TIME FOR A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE. Not several decades back, to witness Group B rallying in its pomp or the rise of the '70s supercar wedge. Nope, we're more modestly rewinding 14 years. You join me for a plodge across Porthmadog Beach at the start of Coty 2008. There's no six-figure exotica to be seen, for this is the first leg, where a bunch of real-world contenders are being whittled down to one cut-price hero that'll attempt to embarrass a 997 GT2 and Nissan GT-R in southern France. Oh, and unleaded is less than a quid a liter. Happy days.
The cast is strong. There's a sub-£50k BMW M3 with a proper gearstick in the middle and a Lexus IS F to give it a decent scrap. We've two brand new Renault Sports, neither wearing a Clio badge just to prove the breadth of the firm's hot hatchback range. Nearby is an Impreza special with 325bhp, like it's still the really early days of Evo, not to mention a delectable little Alfa Romeo coupe with a Prodrive chassis alongside the recently relaunched VW Scirocco. The real world looks awfully fun indeed.
Especially in the context of 2022's performance car landscape. Now that the M3 has soared into luxury car territory and Renault Sport production has ceased entirely, none of those aforementioned cars exist in today's market. Only the Mini JCW, Caterham R500 and Abarth 500 have soldiered on from that autumn 2008 shoot, albeit in slightly different forms. Quick Minis haven't fully grabbed our attention for a while now and while Abarth's commitment to stiffly sprung Fiats with overwrought names deserves a hearty salute, we can't imagine buying one new. We still adore a quick Seven, but true attainability evades it on account of a Caterham surely only ever being a second (or third) car.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der October 2022-Ausgabe von Evo UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der October 2022-Ausgabe von Evo UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
BEST BUYS BMW M CARS
THE PERFORMANCE CAR LANDSCAPE WOULD HAVE looked very different over the last five decades without BMW. Its M division, founded in 1972, has produced some of the best driver’s cars ever to hit the road, and in the process has provided a stream of benchmark models for its rivals to chase. In recent years, stricter emissions regulations, downsizing and electrification have seen some of those rival cars falter, yet by and large BMW’s M machines have remained strong. In fact, some rank among the greatest the department has made think of the eCoty-winning M2 CS and M5 CS while others are the only options worth recommending in their respective segments. Price tags have risen with performance, however, putting those latest offerings out of reach for many, but the marque’s popularity means there are numerous earlier M models available on the second-hand market for far more attainable figures. Here are four of our favourites.
TYRE 2024 TEST
Want to fit the very best tyres to your performance car? The annual evo Tyre Test identifies the cream of the current crop
HONDA ACCORD TYPE R
A liberal sprinkling of Honda Type R fairy dust on the late-'90s Accord produced an unlikely evo icon and a genuine performance bargain
TOY STORY
Where best to store some of Toyota’s most prized and valuable racing superstars? Under the wind tunnel at its Cologne HO, of course...
POWER PLAY
It develops 819bhp. It has no turbochargers, no hybrid assistance. Ferrari describes it as the most complete GT it's ever made. And it’s so proud of its mighty V12 engine it’s named the whole car after it. This is the 12 Cilindri
THE FIRST SAMURAIS
Japan has been responsible for many of our favourite driver's cars of recent decades, but their ancestors are often much less well known. We take a look at where the big manufacturers began their performance car journeys
DEFINITELY. NO MAYBE
Three Japanese performance icons - Lexus LFA, Subaru Impreza 22B and Nissan GT-R. Over three days on some of our favourite roads we explore what makes each uniquely thrilling, but also the car culture that unites them
1V3.0
F1, P1... and now W1. The next chapter in McLaren's Ultimate Series is the British firm's challenger to the forthcoming new Ferrari hypercar and a £2million, 1257bhp, hybrid-powered, technical tour de force
Thornley Kelham European RS
One man’s dream to build the perfect Porsche 911 has resulted inthis aaticMously restored and enhanced classic. We delve into the details and take it for a drive
Bentley Continental GT Speed
The new Continental GT is the most powerful Bentley ever, and the beginning of anew plug-in hybrid era for Crewe. But is it still a benchmark grand tourer?
