Articles by James Cleary

Close to 60,000 Mercedes-Benz cars sold new in Australia between 2018 and 2026 are the subject of a safety recall relating to a potential door lock failure that may result in unintended vehicle movement.  The Federal Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communication and the Arts has issued a safety recall notice impacting 58,822 Mercedes-Benz vehicles across a wide range of Mercedes-Benz and Mercedes-AMG models. It confirms examples of the A-Class, CLA, B-Class, C-Class, EQA, GLA, GLB and GLC  have been impacted and said, “Due to a manufacturing defect, the door-lock microswitch may be susceptible to water damage and could fail. “If this occurs, the door may not be detected as open, preventing the auto park feature from operating as intended,” the notice said.  The department added, “A loss of (the) auto park feature may result in unintended vehicle movement.  “This increases the risk of an accident, causing injury or death to vehicle occupants and other road users.” Multiple grades of the nominated models are included, and the department says drivers should always engage the Park position on the gear selector and apply the parking brake, as described in the Owner’s Manual, prior to leaving the vehicle. Owners of affected vehicles will be contacted by Mercedes-Benz in writing asking them to schedule an appointment with their preferred authorised dealer for the free of charge repair when parts become available. Alternatively, the Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance Centre can be contacted on 1300 762 718 or via cs.aus@cac.mercedes-benz.com.

2026 has been a watershed year for new vehicle sales in Australia, with the tsunami of new challenger brands from China continuing to pound our shores with full-force. It’s upset the established order on the industry leaderboard, with BYD (up 115 per cent) charging into second spot through the end of July, and sending a shudder through the hallowed halls of traditional number one, Toyota Australia, and unceremoniously relegating Ford to the third step of the podium. The rapid rise of Chery (up 71.3 per cent) and GWM (up 16.6 per cent YTD) has meant former high-ranking top 10 regulars Mazda and Hyundai have been shuffled down the order, with Mitsubishi hanging on by the skin of its teeth in tenth.  A resurgent Tesla (up 88.3 per cent) sits in ninth spot, but Nissan (-33.7 per cent) and Subaru (-26.2 per cent) are out of the top 10 picture altogether. Question is, what does this furious churn of customers mean for overall sales? Is the market likely to expand, or given its historical stability, come in close to previous years? If it’s the latter, the financial writing could be on the wall for those legacy brands losing market share to newcomers offering fancy, typically electrified models full of bells and whistles at aggressive price points. So, let's start at the top. After a faltering start to the year marked by supply shortfalls of the in-demand RAV4 and HiLux, Toyota looks to be in the midst of staging a monumental comeback. RAV4 is still down over 25 per cent compared to the same point in 2025 and HiLux is close to 12 per cent behind, but in early June, Toyota Australia announced it had secured an additional 10,000 vehicles for 2026. And since then, the company said it has “worked closely with its global partners to secure further stock to help satisfy strong demand”.  In fact, Toyota Australia Vice President Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations John Pappas has said, "Increased supply of key models including HiLux, RAV4, Corolla Cross and bZ4X would play a key role in Toyota passing the 230,000 sales target for 2026.” It’s worth noting Toyota was the leader in 2025 with 239,863 sales, representing approximately 19.8 per cent of the total market. Which means normal programming is set to resume in terms of Toyota’s numbers and the Japanese giant’s first place positioning. But what about that cheeky upstart, BYD, riding high on the back of continued demand for its Shark 6 petrol-electric hybrid ute and the surging popularity of its Sealion 7 medium EV SUV. In fact everything from the new Atto 1 light electric hatch and Atto 2 compact EV SUV to the Sealion 5 and Sealion 8 SUVs are firing. In terms of a 2026 prediction, all BYD has said is it “would like to be in the top three by the end of the year.”  We’d suggest that’ll mean a number in excess of 80,000 units and with 2025 second and third place finishers Ford and Mazda down 10.8 and 16.7 per cent, respectively so far this year, BYD’s aspiration looks well within reach.  A total of 103,656 new vehicles were registered in Australia in July this year, which represents a modest 0.5 per cent increase over the same month last year (103,097 units) with the overall year-to-date number down just 0.2 per cent (710,449 vs 711,908 units). So, all this moving and shaking in the sales order clearly isn’t shifting the needle in terms of overall sales. One brand’s loss is another brand’s gain. The sales trend and numbers as they stand for 2026 so far point towards a year-end figure in the vicinity of 1.22 million units, which would be only fractionally up on the 1.21 million cars sold here last year. Economics 101 says in a mature, stable market that’s invaded by a host of new competitors, something’s got to give. Not every brand will get out of the Aussie new car sales race alive and the winners and losers over the next five months will be a telling pointer to which brands, new and not-so-new, are potentially heading towards the departure lounge longer-term.        Source: VFacts / Electric Vehicle Council 

