Road Test Review

As we’ve seen over the years, GTPlanet’s members are a bunch of car enthusiasts at heart. Whether they own something fast or expensive or not, they do love their cars — and a large proportion have had that enthusiasm cultivated by Gran Turismo.

It’s actually pretty amazing to think that the 720S was only the McLaren brand’s fourth car since it was founded in 2010. That’s right, the F1 was technically made by a different company (although under the same ownership).

A lot of ink, both traditional and digital, has been spilled on the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio. This will not be one of those reviews.

Fair warning to our international readers here: things are about to get locally Canadian for a minute.

“Know your enemy, know his sword.”

There’s not many marques that survive 30 years in the original mold any more. Even some of the most venerable badges have either had breaks in production, or have switched things up a bit to pander to market tastes.

They say that form is temporary, but class is permanent. Admittedly that’s usually referring to sports teams, but it applies to cars as well.

The Korean brands are on a roll right now. Kia is making some of the most handsome cars in its sector, sister brand Hyundai is making some quality kit (and even appearing in Marvel films) and Ssangyong remains as robust and great value as ever.

The motor industry seems to be moving towards a new law. Much like that infamous rule of the internet it now seems that, if it exists, there’s a crossover of it.

In recent years, I’ve not been particularly kind to the Toyota Corolla. Three decades on from the sushi-delivering model revered by the PlayStation generation, the existing sedan had all the thrill of a marathon night of lingerie… laundry.

In the middle of last year, Mercedes-Benz announced it was going to build a pickup truck.

When it comes to reinvention, no brand has managed a turnaround quite like Skoda.

Chances are you’ve read that review title and that’s the first time you’ve even thought about Mitsubishi in a while.

If there’s one brand that drives a wedge between petrolheads the world over, it’s Alfa Romeo. Not because a surprising number of people who think they like cars can’t spell it, but because of a symbolic trope. Some say you can’t really be a petrolhead until you’ve owned one, others think that’s bunk.

Crossovers. These days, they’re a license to print money. Get a family car, put a couple of inches in the roofline, lift it up by a couple more inches, profit.

When it comes to bridging the Transatlantic motoring gap, one brand more than most ties us together. The Blue Oval of Ford is considered a home brand to Europeans just as much as Americans.

Peugeot is on a bit of a roll as of late. It was a company that, back in the 1980s, was known for its sporty versions of regular hatchbacks. The 205 GTI is pretty much an icon of its time, but the company also made cars like the 309 GTI (which was better) and the 405 Mi16.

If you grew up in Europe in the 1980s, chances are you’ve spent a lot of time in a Nissan Micra. The boxy hatchback was a firm favorite for driving schools and mums. It was easy to drive, easy to park and, unfortunately, never that good.

In the European market, the B-segment hatchback is king. Despite the ever-growing popularity of the crossover, and the unflinching continental dominance of the Volkswagen Golf, manufacturers sell more B-segment hatchbacks than anything type of car.

When Nissan launched the Juke in 2010, reactions were varied to say the least. In a classic case of judging the book by its cover, some in the automotive press were not terribly kind.