I need to thank. We’re bucking the general decline in print and the CAR team deeply appreciates your on- going loyalty and interest.
There’s also an almighty automotive battle looming, which is why I’m pulling up a ringside seat and break- ing out the popcorn. 2016 is the big Toyota versus Ford war: Hilux versus Ranger; Fortuner versus Everest.
For a long time, Toyota has had things its own way, but over the last five years, Ford has been the Comeback King with its Ranger coming very close to toppling the mighty Hilux in the sales charts. With the new Everest SUV, Ford’s also staring down Toyota’s Fortuner. And both sides are up for the fight. You can feel it when visiting their respective head offices, where any mention of the opposition has the staff positively bristling with competitive zeal.
For a bunch of petrolheads, the prospect of testing the combatants is a tremendously exciting one. We’ve had our first go in this issue and, in upcoming months, you’re going to see these battles pan out across our pages. It’ll be a challenge to both our analytic and writing skills as motoring journalists to separate such evenly matched competitors.
This is also an opportunity to address the occasional questioning email we get at CAR. From time to time, our objectivity is questioned with rumblings of “you guys always choose [insert manufacturer] because it advertises with you”. Tellingly, that manufacturer varies greatly from email to email.
I can assure you that CAR magazine’s integrity has always been, and will always be, non-negotiable. It’s what has made this magazine what it is, and it’s the etched-in-stone principle passed from editor to editor.
