Car News

Marc Philipp Gemballa will give the Marsien GT its world debut during Monterey Car Week. Based on the Porsche 911 Turbo S, it gets a RUF-developed flat-six with 830hp and 930Nm, a full carbon-fibre body, active aerodynamics, KW suspension and an Akrapovič titanium exhaust. Just 30 will be made.

Gordon Murray Special Vehicles will unveil a new supercar at The Quail during Monterey Car Week on 14 August. Gordon Murray and Dario Franchitti will present the as-yet-unnamed model, which follows the S1 LM and will appear alongside the Le Mans GTR and several customer-owned T.50s.

Neil is driving a stickered-up Opel Mokka GSE this week and, while we appreciate the ‘Hot Wheels’ vibe, the decals are naff. The rest of the car is good though – it’s fun to drive (its front diff is really aggressive), quick and it has great bucket seats. Pricey, though, and you’ll be limited to around 280km of useable range.

Aston Martin will unveil three ‘Q by Aston Martin’ DB12 S ‘VMF’ special editions at Monterey Car Week, inspired by its 1951 DB2 racers and created for the 75th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.Astons On The Avenue showcases the brand’s cars while also supporting the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) and the brand will also appear at The Quail.

Shane has the VW Golf GTI Edition 50 on loan and it has the Performance Pack as tested in Spain. In its 'Special' mode it's a bit extreme for bad roads, but otherwise a lot of fun. We do wish it could be had with a manual gearbox, however, and worry about the wear and tear after only 4,000km on the clock. Oh, and this one costs about €84k.

Neil is driving the Leapmotor B10 this week, the fully electric version with the 67kWh battery and an official 434km range (which seems realistic in daily driving). It’s well-priced and equipped (€36,995 for this top-spec Design model) but it’s not great to drive. Lots of space inside, though, and the cabin’s of high quality.