Articles by Paul Pottinger

Audi A3 1.8 Ambition and Mercedes-Benz A200 go head-to-head in this comparative review. 

A feeling of warmth pervades the very middle of the small car class. Barely discernible at the year's outset, the sensation spreads slowly but surely.We speak of the warm hatch - a sub-species to be found pretty much at the mid-point between the $19K economy five-door and the $40K hottie, a la Volkswagen's Golf GTI. As yet there's not a lot of competition in this league - the three you see under “rivals” are almost the field - but the return of a badge to which boy racers once aspired is a sure sign that the game's afoot in the middle ground.The SSS is, for those of a certain age, synonymous with a hatch less ordinary. Discontinued in 2001, it was the model that informed then big-car-loving ‘Strayans that a small car could come with a satisfying serving of performance and a soupcon of fun without being a Subaru Impreza.It's to the middle way that the revived SSS returns, with a slightly lesser ST-S variant to keep the price nicer.Nissan's new hatch range starts from a cheeky $18,990 for the ST manual, a symbolic but meaningless $500 under the far better equipped entry Cruze.ST-S is a new model name, one that includes all the bits found in the mid-grade ST-L but with the turbo engine of the SSS. At $24,490, this is in almost every respect a direct rival for the Cruze SRi, with the expected step above entry kit including front fog lights, rear spoiler, small colour display plus 17-inch alloys and auto adds $2500.From $29,240, the SSS cops intelligent xenon lights, front spoiler and skirts, bigger screen with satnav, rear-view camera with distance guidelines, leather trim and keyless entry and go. This is a shade north of the SRi-V version of the Cruze but the latter lacks satnav, so the triple-S makes the running in this still new terrain.Direct fuel injected four-cylinder turbo petrol engines are de rigueur in European cars, driven by the push to lower emissions. It's been long acknowledged in that part of the planet that a 1.6 or even 1.4 turbo engine can out pull a much bigger and heavier naturally aspirated engine while returning far superior economy.It's a rule that applies beyond affordable small cars. The entire engine line-up of BMW consists of direct injected turbo engines. Take the humble Falcon (please - someone take it): the four-cylinder direct injection Ecoboost loses nothing in performance to the ancient straight six while sipping and emitting far less. Yet among Japan’s makers, Nissan is almost alone in grasping let alone implementing this.This example of the species puts out a nice 140kW/240Nm, placing it firmly in the thick of the warm hatch milieu. Naturally a six-speed manual is the standard transmission but the Pulsar's auto option - uniquely in this sub-segment - is a continuously variable jobbie with manual presets.The Pulsar sedan, released earlier this year, is among the better selling small cars. You could be forgiven for being unaware of this, so utterly anonymous is its design. Possibly there have been cars of less inspiring appearance but the Nissan four-door is nigh on invisible.The hatchback, of which two milder versions are released this week in addition to the turbo twins, is going to be easier to find in a crowded carpark.It's very much of the moment stylised lights, sharp creases and high sill line, which does little for the little ones who want to see out of the back.That incremental price increase between grades - some $5000 between ST-S and SSS - is fair enough given the step up in quality. Still, this is no Audi, nor even a Golf - though at the moment that could be a good thing.But seriously, folks, you might get leather and bigger satnav screen in the SSS but you're not unaware that this is (like the Cruze SRi-V) a mildly embellished econo-car. Yet there's plenty of air in there. As it stands a smidge taller than most small cars, grown-ups won't hate being in the back.Pulsar's sedan was smashed into the wall by ANCAP earlier this year, earning the maximum five-star rating. The local crash test authority made particular mention of advanced seat belt reminders fitted to the front seats.“In the frontal offset crash test,” it found, “driver chest protection was acceptable and upper leg protection was marginal. Passenger chest and leg protection was acceptable. In the side impact crash test, driver chest protection was acceptable. Head protection in the side pole test was good.”So there you are.The legend grown in the telling? Or was it not much of a yarn in the first place? Who can remember? And who, today, cares?Suffice that on the road, the story of the resurrected SSS has been adapted for our times, a narrative of urban utility and family friendliness enlivened by a spicy B-road subplot.You can't say this otherwise worthy but unremarkable Thai-built small car has been transformed per se but it's certainly been enhanced. A modicum of suspension and damper tautening, and no more than that, abets a talented little engine that delivers torque almost immediately north of idle and keeps it coming hot and strong.This engine works in the city, where the need to work the manual shifter is largely removed, as well as on amusing stretches of road, where it nevertheless revs cleanly to 6000rpm without protest.It would have been informative to sample the CVT/turbo combo (none was available so we'll bring that to you soon) but for once it's not merely an auto hack's indulgence to extol a manual. Yes, fewer of you want to swap cogs for yourself, but if ever you've derived satisfaction from this simple but fulfilling act here's a manual well worth trying. A silken shift marries happily with this clutch's progressive take-up.Again though, this is about a nice warm feeling rather than stove hotness, and the SSS's notable body roll and comparative softness serve to arrest back-road banditry. These characteristics would be grievous faults in a GTI or Focus ST yet they serve here to inform the drive and make tolerable the ride.An unusually spacious car for its type seems to shrink around you when driven with intent, a neat trick and just the double act required.  Lesser in terms of kit and price, the ST-S loses nothing on the road. The Cruzes against which these Pulsars are positioned are that bit more adept and can be optioned with one of best six-speed autos around. The comparison awaits.You need no longer drop $40K for a fun-to-drive small car. The SSS and sibling confirm the arrival of the warm hatch, the car that comes in a family-sized serving with individual satisfaction.

