Safety

GAC has confirmed missing safety features in an upcoming new variant of its Emzoom small SUV will be reinstated for the Australian market after feedback.The company announced on the 18th of August that it was introducing a new base version of the Emzoom, the Premium, which would bring the price-of-entry down by $3000 to $22,990, drive-away.Sitting below the Emzoom Luxury ($26,990, drive-away), the new entry-level variant seems expressly designed to make it more affordable than rivals like the GWM Haval Jolion, MG ZS, and segment-dominating Chery Tiggo 4, while stripping out several features.Notable omissions included safety features, like seatbelt pre-tensioners and rear seatbelt warning systems, although the active safety items like autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and lane-keep aids were maintained from the top-spec Luxury grade.However, now due to feedback from “customers and industry stakeholders” GAC says it will reinstate the seatbelt features available on the Luxury grade.The brand said the omission was because those features were not standard equipment on the Premium grade in other markets, which contributed to their exclusion from the Australian spec.A GAC spokesperson told CarsGuide an initial batch of cars set to arrive in Australia in September will remain without the seatbelt tensioners and rear seatbelt reminders, although any car which arrives from November 2026 onwards will have those features reinstated. It is unclear at this stage whether the drive-away price will remain the same after that date.GAC said in a statement: “Providing vehicle specifications that meet, and where possible exceed the expectations of Australian customers and industry experts remain a priority for GAC.”The Emzoom is yet to be rated by independent safety body ANCAP. Of the brand’s current range, only the fully electric Aion V mid-size SUV has been rated, and was awarded a maximum five stars to the 2025 standards.Other features stripped from the new entry-level Emzoom Premium include auto-folding mirrors, electric door handles, interior ambient lighting, ventilation and power adjust for the driver’s seat, as well as rear USB ports.The Emzoom is currently GAC’s best-seller in Australia, moving 422 units so far this year. It ranks just ahead of the Aion V electric mid-size SUV. Unlike rivals which have hybrid variants available further up the price-scale, the Emzoom is only available with a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine driving the front wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.The Guangzhou-based Chinese automaker has big plans to be a top 10 player in Australia by 2028 and has promised both a larger hybrid SUV and a ute for our market in the coming years.

KGM Australia has admitted it falsely marketed the airbag count of its Musso EV ute.As identified by local crash safety authority ANCAP, KGM claimed the Musso EV had a total of eight airbags, but in reality it only has six in Australia.The Australian-specification version of this electric dual-cab ute misses out on a centre airbag and a driver-knee airbag. Both feature in the South Korean-specification version.“KGM Australia has identified an error in published product information relating to the MY26 Musso EV,” said a KGM Australia spokesperson.“Some materials incorrectly described the vehicle as being equipped with eight airbags, including a driver SRS knee airbag and front seat centre airbag.“The correct Australian specification is six airbags. The vehicle has always been manufactured in this six-airbag configuration.”“Once the discrepancy was confirmed, KGM Australia took immediate steps to update affected marketing and specification materials, so they accurately reflect the specification of Australian-delivered vehicles,” said a KGM Australia spokesperson.“The Musso EV remains compliant with Vehicle Type Approval. KGM Australia is finalising a coordinated customer communication and redress approach and will communicate directly with affected customers.“KGM Australia takes the accuracy of information provided to customers seriously and is reviewing the circumstances that led to the error.“Customers with questions or concerns can contact KGM Australia or their authorised KGM dealer.”At this stage it’s unclear whether KGM Australia plans to change the local specification to increase the airbag count of the Musso EV from six to eight.“Nothing has been confirmed at this stage, but we will continue to review opportunities to enhance vehicle specifications and introduce ongoing product improvements,” said a KGM Australia spokesperson.This is far from the first time that ANCAP has identified differences in safety specifications from market to market.Most recently, early versions of the current-generation Suzuki Swift were found to have different front-end reinforcement to the European-specification version. It received a one-star ANCAP safety rating.However, Australian-specification Swift models built from August 2025 onwards have aligned specifications with the European-specification model. This saw the ANCAP safety rating change to three stars.The KGM Musso EV is the South Korean carmaker’s first electric ute. It launched locally in late 2025.Unlike the body-on-frame Musso diesel ute, this electric version is built on a monocoque platform and shares components with the Actyon and Torres SUVs.Single-motor front-wheel drive and dual-motor all-wheel drive versions of the Musso EV are offered in Australia. Pricing starts from $60,000 drive-away.There aren’t many electric utes on offer in Australia currently and its main rival is the Toyota HiLux BEV.As it currently stands the Musso EV is unrated by ANCAP.

