Star cars of 2008 - part 1 - Small family cars

Audi A3
Price £16,000-24,000 (est)
On sale Mid-2008
What's new? Exterior restyle of current A3

Audi's Golf-based A3 will get a mid-term update in the summer.

The changes are expected to be largely cosmetic, but quattro versions may get the modified four-wheel-drive system that Audi shares with VW, who introduced it on its Tiguan 4x4.

There'll also be an E-version, powered by a 1.9-litre diesel engine with CO2 emissions of just 119g/km, but the hot news is the addition of a convertible, which will beat the rest of the range to the market.


Ford Focus
Price £11,945-£20,645
On sale March
What's new? Addition of more environmentally friendly engine options; fresh styling

The Focus is the latest model to be given Ford's new family look - and at the same time it will try to grab the green moral high ground for small family cars.

A package of under-bonnet improvements will cap CO2 emissions at 120g/km for all cars powered by the 1.6-litre turbodiesel engine that Ford shares with Peugeot and Citroen. That's low enough to let you drive into the London congestion charge zone for free.

But there'll also be a super-clean 65.7mpg version, emitting just 115g/km of CO2 - better than VW's new Golf Bluemotion.

Ford's green champion, the first of its new Econetic range under development, adds aerodynamic changes to the recalibrated engine management and power steering systems, which will be fitted to all Focus 1.6-litre diesel models.

Ford is already working on an even cleaner diesel engine, with Econetic options for the Mondeo and the next Fiesta on the cards, too.

The 2.0-litre 135bhp diesel hasn't been overlooked, either. A new double-clutch, semi-automatic gearbox is set to become an option, and Ford reckons fuel consumption and emissions will be 10% lower than those of a car fitted with a conventional auto 'box.

The styling changes, which affect every exterior panel bar the roof, bring the Focus into line with the 'kinetic' design of the Mondeo, S-Max and Galaxy. Three- and five-door models and estates will get the new look first, with the saloon, coupe-cabrio and sporty ST to follow later in 2008.

The instruments, air-con systems, audio equipment plus trim materials and colours have also been changed, while range-topping models get a new centre console.

Push-button starting, a tyre pressure warning system and a 230-volt power point will become available, too. In addition, the fuel cap will now prevent you from filling up with the wrong fuel.

The new Focus is due to go on sale some time in the spring and prices will be £250 dearer than the outgoing car, which takes into account the fitting of stability control as standard across the range.


Kia Pro-cee'd
Price £11,000
On sale February
What's new? Like the Cee'd, only a lighter, 3-door model

Kia will add a third strand to its European-built Cee'd range in February when the three-door Pro-cee'd joins the five-door and SW (estate) models already on sale.

The company will follow the lead established by the likes of ( and A3 Sportback) and ( and Astra Sport Hatch) in giving the three-door car a sportier profile, in contrast to the conservative five-door Cee'd.

The Pro-cee'd is longer and lower than the Cee'd and weighs up to 84kg less, which should improve performance and economy. It's also less practical, with a fixed rear cushion instead of a folding arrangement.

However, the front seats do slide and tilt to let people in and out, and they have a memory function so you don't have to reset them every time they're moved.

It's likely the Procee'd will be sold in the UK with a 1.6-litre petrol engine and three diesels (two 1.6s and a 2.0), but not the 1.4 that's currently offered in the Cee'd.

Rumours still persist of a more powerful model with a 2.0-litre petrol engine, although you're unlikely to see it next year.


Lancia Delta HPE
Price £15,000 (est)
On sale Late 2008
What's new? A 5-door hatch based on the Fiat Bravo

Lancia's UK return in 2008 is part of a plan almost to treble their global sales to 300,000 a year.

The Delta HPE, uniting two names from the company's past, is the first of a number of new models which will be simultaneously engineered for left- and right-hand drive.

Based on the Fiat Bravo, but larger, it will be a five-door hatch with a hint of sporty estate - close to this concept car shown in spring 2006.

