Category: Road Test

Road Test Review

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2018 RANGE ROVER VELAR TURBO-DIESEL

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Land Rover has added another model to its already expansive range. The Range Rover Velar sits neatly in the gap between the Range Rover Evoque and the Range Rover Sport. Velar debuts Range Rover’s latest Touch Pro Duo infotainment system, with two high-definition 10-inch touchscreens. More about this in a moment. Naturally the Velar follows Range Rover’s long tradition of having a light, stiff, aluminium-intensive body. Keeping weight down not only gives even better off-road performance, but also makes it feel more agile around town and as a bonus it… Read more

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FRIEND OF THE FAMILY COMES BEARING GIFTS

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After a month of Mazdas, behind the wheel of everything from a Mazda2 mini to a big BT-50 pickup truck, it seemed appropriate to finish with a stint in a CX-9 Azami, the pinnacle of the company’s SUV product. Since its Australian debut in 2016, the family-favourite sports utility vehicle has carried off a number of awards for its class-leading features. Now the bar has been raised higher. The flagship SUV has been given dynamic, safety and comfort upgrades, including G-Vectoring Control to further improve handling. Also improved are NVH… Read more

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CUSTOMERS SPEAK, SORENTO LISTENS

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Despite walking away with a range of motor industry awards since its launch more than two years ago, Kia’s seven-seat sports utility vehicle, the Sorento, had, according to some observers, a few shortcomings. The South Korean manufacturer has taken these on board and has come up with mid-cycle changes that address these. The changes include Kia’s in-house eight-speed automatic across the range, a new larger capacity long-stroke petrol engine, a higher and longer body for increased internal space, revised and improved ride and handling characteristics to better suit Australian conditions,… Read more

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MAZDA3: THE HEART AND SOUL OF THE COMPANY

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When you’re on to a good thing . . . no need to tell Mazda that, the company, line with its Kodo – soul of motion – philosophy in which colour is a prime element of form, has splashed out on a new exotic exterior colour for its popular Mazda3. This follows the success of Soul Red Crystal in the top-selling CX-5 SUV. Since its debut, the colour has proven a fast favourite with customers, with around 22 per cent of CX-5s sold being in colour. Unfortunately, our test vehicle,… Read more

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2018 TOYOTA LANDCRUISER PRADO KAKADU

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For the 2018 season Toyota has upgraded its Prado range, with a facelift and tail tuck, a revised interior and additional infotainment and safety technology. Our test vehicle was the LandCruiser Prado toplne model, the Kakadu. Not cheap at $84,490 but do you get a substantial amount of vehicle for your money. And the price has been trimmed by $1121 compared to the model it has just superseded. STYLING The new grille is big and bold with broad vertical bars flanked by restyled headlamps (bi-LED on GXL, VX and our… Read more

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BUSINESS AS USUAL FOR BIG-SELLING CAMRY

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The end of the Australian automobile construction industry over the past 18 months is likely to have differing effects on each of the three affected companies. Ford has bitten the bullet and discontinued the Falcon while Holden is gambling on its loyal buyers moving to a German-built Commodore. By contrast the switch from locally-produced to imported Toyota Camrys is likely to be seamless given our feeling that a fair proportion of current owners aren’t even aware that their car was built at the company’s Altona, Melbourne plant. New Camry comes… Read more

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2018 RENAULT KOLEOS INTENS DIESEL

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Last year was one of Renault’s most successful in Australia with sales here almost doubling those achieved in 2016. The Koleos, the French marque’s five-seater medium SUV, can claim much of the credit for the increased interest. The new diesel arrival is likely to bolster that further. It is $3500 more than its petrol stablemate, but still presents good value when compared to the equivalents offered by the segment leaders – Mazda CX-5, Volkswagen Tiguan and the Nissan X-Trail. Renault Koleos has much in common with the Nissan X-Trail given… Read more

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HARD-CASE MAZDA HERO GIVEN A SOFT CENTRE

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Has the MX-5 gone soft? The ‘everyman’ Mazda, born in 1989 in the tradition of the compact British cloth-top convertibles of the post-war era from the likes of Triumph, Austin-Healey, MG and Lotus, was soon to become the best-selling sports car in the world and later became something of a cult. The lightweight two-seater with front engine, rear-wheel drive, had minimal mechanical complexity, limited only by legal and safety requirements, while being technologically modern, reliable and cheap. Since then, the MX-5, through a series of iterations, has maintained its spot… Read more

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HARD TO GO PAST THIS MAZDA SUV CHAMPION

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When it comes to handing out accolades in the automotive industry, not surprisingly, vehicle sales earn the most kudos. With that in mind, one undisputed market champion is the Mazda CX-5 sports utility vehicle. The latest version, the Next-Gen CX-5, is helping keep Australia’s most popular SUV for the past four years, in that coveted position. Launched in 2012 as Mazda’s first new-generation model featuring Kodo design – the Soul of Motion – and Skyactiv technology, the new CX-5, the second generation, Mazda says, refines every aspect of the company’s… Read more

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2018 HOLDEN EQUINOX LTZ REVIEW

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Holden has added an all-new vehicle to the already crowded family SUV Australian sales race. Though it’s similar in size to the ageing Captiva Holden tells us the Equinox isn’t a direct successor. In fact, some Captiva models will be sharing showrooms with the Equinox. We don’t anticipate that situation to last, but Holden is keeping its plans to itself. Equinox is certainly a far more modern vehicle than the Captiva in style, technology and safety. A five-seat vehicle, the Equinox will be complemented by a larger SUV, the Holden… Read more