Articles by Ewan Kennedy

Toyota’s all-new Camry and Camry Hybrid are both selling well thanks to being more stylish than the previous models.

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class was introduced in 1997 as clever city car that was shorter than any other production car on the road.Thus giving it an advantage in the ongoing parking battle that’s an unpleasant part of living in large European cities. It sold in huge numbers in Europe, over two million in total, but was only a moderate success in Australia.That’s likely to change as soon as the new model hits our shores because Mercedes has completely changed direction. This Mercedes will sell on style alone. Just look at the bold front that carries more than passing styling cues to the high-performance SLS Gullwing and Roadster.VALUEPricing is yet to be finalised for Australia but it’s known Mercedes is keen to compete in the top end of the affordable small-car market. We anticipate the local importer to sharpen its pencil and begin its price list in the mid thirty thousands.The A-Class is almost an iPhone on wheels with the way it lets you communicate and/or entertain its occupants. Expect the features to become available on the bigger Benz models soon, but the A-Class has them first. The connectivity designers have opted to pair the car with Apple’s iPhone initially, but Android units will soon be able to join the game.DESIGNThis Mercedes will sell on style alone. Just look at the bold front that carries more than passing styling cues to the high-performance SLS Gullwing and Roadster. Then admire the way the style lines on the doors swoop up boldly to create a look-at-me statement.There’s nothing shy and retiring about this new Mercedes-Benz, it will appeal to the young and the young at heart in a big way. Indeed, may we suggest that if you’re interested in buying one a quick call to your local Mercedes dealer is in order. We can see a waiting list building rapidly.TECHNOLOGYYet the new Mercedes A-Class isn’t just about style. Under that shapely skin it has the features you just don’t see in this class. Because in luxury, connectivity and safety it’s as well equipped as its big brothers.Power for the standard models in the new A-Class comes from a variety of petrol and diesel engines. It will be sold in Mercedes’ usual Urban, Sport and Luxury versions. A number of further items can be added to customise the car to your taste.SAFETYGiven that some silly drivers will allow themselves to become distracted by the in-car communications systems, some are disabled when the car is moving. It has also fitted with a suite of crash avoidance items as in the more expensive Mercs. Lane departure, blind-spot and tailgating warnings are all offered on the new A-Class. Should everything still go wrong the A-Class has occupant protection systems to minimise harm to those inside.DRIVINGBut enough about the all-new Mercedes A-Class as a platform for the latest in electronic communication, what’s it like as a car?In a word, excellent. You are given the choice of multiple driving modes ranging from sedate to sporting. This isn’t really intended to be a sports hatch, but if a keen driver turns on all the correct settings it gives them plenty of driving pleasure.We were able to experience A-Class in Slovenia as part of the international launch program. Driving it on some of the most scenic mountain roads we have every experienced.New Mercedes A-Class has a nicely balanced feel and almost gives the dynamics of a rear-wheel-drive car. Throttle control is easy and the steering feedback through the electro-mechanical system is excellent. Yet, even with the sports setting turned on the car didn’t lose a lot in comfort.Unusually, we were permitted to try an upcoming sporting version of the A-Class with AMG modifications during the latter stages of its development. The engineering staff were working on the final details of the engine and double-clutch DCT transmission tune for the A25 Sport and demonstrated their work to us as well as allowing us brief test drives.This testing was done in interesting circumstances - in pouring rain on an airport runway closed for the occasion. It was heaven for keen revheads like us; slippery surfaces and nothing to hit if we did get things wrong...Further down the road an extra-hot A45 AMG will be introduced. The ‘45’ doesn’t stand for the engine size (pity!) but rather to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the founding of AMG. 

