#BrownCarGuy – News, Views & Reviews!
A new affordable electric SUV that’s more refined and packed with greater tech than its predecessor, the all-new MG S5 EV is essentially the replacement for the best-selling MG ZS EV. The S5 EV steps up the game in terms of style, performance, and practicality – while still offering astonishing value – so should it be on your shortlist?
Usually, when you arrive at a media drive event for a new car, you’re greeted by some PR, there may or may not be a presentation, and then you jostle with the other journos for some keys and take the new car for a drive. However, BYD did things a little differently for the launch of its new Sealion 7 electric family SUV.
If you’re looking for a crisp and smart-looking hybrid SUV packed with clever tech and features, I might have just the thing for you. Meet the Renault Symbioz E-Tech Hybrid – the name “Symbioz” is taken from the Greek word Symbiosis, meaning ‘living together’. You can’t quite live in this thing, despite its spacious interior. Still, it’s an interesting name and put me in mind of the word Symbiont, which reminded me of Jadzia Dax, the Trill Symbiont on Star Trek Deep Space 9, which was a gratifying thought, so the price of entry is worth it for that alone. We’re talking from £29,295 for the base spec, to £31,295 for the Esprit Alpine trim, and £33,295 for the range-topping Iconic Esprit Alpine edition as tested here (plus another £650 for the Oyster Grey finish on this car).
Back in the day, I loved this thing. As a sci-fi fan, the Porsche 928’s sleek, rounded, pod-like aesthetic appealed to me. It’s astonishing and hard to believe, frankly, that the Stuttgart sports car company released this futuristic V8-powered 2+2 GT way back in 1977 – 47 years ago! Perhaps less surprisingly, it had an incredibly long production run of 18 years right up to 1995, and even today, it looks entirely contemporary and in no way dated at all!
The 2025 Kia EV3 is the Korean company’s latest contender in the electric car market. The compact SUV is trying to make a statement about affordability and usability with prices starting at £32,995 and a maximum range of well over 350 miles.
I remember driving the Škoda Octavia vRS when it first came out. It was brilliant and delightful, because it was completely unexpected. If you think back to the history of the brand, it was never really taken seriously in the UK at that time, despite the success of its compact rear-engined saloons in rallying. Then Volkswagen bought it, and customers warmed to the solid and sensible, quality cars it started offering.
Can you believe it’s been nearly 25 years since Škoda surprised drivers with a solid and sensible saloon that gave hot hatches a fright? (Actually, it might have looked like a saloon, but it featured a “liftback” hatch rather than a boot lid.)
The 2024 Volkswagen Golf R Estate – yes, estate. Why not? It’s like the ultimate Q-car Golf. Seemingly a practical family load-lugger. But oh boy, are you in for a treat if you floor that throttle!
This is exciting – getting behind the wheel of the 2024 Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport. Now, I know what you’re thinking: “Didn’t he already review the Golf GTI?” True (link below), but this isn’t the regular GTI; this is the Clubsport – a souped-up version with a bit more oomph, aimed squarely at those of us who want a little more spice from our hot hatches. The previous edition was the pick of the pack – let’s see if this Clubsport lives up to the hype.
This is the all-new second-generation MG ZS, tested here in Hybrid+ form in the top-of-the-range Trophy spec. Slightly bigger, with more features, and prices only up by around £1,000, it remains a competitive B-segment SUV.
