The Green R-EVOLUTION Is Upon Us - EVOLUTION Scotland 2016 Round Up

Visitors to the RHC were greeted by hindsight in the
form of the original Honda Insight.

This year’s EVOLUTION Motor Show, the third held at Ingliston, drew in more people than ever before – and it’s not difficult to see why, with the wealth of progressive metal on show from mainstream manufacturers and smaller-scale independent companies alike. All were focused on breaking down outdated stereotypes about so-called ‘eco-cars’, EVs, and other progressive powertrains, in the pursuit of ultimate efficiency. 

Fiat group impressed once again with their offering, bringing a wide range of cars, each of which with it’s own green tech. Their Fiat 500 and Panda both sported different flavours of TwinAir engine, a small capacity petrol unit turbocharged to increase both power and efficiency in different driving scenarios.  Supremely characterful, this is an engine that loves to be revved. 

Also on show and available to drive, was the Alfa Romeo Giulietta with the company’s JTDM engine, putting out 120hp and returning impressive economy figures of up to 74mpg. Figures like these may not entirely stir the soul the way Alfa Romeos should, but if ever there’s a place where red leather should be fitted in a steely grey car, as in the case of this one, then it’s in a Giulietta. ‘Nuff said.

The mighty Panda Cross was more character than car.

From Fiat’s American wing, Chrysler, came the Jeep Renegade and Grand Cherokee, the later proving a stout and refined contender in the luxury SUV sector, with comfortable leather teamed excellently with rugged useability throughout the cabin and a smooth, 200bhp 2.2 Diesel engine providing waves of power and torque.

Renault arguably had the most varied selection of cars on show, drawing crowds with the nifty Twizy electric car. Closer to a motorbike than a car in a lot of ways (with a notable exception being the two extra wheels), the Twizy aims to solve the issue of inner-city streets clogged with swollen diesels all vying for the same limited parking spaces by being as minimalist as possible. Keep an eye out for our review of this head-turner.

'Look at me, look at me!'
-Twizy, 2016

 

At the other end of the scale, the company’s recently launched Kadjar crossover was on show, which draws on the company’s relationship with Nissan, yet manages to retain a character all of it’s own, adding some French flair to the tough-yet-sleek lines of it’s Japanese counterpart, the Qashqai.

Not to be outdone on the greener side of things, Renault also brought along Zoe, sister car to the popular Nissan Leaf EV. With a serene cabin and near-silent running, it demonstrates the levels of refinement on offer to the EV motorist whilst providing the practicality of a mid-sized hatchback car. 

Toyota had a raft of hybrids on show, alongside their Mirai concept, which shows off their idea of what a mass-produced, hydrogen powered car would be like. Clearly building upon the familiar lines of the Prius, the Miraii shows that hydrogen motoring isn’t as far away as we think.

The absence of diesels from the Toyota lineup is notable, with the Japanese manufacturer and their premium brand, Lexus choosing to focus on petrol/hybrid drivetrains as they aim to drop the average emissions across all their cars to under 70g/km.

The Miraii hints that a Hydrogen future
may not be as far away as we think

This meant that everything they borught to the Royal Highland Centre at the weekend, from Prius and Rav 4, to the littlest Lexus CT 200h, and the big luxo-barges of the IS 300 h and RX series SUVs that were on show was endowed with some kind of hybrid technology. An interesting direction to take, for sure, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on how things progress. 

Jaguar brought along their XE and XF (the preview of the former can be found here) for eager drivers to get behind the wheel of, both sporting the company’s new Ingenium 2.0 diesel engine, presented here in its 160bhp, 280 lb-ft form. Impressively, CO2 emissions for this power point in the XE come in below the 100g/km-mark, and a still-quite-remarkable 104g/km in the larger XF. 

The JLR stand, in 'stealth mode'

On display at the JLR stand was a heavily blacked-out F-Pace, presented alongside a similarly stealthy Range Rover Evoque in the show hall. I wasn’t sure how the F-Pace SUV would wear the family lines of the F-Type in the metal, but I’m pleased to report it’s an altogether handsome, sleek beast, easily comparable to the Porsche Cayenne - and I mean that in a good way.

The baby Range Rover was joined by its cousin, the Land Rover Discovery Sport, which proved itself to be a commanding vehicle, and very smooth on tarmac. Plenty of glass lends a light air to the cabin, something the more upmarket Evoque has to do without.

A Kouple of the Kias at Ingliston on Saturday

Keen to impress were Kia, who brought along a cross-section of their range, spanning the terrified-looking Sportage, the nifty Pro-Cee'd, the Optima -which has the Mondeo firmly in it’s sights - and their own interpretation of what an EV should be, the Soul EV. I was very impressed with the electric Soul, it’s useful, quoted 130-mile-plus range lending it perfect to commuting, while the wide apertures and vast tailgate tick many practicality boxes.

We can’t talk about EVOLUTION without mentioning the stunning BMW i8, which once again proved itself the darling of the show, with queues for drives just about out the door and tensions running high between excited plug-in fans waiting their turn. This purified expression of what a plug-in-hybrid sportscar can be has its sharp and focussed nose pointed straight at the future. McMotors took a closer look at the i8 and it's sister, the i3, after they delighted the crowds at last year's EVOLUTION. Check that out here.

The ever popular i8 in a brief moment of rest at the show

BMW also took the opportunity to show off its hybrid tech in the X5, bringing PHEV ability to it’s op of the range SUV. This may seem like a strange choice of vehicle for pioneering green technology, but when you take into account that it has a CO2 figure of just 77g/km, you realise this may not be such an odd thing after all.