Importantly Wildtrak comes with a suite of comfort and safety technologies including rear view camera system with rear view mirror display, satellite navigation and Bluetooth5 with voice control.PRICE AND ENGINESFord Ranger Wildtrak is priced from $57,390 with the automatic transmission adding $2000 to the bottom line. The manual version packs a 3.2-litre five-cylinder diesel engine with a power out of 147kW and 470Nm of torque, providing a fuel consumption of 9.4l / 100km. The automatic sibling offers the same drivetrain with a fuel consumption level of 9.6l / 100km.DESIGNAs its name suggests Wildtrak's appearance takes a walk on the wild side. To emphasize this there's a new colour – chilli orange – that joins black mica, white grey and silver.The chilli orange and black mica vehicles have a unique colour split on the front with designers masking out the feature line on the fascia and contrasting it by highlighting the lower intake. Similar accents are used on the side mirrors, door handles and side air vents to add to the sporty appearance.Wildtrak also comes with 18-inch alloy wheels, roof rack and aerodynamic sports bar as well as its own badging and graphics, a move Ford says is to move the vehicle's appearance away from other lifestyle vehicles – Nissan's Navara is the primary rival.Wildtrak's interior matches the racy exterior. There's a hydrographic finish on the centre console around the audio system and seat trim is a combination of leather and woven cloth with ventilated sections. Ford states this was inspired by modern sportswear. There is contrast stitching and a strip on the seat upper and bolster in 'Wildtrak' orange.BODIESThe range-topping Wildtrak variant comes in three different cab body styles, 4x2 or 4x4 drive trains, two ride heights and up to three series choices to suit all budgets and markets. Ford Ranger is a big vehicle by even Australian dual-cab standards. The Ranger has styling cues that immediately link it to its US cousin, the larger F-Series Ford trucks.SAFETYLike all dual cab Rangers, Wildtrak has a 5-star ANCAP safety rating and boasts the latest advanced technologies including dynamic stability control, ABS brakes, hill launch assist, trailer sway control, load adaptive control, emergency brake assist, roll over mitigation and emergency brake light. 

...by introducing the sleek CLS four-door coupe.People said a coupe shouldn't have four doors and that the CLS wouldn't work.Tens of thousands of sales later Mercedes has not only proven the doubters were wrong, but must be quietly chuckling at how many other car marques have since introduced their own four-door coupes.Cheekily, Mercedes has taken the matter another stage with what it calls a coupe-estate, an ultra stylish five-door CLS station wagon. Not only has the once staid German maker stunned the world with its estate-coupe it has also pulled a name out of history - shooting brake.Shooting brake is a body type once associated with upmarket British station wagons – Rolls-Royce built one over a hundred years ago – and is named for the horse-drawn wagons used to carry shooting parties to country areas to enjoy the sport of hunting.We first admired the Mercedes CLS wagon at the 2010 New York Motor Show and now we have attended its world debut at a major function at the famed Brooklands racing oval in England. A perfect spot for a vehicle that’s breaking new ground with its sleek-but-sensible format.While the styling is all about the rear end of the CLS Shooting Brake we first of all examined the sporting front end and loved the mildly aggressive grille and headlight shapes.At the rear the roof slopes down in a manner resembling the CLS four-door coupe and the rearward extension has been beautifully shaped to show this is not your mundane everyday load hauler. We particularly like the way the side windows slope down to a point at the rear and love the shiny finish that surrounds them.Inside, the sporting coupe look works exceptionally well, with quality materials, easy to read dials and a feeling of ambiance that’s worked well for Mercedes for generations. At this stage no journalists have been able to drive the new Mercedes-Benz Shooting Brake, the global launch hosted by the company chairman Dr. Dieter Zetsche was purely a visual reveal.While the Shooting Brake’s shape is unashamedly sleek, we were surprised to find it doesn’t do too badly in the ‘sensible’ stakes as well. The rear seat has good headroom and legroom and we would have no problem sitting back there for a long interstate trip.As is often the way these days, the rear area is set up for two individuals; there’s also a somewhat cramped centre seat so five can be carried for short and not particularly comfortable trips. Luggage space is surprisingly good as well, the extravagantly long tail of the Shooting Brake means substantially long objects can be transported. However, large boxy items are restricted by the slope of the roof.In a lovely touch harking back to the days of the horse drawn shooting brakes and the old motor wagons, the Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake has a timber lined floor compete with shiny cross bracing. It looks stunning, but it would be best not to sit anything on top of the timber that could potentially damage it.The Mercedes CLS in four-door coupe format has already impressed Australian buyers. This fascinating new wagon variant seems likely to draw even more buyers into the Benz fold when it arrives in Australia in September.Prices and models are yet to be confirmed. The only definite information we have at this stage is that the high-performance CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake is coming. Australian buyers just love the AMG variants in all Mercedes models and are amongst the top buyers, sometimes the top buyers, of these stunning machines.We speculate that the CLS 500 will also be on the list together with several affordable models with petrol and diesel power. Anticipate the Shooting Brakes to be priced about $3000 to $5000 above the equivalent four-door coupes.Stay tuned and we will bring full details and local drives of the stunning new CLS Shooting Brake from Mercedes as soon as they hit the docks downunder. 

