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Porsche’s hallowed motorsport department goes one step further with the Cayman — stripping out the GT4 and injecting even more performance to give us the GT4 RS. They’ve gone absolutely wild with it — stuffing the 911 GT3’s 4-litre flat-six engine behind the driver, and honing the chassis and aero to extract the most out of the car. However, being Porsche, special attention has been paid to the sensations that the car delivers and unsurprisingly, those sensations are out of this world. For the cover story of the May 2022 issue, we take the GT4 RS and let it loose on both the road and track to revel in one of the best cars to have ever made it out of Weissach.
There’s plenty more in this issue! The last month has seen plenty of launches, and we’ve gotten behind the wheel of all of them including the Jeep Meridian, Honda City e:HEV hybrid, Volkswagen Virtus GT, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Maruti Suzuki XL6. Our penchant for epic road trips hasn't abated — we took 30 AMGs through Rajasthan on the AMG Emotion Tour, drove to Coorg in a bunch of Tata Safaris and took the Nissan Magnite on an adventure exploring Big, Bold and Beautiful locations in western India. We bid farewell to the Volkswagen Polo with one last blast around the MMRT, put the Mini Cooper SE agains the JCW to test its legitimacy, drive the final prototype of the Lotus Emira and a lot more!
On two wheels, everything is going king size! We test the BMW C 400 GT maxi scooter, thrash the Triumph Tiger 660 in the foothills of the Himalayas and head to Kerala to experience the BMW F 850 GS in its natural habitat. All this and more in the May 2022 issue of evo India magazine!
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Jeep Meridian
After months of catching test mules we have finally gotten behind the wheel of the Jeep Meridian. This is more than just a seven-seat Compass — it is longer, has more space, more features, but doesn’t compromises on the off-road ability at all. The Meridian is all set to lock horns with the likes of the Skoda Kodiaq, MG Gloster and most importantly the Toyota Fortuner. Does it have what it takes to fill into the gap vacated by the Ford Endeavour?
Maruti Suzuki XL6
Maruti’s premium people mover gets an update! It is the usual facelift business with tweaked styling, light clusters and interiors. But there are some key feature updates including a 360-degree camera, TPMS and ventilated seats. More importantly though, it gets a new 6-speed automatic transmission, doing away with the archaic 4-speed in the process. Have these changes made the XL6 more desirable in the face of the competition?
Honda City e:HEV
The Honda City has been the benchmark in this segment for the longest time and things have just got a lot more interesting. Instead of going down the turbocharged route like its rivals, Honda has chosen to hybridise the City. This is no mild-hybrid — it is a proper hybrid that is constantly working in the background and gives the City a claimed fuel economy figure of 26.5kmpl. It also gets more feature laden, with active safety features. Is it worth the upgrade from a standard City?
Volkswagen Virtus GT
We’ve finally driven Volkswagen’s much awaited sedan based on the MQB-A0-IN platform — the Virtus. Plenty is shared with the Skoda Slavia that we drove not too long ago including the engine but the Virtus draws on VW’s familiar design language to create an absolutely stunning looking car. Is the Virtus with the 1.5 engine and speckled with GT badges the sedan for the enthusiast?
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
The C-Class gets a generational upgrade, and what a change it is. Plenty has been inspired by the S-Class, including exterior styling and the layout of the dash making this a really expensive-feeling experience on the inside. There are updated mild-hybrid drivetrains as well — both on the petrol and diesel front. It is a lot more expensive than its rivals though, and that begs the question, is it worth the money?
Porsche Cayman GT4 RS
Porsche’s mid-engined sportscar finally gets the RS treatment! The GT4 RS is lighter than the already sharpened Cayman GT4, makes more power (nearly 500bhp!) and gets updated aerodynamics to make this the most track focussed Cayman yet. It is 23.6 seconds faster around the ’Ring than the GT4, and that should give you a fair idea of how much of a difference these changes have made. And in typical Porsche fashion, it does so without compromising driver engagement. We have a go on road and track.
