Secret INSTEROID concept makes a splash

Check out Hyundai’s INSTEROID concept which has just been unveiled in South Korea. INSTEROID merges gaming influences with extensive customisation to captivate a new generation of drivers. Based on the INSTER SUV, it takes sporty design and the user experience to new heights. INSTER’s selection as a top three finalist for the 2025 World Car of the Year award, sets a solid foundation for this radical ‘What if?’ project. Crafted in secrecy by Hyundai Motor’s European design team, INSTEROID is a true concept car. Its name cleverly fuses the playful… Read more

Ford celebrates 100 years in Australia

One hundred years ago this week, the Ford Motor Company of Australia Pty Ltd was founded in Geelong, Victoria. The story of how Ford Australia came into being, started in 1923 when North American Ford executives visited Australia to seek out a base to set up an operation to direct all Ford activities in the country. Two senior Ford executives were part of a six-person advanced party scouting Australian locations, Hubert Charles French, and P. W. Grandjean, the then secretary of Ford of Canada. After their visit, Grandjean wrote to… Read more

Warrior Ute finds home in South Africa as backie

A deal with Nissan South Africa will see exports of the the Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior begin later this month. In keeping with the Warrior program’s ethos of delivering vehicles tailor-made for local conditions, Premcar is also expanding its operations globally. The Victoria-based company to set up a joint venture with South African local firm AIH – under the entity of Premcar SA – with all remanufacturing enhancements conducted within Nissan South Africa’s production facility in Rosslyn. Premcar has made a number of significant changes to the South African-market Nissan… Read more

Chance to win barnstorming Audi RS 6 Avant

Audi is offering a $300,000 RS 6 Avant for the price of a $55 ticket in the first Audi Foundation fundraising raffle for 2025. Audi Australia is proud to announce Audi Foundation’s 14th raffle, which offers ticket holders the opportunity to win an exceptional prize while supporting some of Australia’s most impactful charities.   Since its inception in 2017, Audi Foundation has donated over $7.5 million to a range of progressive charitable organisations across the country. Rather than providing one-off donations, Audi Foundation has distinguished itself by forming long-term partnerships with… Read more

Granvia gets its marching orders

Ladies and gentlemen. Can I have your attention please. Can we please observe a minute’s silence for the passing of Toyota Granvia people mover, a project perhaps doomed to failure from the start. Based on the humble HiAce van, the boxy, monolithic, six- and eight-seater, with its huge radiator grille targeted high-end hospitality, family and corporate buyers. Priced from $68,000, Toyota says it attracted close to 1000 sales since its introduction in late 2019. In 2024, they sold 16 of them. No word on Granvia’s counterpart, the Lexus LM, priced… Read more

LEXUS GX 550 OVERTRAIL TAKES TO HIGH GROUND

  Simplicity is the keynote of good design: ask any mechanical engineer or industrial designer worth his or her salt. Cue the Lexus GX 550, which, the maker says, is designed to act as an extension of the driver’s hands. Simple! The new Lexus GX 550 Overtrail controls have no supersensitive touch pad or buttons and switches of New Age automobiles, just knobs and levers of days of yore. At first glance, the iconoclastic off-roader with the looks of a bare-fisted bush basher, on the bitumen, behaves like a silver… Read more

SUZUKI JIMNY XL FIVE-DOOR

A five-door version of the Suzuki Jimny. Who would have thunk? It should make getting in and out of the back a little easier, not that you would want to volunteer to sit in the back. And not that the Jimny XL (that’s what it is designated as) is likely to offer that much more legroom than its sibling, but let’s crunch the numbers and find out. STYLING From the front there’s little to tell the three- and five-door versions of the Jimny apart. Both feature Suzuki’s stylised five-slot radiator… Read more

Lexus turns up the power for RZ EV

LEXUS RZ customers can expect an even more energised driving experience when the updated battery electric vehicle (BEV) arrives later this year. The Kaizen approach for continuous improvement builds on the outstanding luxury and refinement of the Lexus RZ, with a fully redesigned BEV system increasing motor output, extending driving range and reducing charging time. The natural driving feeling of the Lexus Driving Signature (LDS) now runs deeper, with refinements to the DIRECT4 all-wheel-drive system bringing smoother, more intuitive and exhilarating handling to the flagship Lexus BEV. The RZ is of course the… Read more

Peugeot taking orders for new 5008

With Citroen out of the frame, Peugeot seems to have adopted a slightly different approach to sales. Expressions of interest are invited from those keen to get their hands on a new Peugeot 5008 Hybrid SUV. That’s the all-new seven-seat, three row 5008 by the way. Priced from $55,990 for the 5008 Allure Hybrid or $67,990 for the 5008 GT Premium Hybrid, there’s no mention of any arrival date, or for that matter when the car is likely to put in an appearance in showrooms. Maybe, instead of bringing a boatload… Read more

SUZUKI SWIFT SPORT TURBO

It’s ironic that the Swift Sport Turbo is the oldest, unchanged model in the Suzuki lineup, but at the same time still manages to shine as the star of the lineup. Yep. The third generation Sport dates back to the 2017 Frankfurt motor show, it’s still a great little performance package at a super affordable price, and proof positive of the old saying: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. In June, 2020, Suzuki added a 48-volt mild hybrid to the car for the European market, but alas Australia never… Read more