Month: December 2014

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Maserati Quattroporte S – 410bhp On Slippery Roads? Just Don’t Press The ICE Button…

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Bentley has invited me ice driving in Sweden in January but I had just as much ‘fun’ travelling to Kingham Station this morning. That twin turbo V6 puts 410bhp to the back wheels – enough to make even a rear-wheel drive BMW look good on ice.

Because the Quattroporte is also very long, the slightest tweak of the accelerator sends the back of the car swinging out at an alarming rate.

And what about that ‘ICE’ button on the auto transmission? Well, it has nothing to do with chilly conditions! ‘Increased control and efficiency’ is actually a fuel-saving device for urban driving, so don’t be fooled.

The best advice I can give anybody driving a Maserati in the snow are the words a Ferrari test driver gave me in the snow-capped mountains of the Alps once. Quite simple, don’t press the accelerator, ‘squeeze your toes…’

 

 

 

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Maserati Quattroporte S – An Unusual Interior That Somehow Works, Like Marmalade & Stilton

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Nobody else would dare do it – a brown leather interior complemented by a blue dashboard! Welcome to the wonderful world of Maserati.

And just like stilton and marmalade on toast, somehow the daredevil Italians have pulled it off. It works brilliantly and makes Mercedes, Porsche and all the rest of the grey-seat manufacturers look more than a little dull.

Even the alcantara headlining is brown – a £1,158 option yes but damn it looks good. There’s a stunning red interior available too that really is amazing.

I’m loving the Quattroporte. It’s a big car for manoeuvring at low speed but apart from that, why are you even considering a four-door Porsche??

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Maserati Quattroporte S – Sinister front grille + unknown quantity = rapid progress in the outside lane….

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I have this theory that people move out of the outside lane of the motorway only if they really, really have to. Why else would people be such arses about it when they are slowing down a car travelling behind them?

It seems the best way to ‘encourage’ drivers to move over is appear behind them in a car with a seriously intimidating front end.

Contenders for this would be the Audi Q7 (Clarkson once said you could nail it to a church door to keep the devil at bay), the latest Range Rover, the Jaguar XFR-S and the Quattroporte.

However, you should pick the Maserati because it also has the advantage of being so rare outside of London that people haven’t got a clue what is coming up behind them in their rear-view mirror.

Sinister front grille + unknown quantity = rapid progress in the outside lane….

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Maserati Quattroporte S – Why £15K Will Buy You Something Cooler Than A Ferrari…

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My noisy neighbour has just bought a Ferrari. A sixtysomething banker, he took the obvious route to middle-aged gratification. A least it wasn’t a 911.

However, if he was really looking for Car Couture cool, something that doesn’t just shout money and bling, there’s only one Italian car worthy of serious consideration – a Maserati.

Yep, I’d rather own a ten-year-old, £15,000 Maser than ANYTHING in a Ferrari showroom.

It’s flawed, prone to the occasional breakdown and secondhand prices aren’t great but a Maserati has an understated cache you will never achieve in a prancing horse.

Join us for a week in the Quattroporte and you might understand why…

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Kia Pro_cee’d GT – Bells, Whistles, LEDs And An (Annoying) Digital Soundtrack

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Bells, whistles, LEDs and an (annoying) digital soundtrack – the Proceed GT has them all. Hot hatch buyers want a car that looks like it means business and Kia’s first offering in this marketplace does just that.

The Korean car maker shifts more than 65,000 vehicles a year in the UK, although it’s unlikely many will be GTs. However, the coupe is a statement of intent, it shows what the company is capable of.

At £20,000, the entry-level version we’ve had on test for the past week is great value for money. It’s more cost effective than a Renault Megane RS or a Ford Focus ST. Perhaps more importantly, it has a rarity value neither can match.

Unfortunately, it can’t match the rivals for driving experience either.  But if you want bangs for your bucks, the Proceed GT has to be worth a test drive…

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Kia Pro_cee’d – 7-Year Warranty Puts It Streets Ahead of The Rest…

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So I spent last night looking at cars to buy. Not that I need one but a friend wants to spend £10,000 on ‘a little something for the weekend’. An occasional car which had to be fun, reliable and preferably open-top.

