Articles by Jake Williams

Alfa Romeo Australia has revealed local pricing and specifications for the 2019 Alfa Romeo Giulia range, which is on sale now.

Volkswagen Australia has announced local pricing and specifications for its new Caddy Beach campervan, which starts from $46,990 drive-away.

Mitsubishi has revealed yet another facelift for its ASX small SUV, which is due in Australia around August of this year.Sporting a drastic styling update and a new multimedia system, the changes should be enough to see the car retain its crown as the best selling small SUV in the country. But while the exterior and interior have been updated, the ASX's drivetrain remains the same, with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine expected to continue as the only available drivetrain option.  Updated with the brand's 'Dynamic Shield' styling theme, the facelifted ASX has received a pretty substantial design upgrade for the 2020 model year.Looking much sharper and more aggressive, the ASX finally has LED headlights with a split headlight arrangement - the low- and high-beam lighting sits up top, and the indicators and front fog lights remain below. The grille is tougher, and gives the ASX a more off-road focused look than many competitors.New alloy wheel designs also feature, along with a new side grille, plus LED tail-lights and a revised rear bumper.The interior hasn't received as many changes as the exterior, though there's a new 8.0-inch media system with in-built satellite navigation, as well as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring and a new feature that allows you to watch videos from USB inputs (when stopped). Available drivetrains for the 2020 Mitsubishi ASX appear to be unchanged, with the same 110kW/197Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine expected to continue as the sole drivetrain option, with a five-speed manual or CVT auto and front-wheel drive.As for fuel consumption, Mitsubishi claims 7.6L/100km on a combined cycle for the current model, a figure expected to remain with this update. These changes should see the Mitsubishi ASX remain as Australia's number one selling small SUV, ahead of the Mazda CX-3, Subaru XV and Nissan Qashqai.In 2018, even though the ASX's sales were down 1.9 percent on 2017, the brand sold 19,043 units for 15.5 percent market share in the small SUV segment.

Mini has teased the third generation of the John Cooper Works GP, which is due to be fully revealed later in the year.Confirmed to feature the same 220kW 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine as the BMW X2 M35i, the GP will be the fastest and most powerful Mini ever produced and will closely follow the design direction of the 2017 GP Concept.With only 3000 units set to be produced, the John Cooper Works GP will follow the same formula as the previous editions of the GP badge with an intense diet removing the rear seats and sound deadening, a mechanical limited-slip differential, a more powerful engine and significant suspension and chassis updates to turn the standard John Cooper Works into a track weapon. Mini is yet to fully reveal the car, but has released three teaser images giving clues its styling direction.Large four-spoke wheels continue from the previous GP models, as does the huge rear wing that's said to aid aerodynamics.Finally, the large dual exhaust tips are likely to emit a juicier note than the already-fruity Cooper S JCW and the company is reportedly targeting a sub-eight minute lap time around the Nurburgring in Germany, which would cement the car as a serious rival to the Honda Civic Type R, Renault Megane R.S. and Volkswagen Golf R.“The fastest Mini in our brand history – which now goes back 60 years – is an expression of pure racing passion,” says Thomas Giuliani, Mini's vice president product and launch management. “We are well aware of the enormous fascination exercised by the Mini John Cooper Works GP, not just from the euphoric reactions to the concept vehicle but also from past experience: after all, every one of its predecessors was completely sold out even before the official market launch.”Originally launched in 2006 (first-generation) and 2012 (second-gen), Mini's GP editions celebrated the life cycle of their respective models right before the next generation cars arrived. Both featured extreme weight loss compared with the variants they were based on, and featured more power than the standard models as well.

Subaru has chosen the 2019 Chicago Auto Show to unveil the seventh-generation Subaru Liberty, which is now based on the same SGA (Subaru Global Architecture) platform as the new Forester, Impreza and XV. Yet surprisingly, it’s not yet confirmed for Australia.