A new car brand is a big event and some are bigger than others. This one is big because of its name.

The Citroën DS of 1955 was the most significant car of the 20th century changing the face of motoring with its futuristic design and cutting edge technology.
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Now that name is back as the stand alone luxury arm of the PSA group, that's Peugeot, Citroën, and now Vauxhall-Opel as well. DS models have been produced since 2011 sitting alongside Citroen but since 2014 the brand has been separated and has aimed at the premium sectors.

2018 is shaping up to be a big year for Mitsubishi.

​The partnership with Renault-Nissan is signed and sealed and the new Eclipse Cross SUV is hitting the showrooms signalling the first of a new generation of cars from the Japanese company, which reached its centenary last year.
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The alliance would seem to be the perfect marriage: Mitsubishi is big on all wheel drive - it built its first 4x4 in 1936 - and so is Nissan, and it has had huge success with the plug-in hybrid Outlander which dovetails nicely with Renault's expertise in electric cars.
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By mid-'70s BMW had sorted out its line-up. The ‘5’ of 1972 was the first ‘Series’ car.  The ‘3’ came in 1973, ‘6’ in 1976 and flagship 7 in 1977.

Marketing too raised its game - “The Ultimate Driving Machine” became one of the most enduring taglines in the history of advertising. The age of the “executive express” had arrived.

The world, of course, did not stand still.  For 2017’s new 5 Series BMW had a job on its hands in seeing off both the refined, sophisticated E-Class Mercedes and pin-sharp, dynamically accomplished XF Jaguar. Audi’s A6 (successor due in 2018) and Volvo’s S90 are also in the frame (both basically front-wheel drive with optional 4x4).

If you had to point to a particular model in the Citroën range that was underperforming versus the rest of the market, the previous C3 stood out.

Now that the DS 3 is a DS in its own right rather than a Citroën, the C3’s sales of less than 10% of the brand’s total in a segment that accounts for around a quarter of new car registrations, suggests there is some work that needs to be done.
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The C1 city car has been a success and the stylish C4 Cactus is also proving popular, but the previous C3 – fair to say also one of the blandest cars Citroën has ever produced – would have got a firm C-minus on its report card even with the kindest spin on its abilities.
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Audi’s new Q5 is set to have a tougher time than its predecessor which was launched back in 2008. Then the only other premium SUVs of equivalent size (in the UK, at least) were the BMW X3 and Volvo XC60.

The new model, which will arrive in the UK in spring 2017, will also be facing competition from the Mercedes-Benz GLC, the Lexus NX and Jaguar F-Pace, while a new X3 and XC60 are on the horizon.
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Although it has come to dominate this premium SUV segment globally, the Audi needs to be particularly good to maintain its desirability and popularity here.

Originally a Hino Truck Division product in 1968, Toyota’s Hilux has become a dominant global player in the compact pick-up market. Launched in Thailand and Australia in 2015, the latest eighth of the line reached Europe this year.

HiLux, as we know it, is not on sale in North America, Korea or India but is practically everywhere else and has built a reputation as a tough, dependable 4x4 light truck. It is Toyota’s second best selling vehicle (18 million total to date) after the Corolla (40 million).

VW Amarok and renewed Isuzu D-Max in 2011/2012 made an impact offering much improved comfort and refinement. Ford’s Ranger was first to respond and a new L200 from Mitsubishi came in 2015. Last year year saw a new Nissan Navara followed by Toyota HiLux VIII. Ranger has been the No.1 best seller here throughout 2015.

Audi's second-generation Q7 large SUV arrived in 2015, and while it follows the template set by its predecessor and the rival BMW X5 and Volvo XC90, it also evolves the concept of the fall-size crossover.

Like many premium brands offering SUVs, Audi’s main focus was North America. As the SUV developed from the original 4x4 concept, buyers were metropolitan types who navigated the urban jungle Monday to Friday but headed for the open spaces at the weekend. They wanted handling, comfort, the practicality of an estate and some off-road potential.
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It’s probably true to say that Alfa Romeo has never launched a car as important to the company as the new Giulia.

​As well as giving it a much needed volume boost in Europe, the car will reintroduce Alfa Romeo to North America, after a long absence.

It means the Giulia needs to be competent enough to take sales from Jaguar, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, the latter being touted as a pricing benchmark for the Giulia in the UK.

Alfa has been without a D-sector car in the UK for five years since the 159 was discontinued, and the programme to develop a successor has been delayed many times. When asked if the Giulia is a ‘make or break’ car for Alfa Romeo, then chief executive Harald Wester simply told the group of assembled journalists “yes”.

Traditional coupés like the Audi A5 might not be as common a sight on company car choice lists as they once were, but they can be important tools in staff retention.


Cars that manufacturers call ‘coupés’ are becoming more prevalent in varying shapes and sizes, some based around a saloon or estate template, others adapting the SUV silhouette.

​Indeed, there will no doubt be more user-chooser (and fleet operator) interest in a Sportback (five-door) version of the A5, assuming that version will be replaced in due course, but the new A5 Coupé will at least whet our appetites and give us some idea of what to expect.

The current Suzuki Swift has been one of the company's most successful cars, still recording UK growth in 2015, despite being in its fifth year.

Although the brand’s total sales fell by almost 8% during 2015, at just under 35,000 units (of which fleet accounted for 8,853), last year was still its second most successful year in the UK. And it has ambitions to reach 50,000 in the next few years, helped by new models and new technology.

​Next year, it aims to pioneer a new niche with an A-sector crossover. Before that, it is launching the Baleno.