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The natural trade-off though, is in its ability to carve a corner. Despite how tall the Forester is, body roll is less prevalent than expected, no doubt thanks to the Boxer drivetrainâ€™s low centre of gravity, but unless you really enjoy feeling a car at its limit no matter how easily reached it is (which I do), thereâ€™s not much reward to be gained from hustling it. The tyres are designed for low rolling resistance and hence give up very easily, running out of grip at even moderate speeds, while the electric steering, though light and easy to twirl at parking speeds, has a vague, non-linear response during the first few degrees of lock. On initial turn-in the steering feels overly light but after that it firms up, with nice weighting and progression through the rest of the turn.

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The Family Rocketship | Subaru Forester 2.0XT

IN Subaru, Forester, XT, Turbo, X-mode, AWD, Review

With the next generation of WRXes and STIs still at least a year or two away, itâ€™s up to the 4th-generation Forester to uphold the turbocharged mantle in the Subaru stable.

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All Grown Up | Toyota RAV4 2.0 Premium

IN Toyota, RAV4, SUV, 2.0

The redesigned RAV4 gives it the performance and features to keep up with the leaders in this compact SUV segment.

The EP200 and EP850 will be launched in September and December respectively. Sizing and prices will be announced closer to the launch dates.

Happenings

Can Black Be Green?

IN Bridgestone, Tyres, Thailand, Ecopia, Green, Test, Unveil

With Bridgestone poised to expand its range of Ecopia tyres, we head up to Thailand for a sneak preview at what these new rubbers have to offer.

The Auris is an altogether more intriguing proposition, one that some of you readers might recognize as having a more European flair. It joins the growing number of designed-in-Europe cars like the Hyundai i30 and i40, Nissan Juke and Qashqai, and FN Honda Civic Type-R. This is great news, because cars bound for Europe are usually engineered to a higher degree, thanks to their stricter quality demands.

Happenings

The New Toyota Auris And Vios

IN Toyota, Auris, Vios, UK, Thailand, Launch, Revamp

Two new models are launched; one to carry the torch passed on by its predecessor, the other seeking to make inroads in a new sector of the market.

Happenings

SPARKâ„¢ Car Care's SPOT, SNAP & WIN Program!

IN SPARK, Decal, Contest, SPARK Car Care

Since May 2103, we've been partnering SPARKâ„¢ Car Care in an awesome car decal program that put 16 SPARKâ„¢ cars on the road. Have you spotted any?

Thanks to its lightweight construction (composite body panels on top of a tubular spaceframe chassis), the Twinâ€™Run weighs just 950kg, and can hit 100km/h in 4.5s before topping out at 250km/h. The car sits on 18-in wheels, with double wishbone suspension and Ohlins shock absorbers all around.

Happenings

Run For Miles

IN Renault, TwinRun, Concept, V6, Race

This is the French at their loony best, stuffing a big V6 into the rear of a tiny car. And what did they do with it after that? Thrash it round a track, of course!

What makes it even more significant locally is that the E-class is the bread-and-butter of a range thatâ€™s topping the charts of a shrinking new car market. That success isnâ€™t likely to stop soon, based on what weâ€™ve seen of this new, facelifted version.

Happenings

E Stands For Evolution

IN Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes, E-class, Wagon, Launch, E200, E250

It's a strange country we live in, where Mercedes is the best-selling brand, ahead of all the ordinary car makers. And this, the E-class is its most important model.

Happenings

What The F?

IN Lexus, GS, F-SPORT, Kirk Edmondson, Borneo Motors, LFA, IS-F

We sit down with Kirk Edmondson, General Manager - Brand Management for Lexus Asia Pacific Division, and chat about what Lexus is doing with their F-SPORT range.

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Beetle Juiced | Volkswagen Beetle 1.4 TSI

IN Volkswagen, Beetle, 1.4 TSI, Supercharged, VGS

With some added power, the otherwise cute Volkswagen Beetle is now quite the road beast.

