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Superb wins Tow Car of the Year

THE SKODA SUPERB Estate has been crowned Tow Car of the Year by the Caravan Club, beating off competition from 40 other entrants including Range Rover and Jaguar. Commenting on the Superb’s ability, the judges remarked: ‘With a loading limit of 100kg on the roof, 80kg on the towball and a boot that scored maximum marks, it’s a very tough act to follow. You wouldn’t know you were towing a caravan.’ Skoda also won the £16,000-£20,000 category with the new Octavia 1.2 TSI, which was praised for its pulling power with such a small engine.

Driven: Lexus IS-F

The Lexus IS-F is a significant new design for one core reason: it introduces a performance sub-brand parallel to that of the M-cars from BMW, AMG from Mercedes-Benz, and the S and RS sub-brands from Audi. This then is Lexus making a logical next step to further encroach on the established German premium brands. BMW originated the premium brands' performance sub-brand with the 'M for Motorsport' M3 of 1986 (the M1 supercar of 1978 preceded that, but was a singular model, not a performance derivative).

New Audi S6 and S6 Avant (2012) Frankfurt Preview

New Audi S6 and S6 Avant (2012) at Frankfurt Frankfurt 2011 is going to be something of an Audi ‘S’ Fest, with four new 2012 ‘S’ models making a début, including these – the Audi S6 and the Audi S6 Avant. There’s little to choose between the S6 and S6 Avant in performance terms, just as you’d expect, with both cars featuring Audi’s new 4.0 litre TFSI V8 with 420bhp and 406lb/ft of torque (that’s the same V8 we will see in the Bentley Continental GT – and probably at Frankfurt too). That’s enough to take the S6 to 62mph in just 4.8 seconds, with the S6 Avant just the smallest bit behind at 4.9 seconds, and on to an electronically governed 155mph.