Honda Accord V6L and Mazda 6 2.2 Atenza go head-to-head in this comparative review. 

The problem with the A3 has been not so much what it is as what it isn't. It's been too much of a Volkswagen Golf and not enough of an Audi. Still, if you're going to embark on badge engineering you could do no better than to base your compact hatch on the same platform as that of the Golf, especially the deliriously received new Mk VII.If you're going to call it an Audi and charge a bulging premium before the buyer so much as ticks an option box (of which there are not a few), it had better boast some pretty dramatic points of departure. Or so goes logical thought.Audi's new boss Andrew Doyle will tell you, however, an A3 punter simply doesn't consider a Golf. Imagine a Grange lover going in for Koonunga Hill. If you don't do plonk, imagine eschewing a long neck of Cooper's Pale Ale for a can of VB.It's not that the A3 is better than the Golf in a functional sense because it isn't. This time though, it's different enough. Besides - and this is kind of its point - you look better in an A3 at the golf club.VALUEThis A3 starts at a new low price. So does the Golf (less than $23K) but enough of that for now. The auto trend of the year is affordable, compact, prestige hatches. The A3 belatedly joins BMW's 1 Series, Benz's A-Class and the V40 Volvo at the $35K starting point. It's been out for ages - before the Golf, in fact. (Sorry - it just keeps cropping up.)In entry level Attraction trim, the kick-off sticker is $35,600 for the 1.4 petrol and $36,500 for the 1.6 diesel with its meagre 3.9L/100km. Ambition is the top level before quattro and S models arrive later in the year. Starting price for both 1.8 petrol and 2.0-litre diesel is $42,500.All are decently equipped but Audis are built as essentially blank canvases to be coloured with options. There are no less than six bundles of these, Assistance package being the least expensive at $1800 for adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and high beam assist, which dips the lights automatically as a vehicle approaches.For $2K more a Style package adds xenon lamps with daytime running lights and 17-inch alloys to Attraction variants. The Ambition version of that gives you the lights, 18s, sports suspension and 15mm lower ride. A Technik pack hits you for $2990 and adds navigation system with touchpad, seven-inch monitor and park assist with rear view camera.Had enough? Then chill with the Comfort kit, a $2200 ask for electrically adjustable and heated front seats with lumbar support, keyless go, auto dimming rear vision mirror and folding exterior mirrors with kerb view.Ambition owners can also chuck $4200 at the S line pack, which adds some of the above to 18s and go-fast-looking bits. These are largely superficial but it's almost necessary to add some - any - visual flair. Dual-clutch auto transmission is standard on all models. You want a manual? Really? It's special order - a free option no one will take.TECHNOLOGYHere's where the Audi begins to depart from its sister model. You begin to suspect you're in a good thing when, without prompting, a senior executive of another German car company starts praising the A3 for its use of aluminium to save weight. This model is up to 85kg lighter than the one previous with commensurate savings in fuel.If CarsGuide can at times appear infatuated with small and uber-efficient German turbo engines it's only because we are. Especially those that run on petrol. So sharp have these become that the economy advantage of turbo diesels - which is in any case largely denuded in urban traffic - is ever more slight. Generally it's a matter of about 1.0L/100km.Of the four VW Group engines in the starting line-up, the one unique to the A3 (oh, and Skoda's new Octavia) is the 1.8 TFSI, which CarsGuide drove earlier this month. No doubt capable of greater outputs than its 132kW/250Nm, this is nevertheless enough for a 0-100km/h sprint approaching that of a hot hatch - 7.3 seconds isn't much outside a MkV Golf (whoops) GTI. Its 5.6L/100km, however, would keep the A3 going long after the latter had dried up.Whether you call them S tronic, DSG or Fred Smith, the shift quality of twin-clutch automatics varies wildly between not just model lines but different cars. Audi's have as a rule been among the nicer to live with but they still frustrate those of us who believe the left foot is for braking. If you're not careful to lift clear of the stop pedal before pressing the accelerator, the throttle is electronically cut and an agonising pause can result - often just when this is least desirable.DESIGNThe car you see here is the new A3. No, really. Look again. All right, look closer. Understandably Audi has gone for design continuity, wishing to create from this still fairly recent model line the dynastic sense of, um .th.th. the Golf. This aspect of the brief just might have been taken too seriously, because if you can on first