Articles by Ewan Kennedy

Ewan Kennedy reviews the first, second and third generation Mazda 6 as a used buy.

Renault Captur is a stylish city car that’s virtually a Renault Clio with a taller five-door hatch body. It joins a sudden rash of small crossover SUVs that are taking Australia by storm. In fact these vehicles are also a hit in global markets, particularly in Europe where parking in increasingly crowded cities is a huge problem.Note the word styling in our opening to this story, because that’s the number one reason people are giving us when we talk about their buying a Renault Captur. Interestingly, favourable responses are coming to us not only from youngsters who appreciate French style, but also from the over 60s who appreciate the ease of entry and exit from taller cars.While relatively small on the outside, Renault Captur has space for four adults in comfort. Mum and dad in the front and three pre-teen kids in the back is likely to be the typical Australian setup and works well in this tall hatch.Versatility is excellent as the rear seat slides back and forwards to let you choose between passenger and luggage space. Headroom is plentiful for all but the tallest of basketball players.Captur is sold in the usual Renault models of Expression and Dynamique, the recommended retail price begins at a pretty reasonable $22,990.Renault Captur was shaped by legendary car stylist Laurens van den Acker. He is from the Netherlands and can be regarded as a modern day Dutch Master working in three dimensions, following up on of the famed Dutch Master artists of the 17th century.Van den Acker has been in the car industry for many years, moving around from Bugatti to Audi, Ford and Mazda and now appears happily settled with Renault. He has given the Captur quirky interesting lines and designs inside and out, led by a strong front shaped around the Renault diamond badge.The kick up in the window line at the rear works well in the way it joins the roof-mounted rear spoiler. Also appealing are the deeply sculpted lines of the lower part of the doors.The style lines of Captur’s body are further enhanced by being offered in a large palette of bright colours, many of them to provide a two-tone paint scheme.You can choose from different colours in the cabin as well, both on the major surfaces and the detailed trim on the dash and doors.Even better, the seat covers can be zipped off and replaced by new ones in different colours, or simply removed for easy cleaning.Captur has a multimedia system controlled through a 7-inch tablet-type screen accessing satnav, radio, phone and networking apps. Audio sounds good without being outstanding. USB, Bluetooth and Aux make connectivity easy.Renault Captur is powered by either a 0.9-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol engine producing 62kW, or a 1.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol with 88kW. The power number translates into 90 and 120 horsepower, hence the Captur models being labelled TCe 90 and TCe 120.The Captur TCe 90 comes only with a five-speed manual gearbox. All TCe 120 models drive through a six-speed double-clutch automatic.Our test car on this occasion was a Captur TCe 120. It came in a latte coloured lower body and deep black roof. The interior disappoints in being finished in various shades of grey, though the white stitching on the dark-grey seats does lift it a little, and there are some chromed highlights.Renault was the first car maker ever to achieve a five-star safety rating and Captur obviously continues this important tradition. It only requires six airbags to achieve this, avoiding the extra knee bags some makers are forced to include.Child safety utilises ISOFIX child seat anchorage at the two outboard rear seats.Seat comfort and support are good in the traditional French manner – those who live in that country certainly like to pamper themselves.The luggage area is tall and voluminous. The floor of the boot is reversible to give you either conventional carpet or a wash-down surface for carrying wet items. The boot floor can be set to give maximum height or can be raised by about 150mm to provide a hidden area underneath it.A particularly useful feature is that the boot floor can be set at a forty-five degree angle that gives support to grocery bags which insist on falling over and spreading their contents far and wide.Around town the Captur is quiet, comfortable and pleasant to ride in. On motorways it shifts along in a relaxed easygoing manner. However, it doesn’t like Australian country roads that are badly in need of repairs and moves about more on its suspension than we like.Handling is safe and competent, but nothing to get excited about; that’s the job of Captur’s little brother Clio which comes in both standard and exciting sports models.Engine performance from the four-cylinder turbo-petrol unit is good and generally gets the car moving promptly. The six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is mostly in the right gear for the conditions and works well with the characteristics of the turbo engine. It’s not as slow to react off the line as some other dual-clutch units, but can be mildly irritating at times.Low fuel consumption is impressive and more than compensates for the moderate performance. We typically used fuel in the low to mid fives in easy paced country and motorway running. In suburban driving we seldom saw more than seven litres per hundred kilometres.

