UAE

Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 debuts with a thud

Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 debuts with a thud

The revived Maybach brand is not new to SUVs. Their Mercedes-Maybach G650 Landaulet was a swan-song to the previous generation of the G-Wagen but was an offering for an extremely small niche. But this time around, the new Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 SUV is ready to properly lock horns with the top guns in the game, the Bentley Bentayga and the Rolls Royce Cullinan. Unfortunately, in a week which also saw the launch of the Aston Martin DBX and the Tesla Cybertruck, the gussied-up GLS-Class feels utterly forgettable already. 

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Aston Martin DBX launched as brand's first SUV -- looks better than expected

Aston Martin DBX launched as brand’s first SUV — looks better than expected

The “SUV” fever in the car industry has affected everything right from tiny hatchbacks all the way to huge luxury SUVs. Manufacturers are jumping on this bandwagon to grab a piece of this ever-growing higher-ground-clearance pie at the cost of killing “regular” car sales. With Bentley, Rolls Royce, Lamborghini and soon Ferrari joining the fray, Aston Martin has thrown its hat in the ring with the Aston Martin DBX, the British brand’s first SUV.  

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Ford Mustang Mach-E -- right car with wrong name?

Ford Mustang Mach-E — right car with wrong name?

Using legendary monikers to sell new models is not a new strategy. A lot of manufacturers have been letting their new offerings ride this wave of nostalgia. But this can sometimes end up being quite controversial, depending on the model they slap their name onto. You saw it happening when Mitsubishi revived the Eclipse name on a crossover and when Chevy slapped the Blazer name on yet another crossover. And now, Ford has taken it to an all-new level by launching the Ford Mustang Mach-E, an electric crossover.

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Long-term update: Our Jaguar XK finally gets its eyes fixed

Long-term update: Our Jaguar XK finally gets its eyes fixed

The last generation of the Jaguar had a massive factory problem. One of several electronic control modules on the HID headlights used to keep shorting out in some way or the other every time there was some sort of power surge, such as when your battery dies or sometimes even randomly, maybe once every two years. This used to cause the auto-levelling function to go stupid, making the headlights point permanently downwards even though they are perfectly working fine otherwise (while flashing a warning light in your gauge cluster permanently as well). Oddly enough, the warning light was for the turning-headlights feature,

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First drive: 2020 Ferrari F8 Tributo in the UAE

First drive: 2020 Ferrari F8 Tributo in the UAE

A complete mental recalibration is called for. This is just the first three-quarter-throttle squirt out of the pitlane and onto the front straight of the Dubai Autodrome, yet it’s already evident the forward thrust being served up here is on the gob-smacking end of the scale. It feels as though I’ve been implanted in a movie that’s playing in fast forward, and the grey matter is still trying to comprehend this madness.

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First drive: 2020 Ford Explorer Hybrid in the UAE

First drive: 2020 Ford Explorer Hybrid in the UAE

It’s not often that the launch of a new car is held in the basement. But there we were, in the underground parking lot of the Ford Middle East HQ, getting an exclusive walk-around of the all-new 2020 Explorer. Only two US-spec pre-production cars are in the country at the moment, in Hybrid trim, and we were among the first journos to get a look at them.

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