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Top Gear
an hour ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Cupra Tavascan Driving, Engines & Performance
Driving What is it like to drive? Acceleration is brisk, but not with that step-off jolt some fast EVs give you on the first micron of pedal travel. That's fine. Who wants to be slammed in the back of the skull by the headrest every time a traffic light goes green? More importantly, the acceleration is enough to give decent overtaking gumption, and to give the tyres something to think about on the exit from a corner. In numbers, the AWD version is 5.5 seconds 0-62mph. Advertisement - Page continues below The front motor is called into play when rear traction is close to its limit, but in any case it's the weaker of the pair. Bottom line, this feels rear driven. A point you can emphasise by selecting a sports AWD mode which defers the front motor's arrival, and a sports setting for the ESP. You can also tauten the dampers. We're glad to say there's now a screen shortcut to turn off the electronic assistance features. The lane keep can yank at the wheel when the road lines are inconsistent, and the speed limit warnings are irritating too. On motorways the lane centring and radar cruise work well and smoothly, although the displays could do more to reassure you by telling you what they're up to. What about in the corners? With the right settings, the Tavascan is definitely more amusing than its rivals. You can use the regen paddles to slow it progressively, but even so too much ambition at the start of a tight bend will see you lost in understeer and steering wheel numbness. That's your 2.3 tonnes right there. Advertisement - Page continues below But then when you add the power it feels engaging, giving you a sense of the tyres working for you. The steering is precise and well weighted. The brake pedal is a bit soft underfoot, with a mild sense of delay as regeneration hands off to friction, but which of its rivals isn't like that? I hope they didn't ruin the ride? The Tavascan copes well with bumps, with the caveat that it's a particularly firm ride overall. A button on the steering wheel cycles between drive modes, which affects damping among other things. And a second one shortcuts you to the Cupra mode that puts all settings to their most aggressive. Cupra has lowered the ride height by 15mm compared to the related VW Group MEB crossovers, and made adaptive dampers standard with the AWD version. And done its own software for steering and brakes and damping and ESP. And given the option of light 21-inch wheels. It all helps. What's the charging like? Peak DC recharge rate is 135kW which isn't too fancy, but Cupra says it can sustain that for a long time, so you can make good use of, say, a 150kW charge post and get from 10-80 per cent in as little as 28 minutes. There's three-phase AC charging, but disappointingly it's only 11kW not 22kW, so you're still taking eight hours to fill the battery from empty. That said, 7kW is likely the maximum power your home can deliver anyway. So call it 11 hours on one of those home or street charge ports from dead flat to 100 per cent juiced. And efficiency? How far can I really go on that battery? We drove the range-topping VZ2 AWD for a couple of hundred miles or so round a selection of UK roads during warm weather and got... 3.6 mi/kWh out of it. Not amazing, but we've seen a lot worse. That would make for total range of 277 miles against a promise of 323 – and that'll drop in the winter, especially without the (non-standard) heat pump. If range anxiety is a thing you suffer from, stick with the RWD Tavascan: that'll get close to 300 miles real world. Highlights from the range the fastest 250kW VZ2 77kWh AWD 5dr Auto [Winter Pack] 0-62 5.5s CO2 0 BHP 335.3 MPG Price £62,115 the cheapest 210kW V1 77kWh 5dr Auto 0-62 6.8s CO2 0 BHP 281.6 MPG Price £47,285 the greenest 250kW VZ2 77kWh AWD 5dr Auto [Winter Pack] 0-62 5.5s CO2 0 BHP 335.3 MPG Price £62,115
Top Gear
an hour ago
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Cupra Tavascan Interior Layout & Technology
Interior What is it like on the inside? The drama of the Tavascan's exterior is carried over to the inside of the car, with a swoopy, aggressive, minimalist design that will wow your passengers. That and the gloomy dark colour scheme with copper accents that gives particularly swanky boutique hotel vibes. You half expect to find a Nespresso machine and a sewing kit in the centre console. Most of the materials don't stand up to close inspection, the Tavascan is more premium in design than it is in execution. The dramatic spar that runs from below the screen down to the console is like a gothic buttress, only made of creaky grey plastic rather than stone. Advertisement - Page continues below More troublingly, its shape means there's only a small tray below it, where most EVs can provide a deep and useful storage bin. There is space below the armrest though. Where are all the buttons? Where indeed. The only button on the central part of the dash is for the hazard warning lights – which you can accidentally turn on if you're trying to rest your arm amid the never-ending task of adjusting anything on the touchscreen. The Tavascan also gets VW Group's ill-advised. touch-sensitive steering wheel controls with haptic feedback underneath – they mostly work fine, but it's still too easy to press something unintentionally when you're going through an involved corner. Look, we don't mind technology, but only when it actually makes life better. How's the tech overall? The 5.3in digital instrument panel is a bit small but does the basics. Most action goes on in the 15in centre screen: it works snappily and can be customised with useful shortcuts and widgets. For instance your favoured combo of assist settings (by law they all default to on when you stop the car) can be activated with just one downward swipe plus one jab. Advertisement - Page continues below Wireless phone mirroring is included, but this is a rare car where you might consider using the native satnav. Not because it's any good, the map is a bit fussy and washed out. But you do get route instructions on the digi dash and arrows that float around the windscreen thanks to the augmented reality head-up display that comes on V2 models and above. There's also an LED rail along the base of the windscreen that gives you peripheral vision clues, for instance sweeping left to right as you approach a right turn. What's the space like in the back? In the back, the outer seats are quite dished, which both supports you and provides a bit more room, but that makes the middle one a booby prize. But there's enough headroom despite the plunging roof line, and plenty of leg space if the front seats are lifted from their very lowest position so you can tuck your feet under. The sportier buckets feature a hard plastic back, so your passengers' knees will appreciate the extra space. They make it a bit dark in the back, too – the panoramic glass roof that comes on all but the entry model is a welcome addition. Boot space is deep and fairly tall if you drop the two-level floor, so it's 540 litres under the parcel shelf. There's no seats-down figure from Cupra, but you'd have to assume it's at least 541 litres.