After several hours of automotive porn, I narrowed it down to either 2011 Mazda MX-5, or a 2008 BMW Z4. Later versions of both come with a folding hard-top but these were top spec softies.

In the end, I opted for the Mazda – perhaps the most iconic two-seater ever made. But the exercise also made me think about whether I might ever choose the Proceed if I was doing the same research in five years time, searching for a cheap coupe.

If I had to rule out the Audi TT (too expensive) and the VW Scirocco then the answer might be yes. Why? Because like all Kias, the Proceed comes with a seven year warranty and that puts it streets ahead of the rest…

 

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Kia Pro_cee’d – The Incredible Singing Car (and it’s bloody annoying)

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Technology is a wonderful thing but sometimes I think we go too far. I’ve never really believed in the merits of ‘bendy’ headlights that turn with the car, or lane departure warning systems that just distract the driver by vibrating the steering wheel.

There seems to be a lack of understanding between what manufacturers think we need – often in the cause of safety – and what we actually do need. Take the Kia’s ignition system welcome tune.

That’s right, every time you slot the key in the steering column, the car plays a little ditty, something that over the course of several years will become as annoying as the beep of a checkout scanner in a supermarket.

I don’t know how checkout people survive that beep day after day after day… But I do know that I’d probably last two weeks owning a Pro_cee’d before attacking the speaker system with a chisel and hammer. It will drive you nuts and I imagine there;s something in the glovebox that tells you how to switch it off but it does beg the question…

WHY do we need it Kia!!!

 

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Kia Pro_cee’d – Rock Hard Seats Pile On The Agony!

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I’m wondering why it took the Koreans quite so long to build their first hot hatchback. OK, there was once the well-received Hyundai Coupe but the Proceed is really the only car to rival anything with a GTI badge on the boot.

As I’ve already explained, the Proceed GT (I’m fed up with writing Pro_cee’d) isn’t exactly barnstorming fast with a 0-60mph time of 7.4 seconds. The gearbox is hardly slick and the 1.6 petrol engine has to be worked to achieve maximum ‘fun’ potential.

Be that as it is, the three-door with the eye-catching profile still provides enough performance to put a smile on my face. Well, for the first 50 miles anyway.

Then my happiness turns to a grimace as I struggle to get comfortable in the rock hard sports seats. It’s quite bizarre that Kia build a lukewarm hatchback then sticks a pair of F1 seats in the front!

Yep, if you like comfort or suffer from haemorrhoids get the standard Proceed and give the GT’s chairs a miss…

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Kia Pro_cee’d GT – The Driving Experience Doesn’t Live Up To The Sporty Promise

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As much as I like the sportier looks of the GT, I can’t say the Kia coupe feels that entertaining on the road. The daytime light clusters up front and the stylish design suggest it will be more fun than it is.

Much of this is to do with the steering. Far from feeling sharp and precise (a la Golf GTI and Focus), the GT offers little feedback to the driver, even though this model gets stiffer springs and dampers.

That’s not to say the handling isn’t good – it’s just that rival hot hatchbacks offer a more engaged driver experience.

Back on the road to London today. I’m clocking up good miles in the Kia. However, the fuel tank only holds 51 litres and with consumption around 34mpg, I know I’ll be making more petrol stops than usual this week…

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Kia Pro_cee’d GT – The Slippery Looking Kia Hatch That’s Great Value

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I’ve just driven the Kia back from London and I can tell you what I love about it the most – the 201bhp turbocharged petrol engine. It’s not going to worry the Golf GTI or Astra GTC but just look at the price – it’s a proper bargain.

The 1.6 unit feels eager to please and the chassis set up is good enough to allow some fun-filled moments on the last stretch of country roads home.

The interior is a mix of alcantara and leather, with a neat dashboard and rather a rash of buttons on the steering wheel. Annoyingly, this version doesn’t have sat nav.

Okay, so it’s not the most thrilling hot hatchback on the road today but it’s sport enough to keep most people entertained, in a safe, seven-year guarantee sort of way…