Articles by Chris Thompson

The 2026 BYD Seal 6, not to be confused with the electric Seal sedan launched earlier this decade, is a plug-in hybrid rival to the Toyota Camry with a competitive price and a long driving range.The Seal 6 comes either as a sedan in Essential grade, or as a wagon (Touring) in Premium grade. The Essential starts from $34,990, making it cheaper than its medium sedan rivals and most plug-in hybrids on the market.The base sedan comes with a decent amount of standard kit:Wireless phone mirroringSynthetic leather upholsteryPower-adjustable front seats12.8-inch multimedia touchscreenIt’s powered by a hybrid system consisting of a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine that helps an electric motor drive the front wheels, drawing power from a 10kWh battery to deliver 130kW and 210Nm in total.The battery provides enough juice for 55km of electric driving under WLTP conditions, though with its 65L fuel tank and either 1.1L/100km fuel consumption with a charged battery or 3.6L/100km with a run-down battery, BYD says the Seal 6 can top 1000km on a single tank and full battery.The BYD Seal 6 boasts a five-star ANCAP rating, with seven airbags and a safety suite including adaptive cruise control with forward collision warning and automatic braking intervention.BYD has a six-year/150,000km warranty, plus an eight-year/160,000km warranty for the battery.Servicing is every 20,000km or 12 months, with the first five services totalling $2775, an average of $555 a visit.

If you’ve been holding out for the arrival of Toyota’s newest toy, the GRMN version of the Corolla hot hatch, you’ll need to dig a little deeper than you expected.Pricing for the 2027 Toyota GRMN Corolla has been announced in the US, and it’s in prohibitively expensive territory.Toyota USA this week confirmed an MSRP of US$64,360, which directly converts to A$91,500. But that’s not how much you should expect to pay.While pricing between markets can be hard to predict before confirmation, looking at similarly priced cars in the US can provide some insight into the likely cost of the limited number of GRMN Corolla expected for Australia.In the US, the GRMN Corolla sits around the same price as the Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Audi S5 and BMW M2, as pointed out by US outlet Road and Track.In Australia, the Mustang Dark Horse costs $104,990, the standard Audi S5 $114,900 and the BMW M2 is $128,100.Previous Australian estimates had put the GRMN Corolla in the range of around $80,000 to $90,000.This isn’t a confirmation the rare hot hatch will crack six-figures when it lands in Australia, but it would be surprising to see its price start with a ‘9’.Confirmed in early June for a limited Australian run, the Toyota GRMN Corolla is a dialled-up GR Corolla, with the same 221kW but more 8Nm torque (total 408Nm) at the driver’s disposal thanks to the 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine (a.k.a the G16E-GTS). The high-output engine sends power to all four wheels via an adjustable rally-like all-wheel drive system which has also been retuned for the GRMN.Aero elements, suspension and chassis components, and the styling and interior have all been revamped and upgraded for the GRMN Corolla, to some extent justifying the exorbitant price.Developed both on the Nurburgring but also through Toyota’s participation in Japan’s Super Taikyu endurance racing series, the GRMN Corolla will be built in a run of only 730 units worldwide.It will be available in Australia in a currently unknown number of cars from 2027.‘Gazoo Racing tuned by the Meister of Nürburgring’ is a bit of a mouthful, but it is an elevated tier of Toyota’s performance car division that leans even more on Toyota’s motorsport experience.Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has said that any car wearing the GRMN badge can’t just be a sportier version of its donor model, but that “if it bears the GRMN name, it must be able to run the Nürburgring properly”. Significant testing on the Nürburgring is part of the development process, and usually a limited production run is the result of said development.The GR Yaris had a 500-unit run of GRMN editions with increased outputs and upgraded aero and chassis components in 2022, while before the GR Yaris existed a ‘Yaris GRMN’ was built two limited runs (2013 and 2017) and used either a turbocharged or supercharged engine.

