Articles by James Cleary

Corporate mea culpas are an exceptionally rare phenomenon, but recently installed RAM CEO Tim Kuniskis has come up with one for the ages.

The Golf R swings with the heavy-hitters of the hot hatch world and Volkswagen has given it an '8.5' series boost in terms of performance, tech and spec. Are these upgrades enough to take it to the top of the compact hot rod class? CarsGuide attended its local launch to find out.

The Mercedes-Benz G-Class has been around since the dawn of time, but the new four-motor, pure-electric G580 has put a dramatically different powertrain under that familiar skin. It's a big departure but retains key attributes - good and not so good - this now iconic model is famous for. This is CarsGuide's Australian first drive review.

Mercedes-AMG knows its way around a high-performance sedan and the E53 Hybrid 4Matic+ is its latest, with an impressive plug-in hybrid powertrain delivering huge power without compromising refinement. We've taken a first drive on Australian soil to see if it has what it takes to challenge an icon like the BMW M3.

While its share price is off the mat courtesy of easing trade tensions between the US and China, demand for Tesla cars is still flat with the brand taking a backwards step in global sales in 2024 and an even bigger year-on-year drop in the first quarter of this year.

Subaru's mid-size Forester SUV has a devoted following in Australia but in recent years its been overtaken by the likes of Toyota's category smashing RAV4. Largely because the latter features a super-efficient 'plug-less' hybrid powertrain. Now a new, sixth-gen Forester has a serious hybrid option of its own. And we've had a preview drive before it arrives in showrooms mid-year.

According to the internet, Great Wall Motors Chairman Wei Jianjun is a bone fide petrolhead, with an ever-changing line-up of high-end marques from Ferrari to Rolls-Royce rolling through his collection, affectionately referred to as ‘the car museum’.

On the back of its global reveal in February this year Kia has launched its PV5 electric people mover and light-commercial van in the UK, with that market’s right-hand drive configuration enhancing the one-box newcomer’s chances of making an appearance locally.Offered in Passenger, Cargo, Crew and Chassis Cab versions, and built at Kia’s new Hwaseong EVO plant in South Korea, the PV5 is powered by either a 51.5kWh or 71.2kWh NCM battery, with an additional 43.3kWh LFP option for the Cargo.Drive is delivered by a single, front-mounted electric motor producing 120kW/250Nm with a (spec dependent) range of up to 400km and a 10-80 per cent fast charging time of 30 minutes.At just over 4.6m long, 1.9m wide and 1.9m tall, with a 2995mm wheelbase, the standard EV5 is shorter overall (-67mm), narrower (-85mm) and lower (-24mm) with less distance between the axles (6.0mm) than an equivalent version of VW’s ground-breaking ID. Buzz.The Passenger model features a flexible interior layout with its eight seats hugely variable thanks to a ‘fold-and-dive’ seating design while maintaining what Kia says is multiple storage spaces and generous luggage capacity.Cargo EV5s come in various flavours, including Standard, Long, and High-roof variants, with the latter available in a ‘Walk-Through’ version.According to Kia, the Cargo offers maximum load space of 5.1m³ and is capable of accommodating two Euro pallets with V2L capability included. A two-seat layout is standard with a three-seat arrangement optional.The Chassis Cab’s flat structure, with side collision protection for the battery, includes additional mounting brackets for drop-side, deck and box-body applications.And Kia will expand the PV5 Cargo range in 2026 with a L1/H1 or larger L2/H2 variant, as well as an in-factory wheelchair accessible conversion.UK pricing for the PV5 Cargo starts at £33,174, rising to £39,594 for the entry-level Passenger model (both including VAT), which equates to around $68,900 and $82,200, respectively.Add in local shipping, duty and distribution costs and those numbers would undoubtedly come closer to the ID.Buzz Cargo three-seater at $79,990 and ID. Buzz Pro five-seater at $87,990, both before on-road costs.When asked if the PV5’s UK launch pointed to a local launch for the electric van Kia Australia told CarsGuide, “Kia Australia is keen to receive as many new EV models as we can, including PV5. We have our hand up, but it hasn’t been confirmed for Australia yet.”

