Articles by Craig Duff

A new era of style-driven wagons is adding class to the traditional load-lugger and the Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake leads the convoy.

Some bright spark forgot to include an auto in Holden’s light hatch when it launched in 2010. The Spark (Holden calls it a Barina Spark but it is no relation to the light-sized car) now belatedly has one as it chases the estimated 70 per cent of light car buyers who opt for a self-shifting transmission. The adage that you get what you pay for has never been truer and the $14,490 price reflects its cheap interior and average handling.The Spark only comes in one spec and the four-speed auto adds $2000 to the $12,490 price. Equipment runs from alloy wheels to Bluetooth connectivity, auxiliary and USB inputs for the four-speaker stereo and steering wheel-mounted controls for the phone and audio. That compares well with its competition, but back seat passengers will have to work out how to use a manual window winder.The 1.2-litre four-cylinder engine has another 43cc of capacity to give a bit more grunt than the one used in the manual Spark. With 63kW/113Nm it leads the sub-$15,000 pack for on-paper performance. The auto also gains electric power steering that has been locally tuned to improve response.There’s nothing wrong with the outside of the Spark. It sits on 14-inch alloy wheels and has a trendy look to it. The same applies inside, where the motorbike-inspired instrument display should appeal to students looking for cheap transport or first time car buyers. But the plastics look and smell a generation old, clearly showing its Daewoo origins.The Spark trails only the VW up! for safety but is still only a four-star car as judged by ANCAP. The body is solid but some of the impact is transferred into the cabin, posing a potential risk to the chest and upper thighs. It earned 31.02/37 overall to be just behind the Nissan Micra but light years above the Alto. Six airbags and ABS with stability and traction control are standard.The Spark responds relatively quickly and will be a good thing around town or on the highway. Put some weight on board and point it at a decent hill and the transmission’s age dulls the experience like an authoritarian parent at a teenage party. The auto reacts too quickly to any change in accelerator pedal pressure, hunting for a higher gear before slurring back into a lower cog when it realises it can’t hold revs.Nothing dramatic, but it will see a lot of owners burying the right foot and blowing the claimed fuel consumption. The torsion beam rear end and limited suspension travel also see the Spark bang through decent bumps rather than roll over them.The steering is direct and only needs a light touch to change direction, but the lack of feedback means there’s a disconnect with exactly where the wheels are pointing. The instrumentation is clear enough, though, and the seats are OK, but interstate runs won’t be recommended with adults in the back. The cargo area is a modest 170 litres, reinforcing its status as a shopping trolley.

