Articles by James Cleary

James Cleary
Deputy Editor

James Cleary is CarsGuide's Deputy Editor, with over four decades’ experience across automotive editorial, marketing, product planning and creative advertising.

He has written for national and international titles including Wheels, Drive, Carsales, Motor and Top Gear Australia providing everything from new product assessment and feature writing to industry analysis, news content and expert advice.

He’s spent time as an advanced driving instructor, and had the opportunity to experience rare and valuable classics here and overseas.

James worked in the PR and advertising/sales promotion teams at Mercedes-Benz Australia and has managed the Marketing Communications and Product Planning functions for Peugeot Australia. He also directed advertising client service for Hyundai Motor Company Australia and Volvo Australia.

James has a Bachelors Degree in Communications from Macquarie University and driving qualifications from multiple advanced schools, including Ian Luff Motivation.

He has been a member of the CarsGuide team for 10 years and as Deputy Editor manages everything from sub-editing to back-end platforms while creating written and visual content.

Expertise

  • New product assessment
  • Industry analysis
  • News content
  • Expert advice
  • Feature writing

Experience

  • BMW Performance Driving School
  • Lamborghini Winter Accademia
  • Master Maserati Driving School
  • Mercedes-AMG Snow Performance School
  • Porsche Level 4 Master training
  • Volkswagen Driving Experience program

Education

  • Bachelor of Arts (MassComm) | Macquarie University | 1981-1984

Featured publications

Mazda 2 2022 review: Pure SP
By James Cleary · 23 Jun 2022
The Mazda2 has been around a while, but successive updates have helped it stay in touch with its compact urban competitors, and keep its head above water as the SUV wave continues to swamp the Aussie new car market. Does the recently introduced Pure SP grade put more air in this long time favourite's Floaties?
Read the article
MG's made its mark in Australia. Who's next?
By James Cleary · 09 Jun 2022
While many established brands in the Australian new vehicle market are battling strong headwinds, relative newcomers from China are charging ahead, scoring big wins on the May sales charts.MG's range of compact cars and SUVs, including relatively affordab
Read the article
Honda's new ZR-V five-seat SUV detailed!
By James Cleary · 08 Jun 2022
If you're not fully on the SUV bandwagon you're running behind the pack in the Australian new vehicle market. It's a fact Honda knows all too well, and it's new five-seat ZR-V, due to arrive here before the end of 2023, is designed to increase the brand's appeal with SUV-hungry buyers.
Read the article
2023 Hyundai Palisade specification confirmed
By James Cleary · 07 Jun 2022
We've known it's been coming for some time, but now Hyundai has confirmed the model line-up and specification of it's upgraded three-row Palisade SUV, coming to Aussie showrooms in August, 2022.
Read the article
Mazda's big sales slide explained!
By James Cleary · 06 Jun 2022
Mazda Australia and its dealers are starting to feel the pinch as the brand takes a tumble in May from its usual second place sales position to fourth behind Toyota, Kia, and Hyundai. We find out why.
Read the article
Volkswagen Polo 2022 review
By James Cleary · 03 Jun 2022
Volkswagen may have embraced the shift to SUVs, but it hasn't forgotten its passenger car roots, with an upgraded version of the city-sized Polo arriving with even more safety, additional tech, extra standard features, and a higher starting price.
Read the article
Volkswagen Polo GTI 2022 review
By James Cleary · 03 Jun 2022
Think of the letters GTI, and most performance enthusiasts will also be thinking Volkswagen. The Polo GTI is the German giant's pocket-size hot hatch, and it's just had a refresh with more tech, more safety, some cosmetic tweaks, and a higher starting price. We tested it on road and track to see how it shapes up.
Read the article
Jeep shooting for Top 10 sales spot by 2025!
By James Cleary · 23 May 2022
Jeep's already started to climb out of its recent Australian sales decline and the brand's managing director is bullish about where it can go in the next two to three years. In fact, he wants a Top 10 spot by 2023.
Read the article
Jeep's shutting the door on V8 and diesel
By James Cleary · 21 May 2022
Jeep has seen the writing on the environmental wall and is moving to make diesel and V8 power part of its history as the iconic brand heads towards a zero tailpipe emissions future.
Read the article
New BMW 3 Series arriving this year!
By James Cleary · 18 May 2022
BMW has sold more than 10,000 examples of its current generation 3 Series since the car's local launch in 2019. Time for a mid-life refresh with cosmetic tweaks, bigger, sleeker screens, and an upgraded media operating system.
Read the article