A big change is coming for one of the most iconic sports cars in the world, with the next generation of Mazda’s convertible to go electric.Masahiro Moro, CEO of Mazda, has confirmed the fifth generation of the Mazda MX-5 must be able to forgo a combustion engine in order to be viable."The successor must also be ready for a scenario without a combustion engine,” the CEO told German outlet Auto Motor und Sport.The surprise confirmation raises one of the biggest questions regularly asked in regards to electric sports cars: what about the weight?Moro says the goal weight is between 1000kg and 1200kg. That would keep it close to the low weight of the current ND MX-5, which weighs around 1100kg, depending on the variant.“The challenge for us is to make the basic structure lighter without using exotic materials like carbon fiber.”Earlier this year Mazda’s General Manager of Global Sales and Marketing, Manabu Osuga, told CarsGuide electrification was unlikely for the fifth-generation MX-5.“At the moment, electric is going the opposite direction of fulfilling the MX-5’s (core) concept, as it needs to remain a lightweight sportscar, and electric means heavier,” he told CarsGuide in Melbourne.“We want to make the weight less than one tonne before additional equipment, then with additional equipment 1.1-tonne, but we don’t want it to exceed 1.2-tonne (in total) if it is to be a lightweight sportscar.”European outlets report similar statements from executives, with Christian Schultze, Director of Research & Operations at Mazda Motor Europe telling Dutch publication AutoRAI in February the same thing.“The moment you go fully electric, you fundamentally change the car’s architecture. That means different proportions, a different weight, and a different balance,” he said.An electric version of the fifth-gen MX-5 - which we expect to follow the generational NA, NB, NC and ND names of the first four - is coming, but it won’t be the only drivetrain available.Earlier this year, Mazda also announced the MX-5 would use the upcoming Skyactiv-Z engine, a 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine with hybrid capability.A mild-hybrid would more easily allow Mazda to equip the MX-5 with a manual gearbox, as heavier electrification complicates the system and automatic transmissions become preferred.We won’t see the fifth-gen MX-5 until at least next year, for a launch likely sometime in 2028.

The 2026 BYD Seal 6 has arrived, and not just at a lower starting price with a more electrified plug-in hybrid drivetrain, but with a wagon option, too. In fact, the Seal 6 Touring Premium wagon is the halo variant of the Seal 6 range, and its price matches the Camry’s entry-grade. Should Toyota be worried? We attend the Australian launch of the Seal 6 Touring to find out.

Volkswagen has confirmed a battery size for its smallest EV will bring a new entry price with order books already open overseas.The 2027 VW ID.Polo brings a new 37kWh battery as an option, available in its base model Trend for as little as 24,995 euros (A$40,900). From 29,195 euros (A$47,760), it can also be had in higher specifications like Life and Style.The move by the German manufacturer is almost certainly an addition to retain sales in the lower-budget end of the market, where Chinese manufacturers have been increasingly popular despite EU tariffs on new Chinese cars.VW claims the new battery size provides enough driving range, 334km under WLTP testing, for daily use, and can be charged from 10-80 per cent in 23 minutes. Charging speed tops out at 90kW with a powerful enough DC charger.It’s also available in versions of the ID.Polo with either 85kW or 99kW, and is set to launch just weeks after the larger battery version with a 52kW unit.The ID.Polo is yet to be confirmed for Australia, but Volkswagen’s local arm has been considering similar models like the ID.Cross small electric SUV for some time now.The ID.4, ID.5, ID.Buzz and e-Transporter are the only EVs the brand currently offers locally.While there’s no guarantee the ID.Polo will land in Australia any time soon, its larger 52kWh battery would likely be more popular, with trim levels probably similar to the Trend, Life and Style versions available in Germany.The announcement comes as rumours of a significant model-cull circle the Wolfsburg brand alongside its continued mass-reduction in employee numbers around the world.

