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Next-gen Passat to offer hybrid and twin-turbo power

VOLKSWAGEN is going even more upmarket with the all-new version of the Passat, which is due to hit showrooms later this year. Soon buyers will be able to include a plug-in hybrid and an all-new 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel among their forecourt options, as VW goes chasing after its sister company Audi. Weight-saving measures have chopped up to 85kg from the new kid on a like-for-like basis, which helps achieve VW's stated efficiency boosts of 20% versus equivalent outgoing Passats.

SEAT Leon X-Perience price & spec – costs from £24,385

The ‘Allroad’ SEAt Leon X-Perience goes on sale. SEAT hasn’t got round to building its first SUV, but the new SEAT Leon X-Perience is a half-way step – for SEAT and its customers – with added butchness and off-road pretensions in a high-riding estate car. SEAT has gone the usual ‘Allroad’ route for the X-Perience by fitting new bumpers, adding skid plates, extra plastic cladding and pumping up the ride height to give an estate that actually looks quite alright and, with 4WD and diff locks, can actually walk some of the walk.

75% of BMW 2 Series Active Tourer buyers will be new to BMW

75% of BMW 2 Series Active Tourer buyers will be new to BMW The new BMW 2 Series Active Tourer – BMW’s front wheel drive small family mover – went on sale in the UK in May and looks set to take on the Mercedes B Class and bring new buyers to the BMW brand. BMW say they are expecting around three quarters of all buyers of the new 2 Series Active Tourer will be new to the brand, which is a big opportunity for BMW. BMW purists may bemoan the front wheel drive setup as a betrayal of all BMW stands for (although you will be able to get xDrive 4WD versions), but for BMW it’s a very pragmatic way to go.