Vauxhall Motors to launch the next 'X' model at Frankfurt, the Grandland X SUV..

• New SUV with a sporty design and crisp proportions
• Spacious interior to carry five passengers and their luggage
• Grip Control for traction on every surface
• Safety technologies including AEB, pedestrian detection and drowsiness alert
• World premiere at 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show, in showrooms early 2018 

Vauxhall has today released the first images of the all-new Grandland X SUV, the third member of its ‘X’ family, which receives its public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show this September. 

With a sporty design and off-road looks, the Grandland X has elevated seating for five people, generous luggage space, good all-round visibility and a raft of safety technologies. At 4.48 metres long, it will be the largest SUV in Vauxhall’s range, offering even more cabin space than the 20 centimetre-shorter Mokka X and Crossland X. 

LIGHTING, COMFORT AND DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEMS

The Grandland X offers a selection of ultra-modern assistance and comfort features. Adaptive Cruise Control with pedestrian detection and Automatic Emergency Braking, Driver Drowsiness Alert, and Advanced Park Assist are just some highlights. 

AGR-certified premium ergonomic front seats, heated steering wheel, heated front and rear seats and smart tailgate, that opens with a kick, all ensure driver and passenger comfort. 

Grandland X drivers and passengers can enjoy outstanding connectivity that is now typical across the Vauxhall range, with the latest generation of IntelliLink systems and the personal connectivity and service assistant Vauxhall OnStar, which now includes new services such as hotel booking and parking space search. Smartphones can easily be integrated to the infotainment system and charged wirelessly via inductive charging on handsets with this function. 

Vauxhall continues to deliver on its commitment to lead in lighting technology, equipping the Grandland X with the innovative Adaptive Forward Lighting LED headlamps. Functions such as cornering light, high beam assist and auto levelling guarantee optimal illumination of the road ahead. 

The Grandland X offers safe driving fun on every surface, thanks to the optional electronic Grip Control that ensures traction in diverse driving situations. The driver has a choice of five driving modes, for each one the system adapts the torque distribution to the front wheels, allows wheel-spin if necessary, and, with the automatic transmission, adjusts shift points as well as throttle response. This ensures traction and stable handling regardless of the road surface. 

DESIGN 

At 4,477mm long, 1,844mm wide and 1,636mm high, the new Vauxhall Grandland X is a robust SUV from every perspective. Above the front skid plate, the bold grille proudly displays the Vauxhall Griffin. 

The chrome winglets embrace the brand logo and flow outwards to the slim, double-wing LED headlamps, visually widening the front and giving the Grandland X a powerful, solid stance. The bonnet features the signature Vauxhall crease – an expression of the Vauxhall design philosophy of sculptural artistry and technical precision. 

The side profile echoes the attractive combination of rugged SUV charm and elegant lines. Muscular, sculpted wheel arches and protective cladding on the lower body give the Grandland X real off-road appeal. In contrast, clear lines and the refined blade on the lower doors identify the new Grandland X as a member of the Vauxhall family. The optional two-tone finish, with the roof in contrasting black, adds an extra touch of personalisation. 

The smooth flow into the rest of the body is emphasised by the “breakthrough” C-pillar, which creates a dynamic bond to the rear. The rear view of the Grandland X shows what real SUV design means, with a wide stance, silver underside protection with integrated tailpipes on the left and right, protective cladding, and slim LED taillights, underlining the newcomer’s sporty, muscular character.

The Grandland X has the same quality on the inside: the instrument panel and centre console with touchscreen are clearly laid out and horizontally aligned to the driver. The centre stack has three horizontal rows of controls for fast and intuitive access to infotainment, climate control and chassis functions. 

Drivers and passengers benefit from the elevated seating position typical of an SUV, which ensures good visibility in all situations. Its long wheelbase of 2,675mm means the compact class SUV has plenty of space for up to five people, while the luggage compartment (with a load volume from 514 litres to a maximum of 1,652 litres) offers generous room for luggage and sport equipment. 

IRELAND - Citroen announces the latest special edition to hit the streets, the Rip Curl C4 Cactus.

Citroën’s New C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition has arrived in Irish showrooms and is available to order now with pricing starting at €23,995. The new Special Edition introduces Grip Control to the C4 Cactus range for the very first time and features RipCurl inspired styling elements to emphasise the adventurous character of the multi-award-winning model.

Citroën and the world famous surf brand, Rip Curl, have joined forces to create the C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition, which will arrive in Ireland this October and is available to order now.

Featuring unique interior and exterior styling elements to complement the adventurous nature of  the model, the new C4 Cactus Special Edition boasts Rip Curl graphics on the wings and rear quarter-lights; white roof rails and door mirrors; orange seatbelts; orange detailing on the audio speakers; and orange-trimmed carpet mats.