All the road rules are the same from state-to-state, right? Well… noThe vast majority of our road rules are sourced from the Australian Road Rules, but each state and territory has its own variation on these.There are some pretty big distinctions in what the law is and how the law operates in practice.Here are three examples we’ve found. A hook turn is a right-hand turn made from the far-left lane as opposed to the middle, or the right lane. It is used to ensure traffic moves smoothly, especially when there are trams using the same areas. Melbourne has nearly 50 hook turns in its central business district and surrounding areas, but Victoria is the only place you will find them. New South Wales also has similar legislation to Victoria, where under section 34 of the Road Rules, a driver facing a hook turn only sign must turn right from the furthest point they can. While the legislation exists, there are no hook turns on any New South Wales roads, meaning it no longer operates in practice.Turning right across two continuous lines is common practice in New South Wales to enter driveways or another road. In New South Wales, a driver can drive to the right of a dividing lane to enter or leave a road under section 134 of the Road Rules. This is not the case in Queensland, Victoria, South Australia Tasmania and the Northern Territory, where a driver on a two-way road must keep to the left of the centre road under section 132. They can only drive to the right of the centre of the road to overtake another driver or to leave the road when there is no dividing lane or median strip under section 133. Beware New South Wales drivers, it could set you back as much as $3454 if you’re caught. Most states and territories prohibit performing a U-turn at traffic lights unless there is specific signage permitting it.This includes New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australia and the ACT, mirroring section 40 of the Australian Road Rules. Victoria has taken a different approach, where its domestic road rules don’t mention section 40, rather only states disobeying a ‘No U-Turn’ sign is illegal.This can be a potential hazard for Victorian drivers in other states and territories as the lack of signage does not permit a U-turn at traffic lights.In New South Wales, it could set you back up to $2200 for performing a U-turn at a traffic light. 

Australia’s most treacherous car crash site has been identified through analysis of close to 400,000 insurance claims lodged across the country in 2025.The 2026 AAMI Crash Index highlights Springvale Road in Glen Waverley, Victoria as “Australia’s No.1 crash hotspot” at the same time calling out mornings and Fridays as “peak prang periods nationally”.Victoria, more specifically Melbourne, accounted for nine of the national top 10 sites listed, with Pennant Hills Road, Carlingford in Sydney’s north-west the only outlier.The index analysed more than 394,000 motor insurance claims lodged across Australia between January 1 and December 31, 2025. And the data has highlighted clear similarities across these high frequency crash locations: busy arterial roads, traffic lights, major intersections, shopping precincts, car parks and heavy stop-start traffic.In announcing the results AAMI said, “These are roads where congestion, merging traffic, turning vehicles and momentary lapses in concentration create the perfect conditions for everyday driving mistakes.”And tellingly, Springvale Road, Glen Waverley has knocked off Plenty Road, Bundoora in Melbourne’s north-east as Australia’s No.1 crash hotspot for the first time in eight years.Unsurprisingly, nose-to-tail impacts remain the most common type of collision, followed by failure to give way and collisions with stationary objects.While Melbourne dominated the national Top 10, the rest of the country didn't receive a free pass, with the following locations having the dubious honour of topping their home state or territory.Melbourne: Accounts for nine of the national Top 10.Sydney: Pennant Hills Road in Carlingford ranked ninth nationally.Brisbane: Mains Road, Sunnybank.Perth: Albany Highway, Cannington.Adelaide: North East Road, Modbury.Hobart: Sandy Bay Road, Sandy Bay.Canberra: Hindmarsh Drive, Phillip. Darwin: Trower Road, Casuarina. AAMI cites bad habits like following too closely, braking late, misjudging turns and failing to anticipate changing traffic conditions as common precursors to a sheet metal interface.Announcing the index results AAMI Motor Prevention Manager Mary Kennedy said, “The hotspots topping our list all share similar traits — heavy traffic, multiple lanes, traffic lights, major intersections, shopping precincts and constant turning movements, where even a momentary lapse in concentration can lead to a crash.“Mornings and Fridays are peak prang periods nationally, when school pick-ups, commuters, shoppers and heavy traffic all converge. It is a timely reminder to slow down mentally as much as physically, stay patient and avoid distractions.“Whether you are driving through Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Canberra or Darwin, the message is the same: leave a safe gap, look further ahead, take extra care at intersections and avoid rushing through busy traffic,” she said.