glance distinguish the new one from the 2005 model, I'd like the number of your optometrist.Our test car was of a dull grey hue. We used images of the red 90 TFSI, because these are not adjacent to invisible. Of course there are differences between old and new. For instance, the standard alloys are not as ugly as those previous.Open any of the Ambition's doors and the generational change becomes obvious, especially (but not only) up front. Not as overt as Benz's A250, this is still one of the inside stories of the year, a compacted but not diluted take on one of Audi's bigger luxury devices, such as the $80K A6.In S and special-edition variants, this interior will doubtless be embellished with coloured stitching and such-like, but not I hope to a distracting extent. The feature here is the four big circular air nozzles. As simple, functional and pleasing as these appear, they contain more than 30 separate parts, which reflects either over-engineering or pig-headed perfectionism.SAFETYPremium active safety technology is optional. To a land where the overtaking lane is for cruising below the limit and car makers might as well save themselves the cost of including indicator stalks, comes Audi's side assist.At 30km/h and above, two radar sensors in the rear monitor the area to the side of and behind to some 70 metres. If it detects activity in the blind spot or approaching it at pace to imperil a lane change, it flashes a warning in the relevant side mirror. If you are among the rare breed to activate the indicator, it blinks brightly and rapidly.DRIVINGPreviously Audi was apt to so stiffen its less able cars that they both rode and handled poorly. New platforms, lighter engines and the realisation that alert dynamics needn't mean busting your fillings have come to prevail.Even with its sporty embellishment the ride/handling character of our 1.8 TFSI is more in keeping with that of a compact grand tourer than a hellfire hatch.The steering still isn't sufficiently well-weighted for full-on apex hunting and after nearly 400km I still found myself readjusting through longer corners. It never conveys enough information as to what the front end is doing. There's a sense that more than a little is being kept in reserve for the overt variants, which arrive in coming months.Not that it lacks for straight-line pull. All of the 1.8's grunt arrives at 1200rpm and hangs in there until 5800rpm. It's difficult not to be in the fat of the range, the auto kicking down smartly for overtaking. The GT motif is emphasised by refinement not always or even often found in a small hatchback, especially not in the back.VERDICTIf you want $80K Audi refinement and luxury in a $50K five-door, here it is.Audi A3 Sportback 1.8 TFSIPrice: from $42,500 ($49,940 as tested)Warranty: 3 years/unlimitedCapped servicing: NoService Interval: 12 months/15,000kmResale: 58 per centSafety: 5 starsEngine: 1.8-litre 4-cyl turbo petrol; 132kW/250NmTransmission: 7-speed twin clutch auto; FWDThirst: 5.6L/100kmDimensions: 4.3m (L); 1.78m (w); 1.4 (H)Weight: 1280kg (unladen)Spare: space saver

Yes, that's right. The car you buy in 2020 might not be the world's best, it may cost less than one tenth of the least expensive S-Class, but it will include features that debut in the "world's best car" as the new S is inevitably described. But when you've exposed yourself as much in public as this new generation ultra-luxury car, can there be much left to reveal? Since late last year there have been no less than four minor revelations of the car that every seven years sets the benchmark for ultra-luxury motoring. It's also the one that by dint of its inevitably new array of technology and features shows the rest of us what can be expected in "real world" cars. It's all been rather too like Moses descending from the mount and revealing the commandments in a five part serial. Even now no non-Benz person has driven the S-Class except on a simulator. The climax to the saga comes in the first week of July (which Carsguide will bring you from Portugal). So far we've had the revelations of the lighting system (500 blazing LEDs and not a single bulb), safety systems (including a degree of autonomous driving since made available in the E-Class); the interior (including a workshop on the various perfumes it emits on demand). This week, sans car bra and obscuring lighting, we see the whole thing. That even this was precipitated by the leaking of full brochures did not deter hundreds of media from all continents and dozens of countries (the most numerous of whom were, tellingly for the luxury car market, Chinese). Yet if not quite so momentous as an Old Testament episode, the lessons in a new S-Class resonate in the lives of everyone who will buy a new car in the next decade. In previous generations, Benz's flagship has pioneered such staples as airbags, central locking, anti-lock brakes, electronic stability program - the latter finally about to become mandatory