Audi Q7 was designed back in the days when car makers were under the impression that buyers wanted an SUV to traverse difficult country. In fact, the great majority were just looking for a practical station wagon in which to transport their families. So the original Audi Q7, launched here in September 2006, was

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the NP300 Nissan Navara single cab chassis, king cab pickup and dual cab chassis variants with specs, fuel consumption and verdict at their Australian launch.

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the Holden Insignia VXR with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Suzuki Swift was a big seller in Australia in the 1980s and '90s. Many were rebadged as Holdens and carried Barina badges. For some strange reason imports were stopped in 2000.Thankfully an all-new Swift was imported downunder beginning in February 2005 and is the subject of this week's used-car report.The chunky lines of the body pleased many and the new Swift was a hit from day one. Note that there are no Holden versions of these later models.The Suzuki Swift is a tough little machine that's well know for reliability and long life and has long been popular on the Australian used-car scene.They hold there value well and dealers complain they often can't get their hands on enough of them.Swift has a better sorted suspension and steering than most cars in its class and is appreciated by keen drivers.Good throttle response from the engines is another fun factor. Swift has good interior space for a car in this class.Obviously there isn't space for large adults, but the little Suzuki lets you juggle the seats to get the best from the interior space. The front seats have a good spread of fore-and-aft adjustment and the driver's seat can be raised and lowered.Boot space is good for a car of this size, though small in absolute terms. There's the usual option of folding down the seat back in various configurations to make it a better luggage carrier.A major model change in June 2011 retained the same cheeky look as the 2005 model, but is a little larger, with more space in the back seat.Power comes from a twin-cam, multi-valve engine, with a capacity of 1.5 litres in most of the original Swifts. The engine size on these standard cars was reduced to 1.4 litres in the 2011 Swift, but the new design of engine provides similar performance, uses less petrol and creates fewer emissions than the old 1.5.Unlike many so-called 'sports' models, the Suzuki Swift Sport has better engine and suspension performance than the standard Swifts. It has a larger engine, at 1.6 litres, to back up its firmer suspension, sporty body kit and enhanced interior. The Sport isn't what you would term a hot hatch but it gives you plenty of driving pleasure at a very modest price.Many Swifts in Australia have a five-speed manual gearbox, there's also the option of a four-speed automatic transmission. The auto doesn't take too much away from the performance of this relatively light car. The Swift Sport came only as a manual, a five-speed, until it was discontinued in 2011.There were no imports of the Swift Sport from June 2011 until February 2012 when the new series was introduced with a six-speed manual transmission and the option of a CVT, the latter has seven preset ratios so drivers can make their own choices.Though this is a small car there's quite good under-bonnet space so you can do your own basic servicing without knocking off too much skin.Buy a workshop manual before opening that bonnet, though. Leave anything that could affect safety to the professional mechanics.There are a reasonable number of Suzuki dealers in Australia, though they tend to be concentrated in the metropolitan and major country cities.We have heard of no real problems with spare parts supply and the prices aren't too bad for a fully imported car.Insurance costs are towards the lower end of the scale and we don't know of any companies that charge significantly more for the Sport versions.Be wary of a Swift that has been modified in the body and mechanicals as these may indicate it has had a hammering by a look-at-me driver. Big, noisy exhausts are a prime candidate for caution.Look for body damage and/or signs of it having been repaired.Check that the engine starts within a second of you turning the key, even if it's completely cold in the morning.If the engine hesitates on acceleration or during hard cornering there may be some water in the fuel rails causing a misfire.Fuel filler hoses and clamps were the subject of recalls in March and May 2012. Give a Suzuki dealer a call with the Swift's VIN and they can advise if it has been modified.Manual gear changes should be light, easy and quiet. If not there may be gearbox troubles, or it may be the clutch needs adjusting.Make sure the sound system work correctly. If there's no life from it there's a good chance it has been stolen in the past and the PIN security system has shut it down.

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the Mini John Cooper Works with specs, fuel consumption and verdict

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2015 Ferrari California T with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the Lexus RC 350 Luxury with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the 2015 All-new Toyota HiLux with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.