Renault is officially discontinuing its current Koleos mid-size SUV in Australia after 10 years of being on sale and there may not be an available direct replacement for a period.“The current-generation Renault Koleos is in run-out after a stellar run as one of Renault Australia's most popular models, with more than 21,000 examples sold,” said a Renault Australia spokesperson.“Now available from $36,990 drive-away with a $2000 cashback offer, all remaining inventory – complied to meet current motor vehicle regulations – is expected to be sold out by the end of this year.”The reason why the Koleos is being discontinued is due to it not meeting an Australian Design Rule (ADR) pertaining to autonomous emergency braking (AEB) performance, called ADR 98/00. It came into effect for all new vehicles produced from March 1, 2025.While the current Koleos does have AEB, it does not meet the specific requirements outlined by ADR 98/00.This means that Renault was able to stockpile at least 18 months worth of the Koleos stock before the ADR came into effect. Production of this South Korean-made model also ended in 2025.The Koleos is far from the only vehicle to be affected by the implementation of ADR 98/00. Other examples include the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Eclipse Cross, as well as the Suzuki Ignis and Mazda 6.With the axing of the current Koleos, this leaves Renault without a mid-side SUV that isn’t purely electric-powered in Australia for the time being.However, the French carmaker has many alternatives available in its global portfolio, though none have been locked in for an Australian launch yet.Examples include the South Korean-produced Grand Koleos and Filante, the Spanish-produced Austral, Espace and Rafael, as well as the Turkish-made Boreal.“As we have said before, Renault Australia is in the middle of a model revitalisation,” said Renault Australia Managing Director Glen Sealey earlier this month.“And while we won’t talk numbers or volume, we are well progressed with our long-term plan.“Renault has a vast catalogue of vehicles and we continually assess what is available to us and which ones best suit the needs – and price ranges – of Australian customers.“We’re not going to reveal all our future model plans today, but we can tell you there are another six new or refreshed models now due over the next two years.“And we have plenty to get through before then.”It’s understood that three of these six new Renault models are the Symbioz small SUV, Master E-Tech electric commercial van and the updated Megane E-Tech electric small SUV.At this stage the other three forthcoming Renault vehicles remain unclear and unconfirmed.

Nissan has issued an urgent recall notice affecting its most popular model.A total of 13,795 Nissan X-Trail e-Power mid-size SUVs could have a potentially dangerous software issue, according to the official notice from the Federal Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts.The affected X-Trails covered model years from 2022 to 2026, and used the Japanese brand’s e-Power hybrid technology.A software issue with the lithium-ion battery controller could cause the vehicle to enter a fail safe mode, which means the vehicles could lose power while driving and wouldn’t be able to charge the battery.Unlike other hybrids, Nissan’s e-Power technology only uses the petrol engine to charge the battery and the electric motors drive the wheels, rather than a combination of both. This means if the battery can not charge, the vehicle can not be driven.The recall notice said if this occurs it could “increase the risk of an accident, causing injury or death to the vehicle occupants and other road users”.Nissan will be contacting affected owners and urging them to attend their local dealership to have the software reprogrammed at no cost.Nissan also recalled 237 Qashqai e-Power compact SUVs for the same issue.The affected models cover the 2025 to 2026 model years and again will be reprogrammed free of charge.

Toyota has issued an urgent recall for its Tundra ute in Australia.It concerns a specific issue with 1199 local examples of the full-size pick-up manufactured between 1 May 2023 and 19 December 2024.These vehicles are equipped with a potentially faulty towing converter relay responsible for controlling vehicle and trailer rear lamps.Toyota said a wire within this relay may not be sufficiently insulated, which exposes the terminal pin, leading to the cabin back panel, which is a vital electrical component, shorting in some instances. This causes the brake lights to become inoperative and for the brake override warning message to be displayed."Inoperative stop lights may cause other drivers to be unaware when an involved vehicle is braking, increasing the risk of a collision which may result in injury or death," the brand's notice read.The car will also not turn on again once it has been turned off as part of the smart start system that prevents the car from being driven if the brake lights are not functioning. There is an emergency start procedure that can be used. Toyota said this issue does not affect other models within its lineup. A spokesperson for Toyota Australia said there have been three reported incidents of the issue occurring.The brand will contact affected owners to book a dealer appointment and rectify the issue for free.The procedure of reworking the terminal pin and re-insulating the wire to the main wire harness will take roughly an hour, according to Toyota. The hybrid Tundra competes with other full-size pick-ups like the Ford F-150 and the Ram 1500 for sales in Australia. It has experienced a solid sales increase in 2026, but remains a comparatively low-volume model for Toyota. 

More than 30,000 Jaguar Land Rover SUVs have been subject to urgent recalls in Australia, according to notices from the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sports and the Arts. The largest of these recalls concerns 23,313 Land Rover Defender, Discovery and Range Rover SUVs for the model years 2019 to 2026.“Due to a manufacturing defect, the connection to the driver’s airbag clock spring may corrode over time and lead to an increased resistance in the airbag circuit,” the notice stated.“As a result, the airbag may fail to deploy in the event of an accident.“In the event of an accident, the airbag not deploying as intended could increase the risk of injury or death to vehicle occupants.”The second issue relates to the Jaguar F-Pace SUV, Land Rover Defender and Discovery, as well as Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Velar models.It impacts 7152 units from the 2024 to 2026 model years.“Due to a manufacturing defect, the front-end auxiliary drive belt idler pulley may over rotate and cause damage to the oil pressure and temperature sensor,” the notice stated."This may lead to an oil leak and engine stalling resulting in a loss of motive power whilst driving.“An engine stall or sudden loss of motive power could increase the risk of serious injury or death to vehicle occupants and other road users.”The brand will contact the affected owners of all affected vehicles asking them to contact a dealer and have the work to fix the issue carried out, free of charge. A spokesperson Jaguar Land Rover said these are recalls are a part of a global recall and there have not been any reported incidents of the issue occurring in Australia. 