across the country. On sale locally from late August with stickers ranging from some $220,000 for the entry variant up to almost $500,000, the S-Class is not only priced at the level of a (very) small flat, it is more inhabitable than most. The driver sees two screens, one displaying digitally speed and revs, the other multimedia and sat nav. The back two passengers (this is a massive four seater) have their own screens built into the rear of the front headrests. The chauffeur needn't wear gloves - the bespoke two spoke steering wheel is heated. The passengers can stick to short sleeves - the armrests too are heated. The climate control of your 2020 car will likely emulate the S-Class's two filter Thermotronic system which includes an ionising system to repel airborne germs and spores. Less likely to be emulated in your my future car is the plastics, or rather the absence of them. The stunning clarity of the Burmeister stereo has to be heard to be believed - you'll waste doof doof boys at the traffic lights for volume and pace. If you are intent on living in the thing, the long-wheelbase models can be optioned with seats that recline almost 44 degrees, the most of any car. A further option administers stimulating massages. Yet another option houses two bottles in the rear centre console to chill the Krug. As it's apparently mandatory to drive with vast styrofoam cups of coffee, the cupholders can chill or heat. A safety feature you can bet on devolving to everyday cars is seatbelts with integrated airbags. No excuse for not buckling up when seatbelt holsters rise automatically to accommodate the buckle. But as S-Class project spokesman Johannes Reifenrath tells Carsguide, the most profound change is in engines that drive them and the means by which carmakers are so vilified and taxed by government. The S400 Hybrid will use 4.4L/100km in diesel and emit 115 grams of Co2 per km. This is a two tonne limo remember, yet it runs cleaner than almost any car on sale in Australia. It's not yet certified for our part of the world, but Benz spokesman David McCarthy says: "If it is, we'll take it." And while there's the traditional V8 variant, its comparative thirst is further ameliorated by the S350 BlueTEC's 5.5l/100km - still way better than almost any small hatchback. "When we got to work seriously on this project in 2006, even I did not imagine this would be possible, 115g, not in the S-Class,"  Reifenrath says. "Because we see them constantly, because they are so central to our lives, car use is attacked by politicians. "But traffic is the cause of 17 per cent of emissions in the world, much less than industry, much less than heating. If everyone progressed as rapidly as the auto industry in terms of reducing its impact." Best car in the world or not, close to a quarter of the S-Class sticker price is luxury car tax.  

With two fewer doors and one less seat than the sedan on which it's based, the E Class coupe or cabriolet is always more about subjective choice than sensible decision.With the new (or at least massively revised) range, however there are seriously sound reasons to sacrifice the grimly practical for the madly stylish. For the first time in relevant history the E Class coupe starts under $80,000 and the cabrio for less than $90K.Here in August, two months after the new E sedan and wagon, all two door variants now represent better value. And, without being at all subjective, whether its lid is nailed on or droppable, it looks cooler.VALUEIt's slightly disconcerting to realise the lack of real rivals for this long standing line of grand tourer. Only Audi with its A5/S5 range can match each variant, but while the merits of these vary wildly, all are notable for lacking a Tristar emblem. And now it's the perceptibly less desirable marque that wants for value.The entry Es, on the other hand, want for little. It is only the 10 grand extra on top of the coupe's $79,900 sticker for the cabrio that seems a little rich.Both entrants, hard and soft top, run the wholly adequate 2.0-litre turbo petrol four, ride on 18-inch alloys and come standard with COMAND multi-media system with reversing camera, blind spot indicator and leather.It's the whole package, one likely to draw first timers to this lush part of  the Benz catalogue. Indeed this duo is priced in such a way as to have them leap over from C-Class or to not bother waiting for BMW's forthcoming 4 Series.Those returning to these pastures will gravitate to the E250, which in petrol form is $96,400 and $106,400. Only the 250 coupe comes also as a diesel ($98,900).No one wanted that scent and sound mingling with open air motoring, so the diesel cabrio goes. All 250s get 19-inch artwork for wheels, Drive Assist active safety package and LED lighting. At a price slightly down on the cars they replace, they are reckoned to contain some $15,000 in added value.No more V8. No need. The bi-turbo V6 of the E400 runs all of 0.1 second slower to 