MINI Adds One D to Clubman Range

Already available as a Cooper, Cooper D, Cooper S and Cooper SD, MINI decided to act upon positive sales figures with all-wheel-drive variants. That's why ALL4 was added to S and SD trims. Now, MINI has announced plans to add a One D to sit below the Cooper D.

As regards the engine, power comes from a 1.5-litre 3-cylinder turbodiesel with outputs of 114 bhp and 270 Nm. Both manual and automatic models get to 62 mph in 10.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 119 mph, but the manual is slightly more efficient. Zero road tax is only applicable to the 99 g/km manual, the automatic's 104 g/km places it into the first paid bracket. Both have claimed figures of between 70-75 mpg.

When it comes to equipment, the One D gets 16-inch alloy wheels, cruise control, front fog lights, automatic headlights and wipers, air conditioning and DAB digital radio.

Despite the reasonable entry-level kit, MINI expects half of all buyers to part with almost £3,000 for the Chili Pack. This adds part leather sports seats, keyless entry, parking sensors, automatic climate control and LED headlights and fog lights.

Prices start at £21,375 for the manual with a £1,495 premium for automatic models. The One D goes on sale in April.

Fiat Tipo Trio - Saloon, Hatchback and Estate

Fiat's Tipo was first unveiled in saloon guise last summer at the Istanbul Motor Show, but even today we still don't know if it's coming to the UK.

Tipo Saloon

We do know, however, that the hatchback and estate models will be arriving on our shores.

Fiat claims that the hatchback will comfortably sit three 6-foot rear passengers, with an overall length of 4.37 metres. That's exactly as long as a Volvo V40. The difference between the V40 and Tipo hatchback? Its boot. The Tipo offers 116 litres more (440 litres), with the estate boasting an even larger 550 litres. There is an additional 12 litres of storage space dotted around the cabin.

In fact, the Fiat Tipo Hatchback offers on average more than 70 litres more space than 21 of its rivals, with only the Peugeot 308 (+30 litres) and Honda Civic (+37 litres) offering more.

Tipo Hatchback

Available in 3 trim levels, all models will include air conditioning, electrically adjustable door mirrors, 6 airbags, DAB digital radio, Bluetooth, a multifunction steering wheel and electric front windows (with estate models gaining electric rear windows).

Two MultiJet II diesel engines will be available, a 1.3-litre offering 94 bhp and 200 Nm, and a 1.6-litre with 118 bhp and 320 Nm. The later, when paired with a 6-speed dual-clutch transmission, is said to achieve 76.3 mpg and 98 g/km of CO2.

It's best to avoid the entry-level 1.4-litre 16v petrol with its 94 bhp and 125 Nm, in favour of the 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol whose 118 bhp and 206 Nm make it a lot more enticing.

A 1.6-litre e-TorQ petrol engine produces 108 bhp and 152 Nm, using a more conventional 6-speed torque converter automatic transmission.

Tipo Estate

Sports Tourer Estate Joins the Astra Family

Having already made a great impression, the Astra family is now extending with the addition of a more practical estate. It goes on sale this month with a starting price of £16,585.

Its 1630-litre boot with the seats folded down trumps that of the Ford Focus Estate (1502 litres) and Volkswagen Golf Estate (1620 litres).

The new Astra Sports Tourer is a techno-fest that's widely available to the public. Inside, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto provide integrated smartphone connectivity, while an automatically opening tailgate (part of the Keyless Entry and Start package) makes loading the boot a lot easier.

As well as the 1.0-litre 3-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine (£17,285) and 1.6-litre Whisper Diesel (£18,785) that can return 83.1 mpg and emit 89 g/km, the Astra Sports Tourer gets a new 1.6-litre bi-turbodiesel. Official figures come in at 67.3 mpg and 112 g/km, despite sprinting to 62 mph in just 8.4 seconds.

