Being a modern man is fraught with difficulties. You’ve got the have the perfect beard, the perfect beach body, and the perfect man-bun. But what about the perfect car? Isn’t that important too? It sure is.
Here, we’re going to look at some stylish cars for the aspiring modern gentleman. Let’s begin.
Audi TT Coupe
Back when the TT first launched in the 2000s, most people couldn’t make up their minds on the way that the car looked. On the outside, the car was something very new indeed. It either invoked images of sporting perfection or the dung-beetle, depending on your point of view. But since then the car has evolved considerably. And now it is arguably one of the best-looking coupes on the market.
Audi has put considerable effort to refining the car on the inside too. Older models tended to feel quite claustrophobic. And the windscreen was more like the peep-hole on a navy submarine. New cars, though, have swapped the stuffy interior for something that feels fresh and spacious. What’s more, there’s plenty of driver visibility, which used to be a problem on older cars.
Petrol powered versions will propel drivers from zero to sixty in 5.5 seconds flat. The diesel version is almost as quick, and it’ll do an impressive 50 miles to the gallon.
BMW i8
The problem with the Audi, however, is that it doesn’t have many green credentials. And that’s one of the things that the modern man is looking for when he chooses his car.
Until recently, it was hard to get something that looked amazing and helped to look after Mother Earth. But BMW brought that world to an end with the release of the i8. The i8 is one of the most bonkers cars ever produced by the German manufacturer. And it looks as if it wouldn’t be out of place in the world of the 2050s. BMW has produced one of the most stylish and environmentally friendly cars of the decade.
The i8 Coupe is a blend of old and new. Under the hood, there’s a rather modest 1.5-litre petrol engine. But when combined with two electric motors, the performance is incredible. It rockets passengers from zero to sixty in a mere 4.4 seconds. And it’ll do 135 mpg, making it tax-free. If you drive this car in the UK, you’ll be exempt from both road tax and the London congestion charge.
Mini John Cooper Works
For many gentlemen, the Mini Cooper holds a special place in their heart. It was a car that they grew up with and consequently, are fond of it. But the original Mini was a creature of its time. And with its terrible reliability and lack of any mod-cons it certainly wouldn’t serve customers today.
The new Minis, now made by BWW, are a world apart from the old. But they retain some of that original charisma and charm in a modern marketplace dominated by generic models.
The John Cooper Mini, originally debuted in 2013, takes the new Mini Cooper to the next level. The car used to be available only in an automatic variety. But now sites like www.coopermini.co.uk sell the manual version too. As a result, the car has a lot of the handling and ride characteristics of its adolescent competitor, the Focus ST.
The car is clearly a style icon. And the designers at BMW certainly seem to know that. The John Cooper Works edition comes with an updated colour scheme and stylish decals on the bumper and roof.
But it’s not all about the looks. Under the hood of the John Cooper version lies a powerful 228 bhp 2.0-litre engine. It all means that the car performs like a sporty coupe, accelerating to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds.
Citroen Grand C4 Picasso MPV
If you’ve got a family, a sporty coupe probably isn’t at the top of your list of buying priorities. Instead, you need something that can seat three or more people comfortably. Unfortunately, that requirement doesn’t always leave you with a lot of stylish options to choose from. Fortunately, Citroen seems to have taken that particular issue to heart. The new Picasso, named after the artist himself, promises to deliver MPV functionality in a stylish package.
Since the rise of the SUV, MPVs have been a rather unloved car category. Rival Renault actually stopped making its Espace in 2012 due to lack of demand, only to revive it again in 2015. But Citroen has kept the flame alive by radically improving the Picasso’s styling. The front of the car now has a striking look. And Citroen has done everything it can to increase the amount of glass used on the car.
For its size, the car is cheap to run. It’ll seat seven. And it has all the space a family could ever need for bikes, shopping and sports day.
SEAT Leon Hatchback
The SEAT Leon is a very Latin version of the northern European Golf. And most people would agree that, when compared to VW’s offering, it wins in the looks department. SEAT has always been a cornerstone of the boy racer market. Their original Ibiza was deliberately and intentionally marketed as a way for first-time drivers to have a lot of fun.
The Leon is somewhat more refined, but still deliberately outrageously styled. What’s more, because it’s essentially a Golf under the bodywork, you get a quality driving experience. The car almost immediately responds to driver input. And handling on the road is responsive and quick according to most reviewers.
There are, however, a few drawbacks with the Leon, as pointed out by www.telegraph.co.uk. For starters, it doesn’t have the largest rear window – a consequence of the car’s styling. And it can make driving in and around town quite difficult. The car is also limited on the practicality front, like many of the cars we’ve discussed here. The rear seats do fold down, but they don’t fold down flat which can be a pain for big loads. Having said that, the car looks great in bright colours that accentuate its style.