100km/h, much leaner and some $50,000 cheaper at $128,900 for the coupe and a cheeky $142,900 in the cabrio.Standard is digital radio (as hard to do without when you've become used to it as on demand cable TV) 360 degree camera and, in the coupe, full length sun roof. So do you really need to drop the extra on the drop top?Various option packages can be had, though rightfully only the top model should be seen sporting AMG kit - a $7100 ask that brings enhanced dynamics to match the visual bling. The cabrio's key addition remains Airscarf, which with the top down, blows warm air around your neck as the seat heaters send it to where the sun don't shine.TECHNOLOGYEven in its mildest E200 form the turbo four is mighty impressive. In full fat 155kW and 350Nm mode it consigns naturally breathing V6s to the dustbin. Only at 110 miles per hour, not our legal limit of 110km/h, does it begin to run out of accelerative puff. Not really an issue away from the open roads of the first world then.It's long way up, price and performance wise, to the E400. Scaling that dizzy height rewards with 245kW/480Nm, a 5.2 second 0-100kmh run time yet as little as 7.4L/100km in premium petrol use.Benz's seven speed autos are similarly hard to fault, especially this familiar torque converter unit, which suits the E250's grand touring remit better than the racier and more abrupt twin clutch of the A-Class and Benz's hotter models lines.All engines are turbo charged and all attain Euro 6 emission standards. The ultra low slung new CLA coupe is only Benz that punches through the air with less resistance.Selective damping and powertrain response are, like the shifting paddles, there because they're supposed to be. You could go many a moon without touching any of these.DESIGNA new, cleaner, meaner front end is about all there is to tell it externally from the 2009 vintage. But does it make a difference. LEDs and daytime running lamps ablaze, air vents agape, the two door E looks properly serious.Within the mildest application of chrome lifts an interior that verged on the funereal. Without singling Audi out for slapping, the perceived superiority of its interiors is now surely that - perception. A highlight is the cabrio's rear shelf, cooly colour matched to the exterior shade. It looks the goods in ice white.SAFETYThe boast that autonomous driving has become one step closer is not one some of us greet with joy. Apart from its implications for an already questionable standard of urban driver awareness, removing more responsibility from our shoulders seems not unlike removing someone's foot and saying they're a step away from being able bodied.That said, the so-called Intelligent Drive systems are sophistication embodied. Of these Distronic Plus with Steering Assist is possibly the best indication of the future. In typically sardined urban driving its sensors all but keep you in your own lane and can follow the vehicle in front.If somehow the immense battery of accident prevention devices fails you, or rather you fail them, the E-Class is rated a five star crasher.DRIVINGWhile the wares of BMW are being diluted by the brand's own uncertainty about what it is and who it's for, the E-Class is what it's always been. That is a grand tourer of loping rather than frantic pace, one that takes corners with wafting serenity rather than apex hunting eagerness.Nope, there's still not many more cosseting ways of getting across vast stretches of bitumen. On some of the few expanses of patchwork bitumen in northern Germany, the E250 cabrio pretty much canters in the unruffled way it does on the snooker table smooth autobahn, making light of its hefty 1765kg kerb weight.Want something more substantial under the bonnet? Well, you surely don't need it. This peach of a compact engine lacks only a nice note. Indeed, no soft top has any right to ride this quietly. Aside from almost ambient wind rush, it's pin drop silent. That's lid up.This Carsguide reporter's singular record of attracting rain when and wherever he's driven any sort of open top car makes him suspect he's a mass of positive ions. It poured. The top stayed up.The elements are not an issue in the coupe. Nor is much of anything, except the need for passengers to clamber into the back. A backseat, however, is what all other considerations take when the E400's exceptional bi-turbo V6 is front of you.What a thing it is, a lagless leaper off the mark, pouring on the torque with the least throttle opening, barely bothering to kick down a gear. Seldom will the right foot meet the floor. The note is nicely imitative of the V8 with which you'd no longer bother.If you're all interested in what's beneath the bonnet, this surging but refined powerplant is among world's best practice.VERDICTNo real rivals. If you want the refinement and effortless ability of the E-Class in a classy, cool shape (and who the hell doesn't?) it's never been better value.Mercedes-Benz E250 ConvertiblePrice: from $106,400Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo petrol; 155kW/350NmTransmission: 7-speed auto; RWDThirst: 6.2L/100kmMercedes-Benz E400 CoupePrice: $128,900Engine: 3.0 litre biturbo V6; 245kW/480NmTransmission: 7-speed auto; RWDThirst: 7.4L/100km

