AutoWeek 45 will be in stores from tomorrow or will fall on your doormat this week. This week we look at a few cars that still have nice smooth petrol engines in them, but of course also at an important electric newcomer.
As you can see in the photo above, we put two large German station wagons next to each other: the Opel Insignia Sports Tourer and the Volkswagen Arteon Shooting Brake. In the past, a middle-class station wagon had to be spacious and practical, like the Opel Insignia. Today, however, it has to be luxurious and sexy, like the Volkswagen Arteon Shooting Brake. Typical case of generation gap. How do the two extremes relate to each other? In terms of power, they are in any case close to each other, with around 200 hp.
A ‘little bit’ stronger is the BMW M440i Gran Coupé that we drove. It shares its body with the fully electric BMW i4, but otherwise the similarities seem to end quickly. The drive technology in the large liftback is still clearly of the classic kind. Is that a limitation in 2021? Cornelis Kit finds out.
Far away from the BMW in today’s car range we find the above SUVs: the Dacia Duster and Suzuki Vitara. Cars are expensive in the Netherlands and that applies even more to SUVs. Also add an automatic transmission to the wish list and you are assured of a spicy purchase price, except with Dacia and Suzuki.
A car that, despite its fairly high body, does not allow itself to be pushed into the SUV corner is the brand-new Renault Mégane E-Tech Electric. Renault’s answer to, among other things, the Volkswagen ID3. So a car that carries a heavy burden on its shoulders. AutoWeek was already on the road with it. Jan Lemkes will update you.
In the used corner of number 45 we find a car that has a particularly high mileage for its reputation. A Peugeot 508 with the infamous 1.6 THP in the nose, which has a nice thick 3 tons on the clock. We didn’t think anyone would ever sign up for Klokje Rond with about 508, so let’s take a look at the story behind this apparent success story.
We also take a look at the second-hand range of Tesla’s Model S. The oldest copies are secretly about nine years old, so we are curious what you get for the often still fairly solid occasion price. Finally, we also have a nice background story about 45 years of five-cylinder Audi. Engines with more than four cylinders are now true exotics in Europe, but Audi is still sticking to the five-cylinder in compact RS models. Why?
You can read all that and more in the latest AutoWeek. It will be in stores from Wednesday this week. Would you rather not go out? Order from the comfort of your home the latest number. Then it will be delivered to your doorstep within two working days.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl