US
2 MIN READ TIME

Now you’re a Volvo expert, it’s time to buy one...

WORDS SAM BURNETT
Unlock this article and much more with
You can enjoy:
Enjoy this edition in full
Instant access to 600+ titles
Thousands of back issues
No contract or commitment
Try for 99c
SUBSCRIBE NOW
30 day trial, then just $9.99 / month. Cancel anytime. New subscribers only.


Learn more
Pocketmags Plus
Pocketmags Plus

This article is from...


View Issues
BBC Top Gear Magazine
May 2022
VIEW IN STORE

Other Articles in this Issue


Masthead
WELCOME
Excuse me while I pop another Werther’s Original
Trending
ASTON’S BRUTE IS BACK
The last ever V12 Vantage is here, sporting a small car, big engine formula that’s worked miracles in the past. If it ain’t broke
COFFEE BREAK
What we’re watching/ listening/doing, while we should be
SUZUKI CELERIO
IMAGE: MANUFACTURER In this global, interconnected world, it’s
FLYING HIGH
New Polestar concept features a drone that’ll film you from above
CAR CONTROL... WITH CATIE
#3 DRIVING ON SAND 
BLEU BLANC ROUGE
When it comes to the greatest watchmaker of all the French have got a strong claim
PLAY
Gran Turismo 7 It’s hard to
GENIUS RACING LOOPHOLES
01 McLaren’s extra brake pedal Every McLaren road
5 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE...
MASERATI GRECALE
HARD DRIVE
We download YouTube’s #1 tech expert on whatever he’s been driving this month
ELECTRIC
TOPGEAR’S GUIDE TO THE FUTURE OF EVERYTHING
Columns
CHRIS HARRIS
The received wisdom says it’s time to go electric, but there’s life left in the humble hybrid yet, says Chris
THE MIDDLE LANE
A horsepower limit for new cars? You know it makes sense, says TGTV script writer Sam Philip
FUTURE PROOF
OTA updates are all well and good, but not at the detriment of driving dynamics, says Paul
Drives
The big test: Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS
Ever wondered what would happen if Porsche’s GT department really let its hair down? The result might just be the wildest RS model to date
Budget deficit
Is this the first hint of Skoda having
Light heavyweight
To understand the new 2-Series Coupe, you need
Mild animal
Don’t be fooled by the name – the
MUST TRY HARDER
BMW 2-SERIES ACTIVE TOURER
Waited average
Ignore the techno-disco livery, because underneath the ‘camouflage’
The overrun
Small but perfectly formed reviews. The best of the rest from this month’s drives
Features
ICE BREAKER
When you need to test your £2m, 1,888bhp EV hypercar in the Arctic Circle, who you gonna call? Not TopGear
HYUNDAI / GRANDEUR
BEST RETRO EV
BMW/i4
This is the sort of car that, decades
POLESTAR/1
CHRIS’ PICK
LOTUS POSITION
This is the Eletre, which features little simplification and zero lightness. But it still has a Lotus badge. Does it deserve it?
AUDI RS Q/E-TRON
BEST e-RACER
ECC/DEFENDER
PADDY’S PICK
INSIDER TRADING
Luxury to me might not be luxury to you, but someone’s got the make the call. It’s BMW vs Mercedes in the battle of the luxo e-barges
MISCELLANEOUS
The other successes (and a few fails) that caught our eye
FERRARI 296 GTB
BEST NOISE
PORSCHE/TAYCAN SPORT TURISMO
The people have spoken... and they’ve spoken well.
BUZZTNG
There’s a real *cough* buzz around VW’s EV comeback kid. We’re first to drive it, introduce it to the ancestors and ask the real camper fans what they think
