10 Cars To Be Excited About In 2020

From the ordinary stuff that sells in huge numbers to limited-run exotics, 2019 was packed full of amazing car reveals. It was the year of the VW Golf 8, the BMW M2 CS, the Bentley Flying Spur and the Koenigsegg Jesko. Whatever kind of car tickles your fancy, you’ve been well served over the last 12 months.

But don’t be sad it’s over - 2020 will provide a similarly impressive array of debuts. Don’t believe us? Here are some of the best cars we can look forward to:

Alfa Romeo Tonale

With FCA having drastically cut back Alfa Romeo’s grand rebirth to something more modest, we sadly won’t be given the new GTV and 8C the company promised us last year. Could the Tonale go some way to make up for that? It may be yet another new crossover, but since it’s one from Alfa, anticipation is high.

Aston Martin Vantage Roadster

The Aston Martin Vantage will lose its roof in 2020, as previewed through an ‘engineering car’ revealed by the company a few months ago. It won’t be especially light since the Vantage coupe is a fairly bulky starting point, but a 503bhp twin-turbo V8 borrowed from Mercedes-AMG will help remedy that. It should eventually be available with a seven-speed manual, too.

BMW M3

We were hoping to see the G30 3-series-based version of the BMW M3 at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show, but the occasion came and went with no new M saloons emerging. It’s all but certain to debut in 2020, though. The car will use M Division’s all-new S58 straight-six, which we’ve already sampled in the X3 M. It won’t be going hybrid as per prior reports, although there will be a four-wheel drive version for the first time in the model’s 33-year history.

Ford Puma ST

You can hate us for it all you want, but we’re actually digging the idea of a Puma ST. It’ll be a kinda/sorta successor to the Ford Racing Puma, and with the guts of the staggeringly good Fiesta ST hiding under its crossover body, we can expect something class-leading in terms of driving dynamics.

Lexus LC F

We loved the Lexus LC 500 when we first drove it a couple of years ago, but it’s firmly in grand tourer territory. There’s nothing wrong with that, but for anyone wanting something sharper, the incoming ‘F’ version will solve that. It’ll be 911 money by the time Lexus has made the necessary tweaks, but for something powered by one of the last naturally-aspirated V8s in production, it’ll be a price worth paying.

Mercedes S-Class

We’re looking forward to seeing the next S-Class, as the current one is so tech-packed, it’s hard to imagine how Mercedes will up the ante. 100-way electric folding seats? Traffic recognition software that can see into the future? A holographic butler named Jeeves? Perhaps not. But whatever Merc has done will undoubtedly be impressive.

Going against rumours that suggested the 992 version of the 911 GT3 would go turbocharged, it’s looking most likely that a naturally-aspirated flat-six will be retained. The first 992 GT car is set to use the 4.0-litre unit used in the 911 Speedster, which is an updated and Euro 6DG-temp-friendly (that means it’s good to go until 2021 at least) version of the 991.2 GT3’s power plant.

Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo

We’ve been impressed with the Taycan thus far, so Porsche‘s more practical version is something we’re totally on board with. Along with a more practical estate bodyshell, the Cross Turismo will also have a raised ride height, making it almost as versatile as an electric SUV like the Audi E-Tron, but in a much more stylish suit. Just to warn you, though, the fastest one will probably still be called ‘Turbo’. Sigh.

Toyota Yaris GR-4

The Yaris GR - teased as the ‘GR-4’ - is essentially a distilled, road-going version of the next Yaris WRC car, and yes, it will be all-wheel drive. A heavily-boosted inline-three will provide around 275bhp and at least 258lb ft of torque. If you were a little disappointed in the GR Supra, this creation from Toyota - which will be fully revealed at the Tokyo Auto Salon in January - should more than make up for it.

VW Golf GTI

Like the M3, the next Golf GTI was rumoured to be packing some form of electrification, but VW appears to have performed a U-turn. Instead, the Golf 8 GTI will be the last pure ICE version of the hot hatch. With the Golf GTE developing 245bhp from its hybrid powertrain, we suspect the GTI will be good for a little more. Providing propulsion will be an evolution of VW’s 2.0-litre ‘EA888’ inline-four. Want more power? A GTI TCR has already been confirmed, although it’s not yet clear if we’ll see that in 2020.

Any other cars you’re looking forward to gawping at for the first time in 2020? Let us know in the comments.