Top Car

January 2016|TOPCAR.CO.ZA 81``````Alfa Romeo GiuliaThe rear-wheel-drive 3 Series challengerPetrolheads hold their breathas we wait to see if thishandsome saloon is, finally, theAlfa to shake us from our 3Series, A4s and C-Classes.Rear-driven, with an enginerange led by a snorting V6,and laced with lightweight tech,it has the weapons. We’ll knowsoon enough.Porsche PanameraThe no longer uglyfour-doorSomeone’s tapped Porscheon the shoulderandpointedoutthat four-door coupescanlooksexy. And here’s the result.With anew platformunderneath spawning everything fromajunior version tothe nextBentley Continental, it should be thefour-door coupewecraved.Bentley BentaygaThe 300kph hyper-SUV``````Okay, tosay we’re all ‘lookingforward’ toit is stretchingthings, but the world’s fastestand mostopulentSUV isunignorable. W12-powered,2.4 tonnes andlooks toscareitsown mother, it’s the loudeststatementyet in theage ofChina-chasing. Will be the autoeventofthe year.``````Ford EdgeThe global Q5-botherer``````Americans havebeen livingonthe Edgesince 2006 , andnow,with an all-new modelready toroll, it’s our turn(a ndEurope’s).Basedona platform itshareswith Mondeo, S-Max andco,we’re hoping the Edgewill mixKuga civilitywith acheeky doseofthe USchunkiness towhichwe’re all susceptible.Merc AMG GT3The supercar GT racerAbove is anFIA homologatedGTracerwith a6.3-litreV8,butmuch aswe’re looking forwardtothat, it’s the roadgoingoffspring that weawait. Alsotipped tobebadgedGT3,itpromises 43 6kWfroma twin-turbo V8anda 321kphtop speed.Even hotter‘GT- R’ may follow.Nurse, the screens!Volkswagen TiguanThe second coming``````The new,second-generationVWTiguanswitches toWolfsburg’s MQBarchitecture–the same oily bits asa Golf 7–andthis bringsa wealthoftechnology suchaspedestriandetection,aswell asmoreflexibleproportions. 4motion all-wheeldrivesystem now boastsa switchtoletdrivers toggle between on- andoff-roading functions.Hyundai CretaThe Korean EcosportTheCreta (a .k.a. ix25) is Hyundai’s attempt tochallenge the Renault DusterandFordEcosport, asegment it’s left untapped until now.Builtin India thevehicle employs the company’s updated design riffs tomax effect. Expectedearly 20 16.Toyota FortunerThe Everest’s nightmare?``````The all-new ToyotaFortunerrides amodifiedversion ofthenew Hilux’s underpinnings, abakkie famous for being almostindestructible. Sharp headlights,chromeaccents,a V-shapedgrille andradical new rearendhelp the Fortuner standout fromnot only its utilitariansiblings butitsadversaries,too.2016 ’s MOSTWANTED