Featured. 30-Year Arcs.
Twelve nameplates. Four anchor years (1996, 2006, 2016, 2026). Same name, different car each decade. Editorial deep-dives into the cars that defined three decades of motoring — and how they got from there to here.
VW Golf
Mk3 → Mk5 → Mk7 → Mk8. 1.4 8v carb-era to 1.5 TSI eHybrid plug-in. The car everyone in Britain owned at some point.
Read the 30-year arc →Honda Civic
EK → EP → FK7 → FL1. The supermini-grade EK Civic of 1996 → the Type R FL5 holding the Nürburgring FWD lap record in 2026. Same nameplate. Different category.
Read the 30-year arc →Mercedes-Benz S-Class
W140 → W220 → W222 → W223. The S-Class introduces tech the rest of the industry adopts five years later. From early ESP to autonomous lane-keeping.
Read the 30-year arc →Range Rover
P38 → L322 → L405 → L460. From troublesome Solihull-built off-roader to electric-flagship-imminent global brand. The category is more crowded than ever. The Range Rover is still the reference.
Read the 30-year arc →Porsche 911
993 → 996 → 997 → 991 → 992. Last air-cooled flat-six in 1996. Water-cooled, then turbocharged base, then T-Hybrid in 2026. Same shape, four propulsion eras.
Read the 30-year arc →BMW M3
E36 → E46 → F80 → G80. Inline-6 NA → V8 (E90 only) → twin-turbo I6 → S58 with 503bhp. The benchmark every other European sport saloon has been measured against.
Read the 30-year arc →