2016 BMW M3 COMPETITION REVIEW

For those drivers who feel that lots of performance isn’t quite enough BMW Australia is now importing the BMW M3 Competition sedan, and M4 Competition coupe and convertible. Our test week in the hottest BMW M3 sedan was an extremely enjoyable one. M3 Competition has even stronger engine performance, recalibrated steering, suspension and stability settings than the standard M3. Its springs are 15 per cent stiffer and the Adaptive M suspension has firmer damper settings across Comfort, Sport and Sport+ modes. Anti-roll bars and bushings are also changed to suit…. Read more

BIG BMW X5; CLEAN – AND QUICK

BMW already has the cleanest range of cars in Australia when measured on grams of CO2 produced per kilometre travelled. Far from being content with this, the German marque has just introduced a petrol-electric, plug-in hybrid model to the X5 range. BMW X5 xDrive40e; the ‘e’ obviously indicates ‘electric’; the important part of the name, though, is the ’40’. Because the eDrive has similar performance to the ’40’ performance models in the BMW range; that is those with mid-sized V8 engines or turbocharged sixes. STYLING The BMW X5 has a… Read more

COROLLA TURNS ON HYBRID EFFICIENCY

While other automobile manufacturers take varying roads to low emissions, Toyota is steadfastly sticking to the petrol / electric hybrid route with its new addition to the genre, the Corolla Hybrid. With official fuel consumption put at 4.1 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined urban / highway cycle, this is good enough to give the vehicle a range of almost 1100 km depending on driving style. The fifth hybrid in Toyota’s Australian line-up, joining Camry, Prius, Prius c and Prius v, the hybrid version of the popular Corolla arrives… Read more

CITROEN C4 CACTUS – VIVE LE DIFFERENCE

During our regular testing of new cars it’s surprisingly rare for a car to attract more than passing attention from the general public. Outside of supercars such as Ferrari and the like it generally only happens when so-called ‘retro’ cars emerge such as the New Beetle, Nuova Fiat 500 and Chrysler PT Cruiser. We’ve just spent a couple of weeks travelling around in the newly-released Citroen C4 Cactus and it has certainly turned plenty of heads. Aside from the predictable chuckle about the car’s name the biggest attraction were the… Read more

2016 MERCEDES-AMG C 63 S SEDAN REVIEW

Australians make no bones about the fact that they love to drive, and if their budgets are up to it many will go for the high-performance models in any range. We are the biggest buyers of Mercedes-AMG models in the world when taken as a percentage of all Mercedes-Benz sales. We have just spent a very enjoyable week in a Mercedes-AMG C 63 S sedan, just the thing for a family man or woman in a hurry. That’s as a follow-up to our track day testing of the coupe version… Read more

BMW COUPE CONJURES UP COMFORT IN THE FAST LANE

Sports cars generally fall into two camps. On the one hand, performance edge can be dulled by the desire for comfort; on the other, comfort may be sacrificed at the altar of pure power. There is, however, the odd exception to this rule: the BMW M2. Building on the success of the limited edition BMW 1 Series M coupe brought Down Under in 2011, the new BMW M2 coupe is available in two variants – M2 Pure ($89,900) and M2 ($98,900) – both featuring a 272 kW / 465 Nm… Read more

MINI CONVERTIBLE UNCOVERS CLASSIC WORLD OF MOTORING

Like a family of overachievers, the Mini continues to throw pups of outstanding pedigree. The latest offspring to plough a precocious furrow through the automotive paddock is the convertible. The third generation Mini convertible takes the place of the cabriolet and comes in Cooper and Cooper S specification, priced from $37,900 and $45,400, plus on-road costs, respectively. That’s $4800 less for Cooper and $5750 for Cooper S compared with the superseded cabrio. Our test vehicle came with Convenience and Multimedia Pro packages, hoicking the price to $56,030, plus on-roads. STYLING… Read more

2017 PORSCHE 911 REVIEW

As with all the other major European marques, Porsche has been forced into the realisation that smaller capacity engines with turbochargers are the only way to keep engines clean and legal. So the iconic German sportscar company has designed a virtually all-new 3.0-litre flat-six with twin turbochargers. Downsizing the powerplant from 3.8 to 3.0 litres hasn’t been as extreme a loss in capacity as with other German makers’ engines. Our road test Porsche 911 was the Carrera S, the more powerful of the revised models. With a recommended retail price… Read more

CITROEN’S PRICKLY PAIR DESIGNED TO GROW ON POINT OF DIFFERENCE

It’s hard to take seriously a car that’s named after a spiky plant that lives in desolate sun-scorched, rock-strewn deserts. There again, to exist in such a harsh and lifeless environment shows a degree of strength and the ability to adapt. Maybe this is what Citroen had in mind when it thought up the moniker ‘Cactus’ for its compact hatchback. The Citroen C4 Cactus comes in two Exclusive versions featuring extensive standard equipment and reasonable pricing – $26,990 for a turbocharged PureTech petrol manual and $29,990 for a semi-automatic diesel… Read more

2016 AUDI A4 AVANT WAGON REVIEW

Audi station wagons – which they call Avants – are huge in Europe and particularly in their home market of Germany. Avants are easy to spot, just drive on an autobahn at high speed, but keep out of the fast lane, pretty soon one will pass you at 200+ kmh. It will probably be black and a sales rep of some sort will be at the steering wheel in a hurry to their next appointment. Sounds like heaven? It is, but sadly not in Australia. The driving, that is. The… Read more