PART 1 - Cars to look forward to for the rest of 2014.

2014 is currently running as a year that's brought us some stunning new metal, and we still have three months of the year to go, in recent weeks we have seen the launches of the Jaguar XE, Land Rover Discovery Sport, Volvo XC-90 and Mazda MX5.

Each of these cars are paramount for the future of their respective brands, The Jaguar, is most probably the car that's is tasked with completely moving a brand to a new sector, the hopes of 100,000+ yearly sales, the introduction and success to the middle sedan/saloon sector is paramount for a successful future, and will give Jaguar leverage to introduce a raft of brand new models, that have never been seen before in its entire history.

Likewise, the Discovery Sport for Land Rover is equally important, the Freelander 2, which the DS replaces, was a massive hit, and continues to be a mass seller, even so late in life, it has a following that other brands can only dream about, but has Land Rover done the right thing.

Remove Freelander from the range, and move the Discovery name into a brand in it's own right, which will now give the company three distinct ranges, Range Rover, the hugely successful nameplate that encompasses luxury and speed, Discovery that will bring the brand into the middle sector, having a comfortable interior, less luxury, more affordability, more usable, and will draw on its past to give the Discovery name a family of cars, the Larger Discovery, possibly named Discovery 5, the smaller DS and a rumoured addition of other models in that category.

And then there will be Defender, This is the one that Land Rover has got to get right, first time, the entire company is only here because of this range, the heritage and history are very important to JLR, so getting that right is ultimately why they have decided to cease production, leave a gap of between 12-18 months then introduce a concept, to gauge the temperature, and see if they are going the right way, it is a shame that they have decided to put aside the DC100 concept cars, as they had the heritage looks with a bright, modern feel, hopefully these can be looked at again, as part of the Defender family, we can only hope.

So for JLR next year, we have the XE, LR Discovery Sport, concept Discovery, Concept Defender, new concept Jaguar SUV, hopefully the Sportbrake, coupe and convertible XE models either as releases or concepts, there should also be a new XF next year, either in concept form or as a general release, so the next 18-24 months are seriously busy for the British based company, and one that TATA can proudly boast that they allowed it to go it's own way, and make it the success it is today.

Then we have Volvo, after a crisis in the Swedish car world with the loss of SAAB, reintroduction, loss, reintroduction and now loss again, Volvo were seen as the last bastion of Swedish design and flair, but they went on hiatus, Ford sold them, like they did with JLR (I bet they are kicking themselves now), and their new Chinese owners were viewed with some suspicion, will they do a MG-Rover, and up sticks and move the lot to China, but I will give Geely Holdings there due, they have stuck with Sweden, and allowed things to move forward.

But that moving forward was so slow it was a worry, the C30 was discontinued, with no replacement, and the V40 was introduced, it was a success, but the other models in the range were getting on a bit, and with no replacements for any of them at that time, it was a worry that was becoming vocal, then there was rumours of a new XC-90, and about time too, this, once great model, was very long in the tooth, it was also the companies best seller, but that too was a long gone statistic, then we had a mass face lift of nearly all models.

These face lifts were just trims levels, bumpers and colours, but this was enough to spur the company forward, then they launched the various Polestar sporting versions, and you knew that when you saw a Volvo in that pretty blue colour, it was something special, sales started to rise, first at home, then Europe then China and then throughout the rest of the world, and sales are still climbing, new production facilities in China will help achieve record sales there over then next decade and onwards.

We were then given the spy shots of the new XC-90, over a number of weeks ad then the actual car, it was familiar but modern, the car was stunning, or as stunning as a rather large SUV can be, and to support the launch, Volvo announced a special Limited Edition run of 1927 units to mark the year the company was founded, and so successful was the launch they sold out of these fully equipped models in under 48 hours.

It is not an understatement that this one model for Volvo is an extremely important one, this showcases the new family look, and so this has to be successful, it was three years in the making and was part of an $11 Billion investment programme, the XC-90 marks the beginning of a new chapter in Volvo's history, capturing its future design direction, incorporation its own range of new technologies and utilising its new Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) technology.

So, its clear to see that Volvo are keen to push the company, now at an enhanced rate, new models, more derivatives, and new assembly plants, for Volvo and its owners, Geely, the investment looks to be a success, and for us, the general buying public, Volvo will be offering cars that will remain safe, reliable and technologically advanced, but this is just the start.

That leaves Mazda, the last of the really big launches this year, now, whether you would call a limited consumer product a big launch or not is entirely up to you, but Mazda has stuck with this style of car while others have withdrawn from that market, MG, Alfa, Fiat and so on, all had these small roadsters, and all no longer sell them, leaving the market open for Mazda to successfully sell this little car, and they have, for over 25 years and nearly one million units.