AMG Emotion Tour
The AMG Emotion Tour is back, and it is bigger than ever! 30 AMGs headed out on a road trip from Delhi to Rajasthan, and en route there was plenty to experience including the thrill of flying an airplane, a watchmaking session with IWC Watches and so much more. Luxury, speed, precision, adrenaline, this edition of the AMG Emotion Tour had it all!
Mini Cooper SE & Mini JCW
Does the Mini Cooper SE deserve to be called a Mini? We line it up alongside the Mini JCW to find out. We put the SE through a series of challenges where it competed head-on against the JCW to prove that it truly deserves to wear the Mini badge. Does it come out successful? Read the story to find out!
Tata Safari: Reclaim your Life
The Tata Safari heads out on another road trip! This time, we’re headed to the coffee plantations in Coorg to get our hit of caffeine! The Safari proved to be a capable mile muncher on road, but then proved its capability off-road while driving through the estates as well. With Safari owners along for the drive, this is one road trip we aren’t going to forget for a while!
Volkswagen Polo farewell
The Polo is a car that has done so much for enthusiasts in the country — it has allowed them to live their driving fantasies without breaking the bank, it revolutionised motorsport on both road and track, and it lends itself generously to tuning. Now after more than a decade on sale, we bid this icon goodbye. A car like the Polo deserves a celebration, not a eulogy, and that’s why we headed down to the MMRT to drive both the road and the race car!
Lotus Emira Prototype
We kick off a new series with the Nissan Magnite called Big, Bold, Beautiful. These adjectives perfectly describe the Magnite, and we’re heading on a road trip to find locations that fit the Magnite’s attitudes! We headed to the Tikona fort near Pune, to the city of Mumbai and to the Chorla ghat — a proper driving adventure that put the Magnite through a variety of conditions. We also had Magnite owners along for the ride!
Maruti Suzuki goes digital
Car companies are moving from the traditional model of the dealership to the online space with a fair amount of success in the last few years, with the change accelerated by the pandemic. However, Maruti Suzuki has been a pioneer in the digital space since much before. Today, 24 out of 26 touch points are completely digital and there’s plenty planned for the future as well. But it isn’t without its challenges. We catch up with Shashank Srivastava, executive director of Maruti Suzuki India to find out more!
Kia Carens safety focus
The Kia Carens has made a dent in the market for being an incredible value for money offering, with plenty of space, features and familiar drivetrains. But it has also placed an incredible focus on safety, offering a whole suite of electronic aids, disc brakes on all wheels, six airbags as standard and a lot more! We dive in to the Carens’ focus on safety in this story.
Triumph Tiger Sport 660
The smallest Tiger is here! The Tiger Sport 660 is based on the familiar Trident platform but with a few tweaks to the chassis to make it more touring-oriented. There’s typical ADV styling as well, making this a very attractive proposition for someone looking for their first big bike. But can the Tiger 660 deal with our terrible road conditions? We ride it in the hills to find out!
BMW C 400 GT
This is India’s most expensive scooter! The BMW C 400 GT is a bonafide maxi scooter with plenty of comfort and genuine ability, not to mention it is packed to the rafters with practical bits. However, it is also plenty expensive with that Rs 10.4 lakh price tag. Is it a scoot with a purpose or just a superfluous luxury?
BMW F 850 GS
BMW has updated the F 850 GS and with it, reduced the price a fair bit making it a lot more competitive in the growing ADV space. We headed to slushy trails in Kerala to find out how the updated motorcycle deals with properly off-road conditions. There were plenty of slides, and plenty of grinning under our lids!
Tuned: Nissan GT-R R35
The Nissan GT-R is a proper icon, and one that has immense tuning potential. Autologix got its hands on one and went wild — plenty of visual upgrades, along with a new exhaust, ECU and TCU upgrades, a new exhaust system, switchable maps and a lot more!
Tuned: Royal Enfield Interlayan
While enthusiasts clamour for a Himalayan with the 650cc engine, custom bike makers in the UK, Cooperb motorcycles, have gone and built one themselves! Starting with the Interceptor’s platform, they have made mod to the suspension, wheels and ergonomics. They have also kitted out the bike properly with plenty of accessories to make it a capable tourer. And then they christened it the Interlayan.
