Rolls’ one-off Phantom Cherry Blossom

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As Sakura season arrives, blanketing various regions around the world in pink petals, Rolls‑Royce Motor Cars is proud to present Phantom Cherry Blossom. This magnificent one-of-one Phantom Extended commission is inspired by the fleeting beauty of the Sakura blooms and a Japanese client’s formative memories of this stunning natural spectacle. In Japanese culture, cherry blossoms are a powerful symbol of nature’s rhythms, the arrival of spring and the beauty of impermanence. As Sakura blooms are short-lived, lasting only around a week, they serve as a poignant reminder to cherish the… Read more

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TOYOTA C-HR KOBA 2WD

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We’ve always liked the look of the Toyota C-HR. Can’t say the same for its most direct competitor the Nissan Juke, a truly ugly attempt to be different. Now in its second generation and built in Turkey, C-HR offers more style, more power and more equipment than before — but it comes at a cost because prices have jumped considerably since our last encounter with the little crossover. Sitting between Corolla and RAV4 and updated in late 2019, for some price is unimportant. The letters C-HR stands for Compact High… Read more

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LEAPMOTOR C10

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There was a real feeling of déjà vu during our first encounter with the Leapmotor C10 which took us back to our recent test of the Deepal S07. Both are very new fully-electric Chinese mid-sized SUVs that are imported by well-established automotive companies, Deepal by Inchcape and Leapmotor by Stellantis. During our week behind the wheel of the Leapmotor C10 we didn’t find a single person who had ever heard of the brand. Not surprising, because the company was only formed in 2015 with its first model, the S01 EV… Read more

Ford celebrates 100 years in Australia

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One hundred years ago this week, the Ford Motor Company of Australia Pty Ltd was founded in Geelong, Victoria. The story of how Ford Australia came into being, started in 1923 when North American Ford executives visited Australia to seek out a base to set up an operation to direct all Ford activities in the country. Two senior Ford executives were part of a six-person advanced party scouting Australian locations, Hubert Charles French, and P. W. Grandjean, the then secretary of Ford of Canada. After their visit, Grandjean wrote to… Read more

Warrior Ute finds home in South Africa as backie

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A deal with Nissan South Africa will see exports of the the Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior begin later this month. In keeping with the Warrior program’s ethos of delivering vehicles tailor-made for local conditions, Premcar is also expanding its operations globally. The Victoria-based company to set up a joint venture with South African local firm AIH – under the entity of Premcar SA – with all remanufacturing enhancements conducted within Nissan South Africa’s production facility in Rosslyn. Premcar has made a number of significant changes to the South African-market Nissan… Read more

Chance to win barnstorming Audi RS 6 Avant

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Audi is offering a $300,000 RS 6 Avant for the price of a $55 ticket in the first Audi Foundation fundraising raffle for 2025. Audi Australia is proud to announce Audi Foundation’s 14th raffle, which offers ticket holders the opportunity to win an exceptional prize while supporting some of Australia’s most impactful charities.   Since its inception in 2017, Audi Foundation has donated over $7.5 million to a range of progressive charitable organisations across the country. Rather than providing one-off donations, Audi Foundation has distinguished itself by forming long-term partnerships with… Read more

Granvia gets its marching orders

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Ladies and gentlemen. Can I have your attention please. Can we please observe a minute’s silence for the passing of Toyota Granvia people mover, a project perhaps doomed to failure from the start. Based on the humble HiAce van, the boxy, monolithic, six- and eight-seater, with its huge radiator grille targeted high-end hospitality, family and corporate buyers. Priced from $68,000, Toyota says it attracted close to 1000 sales since its introduction in late 2019. In 2024, they sold 16 of them. No word on Granvia’s counterpart, the Lexus LM, priced… Read more

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LEXUS GX 550 OVERTRAIL TAKES TO HIGH GROUND

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  Simplicity is the keynote of good design: ask any mechanical engineer or industrial designer worth his or her salt. Cue the Lexus GX 550, which, the maker says, is designed to act as an extension of the driver’s hands. Simple! The new Lexus GX 550 Overtrail controls have no supersensitive touch pad or buttons and switches of New Age automobiles, just knobs and levers of days of yore. At first glance, the iconoclastic off-roader with the looks of a bare-fisted bush basher, on the bitumen, behaves like a silver… Read more

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SUZUKI JIMNY XL FIVE-DOOR

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A five-door version of the Suzuki Jimny. Who would have thunk? It should make getting in and out of the back a little easier, not that you would want to volunteer to sit in the back. And not that the Jimny XL (that’s what it is designated as) is likely to offer that much more legroom than its sibling, but let’s crunch the numbers and find out. STYLING From the front there’s little to tell the three- and five-door versions of the Jimny apart. Both feature Suzuki’s stylised five-slot radiator… Read more

Lexus turns up the power for RZ EV

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LEXUS RZ customers can expect an even more energised driving experience when the updated battery electric vehicle (BEV) arrives later this year. The Kaizen approach for continuous improvement builds on the outstanding luxury and refinement of the Lexus RZ, with a fully redesigned BEV system increasing motor output, extending driving range and reducing charging time. The natural driving feeling of the Lexus Driving Signature (LDS) now runs deeper, with refinements to the DIRECT4 all-wheel-drive system bringing smoother, more intuitive and exhilarating handling to the flagship Lexus BEV. The RZ is of course the… Read more