So, this new model is one, for Mazda, that needs to be a success, like the Volvo, it will showcase, design features that should filter through to the other models in the range, but for me, i am not a fan, this current new model looks like it has been squashed and pulled, pushed and generally the looks, from the few pictures that are available, has a Maserati Alfieri look to them, now that's not a bad thing, but this is not a Maserati, it is a Mazda, and this looks a little out of proportion, the alloys look to small, the gaping mouth looks huge, the lights look weird, but the muscular haunches both front an drear give it an edge.

But will that be enough to keep this little roadster at the top of the sales charts, it is obvious that the current one is getting past it's sell by date, with a cramped interior and ageing tech, this new one should hopefully resolve these issues, but for gods sake, stop it with the stuck on sat nav, Mercedes and BMW both do this, they look like after market Sat Navs stuck on the top of the dash, and it looks cheap and nasty, but ignoring that the rest of the interior is looking up to a good standard.

But for me i like the design of the back of the car, the way the lights are segmented, and wrap around the side into those muscular haunches, the subtle lip spoiler and the way they have designed the number plate section and faux grill sections either side, I am sure that Mazda has completed a number of product tests against other brands, and many millions of man hours and testing has gone into this new version, all for a limited sales number, which is why this, for Mazda has to succeed, I feel that it will, it does not have many competitors and will be the basis, to which Mazda is viewed for the next generation of cars.

These are the best new cars coming next year, and below are the rest of the big launches for 2014 and through to next year.

• Volkswagen Scirocco
• Restyled Scirocco debuted at Geneva Motor Show


• New range of engines and enhanced styling, available to order from May


• Sporty auxiliary instrument cluster fitted on top of centre console
• ARRIVES: SEPTEMBER 2014

• BMW 2 Series Active Tourer
• First front-wheel drive models and three-cylinder engines for BMW


• Versatile luggage area can be enlarged from 468 to 1,510 litres


• Sport, Luxury and M Sport models available with prices starting below £23,000
• ARRIVES: SEPTEMBER 2014

• Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X FQ-440 MR
• Develops 440bhp and 412lb ft 

• Celebrates Mitsubishi’s 40th anniversary in the UK

• Priced at £50,000

• ARRIVES: SEPTEMBER 2014

• Fiat Panda Cross
• Torque-on-Demand all-wheel drive, ESC and Hill Descent Control all standard


• New Terrain Control selector offers the driver the choice of three driving modes


• 1.3 MultiJet II and 0.9 TwinAir Turbo engines, now with 80hp and 90hp respectively
• ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 2014

• BMW M4 Convertible
• Powered by a 431bhp twinpower turbo six-cylinder engine


• Lightweight engineering sheds 60kg, compared with predecessor


• Priced from £60,730
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• ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 2014

• Audi A7 Sportback
• Styling enhancements and upgrade to standard LED headlights across the range


• 3.0 TDI capable of returning up to 60.1mpg with CO₂ output from 122g/km


• S7 Sportback features 450PS and innovative COD technology
• ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 2014

• Peugeot 508
• New 508 is emblematic of future models of the brand


• Power units have the lowest CO₂ and are the most economical in their segment


• Sleek looks give up-market feel
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• ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 2014

• SEAT Leon X-PERIENCE
• Permanent four-wheel drive and all-road equipment


• 2.0 TDI engine with 150 and 184PS


• State-of-the-art ACC with Front Assist and SEAT Drive Profile
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• ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 2014

• Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupé
• Eight-cylinder S 63 AMG Coupé priced from £125,595

• Delivers 585hp and 900Nm of torque


• Mighty S 65 AMG Coupé - priced at £183,065 - produces 630hp and develops 1000Nm of torque
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• ARRIVES SEPTEMBER 2014

• Hyundai Genesis

• Executive salon available in Europe in limited numbers (2WD only in UK)


• Powered by 3.8-litre V6 GDI engine mated to an 8-speed automatic
• ARRIVES AUTUMN 2014

• Kia Soul EV

• Only EV to benefit from seven year/100,000 mile warranty


• Powered by 81.4kW motor producing 285Nm of torque; 0-62mph in under 12 seconds


• Anticipated range of 124 miles, full charge in five hours, 80 per cent charge in 25 minutes
• ARRRIVES AUTUMN 2014

• Land Rover Defender Black Pack & Silver Pack

• Two new option packs for the highline Defender XS variant in Q3 2014


• Black Pack includes black paint finish on body, roof, grille and headlamp surrounds


• Silver Pack features silver paintwork (inc. optional contrast roof) with contrasting grille and headlamp surrounds
• ARRIVES AUTUMN 2014

PART TWO HERE

JON MOWER