2011 was undoubtedly Car Throttle's "Year of the Swede". Thanks to Volvo UK's generosity and support of CT, we managed to get our hands on nearly every model in their line-up from the S60 to the XC60. We even managed to captain some scallywags across The Solent in a Volvo Racing Yacht; definitely one of my highlights of the year. So it comes as no large surprise that we would choose Volvo, especially after the passing of their younger Swedish brother Saab, to kick-start our 2012. However this time we chose to steer clear of the family saloons, older-gen estates and pricey SUV's and instead took on a car right up your alleyway, fellow youngsters. Yes, the 2012 Volvo C30. With a starting price of £14,995 though

The ice that covers the road surfaces of much of Britain during the worst periods of winter can prove deadly, and is a major contributor to the overall number of road traffic accidents that happen every year in this country. In addition to the fact that this ice makes gripping the road surfaces far more difficult than at any other time, there is also the fact that much of the ice which is on the surface of UK roads during winter is black ice - which obviously is far harder to spot on the surface of the road. Therefore it is vital to prepare thoroughly before taking to the roads in such conditions. If you are going to be driving regularly on icy winter roads, then

Usually when we post a Car Cameo, it tells the story of a large car manufacturer which teams up with a big-name artist to feature a loan vehicle in one of their latest vids. Lamborghini loves to give Gallardos to their favourite rappers, and Mini have recently upped their game with spots in a lot of the latest music videos to hit VEVO. These product placement "ads" tend to only last for a maximum of 10 seconds. That seems to be enough these days to capture the attention of young music fans and to make them yearn for some of that metal. To our joy, Chevrolet have done something a little bit different with OK Go, a US band notorious for their viral videos. In their

With the roaring success of the DS3 already under Citroen's belt and an admittedly average post-launch reception of the DS4 last year, the French manufacturer is attempting to get back on track with their third release in the DS range, the new DS5. We attended a launch event at SMMT's HQ in Westminster to find out a little more about the car and how it aims to captivate through design. According to Andy Cowell, the British-born designer of the DS5, launching this D-segment competitor has been similar in emotion to the release of a musician's third album; the first tending to break an artist, the second catapulting them into A-list limelight, and the third cementing their status as an icon. Whilst the DS4 compact hasn't been

I'm a sucker for a good car advert. I giggled at the Volkswagen Jetta Star Wars advert. I cringed at the recently released Honda CR-V advert featuring Matthew Broderick, digging up Ferris Bueller from the grave (no link needed, you've definitely already seen it). But at least the latter was directed by Todd Phillips, known best by his directing of The Hangover. One of the latest auto-related adverts to come out of the UK is one featuring "The Fast Show" comic Paul Whitehouse. In the short ad, he plays a chap named "Ollie" who is a keen Brummie fishing fanatic. Aside from dodgy accents and a plug for Aviva and their MultiCar Insurance Policy, the adverts are littered with witty one-liners. Want a couple of examples? If

Kia Motors Manufacturing Slovakia today announced the production of their 1,000,000th car from their factory in Zilina, five years after the first car rolled off their line. The lucky millionth car? A white, diesel-engined cee’d SW. That alone doesn’t really tell the whole story though, so allow me to explain why I think Kia is winning; not just in the UK but overseas too. The brand which translates roughly to “coming out of Asia” was founded in 1944 and as most manufacturers, didn’t start life off by producing consumer cars – indeed their first appliances were steel tubing and bicycle parts. Their shift to focus on cars happened thirty years later in 1974, but this didn’t catapult them immediately into the limelight – issues in 1997

Custom, custom, custom. Let me say that again, custom. I'm not just ripping off a catchy EA tagline when I say "It's in the name" because it really is - the smart BRABUS Tailor-Made is tailored to you and it's likely you won't find another one on the road quite like it. So when this fortwo Cabriolet rocked up on my doorstep, I ignored the annoying lack of capitalisation on smart and fortwo and took it for a test drive. The results? Well you can see the funky video on YouTube and in the embed above: 2011 smart BRABUS Tailor-Made ForTwo Review (phew that's a mouthful!) Not familiar with the badge? The chaps behind smart were the same ones behind the swatch customisable watches in the

To give the team its full title, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes will launch their new race car for 2012 in February. The car is known as the MP4-27 (yes, McLaren have a knack for numerically-boring names) and the world will get its first glimpse of it on the first day of the month when it is revealed at the Team’s HQ in Woking, and just 6 days later it will begin its first 4 day test at a race track in Jerez. Naturally that first test will be very telling. Will this year’s car be faster than the new Red Bull? There have been many changes to the rules and regulations for the 2012 season and every team hopes to capitalise on the changes. Blown diffusers were

Whilst your humble Car Throttle author is keen to show-off his motoring madness via a late entry into the Mongol Rally this year, chances are it won't have anything on the mighty Dakar. In fact, multiply the "sissy" journey of London to Asia in a small banger by the rough factor of one hundred, and you still won't be close to imagining the sheer terror, excitement and energy that the Dakar Rally shoves in your face with abundance.

The Dakar Rally 2012 was a tad misleading by name this year, and has been since 2008. Participants do not race from Paris, France to Dakar, Senegal due to continued high security threats in Mauritania. Instead, they are treated to some of the roughest terrain

Car Throttle presents our live coverage of the 2012 Detroit North American International Auto Show. We've got exclusive photographs from the event thanks to our attending Team CT photographer, write-ups from all our team, press unveilings and editorial opinion. Where else would you go for the latest car news, eh? Make sure you regularly check our Detroit 2012 category and subscribe to our feed, our Twitter stream and Facebook fan page so you can stay "abreast" of the latest press shenanigans. Put your hands up, De-troit!