The Car Guide

We asked CAR magazine photographer Peet Mocke what his favourite shots of 2025 were. In no specific order, here’s Peet’s 15 favourites. Ever wondered who is behind the camera taking many of the beautiful shots – for Features to Drives and Road Tests, and for the cover – you see in CAR magazine? Well, it is the talented Peet Mocke. Paging through the past 12 months’ issues, each of Peet’s pictures is undeniably stunning, from his shots capturing a vehicle’s intricate details to the stills and those low-slung driving shots. Choosing just a few is an undeniably difficult task. Yet, we asked Peet to choose is favourites of 2025. And here they are… BMW 333i Image: Peet Mocke Celebrating the 40th anniversary of one of the most sought-after South African specials, Peet shot the iconic (E30-generation) BMW 333i for a Classic Drive , which appeared in the July 2025 issue of CAR magazine. Ford Mustang Dark Horse and 1968 GT500KR Replica Image: Peet Mocke The pinnacle model in Ford Sou...

We have rounded up the fastest-accelerating SUVs, based on their tested 0-100 km/h sprint times, evaluated by CAR magazine in 2025. See the list below. 5. BMW X3 M50 – 4.61 seconds Image: Peet Mocke Starting off the list is the BMW X3 M50 , which completed the 0-100 km/h sprint in 4.61 seconds; just one-hundredth of a second shy of BMW’s 4.6-second claim. The X3 M50 is equipped with a turbocharged 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-six producing 293 kW and 580 N.m of torque, sent to all four corners via an eight-speed automatic transmission. 4. Land Rover Defender 110 Octa Edition One – 4.59 seconds Image: Peet Mocke We evaluated the Land Rover Defender Octa (in Edition One guise) for a road test in the November issue of CAR magazine. Despite weighing north of three tonnes, the apex Defender completed the 0-100 km/h sprint in 4.59 seconds (Land Rover claims 4.0 seconds). The Defender Octa’s 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 churns out 467 kW and 750 N.m of torque – the latter increasing t...

We have rounded up the five slowest-accelerating vehicles, based on their 0-100 km/h sprint times, tested by CAR magazine in 2025. See the list below. 5. Suzuki Swift 1.2 GLX MT: 12.05 seconds Image: Peet Mocke Starting the off the list is CAR magazine’s budget car of choice in our Top 12 Best Buys for 2025 awards, the Suzuki Swift. The variant we tested in March was equipped with a five-speed manual transmission. We recorded a 0-100 km/h acceleration time of 12.05 seconds. Although not the last word in straight-line performance, the Swift was one of the highest-scoring and most fuel-efficient vehicles we tested in 2025. 4. Honda Amaze 1.2 Trend MT: 12.22 seconds Image: Peet Mocke The Honda Amaze, which we tested in the July 2025 issue of CAR magazine, employs a 1.2-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol motor producing 66 kW and 110 N.m – the latter transferred to the front wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox. With a (tested) 32 kg weight penalty over the Swift...

With the steady arrival of new Chinese brands and the seemingly endless rollout of their new models dominating current motoring headlines, one could be forgiven for overlooking the growth of the Indian auto industry and its impact on the SA market. Tata Tiago. Image: Tata Motors Chinese brands continue to dominate the motoring conversations in South Africa; this is hardly surprising when you consider their rapid growth in recent years and the fact that their two leading brands in SA are now firmly entrenched in the top 10 of our sales charts. Against this backdrop, the recent announcements from India’s largest vehicle manufacturers have become even more newsworthy. Tata has announced its return to the SA passenger-car market with a four-model hatch and SUV lineup, including the Tiago . These announcements should come as little surprise, considering that, for several years, a significant majority of SA’s passenger-car and LCV (light commercial vehicle) imports have been sourced fr...

We have rounded up the five least fuel-efficient vehicles CAR magazine tested in 2025. See the list below. We’ve previously rounded up the five most fuel-efficient vehicles CAR magazine tested in 2025 . Now we take a look at the cars that proved the least economical on our standardised 100 km mixed-use (urban and motorway) fuel route. 5. Aston Martin Vantage Coupé: 13.9 L/100 km (12.1 L/100 km claimed) Image: Peet Mocke Starting off the list is the Aston Martin Vantage Coupé, which we tested for the January 2025 Performance Issue of CAR magazine. The Vantage Coupé is powered by a 4.0 litre V8 twinturbo-petrol engine churning out 489 kW and 800 N.m, sent to the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. Although one of the least fuel-efficient cars we tested in 2025, the Vantage Coupé was one of the highest-scoring , fastest-accelerating , and fastest-braking vehicles we tested in 2025. 4. Jeep Wrangler Limited 2.0T Rubicon: 14.0 L/100 km (11.9 L/100 km claimed) I...