Miami Herald
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
Scout Motors urges DOJ to fight state dealer franchise laws
The Republican Party may be the party of "states' rights," but Scout Motors hopes the current Republican presidential administration will eliminate the state franchise laws that impede its direct-sales strategy, according to an Automotive News report. Scout called on the federal government to do this in an 11-page letter submitted to the Justice Department's Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force by Blair Anderson, the automaker's vice president of government and regulatory affairs. The task force was created in March after president Donald Trump signed executive orders in January and February calling for removing "regulatory burdens placed on the American people." The letter used similar language, calling franchise laws "burdensome restrictions on competition." Car sales in the United States are currently regulated by a patchwork of state laws, some of which allow automakers to sell cars directly to customers. But many states still require franchised dealerships. There's been friction between those dealerships and automakers since Tesla unveiled its direct-sales model over a decade ago. Tesla fought a series of legal battles with franchised dealerships in individual states. Now Scout, which plans to build its Traveler SUV and Terra pickup truck in a new South Carolina factory starting in 2027, is facing similar struggles. A group of Volkswagen and Audi dealerships in Florida filed a lawsuit in February to block Scout's direct-sales plans, and the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA) filed a similar lawsuit in April, Automotive News noted. In March, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) also sent a letter to Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume and other executives urging the company to let its members sell Scout vehicles. Scout revives the International Harvester Scout, one of the original SUVs, which the VW Group gained the rights to after its purchase of International's successor Navistar. The new Scout vehicles are rugged off-roaders, with body-on-frame construction, with all-electric or extended-range powertrains. They're also unlike anything in the current VW Group portfolio, and exactly the kinds of vehicles dealerships in truck-loving America are eager to sell. That's likely adding fuel to the fire over the VW Group's attempt to set up a new brand with direct sales, while keeping franchised dealerships for its other brands. In the letter, Anderson said that, as a new manufacturer, Scout shouldn't be forced to adopt the franchised dealership model "especially when the new manufacturer has not asked any dealerships to place any investment in distributing its vehicles, developed a more efficient alternative, and will not sell any vehicles also offered for sale by a franchised dealer." Dealerships don't seem to buy the logic that Scout's clean slate entitles it to a different sales model than its fellow VW Group brands. The question is whether the federal government will and whether, if it does, it actually has the authority to strike down state franchise laws. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Times
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Times
VW Tayron review: seven seats and 600 miles on a single tank
Volkswagen's latest sports utility vehicle has lots of good points — spacious, practical and less ugly than its rivals — but no one is talking about it, possibly because it has the least memorable name in motoring history. The Tayron follows the Taigun, Taos, Tiguan, T-Roc, T-Cross and Touareg — all two-syllable names beginning with T and all easily confused. The industry joke is that VW's next two models will the Taser and the Toenail. What's behind this naming strategy no one at the company's group HQ seems able to say, but the Tayron deserves better because it's a seven-seater SUV that can go for up to 600 miles between fill-ups on just a 55-litre tank, an impressive rate of up to 50mpg. Automotive technology has progressed in leaps and bounds, and no more so than in cutting fuel consumption of bigger cars. And the Tayron is big — a veritable warehouse on wheels. If you've ever faced the problem that the stuff you stow in your boot to take on holiday mysteriously swells in volume and won't fit when it's time to return, the Tayron may be the answer. Collapsing the second and third rows of seats gives you nearly two cubic metres of storage — enough for a couple of washing machines or a decent-sized wardrobe. Even with all the seats in place there's as much luggage room as in a Mercedes A-class. Short of buying a van, it's hard to think of a vehicle that offers more boot for your buck. For its size it's reasonably inexpensive too, starting at £40,130 for the 'Life' trim. But there's a catch: £40,000 is the threshold for the government's 'expensive car supplement', or luxury car tax, which means it will cost you an extra £425 a year in vehicle excise duty for five years. Yet the Tayron is hardly the epitome of mink-lined opulence. It's actually a rather practical and down-to-earth family bus that's cheaper than the £45,218 average price of a new petrol car. The eTSI version is powered by an ingenious combination of 1.5-litre combustion engine and an electric motor that gives extra oomph