Articles by Jack Quick

Toyota has published some imagery of the concepts it plans to reveal at this year’s Tokyo Motor Show.

Sales slide for once popular brands: Mainstream Japanese brands Nissan, Mazda and Suzuki dip in popularity as demand for Chinese brands like BYD, Chery & GWM skyrockets.

The new-generation Toyota HiLux is one of the most anticipated vehicle launches in the past 12 months or so and the drip feed of new information continues to flow ahead of its expected reveal at this year’s Thailand motor show.

Tesla may soon lose its best-selling EV crown to BYD.

At its latest Capital Markets Day, Ferrari revealed the production-ready chassis of its first electric vehicle (EV) along with many key details.Dubbed the Ferrari Elettrica for now, which is Italian for electric, this EV is set to be revealed in March-June 2026. Customer deliveries will commence in late 2026.Power will come from dual electric motors with a total system output of more than 736kW. Ferrari claims it will be able to do the 0-100km/h sprint in 2.5 seconds and have a top speed of 310km/h.These electric motors are fed by a massive in-house-developed 122kWh battery pack, which allows for a claimed range of more than 530km, according to an undisclosed testing protocol.This battery pack operates on an 880V electric architecture which allows for a peak DC charging rate of 350kW.It’s also integrated into the floorplan, allowing for the centre of gravity to be lowered 80mm over an equivalent internal-combustion model.We’re still yet to see what this Ferrari EV will actually look like yet with its bodywork.Overall vehicle weight is claimed to be around 2300kg with a weight distribution of 47 per cent front and 53 per cent rear.Not all the exterior dimensions have been confirmed yet but it has a 2960mm wheelbase with an “extremely short” wheelbase. It’s claimed this is inspired by mid-/rear-engine berlinetta models.There’s a separate rear subframe, which is a first for Ferrari. It’s claimed to reduce noise and vibration in the cabin, while maintaining stiffness and driving dynamics.This EV is set to have a 48V active suspension set-up which it shares with the Purosangue and F80. It automatically controls the car’s pitch and roll when accelerating, braking and cornering.There will be three different tyre choices which all have low rolling resistance but no sacrifice to handling. One for dry use, one for winter driving and one with run-flat technology.This Ferrari EV will be able to make a noise inside the cabin but it won’t replicate the brand’s internal combustion engine sounds. In fact, it won’t be digitally generated at all.Instead, the noise will come from a high-precision sensor on the rear axle which picks up vibrations through the metal and then amplifies and projects it into the surroundings. It’s claimed to work in a similar way to an electric guitar.Ferrari is also including a noise cancellation system which is claimed to selectively cancel out “undesirable current harmonics” like high-pitched whines from the electric motor.At this stage it’s unclear what this Ferrari EV will look like with its complete bodywork for now, but previous spied prototypes have indicated it could look similar to the Purosangue as a somewhat lifted 2+2 grand tourer.Ferrari has confirmed it will unveil the interior in early 2026 and ahead of its full reveal in March-April.

JAC has confirmed four new versions of the T9 turbo-diesel dual-cab ute will be launching in Australia in November.

