If you’re anything like me, the idea of having an entire day to drive some of the latest new cars available on the UK’s roads would be a mouth-watering prospect.
Luckily, it was that prospect that I experienced earlier this week when I went down to SMMT’s annual test day at Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire.
On test were cars from almost every major manufacturer from the likes of Skoda, VW, BMW, Mercedes, Alpine, Renault, Honda, Ford, Smart. It was an opportunity for some of the journalists to get a refresher on cars they hadn’t driven in a while, or for others like me, an opportunity to learn cars in a controlled environment.
Although a lot of cars nowadays are criticised for either sounding the same, looking the same or driving the same. However, when you attend an event like the one put on by SMMT, you are reminded the opposite is the case. It was with that in mind that I dove in with multiple questions and the excitement of many answers.
One of those questions was ‘What sort of car can you buy for £43,000?’ A bit of a niche question sure, but it was informed by the fact that last year Auto Express reported the average price of a new car in the UK was around £42,000. With that information, I took three very different cars with a base price either at or below that number, and took them for a spin.
BMW 1 Series
The first contender to enter the ring was the latest BMW 1 Series. Whilst the one I tested was specified up to £42,000, the base price for the car was just over £31,000, so well within our ruleset.
The 1 Series is a family hatchback, it has space for five, a big boot, and BMW’s latest interior technology. The one I drove had a lot of extras on it, so it felt plush and comfortable inside with plenty of support from the seats and lots on offer in the central driver information display.
There wasn’t too much understeer as I took the 1 Series onto Millbrook’s alpine handling course and the tyres held on well through the course’s bumps, undulations, and twists. However, the distinct lack of any steering feeling combined with the incredibly thick steering wheel did make one feel they were left guessing what the four corners were doing.
This isn’t a problem solely found in BMWs, a lot of modern cars I’ve driven have a steering sensation seemingly tuned out of them to make their models easier to drive etc. So BMW can’t be attacked too hard for following a market trend; it’s just my ‘ick’ with modern driving, if you will.
Christopher’s rating for the BMW 1 Series: 7/10
Ford Explorer SUV
While the BMW sits prettily in the hatchback corner of the automotive universe, in the red corner is Ford’s electric Explorer SUV. Just like the BMW and contender number three, prices start from around £40,000 for the cheapest models before rising inexorably if one decides to add options into the mix.
The reason why we chose an SUV was because, given how popular they are, it would have been wrong not to drive one, especially one with an electric motor rather than a petrol or diesel engine. Range of course depends on what battery size you go for, so the bigger the battery the further you can go.
As with most large cars, it was capacious and comfortable inside and out. Very much a family affair, the Explorer would easily be able to swallow all the kit and kaboodle a family might very feasibly throw at it. What’s more, Ford has followed another market trend of having a touch screen in the middle of the car, one which is relatively easy to use.
Things aren’t all sweetness and light however. Just like the BMW, I took the Ford on the alpine handling course, with the obvious caveat being that an electric SUV is far less likely to be as fun as a lower riding petrol hatchback. And it wasn’t, but it still rode very flat and the platform wasn’t unduly unsettled by the ever tightening corners and close armcos.
One area which was quite disappointing was the lack of support from the seats which meant if one cornered too enthusiastically, there was a risk of sliding out of them.
I know SUVs aren’t meant to handle like super cars, but given the momentum even modest speeds can generate, their seats should at least feel like they’re holding you in place. Returning the Ford, I felt that while this was definitely a low note, in most driving situations, this probably wouldn’t feel like much of a problem.
Christopher’s rating for the Ford Explorer: 6/10
Mazda MX5 (with a difference)
What certainly wasn’t a problem was the variety of cars on offer for the eager peddler at SMMT and I have to admit my eye was caught by a Mazda MX5. The MX5 has been around for 40 years now and it is the darling of the British second hand car world because they are cheap to buy, brilliant to drive, and easy to work on and modify.
A British company called Rocketeer Cars has taken it upon themselves to give the British B-road favourite the restomod treatment. A restomod is what happens when you take an old car and give it new parts to make it handle better, go faster, or make it more reliable. The Rocketeer MX5 does all three.
Gone is the four cylinder unit and in its place is a Porsche-Cosworth developed V6 that develops just under 300bhp through a five-speed manual gearbox. As it’s a restomod, prices can vary depending on whether you want to build it yourself or have the Rocketeer team do it for you. While the exact cost of this Mazda is hard to determine given the modifications, they can sell for around £40,000.
I have to admit I’m a massive fan of restomods and so the MX5 was the first car I jumped into. And the fact it is a convertible meant I could enjoy the V6 engine so much more; I even told my co-driver it sounded like a Jaguar E-Type.
Although it wasn’t the most practical car of the three I’ve reviewed for this article, it is probably the one I would pick for the very reason that cars are not like washing machines, they’re deeper than that. Cars may be pieces of metal, plastic, and carbon fibre put together, but they’re pieces of art as well.
We need cars like the BMW and Ford, machines fit for day-to-day purposes, but we also need cars like the Rocketeer MX5 too, moments to remind the car world, just like the human world, that we can let our hair down and dance.
Christopher’s rating for the Mazda MX5: 8/10