when you're accelerating, then, when you're slowing down, it charges the car's battery. The energy recovery system is linked to the car's electronic brain and knows when you're approaching a junction or entering a lower speed limit. As you lift your foot off the accelerator it reduces your speed at a controlled rate, turning the car's momentum into electricity. It's an odd sensation at first, as though there are phantom feet on the pedals, but you can override it at any time by putting your foot back on the throttle. • Ford Puma Gen E review — Britain's bestselling car goes electric And here's the rub. Pressured by governments into lowering fuel consumption, carmakers have been inventive in coming up with new hybrid engine designs such as this to eke out the miles. In doing so they've become victims of their own success. More miles per gallon equals less fuel duty for Treasury coffers. So governments are imposing new taxes such as the luxury car tax to plug the gap. For a jumbo SUV, the Tayron is remarkably easy to drive around town, relentlessly cushioning speed bumps and potholes. It's also good on motorways, where at cruising speed it's silent, boring even, thanks to acoustic insulation and double-glazed glass. The only time it gets noisy is when you mash your foot into the floor mat getting up to speed on a motorway slip road. Then the 1.5-litre engine struggles even with electrical assistance. The Tayron's bad points are mainly to do with the shonky infotainment system. VW has been criticised by its own customers for a 'driver interface' that is distracting when you're trying to adjust settings on the move. The company says it's taken the complaints on board but it's still a faff to perform basic tasks such as turning on air recirculation when you get stuck behind a lorry belching fumes. To make things worse, the touch controls on the display try to anticipate your command, so you go to jab the screen and it's changed before your finger has made contact. The international safety organisation NCAP is pressuring manufacturers to bring back buttons and switches to encourage drivers to keep their eyes on the road. • Porsche Cayenne review — a family hybrid with oomph Another annoyance is the cheesily named 'mood' settings that turn up the ambient lighting and music volume. You can toggle through Lounge, Joy and Me. VW's target customers — parents with big families — are likely to wonder who exactly these were designed for. A mood called Stressed might be more appropriate. Then there's the Tayron name. A few times while I was testing the car people wandered over at petrol stations to ask what I was driving. After chatting a while, they'd try to recall the name and never could. 'It's the T'ai chi? Tie pin?' So, the Tayron. A good car, solidly put together and a faithful load-lugger. If you're no fan of big SUVs you won't like it. If you're an exhausted parent you may find it just the job. Don't worry if you can't recall the name — no one else can.
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Porsche reports electrified vehicle sales surge in H1 2025
VW Group owned Porsche has reported a rise in the share of electrified vehicles sold in the first half (H1) of 2025, with 36.1% of the 146,391 vehicles delivered globally being either fully electric or plug-in hybrids. The Macan model led this growth with a 15% increase in deliveries, followed by the Panamera with a 13% rise compared to the same period last year. Porsche delivered 45,137 Macan units in H1, with nearly 60% being the fully electric variant. The combustion-engined Macan continues to be available outside the European Union (EU), with 19,253 units delivered. North America remained Porsche's largest sales region, delivering 43,577 vehicles, a 10% increase compared to H1 2024. This was attributed to 'higher product availability' and price protection from increased import tariffs. The Overseas and Emerging Markets also saw a 10% increase, with 30,158 vehicles delivered. Europe (excluding Germany) and Germany saw decreases of 8% and 23%, respectively. These were said to be partly due to a 'strong prior-year period' with catch-up effects from 2023. Deliveries fell by 28% to 21,302 vehicles in China, attributed to 'challenging market conditions' and intense competition. The sports car, 911, saw a 9% decline in deliveries, while the 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman models saw a 12% decrease, affected by limited availability of models due to EU cybersecurity regulations. The Taycan deliveries decreased by 6% to 8,302 units, and the Cayenne saw a 23% decrease to 41,873 units, partly due to 'catch-up effects' from the last year. Porsche Sales and Marketing board member Matthias Becker said: 'We expect the environment to remain challenging. This makes it all the more important that we work closely with our sales regions to carefully balance supply and demand in line with our 'value over volume' strategy. 'The basis for this is our highly attractive and almost completely renewed product range, which excellently covers the very diverse customer requirements worldwide in terms of powertrain and equipment.' In March 2025, the company announced its plans to decrease its workforce by nearly 3,900 positions to improve profitability. "Porsche reports electrified vehicle sales surge in H1 2025" was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