Ludicrous mode proved ludicrously popular

The car which seemed to do the most laps of the track, though, was the remarkable Tesla Model S, which I experienced not long before the EVOLUTION show. You can read about my experience of Elon Musk's super-EV, not to mention what it did to my spine, here.

All of this, and a lot more besides (too much to fit into one post!) was available for the all to see and try up-close, at the EVOLUTION Motor Show at Ingliston this year, and, if things carry on this way, there’ll be a lot more again next year. Record interest in the cars on show, plus the amount of effort and enthusiasm put in by car manufacturers across the globe prove that the wheels of the green revolution are very much in motion.

  
We’ll have more in-depth features and reviews of some of the cars from the  show in the coming weeks. 

Let us know what your highlights of EVOLUTION 2016 were @Jack_McMotors on Twitter.

Oodles Of Character But Nowhere To Put It - Abarth 595 Road Test

Abarth have been warming up various Fiats since the 50s. With a refreshed 500 having hit UK roads back in September, what does the future hold for Fiat's sportier small cars? To find out I thought I'd pop in on some of the current models in the Italian stalwart's tuning arm's roster.

A 595 Yamaha Factory Racing which was hiding the day I went to drive it

I had hoped to get my hands on a Yamaha Factory Racing special edition Abarth 595, launched to celebrate Abarth's ties to the FIM MotoGP Championship, which comes with the 160bhp iteration of the gutsy 1.4 T-Jet engine, uprated suspension and a Record Monza exhaust system which promises to be very loud.

Sadly, there were no YFR-edition cars available on the day of my test, so instead I hopped behind the wheel of a 'normal' 595 with the 140bhp engine to get to grips with. The standard 595 is no slouch however, still managing a 0-62 time of 7.6 seconds. It doesn't take a lot of power to move this car around, weighing only just over 1,000kg.

The car I did drive was still a delight

The seating position is unusually high for such a small car, something I've noted in both the Abarth and the standard 500. I can foresee this becoming an issue for passengers who regularly suffer motion sickness, the raised seating combining with the car's sharp handling to give potentially disastrous results. The pedal box, too, seems to be situated at an unusual angle to the seat, and, particularly in stop-start driving, the angle at which I was pointing my foot in order to operate both the brake and the accelerator became quite a strain.

Once seated, the amount of premium touches the car has been dressed with become apparent - first and foremost being the chunky leather, flat-bottomed steering wheel. This lends a very big-car feel to what is undeniably a very small car.

The sports wheel is to the regular 500s steering wheel like what eating a Yorkie feels like after a Galaxy Ripple

Looking through the wheel, the retro dials have been replaced by an all-new TFT display, which displays information about the car - from the usual revs and speed, to g-force indicators and something called an 'Eco Index' - more on that later.

The digital dials are a welcome distraction from some of the other elements in the cabin. Retro dash trim aside, in between the garnish of new tech a lot of this car is still very recognisable as carry-over from the car the Abarth is (distantly) based on - the previous-generation Fiat Panda.

Nice premium garnish over basic underpinnings inside

Turning the key, it would be easy to forget that the teeny bonnet hides just a 1.4 as the burble from the exhaust combines with the chunky wheel to add to the illusion of 'bigness'. Elbows out driving it is.

Burbling my way into early-afternoon Edinburgh sunshine, it wasn't long before my fingers were drawn to the 'Sport' button. This announced my arrival to the roads of Leith, with the exhaust barking and spitting it's way through the Shore. Sport mode also sharpens the throttle response, making the tiny Abarth like a poison-tipped dart, slicing it's way into the smallest of gaps with incredible precision.

As expected with an Italian car, revs are required to make the most of this in-town gap-grabbing prowess. At low speeds, before the turbo kicks in, the engine can feel quite slow on the uptake. The firmer suspension and heavier steering add to a pay off that lead to me turning sport mode off in town - though on better maintained roads this would be less of an issue. With a car as small as the 595, it feels like it could easily be lost down one of the many potholes that litter the landscape around the north edges of Edinburgh.

As the roads opened out towards the west I re-engaged sport, taking a moment to admire the turbo dial jutting from the dash top. This takes on a red hue in sport, a trick car companies have been using for a while now to emphasise their cars' Jekyll and Hyde sporting potential.

The 595 is a very Jekyll and Hyde car: around town it can be comfortable, compliant and even economical; but push that little button by the air-con and suddenly it pops and cracks and snaps at the heels of the Astra in front which has been hogging the outside lane on the bypass for the last mile.

The car doesn't settle well in Sport mode, and the infectious bite to the controls was turning me into a crazed lunatic, unable to settle myself. Popping back into normal mode on the bypass, I noted through exuberant driving, I'd been afforded an ' Eco Index' score of 2.5 out of a possible. Dr. Jekyll was displeased with my right foot. Settling into a cruise, it wasn't long before the digital dial crept back up to hover around 5.

Returning the keys of the Abarth, I felt a slight lump in my throat. Ominously, there will be no Sat Nav integration into the new screens, and whisperings from Turin seem to hint that Abarth will not be working their magic on the new-edition Fiat 500, instead making way for a fast version of the imminent 124 Spider, which will go on sale later this year.

Whilst a base-spec Abarth 595 undercuts gutsier competitors like the Fiesta ST and Mini Cooper S, to get close to their levels of performance in the Italian car you need to spend a lot more and opt for the 180bhp Competizione spec car. Either of those rivals would do very well to best the tiny Abarth on character though, something that the 595 has in larger quantities than could be squeezed into it's miniscule boot. (I'm assured roof bars are available.)

Tiny boot left after space taken up by oodles of character and fun