Vauxhall Mokka X Previews New Design Language

Arriving in British showrooms late in 2016, the Mokka X demonstrated a new design language for the future SUVs and crossovers of Vauxhall. These include a wing-shaped horizontal front grille and a sharp set of LED daytime running lights. The rear of the Mokka X remains mostly unchanged, with it being a facelift as opposed to a brand-new car.

It features a brand-new, redesigned dashboard that's said to be inspired by the current-generation Astra.

Vauxhall's refreshed crossover will feature a new 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol unit that's able to produce 150 bhp. With a 6-speed automatic transmission, it returns a claimed 42.8 mpg and emits 154 g/km. All-wheel-drive models are driven by the front wheels in normal conditions, with up to 50% of the power being delivered to the rear wheels in slippery situations.

Vauxhall GT Concept

Powered by the same 1.0-litre 3-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine found in the ADAM, Corsa and Astra, the GT concept produces 143 bhp and 205 Nm of torque. Power is delivered to the rear wheels through a 6-speed sequential transmission which features steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters.

With a sub-1,000 kg weight, the GT gets to 62 mph in under 8 seconds and on to a top speed of 134 mph.

Familiar Vauxhall technology is used in the GT concept, including the glare-free high-beam lighting from the IntelliLux LED matrix lighting. The button-free interior is operated primary by voice controls and a central touchpad.

Despite having a definite concept car look about it, the GT could make its way to British showrooms in the distant future as an affordable yet attractive sports coupé. The camera replacements for wing mirrors are very unlikely to be carried over, as is the extreme design.

SsangYong XIV-2 Concept Hints at Future Mid-Sized SUV

SsangYong's XIV-2 concept car previews a next-generation mid-sized SUV for the Korean brand. A mid-sized SUV equates to something similar to the Hyundai Tuscon, with its dimensions for width, height and wheelbase being 5-10 mm different, and the XIV-2 being 35 mm shorter.

The woodgrain floor and Alcantara headlining show off a more premium side of SsangYong. There are even speakers mounted in the bucket seats and lights in the doors that react to the beat of the music making the concept a particularly playful one.

As well as a 133 bhp 320 Nm 1.6-litre turbodiesel, the XIV-2 uses a 1.5-litre petrol-electric hybrid powertrain. Its electric motor produces about 14 bhp making it just a mild hybrid. This is reflected in its less-than-impressive CO2 emission figures of 120-135 g/km.

Audi Welcomes Q2 SUV to the Range

At 1.51 metres tall, the Q2 is slightly higher than Mercedes' GLA. Its 1.79-metre width also puts it in line with the GLA, whereas the length is its differentiating factor. At 4.19 metres, the Q2 is over 20 cm shorter.

As with all of Audi's latest models, the Q2 can be specified with the virtual cockpit - a digital display that replaces the instrument cluster. A head-up display is also an option. As standard, though, the Q2 will get Audi's pre sense front. A system that helps avoid accidents by autonomously braking.

Other technology available on the Q2 includes an adaptive cruise control with stop & go function for traffic jams, a lane departure warning system, traffic sign recognition and rear cross-traffic assist that makes reversing out of a parking space a lot easier.

All models have the German's MMI infotainment display that's controlled by a rotary knob and two buttons, not a touchscreen.

With 405 litres on offer, the boot is actually 76 smaller than that of the GLA. It does offer 25 litres more than the Volkswagen Golf. With the rear seats folded down, a 1,050-litre cargo space is revealed.

When it comes to power, two petrol engines and two diesel engines will be seen from day one. These include a 3-cylinder 1.0-litre and a 4-cylinder 1.4-litre petrol engines, as well as the 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre diesel engines that have power outputs of 114 and 148 bhp. A 2.0-litre petrol engine will enter the lineup later in 2017.

If you prefer not to have the 6-speed manual transmission, a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission called S tronic is available on all models. The higher-powered diesel is available with quattro all-wheel-drive and the 2.0-litre petrol engine will come with quattro as standard.