Car companies are all doing their best to make cars more fuel efficient, at the same time listening to drivers’ insistence that they don’t want to compromise on performance. One way of doing so is to provide cars that run on LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas). We have just spent a week in Holden's 3.6-litre LPG Sportwagon.Ford Australia has been very strong in the LPG market for years, chiefly due to Falcon’s popularity with taxi fleets, and totally updated its LPG system last year. Holden has now introduced an all-new system for the Commodore in an attempt to catch up with its arch rival.At the time of writing the cost of LPG at our base on the Gold Coast was 65.6 cents a litre, compared to 91 octane unleaded petrol at $1.359 and diesel at $1.429. In our week of mainly highway travel we chalked up 543 kilometres using 67.8 litres of LPG. On the above pricing the cost of refuelling the big Holden wagon was $44.73.Although Holden has measured a combined fuel consumption of 11.8 litres/100 km from the LPG dedicated Sportwagon with all our highway running we used around 9.0 litres/100 km. However, around town the consumption leapt and we were often in the 12 to 14 litre range.Basing calculations on Holden’s combined fuel consumption figure of 11.8 litres/100 km and travelling 20,000 km a year the LPG Sportwagon would cost $1118 a year to refuel. By comparison the 3.0-litre ULP Sportwagon would set you back about $3000.There's an added cost of $2500 to buy the LPG dedicated wagon. The LPG wagon costs $44,490 while the petrol Omega has a recommended retail price of $41,990. The good news for private buyers is that the federal government offers a $2000 rebate as part of its clean energy policy. If you’re entitled to that the LPG Sportwagon starts to make a lot of financial sense.Previously Holden offered a dual-fuel LPG/petrol model. This new Commodore runs only on LPG so there are far fewer compromises than were necessary in the engine designed to run on two different fuels.The 3.6-litre Holden LPG V6 uses fuel injectors, fuel rail and LPG fuel filter. It has different spark advance and hardened valves and valve seats. The cylinder heads and manifold are different to those on the petrol V6. The LPG runs a very high compression ratio of 12.2:1. The bottom line is 180 kW of power and 320 Nm of torque, both figures are slightly better than those of the dual-fuel model.The new system uses vapour rather than liquid injection with the liquid gas vaporised before induction into the engine. This is quite different to the Ford Falcon LPG, which uses an injection system that sprays liquid gas into the engine.The engine is now linked to a six-speed automatic, replacing the old four-speed. This helps reduce fuel consumption.A cylinder of LPG will not get you as far as a tank of petrol so Holden fitted an 84-litre cylinder that gives a theoretical range of up to 700 kilometres in easy paced country driving. The LPG cylinder is made of high strength, multi-celled, aircraft grade extruded aluminium with additional protection plates strategically placed for extra safety.A big downside of using a pressure gas cylinder is its awkward size and shape that takes up boot space. The Sportwagon we borrowed had a full size spare that ate somewhat into the boot space. It was placed upright against the driver’s side of the car. There are other options including a tyre inflation kit that takes up no boot space, and a space saver wheel. Cargo space is 895 litres with seats up and 2000 litres with seats folded.