Recently, a realisation from behind the wheel of the current generation of a widely beloved rear-drive two-door coupe raised a question for me.Are sports cars doomed? The question came as I realised that because of the development of the car I was driving, the 2026 Nissan Z (specifically the Heritage Edition), underneath was essentially a Nissan 350Z that had been given enough surgery to be relevant in two decades later.But the last of the ancient platforms won’t be around for much longer, surely, and the cars built on them are, at least in two cases, some of the most-loved sports cars around.The other is the Ford Mustang, which rides on a platform closely related to one older than you might think.Back to the Z for a moment, because the platform it rides on comes from so far back that I was just getting into primary school when it debuted. The 2002 Nissan 350Z was released when I was in grade 2, about a decade and a half ago, when I was only allowed behind the wheel of one if it was on Need for Speed: Underground 2.Nissan recently celebrated 35 years of its Infiniti sub-brand, which kicked off with the G35 Coupe - a sibling car to the V35 Nissan Skyline - and gave the Front Midship (FM) Platform its flowers.The aim was to get a V6 nestled in just behind the front axle, which resulted in a 52:48 front/rear weight distribution. Slightly more weight over the front was a deliberate choice, according to the engineers.The FM platform would go on to carry the Z33 350Z to cultural relevance in the aforementioned Underground 2 and Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift, before the Z34 370Z came along with a heavily updated version of the platform in 2009 and hung around for 12 years. The FM was just about old enough to vote in Australia when the 370Z was discontinued.The RZ34 is already coming up on four years old, and its platform is 20 years older than that.Even though its chassis feels heavy for something carrying a two-door coupe, it’s not alone in the world of heavy hybrid and electric ‘sports cars’, but it retains a level of engagement and trust in the driver that doesn’t rely on tricks and electronics.If Nissan built another platform for the Z, not only would it have possibly sent the company bankrupt, it might have lost some of its magic.Nissan’s FM platform is not alone in this. In fact, even though Ford probably could afford to create a new Mustang platform, you could argue the platform it rides on is even older than the Z’s. Depends who you ask. While Ford says the S550 Mustang is built on a ‘ground-up’ platform developed just for the Mustang in 2015, it’s to some extent based on the existing D2C platform that the Mustang rode on since 2004, itself an evolution of the DEW98 platform used from the late 1990s.While the Mustang’s platform is now different in a few key areas, including the addition of independent rear suspension for the S550 generation onwards, it’s still related to that of the early 2000s.And it’s still quite capable and really, really fun, just like the Nissan Z.I point all of this out because I’m a little worried about what happens to the other, even more affordable sports cars when it’s time for their next generations. Will the Mazda MX-5 or Toyota GR86 (and Subaru BRZ) hold onto their platforms until it’s no longer possible to release a car on them?We’re going to be waiting until after 2030 for a new Nissan Z according to Nissan Americas’ Senior Vice President Chief Product & Planning Officer Ponz Pandikuthira, though given he says the next GT-R will ride on a new platform the FM Platform might also be outta here.A new Ford Mustang won’t be around until a similar time, though Ford CEO Jim Farley has notably said the V8 would stick around “as long as God and the politicians let us”. The platform might need some more work by then if the brand intends to electrify the pony car, though it won’t go full-EV if Ford can avoid it.If you’re anything like me, you’d probably be okay with the next generations of each of these cars riding on a very similar platform to their predecessors.Of course evolution needs to take place, otherwise the Mustang would still have a solid rear axle and the likes of ANCAP would have thoughts about that.The current Mazda MX-5 and Toyota GR86 are two properly affordable sports cars, and if keeping them within reach of most people means a new generation on the same highly acclaimed platforms as before, I’d be all for it.

A Chinese auto executive has warned that the extreme pace of the new car industry in China is “brutal” and unsustainable.BYD Executive Vice President He Zhiqi took to Weibo to lament the “insane” pace with which the Chinese auto industry is progressing - citing a figure of 650 new or updated cars launched just in the first half of 2026.That works out to around four new or refreshed cars launched per day. Contrast this with Australia, where a handful of new cars launched in a week is considered busy, and it becomes clear why the phrase ‘China speed’ has become common.“It’s completely insane,” He Zhiqi said on Chinese social media site Weibo this week, saying the market is “not just fierce, but brutal” in China.While carmakers must still develop cars for many months or years leading up to launches, He Zhiqi says the “buzz” of a new car launch can’t be held for “three months before it goes cold”.In China, the pace set by brands belies the cooling market.Automotive News Europe reports the passenger car segment is down 23 per cent compared to June last year, citing data from China’s Passenger Car Association.Bloomberg also reported the pace of China’s industry means the monthly output of new car launches in a month is roughly equivalent to that of a calendar year in the US.While the BYD executive says the current trend in the industry is unsustainable, He Zhiqi points out that the hard times will result in carmakers emerging with the resilience to survive brutal market conditions.“Competition also breeds prosperity,” he wrote. “You have to roll around, crawl and fight in it to build a strong body.”

After its backflip on the announcement it would go all-electric by 2030, Volvo seems set to reverse another trend it has been following of late: the shift to SUVs.Reports from the US reveal internal discussions around a sedan and wagon being reintroduced to the North American market, with insiders saying the target models are already being developed for Europe.While the report is focused on the US, comments from Volvo Australia’s top brass in the past mean Aussie fans of the Swedish brand’s wagons have reason to be optimistic.The sedan and wagon, both to be electric, would bring some traditional styles back to the Volvo line-up, which as it stands only includes the large, high-riding ES90 as anything resembling a sedan.The return of a wagon has been reported by Automotive News in the US, with apparent insider information pointing to Volvo using ‘60’ or ‘70’ badged cars similar to the S60/V60 or S70/V70 badges used for sedans (S) and wagons (V) in the past.According to the report, the models will be built in Europe, with a Cross Country version of the wagon also on the cards as has been Volvo’s tradition.Set to be built on the same SPA3 platform as the new EX60, the new models would also incorporate 800-volt electrical architecture for super-fast charging and options in terms of battery sizing.While the news comes very soon after the US discontinued the V60 and V90 wagons, it might not be hugely surprising to those aware of Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson’s comments early this year on the industry’s global push for more SUVs.“We are looking into that,” Samuelsson said, “I think we will not only have SUVs five years from now.”The comments are similar to those from Volvo Cars Australia’s Managing Director, Stephen Connor, who in 2022 said Volvo wouldn’t go ‘all-SUV’.“Absolutely, we can have other models,” said Connor. “We’ve seen a big move toward SUVs in the last few years, now electrification will broaden that range. I think there’s a desire now for new shapes that aren’t just what we would consider an SUV. Electric cars let us experiment with new shapes and new ideas.”The brand’s local head of PR and Communications Greg Bosnich added at the time that if an electric version of the V60 came along, Australia would have its hand up for it.“There is still demand in Australia for a car like the V60, and if an electric model comes, we’ll be getting it.“The wagon is part of our story, isn’t it? I think HQ is conscious of that and I think that emotional connection is still there.”If you were disappointed to see the V60 disappear from Australian showrooms, stay tuned.

