Ford Focus Estate 1.6 Duratec petrol manual Ti-VCT 125PS Titanium Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Mr.CarCoach.

Ford Focus Estate 1-6 petrol manual 125PS Titanium Ti-VCT road test review by Oliver Hammond - front 2

The first two generations of Ford Focus were both generally accepted as class-leading in the dynamics stakes and for providing great all-round propositions. With this third generation model, has the Focus just got even better? Kinetic Design that blows your mind? In recent years, Ford has harped on about its Kinetic Design ethos and to be honest, who can blame them, as the new Mondeo which debuted in that James Bond film looked amazing to many, me included – and Ford carried their success on with Read The Rest...

Vauxhall Astra GTC 1.6 Turbo SRi 180PS 3dr petrol Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Mr.CarCoach.

Vauxhall Astra GTC 1-6 Turbo SRi 180PS 3dr Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond - front photo 2

Don’t go thinking that this is just a 5-door Astra with two of its doors lopped off and a few sporty decorations bolted on here and there. The GTC is markedly different from the hatch whose name it shares. How did this range-topping 1.6 turbo SRi version stack up? A Chip Off The Old Block? Not that it would be a bad thing to be associated with the 5-door Astra hatchback, as it is itself a cracking car in many ways – Read The Rest...

2012 Kia Sportage 2.0 CRDi KX-2 AWD Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Mr.CarCoach.

Kia Sportage 2-0 CRDi KX-2 AWD road test review - side 01

What have the original Audi TT and the new Kia Sportage got in common? Answer – they share the same designer, Peter Schreyer, whose modern and stylish work is considerably responsible for Kia’s current surge in popularity. We’ve recently given the Kia Optima a massive thumbs-up and quite liked the Kia Soul. This time it’s the Kia Sportage which gets a going-over. If you can picture what the original Kia Sportage looks like, saying that the new one is leaps and bounds Read The Rest...

2012 Kia Soul Hunter 1.6 GDi Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond

Posted on April 5, 2012 by Mr.CarCoach.

Kia Soul Hunter 1-6 GDi petrol - Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond - side 06

Believe it or not, the funky little Kia Soul is now four years old, so Kia decided to give it a bit of a fettle and tweak for 2012. Living with a Kia Soul in ‘Hunter’ spec from their ‘Originals’ range for a week, was Oliver able to see why the Soul has become such a common sight on Britain’s roads? Looking somewhat like a cross between an alien, a robot and an insect from the front, with a boxy and utilitarian but Read The Rest...

Kia Optima 1.7 CRDi 2 Tech Road Test Review by Oliver Hammond

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Mr.CarCoach.

As the Kia Press Office and many on Twitter are aware, a Kia Optima was responsible for making me miss my motorway junction one night! As a car reviewer and motor industry chap, my eyes always hone in on newly-launched or rare cars. So you guessed it, when I spotted this, my first Optima out in the wild, I followed behind it to weigh up its rear looks, inadvertently missing my junction in the process. I knew I had a Read The Rest...