The elder statesman of the Mazda CX range is a bit like a Swiss Army knife: capable of a variety of jobs well beyond the expected blade. A mid-life nip-and-tuck has improved on CX-9’s distinctive looks without losing any of the utility that has made the seven-seater a popular, if niche, choice in the large SUV market. Mazda loads up the CX-9 when it comes to look and specification and the updated vehicle only has fairly minor price rises. All models have Bluetooth, USB and auxiliary inputs, a reversing camera, three-zone airconditioning, auto headlamps and wipers and a 3.7-litre V6 matched to a six-speed auto.The front-wheel drive Classic starts at $44,525, climbing to $52,980 for the Luxury model. The all-wheel drive Luxury is $57,480, with the Grand Touring $63,828. That’s around $5000 more than a Ford Territory (though without AWD) and just under the Jeep Grand Cherokee.The sound and satnav systems have been upgraded to match the newer entrants in this class. There’s now Bluetooth with audio streaming and the speech recognition system has been updated to provide audio and navigation interaction.The TomTom satnav can be updated using CD cards and is straightforward to operate. The Grand Touring model now picks up bi-xenon headlamps, daytime running lights and a remote operated power tailgate.Kodo is the key word at Mazda for the corporate look and the CX-9s new grille follows the CX-5 and Mazda6 styling. Remodelled front and rear bumpers and lights to match make it reasonably easy to pick from the outgoing version. Inside there’s a piano black finish around the instruments and Bordeaux-coloured metal strips run down either side of the centre console.The second row seating can be adjusted 120mm depending on the size of the occupants and adults will cope with short-ish trips in the pair of the third row seats. Boot space is marginal with seven on board but expands dramatically up to 1911 litres when there’s only two on board.The CX-9 hasn’t hit the wall loaded with ANCAP sensors but the US version rates as a five-star car. There are six airbags to protect occupants in all seats, the full suite of safety software and the likes of lane-departure warning, blind spot monitoring and forward collision warning systems.Big but light on its feet, the CX-9 is analogous with a rugby forward. There’s enough sheet metal to bestow an imposing look on the road but that’s not the impression from behind the wheel, where the lightly weighted steering adds to the impression of agility.Rapid changes of direction, especially on gravel, remind the driver this is a big bus. It’s more inertia than body roll, though, so the passengers won’t feel nauseous even at a brisk pace on back roads. Noise suppression is first rate and there is little evidence the Mazda is essentially a seven-year-old car.The V6 engine has enough urge to propel the CX-9 at a solid pace, either off the line or during overtaking and the wide seats hang on as well as the car does. In most cases, the front-wheel drive model will do most people and impresses enough that there would want to be long stretches of dirt ahead to consider paying the premium for AWD.

The car Ford should have had in the noughties. The four-cylinder engine enhances economy and driving enjoyment. "It's the Falcon of the year. It's what Ford needed to do, but four or five years ago," Karla Pincott said at the COTY judging.It’s an unpalatable fact of life for our local carmakers that big sedan sales are slumping everywhere from Germany to Geraldton as buyers scale down and step up.What the EcoBoost mill does prove is just how good Ford’s new generation of engines are. Ironically, that’s one of the reasons why the Focus will supplant the Falcon as the Blue Oval’s biggest seller this year.But for those who can’t fit in a Focus, the Falcon’s ride and handling makes it a better option than an SUV. The EcoBoost makes the six-cylinder redundant, unless buyers need the extra towing capacity - 2300kg against 1600kg.The four-cylinder prefers premium leaded, in which case sub-seven second times to 100km/h are easily within reach. More impressive is the mid-range acceleration and the way the six-speed auto has been calibrated to bring out the EcoBoost’s best.It lopes along at under 2000rpm at 100km/h and a quick dab of the pedal provides instant overtaking response. It's the same at 60 and 80km/h and at any speed this car turns-in better than bigger-engined Falcons, courtesy of the 60kg weight cut over the front wheels.The ride is also near XR levels of firmness but never feels unsettled. The seats need upgrading though - bolstering support is marginal at the cornering speeds the EcoBoost is capable of.The EcoBoost Falcon makes sense at a time when big cars don’t. It has the interior space to deal with a mushrooming family and the baggage that comes with them, backed by decent fuel economy and well-sorted road manners.Ford Falcon EcoBoost G6Price: from $40,835Engine: two-litre turbocharged direct-injection four-cylinderTransmission: six-speed automatic, rear wheel drivePower: 179kW @ 5500rpmTorque: 353Nm @ 2000rpmFuel use/emissions: 8.5 l/100km, tank 68 litres; 201g/kmBrakes/safety systems: Driver and front passenger airbags, front seat side/thorax, curtain airbags, stability control (Emergency Brake Assist (EBA), Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Traction Control), rear parking sensorsDimensions: Length 4966mm, width 1868mm, height 1483mm, wheelbase 2838mm, cargo volume 535 litres, weight 1648kgWheels/tyres: 17in alloy wheelsWin $5,000 in our People's Choice competition. 

