The new 2017 Ford Fiesta has earned a full five-star rating in the latest round of Euro NCAP safety crash tests – 20 years after the 1997 Fiesta proved to be “just not stable” in a crash test that today “does not make for comfortable viewing”. 

However, because Ford does not fit autonomous emergency braking (AEB) as standard to the new Fiesta, it does not become Euro NCAP’s top supermini pick of 2017: the latest Seat Ibiza retains that title. The fact it is only an option “is a shame,” says Matthew Avery of British Euro NCAP partner Thatcham Research. “Fewer than 5 percent of car buyers take up additional safety packs.” 

Other models tested in the latest round of 2017 Euro NCAP crash tests include the Jeep Compass, Mazda CX-5, Renault Koleos and Vauxhall Grandland X, all of which also scored five stars. But while the Kia Rio supermini scored five stars, it only did so if the optional safety pack was fitted: without it, the score drops to a meagre three stars.

The new Kia Picanto is rated at four stars with the optional safety pack, three stars without it. Meanwhile, the Opel Ampera-e electric car – which Vauxhall hopes to launch in the UK some time in the future, earned a four-star rating.

20 years of Euro NCAP

In comparing the 1997 Fiesta crash test with the latest 2017 test, Avery said that “you don’t have to be an expert to recognise a distinct progression in car safety over the past 20 years.

“The dummy in the 1997 model endures a heavy head-strike against the B-pillar and there is serious intrusion in the side impact test too. The structure was just not stable. Today, however, the 2017 Fiesta offers far , far greater levels of protection to its occupants. 

“Euro NCAP exists to help consumers make informed choices around car safety. This is especially important for top sellers like the Ford Fiesta – a car which Euro NCAP has tested on six different occasions over the past 20 years.” 

The safety organisation also announced it will reveal its 2025 road map as part of the ‘In Pursuit of Vision Zero’ conference on 12 September. In front of policymakers, automotive industry leaders, road safety experts and other high-level industry people, Euro NCAP will look back on 20 years of progress and reveal how it’s going to help shape the car safety of the future.

Video: 2017 Ford Fiesta Euro NCAP crash test

The all-new 2018 Nissan Leaf has been revealed in a big launch event in Tokyo. The new EV looks much more sophisticated and less oddball than the original, boasts a richer interior, headline-grabbing technology, an extended 235-mile electric range and the promise of a significantly improved drive. It launches in Europe in January 2018.

Replacing the original Leaf, which is the world’s best-selling electric car ever (over 280,000 have been bought by owners), the new Leaf is a crucial car for Nissan. It hopes this is the model that will cement the car’s position as an electric vehicle for the masses: crucially, it is launching just as Tesla rolls out its Model 3, for which the US firm has similar aims.

• Tesla Model 3: all you need to know – with video

While other firms are still working on their first EV, Nissan has been using customer feedback of Leaf owners dating back to 2010 to perfect its second-generation one. This new car is thus, arguably, the world’s most well-developed electric car yet, and certainly the one designed around the most real world feedback.

That’s why it looks so much smarter – and so much more like a conventional car rather than the blobby original. Using cues from the edgy 2015 Nissan IDS Concept, it has sharp creases, a distinctive front end boasting the current V-style Nissan face, a new black contrast ‘floating’ roof and a crisp, more hatchback-like rear end. It’s cleaner, simpler, sleeker, bolder and, says Nissan, feels more like “a high-tech device”.

Inside, there’s been a similar jump, with a higher-quality interior that eschews the dated, ‘futuristic’ look of the current car for a more contemporary setup with large central touchscreen, electronic instrument pack, fewer buttons, more stowage and a sporty D-shaped steering wheel.

Nissan says it’s more spacious, more practical, and the greater use of matt plastics gives a much more premium feel – vital if the firm is to draw in the urbane people who may ordinarily be drawn to the new Tesla Model 3. It’s a full five-seater, adds the firm, with a voluminous 435-litre boot (larger than a Volkswagen Golf) that’s squarer and less riddled with intrusive bumps than today’s car.

New Nissan Leaf technology

The new tech packed into the 2018 Leaf is headline-grabbing, feels Nissan. It has the first iteration of the firm’s ProPILOT autonomous drive technology, which can autonomously drive in single lanes between 19mph and 62mph, and ProPILOT Park which promises to park up at the press of a button.

Unlike current self-parking systems, there’s no need to carry out slow, complex pre-park drive procedures, promises Nissan: simply press a button and it will detect the space you can be docked into and carry out all steering, acceleration, braking and gear selection operations to squeeze you into it. It will “change the way people think about parking,” says Nissan, boldly.