Safety chimes are slowly but surely becoming the norm, but few carmakers are looking to address them head on.Farizon is an electric commercial vehicle sub-brand from Chinese giant Geely, which also owns brands like Volvo, Polestar and Lotus, among others.It arrived in Australia earlier this year with the H9E electric light truck, as well as the SuperVan electric commercial van.As we noted in our review of the latter, there are a large number of chimes and sounds that play for a variety of different safety systems. These include the driver attention monitor and speed limit assist, among others.There’s even a chime for selecting drive and for changing what content is displayed in the digital instrument cluster.While we did note there are a lot of chimes, it was the noise and intensity that grated the most.However, Farizon is well aware of this and is set to roll out a software update “in the coming months” that addresses this concern.A spokesperson for Farizon’s local distributor, Jameel Motors, told CarsGuide the company is set to reduce the sound of all the safety chimes “by around 20db”.Additionally the company is working on some tweaks to the lane centring function and the reversing camera. It’s unclear whether this will be included as part of this latest software update.This software update isn’t available over-the-air as the SuperVan doesn’t have connected services. However, it will be applied to new vehicles as part of the pre-delivery inspection or existing examples at the next service.At this stage Farizon is still building up its presence in Australia. It currently only sells vehicles in Queensland via its website.The company is working on setting up a dealer network within the coming months, with a Jameel Motors spokesperson claiming the eastern seaboard will be prioritised.There are currently three variants in the local Farizon SuperVan line-up – the SWB Low Roof, LWB Low Roof and LWB High Roof.All variants are powered by a front-mounted electric motor capable of producing 170kW and 336Nm of torque. This is fed by an 83kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery sourced from CATL.Claimed range depends on the body configuration, but it’s up to 376km in the SWB Low Roof according to WLTP testing.Cargo volume depends on the variant, but the SWB Low Roof has 6.95 cubic meters, the LWB Loof Roof has 8.25 cubic meters, and the LWB High Roof has 11.22 cubic meters.Payload also depends on the configuration from 1170kg in the LWB High Roof to 1300kg in the SWB Low Roof.Braked towing capacity across the range is 2000kg and unbraked towing capacity is 750kg.

Hybrid technology is having its time in the sun as electric vehicle (EV) demand tapers off in certain markets.As reported by Automotive News, Nissan is in discussions with a number of carmakers to manufacture and supply a version of the X-Trail, known as the Rogue, for the North America market.These rebadged Nissan X-Trail’s will be powered by the company’s e-Power hybrid system which uses an electric motor to drive the wheels and a petrol engine as a generator to charge a small high-voltage battery.Ford and Stellantis are reportedly looking at partnering with Nissan for this rebadged X-Trail e-Power. With the latter company it’s expected to be for the Chrysler or Dodge brands.Nissan will reportedly manufacture these rebadged vehicles alongside the Rogue at its production facility in Smyrna, Tennessee.Nissan Vice President, Communications, US & Canada Brian Brockman told Automotive News its “exploring options” to localise vehicle and powertrain production to meet the growing hybrid demand in the US.“ remains open to dialogue that delivers strategic, complementary market opportunities to our core model development efforts,” said Brockman.“At this time, we have no agreements in place regarding production at our U.S. plants.”Neither Ford or Stellantis commented on the topic when asked by Automotive News.It’s reported the collaboration between these carmakers could also result in joint electric vehicle (EV) development.“It’s not a quid pro quo,” said a person to Automotive News, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, adding that a deal could happen even without an EV partnership.Ford could reportedly be looking to plug gaps in its line-up as it has delayed or canceled several EVs over the last year or so.The Bronco Sport and Maverick hybrid models made in Mexico are subject to tariffs in the US.With Stellantis, Jeep has the 4xe plug-in hybrid line-up, while Dodge and Chrysler don’t have many products as they’ve shifted focus to EVs.Nissan currently doesn’t offer any e-Power model in the US, however, it’ll introduce the third-generation version of the powertrain technology in the Rogue in late 2026.The third-generation e-Power hybrid technology is set to arrive in Australia in the first half of 2026 in the Qashqai small SUV. At this point the entire Qashqai line-up will become hybrid-only.Beyond Ford and Stellantis, Mitsubishi is reportedly also looking at introducing e-Power hybrid power to the related Outlander.Conversely, Nissan is also reportedly looking at adding a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of the Rogue, which is expected to borrow its powertrain from the related Outlander PHEV.

Alfa's new entry-level model draws from the MiTo and Giulietta lineage and injects trendy crossover SUV cues with Jeep and Peugeot DNA. It's just arrived on Australian soil so it's time to see how it holds up.

Alfa Romeo has finally launched the entry-level Junior crossover SUV in Australia and it’s only being offered in a single mild-hybrid and electric trim at launch.