The only way is up, baby

ESSENTIALS Volkswagen Golf R32 Price (new): £22,340 Powertrain: 3.2-litre V6, 238bhp 0-62mph: 6.6 seconds Top speed: 153mph Fuel Consumption: 24.4mpg Annual VED: £430 Alfa Romeo 147 GTA Price (new): £

VOLKSWAGEN’S success in Europe over the past decade has been down to two main models, Golf and Tiguan, right? Yet between these two juggernauts there’s been one more car that has been quietly lending

MANY people consider the humble hot hatch to be a jack of all trades. Something that can do the school run or hop to the shops, before transforming into a scintillating sports car the moment the road

£254,200 OTR/£282,000 as tested/£5,077 pcm WHY IT’S HERE: What has a hybrid makeover – and Mulliner buffing – added to the world’s best grand tourer? DRIVER: Ollie Kew IT’S 5AM, AND YOU JOIN ME AT hom

THERE IS AN argument that a Kinder Surprise egg is far less satisfying nowadays than it used to be back in the 1990s. Okay, those in agreement might be showing their age, but the reason for this isn’t

An email sent to me by reader Rob Lightbody provides an ideal starting point for this final report and ties in nicely with the mission statement for our long-term test car displayed above. “As the own