Ewan Kennedy reviews the 2002, 2005, 2008 and 2011 Hyundai Getz as a used buy.

The Mahindra XUV500 is a pivotal vehicle for the Indian marque, Mahindra. Until late 2011 the company says it made cars and tractors for the domestic Indian market and exported them to other countries.But now it proudly says the XUV500 has been made for global markets, but will also be sold in India. Mahindra has been assembling tractors in its Brisbane facility since 2005. In 2007 it started importing the Pik-Up, a diesel-powered ute aimed at the rural market and tradies.At present Mahindra has 25 dealerships with a goal of increasing this to 50 by the end of 2012. It is at present in talks with potential franchisees in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne and is already represented by tractor/Pik-Up dealers in rural areas of the eastern states.Drive away pricing starts at $26,990 for the 2WD and $32,990 for the AWD. The vehicles are highly specified in terms of equipment usually found on the options list with other makers.Some of the standard goodies include automatic temperature control over the three seating zones, high-tech media, satellite navigation screen, tyre pressure monitoring, smart rain and light sensors, reverse park assist, power charging points in all three seating rows, remote keyless entry, leather seats and concealed lounge lighting. Mahindra comes with a three-year, 100,000km warranty.Two variants are available, a 2WD and AWD. Both have a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine made in-house by Mahindra, that’s linked to a six-speed manual transmission. At this stage only the manual transmission is available and the XUV500. The 2.2-litre turbo-diesel develops 103 kW of power at 3750 rpm and 330 Nm of torque between 1600 and 2800 rpm.Despite all its active and passive safety equipment it rates only a four-star ANCAP safety rating, the loss of the coveted fifth star being the result of vehicle deformation issues in a severe head-on impact."These are our two important issues which we will be addressing as a matter of importance," said Makesh Kaskar, Mahindra's business manager in Australia. “An automatic transmission is 18 months to two years away while engineers hope to elevate the XUV500 to a five-star rating.”The safety suite is impressive: six airbags, stability control, ABS brakes, EBD, rollover mitigation, hill hold, hill descent control and disc brakes. A reversing camera is an option as are tow bar and bull bar. While the bling and goodies are impressive, it's not all rosy.The exterior design of the XUV500 will not be to everyone's taste, particularly the rear where a non-functional wheel arch impedes on window space.The marketing gurus at Mahindra tell us the XUV500's design was inspired by a cheetah in the about-to-pounce position. The grille represents the animal’s fangs, the bulging wheel arches the shoulders and hips and the doorhandles the cheetah's paws.The interior fit and finish leaves room for improvement with variable gaps where the doors meet the dashboard and on the dash itself. Like the exterior the interior could be polarising. It's as if the designers have tried everything to make the interior look luxurious with contrasting plastics and different coloured leathers. It's a busy place.The centre stack waterfalls all the way from the windscreen down to the gear shift in shiny imitation woodgrain that is highly reflective creating glare and a driver distraction. We also heard rattles while driving over uneven road surfaces.The third row of seats easily fold almost flat, as do the second row, creating a large cargo space. The second row are a 60/40 split and the third row is really suitable for kids, but at a pinch could take a couple of grownups on short trips.A full size matching alloy spare wheel is housed under the boot area and uses a typical 4WD wind-down system. The driving position is similar to that of a genuine 4WD - high, upright and giving a commanding view over the bonnet. The front seats are comfortable with manual height adjustment and lumbar support.The steering wheel has height adjustment. The instrument binnacle is almost retro in appearance, enhanced by chrome circles around the dials. We found the engine's torque smoothly usable from low revs, where it matters, in second, third and four gears. Fifth and sixth are fairly tall highway fuel-savers. At 100 km/h the XUV500 cruises in sixth gear at a lazy 2000 rpm.The suspension is on the soft side and won’t endear itself to anyone who enjoys driving. Mahindra's AWD system automatically transfers torque between the front and rear wheels at a variable rate depending on traction needs. There's a lock button that manually engages AWD. There is no low range transfer box. There were no 2WD XUV500's for us to test at the media launch.