So frenetic is the pace of car innovation that you needn't be a Luddite to feel in need of stepping off this blurring, down-sizing, max efficiency, small engine/high output/low emission fight to the finish of fossil fuel era juggernaut. It's all a bit bewildering. Fortunately there remains Honda.Though it has long since euthanised most aberrant devices in its range - those rorty Integras and hairdresser friendly Preludes - Honda can be relied upon to produce the stately and refined sedan that is the Accord.The very name says volumes. While most makes move into alpha-númeric monikers, this ninth generation Accord perpetuates the detente suggested by the badge on its bum.As we clamber into SUVs and smaller cars as though compelled at bayonet point, there's nothing quite so automotively comfy and reassuring as the four doors of your forefathers.Honda likes them so well that it's going to continue from June 2 with this slightly larger new Accord alongside the ageing so-called Accord Euro, a new one of which arrives they know not when.VALUEAssailed by the GFC, stricken by a tsunami and monstered by Hyundai, Honda has descended from the badge you bought in order to be a cut above the other Japanese (I wonder if they'd still do gold badges?) to a cut-priced one.The Accord's sticker prices are competitive with its main and probably only real rival, the Mazda6. A $31,490 spend gets you into the VTi, with reverse camera, LED running lights and what's called active noise containment. Another $2500 and you add an S to that badge plus the lane watch system, 17 inch alloys, fog lights and bigger audio.Then it starts to get a bit optimistic at $41,990 for the VTi-L, the top spec four cylinder, with its 17s, leather, sunroof and ADAS safety package at another $3K. "A premium package without the premium price tag," Honda says of its top line V6L - except that $51,990 gets you a quite a few premium cars these days.The V6 has a six speed auto over the four cylinder car's five, cylinder deactivation to save fuel, power seats and some juicier fruit. All get an 8-inch multimedia screen, the top variants including satellite navigation with SUNA traffic alerts.Like Mazda, Honda want you to pay for a service every six months or 10,000km while almost everyone else - including the premium brands - do it annually or every 15,000km. Honda and Mazda are also holding out on capped price servicing or warranty beyond three years.TECHNOLOGYWhile it's possibly unfair to suggest Honda has been in self-induced stasis, the Accord runs on engines that don't disconcert with innovation. Small capacity, over-achieving turbo engines are ever more prevalent. Fuel saving direct injection is common or garden. But not here. The 2.4-litre four is claimed to be new but like the V6 that's been carried over for yet another generation, it would be familiar to a Honda buyer of a decade ago.There's the usual marginal improvements to economy (the V6 can de-activate three cylinders now, rather than four) and attempts to bring maximum torque closer to the floor than the ceiling where high revvin' Honda has traditionally put it. Yet neither four nor six return especially good consumption figures against those of the competition, which also run on basic 91RON unleaded. Except those that run on diesel, to which the Accord has no answer.The three four cylinder variants make do with a five speed automatic when six is standard practice and eight is the benchmark. The V6 gets the gears to match its cylinders but can do no better than 9.2L/100km in combined condition testing. Even the new Commodore does better.Yet while not cutting edge, it is effective on the road. And reassuringly familiar.DESIGNThis is the Accord's single most successful aspect, an obvious continuance of its long line but nicely sleek and aerodynamic with it. It also serves to remind that while any bugger can draw an elevated wagon on a napkin after a long lunch and claim it to be an exciting new compact crossover SUV concept, it's quite hard to design a decently proportioned yet functional sedan.The eye-catching newish Mazda6 might well be the item to swing punters back to four doors, just as the first one did 11 years ago. The Accord is less stylised and altogether better for it.The upmarket ambience that once attracted those who couldn't quite crack it for a German car is maintained through the two up spec variants Honda brought to the launch in Auckland, though the cabin materials have been selected for durability rather than tactility. Neither of the affordable variants were on show.All round visibility is as good as it gets in a modern sedan with its necessarily swept stance for smoother running and thick pillars stuffed with