Drive it!: The Motor Magazine

This time Drive it! gets practical. We look at sporty station wagons, eco-friendly SUVs and thrifty compacts suitable for everyday use.Admire it!: Seat Leon Cupra Station WagonFamily cars don't have to be boring. That's the mantra Seat followed when they came up with the Leon ST Cupra model. The car has everything you need when it comes to practicality, but it also has a little something under the hood to add some excitement for drivers. A raft of features mean the car can be set up however the driver likes, whether that means extra comfort, or a more sporty experience.Examine It! BMW X5 Plug-In HybridThe BMW X5 has been a fixture on the world's roads for several years now. But this X5 is different. It can arrive with the whoosh of rolling tires the only sound. The X5 xDrive40e is BMW's first plug-in hybrid following the BMW i8, which is sold under the BMW i sub-brand.The challenge with the X5 xDrive40e was to integrate the necessary elements for the electric drivetrain into the existing car body. The only exterior indications of the additional powertrain are the lettering and the hatch on the front fender. The car can cover 30 kilometers with just the electric engine on a single charge. But country roads are also no problem for electric-only driving, or you can take advantange of the 230 kilowatts of combined power. Taste it! Ford C-MaxFord has sold around 1.3 million C-Max models in Europe since the launch of the first generation in 2003. The compact van has now been revamped and upgraded with a striking exterior design. The interior has also undergone a makeover with optimized storage areas and improved build quality. And under the hood you'll find the new low-consumption engines.We're testing the high power 134kW C-Max model with a new 1.5 liter Eco Boost gasoline engine.Test It! Nissan PulsarWith the Pulsar five-door hatchback, Nissan has added a new model to its compact segment. The name Pulsar stands for daring design, technical innovation and the roomiest interior in its class. That makes the Pulsar a worthy challenger to the established European compact cars.With it, Nissan has a clear goal: to attract drivers of smaller and larger models and offer an attractive alternative to those expect more, but don't want to pay premium prices. The new Pulsar has been designed in Europe for the European market, and it's being manufactured at the Spanish Nissan factory in Barcelona. Drive It takes a look at what the Pulsar really has to offer.Vintage! The 'Kombi', Brazil's T2 VW BusIn Germany and many other countries, production of the Type 2 VW Bus ended way back in 1979. But in Brazil the model continued to be built until December of 2013. There the VW Bus is known as the 'Kombi'. Drive it! takes a special edition Kombi, made to mark the 50th anniversary of the van's production, out for a spin. Though it's a 2007 model with a water-cooled, straight-4 engine, it looks just like a vintage VW Bus.