WELCOME

June 2025

Audi A6 Avant

Audi’s largest and flashest combustion-engined estate model renews its battle with the BMW 5 Series Touring On sale Now Price from £52,510

BMW M5 Touring

New estate version of BMW’s top performance model joins its saloon sibling in adopting potent plug-in hybrid power On sale Now Price from £113,515

Renault 5 40kWh

The electric Renault 5 is our reigning Car of the Year, but is it still a winner in its cheapest form? On sale Now Price from £22,995

Range Rover Evoque P270e

Have updates to the plug-in hybrid version of this upmarket small SUV helped or hindered it? On sale Now Price from £49,110

Nissan Ariya Nismo

Electric SUV gets a sporty makeover courtesy of Nissan’s motorsport division, with more power, stiffer suspension and more aggressive looks On sale Now Price from £56,630

Ford Puma Gen-E

Ford’s line-up of electric models expands with a familiar-looking small SUV; yes, it’s a Puma with no appetite for petrol On sale Now Price from £29,995

Aston Martin Vantage Roadster

We love the Vantage coupé, but can the Roadster deliver roof-down thrills and a pure driving experience? On sale Late 2025 Price from £175,000

Mini John Cooper Works

Latest version of Mini’s hot hatch offers more performance than before, while undercutting rivals On sale Now Price from £33,265

Skoda Kodiaq vRS

Swiftest version of Skoda’s seven-seat SUV enters its second generation On sale Now Price from £53,690

Porsche 911 Carrera S

Revised sports car has nearly 500bhp in Carrera S form and is quicker than the racier GT3, so is it the 911 to buy? On sale Now Price from £125,235

Lexus ES

New executive car will rival the BMW i5 as it goes electric for the first time, and hybrid versions are likely On sale Spring 2026 Price from £50,000 (est)

Skoda Elroq vRS

Hot version of our reigning Family Electric SUV of the Year gets 335bhp and four-wheel drive On sale Summer Price from £46,560

Mercedes-Benz Vision V

Luxury limousine concept previews the next-generation V-Class MPV On sale 2026 Price from £90,000 (est)

Jeep Compass

Third-generation family SUV introduces the option of pure electric power for the first time On sale Winter Price from £36,000 (est)

Genesis X Gran Equator

Futuristic concept shows the upmarket South Korean brand’s ambition to field a Land Rover Defender rival On sale 2028 Price from £70,000 (est)

Hyundai Ioniq 6

Distinctive South Korean rival to the Tesla Model 3 gets sharper looks On sale Late 2025 Price from £50,000 (est)

Citroën C5 Aircross

Renewed family SUV promises improved interior space, a big boot and an electric option for the first time On sale Autumn Price from £33,000 (est)

Hybrid cars can be sold until 2035

Government relaxes aspects of the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate in a move to back British car makers

Volvo begins European EX30 production

VOLVO HAS STARTED assembling the EX30 electric SUV

THE NEWS IN NUMBERS

44% Increase in the risk of fatal injury

Government pledges 10,000 extra driving tests per month

ID 3 freshens up ahead of an electric

BMW 3 Series

WHATCAR COMING SOON

AUTONOMY TAKES A QUANTUM LEAF

The technology in this much-modified electric Nissan enables full driverless control, even on the UK’s most challenging roads. We’ve been for a ride to find out how it works… and what happens next

Omoda 9

Does this new Chinese plug-in hybrid SUV have what it takes to steal sales from established brands? Let’s see what some of our readers make of it

Straight to the head of the Q?

The Audi Q5 has long been among the best upmarket family SUVs you can buy – but is the latest iteration good enough to beat rivals from BMW and Mazda? We’ve lined them up to find out

Stairway to seven

Is diesel or hybrid power a better bet for a seven-seat SUV in 2025? It made us wonder… so we took contenders from Hyundai and Mazda on a road trip to find out

What are the differences between types of hybrids?

Mild hybrid This is the least effective

Mini Countryman E

Exclusive Level 2

Audi Q6 e-tron

Sport Performance

Volkswagen Passat

1.5 TSI eHybrid 204 Life DSG

Peugeot e-208

51kWh GT

Skoda Kodiaq

1.5 TSI 150 e-Tec DSG SE L

BYD Seal

390kW Excellence AWD

Volvo EC40

Single Motor Extended Range Plus

Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer

Electric Ultimate

Land Rover Defender

This upmarket SUV is more tempting than ever when you look at how much you can save by buying used

Grading on their curves

These upmarket electric SUVs have striking looks to go with their promise of sensible running costs. But this is more than just a beauty contest

BUYER’S GUIDE

90 Small cars | 92 Family cars |

SMALL CARS

1 RENAULT CLIO Our pick 1.0 TCe

FAMILY CARS

1 TOYOTA COROLLA Our pick 1.8Hybrid Icon

HOT HATCHES

1 MERCEDES-AMG A45 Our pick S Plus

SMALL SUVs

1 LEXUS LBX Our pick 1.5 Premium

FAMILY SUVs

1 KIA SPORTAGE Our pick 1.6 T-GDi

SEVEN-SEATERS

1 HYUNDAI SANTA FE Our pick 1.6THybrid

EXECUTIVE CARS

1 TESLA MODEL 3 Our pick RWD

LUXURY CARS

1 BMW X7 Our pick xDrive40i M

PLUG-IN HYBRIDS

1 MG HS Our pick 1.5T Plug-in

ELECTRIC CARS

1 RENAULT 5 Our pick 52kWh Techno

SMALL ELECTRIC SUVs

1 KIA EV3 Our pick Standard

FAMILY ELECTRIC SUVs

1 SKODA ELROQ Our pick 85 Edition

ESTATES

1 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT Our pick 1.5

COUPÉS/CONVERTIBLES

1 BMW 4 SERIES Our pick

SPORTS SUVs

1 PORSCHE CAYENNE COUPÉ Our

SPORTS CARS

1 PORSCHE 718 CAYMAN Our pick GTS

PERFORMANCE CARS

1 BMW M3TOURING Our pick xDrive Competition

Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Alpine, Aston Martin, Audi

Audi

Audi

Bentley, BMW

BMW

BMW Alpina, BYD, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Citroën

Citroën, Cupra, Dacia

Dacia, DS, Ferrari, Fiat

Ford, Genesis, GWM

Honda, Hyundai

Hyundai, Ineos, Jaecoo, Jeep, KGM, Kia

Kia, Lamborghini, Land Rover

Land Rover, Leapmotor, Lexus

Lexus, Lotus, Maserati, Maxus, Mazda

Mazda, McLaren, Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

MG, Mini, Morgan, Nissan

Nissan, Omoda, Peugeot

Peugeot, Polestar, Porsche, Renault

Renault, Rolls-Royce, Seat

Seres, Skoda

Skoda, Skywell, Smart, Subaru, Suzuki, Tesla, Toyota

Toyota, Vauxhall

Vauxhall, Volkswagen

Volkswagen, Volvo

Volvo, Xpeng

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

RECENT DEPARTURES FROM DATA