Ferrari has continued its two-decade long line of ‘special’ versions of its smaller mid-rear engined supercars with the arrival of the 296 Speciale, a fire-breathing 647kW version of the twin-turbo, V6 plug-in hybrid.

In 2025 branding means way more than a hot iron mark scorched into a steer’s backside.It’s about a brand’s personality, reputation and your interactions with it. What it says about you. What it delivers. How it makes you feel. A visual identity, a design style… and a million other things.   And there are automotive brands in the Australian new-car market that have strategically built solid brand equity over many decades.Current market leader, Toyota began dipping its corporate toe into global export waters by shipping cars here in the late 1950s. And other Japanese makers like Honda, Mazda and Nissan followed it in conquering initial hesitancy by steadily investing in strong retail networks, pushing product improvement and focusing on a positive customer experience.Ford has built its global brand around everything from the Model T and its revolutionary assembly line to pumped up muscle cars and victory at Le Mans. While here it embedded itself in the local landscape via a manufacturing presence spanning close to a century and regular victory at Mount Panorama.And more recently, relative newcomers like Hyundai and Kia have moved rapidly from cheap and (mostly) cheerful to innovators that repositioned the concept of value and quality in the local market.All of which led to large pockets of ‘rusted on’ brand loyalty. The concept of ‘Ford and Holden families’ started to diminish from the moment the latter departed the scene in 2020 (if not before), but Toyota’s reputation for value, durability and affordable ownership has seen it maintain a legion of never-say-die fans.Same for Ford, Mazda, Mitsubishi and others. But I'd argue a turning point was when, after an initial false start through a private importer in 2013, MG set up as a direct subsidiary in 2017.Great Wall had landed as the first Chinese car brand in the Aussie market in 2009, but MG 2.0 was different. Even if its ‘Since 1924’ positioning stretched credulity, its products were better than expected and pricing was ultra sharp.Sharp enough to encourage budget-focused new-car buyers, even used-car prospects, to give the brand a go.With the introduction of new-generation products in the early 2020s sales took off like a rocket, and it’s here that my ‘That’s a good idea’ theory kicks in.I reckon executives at rival Chinese car brands, keeping an eye on MG’s increasing success Down Under, all had the same ‘good idea’ at the same time. Namely, let’s get into Australia and grab a piece of that action. Hence the subsequent arrival of Chery in 2023, itself a factory-backed restart after an initial import-distribution arrangement broke down back in 2011. Followed by the flood gates opening, with BYD, Deepal, Geely, a ramped up GWM, JAC, LDV, Leapmotor, Smart, Jaecoo, XPeng and Zeekr all jumping in with Aion, Avatar, Jetour, Lynk & Co, Skyworth and others waiting in the wings.Doesn’t matter which category you’re talking about - white goods, sporting equipment, hi-fi - if one fresh competitor enters a mature market, it’s likely to be met with reluctance, even contempt by existing brand loyalists.But if near enough to 20 newcomers blaze into market at the same time, clearly something seismic is going on and it feels like you’d be missing a trick if you didn’t at least investigate the rapidly changing competitive landscape.Give them the benefit of 20/20 hindsight as well as a time machine and it’s not certain all the new brands above would currently be making an Aussie entrance.But multiple triggers have been pulled with retail network deals done, head office staff recruited, parts warehousing set up, service and sales training completed and marketing campaigns launched. So, in a mature market, early movers like MG, Chery and GWM have the advantage and more recent arrivals will need to find a way to win over buyers… fast. And it’s a fair bet the ever-impactful lever marked price will be pulled on a regular basis.Some of the newcomers as well as more than a few existing legacy brands will be forced into a price war. Like it or not, loyalty comes under pressure when the incentive is enticing enough and with a cut-price cage fight likely to take place sooner rather than later not everyone will leave the octagon alive.Stand by for new-car buyers tempted en masse into ‘unbeatable deals’ that mean brand loyalties will be stretched beyond breaking point. The shake out from this looming war of attrition will be huge.