The Toyota Hilux, as we all know, is nigh-on indestructible. They've been blown up, dropped, drowned and squashed, but still they refuse to die. Since then,they've also been to the South Pole, Iceland's Eyjafallajökull volcano just before its eruption brought chaos to the skies of Europe, and conquered Antarctica with the aid of jet fuel. Indeed, the top-selling model in the UK line-up was named - the Invincible - in honour of its achievements. For 2012, the Toyota Hilux received a restyle to bring it into line with the rest of the Toyota range, as well as a few revisions to its engines, interior and trim levels. Externally, the 2012 model features a new bonnet, radiator grille, headlamps and bumper - essentially, everything forward of the A-pillar - together with door mirrors (now heated, finally!) with integrated indicators, new alloy wheel designs and new side bars for the top-of-the-range Invincible model. Around the back, the rear light clusters have an added dash of chrome, and the rear step bumper is now standard on all models. As face-lifts go, it's certainly one of the more successful, adding a welcome air of contemporary class without sacrificing its rugged good looks.
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It’s fair to say we took something of a shine to the previous generation Honda Accord Tourer. It made a regular appearance in our Estate Car of the Year awards category, and everyone else’s it seems, and in its final year of production it sold more than ever. With the arrival of the new Honda Accord, just five short years later, we had been expecting great things. We expected all the strengths of the old Accord to remain, and a few new ones to be added. Unfortunately, we can’t help feeling disappointed. Let’s start off with the positives – the new Accord looks great. The old model, while taught and aggressive at the front, did have a rather awkward rear overhang. The new Accord has a much more unified design, with a pert rear and bold flared wheel-arches. Inside, there’s more occupant space, particularly for taller drivers, and the cabin’s wider, too. The seats are just as comfortable and supportive as before, but it’s while you’re sitting in them, looking around the interior, that the first doubts begin to seed themselves.
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For 2008, the Abarth name is back – and in some style. Fiat has pumped a considerable sum of money into re-launching Abarth as a stand-alone brand, and that includes the construction of a new, purpose-built, Abarth HQ with its own sales, marketing, design and engineering facilities. The cars themselves will be sold through a dedicated dealer network, with their own brand identity. The Abarth Grande Punto is the first of those cars to arrive in the UK, with the Abarth 500 due next year. Although based on the standard Grande Punto, the Abarth features a series of modifications that improve the looks, handling and power delivery of the car, which now boasts 155bhp and an 8.2 second 0-62mph time. That said, the Abarth Grande Punto is still somehow greater than the sum of its parts. We set out to discover why.
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In the face of rocketing insurance claims, local authorities across the land have re-defined what constitutes a pot-hole. What you and I would consider to be a wheel-buckling crater is now simply a surface feature. Before a man with a tin of spray-paint will even consider marking out a pond in the middle of the A31, it must be allowed to grow large enough to accommodate several outdoors-types equipped with head-torches and a stripy rope. In any other culture, you could be forgiven for contemplating buying a vehicle designed to cope with the Third World-nature of our transport infrastructure. But in these times of knee-jerk environmentalism, SUVs have been all but outlawed. Luckily, there is still one option left, and it comes from the maker of heavy plant machinery - the Subaru Legacy Boxer Diesel
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