121 new cars: R to S
Letters R and S includes everything from the Renault Twizy electric two-seater to the Evoque Convertible and Subaru BRZ
Range Rover Evoque Convertible
On sale: Early 2013
Price: From £40,000 (est)
Range Rover is pushing the boundaries of the Evoque with this sensational Convertible. It takes the three-door car, removes its roof and adds a fabric hood that’s stowed under a sporty buttress. Despite being clearly aimed at a new breed of fashion-conscious buyer, it has to live up to its maker’s promise of being a true Range Rover at heart, so the finished article will have strong off-road capabilities. Extra chassis strengthening means it will inevitably weigh more than the fixed-roof Evoque, but with the range-topping 240bhp 2.0-litre turbo petrol engine under the bonnet, performance will still be respectable. Expect a 0-62mph time of around eight seconds and a top speed of 130mph.
Watch our video of the Evoque Convertible at Geneva >>
On sale: Now
Price: From £16,275
Updates to the Megane include a redesigned front and rear with LED daytime running lights. Three new engines have been added to the line-up, with the most significant being a 109bhp 1.5-litre diesel that’s capable of 80.7mpg and emits only 95g/km of CO2.
Read our first drive of the Megane >>
On sale: Now
Price: £18,325
Revised headlights and bumpers mark out the updated Scenic and Grand Scenic. Big news under the bonnet is the 1.6-litre Energy dCi, which produces 109bhp but emits only 105g/km of CO2 and can return up to 69mpg. Equipment levels have also been improved.
Read our first drive of the Grand Scenic Scenic >>
On sale: Now
Price: From £6,990
The Twizy is powered by a 17bhp electric motor and weighs only 450kg. It can be fully charged in three-and-a-half hours from a domestic power socket and gives up to 62 miles of emission-free driving. There’s space for two people – one seated behind the other – and it’s aimed firmly at city-based drivers. As with the rest of Renault’s electric range, buyers will lease the batteries on a monthly contract, but that keeps the initial cost low.
Read our first drive of the Twizy >>
Renault Zoe
On sale: Late 2012
Price: From £13,650
The all-electric Zoe has an 89bhp motor with 220Nm of torque – enough for a top speed of 84mph. The range is a production EV record, at 130 miles, while the price also makes it the cheapest electric car on sale. But the batteries are leased from Renault, at an average cost of around £70 a month, depending on the driver’s mileage and the length of contract – so running costs will work out similar to a diesel supermini.
Read our first drive of the Renault Zoe >>
Renaultsport Megane 265
On sale: Now
Price: From £24,825
The new Megane 265 has 15bhp more power than the outgoing Renaultsport Megane 250, giving a total of 261bhp, while there’s also an extra 20Nm of torque. That lowers the 0-62mph sprint time by one tenth to six seconds exactly and increases the top speed by 2mph to 158mph. Buyers will still be able to choose between a stiffer Cup model (£24,825) or a standard-spec car, with more creature comforts, for £1,200 more. A new feature allows the driver to switch between two power modes – a 247bhp output which uses five per cent less fuel, or the full 261bhp. And for £360 extra, a new rear parking camera and front parking sensors can be added.
Read our first drive of the Renaultsport Megane 265 >>
On sale: Now
Price: From £285,000
The Phantom II gets LED headlights on the outside and a new sat-nav system with 3D maps on the inside. There are also front, rear and top-view cameras to aid parking. Under the skin is a new eight-speed auto gearbox and rear differential to improve efficiency.
On sale: Now
Price: From £9,995
The Ibiza is getting a new look that fits in with the rest of the SEAT range, so in comes a stretched grille with more angular headlights. Inside, the ventilationcontrols have been simplified, material quality has been improved and there’s a larger glovebox.
Read our verdict on the facelifted Ibiza >>
SEAT Mii five-door
On sale: June
Price: From £7,500
The five-door Mii is the same size as the three-door, at 3.56m long, and has a 251-litre boot and pop-out rear windows. Power is from a 59bhp or 74bhp 1.0-litre three-cylinder, while the Ecomotive car has stop-start, brake energy recovery and claims 67mpg and 96g/km of CO2.