Some vehicle mid-life facelifts are just that – a nip here, a tuck there and the model is freshened up for another two to three years. Not so with their-invented Lexus RX line which is more like a new model than a facelift, and it shows where it matters most - drivability.The mid-life upgrade has made significant improvement to the wagon's steering and handling as well as re-engineering to improve the popular SUV's chassis flex. There are also new F Sport variants available on the RX 350 and RX 450h models.Lexus also took the opportunity to launch an all-new RX to the Australian market - a 2WD, four-cylinder model badged RX 270 aimed at urban dwellers and families, hitting showroom floors at $69,990 complete with a bag full of fruit usually found in the options brochure.The RX line now has a stable of seven variants and puts Lexus in a good space to capitalise on the booming medium size SUV segment. Luxury SUVs now outsell luxury sedans and in 2012 to date medium size SUV sales are up a staggering 50 per cent compared to 2011.It may be the entry level model but the RX 270 comes well equipped including satellite navigation with traffic alert, reversing camera with guide assist, power tailgate, eight-way power seats, leather accented interior, smart entry and smart start, 12 speaker audio, Bluetooth with audio streaming, and voice command, daytime running lamps, 18-inch alloys, and metallic paint.The 2.7-litre engine produces 138 kW of power at 5800 rpm and 252 Nm of torque at 4200 rpm, and is no slouch. Under the skin Lexus has vastly improved the RX chassis. Twelve extra welding spots under the dash have vastly improved the stability and steering.In addition the F-Sport also gained extra bracing across the firewall, at the lower end of the front struts as well as across the rear bulkhead. These may sound insignificant, but have had a profound impact on the RX's handling and steering.The RX range gets an updated second-generation edition of the Lexus Remote Touch system – think of it as a mouse – which Lexus says it easier to access and use on-board media communications. Digital Audio - the coming technology mostly found in luxury vehicles - is also being offered across the range and widens the choice of stations as well improving sound clarity.The most significant exterior change is to the face – the first place buyers look – where the RX adopts the new corporate look that first appeared in the April 2012 release of the new GS models. The hallmark Lexus 'spindle' grille now graces the RX line with chrome surrounds and highlighted by new headlamps.The LED lights in arrowhead shape are quite striking and add aggression to the conservative design. It's a busy front end that may polarize opinions. As with other Lexus models the RX now gets an F Sport model that replaces the existing Prestige and Sport models.It has individual exterior styling including chrome 19 inch alloy wheels, F Sport badging and unique mesh grille inserts and is clearly aimed at a younger market. F Sport variants also feature black and grey leather-accented interior, alloy pedals and to push home the theme, F Sport-badged steering wheel.Safety equipment includes Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management (VDIM), stability control and, like the rest of the RX range, ten airbags.We were able to drive the RX 350 F Sport and the new RX 270 on winding roads, highways and some of Canberra's urban environment. Firstly, the F-Sport. It was not until we hit the tight bends that the realisation of just how much better the RX has become.The improved rigidity has ironed out a steering that was uncomfortable over undulating roads. It now feels solid and does not have the heavy feel of the older model. On the tight corners the RX 350 F Sport felt like it was on rails. We would compare this vehicle to any European SUV in this respect - something we would not have considered in the past from Lexus. The NVH (noise vibration harshness) is practically nonexistent. There is little outside noise intrusion into the cabin even at speed or under hard acceleration. If we had a compliant it is perhaps the front seats that need improved bolstering to cope with the F Sport's considerable handling ability.The RX 270 is a surprise package. It is as well balanced as the AWD RX models, but has a slightly firmer suspension. When pushed on uneven surfaces it also lacks the composure of the RX 350 and RX 450h hybrid.