The Outlander is a must-succeed for Mitsubishi in Australia and in large part the new SUV should. It's a diamond in the rough - there are a few harsh edges - but it definitely deserves shopping against the latest crop of mid-sized soft-roaders. It sits on the same chassis as the outgoing model but has new panels and

You need boobs or a buffed bod to get away with casual cruising in a drop-top. My wife assures me I have neither, which is why I tend to keep the lid on the SLK 250 up.She has a point though - most people who splash $100,000 on a two-seat roadster are image conscious. If that’s the case, Mercedes-Benz has their measure. The SLK roadster is as pretty a mechanical picture as you can paint for the money.VALUEThe 250 is the pick of the pair of 1.8-litre turbo engines that start the SLK line-up. At $92,450 it is $3000 dearer than BMW’s rival Z4 28i and $11,000 dearer than the all-wheel drive Audi TT 2.0 quattro. It’s still $15,000 under a Porsche Boxster or its SLK 350 stablemate, though.The SLK 250 rolls off the showroom with an infotainment system including satnav and web browser and voice control, a seven-inch hi-res screen, bi-xenon headlamps and heated and powered seats.TECHNOLOGYIt takes just 20 seconds to transform from classy to cool as the roof tucks in to the boot. That will chew most of the cargo space, so on weekends away, plan on getting to the hotel and unloading the luggage before you go topless.The engine is a 1.8-litre four-cylinder turbo matched to a seven-speed auto. The auto is a switch-hitter. The default economy setting heavily favours frugality over fun. That leads to a long wait between burying the right foot and eliciting a response from the engine but is also key in helping the car achieve a claimed 6.7 litres/100km.Great for boulevard cruising; frustrating when trying to get on the throttle mid-corner.  Sports mode eliminates the lag and is the preferred option for those making moves. Better still, go for manual mode and change gears via the wheel-mounted paddle shifters.DESIGNThere’s a touch of SL and SLS about Merc’s baby roadster. The fact it’s more than $130,000 cheaper makes it the standout of the two-seater range. The single horizontal bar that carries the Benz emblem on the front brings enough aggression to the front end to jab the “girl’s car” image in the head and the profile is pure roadster curves.Inside it has an edge on its German rivals. It looks premium and, with the manually operated wind-blockers behind the seats, there is very little turbulence when you are exposed to the elements.SAFETYIt hasn’t hit the ANCAP wall but Merc doesn’t build anything that won’t earn a five-star rating. In the case of the SLK, there are six airbags, the usual assortment of computer-enhanced and accelerometer-monitored braking software and a chassis that is harder than an ATO auditor.DRIVINGThis car raises the roof for top-down driving. Body flex is impossible to find at legal speeds and it combines outright fun with luxury motoring. The steering isn’t as sharp as the Z4 but compensates by being more relaxed around town. Ditto with the suspension. It is firmer than your average German sedan but there’s no jarring over potholes.A 0-100km/h time of 6.6 seconds isn’t going to set acceleration records but that isn’t what the 250 is about. It is about caressing corners, clipping the apex and then using the 350Nm to cannon to the next turn. Or shooting the breeze on country roads, then parading down seaside promenades. It is built for a purpose and does the required tasks purposefully.VERDICTIf you have an appetite for luxury roadsters, the SLK 250 will sate it. Easy to park, easy to pose in and easy to drive, it shaves the rough edges off outright sports car to bring refinement to alfresco driving.Mercedes-Benz SLK 250Price: from $92,450Warranty: three years/100,000 kmResale: 57 per centService Interval: 12 months/15,000kmCrash rating: not testedSafety: six airbags, ABS, TC, ESC, EBDEngine: 1.8-litre turbo four-cylinder, 150kW/350NmTransmission: seven-speed automatic, RWDDimensions: 4.15m (L), 1.82m (W), 1.31m (H)Weight: 1450kgSpare: space-saverThirst: 6.7L/100km (95 RON), 155g/km CO2

