NEW KIA SORENTO

Kia Australia has announced details of the MY2024 Sorento large SUV with refreshed the exterior and interior design, upgraded comfort and convenience technology, and additional safety features. As before there is a large range of options including petrol and diesel engines, with hybrid, plug-in hybrid, front and all-wheel drive, and four equipment levels. The petrol and diesel variants will be launched later this month in this initial Sorento upgrade release. HEV and PHEV variants will be arriving later in the first half of 2024, with specification details and pricing announced… Read more

IT’S THE HOLY GRAIL OF NUMBER PLATES!

  Coming up for auction by Lloyds on January 27 is the ‘unicorn’ of NSW number plates. It’s NSW 1, described by Lloyds as the nation’s most sought-after heritage plate. It already has a bid for more than $10 million – and that’s not a typo. “After being tightly held for decades by the current custodians and never been offered for public auction before, this heritage “NSW 1” number plate is a unicorn, the holy grail must- have for any blue-chip passion investor or number one gift for that person… Read more

END OF THE ROAD FOR ICONIC AUDI TT

Audi Australia will mark the end of production of its iconic TT sportscar with a special limited edition model. The TT was launched in 1998 and arrived here the following year, initially in coupe form and shortly afterwards as a convertible. Almost all loved its bold shape that combines modern design with 1930’s roadster images. That design proved to be timeless making it instantly recognisable throughout its 25-year lifetime. The aptly named TT Final Edition is based on the Audi TT 45 TFSI quattro but with its own distinctive styling… Read more

NEW CAR SALES HIT A RECORD HIGH IN 2023

The Australian automotive market has achieved an unprecedented milestone, breaking all- time records for new vehicle sales in 2023. A total of 1,216,780 vehicles were delivered during the year, the previous highest sales result of 1,189,116 was achieved in 2017. Toyota was the top selling car brand with 17.7 per cent of the market while the top selling vehicle was the Ford Ranger (63,356). SUVs and light commercials accounted for 78.4 per cent of sales and comprise all the top 10 vehicles sold in 2023. Battery electric vehicles accounted for… Read more

NEW KIA PICANTO

Kia has announced details of the latest version of its Picanto city car. Cars of this size have historically been poor sellers in Australia with its sprawling suburbs however increasing environmental awareness did there was a surge in popularity of the segment which saw Kia begin importing the Picanto in 2015. The arrival of compact SUVs has seen the micro segment dwindle to just two cars – Picanto and Fiat 500 with the little Kia outselling the Italian mini by a ratio of 9 to 1. As with the other… Read more

RENAULT LAUNCHES ALL-NEW KANGOO E-TECH COMMERCIAL VAN

Renault has rejoined the Australian electric commercial van market with its new Kangoo E- Tech. It replaces the previous fully-electric Z.E. Kangoo which was on sale here between 2017 and 2022. Renault has been a pioneer in electric mobility and a leader in electric commercial vehicles in Europe since 2011 with the Z.E. selling around 70,000 vehicles as well as nearly 200 here. Kangoo E-Tech is available in both short- and long-wheelbase variants and with a range of option packs. The SWB variant will arrive in February 2024, priced from… Read more

DEFENDER DESIGNED FOR ‘ENDLESS’ SURFING SAFARI

Surfing can be an expensive undertaking, especially if you need the right set of wheels to reach secluded locations. Enter the Land Rover Defender Pacific Blue Edition, limited to just 15 examples and priced from $129,976 plus on-road costs. Pacific Blue Edition will be sold exclusively in short wheelbase 90 body design with a D250 3.0-litre twin turbo-diesel that delivers 183kW of power and 570Nm of torque. Each of the 15 Limited Edition models will be wrapped in a stunning Pacific Blue matte finish, contrasted with a white roof and… Read more

SAFETY HINTS FROM RACV FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON

Victorian motoring organisation RACV is urging everyone to keep road rules and safety at the forefront of their minds this festive season. 287 lives have been lost on Victorian roads in 2023, up 23.2 per cent (as at midnight 18 December 2023). RACV is calling on Victorian motorists to be mindful of keeping to the left on a multi-lane road (rule 130) and not stopping on a freeway (rule 177), with Victoria Police figures showing almost 10,000 infringements totalling over $1.5 million in fines were handed out to motorists over… Read more

OOPS . . . TWO CARS FLUNK CRASH TESTS!

Australia’s independent car safety authority ANCAP has warned car buyers to check ratings after two brand new cars failed to score any stars for safety in crash tests. The cars in question are the Chinese MG5 sedan and Indian Mahindra Scorpio SUV. Both models were unable to achieve even one star for safety in terms of physical or active collision protection. In many areas, ANCAP says this was due to the fundamental omission of safety features that have been commonplace in new cars for many years. “Both brands have misjudged… Read more

NEW MINI COUNTRYMAN 

  The Mini Countryman has been around since the 1960s when, as a small station wagon,   it sold alongside the classic Mini.    After being off the scene for a number of years, BMW brought it back in 2010, this time as  the first Mini.    While it could be argued that the Mini Moke that was built in Australia until the early 1980s  could be classed as an SUV, the Countryman came with a raft of features not seen in the  cute little Aussie Moke. To start with it… Read more