Hyundai Veloster 1.6L Premium

The Veloster is all about the hip and trendy market and Hyundai is very sure this coupe's aggeressive design will punch a hole through that segment.

On looks alone, the Veloster certainly is different. On its own, it looks petite and compact but park another coupe or hatchback next to it and you suddenly realise it knows how to hide its sizeable proportions. The fact is, the Veloster is tallish and it can seat four adults comfortably.

Malaysians are a practical lot. We want something sporty but we also want doors at the back because somewhere deep in our cerebral cortex a car must be able to ferry five people even though there's no family in sight. Perhaps we are not alone in that, and that is why Hyundai decided to add a third door to a coupe. Thus, the Veloster was conceived.

Having that extra door makes the rear seats can fit in at the back. The only problem is the head is right  under the rear windscreen and, if it is not tinted, getting one's brain to melt under the hot sun is quite a possibility. Anyway, the Veloster takes in four, including the driver, because the rear holds two separate seats, not the usual three-person bench.

The boot is 320-litres big and has a flat floor, so here again Hyundai plays the practical card rather well. Fold down the 60/40 rear seat and this can be a really hot delivery machine.

The rest of the cabin is interesting too. The dashboard uses similar design architecture found in other new Hyundai cars, namely the Elantra and the Sonata. To cater to the desire for premium touches, you get a 7-inch touchscreen display unit on the dashboard, a steering wheel littered with buttons, a full auto air-con,Bluetooth hands-free and a Supervision instrument cluster which has a design explained by Hyundai as "dual-cylindered like the twin pipes of a motorbike exhaust". However,why anyone would want a pair of exhaust-like objects pointing directly at the face remains a mystery.

Anyway ,the 6-speed automatic gearbox is the one also used in Hyundai's other madels. That said, the automatic variant of the Veloster is not as zippy as the manual version but it is still quite fulfilling when you know how to squeeze more torque  from the engine. On the zig-zagging bits of trunk  road in the innards of Negeri Sembilan we were very impressed with its surefootedness but we would really applaud enthusiastically if the local Hyundai importer were to be a touch more adventurous and bring in the turbo engine. With the currently available 1.6L, the chassis is somewhat of an overkill.Bring in the turbo and we are pretty sure the petrol junkies will start singing the praises of kimchi.

Things we do not like? There are a few actually, like the lack of power once it hits the open road, and the iffy sound insulation. We think Hyundai can do better in both instances.

Range Rover Evoque 2.2L Diesel

The compact SUV genre is normally filled with soft-roaders which are SUV- like in stance and looks, albeit with an AWD system and jacked-up suspension plus some tough plastic bits that make them look like they are ready to challenge the worst trails of Tibet.

The truth is, most will not see a muddy trail in their lifetime, hence a 2WD variant makes more sense in Malaysia, or one that is capable of transferring torque to the approriate wheels when needed.

Or, you can ditch those ideas, pay close to RM400,000 and get a compact SUV that looks hotter than Neelofa,Nora Danish, Diana Danielle all rolled into one and the envy of everybody. Meaning, buy the Range Rover Evoque.

Coming in either coupe or a five-door guise, the Evoque is both practical and sexy. Unlike cars, throwing on another two doors does not detract from the Evoque's looks. With its short roof, long nose and blacked out roof pillar design (ala Mini perhaps?) it is difficult not to look at the Evoque twice.

The 5-door Evoque in Prestige trim gets an oil-burning 2.2-litre turbodiesel engine under the front aluminium hood. The 2.2 Duratorq inline-4 engine is used in various other vehicles around the world, notably too by Ford. In Malaysia, the new Ford Ranger T6 has a variant which runs on the same engine platform but performance-wise it's not even close to the Evoque.

