UNLEASH THE BEASTS
IN THE MOOD FOR A NEW SET OF WHEELS? HERE’S MY PICK OF THE BEST CARS TO BRING HOME THIS FESTIVAL SEASON .
Top picks in luxury wheels
IT IS THE YEAR OF THE SUV
and more than likely will continue to be the year of the SUV for a few more years if worldwide trends are anything to go by.
No one would begrudge the government for imposing higher taxes on SUVs if all of them were like the Lamborghini
Urus, the first in my list of the cars to get home this holiday season. It is a super sports luxury vehicle if one can call it that and will set you back by over `3 crore, the figure that marks its price tag. It is like a racing car on stilts, or a pulled up version of one of the super cars that Lamborghini is famous for. Powered by a 4-litre twin-turbo V8, it produces max power of 650bhp and peak torque of 850Nm. It sprints to 100kmph in under 3.6 seconds and has a top speed of over 300kmph.
If for some reason the raging bull does not take your fancy then probably Thor’s Hammer will as it adorns the smallest of the Volvo SUVs, the XC40. This car has the capability of spoiling you rotten with features and interiors that come from not one but probably many segments higher. The car can pretty much drive by itself if allowed to do so by law, but that does not mean that it is not loaded with driver assistance systems. It offers everything that a car costing twice as much would in a package that is compact and easy to drive in the city. And it will set you back by less than `50 lakh for the lower end variants.
If even that seems to be above your budget then I have a very different kind of a SUV – a quirky one at that and one that you could easily fall in love with. The
Mini Countryman is a sporty 2-litre turbocharged engine that produces just under 200bhp under its hood and it is still great fun to drive though over the last two model changes, it has become much more comfortable without losing that go-kart feel.
That leaves me with the last two picks for the festive season and they are the new third generation Porsche Cayenne and the Range Rover Velar. Both are meant for enthusiasts, for people who long to get behind the wheel but for totally different reasons. The Cayenne is an out and out sports vehicle though it provides a lot of utility as well as the go anywhere promise. And if you choose the Turbo version, not only will it set you back by just under `2 crore, but it will keep you pinned in your seat as well with 550bhp of max power and 770Nm of peak torque. And if speed is your poison that it can keep your company till 286kmph with the first 100kmph coming up in under 4 seconds. But if that speed rush is not your cup of tea then my final pick for a car to take home this festive season is the Range Rover Velar, another new car that is relaxed and beautiful, both on the inside as well as the outside.
And whichever you may pick, just remember to get everyone belted in before you start driving and pick the back seat if you have had a drink or two.