To be fair though, the Audi TT Ultra Quattro Concept isnâ€™t all max power and unhinged lunacy. In fact, the thinking behind it is fairly inspired â€“ using Audiâ€™s racing experience to shed massive amounts of weight: the car weighs just 1,111kg, 300 less than the TTS on which itâ€™s based.

Happenings

Superleicht

IN Audi, TT, Quattro, Concept, Worthersee, Festival, Lightweight, TSI

Like a Superleggera, but German. The Audi Audi TT Ultra Quattro Concept makes Lamborghini's (and indeed everyone else's) efforts at a lightweight special seem completely inadequate.

With a top speed of 300 km/h, the car also is equipped with huge brakes. In order to slow down the GTI, Volkswagen uses ceramic brake discs all around with 380 mm discs in front and 356 mm at the rear. The are housed behind fat 20

Happenings

Volkswagen Design Vision GTI Concept

IN Volkswagen, Design Vision GTI, Concept, W12, Golf

Wolfsburg builds a 503 bhp monster! Dubbed the Design Vision GTI, it's giving us flashbacks of a certain 650 bhp Golf.

Alas, BMW hasnâ€™t made any mention of engine options or vehicle dynamics or anything at all to do with actual driving â€“ the X4 is for now still officially a Concept, intended to show how the production version will look. Looking at the X3 though, engine options should be carried over directly. That means the turbocharged four and six cylinders as found in the xDrive20i, 28i, and 35i.

Happenings

First reveal of BMW X4

IN BMW, X4, SAC, Concept, Shanghai, SUV

BMW lifts the wraps off its new â€˜SACâ€™ ahead of its premiere at the Shanghai motor show

Happenings

Mercedes' New AMG is a 'CLA45' Act!

IN Mercedes, Benz, CLA45, CLA, AMG, Coupe

The CLA gets a powerful 4 cylinder engine and all wheel drive to turn it into a mad, track munching beast.

What better way to celebrate the companyâ€™s 50th and the F1â€™s 20th birthdays than by unleashing a new all-conquering hypercar on the world? With McLarenâ€™s vast Formula One experience and technology at its disposal, the P1 certainly has a shot at besting its chief rivals, the LaFerrari and Porsche 918 Spyder. It may not be the fastest in a straight line (the P1 gives away about 50 bhp and 2 sec to 300 km/h to the Ferrari), but then again, McLaren have said all along that their goal was to make the fastest road car round a circuit, not just a straight line.

Happenings

Brutish British Bulldog

IN McLaren, P1, F1, Hybrid, V8, Turbo, Hypercar

Enter Britain's contender for the 2013 hypercar World Cup...

Happenings

Beetle: Now With Added Poke

IN VW, Volkswagen, Beetle, TSI

VW Singapore bolsters the Beetle range with a more powerful 1.4 TSI twincharged engine that packs 160 bhp.

The new Mazda 6 has adopted the 'KODO â€“ Soul of Motion' design theme the most. Inspired by the movements of the cheetah in the wild, the new model features the signature wing grille, the new family face of Mazda. Headlamps incorporate LEDs and a new halo ring light, while linking the face to the side character lines and onwards to the signature tail lights.

Happenings

Mazda Launches The New Sexy 6!

IN Mazda, 6, SkyActiv

The Mazda TAKERI and SHINARI (sounds like sushi) concept cars were great. The actual car while not as wild, is certainly a worthy interpretation. But will it sell as well as its predecessors?

The Audi A6 is one such car that has really impressed me. With a powertrain that is made up on a combination of the 211 bhp, 2-liter turbocharged four-cylinder mated with a 54 bhp electric motor, it pushes a total output of 245 bhp. Pretty decent for this sedan, and more than what you would need on a daily basis.

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Clean Performance | Audi A6 Hybrid

IN Audi A6, Audi Singapore, Premium Automobiles, Hybrid

Audi's A6 Hybrid packs a combined power of 245 bhp and will save you some money too (if you drove it like it had 120 bhp)! But for the price, wouldn't a 3.0 TFSI make more sense?