Embodying both brands’ values of innovation, creativity and spirit of adventure, the Special Edition also introduces Grip Control to the C4 Cactus range for the first time. This intelligent traction system allows drivers to select different modes to deal with the types of surfaces encountered as part of an adventurous outdoor lifestyle, such as snow, mud and sand. The Special Edition also features 17-inch diamond cut ‘Cross’ alloy wheels with Goodyear 4 seasons Mud+Snow tyres.

The C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition will offer customers a choice of two engines, the award-winning PureTech 110 S&S and the Blue HDi 100.

Revealed for the first time at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show, this new Special Edition features a panoramic glass roof, as standard, and will be available with five striking body colours – Obsidian Black (metallic), Arctic Steel (metallic), Pearl White (pearlescent), Sport Red and Tapenade Grey. All versions come complete with Citroën’s innovative Airbump® technology, which is designed to avoid scrapes and scratches to the bodywork.

Standard equipment also includes alumnium-effect front and rear bumper protectors; rear parking sensors; a colour reversing camera; automatic air conditioning; automatic headlights and wipers; satellite navigation; a 6-speaker MP3 audio system; cruise control/speed limiter; and tinted rear windows, Panoramic Sunroof.

Pricing details is as follows:

VERSION	CO2	RETAL
C4 Cactus Rip Curl PureTech 110 S&S	107	€23,995
C4 Cactus Rip Curl Blue Hdi 100	92	€25,045

TMW - The Peugeot 2008 Allure 1.2 litre, a crossover for all occasions, and one thats going to be hard to beat !

When Peugeot hit its bad period, they had a choice, either wait out the sales slump, and hope that they would come out the other side in a better position than before it hit, or, they would spend themselves out of trouble, and spend is what they did. 

Billions of Euros were spent to produce the best and most modern range of cars they have ever had, the 108 is undoubtedly one of the best small cars around, the 208 is again one of the best Supermini, the 308, is a brilliant car, we have tested two of them here on the Blog and came away mightily impressed, and then there was the all new model that pushed Peugeot into the compact crossover segment, and they did this with the 2008.

The 2008 is the model we are testing here, and it is the new facelifted version too, it is easily understandable that the 2008 has been a huge hit for Peugeot, appearing frequently in the European top sellers chart*, along with the 208 and 308. The two plans put in place by the big bosses at Peugeot have worked, sales are up, expenditure down, turnover and profits are all back in significant numbers, and this is just the start.

The car we are testing here today, is the Peugeot 2008 Allure 1.2 Litre 110 S/S, a mouthful I know, but this is a brilliant car, you get plenty of room up front, and with the i-Cockpit set up the steering wheel is away from your legs, and you still get a good view of the dials in front of you, and the road ahead, without the need to continually take your eyes away from the road.

The seats are seriously supportive, with very large side bolsters on the seat and the back, so no matter how hard you drive the car, you will always remain in place, once you get yourself comfortable, you find that everything is easily to hand, and if you have driven a 208, you will be very familiar with the central switchgear and touchscreen system, which, like all cars with the PSA Group is very easy to work out and understand, we personally own a C4 Cactus, so, the touchscreen was really simple to operate. but is also different, it seems to have a little more quality about it, and it's quicker than the Citroen version, now whether thats just me or there is a difference I am not sure, but it came across as faster.

The rear seats can feel a little hemmed in, if you have the front seats all the way back, but in a decent position you can fit a family in the back in reasonable comfort, or two adults, three larger adults and it would feel a bit squashed, the boot space is big, it can take a very large weekly shop, or with the seats down, you can take larger pieces of furniture with ease, if thats what you like to carry around, there is plenty of cubby spaces dotted about, with one covered cubby by the hand brake, which is like the speed handle on a jet fighter, you grab it with your hand rather than push a button in the end and drop it down, Cactus owners have something similar, and i really like this a lot, it makes a nice difference.

The 1.2 Litre 3-Cylinder engine likes to be revved, and revved hard, to get it going, but it will lose speed on an incline, so you do need to keep aware of your speed and feather the accelerator to keep your speed up, likewise I noticed that the MPG on the digital dash, was very active when going up and down hills, even after a long journey, you did notice the mpg rise and fall significantly, but I did manage to get a good overall mpg during the week of mid 50's, which for a car with a small engine is really quite good, the only down side, well, two really, is the engine is only a Euro 5 and it runs a five speed manual gearbox, I did feel that on occasions it could have done with another gear, and with Euro 5 engines soon to be obsolete, I thought it would have been ideal to have an EU 6 compliant engine on the facelifted car, giving it an all fresh model,

That said, the car runs at 103g/km which for a car of this size is very good, it also runs nicely at the national speed limit and can, where allowed, take you onto a top speed of 119 mph, added to which the fuel consumption figures as stated by Peugeot are

• Urban 53.3mpg
• Extra-Urban 72.4mpg
• Combined 64.2mpg

Very good numbers, and ones that you can get very close too, which is a nice change, I have been in cars that state one figure and produce numbers upto 40% less, which is a little deceptive, fortunately that vehicle was NOT one of the PSA Group cars.

