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ALPINE A110 IS ALL FRENCH FLAIR

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An exciting new sportscar marque is about to land in Australia. The very French Alpine A110 is a high-performance coupe that’s built by a division of Renault, but operates largely in its own right. Alpine (say it a French accent, ‘al-peen’ and it sounds beautifully evocative) dates back to the 1950s and has made some fascinating sports machines. The first A110 model came out in 1961, ran for 16 years and had victories in many events, including the Monte Carlo rallies in the 1970s Alpine A110 harks back to the… Read more

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ALL-NEW KIA CERATO

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Kia Cerato tends to have been lost in the shadow of the stunning Stinger and the cute little Picanto at the moment. So it’s easy to forget that it’s the most successful car in the range in Australia in terms of sales, with around one in three of all Kias being a Cerato. The South Korean giant is certainly not going to rest on its laurels so just launched an all-new Cerato, the third generation, and the Australian importer has big hopes for it. The biggest news is the styling…. Read more

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NEW AUSTRALIAN DRIVING LAWS FOR AUTOMATED VEHICLES

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We frequently get asked many questions about automated cars from a variety of people; everyone from keen drivers, to those who see the safety benefits, and people who are simply tired of sitting in endless commuting traffic jams. This media release from the National Transport Commission Australian show considerable thought is going into the matter: Transport Ministers Agree To Drafting New Australian Driving Laws For Automated Vehicles A ground-breaking approach to driving laws in Australia will see the development of purpose-built legislation to allow an automated driving system to drive… Read more

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FORD TRANSIT CUSTOM GOES TRENDY

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Who says one-tonne white vans have to be boring? Certainly not Ford Australia which is now selling the Ford Transit Custom one-tonne vans with a surprisingly stylish body, a more car-like look and feel to the cabin, and the latest Ford EcoBlue turbo-diesel engine. New seat designs featuring revised foam padding and geometry are car-like. Trim materials have been completely upgraded, with a focus on a quality appearance. This Transit’s dash area is completely new and makes a mobile office with standard Ford SYNC 3 that uses an 8.0-inch touchscreen…. Read more

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HYUNDAI IONIQ HYBRID: PRE-RELEASE TEST

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Hyundai Ioniq is a petrol-electric hybrid that’s coming to Australia later this year. Prior to sale, Ioniq hybrids are being driven in series of fleet tests, with the Australian Red Cross being the biggest testing organisation at this stage. We were invited to test a Hyundai Ioniq for a week, however we are not part of the official testing regime. My colleague Derek Ogden published his road test of the Hyundai Ioniq last week. Mine is a supplementary test with its major focus being on fuel consumption. See the Driving… Read more

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JEEP PATRIOT 2007 – 2017

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2007 Jeep Patriot

Even Jeep had to bow down to the inevitable in August 2007. The iconic American marque famed for building ultra-tough 4WDs launched the small-medium Jeep Patriot into the booming soft-road market. Interestingly, the Patriot joined the Jeep Compass, an even softer soft-roader that had been launched a few months earlier. Both sit on passenger car underpinnings, but the square look to the Patriot, rather than the rounded look of Compass, made it the more popular. The square shape of Patriot contributes towards its practical interior, with space for four adults,… Read more

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THE DUESENBERG J

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The Duesenberg had an eight-cylinder in-line, twin overhead camshaft, 6882cc supercharged engine that enabled it to reach 113km/h in first gear, 160km/h in second and 225km/h in top. Mildly tuned versions were capable of a top speed of 260km/h, an almost unheard of speed 65 years ago. To house this power was a 2,500kg body which had four seats. Usually only three were occupied: a chauffeur in front and the owner and his, or her, chosen companion. Such cars were usually the choice of film stars, diplomats, gangsters and political… Read more

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ABARTH 124 SPIDER MONZA SPECIAL EDITION

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Abarth Australia has introduced a limited edition 124 Spider Abarth Monza Special Edition. “The legacy of Carlo Abarth has driven the production of some of the world’s most exciting motor vehicles and this Monza Special Edition continues the realisation of his passion,” said Fulvio Antonelli, the director of Abarth in Australia. The 124 Spider Monza Edition is limited to just 30 units, each with its own numbered plaque. In a very stylish Italian way the plaque is crafted of brushed aluminium with a laser etched finish, and features the Monza… Read more

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NEW RS4 AVANT CONTINUES AUDI’S PERFORMANCE WAGON TRADITION

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Audi has released the latest version of its RS4 Avant, a high-performance sporty Euro wagon with a heritage that goes back almost 25 years to the Audi RS2 Avant of 1994. The biggest change in this fourth generation RS4 Avant lies under the bonnet where the previous 4.2-litre naturally-aspirated V8 engine has been replaced by a biturbo 2.9-litre V6. The turbocharged engine matches the V8’s 331 kW of power but picks up an extra 170 Nm of torque to reach a neck-snapping 600 Nm from just 1900 rpm, compared with… Read more

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ARGYLL

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1910 Argyll

Argyll was a Scottish marque and its first cars were Renault based and built in Glasgow in 1899. Tasting some success in the early life of their business its management set about to become a major automotive manufacturer and proceeded to build a large new factory in Scotland near Loch Lomond. The first Argylls to come out of this factory had what were considered to be conventional engines at that time, but from 1909 they went on to develop and manufacture sleeve-valve engines, which, whilst being quieter and technically more… Read more