There'll be a range of petrol and turbodiesel engines, too, each delivering between 120bhp and 200bhp-plus.


Mercedes CLC
Price From £20,000 (est)
On sale Summer
What's new? Engine and chassis updates

Mercedes' three-door hatch, currently known as the C-Class Sports Coupe, will undergo a name change in the summer.

At the same time, it will benefit from a package of engine and chassis improvements designed to make it sharper to drive, cleaner and more appealing to younger buyers.

In future it will be known as the CLC, and although it will continue to be based on the current platform (from the previous C-Class), it will get the new C-Class's 'direct control' suspension and steering tuning to reduce body roll in corners and make the handling more precise.

The uprated but lower-CO2 four-cylinder engines from the new C-Class will also make it into the CLC, while the front end will be revised to echo the look of the C-Class Sport.


Mazda 3
Price £8000
On sale April
What's new? Three-door version of Mazda 3

Kia isn't alone in adding a three-door model to an existing range this year: Mazda is doing the same with the 3.

Yet there'll be no attempt at a sporty new look, though. The fire-breathing Mazda 3 MPS stole a lot of headlines and has taken the lead in the sporty-hatch power stakes, but the Japanese company has resisted the temptation to go for a three-door MPS version.

The Mazda 3 shares its underpinnings with the Ford Focus. The body on the three-door model will be similar to that of the five-door - without a couple of entry points, of course - but the engine range will be exactly the same.

It comes along in April and is likely to be available for a bargain £8000.


Peugeot 308
Price £11,995-£20,04
On sale Now
What's new? A more stylish replacement for the 307 range

Peugeot will treble the number of body styles available on the 308 during 2008 and give us a strong hint at a fourth variant to be introduced in 2009.

The expansion of the range begins at the start of the year, when three-door versions are added to the five-door that went on sale last autumn.

There'll be a new range-topping engine due in the spring, too - a 175bhp 1.6 turbo that's currently to be found in the Mini Cooper S.

You'll also be able to get a six-speed automatic gearbox with both the 136bhp 2.0-litre diesel and the 120bhp 1.6 petrol engines; the same option becomes available on the five-door in January.

There'll be a new gearbox option with 110bhp 1.6 diesel versions of the 308, too - a semi-automatic with electronically controlled shifts.

Spring is also the scheduled arrival time for the 308 SW (estate), which won't look much different from the concept car seen on Peugeot's stand at the Frankfurt motor show last September.

Peugeot will round off 2008 for the 308 range by showing a coupe-cabrio (CC) concept on home ground at the Paris motor show later in the autumn.

Like today's 307 CC, it will have a folding metal roof that disappears into the boot. Having said that, the new car is expected to have much better proportions than the outgoing one.

Typically, Peugeot concepts are never far removed from the real thing, so it should give a strong pointer to the model that will be unveiled at Geneva in March 2009.


Renault Megane
Price From £18,000 (est)
On sale Late 2008
What's new? A less-controversial body shape

The next Megane is still a year away from UK showrooms, and with the company proving very adept at keeping its secret new cars secret - even the long-lens spy photographers haven't spotted it.

So, not much is known about it, but we hear that the controversial bustle at the back of the current car will be much less pronounced on the new model.

The overall shape will be more rounded and smoother, so it looks as though Renault is going to have to dig out a different catchy tune for its advertising campaign.

The rest is little more than inspired guesswork. If Renault does the same with the Megane as it did with the Laguna, it will adapt the current mid-sized platform so the new car is better to drive and has a much higher-quality interior.

Alternatively, Renault could use its partnership with Nissan to borrow the platform from the Qashqai.

Renault received criticism when the new Laguna was unveiled earlier this year - observers said the car was a little, well, boring. Yet its head of design, Patrick le Quement, has insisted that future models will be a lot more exciting to look at.

Expect a bundle of 1.5- and 2.0-litre diesel engines to appear in the line-up, plus a selection of Renault and Nissan petrol units of between 1.2- and 2.0-litres.