25 March 2022 by Tom White
Small SUVs are all the rage, and Mazda has no shortage of options for prospective buyers. While other brands delineate quite clearly between their SUV models though, it seems like Mazda has a fair amount of overlap. The CX-30 we’re looking at here is a size up from the CX-3 but sits alongside the...Read more
21 March 2022 by Tom White
The Toyota Yaris finds itself in a precarious position in the Australian market. This new-generation car launches as the decline of small cars in Australia seems to be in full swing, and while it brings hybrid tech to the Yaris nameplate, it’s priced dangerously close to its popular Corolla big...Read more
25 February 2022 by Richard Berry
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 could well be the ultimate urban car. And what better way to test this claim than with the ultimate urban best friend – Spot. Yes, as you’ll see in the video above I tested the Ioniq 5 with the world’s most advanced robotic dog, and his name is Spot. At least I think it’s a him...Read more
17 February 2022 by Tom White
If you’re having trouble finding stock of a small SUV or even a hatchback in 2022, I’d strongly recommend you look at a sedan. The majority of buyers will engage in puzzling mental gymnastics to convince themselves they need to pay more for a trendy small SUV. Yet, it'll have a smaller boot than...Read more
14 February 2022 by Tim Nicholson
Almost 10 years since the launch of the previous generation model – and nearing on 20 years after the birth of the original – Mitsubishi has finally introduced an all-new Outlander . The new model will share its underpinnings with the next-gen Nissan X-Trail , expected later this year, and it has...Read more
9 February 2022 by Byron Mathioudakis
Most medium-sized seven-seat SUVs fall between stools. Neither off-roader adventurers nor people movers, they awkwardly straddle the middle ground instead, and as such aren’t brilliant at either task. Blame the compromised packaging as a result of stuffing a third row of seats in the cargo area of...Read more
4 February 2022 by Byron Mathioudakis
The difference between ‘cheap’ and ‘inexpensive’ is the difference between the Kia Picanto and most sub-$20,000 cars. Kicking off from $15,990 before on-road costs (ORC), the popular hatch represents Australia’s only complete sub-B supermini experience, with a full range, affordable pricing,...Read more
1 February 2022 by Tim Nicholson
The Jeep Compass is something of a unicorn among the long list of small SUVs sold in Australia. It is now the only model in either the light or small-SUV category that is available with a diesel engine. That diesel is found under the bonnet of just one variant – the rugged Trailhawk which is also...Read more
19 January 2022 by Tim Nicholson
The launch of a new-generation Volkswagen Golf is usually met with quite a bit of fanfare. It’s an iconic moniker that has set the benchmark for small cars for decades. But the launch of the Mk 8 Golf in 2021 didn’t have the same impact of previous generations. The new Golf uses the same Volkswagen...Read more
12 January 2022 by Tim Nicholson
Three years after the fourth-generation Cerato small car rolled into Australian dealerships, Kia launched a mid-life facelift for the sedan and hatch range in mid-2021. It ushered in styling tweaks including new headlights and Kia’s new logo, as well as more safety tech and a multimedia upgrade. At...Read more
11 January 2022 by Byron Mathioudakis
Can it really be eight years since we first lay eyes on the current-shape Mini – and 20 seasons since the BMW-led brand revival burst onto the scene? With much input from now-defunct Rover , the 2001 R50 was all about reinvention, attitude, fashion and athleticism for the new millennium. These also...Read more
11 January 2022 by Byron Mathioudakis
Volkswagen’s biggest selling vehicle line globally as well as locally isn’t the Golf or Polo, but the Tiguan. A latecomer to the medium SUV party when launched in Australia during 2008, the Golf small-car based high-riding crossover that combines ‘tiger’ with ‘iguana’ for a name hit its stride when...Read more
24 December 2021 by Tim Nicholson
Kia is on a roll with its SUV line-up. The Stonic light SUV is selling like hotcakes, the Seltos small SUV is hugely popular with long wait lists for higher grades and the large seven-seat Sorento has won a lot of praise from reviewers. That means there’s a bit of pressure on the new-generation...Read more
14 December 2021 by Tom White
In the now oversaturated mainstream small SUV market, there seems to be one particularly poorly filled niche, the sporty SUV. While there are world-famous hot hatches with decades of pedigree, it seems only just now are manufacturers exploring the bounds of what consumers are willing to ask from an...Read more
18 November 2021 by Tim Nicholson
By the end of next year, Toyota will have not one but three light or small SUVs to choose from. The first to roll out in 2017 was the sleek C-HR, while the larger Corolla Cross will hit Australian shores in 2022. About a year ago, Toyota lobbed the Yaris Cross , a light SUV based on the same GA-B '...Read more
8 October 2021 by Byron Mathioudakis
The Haval Jolion’s mission is stated right there on its rump. Chinese for ‘first love’, the badge is meant to reflect the warm and fuzzy feelings buyers seeking a meaningful relationship with a new small SUV would want to experience. And it’s not just the name that’s striving for unbridled joy...Read more
30 September 2021 by Tom White
Haval has re-invented itself over the last year in Australia. While it took Korean brands decades to have the confidence to re-invent themselves with contemporary designs to really take on their Japanese rivals, absurdly rapid innovation out of China sees Haval and by extension its parent company,...Read more
28 September 2021 by Byron Mathioudakis
Quick! What’s Australia’s bestselling large seven-seater SUV? If you rolled your eyes and muttered ‘Kluger’ you’d be incorrect, as that honour belongs to the latter’s unrelated ladder-frame chassis 4x4 sibling, the evergreen Prado . But while more little devils’ parents purchase Prado, the Kluger...Read more
24 August 2021 by Byron Mathioudakis
If you think about new cars that transcend wealth, status, class and other human societal constructs of debatable merit, then the Volkswagen Golf is now the most affordable. Certainly, since the short-sighted, tragic axing of the Honda Jazz in Australia. Young or old, rich or poor, left or right…...Read more
4 August 2021 by Byron Mathioudakis
MG used to be famous for fun cars. For 80 years until 2004 it was all about two-seater roadsters, grand touring sedans and saucy hot hatches . Then the British brand went into receivership, was revived soon after by the Chinese state-owned SAIC Motor, and here we are today. A bargain-basement maker...Read more