The latest issue of evo India magazine is printed and ready for distribution. And we have an epic cover story to get us plugged back into The Thrill of Driving! Headlining the magazine is the group test of Group A heroes — road-going rally homologation specials that adorned our bedroom walls when we were growing up.
Taking centre stage, rightfully, is the Mitsubishi Evo 6.5 Tommi Makinen and huddled around is the Subaru Impreza Type RA, Lancia Delta Integrale, Toyota Celica GT-Four, Ford Escort RS Cosworth and… wait for it… the Nissan Sunny GTI-R. The latter none of us had ever heard of, all the others we lusted after in our formative years. And they’re all together, on a WRC stage of the Wales Rally.
That’s not it, we’ve also reached out to enthusiasts who’ve owned, lived with, and rallied these cars in India. Gaurav Gill talks about the Evo VII, VIII, IX and X he rallied in the APRC; Arjun Balu reminisces about getting to grips with the Evo VII in the APRC; we had to include Samir ‘Sammy’ Thapar’s experiences with his legendary Evo X rally car; and Zuhin throws back to the Impreza he took to the 2012 IRC championship. Then we have Anindith Reddy looking back at the Evos he owned in the US and the Evo X which he bought from the editors of this magazine. Of course the editor looks back at owning and living with the Evo X that they bought to coincide with the launch of evo India magazine. ‘Drive Like Shana’ Parmeshwar talks about her two-Evo garage, the 6.5 and X. Biren Pithawala and Himanshu Sopariwala feature their tuned Evos that run in drag races. And Rupesh Kholay talks about his Impreza WRX daily driver.
We must warn you. Our 20-page cover story will have you lusting after and possibly hunting for an Evo or Impreza to add to your garage!
Two days before the lockdown kicked in we scrambled to pick up our test car and put together the first drive on what will be one of the most important SUVs of the year. Does Hyundai have a winner on their hands? The editor definitely think so
The Creta is one of over a dozen SUVs we have driven in this issue that includes:
The 2020 Tata Harrier that gets the higher horsepower diesel engine, automatic gearbox and better NVH
Mercedes-Benz GLE 300d and 400d, where we pit the latter’s Active Suspension against our in-house body builder in a push-up competition
Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace that marks the start of VW’s push towards TSI engines in India
BMW X5 M and X6 M Competition that are on their way to India with their mind-numbing pace, handling and performance
Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza that now gets a 1.5 petrol engine
Ford Endeavour that gets a 2-litre diesel mated to a 10-speed automatic gearbox
Land Rover Discovery Sport that is not just better looking but more desirable without loosing out on its practicality
BMW X1 that is now updated with smarter styling and better interiors
Principal correspondent Aatish Mishra pops his Ferrari cherry. And not content with one, he gets his hands on two Ferraris over a whole day in Mumbai — the GTC4 Lusso T and Portofino
We have rides of TVS’ new electric scooter, the iQube along with the new KTM 200 and 390 Duke. Our correspondents travel to Hyundai’s factory in Chennai to witness the Creta being built. We review Mercedes-Benz’s new Merc From Home online buying and e-commerce initiatives. We shine the spotlight on VW’s new 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 TSI engines. Our Gone But Not Forgotten series looks back at the original josh machine, the Ford Ikon. And plenty more!