Volvo's new, state-of-the-art, lightweight D5 aluminium diesel engine has received excellent reviews since its launch in summer praising its refinement, flexibility and performance against premium brand rivals.

The 2.4-litre turbocharged, five cylinder unit is the first diesel car engine that Volvo has designed and produced.

It features the latest common rail direct injection and exhaust gas recirculation technology to produce lower emissions, fuel economy of up to 43.5 mpg on the combined cycle plus 163 bhp of power.

Apart from specification enhancements across the range, development for the D5 engine has brought a further round of improvements for 2002 models including a revised turbocharger, engine management system, and new airflow sensor.

Following strong demand for the D5 engine Volvo has more than doubled its forecasts and allocation of RHD production for next year and expects a third of all S60, V70 and S80 models will be D5 in 2002.

Production of automatic D5 models starts next month with first deliveries expected to reach customers in January next year.

The D5 engine is planned to be introduced to the V70 AWD and V70XC in the second half of 2002.

On the road prices for the latest 2002 Volvo D5 models are between £20,745 and £24,235 depending on the model.

Automatic transmission is available as a £1,100 option on all models and official emissions and fuel consumption figures are now available for 2002 models.

They vary from urban 32.5 to extra urban 43.5 mpg.

Insurance groups have been confirmed as group 13 for the V70 and S80, and group 14 for S60 D5 models.

n Subaru's Impreza, Legacy and Forester have all come out top down under by winning the 2001 Aus-tralia's Best Cars Awards.

The Impreza WRX was voted Best Sports Car, the Legacy scooped the Best Mid-Size Car award and the Forester Limited was named the Best Recreational Vehicle in their price categories.

The Subaru trio were selected by judges from the National Roads and Motorists Association Limited and Australia's six other leading motoring organisations.

Key evaluation criteria included safety, price, value, running costs, comfort, performance and security.

The Impreza WRX scored maxi-mum points for handling, steering and braking and gained a lead over its closest rival because of its user-friendly and practical qualities for everyday use.

Equally, the Legacy also scored top marks for handling and steering as well as for its quiet, smooth ride.

Back in the UK, recent Subaru victories include the Impreza WRX winning the Best Sportscar category at the Scottish Car Of The Year Awards and the Outback H6-3.0 winning two major awards in the Towcar Of The Year 2002 com-petition organised by The Caravan Club.