Category: Road Test

Road Test Review

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2018 FERRARI PORTOFINO REVIEW

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Ferrari Portofino is named for a fishing village on the Riviera coast in Italy, a name we feel is much is more appropriate than Ferrari California, the model the Portofino replaces. Portofino is the entry level model in the Ferrari range. ‘Entry level’ that is if your automotive budget is under half a million dollars, indeed you can pick one up for just under $400,000 plus on-road costs. STYLING Top up, or preferably down, Ferrari Portofino is simply brilliant from any angle, perhaps the best looking of all the Italian… Read more

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2018 HONDA HR-V RS

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Following our recent two-week outback holiday in Queensland driving a Honda CR-V we moved across into the HR-V’s smaller brother, the Honda HR-V. In particular a newly introduced model, the RS which is a semi sporty variant. The introduction of the RS brings the 2018 HR-V range to four model grades: VTi, VTi-S, RS and VTi-LX. STYLING The HR-V RS has 18-inch alloy wheels, black chromed main grille, honeycomb lower grille and foglight garnish. Keeping up the dark theme it has black door mirrors; dark chromed door handles; and a… Read more

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ECLIPSE SHEDS LIGHT ON MITSUBISHI SUV FUTURE

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With the Eclipse Cross, a new spin has been given to the Mitsubishi sports utility vehicle orbit. Launched earlier this year, the all-new Eclipse Cross is the first of a new generation of Mitsubishi SUVs and joins the brand’s current lineup of the ASX, Outlander, Outlander PHEV hybrid, Pajero Sport and Pajero. Initially, three variants were offered in Eclipse Cross LS and Exceed specification levels. Recently, an entry-level ES was added to the range, taking the line-up to four models. Weighing in at a competitive price of $29,990, plus on-road… Read more

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2019 PORSCHE PANAMERA SPORT TURISMO TURBO

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Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo adds another dimension to the prestige German marque’s range. A body that’s part way between that of a station wagon and a five-door coupe. It attracted plenty of attention from those who know Porsches during our week’s road test, though some initially failed to recognise that it was a wagon, which may be exactly what the designers were aiming at. Our test car was the big gun – the Panamera Sport Turismo Turbo, which is simply sensational. STYLING The new generation Panamera coupe has been on… Read more

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HONDA CR-V: OUTBACK ADVENTURE

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Julie and I were both overdue for a long relaxing holiday and the offer of a press test of the new fifth generation Honda CR-V arrived at just the right time. It would be hard to pick a better vehicle for reasons that will become evident later in our review. We took the Honda from our Gold Coast home to far western Queensland by way of the Warrego and Landsborough Highways through Roma, Charleville and Barcaldine to Longreach. We spent several days on Longreach, touring the Qantas Founders Museum, the… Read more

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HYUNDAI GIVES IT A GO WITH NEW TUCSON STARTER

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To coin a phrase, it’s all systems ‘Go’ with the MY19 Hyundai Tucson adding a new eponymous entry-level variant to the company’s most popular sports utility vehicle range. Not to be outdone by the Tucson Go, the other models – ActiveX, Elite and Highlander – have also come in for a mid-cycle makeover, which includes up-dated interior and exterior styling with new wheel designs, and tablet-style multimedia with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto standard across the range. And, as is the case with most Hyundai models, the Tucson ride and… Read more

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JUST ENOUGH CHANGE TO KEEP CX-5 FANS INTERESTED

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Mazda, who presented us in 2012 with a CX-5 package that was to become Australia’s most popular sports utility vehicle, has no intention of letting the top spot go, recently upgrading the mid-size wagon. The 2.2-litre diesel engine has been given a power and torque boost while the 2.5-litre petrol unit has adopted cylinder deactivation to reduce fuel consumption at steady speeds. Other updates to the petrol engine range have accounted for a 1 Nm increase in torque for the 2.5-litre variant, and a 1 kW increase in power for… Read more

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PORSCHE 718 CAYMAN GTS IS A VISUAL TREAT

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The Porsche 718 Cayman coupe, as well as its open-top brother, the 718 Boxster are now offered in high-performance GTS variants. Our test car for the past week was the Cayman. Living on the Gold Coast mean that we would have preferred the Boxster convertible, but who are we to argue? To balance out the lack of a folding roof our test Porsche was finished in a brilliant daffodil yellow that almost demanded you wear sunglasses to avoid eye damage – loved it! The new line of GTS 718 models… Read more

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FUTURE FOCUS FOR ‘OLD GROWTH’ FORESTER

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If the Subaru Forester were a human timber-getter, he would be well past retirement age. However, the recently released popular Subaru all-wheel drive wagon, in its fifth generation, is confidently plugging away into the future. Subaru Australia Managing Director, Colin Christie, says it is 21 years since first generation Forester was launched in Australia, establishing a whole new trend by becoming the original compact SUV. “It was Subaru’s best-seller last year, with more than 12,000 vehicles sold, taking us close to a quarter of a million Foresters sold since launch…. Read more

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JAGUAR XF SPORTBRAKE – LONG, LOW AND SLEEK

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  Jaguar’s “Grace, Space and Pace” is one of the most recognised of all automotive advertising slogans. And it certainly applies to our road test car this week, the Jaguar XF Sportbrake. Let’s examine how the three important words have been translated into a vehicle to see Jaguar into the third decade of the 21st century. Had we suggested a decade ago that Jaguar should build a large diesel-engined station wagon you would have laughed uproariously. Yet the Jaguar XF Sportbrake First Edition 30d is a simply stunning machine. STYLING… Read more