Astra, Aygo X and Artura lead the way for a bumper year for new cars in 2022

IF 2021 is a pretty good year for new cars, then 2022 will be a dazzling year.

Here are 22 of the most important.

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Oddly enough, there isn’t a single regular supermini among them.

Then move on, to the hatched family.

The most important is Vauxhall Astra.

It has the same suspension and engine as the great Peugeot 308 we drove earlier this year.

That’s because both are now part of the massive Stellantis consortium.

But the Astra will no longer be produced in the UK.

The factory in the Port of Ellesmere is being converted to electric trucks.

They are in great demand with all of our online shopping.

Meanwhile, Honda’s Swindon plant has closed completely.

The 2022 Honda Civic will be imported.

It’s the first to get hybrid power, but Honda has shown it can do this with its other big sellers.

The BMW 2 Series Active Tourer is getting a refresh.

This varies from a fashion perspective, as it is a means of transport for people and families are instead flocking to crossovers.

Toyota is launching a compact crossover city car, the Aygo X.

Dacia’s Jogger starts at £15k.

It’s an incredible bargain as it’s a seven-seater, a kind of long-travel cum car.

The Citroen C5X is another hybrid, a full-size hatchback cum-crossover.

Meanwhile, with a higher price tag for conventional crossovers, a new generation of the hugely successful BMW X1 is on the way.

Alfa Romeo is playing against a direct competitor, called Tonale.

Now, the first electric.

Nissan is finally rolling out something bigger and better than the Leaf.

It’s the Ariya crossover.

More electric crossover competitors are coming: Toyota bZ4x, Subaru Solterra and Lexus RZ.

But I’m counting them as one or I’ll go bankrupt 22, and they’re basically the same car.

Toyota and Subaru even look alike, but the Lexus has more eye-catching styling and more luxurious sporty styling.

A direct competitor to Lexus, you will have the option of Genesis GV60.

Genesis? It’s a luxury Hyundai

The GV60 uses the same battery technology as the great Hyundai Ioniq 5.

Bigger than that, Volvo has replaced the electric for the XC90, a favorite of large suburban families.

It will likely be called the Embla, not the XC90.

And the favorite of small suburban hobbyists, the Mercedes E-Class, will feature an all-electric pickup truck called the Mercedes EQE.

Now some powerful gasoline SUVs.

Super luxury Range Rover, sporty Maserati Grecale, £300k Ferrari Purosangue.

And at the other extreme is the boxy super-rigid Ineos Grenadier.

This is also a good year for the British supercar world.

Lotus has pure petrol Emira and hybrid McLaren Artura.

Aston Martin should finally wrap up its F1-related science project, the ultra-fast Valkyrie.

Return to earth.

On the van front, Ford is rolling out an all-electric E-Transit, though you’ll still be able to use the diesel.

And Volkswagen is launching ID Buzz, a modern interpretation of the Original Carrier.

On top of that, those are cars we’ve tested but haven’t made it to the UK.

Prepare for Kia Sportage, Tesla Model Y, Renault Megane, Cupra Born, BMW i4 and Toyota GR86.

Like I said, a good year.

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