The C-Class has been kicking butt in the compact prestige segment and Mercedes-Benz’s latest upgrades are intended to boot its rivals right between the C pillars.Upgrades to the C-Class coupe sees the $59,990 base model now use just 6.3 litres/100km, a substantial one-litre improvement on the current model.At the other end of the spectrum is the C250 Sport based on AMG tweaks to the steering and suspension. The C-Class is already a sharp steerer and an exclusive Carsguide drive shows the recalibrated wheel brings more precision to the party, with crisper turn-in and better on-road feel at speed.More aggressive camber settings keep the wheels flatter under cornering load and, along with upgraded spring and damper settings, give the car tenacious mid-corner grip. There’s no more power on the $78,550 Sport model - buyers need to spend another $6840 for AMG performance pack to gain an extra 22kW - but the accelerator response has been remapped for better response and the seven-speed auto’s gear changes have been sharpened up.Price and posture have made the C-Class the car to be seen in so far this year. BMW has held its own in the sedan field where pricing are similar to its arch rival but its coupes are around $10,000 dearer than comparable Benzes.A new propeller-badged coupe is due late next year and BMW spokesman Piers Scott says as the current model enters run out mode buyers can “expect to be able to get seriously good deals at the retail level”.Merc’s B-Class line-up has also earned a top-to-bottom overhaul. The entry level B180 rises by $1000 to $39,990 but gains 17-inch rims, a reversing camera and a 0.3-litre improvement in fuel use to 5.8L/100km. The B250 now heads the range - at least until the arrival of the AMG version - and runs on 18-inch rims and lowered suspension.The $49,500 front-wheel drive “sports tourer” hits 100km/h in just 6.8 seconds and still manages an official fuel use of just 6.5L/100km. Benz spokesman Jerry Stamoulis says the company is determined to maintain market leadership. “The C-Class has been an outstanding success in every variant - coupe, sedan and estate - and we’ll keep on improving the product,” he notes.

It’s a concept but not as we know it. BMW’s Concept 4 Series Coupe is as close to a production vehicle as you’ll see - and it is due in Australia in the third quarter of next year. Beemer badly needs

Price, running costs and looks are factors light car buyers agonise over. The Holden Barina has two of the three criteria down pat and updates to its six-speed automatic have brought it back into the game on weekly fuel expenses. With a youth-oriented interior that now has the My Link apps-based infotainment system, it is on the money as a practical inner-city commuter.VALUEThe CD kicks things off at $15,990 with a 1.6-litre engine and five-speed manual gearbox. The auto costs another $2500, which makes the self-shifting CDX at $20,490 the pick of the pair.It runs on 17-inch rims fitted with decent Continental rubber, reverse parking sensors, heated front seats, fog lamps and the My Link infotainment system. The price puts it ahead of the pack - the top-selling Mazda2 Genki costs the same money with a manual ‘box, as does the Ford Fiesta Zetec.TECHNOLOGYHolden is leveraging smartphone technology and software apps to avoid the headache of infotainment systems that date within 18 months of a car’s launch. It’s a smart move - providing the apps suit the market.The Red Lion sees internet radio as a big selling point, along with an apps-based satnav system due next year. My Link copes with most smartphones and, by being just the interface, should stay contemporary long past its rivals.The auto gearbox is now good for 6.3L/100km, which is a mere 0.2 of a litre more - or a couple of aggressive take-offs from the lights - than the likes of the Fiesta, Kia Rio or CVT-equipped Suzuki Swift.DESIGNA clean and modern look without too many fussy lines helps explain the Barina’s external appeal. The distinct dual headlamps give it an upmarket look and the chrome highlights on the CDX say you’ve got the premium package.It looks good inside, too … just don’t touch. The plastics are marked improvement on the Barina Spark but are still far from best in show.SAFETYNo worries here. The Barina’s five-star ANCAP rating is at the high end of the light car scale, with a rating of 35.32 out of 37. Six airbags are standard and the basic structure was praised by the crash-testing body for its rigidity. Just don’t hit a Commodore ... size still matters.DRIVINGLocal input into the suspension and steering can be felt from the first decent turn. The Barina rides well on its 17-inch rubber and quashes secondary jiggles over rippled road as well as any car in this class.There’s no wallowing, little body roll and a sense of solidity when it does hit decent bumps. The electric power steering is trick. Around town it is light enough not to make parking an issue but there’s never an issue of not knowing where the wheels are pointed.There is enough play on centre to cope with back-seat glances by frustrated parents or distracted teens without putting the car into the next lane but as lock is applied, it is rewardingly direct. And there’s head and leg room for two adults in the back, along with enough cargo space - 290 litres - to fit a couple of overnight bags.VERDICTThe updated Barina is a good reason why Holden engineers should be unleashed on products brought in from South Korea. They’ve turned an average car into a good one. Between the clean looks, decent ride and tech-based interior, they should be able to lure more than a few first-time new car buyers into a Barina.Holden Barina CDXPrice: $20,490 (sedan adds $500)Warranty: Three years/100,000kmResale: 51 per centCrash: Five starsSafety: Six airbags, ABS, TC, ESC, EBDEngine: 1.6-litre four-cylinder, 85kW/155NmTransmission: Six-speed auto, FWDDimensions: 4.04m/4.4m (L), 1.74m (W), 1.52m (H)Weight: 1193kg/1220kgSpare: Inflation kit (full-size spare a NCO)Thirst: 6.3L/100km, 151g/km CO2

