The enthusiast cars from the late 2000s headline Issue 153 of the evo India Mag-Book

The cover story for issue 153 takes us back to 2006-2010, the years when India's car scene grew up — sedans went mainstream, hatchbacks went premium, and the first useable mid-size SUVs arrived. Editor Sirish Chandran navigates the cars of the decade, starting with the Volkswagen Polo, the car that not only redefined what a small car's road manners could be in India but also led directly to the creation of this magazine — without the Polo's rally programme, there's no evo India. Elsewhere there's the Mitsubishi Cedia that dominated INRC rally grids in wild N+ spec, the Abarth Grande Punto and the skunk-works engineering story behind it, the Honda Civic with its afterburner taillights, the Tata Nano's one-lakh-rupee promise, the Skoda Yeti that arrived years ahead of the mid-SUV boom, and more. Real owners of these cars — some still running them after a decade or two — share what it's been like to live with them.

As a companion to the India feature, evo Eras also looks back at the performance icons of 2000s UK — Murcielago, 997-gen 911, Audi R8, Golf GTI — plus the bikes that shaped Indian motorcycling between 2005 and 2010. We spend time with the most affordable V8 in the country, the Defender 5.0 V8. The Mercedes-Benz S 450e brings a genuinely useable plug-in hybrid powertrain to the S-Class for the first time in India. We head to the track for the Skoda relay record attempt, where the entire range — from the Kylaq to the Kodiaq — set a lap record at the CoASSTT circuit with professional drivers. There's a five-way mid-size SUV comparison test bringing together the Kushaq, Taigun, Creta N Line and Duster to find the enthusiast's pick, and we spend time with the Volkswagen Virtus to remind ourselves that sedans still have plenty to offer. The Norton Manx R gets its India connection explored — TVS-backed, with the engine, chassis and electronics largely sourced from India despite the bike being built in the UK.

All this and more in the 153rd issue of evo India. Click here to get your copy.

evo Eras: Cars of 2006-2010, India

The decade India discovered The Thrill of Driving. We bring together the Volkswagen Polo, Mitsubishi Cedia, Abarth Grande Punto, Honda Civic, Tata Nano, Hyundai i20, Toyota Fortuner, Toyota Innova, Skoda Yeti, Maruti Suzuki SX4, Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire, and the Mahindra-Renault Logan — the cars that built the foundation of enthusiast cars in India.

evo Eras: Cars of 2000s, UK

Performance icons from the 2000s — Lamborghini Murciélago, Porsche 997-generation 911, Audi R8, E46 M3, Mini Cooper S, Aston Martin V8 Vantage and Volkswagen Golf GTI look back at the cars that defined enthusiast motoring in 2000s.

evo Eras: Bikes of 2005-2010, India

Motorcycling in India saw a paradigm shift towards performance in the late 2000s. We look back at the Pulsars, Apaches, R15s and the Bajaj Avenger that shaped a generation of Indian riders.

Norton Manx R

Made in the UK, but as Indian as it is British — the V4 engine is assembled in India, the chassis is cast here, and the digital dash, CFD and carbon bodywork all have Indian roots. TVS bought Norton out of bankruptcy in 2020 and the Manx R is their first proper product.

Mercedes-Benz S 450e

The best car in the world gets a facelift, and for India the bigger story is the new plug-in hybrid drivetrain — a genuinely useable EV range backed by a big in-line 6 for when you need to cover distance.

Defender 5.0 V8

The most affordable V8 in India at ₹1.4 crore. The 5-litre supercharged engine under the hood has a history running through the Jaguar XKR-S and Project 8, from an era when big displacement and character mattered more than outright numbers.

Duster v mid-SUV rival

The enthusiast's mid-size SUV comparison test — we bring together the Skoda Kushaq, Volkswagen Taigun, Hyundai Creta N Line and Renault Duster to find which one rewards a driver the most.

Honda City

A second facelift brings a light bar, a larger 10.1-inch screen, 360-degree camera and ventilated seats, but the underlying car remains unchanged. We find out if mild updates are enough to hold the line against the segment-leading Virtus

Mercedes-AMG GLC 53

AMG ditches four-cylinder power for a 3-litre twin-turbo straight-six making 443bhp, effectively replacing both the GLC 43. We drive it in Germany to see what this means for AMG's future India lineup

Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe

AMG's flagship goes all-electric, with three axial-flux motors producing up to 1153bhp and a system that recreates the sound and feel of a V8 through speakers and seat-vibration motors. We break down what this radical overhaul means for the brand's combustion future

Ferrari Luce

Maranello's first five-seater and only its second four-door is also its first EV — designed not in-house but by Jony Ive and Marc Newson's LoveFrom studio. Plenty of controversy around it, but we cut through the noise and bring you the facts

Skoda Epiq

Skoda's smallest and most affordable EV yet, the Kushaq-sized Epiq previews a new design language built around T-shaped lighting elements. We break down the specs, the three power variants, and why it's unlikely to make it to India.

Calum Nicholas Interview

Former Red Bull power unit technician and pit crew member Calum Nicholas takes us inside the team's sub-two-second pitstops, what made Max Verstappen exceptional from the start, and the chaos of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from a perspective the cameras never showed

Skoda Relay Record

The entire Skoda India range heads to the CoASSTT circuit for a relay lap record attempt with professional drivers, certified by the India Book of Records

Volkswagen Virtus

SUVs may be dominating sales charts, but the Virtus is here to remind us that a well-sorted sedan still has plenty to offer the enthusiast.

All this and more in the 153rd issue of the evo India mag-book!