Revealed in 1990, we detail the oddball Plymouth Voyager III concept. When Plymouth lifted the wraps off the Plymouth Voyager III concept at the 1990 Detroit Auto Show – to what was no doubt a chorus of groans and muted smirks – the automotive world was at something of a turning point. The fuel crisis of the 1970s had gone some way to leaving a car market in its wake that focused more on downsizing and fuel economy, while the economic prosperity of the Reagan years was dwindling in the public’s rearview mirror. In these changing conditions, the days of thirsty, polluting, big-displacement engines and multi-car garages were numbered, and Plymouth’s parent company Chrysler knew it all too well. It was perhaps with this mindset that the firm’s designers came up with the oddball Voyager III. Dubbed a “socially responsible vehicle-within-a-vehicle”, the concept comprised two separate modules in a miniature tractor-trailer arrangement. The front section was a three-seater city car in a si...

In 2025, CAR magazine road tested over 50 new vehicles. We’ve rounded up the vehicles that scored the lowest in 2025. In each CAR magazine road test, we award a car a score out of 100. Now, we have rounded up the highest-scoring vehicles tested by CAR magazine in 2025 , but which vehicles we tested scored the lowest? There were a couple ties… 7. Jeep Wrangler Limited 2.0T Rubicon: 75/100 Image: Peet Mocke In the May 2025 issue of CAR magazine, we noted that the appeal of the updated Wrangler lies in its modern infotainment and safety tech rather than the new 200 kW/400 N.m 2.0-litre turbopetrol (in lieu of the pre-updated model’s V6). 6=. Haval H7 2.0T 4WD Super Luxury: 73/100 Image: Peet Mocke The Haval H7’s characterful styling and well-executed cabin found favour among the CAR team. However, its relatively small boot and, perhaps more significantly, fuel consumption were black marks against the package. 6=. Mercedes-Benz Vito 119 CDI Tourer Select: 73/100 Image: Peet M...

The 2025 record attempts at the Nürburgring Nordschleife saw 14 official lap times set across 11 vehicle categories. An electric Chinese prototype clocked the fastest lap in 2025 and nine cars posted sub-seven-minute lap times. By: Julian Rael Gordon The Nordschleife (“Northern loop”) of the Nürburgring in Germany pushes manufacturers’ cars to their limits. In 2025, 14 official lap times were recorded across 11 vehicle categories. While there were 20 record slots, rented by manufacturers for a day for a lap, six were ultimately not official. The laps were completed on both sections of the Nordschleife, where the full lap is 20.832 km and the shorter one is 20.6 km. The standard for record lap times is the former, measured with calibrated technology and supervised by TÜV Rheinland and a notary. Fastest Nürburgring Nordschleife lap times of 2025 Image: Xiaomi The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra Prototype, a Chinese electric prototype, clocked a lap time of 6:22.091 minutes, making it the fastes...

We’ve rounded up the 10 fastest-braking vehicles CAR magazine tested in 2025. See the list below… As part of CAR magazine’s road test regimen, we put each vehicle we evaluate through a stringent 10-stop 100-0 km/h emergency braking test. Here are the 10 vehicles that recorded the best average stopping times on our standardised test strip in 2025. There were some ties… 8. Haval H6 GT 1.5T PHEV 4WD Ultra Luxury: 2.71 seconds Image: Peet Mocke In 2025, Haval handed its H6 lineup a thorough refresh, with the flagship, GT variant gaining a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain, which pairs an electric motor with a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-pot for a combined system output of 321 kW and 762 N.m of torque. Fitted with 340 mm ventilated brake discs fore and aft, the (2 075 kg, tested) H6 GT recorded an average 100-0 km/h time of 2.71 seconds. 7. Volvo EX90 Twin Performance Ultra: 2.69 seconds Image: Peet Mocke The flagship all-electric SUV in Volvo’s portfolio, the EX90 Twin Performanc...