A truly global vehicle, the new Honda Civic is manufactured in Britain and was developed with extensive testing throughout Europe.Civic VTi-S is available with either a six-speed manual or five-speed automatic transmission, while the VTi-L is auto only.Prices start at a very reasonable $22,650 for the VTi-S manual and peak at $29,950 for the VTi-L. On-road costs have to be factored in.To start the ball rolling on sales of the new model Honda is offering the VTi-S at drive-away prices of $24,990 and $27,290 respectively. They are on sale now.Honda is placing much store on its new Civic Hatch and predicts sales of both models will be split down the middle 50:50. The company says it is also looking forward to adding a further buyer inducement with the stable being joined by a 1.6-litre diesel version next year.The standard audio has USB connectivity, iPod integration, auxiliary jack and speed-sensitive volume control. Bluetooth, fitted on VTi-L only, can be had on VTi-S at extra cost. The VT-L carries a premium sound system with seven speakers including tweeters and sub-woofer. Hill start assist is standard across the range. Cruise control with variable speed limiter is available on VTi-L only.The new Hatch comes in two models – the VTi-S and VTi-L – both powered by an upgraded 1.8-litre four-cylinder i-VTEC engine producing 104 kW of power at 6500 rpm and 174 Nm of torque at 4300 rpm.Civic VTi-S is available with either a six-speed manual or five-speed automatic transmission, while the VTi-L is auto only. Prices start at a very reasonable $22,650 for the VTi-S manual and peak at $29,950 for the VTi-L. On-road costs have to be factored in.Improved aerodynamics, together with Honda’s fuel efficient technology, have the new Civic Hatch coming up with consumption figures of 6.1 litres per 100 kilometres for the manual transmission and 6.5 L/100 km for the automatic on the Australian combined driving cycle. Carbon dioxide emissions are put at 146 g per kilometre (manual) and 155 g / km (automatic) on 95 RON petrol. Emissions standard is Euro IV.Fuel efficient technology featured on the Civic hatch is called ECO Assist using the car’s speedometer illumination – blue (bad) or green (good) – to tell drivers how their driving is affecting fuel economy.A green dash-mounted Econ switch activates the most economical and environmentally friendly settings for the car by selecting the best throttle position for accelerator pedal pressure to smoothly increase torque. Eco Assist also improves the efficiency of the air-conditioning system, again saving fuel.Honda research found drivers liked the styling of the previous model, with its futuristic looks and practicality but baulked at the car’s limited rear vision and felt that the rear design could look more sophisticated.The car’s spacious and user-friendly cockpit design was well liked, with the clever ‘magic seat’ system in the rear offering added cargo room receiving much positive comment. Users, however, were not too happy with the quality of materials used.As a result of this feedback, the new Civic Hatch has a sporty sleek exterior with a cabin cleverly packaged to offer versatile occupant and cargo space together with comfortable and stress-free driving conditions.The designers took their lead from the ‘blended body’ aircraft in which fuselage and wings fuse into a single unit for superior aerodynamic performance and quietness.The result is a lower and wider Civic Hatch front and profile, with smooth surfaces combining with the sculpted wheel arches and concealed rear door handles, tailgate treatment and flat underbody to produce improved aerodynamics (Cd 0.30).A new functional cockpit layout includes a full-colour Intelligent Multi-Information Display screen incorporating the Eco driving facility, audio display and other information.Soft-touch surface materials are used throughout for an improved quality feel, a new tilt and telescopic steering wheel has easy-to-operate controls, while the VTi-L wheel is finished in extra-smooth leather with more comfortable stitching.A low extra rear window gives a better view from the driver’s seat and there’s improved crosswind stability.The new Civic hatch has already gained a five-star ANCAP safety rating. LED day-time running lights (switched off when headlights are on) and LED brake/tail lights ensure the vehicle is highly visible to other road users at all times.On a run organised by Honda through Sydney’s southern suburbs and on a mix of country and highway driving the new Civic Hatch performed up to Honda expectations.The six-speed manual shifted gears with little effort, making for comfortable and relaxed going. Steering was direct and well weighted, offering good road feedback, while the ride was supple yet responsive to changing driving conditions.There was no getting away from differences in performance in Econ mode with the need to change down a gear or two more often to cope with inclines or overtaking. The automatic transmission was sufficiently sorted to take similar conditions in its stride.