Anyway,Prestige trim gives you tonnes of niceties. The list includes items like 20-inch alloy wheels, voice control, park assist, adaptive Xenon headlights, 5-inch TFT driver's info screen, 380-watt Meridian audio system, leather interior,navigation system,powered tailgate and much more. If you ask us, the reverse camera is a good investment because with such a smallish rear windscreen you would be lucky to even get some light into the cabin from that area.

The tapering roof shouldn't be a worry. Adults fit in comfortably at the back and since this is 5-door variant nobody has to squeeze in to get to their seat.

For the driver, the only initial problem is that the cabin can feel a bit claustophobic. Those short windows look stylish but they offer minimum glass area. Luckily, it is a nicely appointed space with comfort level knocking on European standards.

The Evoque looks athletic for a simple reason: it is athletic. Thanks in part to its aluminium body, the Evoque felt light, sharp and spirited. Steering feelback felt very car-like and diesel clatter could only be heard from outside the cabin.

Naturally, the Evoque is Range Rover at heart and remains offroad capable. If you must, the Evoque has a 500mm wading ability. In essence, the Evoque is an urban warrior, but it still has a four-wheel-drive system, and an intelligent one at that. The Terrain Response System can adjust to the terrain and conditions to offer the best traction possible. Leave it in normal mode and it gobbles up the tarmac and gives a very plush ride.

Seating for five, a 575-litre boot and a diesel engine that is both frugal and full of torque, the  Evoque has a lot to offer; in fact, it's enough to make a premium sedan sound boring.

Peugeot 2008

In the old days, we'd have been talking about a small estate car here. But the car world is all mashed up right now, and so- instead of recreating the 207 SW-Peugeot has decided to plump up the 208 to create the 2008. lt 'll fight for attention among Renault Capturs and Nissan Jukes in the increasingly busy small 'n' chunky crossover market.

Inside, it feels similar to a five - door 208, with the addition of a few centimetres of extra headroom for rear passengers. Outside, it measures just under five feet to the top of the roof bars, making it 65mm taller than a 208.The boot's pretty useful, and the floor is flush to the edge for easy loading. The rear seats fold completely flat, giving you room for a few bags of footballs.

The cabin layout is familiar, although there's a new handbrake (looks a bit like ET's head) and refreshed materials. Our car had coppery air-vent surrounds, a dash trimmed in what felt like hessian matting and seats covered in bronze fishnets. It's as if the designers spent hours in furniture stores, feeling up Nordic lampshades, wondering where similar effects might work in a car. But somehow it all comes together quite well, and on several occasions we found ourselves stroking the dashboard or running a finger around the vents.

If only the exterior were so appealing. The surfacing feels a bit plain, and it relies on tricks and fillers to disguise unflattering shapes. See the roofline? Instead of following a steady curve, it rears up above the B-pillar, like it does on a Skado Roomster. There's an attempt to hide this with chrome inserts above the rear doors, but even generous observers might call it forgettable, as if it's caught between old-school Pug ugly and the firm's future good looks, as shown by the new 308.

The biggest surprise is the way it gets down the road. This VTI weighs just 1,080kg, and it's not that tall, so there's not much slop. The 1.6-litre petrol-a less powerful, non-turbo version of the 208 GTi's- feels lively and smooth. The ride, on both 16s and 17s, is well-behaved. The steering has more weight and accuracy than a 208's. The 1.6-litre diesel- although strong-weighs 100kg more, most of which is over the front wheels.That's a decent whack of extra mass, and really feel the difference, whether it's over speed bumps or though the thick of a corner, where it has a tendency to drift a little wide.

The 2008 is FWD only, although pricier versions come with Grip Control, which uses electronics to divvy up the power across the front axle. Like a Range Rover, you can tell it what sort of surface you're on. Unlike a Range Rover, it will not fully defeat the landscape. Essentially, it's just an elaborate-although reasonably effective-traction control system....and a slightly unnecessary gesture towards its SUV aspirations.

Honda CR-Z CVT

These days many cars have a button that activates some of 'Sport' mode to spice things up a little and some cars with this nifty feature linger in our memories longer than most. For a certain Japanese  chap by the name of Norio Tomobe, the special one is the BMW Z4.