The 2008 is priced keenly, with this model coming in at £18,070, and this is boosted with a number of optional extra's fitted :-

• Varnish Paint - £645
• Active City Brake - £250
• Park Assist (Auto Parallel Parking System & Reversing Camera) - £500
• Cielo Panoramic Glass Roof - £400
• Satellite navigation & Connect SOS & Assistance - £700

This takes the car to over £20,500, but you are still getting a great car, with loads of kit for that money, it also now comes with grip control, which gives the car the added advantage of being able to cope with various styles of ground, sand, mud, snow etc, and it works really well too, i tried it on sand and it did cope quite well, not, as great as a full on four wheel drive, but it will get you out of trouble if you find yourself in that style of ground that can bog you down.

The Allure trim level is probably the one to go for, it has the vast majority of the kit that most people need on a day to day basis, and with this trim level you get :-

• Rear Parking Aid
• Tinted Rear/Side Windows
• One Touch all Round Windows
• Auto Lights
• Auto Wipers
• Grip Control
• Auto Dual Zone Air Conditioning
• Cornering Assist Fog Lights
• Leather Trimmed Steering Wheel

And thats just a small amount of the equipment thats fitted to this car as standard, and thats why it makes this car a brilliant one to own, it drives really well, it is very quiet until you give the engine those revs that it needs to keep it going, but the engine note is very nice, it sounds quite peppy, and sporty, and it picks up speed quite quickly, it can equally slow or stop as quickly, with great brakes, fling it around corners and you would be forgiven for thinking you will lose control of the car, but again it scores well here, it, like the 308 we tested earlier, just grips to the road, and that is perfect behaviour for this crossover, that thinks it is a sports car.

You think that you will climb into the car, like an SUV, but you dont, it is roughly the same height seat wise as a normal car, but the height of the car gives you added headroom, and the hints that this is a bigger car than it is, and these days thats a difficult thing to do, make a car seems bigger than it is, but still have all that room, TARDIS comes to mind.

VERDICT

This is a great car that can cope with so many different aspects of day to day living, it is a brilliant family car, it is a big load lugger, its dynamic driving style is a hard one to beat in this class, you feel you are in a more superior vehicle, it has so much room, and everything is near and handy, as well as easy to use, this is one car that I would be happy to own, to invest my own money into, and it is one that I can see me keeping for some time, it really is a car that can cope with all you can throw at it, and it is no surprise that Peugeot has a huge hit on it's hands, and for them to do it first time out shows how the teams behind the design of Peugeots model ranges are so on the mark.

*Figures from JATO Dynamics

The Motoring World Blog
Jon Mower

Citroën’s new C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition stars in an adventurous new TV advert.

Citroën’s new C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition stars in an adventurous new advert, which hits TV screens in the UK on 30 July 2016. The new special edition, introduces Grip Control to the C4 Cactus range for the very first time.

First unveiled at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show, the new C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition is on sale now in the UK, priced from just £18,840 OTR.

To celebrate the adventurous and fun nature of the car, which is the result of a collaboration between Citroën and world famous surf brand Rip Curl, Citroën has created a new TV advert entitled ‘The road is your new spot’, which is a surfing term for the best place to catch a wave.

Starring professional surfer, Vincent Duvignac, and with music by French singer/songwriter, Gaspard Royant, the TV commercial sees Vincent float through the city on his board before jumping behind the wheel of the special edition.

Featuring unique interior and exterior styling elements, the new Rip Curl Special Edition introduces Grip Control to the C4 Cactus range for the first time. The intelligent traction system enables drivers to tackle the different types of terrain encountered as part of an adventurous outdoor lifestyle, such as snow, mud and sand.

The new C4 Cactus Rip Curl Special Edition is on sale now and, to celebrate the launch of the car, Citroën will give the public an opportunity to get closer to the action during August by hosting a special auction on eBay. Participants can own one of the unique surfboards that have been designed especially to help showcase the special edition and to reinforce Citroën’s ‘feel good’ philosophy. All proceeds will be donated to The Wave Project, an award-winning charity that uses surfing as a form of therapy for young people.