Category: Road Test

Road Test Review

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HYUNDAI’S PREMIUM PACKAGE WITHOUT THE PRICE

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While North Korea is intent on firing missiles across the bows of any foreign nation state within range, neighbouring South Korea goes on capturing hearts and minds worldwide with quality products. The latter is no better represented than by the third generation Hyundai i30 hatch recently arrived in Australia. The six-time Australia’s Best Car winner comes with plenty of standard features and the new model has LED headlamps, wireless smartphone charging, heated and ventilated front seats, and more. The entry-level Active sets the value-for-money trend at $20,950; runs through to… Read more

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2017 BMW 540i REVIEW

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The new BMW 5 Series, the seventh generation of the midsize range from the German specialist in sporting vehicles, is a technological tour de force. It’s as sporty as ever, though there’s a slight leaning to the luxurious side as the ‘5 is almost being seen as a smaller version of the super-luxury 7 Series. New drive modes alter steering, suspension, gearshift and throttle settings to suit the driver’s mood. The previous Eco Pro, Comfort and Sport modes on offer are now joined by a new Adaptive Mode. This system… Read more

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ESCAPE TO A NEW WAY OF FORD THINKING

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It was a glitch in the roster that had the press-test Mondeo going AWOL. Ironically, it was an Escape that saved the day, filling the breach. And in most respects the new Ford medium-size SUV fitted the bill nicely, after all, it was the top-of-the-range Titanium model. If the name sounds familiar, it is an old Ford title revisited and is a Kuga with a new name as part of the marketing in the Blue Oval scheme of things. Along with the new name goes a fresh face, five-star ANCAP… Read more

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MITSUBISHI ASX IS SOLID, RELIABLE AND GOOD VALUE

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For such an unassuming character, the Mitsubishi ASX sure has a faithful following. Regularly in the top three of the compact SUV segment, the ASX is a tried and trusty performer with its lack of airs and graces winning it a legion of followers. Offered in both diesel and petrol, manual and automatic, front-wheel and all-wheel drive, the ASX range extends from $25,000 to $37,000 and offers a fair bit of bang for your buck. It is sturdy and comfortable, spacious with quality features and adapts well to singles, families… Read more

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MINI COUNTRYMAN IS NO LONGER MINI

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New Mini Countryman is no longer mini sized. At 4299 mm long it’s 199 mm longer than the Countryman it succeeds. Width has increased by 33 mm to 1822 mm; height is greater by 13 mm, now 1557 mm. By way of a fascinating comparison, fellow-Brit the iconic LandRover Defender 90 is shorter and narrower than the upsized Mini Countryman… Most importantly, the Countryman’s wheelbase is significantly greater, being 75 mm up to an impressive 2670 mm which makes for significantly more legroom inside. There’s also 59 mm more elbow… Read more

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2017 HOLDEN COLORADO 4X4 REVIEW

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The Australian love affair with dual-cab utes shows no sign of losing that fresh flush of romance with the vehicle’s ability to service both work and family commitments a major drawcard. The segment is highly competitive filled with all manner of temptations including utes that look like utes but drives like cars (well, almost), utes that have such a premium feel you couldn’t imagine getting it dusty, utes that are better off-road, those that are better on road, utes that can haul heavy trailers, others that would battle with an… Read more

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GREAT WALL STEED – A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE

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Few would deny how far utility vehicles have come in the past two decades. Any doubts can be quickly dismissed by getting behind the wheel of the latest Great Wall Motors Steed. The Dual Cab is so last century. While there are some positives about the latest version of the pickup – toughness, reliability, and most of all, price (from $24,990 driveaway) – there are question marks against the Steed’s safety. Don’t just take my word for it. Here’s what independent vehicle safety advocate, the Australasian New Car Assessment Program,… Read more

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2017 FORD MONDEO TITANIUM WAGON REVIEW

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In an interesting twist Ford and Holden have decided to go in different directions with their post-Commodore and post-Falcon largest passenger cars. While Holden has chosen to re-badge its Insignia model as Commodore, Ford has opted to drop the Falcon name altogether and retain the Mondeo moniker. With Commodore still being built locally it’s too early to say whether Holden buyers will switch en-masse to the Insignia (or NG, for next-generation, Commodore) but Ford’s strategy seems to be working with Mondeo sales booming both from downsizing ex-Falcon buyers as well… Read more

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2017 MAZDA CX-5 TOURING REVIEW

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Mazda CX-5 has been a hit in Australia since it arrived here just over five years ago. Now the second generation has been introduced. It features interesting style, improvements to the powertrains and uprated technology. A new Touring model has been added to the CX-5 range. Sitting between the Maxx Sport and CX-5 GT, the new Touring was our test vehicle as Mazda was keen to get us into one to promote it. And thus increase its sales from the already healthy figure of over 115,000 CX-5s sold to date…. Read more

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2017 HYUNDAI TUCSON REVIEW

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The Hyundai Tucson is one of the Korean brand’s most popular offerings, a five-seater medium-sized SUV that is big on all-round comfort and stays true to the manufacturer’s good-value proposition. It replaced the ix35 here in 2015 and while most will remember the Tucson name from a previous iteration, this time around it is a much for formidable foe for competitors including the Mazda CX-5, Volkswagen Tiguan, Honda CR-V, Kia Sportage and Toyota RAV-4 Ranging from $27,990 to $47,450, there is a Tucson that fits most needs and Hyundai currently… Read more