airbags. The boot isn't quite so cavernous as a Falcon or Commodore, but it does house a full size alloy spare wheel where ever more comparable cars skimp with a space saver.The SUV devotee might miss the elevated seating position, but a remedy can be sought in learning to drive.SAFETYStandard reversing camera immediately puts the Accord at the head of its class. I was in a $70K BMW 3 Series last week which makes do with graphic display and beeping noises. One of these systems helps save kids. It's not the latter.Indeed safety is not optional in the Accord. No crash test results yet, but as Chinese driveaway/chuck away jobs close in on four stars, we can be assured that the Accord will win the maximum five.The blindspot warning camera is a first for locally available cars. Activated by the indicator stalk it switches onscreen the view of the camera mounted in the passenger’s side wing mirrors. Again you're left wondering why Honda can bring this to a relatively affordable car while no premium brands that preens itself on safety can offer the like even as an option.A safety package including collision anticipating braking and seat belt tensioning is $3K extra on the VTi-L and standard on the V6 - which makes that variant's price seem a whole lot more palatable.DRIVING"Wait until you drive the car.""It makes more sense when you drive the car."So is the slightly beseeching refrain at the briefing. Pleasant to discover this isn't merely code for "please stop asking questions". Pleasant indeed is the operative word for the accomplished and refined sedan.While unimpressed to find the two variants everyone will buy are nowhere to be seen, the V6 which we try first on a long B-road run out of Auckland does indeed do what it says on the tin. A lush grand tourer, the big V6 is mostly constrained but occasionally musical unit that steps up smartly to keep overtaking exposures to the minimum. A free breathing output of 206kW/339Nm is readily summoned but in the main it runs with discretion thanks to the clever cylinder deactivation.Light steering and a heavy nose do not lend themselves to hustling along with any vigour, but again that's not the Accord remit. Crushing open road kilometres at a relaxed and comfortable pace is its thing.Stepping down 10 grand, two cylinders and whole lot of output, the VTi-S is bound to suffer by comparison, but not in the salient departments. All of V6's tactile stuff and most of the safety kit is to be found here and the lesser spend also means milder fuel consumption. It rides more absorbingly than the V6, but just don't try to get where you're going in a tearing hurry. The apparently new engine is even more about unhurried progress.VERDICTA good size comfortable sedan surely has its place, so if you think you need an SUV, try an Accord first. Be interesting to try the more affordable variants.

Hard to stand out in a small car these days, what with every second diminutive hatch or sedan in sight being a Mazda3 and almost everything else looking alike. Try, if you can be bothered, picking out a Pulsar or a Cruze while walking past a crowded carpark.Anyone with a few extra bob to drop on their shopping trolley is dropping it on a new Volkswagen Golf. And why wouldn't you? There's nary a choice from this overpopulated segment (of which some 250,000 will sell this year) that isn't utterly dependable, safe, sound and resoundingly dull.One of the exceptions, a car so marginal as to barely impinge upon the collective consciousness, is Alfa Romeo's Guilietta. For a hatch, a vehicle type defined by practicality, it's something of a perverse pleasure. The entry level 1.4-litre Gulietta has been re-labelled as the Distinctive. That it is.VALUEDespite a drastic and overdue price slice, the Alfa Romeo is still a bit overpriced at a little under $30,000 next to the new Golf. It's another $2000 to get an auto (one of the twin-clutch variety), which is standard on all Golfs bar the very base model. And that is not so very base despite starting about $6000 under the Alfa.Moreover, VW brings capped price servicing and a big dealer network. In terms of equipment, the Alfa hasn't much to boast of. And the resale will eviscerate you.Yet if you're straying in the direction of these few and far between showrooms, it's reasonable to assume you're less interested in litres per 100km than the way in which you get to 100km/h. While those who style themselves as Alfisti tend to be focussed firmly on the past, here's a contemporary car worthy of Alfa's hallowed heritage. Put what price you will on that.TECHNOLOGYAnyone who still somehow doubts small turbo charged engines are not where it's at -- that only capacity counts -- will be dragged into this decade by the Guilietta's 1.4 MultiAir four.The International Engine of 2010 combines turbocharging with direct fuel injection and a system that opens the engine's valves to the optimum. The result is an instantly tappable wave of torque, almost all of