Articles by Alistair Kennedy

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2014 Skoda Rapid Spaceback, with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Big price cuts and extra value for new Ford Falcon and Territory.With Falcon sales continuing to fall further behind those of arch-rival Holden Commodore, Ford Australia has announced significant price cuts across the range led by a reduction of just under $10,000 on the range-topping G6E Turbo.Additional equipment in what is destined to be the final Falcon model has also been added with front parking sensors and a reversing camera now standard in all models as well as an upgraded version of the Ford SYNC system including an 8-inch colour touch screen. There’s now also a new Wi-Fi hot spot capability, a second USB socket and new DAB+ digital radio.Styling changes include new alloy wheel designs and new graphics across the range as well as new front fascia, badging, headlamps and daytime running lights on G6E and XR6 models.The prices of the entry-level Falcon Ute have increased by $800 although that is more than offset by the inclusion of climate control air conditioning, a $2000 option in the FG Mark II. The XR6 Utes are all down by between $1380 and $3750. List prices of the new Ford Falcon FG X range (previous FG MkII in brackets) are:Falcon XT 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $35,900 ($37,235)Falcon XR6 4.0-litre petrol manual: $35,590 ($39,990)Falcon XR6 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $37,790 ($40,990)Falcon XR6 Turbo 4.0-litre turbo-petrol manual: $42,990 ($46,235)Falcon XR6 Turbo 4.0-litre turbo-petrol automatic: $45,190 ($48,235)Falcon G6E 4.0L petrol automatic: $40,110 ($46,735)Falcon G6E Turbo 4.0-litre turbo-petrol automatic: $46,550 ($56,235)Falcon Ute cab chassis 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $29,390 ($28,590)Falcon Ute SSB 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $29,790 ($28,990)XR 6 cab chassis 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $32,140 ($35,890)XR 6 SSB 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $32,640 ($36,190)XR 6 Turbo SSB 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $39,910 ($41,190) The Ford Territory SUV has received the combination of lower prices and extra equipment with all models now getting SYNC including emergency assistance and price cuts of between $3000 and $6500.List prices of the new Territory SZ Mk II (previous Mk I in brackets) are:TX RWD 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $36,990 ($39,990)TX RWD 2.7-litre diesel automatic: $40,240 ($43,240)TX AWD 2.7-litre diesel automatic: $45,240 ($48,240)TS RWD 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $41,740 ($47,740)TS RWD 2.7-litre diesel automatic: $44,990 ($50,990)TS AWD 2.7-litre diesel automatic: $49,990 ($55,990)Titanium RWD 4.0-litre petrol automatic: $48,490 ($54,990)Titanium RWD 2.7-litre diesel automatic: $51,740 ($58,060)Titanium AWD 2.7-litre diesel automatic: $56,740 ($59,990)

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the Skoda Yeti, with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2014 Kia Soul.

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2014 Kia Sorento Si.

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the BMW M4, with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the F80 BMW M3, with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Alistair Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2014 Skoda Octavia RS.

Hyundai has pruned its Accent small car range with the previous flagship Premium model being dropped due to its closeness in price to the slightly larger i30 model

Back in the late 1960s when I bought the potential deathtrap that was my first car, a second-hand 1950-something Simca, its safety features included aftermarket seatbelts (they'd only recently become compulsory) and... umm... that was about it.Even the new Volkswagen Beetle that replaced the Simca within six months – the latter having died before it could kill me – although significantly safer, didn't have any of the features that we now take for granted. There were no airbags, no ABS brakes, no stability or traction control, all standard in every new car now sold here.Despite the best efforts of the general media to downplay the dramatic drop in the road toll (bad news is good news and good news is no news) and of politicians who explain it entirely on driving slowly, the real heroes are the carmakers themselves who have continuously made their vehicles safer to such an extent that the vision of an 'uncrashable' car could become a reality within the next decade.While the benefits of these new safety features are self-evident many also bring with them new problems, generally because some drivers allow the technology to take precedence over their own instincts.This was driven home to me recently when, for the first time in months, I test drove one of the rare new cars that didn't have parking sensors and found the confidence in parking that I'd developed in nearly 45 years of driving had all but disappeared such had become my reliance on these series of little beeps that alerted me to the warned me park.The same risk applies to new features such as Blind Spot Monitoring where you rely on a camera to warn of vehicles coming alongside rather than correctly adjusted the rear mirrors; relying on reversing cameras instead of the correct procedure of walking around the car before entering and then also using mirrors; and Lane Departure Warning if you've become too busy thinking of something else.Lack of attention to the road has always been a problem but has never been more so than at the present time. By far the biggest offender is the smartphone with its vast array of potential distractions including telephone, audio, camera, traffic information and other apps. Although Bluetooth and voice activation commands reduce the level of physical distraction research has shown that mental distraction can be just as dangerous.So the bottom line is that technology is there to make your time on the road safer, more enjoyable and comfortable. Not to replace your experience and judgement.