A huge change to speed limits in New South Wales has just come into force. Roadwork speed limits in NSW will no longer apply during non-work hours on-site, when it is safe to do so.Speed limits signs must be removed when there are no workers on site and it is out of work hours.Speed limits will return to the normal signed range, as long as it is safe for drivers and pedestrians.“Protecting construction workers and motorists around worksites is critical. We are not changing or weakening any rules around safety,” Minister for Roads and Regional Transport Jenny Aitchison said. “But as everyone has experienced, leaving speed restrictions in place outside of construction hours often slows down traffic movement. "This change will help traffic keep moving, reduce frustration for motorists and make journeys across the state more efficient."Previously, drivers were required to slow down to the signed roadwork limit regardless of whether there were any workers present.Roadwork limits meant speeds were dropped to 80km/h, 60km/h and 40km/h, including on major highways. Speed limits can incrementally decrease from 110km/h to 40km/h as drivers get closer to the location of the roadworks. This created unnecessary delays, where road roadwork speed limit signs were left out even after workers had left the site.This will now be illegal under the NSW Government's new legislation. Roadwork speeds are monitored by mobile speed cameras, as well as fixed mobile phone detection cameras. Fines, including double demerits, are applicable. The Chris Minns' government first promised to address roadwork speed limits ahead of the 2023 election.This move marks its fulfilment ahead of the March 2027 election. 

The latest all-new third-generation Audi Q7 large SUV underwent a dramatic redesign ahead of its official launch earlier this month.Speaking to Carsguide, a source working closely with the German car-maker confirmed that the Q7 was originally set to adopt wing grip door releases in place of conventional door handles, but that decision was reversed at the very last minute over safety concerns.In what's thought to be an unprecedented move on a car that was believed to have already been homologated for production, the flush, power-operated wing grip or shark-fin style exterior door releases were dropped following new regulations being rolled out next year in China, with senior Audi execs expecting a similar response from European legislators.Attracting designers and engineers to embrace hidden, pop-out or wing grip power-operated door releases was the intense pressure to create the most aerodynamic shape possible, in a bid to maximise an EV's range, or boost efficiency.According to reports, by deleting traditional door pulls, on average a vehicle's drag coefficient falls by up to 0.01Cd, which can equate to more than 3km of range under the European WLTP test cycle.The smoother, cleaner, unbroken lines are also seen as another benefit by designers, but now Audi has abandoned them with wider implications for the Volkswagen Group as a whole.Triggering the rethink has been multiple high-profile accidents that saw either occupants trapped within a car with failing door releases, or first responders struggling to gain access to a cabin in the event of an accident or fire.From January 1, 2027, new Chinese regulations dictate that power-operated door handles will now have to include a physical release for the first time, plus a range of other measures designed to boost safety.Since the new regs require an easily grabbable mechanical door release both inside and out, early indications hinting many Chinese brands are abandoning power-operated releases altogether, rather than adapting or evolving current designs, signalling a return to proper door handles.With a growing debate on the safety of electronic door releases already underway in regions like Europe, it's been hotly tipped that EU regulators and crash safety body EuroNCAP are also racing to implement new measures, or roll out new legislation.If that's not enough to put the likes of Audi off, last year the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced it too was investigating Tesla's pop-out door releases over safety concerns.A change in the rules could be costly for car-makers like Volvo who have recently gone ahead and introduced vehicles with the tech.To help circumvent the new rules, the Swedish brand introduced a mechanical override that incorporated a physical release.Should a crash or power failure occur, there's an internal power source that ensures the door release still operates.As well as safety, some owners have also reported reliability issues with power-operated door handles prone to fail in icy conditions when the mechanism can freeze over.The Audi insider did not state how much money it would cost to re-engineer the Q7 doors at such a late stage of development, but it's thought adding back conventional door handles will have cost the car-maker many millions of dollars, but will still be only a fraction of the cost of having to reintroduce them later on during the large SUV's model life.It's thought that instead of reverting to a set of conventional door handles, the new door levers still operate via a power-operated catches, as the large BMW X5-rival adopts some Rolls-Royce-style automatic doors that swing open via a touch of a button on the key fob.