

I MAG ES

: G E T T Y

COV E R

Autocar (ISSN 1355-8293 USPS 25-185) is published weekly by Haymarket Media Group, Bridge House, 69 London Road, Twickenham, TW1 3SP, United Kingdom; haymarket.com; tel +44 (0)20 8267 5000 The US annual subscription price is $190.00. Airfreight and mailing in the US by agent named World Container Inc, 150-15, 183rd Street, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Brooklyn, NY 11256. US postmaster: Send address changes to Autocar, Air Business Ltd, c/o World Container Inc, 150-15, 183rd Street, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Subscription records are maintained at the above address. Air Business Ltd is acting as our mailing agent. Autocar magazine is also published in Estonia, Greece, India, Japan, Latvia, Korea and Thailand.

Autocar is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think we haven’t met those standards and want to make a complaint, contact autocar@haymarket.com. For more information, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk

Haymarket is certified by BSI to environmental standard ISO14001 and energy management standard ISO50001

PEFC/16-33-795

PEFC Certified

This product is from sustainably managed forests and controlled sources www.pefc.co.uk

Autocar is a member of the organising committee of Car Of The Year caroftheyear.org

Issues with your mag? For subscriber issues, call 0344 848 8816. I f you can’t fi nd a news-stand copy of Autocar in your local area, email autocar@haymarket.com

T H I

S

W E E K

42 MEGA-TEST KICKS OFF OUR ’90S SPECIAL

Issue 6666 | Volume 324 | No 5

NEWSMcLaren’s bombshell merger 4 Futuristic Chevrolet Corvette 10 Sleek new look for Hyundai Ioniq 6 12 Skoda Elroq vRS: 335bhp and 4WD 14 ‘Cartel’ car firms fined £460m 16 FIRST DRIVES Audi A6 Avant 24 Leapmotor C10 REEV 27 Nissan Qashqai e-Power 27 Skoda Enyaq and Enyaq Coupé 28 ROAD TESTS Jaecoo 7 SHS 2WD Luxury 30 Range Rover P550e Autobiography 36 FEATURES12-page mega-test of ’90s stars 42 Inside story of ’90s car mag wars 54 David Coulthard’s candid F1 tales 58 Our staff’s standout ’90s moments 62 Best ’90s cars you can buy today 64 106 GTi vs Saxo VTS: the rematch 68 The golden era of the BTCC relived 72 LONG-TERMERSAudi A3 Sportback 76 Jeep Wrangler 78 Tesla Model 3 79 Cupra Tavascan 81 Ineos Grenadier 81 Volkswagen Tiguan 83 Skoda Superb Estate 83 COLUMNSMark Tisshaw 9 Jesse Crosse 13 Steve Cropley 17 Matt Prior 18 Damien Smith 19 Testing, testing 41 Why I love… 98 EVERY WEEK Your Views 20 How to subscribe 22 Lost in the archive 88 Road test results 91 USED CARS McLaren F1 buying guide 84 My car & I 86 Caught in the classifieds 87

36 RANGE ROVER P550E PHEV: ROAD TEST

9 APRIL 2025 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 3

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