1988 Nissan Micra GSX Automatic Review: The Tiny 50bhp Time Capsule That’s More Engaging Than Modern Cars

Driving this ultra-low-mileage 1988 Nissan Micra GSX Automatic proved that simplicity, lightness and honesty can still outshine modern motoring complexity

There was a time when cars didn’t need mood lighting, over-the-air software updates, lane departure nags, adaptive personalities or a touchscreen larger than a student bedsit television simply to survive the school run. There was a time when a humble hatchback existed purely to provide practical, affordable and dependable transport, and somehow, almost accidentally, managed to become charming in the process. This 1988 Nissan Micra GSX Automatic is one of those cars.

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BMW E46 330i Review: Why This Updated Classic Feels Better Than New Cars

eBay’s upgraded BMW E46 330Ci proves that modern tech and old-school BMW magic might just be the perfect enthusiast combination

There are moments in this job when you climb into a car and within the first thirty seconds you already know you’re in trouble. Not mechanical trouble. Emotional trouble. The sort where your brain starts quietly whispering dangerous things like “you could absolutely own one of these; you could own one; you deserve to own one…” while your wallet begins sweating nervously in the background. That was me at the SMMT Test Day the moment I slipped behind the wheel of this silver BMW E46 330Ci Coupe, a car bought and modified by eBay as part of its “Tech Transformation Project”, intended to demonstrate how modern aftermarket technology can revitalise older cars without destroying the character that made people fall in love with them in the first place.

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The Internet Wants You to Hate the World. Drive It Instead

In an age of outrage, fear and division, perhaps the answer isn’t arguing online at all. Perhaps the answer is to get in a car, hit the road, and rediscover humanity for yourself

There’s a heaviness hanging over the world right now, a constant low-level hum of hostility and hysteria that seems to seep from every screen, every scroll, every headline and every furious finger-pointing debate, to the point where it increasingly feels as though humanity itself is splintering into suspicious tribes glaring angrily at each other across digital barricades. Fascism, prejudice, racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, anti-immigrant sentiment, political extremism, culture wars, endless outrage, all of it amplified and accelerated by algorithms that have quietly learned one brutally simple truth about human beings: fear keeps us engaged. Fear keeps us scrolling. Fear keeps us clicking. Fear keeps us angry.

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Why Do All New Cars Look the Same?

Modern SUVs, EVs and crossovers may be faster, safer and more efficient than ever before, but somewhere along the way many cars lost the character, identity and eccentricity that once made us fall in love with them

There was a time when even children could identify cars instantly. In fact, I was one of those annoying little kids who could recognise a car from half a mile away, at night, purely from the headlights. A Jaguar XJS looked like a Jaguar XJS. A Saab looked like a Saab. A Citroen looked like it had arrived from the future after taking a wrong turn somewhere near the Eiffel Tower.

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Lotus RESET Again! Have They Finally Learned?

Lotus says its new “Focus 2030” plan marks a fresh start for the iconic British sports car brand, but after years of chasing EV luxury trends, has the company finally remembered what Lotus is really all about?

There was a time when hearing the word “Lotus” instantly conjured up images of lightweight sports cars dancing down B-roads with the delicacy of a hummingbird. Tiny steering wheels writhing in your hands. Barely-there kerb weights. Fibreglass bodies. A driving experience so pure and alive that you could forgive the occasional electrical tantrum, water leak, or trim piece that decided it no longer wished to participate in the journey – because the journey itself was epic (and that’s just to the shops!).

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The £44,000 Repair Bill! Britain’s Most & Least Reliable Used Cars Revealed for 2026

The latest Warrantywise Reliability Index exposes the dependable heroes, the financial nightmares, and the uncomfortable truth about modern luxury cars

There’s a dirty little secret lurking beneath the glossy brochures, ambient lighting, massage seats and giant touchscreens of many modern luxury cars. Once the warranty expires, some of them transform from premium dream machines into financial hand grenades with the pin already halfway out. And now we’ve got the data to prove it. The newly released 2026 Warrantywise Reliability Index has analysed a staggering 1.6 million UK repair data points gathered between 2023 and 2026 from vehicles aged three to 15 years old on extended warranty plans across Britain.

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Are Modern Cars Too Fast for Public Roads?

Family SUVs and electric crossovers now hit 60mph quicker than yesterday’s supercars, and that should make all of us pause

Here’s a slightly terrifying thought. Your neighbour’s school-run SUV may now be quicker to 60mph than the poster cars many of us grew up worshipping. That sounds ridiculous, until you look at the numbers. A Tesla Model S Plaid claims 0-60mph in 1.99 seconds. The MG4 XPower, a relatively affordable electric family hatchback, does 0-62mph in 3.8 seconds. The Polestar 4 Long Range Dual Motor hits 60mph in 3.7 seconds, while the Hyundai IONIQ 5 N manages 0-62mph in 3.4 seconds. Even petrol has joined the madness, with the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT claiming 0-60mph in 3.1 seconds.  

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Are Speed Cameras Making Us Worse Drivers? & How to Avoid Speeding Fines in the UK

After 40 years behind the wheel, I’ve never felt more anxious driving in the UK—here’s why, and how to stay legal without losing your focus

Speed Cameras. Sheesh. So listen, I’ve been driving for around forty years now. Across continents, cultures, and conditions that would make some sat-nav systems simply give up and blue screen. I’ve driven in the UK, across Europe, through the Middle East, around the United States, and in places where traffic laws are more of a philosophical suggestion than a legal requirement. I’ve navigated cities where lane discipline is an abstract concept, deserts where the horizon never seems to get any closer, and mountain roads that appear to have been designed by someone with a grudge against gravity.

And yet, despite all of that, I have never felt more anxious behind the wheel than I do today – right here in the UK.

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Kia PV5 Passenger Review: The Cool Electric Van That Thinks Beyond Cars

The Kia PV5 Passenger is futuristic, spacious and deeply practical, but the five-seat launch version feels like the story has started before the best chapter has arrived

This is the Kia PV5 Passenger, and no, I don’t normally review commercial vehicles, but this one sits in that interesting space between van, MPV, taxi, family bus and rolling sci-fi appliance. Kia calls it a Platform Beyond Vehicle, or PBV, which sounds like marketing nonsense until you understand the idea. Because electric vehicles use a flat skateboard-style platform, Kia can build different bodies on top of it: a proper van, a passenger version like this, a chassis cab for conversions, and potentially all sorts of specialist versions in future. You know, I’ve been taking about this flexibility for years – looks like manufacturers are finally starting to exploit it.

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Cycle Lanes Are Causing Chaos – Who Actually Has Priority on UK High Streets?

Pedestrians and cyclists are being forced into the same space – and the result is confusion, conflict, and a design problem nobody wants to admit

Spend five minutes on a busy London high street – Kingsbury, for example – and you’ll see it play out in real time. A cyclist glides along what looks like a pavement. A pedestrian steps sideways without thinking. A sudden brake. A raised voice. Maybe worse. Fisticuffs at tea time. It’s not rare. It’s not isolated. It’s not even surprising. Because what we’re seeing isn’t bad behaviour. It’s bad design.

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