Holden has finally gotten serious about the large SUV market. After years of watching its rivals migrate buyers out of big sedans and into even bigger off-roaders, the Red Lion has launched a proper four-wheel drive of its own.The Colorado 7 is based on the Colorado pick-up, meaning a ladder-on-frame chassis and four-wheel drive with a transfer case for work far off the beaten track. So it’s tough.A reversing camera with overlaid guidelines on the rear-view mirror is standard on both the LT and LTZ models, as is Bluetooth and USB connectivity and cruise control. A six-speaker stereo system is capable but not class-leading.The LTZ picks up another pair of speakers, climate-control airconditioning and highlights like chrome accents and leather seat trim. The direct-injection turbodiesel engine is a robust performer without being the most refined donk in this field. It is matched to a six-speed auto - that’s an extra cog over its rivals - but uses marginally more fuel at a claimed 9.4 litres/100km.The Colorado 7 is a part of the GM global range. It is a re-nosed Chevrolet Trailblazer that is built in Thailand and was designed in Brazil. The slab-sided design gives it a solid look that’s softened by the scalloped doors and the side steps and fog lights give it a decent upmarket look.The inside is more utilitarian - especially on the LT model - though the driver’s display graphics are relatively modern and the rotary dial in the centre stack is easy to operate. Cargo space is a light-car like 235 litres but that extends to 878 litres with the third-row seats folded into the floor. Flick a latch and the tumble-down second row seating expands space to a van-like 1780 litres.ANCAP accepts the Colorado 7’s pick-up heritage as cause to rate it a high five stars. Only the Toyota Prado and ML Mercedes top it and in the case of the Prado, only just. Front airbags and full-length curtain bags are standard, along with the expected brake-based software nannies.The diesel engine is noisy. It’s not tractor-like but a bit more insulation in the firewall could have softened it. That’s the only complaint about noise; for a big bus there is very little wind rush or tyre roar, even on coarse chip surfaces.The five-link rear suspension also does a decent job of softening pitching and rolling usually found in ladder-on-frame platforms. And those on-road manners only get better when the going gets rough. Switch the rotary dial mounted between the front seats to low range and the Colorado 7’s crawls over rocks and wades through slush far better than it should given the road-biased rubber it runs on.Toss a decent set of off-road tyres on it and there would be very few places it isn’t capable of travelling. A sump guard is standard and ground clearance is more than adequated, as is the 600mm wading depth.