Why does Tomabe-san matter and what has the Bavarian brute that captured his heart have to do with any of this? Norio Tomabe is the Large Project Leader of the new CR-Z which looks pretty much unchanged from the previous one but is really a much transformed vehicle underneath. Thank to Tomabe's love of the Bimmer, we now have a sporty Honda Hybrid that's grittier than ever.

Apart from some minor nip and tuck to the exterior and new cabin upholstery, the new CR-Z offers very few clues that is an updated model.Nevertheless, the big changes are real and effective. For one, the new car boasts a secret weapon in its compart frame: a new lithium-ion battery that is both smaller and lighter than the previous nickel metal hydride unit. The new battery produces 44 per cent more voltage and power, and boosts the electric motor's output from 14bhp to 20bhp while returning an estimated extra 0.2km per litre.

The new hardware also shaves 0.7 seconds off the CR-Z's century sprint, with the new car doing 0-100 in nice seconds flat. Let's be honest, nice seconds is not exactly something to boast about nowadays but given Honda's grenn approach with the CR-Z's hybrid underpinnings it is still a sporty and fun car, even it is far from being a true sportscar.

This brings us to the new CR-Z's other secret weapon. The 'S'+ button.Tomobe-san enjoyed the Sports button in the Z4 so much that he made it a point for the new CR-Z to carry something similar. The original CR-Z had three driving modes, Sports,Normal and Econ.The new one has 'S'+ added to it. Where the Sports mode increases throttle response notably,Plus Sport mode goes one better by letting a momentary electric boost to kick in once activated via the steering-mounted button. The result: a sudden surge of electrically- induced torque and power. This is especially useful when the petrol engine starts playing an exhausted note. Indeed,it's a big kick. In Tomobe's words, engaging the Plus Sport mode while doing 100kmph will allow you to hit 180kmph in just seven seconds.Fun? Bet on it. We found absolutely no reason to doubt it after happily fiddling with the new button on a drive from Kuala Lumpur to Penang.

There's a slight catch. Because such a feature demands so much from the electric motor, it can only be activated if the battery is at least half full. It will switch off automatically once the driver eases off the throttle or once the battery runs out of juice. Like all hybrids, the battery will be recharged via either the alternator or regenerative braking.

While we are on the topicof hybrids and batteries, it is worth noting that despite it being a sports-inclined vehicle, we still managed to sqeeze out a healthy 15km per litre from the CR-Z.We achieved this by keeping the car in Econ mode most of the time and only resorted to the magic button for some extra oomph - which we did rather often. This proved more efficient than driving the CR-Z mainly in Sport mode.

The test unit came with a CVT gearbox. Naturally, the cheaper six- speed manual variant will prove more enticing to the proper petrolhead. However, the ease of operating one pedal less is raking in the bookings for Honda.This is because the CR-Z is still thoroughly enjoyable even in CVT guise. The automatic gear changes may lack excitement but are smooth and spot-on nonetheless while the dreaded rubberband effect is pleasantly non-existent. Additionally, gear  shifts are almost always more efficient with a CVT gearbox than human input, which translates to better fuel economy.

If there is one thing we remember vividly about the old CR-Z, it is its superb ride and handling. This is again apparent in the new model. The well-balanced chassis and nicely damped suspension make it a joy to chuck around the bends. We wished we had a stick shift for corner- infested roads to fully enjoy this trait. Nevertheless, the paddleshifts combined with the CVT to make things a little more bearable.

In its latest from, the CR-Z may carry a higher price tag but it does come with noticeable improvement, especially in the performance department. It is neither the most sensiblenhybrid nor the most serious driver's car around but it fits in well between both worlds,exposing the driver to the thrills of driving with its sterling ride and new Plus Sport system while offering the option to go green with its IMA hybrid setup.Who says you can't have it all?