SEAT Toledo Concept
On sale: November
Price: From £13,000 (est)
The old Toledo was a slow-selling MPV-style family car – so SEAT has gone back to its saloon roots for its replacement. The new model will sit between the Ford Fiesta-sized Ibiza and Focus-rivalling Leon in SEAT’s line-up, offering the look of a four-door with the added versatility of a hatch – just like the 1991 Toledo. It’s about as wide as an Ibiza but as long as a Leon, and the huge 500-litre boot expands further when you fold the rear seats. Inside is a hi-tech touchscreen on the centre console, plus lots of kit. The concept seen here has leather on the seats and dash, but SEAT is keen to play the value card with the Toledo so expect less premium materials on the final model, plus small-capacity petrol and diesel engines.
Skoda Citigo five-door
On sale: May
Price: £7,850
Meet the new, more practical five-door version of the Skoda Citigo, based on the Volkswagen up!. The changes are limited to an extra pair of doors, so it’s identical in length to the three-door and has the same 251-litre boot, which expands to 951 litres with the rear seats folded. The 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine can be ordered with either 59bhp or 77bhp. A GreenTec version of the smaller engine gets low-rolling-resistance tyres and stop-start, which lower CO2 emissions to a road tax-free 99g/km. All models feature the same black glass tailgate as the up!, and the Citigo is the first car to wear the revised Skoda logo on its nose. You’ll pay an extra £350 for the two extra doors, but the baby Skoda offers a £500 saving over the equivalent Volkswagen model.
Read our first drive of the five-door Citigo >>
On sale: Now
Price: From £9,500 (est)
Smart has revised its ForTwo city car, with visual changes largely confined to the front end – there’s a new bumper and air intake. On the inside, the dashboard layout has been carried over, although the seats get new half-leather, half-fabric trim. Under the skin, the engine line-up is also unchanged and includes a three-cylinder 1.0-litre with either 60bhp, 70bhp or 101bhp in the Brabus model. The 800cc 54bhp diesel ForTwo will return 85mpg.
Smart ForTwo Electric Brabus
On sale: Late 2012
Price: £500/month (est)
“Electric driving in the city is more fun than ever with this bundle of power,” claims Smart boss Dr Annette Winkler. The Electric Brabus offers 80bhp and 136Nm of torque instantaneously, while lower suspension and larger alloy wheels make it the most dynamic Smart yet.
Ssangyong XIV-2
On sale: 2014 (est)
Price: £25,000 (est)
Convertible SUVs are like buses: you wait forever for one and then two come along at once: Range Rover’s Evoque Convertible and now this: the SsangYong XIV-2 Concept. The name stands for eXciting user Interface Vehicle 2, and the car represents SsangYong’s biggest styling leap to date. It features an innovative fabric roof that peels back like the Fiat 500C’s. The thick C-pillars and rising waistline are clearly inspired by the Evoque, but the stocky XIV-2 is actually slightly smaller, which bodes well for its handling and fuel efficiency. If this concept car is given the green light by bosses, it will be powered by a selection of punchy 1.6 petrol and diesel engines, but don’t expect to see a production version on sale until at least 2014.
On sale: June
Price: From £26,000 (est)
Meet Subaru’s version of the Toyota GT 86. The ultra-light, rear-wheel-drive BRZ is powered by a 197bhp boxer engine mated to a six-speed manual gearbox, with a paddleshift automatic offered as an option. A cheaper, stripped-out version will follow later this year.
Read our first drive of the Subaru BRZ >>
On sale: Late 2012
Price: From £17,500 (est)
The fourth-generation Impreza appears to be taking Subaru in a new direction. It will feature fuel-saving tech including stop-start as standard and an optional CVT gearbox. All of this is said to make the new car 20 per cent more fuel-efficient than the outgoing model.