The new Leaf will also feature an innovative e-Pedal. It will have an accelerator and brake pedal like all automatic cars, but for 90 percent of the time, you won’t actually need to use the brake pedal: simply press and release the accelerator and the car will move and slow down fluidly – a bit like a dodgem car. Releasing it can bring you to a complete stop (and the car will hold itself there until you press it again); Nissan reckons you’ll only need to use the brake pedal in “aggressive braking situations”.

2018 Leaf: electric drive tech

Nissan has fitted a more powerful 150hp motor to the new 2018 Leaf. That’s 38 percent more powerful than the current car and, with 236lb ft of torque, it has 26 percent more pulling power. It’s driven by a 40kWh lithium ion battery whose cell energy density is up 67 percent over the 2010 original.

We don’t yet have acceleration or top speed figures but it’s both faster and more enjoyable, the firm assures us, and an improved platform means it’s a more contemporary drive. It even now has Intelligent Ride Control, like the Nissan Qashqai; here, it uses the precision of the electric motor itself to smooth out vibrations, improve ride and make handling more controlled.

The EV range is up to 235 miles, according to the NEDC test cycle (better than both the latest BMW i3 and Volkswagen e-Golf). Later in 2018, Nissan will launch an additional leaf with a higher-capacity battery for a longer range. User feedback has helped the firm hone the design of the front charging socket; it’s now angled at 45 degrees so people can plug it in without stooping down.

“The new Nissan Leaf, with its improved autonomy range, combined with the evolution of autonomous drive technology, strengthens Nissan’s EV leadership, as well as the expansion of EVs globally,” said Nissan president and CEPO Hiroto Saikawa. “It also has the ore strengths that will be embodied by future Nissan models.”

Nissan hasn’t yet confirmed prices, but we’d hope to see it still come in at around £30,000, despite the extra features and larger 40kWh battery: todays’ model costs from £26,180 in base 24kWh Visia guise, or £30,290 in 30kWh Acenta form.

However, Nissan still has yet to confirm whether the new 2018 Leaf will be built at its Sunderland factory in the UK for European consumption. As sales are growing so quickly and it already has a battery plant located on site, fingers are tightly crossed…

2018 Nissan Leaf: in numbers

• Power: 150hp (+38 percent)
• Torque: 236lb ft (+26 percent)
• Battery capacity: 40kWh
• Range: 235 miles (NEDC)
• Length / width / height: 4,480 / 1,790 / 1,545mm
• Weight: 1,535kg
• Cd drag factor: 0.28
• On sale: from January 2018

More electric cars on MR:

• Nissan IDS Concept previews next Leaf at Tokyo Motor Show
• Tesla Model 3: first production car revealed
• Facelifted BMW i3 and i3S revealed

Jaguar buyers in coming decades may not buy just a single car, but instead just own a steering wheel that gives them access to multiple cars. The concept wheel, called Sayer, will be revealed in London this week.

The firm says owners will remove the steering wheel and take it home with them – the incentive being that it’s the world’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) wheel that incorporates voice activation.

• The 35 cars coming in 2018 we’re already excited about

Owners will be able to chat with Sayer and ask it to, say, plan the itinerary for their 8am meeting the following morning. The wheel will work out when you need to get up, when an autonomous car should arrive at your door – and also signal the bits where you might enjoy grabbing the wheel and driving yourself.

“The connected steering wheel could be the only part of the car you own,” says the firm. This sets things up for car sharing, where you can offer your car to others within your community, and get to access the vehicles of other people via your Sayer wheel. As the firm envisages cars will drive around autonomously, you won’t even have to worry about people coming to your house or having to travel to pick up a car. 

The Sayer name? That’s in recognition of one of Jaguar’s most famous designers, Malcolm Sayer, who worked at the firm between 1951-1970.

The concept will be revealed as part of a new concept car called the Jaguar Future-Type at the JLR Tech Fest at Central Saint Martins, London.

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Mercedes-Benz has released the first official teaser image of its upcoming new Project One hypercar – a road-going machine that will offer a version of its amazing hybrid F1 engine and drivetrain to supercar buyers.

The teaser is just that – a moody teaser – but it does give us our first look at the car’s profile, its wide stance and its distinctive F1-style central air intake. Oh, and its AMG-branded front grille.

The new Mercedes-AMG Project One will be revealed in full at the Frankfurt Motor Show, so the firm is remaining tight-lipped as to specific details before then. It has, however, confirmed the Project One will boast more than 1,000hp and have a top speed of more than 218mph (350km/h).

It will also be a two-seater, rather than a single-seater or a retro McLaren F1-style three-seater, and we’re promised “exemplary efficiency” that may even include some element of fully-electric running.

We expect it to cost well in excess of £2 million: that’s the price you pay for an engine that’s basically a revised version of the 1.6-litre V6 hybrid motor Lewis Hamilton is racing in this year’s F1 World Championship.

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