which occurs at barely above idle.That can be regulated by the DNA switch, which in Dynamic mode produces yet more torque. In addition to beefing up the steering feel, it's this setting you'll engage at almost all times. Normal mode is that in which the diesel-challenging fuel consumption figure was obtained, but then you're not in the market for a Prius are you?All this makes the bigger capacity but free-breathing petrol plants most Japanese carmakers persist with look like the relics they are. If the cost is paid in premium unleaded, the Alfa's breadth of talent is worth every cent. Standard is the Q2 electronic differential which vectors the power to the front wheel with the most traction. Like that clever little engine, it works so seamlessly you're scarcely aware of it.DESIGNYou won't find many functional objects with so much form. The trad Alfa cues shield grille, Milanese badge, offset license plate and hidden rear door handles individualise this five door. This base model lacks the presence of the top line Guilietta QV. Lowered suspension, bigger wheels and leather trim can be optioned if you really must.Venture within and you're reminded Italy is a country that has struggled to consistently mass produce a decent affordable car. Oh, don't bother writing in. You know it's true. The Guilietta's inside story is as doleful and drab as the exterior is evocative. Fit, finish, materials and ergonimics aren't good enough. A $19,000 Cruze has better plastics.SAFETYAlfa has not Volkswagen's remorseless reputation, but its safety package is every bit as sound. Five stars from Euro NCAP are one thing, but it's the active ability component that will save you from putting that to the test.DRIVINGEngage ignition. Select Dynamic mode. Find first gear. And be engaged. With the exception of Ford's Focus Sport, there's not a small car this side of hot hatch money that entertains to this degree. In any case, the Australian issue Ford for the moment lacks a turbo four to compete.As things stand the entry Guilietta is a better all round device than the near $40,000 QV. A second slower to 100k/h it may be (7.8 seconds in the manual) but its ride serves vastly better when getting quickly across the busted blacktop that passes for a B road in this country.While the heavier QV would be impacting hard the same ruts the Distinctive skims, it's also running out of puff. Though formidable down low, the QV's 1.75 turbo simply doesn't want to know after 5800rpm -- a frustratingly low, diesel-like ceiling. The ostensibly lesser car has meaningful power to impart on top of its torque. It's usefully more flexible and enjoyable, with a tastier engine note to boot.VERDICTHardly the soundest small car choice, but at least you've made a choice.Alfa Romeo Giulietta 1.4Price: from $29,350Warranty: 3 years/100,000kmResale: 46 per cent (Glass's Guide)Service interval: 12 months/15,000kmCapped servicing: NoSafety: 5 starsEngine: 1.4-litre turbo petrol; 125kW/230/250NmTransmission: 6-speed man or twin clutch auto; FWDThirst: 5.9/5.2L/100kmDimensions: 4.3m (L); 1.8m (w); 1.4 (h)Weight: 1290kgSpare: Space saver

The Pulsar ST hatchback is $18,990, or $1000 under both the recently released sedan and even its 1996 equivalent. It also undercuts by $500 Holden's base model Cruze.The four-model hatchback line-up includes the return of the SSS Pulsar, a local hero of the days before turbocharged champions such as Subaru's Impreza and the Golf GTI. The range-topping SSS is priced from $29,240 manual and $31,740 automatic.“It's a compelling balance of price and equipment in what is easily the most hotly contested new vehicle segment,” Nissan's Peter Fadeyev says.“We've worked very hard at providing the best value. The Pulsar has undergone extensive tuning for Australian conditions.”The ST and ST-L models are powered by the sedan's modest 96kW 1.8-litre four-cylinder petrol engine. The ST-S and SSS share a 140kW/240Nm 1.6-litre turbocharged direct-injection petrol engine.Standard fitment on all grades is a six-speed manual transmission. A constantly variable automatic is a $2500 option. The basic ST is more than decently equipped - better value than the Spartan entry level Toyota Corolla ($19,900) but a little less lustrous than the $19,490 Cruze Equipe.Its package includes 16-inch alloys, four-speaker audio, Bluetooth, cruise control and steering wheel-mounted audio controls. Starting from $22,490, the ST-L adds front fog lights, rear spoiler, two more speakers, 4.3-inch display and leather-accented steering wheel. The ST-S is a new grade, one that competes roughly with the turbocharged Cruze SRi, matching its 17-inch alloys.That puts the SSS in Cruze SRi-V and Opel Astra GTC terrain -- and it's equipped to that standard with xenon lights, body kit, 5.8-inch colour touchscreen with satnav, rear-view camera, leather-like trim and starter button. 

Toyota Corolla Ascent and Holden Cruze Equipe 1.8 go head-to-head in this comparative review.