Description
The magazine is in good condition. It is a complete copy but shows moderate signs of age and wear, corner creases, or light surface wear. The photos show the exact item you will receive. Please review all pictures for full condition details. Combined shipping is available. Each issue ships in a protective plastic sleeve.
Table of Contents
5 AGENDA
The Rocket may look wacky, but it is a seminal supercar. Plus why the Germans can’t afford to be smug, and saying bye to hot metal
6 NEWS
Rover unveils the “new” MGB the mod, and is working on a new MG family. Plus BMW looks set to build a roadster in America, and continues to court Rolls-Royce. Plus scoop photos galore
18 INTERVIEW
Georgy Reitzle, BMW’s research and development director, on joint ventures with Mercedes, new engines and new cars
22 IN BRITAIN
Lotus, back in trouble after a brief period of success when the Elan was launched, is planning a Vauxhall-based Esprit successor
24 ORACLE
Georg Kacher, adopting his usual stance at motor shows (ear to the ground), reports on new model gossip from the recent Geneva Show
28 NEWCOMERS
Honda CRX Good but good page 28
BMW 730i/740i/740i Seven’s up in power page 34
Ford Escort 16V Better loaded but too old page 38
Porsche 968ers Power, little glory page 40
BMW 5-series Touring Estate of the art page 48
55 SIR!
Some flak and some support for our anti-company car rant. Plus the Golf’s stodgy, Saxo’s a dream, and one reader reckons journalists are like Richard Clayderman
61 SOAPBOX
A reader on an unusual alternative fuel: charcoal power, as used in buses in Vietnam
66 FRONTLINE
Off the buses, Bishop goes whizzing in a madcap microcar, Bulgin on Dr Palmer and Llewellin looks at hire bears as everyday transport
74 BLAST OFF
Gavin Green drives the Gordon Murray-designed Rocket. It’s even more special on the move than “Ayrton” has real significance
82 BEAUTY AND BEAST
The Griffith is not only the handsomest car that Blackpool’s TVR has produced – Fraser says it’s one of the most entertaining
90 WILL THERE EVER BE A BETTER MINI THAN THE MINI?
LJK Setright compares Fiat’s new Cinquecento, not yet on sale in Britain, with the very first Mini
98 SOLDIER OF FORTUNE
Our man Brett Fraser, Land Rover fan, buys an old army example at a military auction. If only he’d used some common sense
100 GIANT TEST: TRUMPED
The Corolla G6, one-time best coupe in its class, faces up to a brace of new Japanese challengers (MX-6 and Prelude) – and loses
108 WHEELS
Notes on cars we’ve driven recently, but not tested. This month: a new “green” Golf, a Mazda MX-5, a Fiesta 1.3SX and Suzuki Samurai
110 GENEVA SHOW: A CYNIC’S GUIDE
Ian Fraser, an expert at seeing beyond the sparkle, on the good, the bad and the awful at Europe’s most important annual motor show
114 MS TO AUSTRIA
Our resident Austrian, Georg Kacher, goes home for a bit of fatherland – driving the latest BMW M5, now boasting a bigger engine, more power, and bolder looks
122 GIVING IT STICK
Saab, the aircraft maker, has at last learned to steer controversies over by installing a new gear lever: by joystick, not wheel
124 LONG-TERM TEST: V-BOMBER
Our Audi V8 was unreliable, not especially good to drive, and depreciated fast
132 INSIDE LINE
Williams’ Patrick Head talks openly (and not always flatteringly) about Nigel Mansell
138 PRE-OWNED
James Ruppert, our used-car guru, on buying second-hand Fiat 500s and 126s
148 THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY
Car prices drop, thanks to that nice Mr Lamont. Yet surprise: some makes rise more than others
159 NUTS AND VOLTS
Setright on the art of hand-making prototypes, still important in the mass-production age
160 JUST CARS
Goodwin and Bremner, always able to sniff out a good story, on the charm of car smells