German

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Thursday – Choose Your Model Carefully!

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The X1 has just been collected and it turned out to be a lot better than I had expected. I say that because I couldn’t see the point of a premium brand mini SUV  – especially one without four-wheel drive like our test car.

Solid, classy, refined – but then you wouldn’t expect anything else from a BMW, would you? The X1 is another chip off the BMW block, although some of the plastics inside the cabin are a little below par for the German brand.

The X1 drives more like a hatchback than a sports utility vehicle, which will appeal to buyers who don’t want a high-seat position and ponderous body roll on cornering.

It’s very easy to live with and feels very safe too – no wonder it picked up a five-star NCAP rating. All X1s have six airbags, stability control and Cornering Brake Control.

I’m now wondering if I would actually opt for the xDrive, four-wheel drive model. The sDrive rear-wheel driver series we drove has exceptional fuel economy and feels surefooted enough.

That said, if you want something to cope with a snowy lane in winter, opt for the xDrive. Our test car might look like an off-roader but the sDrive is exactly the opposite! Choose your model carefully…

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Thursday – Think Electric

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Jeremy It doesn’t matter what you think of pure electric cars, hybrid models are popping up all over the place at the moment. There’s no escaping the rash of new models coming onto the market, nipping away at our conscious over environmental issues and offering the opportunity to save money at the filling station.

All that technology costs though and hybrid cars are more to buy than their petrol or diesel counterparts. Just one look at the price tag of the RXH for example and you know it’s not going to be a major seller for Peugeot. What is does do is highlight how far the technology has come and presents a very real alternative to some of the premium band 4×4 estates out there.

Driving the 508 today I love the fact that it looks so different to the familiar Audi, BMW and Mercedes estates on the road. It has a unique look and that in itself counts for a lot. The questions is, is it worth the premium you pay for the RXH’s hybrid power unit and will the car suffer from  poor residuals if you sell it in three years time?

It’s probably too early to answer both of those questions but on image alone, I’d say the RXH is definitely worth a look. Yes, it is a Peugeot and not a German premium brand but the quality and attention to detail in this car are quite exceptional. I’m looking forward to many hundreds of miles getting to know the RXH, seeing how the economy fares in real-life conditions – and working out what all the buttons do (I’ve not seen a car with this complicated a dashboard for a long time!).

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Thursday – Platform For Success

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Jeremy Let’s get one thing clear from the start – the latest Sportback looks pretty much the same as the last. I’ve just been wandering around the A3 on the driveway and it screams ‘Audi’ from every angle.

It also ticks all the boxes for space, safety and practicality – just what you would expect from the German design team in Ingolstaft. So what makes this car so damn good?

Well, to start with it is based on the VW Group MQB platform, which will be used across the brand’s entire manufacturing line up, from the SEAT Leon to the Skoda Octavia. Same platform, different car on top.

Which means this platform has to be good because it will be incorporated into so many different cars. The A3 is the pinnacle of this particular platform and after just a day behind the wheel, I can tell you that it drives exceptionally well, with high levels of comfort and handling.

The 2.0 TDI we have on test is remarkably quiet on the motorway too, which is probably where it will spend a lot of its life with many company buyers. I’ve driven about 50 miles and the fuel gauge hasn’t even flickered yet!

The styling leaves me cold but the Sportback may well deserve its many plaudits…