OVER/ TO THEM
Reinventing its van might be the bravest thing VW’s ever done. Here’s what the community makes of it
VW/ID.BUZZ
Four run companies that modify Transporter vans, turning
Concept
MERCEDES-BENZ VISION/EQXX
Naturally, the Germans have a word for this:
Freddie Flintoff
RIVIAN/R1T
PHOTOGRAPHY DW BURNETT Iam not going to lie,
Ev Power Players
POWER/GRID
This year’s biggest EV influencers (who aren’t Musk, Rimac or Thunberg)
Electric Family Cars
THE REALLY QUITE BIG TEST
There’s choice a plenty when it comes to electric family cars... so we got the lot
Hyundai Ioniq 5
BMW/i3
PHOTOGRAPHY JOHN WYCHERLEY, IMAGES: GETTY, MANUFACTURER “THE i3
Electric Hatch
RENAULT/ MEGANE E-TECH
ILLUSTRATION @CARSANDCOLOUR Well this is a tease.
Retro
F1: THE BEGINNING
BECAUSETHEYDON ’TMAKE ’EMLIKETHEYUSEDTO
BUICK SIGNIA, 1998
This unfortunate looking beast was revealed to the
BEST LOOKING F1 CARS
1959 ASTON MARTIN DBR4 The DBR4 may not
RICCI’S GARAGE
Report 21: t they say you should never pick a spot. Seems Mark isn’t aware of the concept
(2021) MAZDA MX-5 vs MAZDA MX-5 (1990)
A classic two seater that’s stood the test of time. Thirty years on, and we’d still have one
INTERESTING FAMILY CARS
LESS THAN £5K VW PASSAT W8 ESTATE (2002)
DANNY SULLIVAN’S INDY HEAT
ARCADE, 1991
Garage
TOPGEAR’S LONG-TERM CARS. TESTED & VERIFIED
GO TO TOPGEAR.COM FOR EXTENDED TG GARAGE
Exhaust
BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO VOLVO
BECAUSE KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
What’s Volvo, and when did it start making cars?
IMAGES: MANUFACTURER GO TO TOPGEAR.COM FOR
Volvo’s greatest hits
01 Volvo P1900 Otherwise known as the Volvo
What’s the cheapest car Volvo builds... and what’s the most expensive?
The baby Volvo is the XC40 SUV, built
FACTOID
Did you know that Volvo means ‘I roll’
What is Volvo’s fastest car?
Volvo and speed have never really gone together
NOTABLE PEOPLE
Assar Gabrielsson Entrepreneurial cofounder was the business brains
What’s the best concept Volvo’s made?
Where are Volvos Minis built, and how how
What’s been Volvo’s best moment?
Inventing the three-point safety belt in 1959 must
What’s been Volvo’s worst moment?
In 2010, Volvo invited a bunch of journalists
LOGO EVOLUTION
1927 A dependable and businesslike first badge. Very
What’s Volvo’s most surprising moment?
With the company’s rather square image and equally
Electric
EV HOTLIST
READY TO MAKE THE SWITCH? WE SEPARATE WHAT’S HOT FROM WHAT’S NOT
ADVERTISEMENT
BBC Top Gear
STIGA
stiga.com/uk/swift
Mags Direct
MagsDirect.co.uk
BBC Top Gear
Hyundai
hyundai.co.uk
Husqvarna Automower
Husqvarna.com/Automower
KEF
GP
TISSOTWATCHES
TISSOTWATCHES.COM
Marloe Watch Company
www.marloewatchcompany.com
BBC Top Gear
Autoglym
autoglym.com/quikrefresh
BBC Top Gear
BBC Top Gear
buysubscriptions.com/TGP522
Santapod
www.Santapod.com
BBC Top Gear
MAGS DIRECT
MagsDirect.co.uk
TGSP
buysubscriptions.com/TGSP522
Midland Credit
MidlandCredit.co.uk
MANSCAPED
MANSCAPED.COM
ADRIAN FLUX
adrianflux.co.uk
SP
WWW.SWEVEN-PLATES.CO.UK
WE POWER YOUR CAR
www.wepoweryourcar.com
ROAD ANGEL
ROADANGELGROUP.COM
RIMBLADES
RIMBLADES.COM
Zun Sport
www.zunsport.com
EMERALD STRUTS
WWW.EMERALDSTRUTS.COM
TopGear
BBC Top Gear
SEAT
Chat
X
Pocketmags Support