Toyota’s all-new Camry and Camry Hybrid are both selling well thanks to being more stylish than the previous models. Now there’s another choice in the range.VALUEToyota Aurion is well priced from $36,490 to compete with the equivalent models from Ford and Holden and we anticipate a keen battle for sales between the three big boys. Jump in and grab the best deal you can squeeze out of them.Toyota also provides five routine services at a fixed price of $130 each for the first four years or 75,000 kilometres, something that’s certainly worth factoring into your buying calculations. Aurion is USB and iPod ready, has Bluetooth and audio streaming with the Sportivo ZR6 we tested having premium digital radios.TECHNOLOGYIf you like the thought of owning a Camry but would love to have the grunt of a 3.5-litre V6 under the bonnet then the latest Aurion should figure high on your short list. It’s a brilliant twin-cam engine, with 200 kW of silky smoothness that puts the sixes of Ford and Holden to shame in the refinement stakes.Official fuel consumption has been improved to 9.3 litres per hundred kilometres from the 9.9 litres of the superseded Aurion thanks to clever work on the engine, transmission and body.SAFETYWith the addition of a driver's knee airbag there are now seven airbags for peace of mind. Aurion had achieved a five-star ANCAP safety rating. All-new Aurion has dropped 55 kilograms of weight when compared to its immediate predecessor thanks to the use of high-tensile steel, figuring in the crash safety stakes.DESIGNThe Aurion now has a 60/40 split rear seat that increases the handiness of the already large 515-litre boot. Buttons in the boot release the seats which can then be pushed down almost flat. The boot also houses a full-size matching alloy spare wheel.There are five Aurion model variants: luxury Presara and Prodigy, sporty Sportivo SX6 and ZR6 and entry-level AT-X. Presara and Prodigy have a chrome grille with horizontal bars as well as chrome adorning the boot. The Sportivo models get a slightly smaller grille done in a sporting egg crate style that’s finished in black.There are also differences inside the cabin: stitched leather seats and upholstery and woodgrain finishes adorn the Presara and Prodigy, while the Sportivo gets contrasting colour sports seats with added lateral support for firmer cornering.Aurion's external dimensions have grown a fraction in width and length and there's now more rear seat knee and leg room. The back seat is not quite limousine size, but passengers will not complain about legroom. The interior feels lighter, brighter and larger with Toyota’s relatively narrow A and B pillars. The latter not only give the car a more spacious feel but also add to its safety.DRIVINGTypically we found ‘our’ Toyota Aurion using seven to eight litres per hundred kilometres during motorway and country running. It was unusual for the consumption to go much over 10 litres per hundred even in heavy traffic. Aurion has a six-speed automatic transmission with the Sportivo we tested having paddle shifters on the steering wheel. Toyota conducted extensive testing in Australia and the suspension has been tuned to local conditions. We found the ride and handling to be comfortable with little body roll and just a hint of safe understeer on sharp corners at enthusiastic speeds. The car points well with a new, stiffer suspension and more rigid body. There's also a new electric power steering unit similar to that in the Lexus RX series. Noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) have been improved through a large number of design improvements. Aurion has what is essentially a double glazed windscreen. Wind flow under the bonnet and the front mudguards has been deflected to reduce noise and new sound-deadening carpets have been added. Double seals have been added to the door glass. The result is a cabin that is whisper quiet even on some of the harsh road surfaces.VERDICTThough Toyota Australia likes to market this car as the ‘Aurion’ it’s simply a Camry with a V6 engine and slightly different model variants.