46 • The Sunday Times Magazine
Cars of
2022
Buyers are back and carmakers are sending
a host of new electric, petrol and hybrid
models our way. Nick Rufford takes his pick
W
hat a difference a year
makes. Last January car
dealers looked like they might
need life support as customers
put buying decisions on hold,
worried by the pandemic. Now
demand is exceeding supply
thanks to a rebound in consumer
confidence.
The appetite for luxury is back.
Aston Martin, Ferrari and
Mercedes are rolling out new
models and there’s a long-
awaited new Range Rover, albeit
very similar in looks to the old
one. Independent car companies
normally struggle in times like
these, but Ineos, owned by Sir
Jim Ratcliffe, is launching the
Grenadier, a challenger to Land
Rover. One of Britain’s richest
men, he just might have pockets
deep enough to take on the
established car industry.
There’s a new range of electric
cars too, all capable of covering
300 miles or more between
charges. No longer are they
glorified milk floats,
manufacturers claim, but sleek,
high-stamina machines that are
cheaper to run than their petrol
and diesel-powered equivalents.
The speed of the shake-up
that’s going on becomes clearwhen you consider that 2022
is forecast to be the year when
electric cars outsell diesels for
the first time in the UK. Some
firms, such as Hyundai, are
abandoning the development of
internal combustion engines as
they rapidly migrate to battery-
electric power, but supply
problems may get in the way.
Globally, new car production
slipped by ten million compared
with 2020 — more than a tenth
— due to silicon chip shortages
and factory shutdowns. Electric
cars are particularly affected.
Some carmakers have been
forced to abandon digital
dashboards and LED headlights
and use lower-tech components.
For many customers the move
may mean a welcome reversal of
the Steve Jobsian obsession for
getting rid of proper dashboard
buttons. Would you blank off the
light switches and oven knobs in
your house and run everything
from an iPad? Of course not.
We’ve selected a cross-section
of this year’s best cars ranging
from affordable to astronomical.
But delivery delays mean long
waits for some models, so even if
you order now your new car may
only arrive in time for Christmas.Audi e-tron £60,000+
When Audi’s best brains took on
the whizz-kids at Tesla four
years ago the result was the
e-tron. It had the clever comforts
of Tesla’s Model S, plus it was an
SUV, the car body shape that
everyone wants these days. The
e-tron’s problem, however, was
that it could cover only 248 miles
between charges, while the
Model S could keep going for
405 miles. Now the biggest of
Audi’s e-tron family is being
relaunched with a 373-mile
range. Interestingly, Ironman,
aka “genius, billionaire, playboy,
philanthropist” Tony Stark, has
a Tesla in his garage, but he
drives an Audi. A marvel then,
and not just for superheroes.
Expected: NovemberELECTRIC
Driving