WHAT CAR AWARDS - The Hyundai i10 takes two awards at the latest ceremony.

• 4th consecutive What Car? win for the multi award winning city car
• i10 Premium SE also wins “Best buy more than £10,000” in the city car category
• On sale from 12^th January with prices starting from £8,495*

The New i10 has been awarded What Car?’s Best City Car award for the 4^th consecutive year, holding off both a new challenge from the Suzuki Celerio and the established competition from the Skoda Citigo.

Steve Huntingford, What Car? Editor said: “We have no hesitation in singling out the i10 as our winner: it’s cheap to buy and to run, comfy, and easy to drive in town. But it also has luxuries that you rarely get in this class, plus a five-year warranty. 

The i10 feels like a class above the rest, with the most room, the smartest interior and the smoothest engine. 

The i10 is a proper, grown-up car, not just a mere runaround, and that’s why it’s our favourite city car.”

The New i10 1.2 Premium SE also won “Best buy for more than £10,000”. Huntingford commented: “we recommend top-spec Premium SE trim, which now gets class-leading infotainment on a 7.0 inch touchscreen, sat-nav, Apple CarPlay, Bluetooth and a DAB radio. You also get climate control, heated seats and a heated steering wheel – all on a city car. The rest of the i10 remains as appealing as ever.”

Tony Whitehorn, President and CEO, Hyundai Motor UK said “Since its launch in 2014, i10 has continually received praise from both industry and buyers alike and has become one of the stalwarts of our range. For 2017, we have introduced New i10 which not only introduces a fresh new look but also brings technology to the segment that is usually only found in the classes above.”

vauxhall is determined to ensure that the UK builders end up in the ditch, which they will in the updated Maloo.

• New Maloo LSA gets power-boost with VXR8 GTS-based, supercharged engine
• Hilarious prospect of 0-62mph in 4.6 secs from a CV capable of hauling half a tonne
• Over 100PS and 100Nm power/torque increase versus outgoing model
• Design revisions and additional colours for VXR8 GTS saloon

Vauxhall only sells one pick up vehicle these days, and while our rivals will wow you with improvements in emissions and fuel economy in a CV’s new model year, our offering – the new Maloo LSA – is more likely to impress with the arrival of its all-new, supercharged 6.2-litre, 536PS V8 engine.

So while it’s possibly not a contender for next year’s MPG Marathon, the Vauxhall Maloo LSA will haul… well, up to 540kgs from standstill to sixty in an unfeasibly short space of time, and do so with the utmost composure, despite the fact that it’s classed as a commercial vehicle (business users can even claim the VAT back from its very reasonable £54,500 on-the-road price).

For 2016, the new LSA engine brings maximum power up from 431PS for the outgoing LS3 V8 to 536PS, and an increase in torque from 570Nm to 671Nm. First seen in the current VXR8 GTS launched last year, the LSA is essentially the same unit fitted to the Camaro ZL1, albeit in a slightly re-tuned form. An Eaton 4-lobe supercharger, stand-alone water-to-air charge-air cooling system and high-flow exhaust system with bi-modal exhaust function turn the Maloo into the fastest production ‘ute’ manufactured in Australia, and the fastest CV available in the UK.

To cater for the extra 105PS of power and 101Nm of torque compared with the outgoing Maloo, modifications have been made to the vehicle’s chassis. Spring and damper rates have been stiffened to reduce body-roll and further improve turn-in, while the unique rear suspension module delivers improved rear stiffness and rear braking efficiency.

Also now standard on the Maloo LSA are Launch Control (manual models only), a limited slip differential, sat-nav, Bluetooth, Onyx Leather trim, and EDI (Enhanced Driver Interface).

In addition to more power and standard equipment, the 2016 Maloo also benefits from a raft of exterior styling upgrades. The front end features a re-designed fascia incorporating a subtle splitter, while the addition of pitch-black bonnet air vents help deliver an even more aggressive look.

The pitch-black theme is carried through to the mirror-backs and wing-vents, with a new 20-inch, five-spoke alloy wheel design completing the styling package. Two new colours – Slipstream (vibrant blue) and Some Like it Hot (metallic red) - complement the Maloo’s fresh new look.

Vauxhall’s VXR8 GTS, the other model in Vauxhall’s V8, rear-wheel-drive range, also has some subtle changes for 2016. While power remains unchanged at 585PS, and torque at 740Nm, the five-seat, four door saloon receives new bonnet vents, bumper grilles and side sills, as well as a new centre-stack arrangement inside the cabin and two new exterior colours. On the road price for the 2016 VXR8 is £55,500 with six-speed manual transmission and £57,200 with the six-speed auto, with oil cooler.