Nissan’s luxury arm has reportedly delayed a high-performance large SUV that could have implications for its Nissan sibling.The Infiniti QX80 Red Sport, a performance version of the brand’s sibling to the 2027 Nissan Patrol, is heading back to square one with development restarting.Reports from the US said Infiniti has decided to aim higher than just building a high-output version of the QX80 large SUV, and will instead try to rival the likes of BMW M and AMG in creating a more complete performance package for the model.“As we have started to work on the project, we’re realising that power alone is not sufficient,” Infiniti Americas chief Eric Ledieu told Automotive News.“We know we have one chance at a first impression when it comes to this type of product. When you’re paying six figures for a performance-based SUV of this size and scale, it needs to deliver.”Originally due late this year, the QX80 Red Sport is now much further away.The existing QX80’s twin-turbo 3.5-litre V6 will be tuned to produce more than the standard 336kW, though the likelihood of it being swapped for the 3.8-litre unit used in the GT-R as was seen in the Infiniti QX80 R-Spec concept built for the 2025 SEMA Show is unlikely.Infiniti has also built a 485kW QX80 Track Spec concept that could inform the WX80 Red Sport, though its production future remains uncertain.The Red Sport name has been dormant for some time, it being Infiniti’s high-performance variant badge, though its reception in Australia on the Q50 Red Sport and Q60 Red Sport was dampened by unfavourable reviews for its poor dynamics, parts-bin packaging and outdated tech.If Infiniti does revive Red Sport with proper investment as a rival to the German brands’ performance arms, it could have an effect on the fiesty Y63 Nissan Patrol Nismo.The Patrol Nismo sold in the Middle East uses the same 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol engine, but thanks to “region-specific tuning” power has been bumped to 369kW (up from 317kW). Torque remains unchanged at 700Nm. The Nismo gains a range of mechanical upgrades.While it’s unlikely that a future performance model for the Patrol would land in similar areas to the QX80 Red Sport - expect an Aussie-developed Warrior version instead - the US development of the QX80’s performance variant could inform some of the work needed to give the Patrol an angrier outlook.

Volkswagen’s woes seem to be ever-growing in the 2020s, but one aspect of its production is likely to get a huge overhaul in an attempt to cut costs.Volkswagen’s CEO Oliver Blume raised an idea during the company’s first-quarter earnings call on April 30 that has seemingly started to take hold - building its China-only models in its underutilised German plants.As part of what Blume has called “the most comprehensive realignment in the company’s history”, Volkswagen will not only cut around 50,000 jobs on top of about 37,000 already cut since 2024, but will also consider a couple of ways in which it can lower production costs while utilising its connections with China.A report from Automotive News Europe says insiders have flagged three possible moves VW might make to fill production lines and improve the company’s efficiency.The first, and apparently the preferred option for VW Group’s top brass, is to use VW’s incoming China Scalable Platform (CSP) for global models, though the platform isn’t set to underpin models in China until 2028.Volkswagen has joint-ventures in China with Xpeng, SAIC and FAW and could lean on those in the meantime. The potential plan has reportedly raised concerns from VW’s workforce representatives, who say the brand’s Wolfsburg engineering teams should handle development of new cars.Another possible move is for the China-only VW ID Era 9X to replace the VW Touareg which just ended its production run in Europe.The range-extended electric SUV is a six-seater built specifically for China, developed with its joint-venture partner SAIC. It has become relatively popular compared to VW’s other electrified models, and reports say executives like the idea of it filling the large-SUV-sized gap left by Touareg in Europe.Another, less likely possibility is for VW to build XPeng models in its German plants, given its 5 per cent stake in the Chinese brand and the fact the XPeng G6, G9 and P7+ are imported to Europe.Automotive News Europe says insiders don’t see this as likely, reporting that executives see no value in becoming a contractor for a Chinese EV brand.Volkswagen is also expected to massively cull its global model line-up, with German newspaper Bild reporting a wide range of cars from all of its brands won't survive to another generation.