Skip to main content

ads1

Vaux in the box

Ah, the great gap between concept and reality.
We rather liked the Vauxhall Antara concept that we saw a year-and-a-half ago - a swoopy, funky little SUV with coupe stylings.
Eighteen months on and this is what we get as a production model. A dull-as-daytime-TV soft-roader.

vauxhallvauxhall 2vauxhall 3Targeting the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV-4 - and impressively managing to be even more anodyne and unthreatening than either - the Antara is Vauxhall's first 4x4 since the Frontera died a little-mourned death in 2004.

Perhaps its most telling feature is what Vauxhall is calling Intelligent Four-Wheel Drive.

Basically it means that the Antara operates in two-wheel-drive mode for everyday, on-road use, and only switches to the full-four when it hits the slippery stuff.

Call us cynics, but we don't reckon that'll happen often in Bromley.

This half-baked four-wheel-drive system does at least have the benefit of decent economy.

The two-litre turbodiesel - yep, that's the top-of-the-range engine - returns 38mpg on the combined cycle, or for big thrills you could choose the 2.4-litre four-pot petrol unit.

The diesel comes with the option of a five-speed manual or auto gearbox, while you'll have to make do with the manual 'box if you specify the petrol engine.

Elsewhere, kit levels are pretty comprehensive with top spec 'SE' models getting, well, just about everything. Good thing too, as a range-topping Antara will set you back £27,695 when it arrives in July.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Nice vaux in the box post! Thanks for intesting info!

Popular posts from this blog

First Drive: 2008 Volkswagen Jetta TDI

Volkswagen’s 50-state-compliant Jetta TDI will be among the cleanest diesels in the U.S. Previews Amid the looming hordes of European luxury automakers planning a North American compression-ignition invasion in the next couple years, humble Volkswagen has announced its plans to return the Jetta TDI to the diesel dogpile in the spring of 2008. Powered by a new 2.0-liter four-cylinder making 140 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque, and either a six-speed manual or DSG automated manual transmission, the 2008 Jetta TDI will be cleared for sale in all fifty states. Some of the earlier diesels to make it to our shores over the next few years will only be available in 45 states; California, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, and Vermont have all adopted stricter emissions regulations for diesels that bar some vehicles from entry. Using technology developed under the BlueTec cooperative formed by Mercedes-Benz and Vo

smart fortwo, Unique Car Popularized in 'The Da Vinci Code' Movie, To Be Formally Introduced to Midwest by Windy City Smart Car

Models Displayed, May Be Driven at January 30 News Conference in Chicago Two smart fortwos smart fortwo, the popular, safe, environmentally superior automobile sold in 36 countries but not the U.S., is being formally introduced for the first time ever to Chicago and the Midwest on Tuesday, January 30 by independent distributor Windy City Smart Car and Smart Car Midwest, LLC, Palatine. Several models, including the smart fortwo Passion coupe and smart fortwo cabriolet convertible, will be unveiled at an 11:00 a.m. press conference at the film and television studios of Golan Productions, 1501 N. Magnolia (three blocks east of the Kennedy Expressway and a half block south of North Avenue). smart fortwo is featured in "The Da Vinci Code" motion picture. The car's introduction to Chicago comes a year or two ahead of smart fortwo's official entry into the U.S. The smart fortwo, a collaboration between Swatch and Mercedes, is made U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Dep

1937 Ford Sedan Dreamsicle OZE 37

(from Joe Iacono Design site) Taylor Custom Street Rods in Hamilton, OH. is building this 1937 Sedan for Mike Soto. The product formula is set up for a production based vehicle that is offered through SRBD. Body is the new Sedan model OZE body - Custom Chassis and fabrication by Tim Taylor- To learn more about this car and the details on the Sedan turn keys Please visit Taylor Custom Street Rods online! This car was featured both in 2005 and 2006 at the SEMA show in Las Vegas. (from Taylor Custom Street Rods site) TCSR built this 1937 OZE sedan for Mike Soto of Modesto, California. The car was designed by Joe Iacono of Iacono Design and paint colors were selected by Art Hensel. The team at TCSR started the project in mid August with hopes of introducing the car at the October SEMA show. With plenty of long nights the team achieved their goal and brought the car to the SEMA show. The car was displayed at the main entrance to the show, near the Buckaroo Communications booth. The car was