Editorial

 The summer’s in and the searing heat is back upon us in the region. And in the automotive world everything is slowing down for the summer break. Not much news comes out around this time, and this is why we scurried the news wires and hit high gear to supply you with an extra amount of material to last you the two months, as we too slow down for the summer with this combined issue.

 

In early June we were invited by Mercedes-Benz Middle East & Levant to what can be only described as one of the most incredible off-road experiences we have ever had. Drained would be a good way to sum it up, but driving all of M.B’s off-road capable offerings in the most hostile of terrains around Jordan’s Dead Sea, made us remember what SUVs are actually there for: to enjoy and access nature in a way a car can never do.

 

For the rest of the hands-on experiences, we had to stay in and around our Beirut and Dubai offices with the surprisingly good Hyundai Sonata, passion-inducing Lancia Delta and family juggernaut Chevrolet Traverse. We also take a look at Land Rover’s updated LR4 and have one of our overseas editors put through his paces around Fiorano circuit in Italy by the latest, most radical Ferrari - the 599 GTO. 

 

In our regular Volvo Safety feature, we introduce driver behavior detection systems that help prevent a driver from getting into trouble, part of Volvo’s vision to eradicate accidents involving Volvo cars by the end of this decade.

 

The future of the performance sports car seems bright despite the pressure from the green party. Porsche’s physics busting 918 Spyder promises to defy the performance limitation of a hybrid whereas the BMW Grand Coupe Concept is the CS concept revisited before, presumably, it makes its way to production to rival the Mercedes-Benz CLS, Porsche Panamera and upcoming Audi A7 sports sedans.

 

Our newest feature this year covers motorbikes. This monthly feature will explore the world on 2 or perhaps 3 wheels and brings you the latest model test drives from an array of manufacturers. We’re learning as we go, so this month we give you a taste of the course we undertook to become more at ease on two wheels.

 

We hope you enjoy this latest packed issue of ArabWheels, with our new enlarged Lifestyle section and latest news. To stay updated when we’re off in August, log on to www.arabwheels.net and subscribe to win some valuable accessories from some of our partners.