BYD has confirmed some seismic changes to its Atto 3 electric SUV ahead of its September arrival. The Chinese giant confirmed price and specification details for the updated Evo version of its pure-electric Atto 3 mid-size SUV, featuring revised design inside and out as well as a new top-spec powertrain option. As per the out-going model, which launched here in 2022, the upgraded Atto 3 Evo is offered in two grades - Dynamic and Premium. The entry-level model (previously badged Essential) is fitted with a 60.48kWh LFP (Lithium Iron Phosphate) battery and a single electric motor in the nose sending the same 150kW/310Nm to the front wheels. Claimed WLTP driving range is 420km. But the big change comes under the skin of the Premium flagship which rides on the Chinese maker’s new ‘e-Platform 3.0’ chassis, instantly upping system capacity from 400V to 800V. In a similarly seismic switch, a larger 74.88kWh LFP battery is onboard with a more powerful (230kW/380Nm) rear-mounted motor sending drive to the rear wheels. Claimed 0-100km/h acceleration time is a decidedly snappy 5.5 seconds. DC charging capability is also doubled to 220kW, lowering the Premium’s zero to 80 per cent charge time to 25 minutes while WLTP driving range increases to 510km. The Atto 3 Evo’s dimensions, including its wheelbase, are unchanged but design tweaks include revised bumpers front and rear, daytime running lights extending across the nose, slimmer side skirts and the brand’s signature ‘Chinese‑knot’ LED tail lights covering the width of the car.  The high-mount roof spoiler has also been reprofiled and each grade is fitted with a specific 18-inch alloy wheel design. Interior changes include the move to a space-saving column-mounted gearshift, a new steering wheel design and a larger 8.8-inch driver information display (up from 5.0-inch). There’s also redesigned door panels, a new grey interior tone, multi‑colour ambient lighting, more heavily sculpted seats along with the addition of a sunglass holder, rain-sensing wipers and more powerful wireless phone charging (15W to 50W). Standard equipment on the Atto 3 Evo Essential includes: Six-way electrically adjustable driver’s seat  Heated and ventilated front seats Eight-speaker audio Wired & wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay  V2L (Vehicle to Load) capability Intelligent voice assistant  Remote vehicle functions The Atto 3 Evo 3 Evo Premium adds:  Dual-zone climate control Driver’s seat with four-way power lumbar adjust Shifting to rear-motor/RWD in the Premium liberates an extra 56 litres of boot space (434L to 490L) and the absence of a front drive motor allows for a 101-litre frunk. Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) tech now includes a new Child Presence Detection function with in‑cabin sensors identifying an occupant in the vehicle after it is locked and a Driver Monitoring System. The Premium picks up Front Cross Traffic Alert and Front Cross Traffic Brake. Colour options are the standard no-cost Ski White, with Harbour Grey and Cosmos Black adding $600 on both grades, the Premium adding Atlantis Grey to its palette. BYD Australia said the Atto 3 Evo is available to order now with deliveries scheduled to start in September.  

BMW has crossed a line owners of its cars around the world believe it shouldn’t have by turning the multimedia screens in their cars into what they perceive to be advertising billboards. What the German carmaker is positioning as “a limited-time themed experience” promoting the movie Spider-Man: Brand New Day and delivered through its Festive App has the blood of BMW owners and drivers in 35 markets boiling. Selected post-2020 BMW models played a full-screen animation on the main multimedia screen in response to the tap of a banner served across its upper third. And in what appears to be a tangled web of overreach, the in-car ‘experience’, run in partnership with Sony Pictures and Marvel from July 27 to August 10, then took control of the car’s audio system and ambient lighting settings to lean into the movie. In BMW's defence, a company spokesperson told CarsGuide, "Each driver could individually decide with a single click whether they wanted to view the Spider-Man animation or not. "Similar activations have been featured in BMW vehicles on several occasions and they were positively received. "The animation was intended to generate excitement for the new BMW iX3 and its appearance in the film. "It was not designed to promote the film or serve as a conventional movie trailer. "Therefore, it should not be considered traditional advertising, and there will continue to be no advertising displayed in the vehicle," they said. That response aligns with statements made by BMW’s top brass three years ago, committing to ensuring a car’s interior remained "a private space." Speaking at an industry media roundtable discussion in late 2023, BMW Group Senior Vice President for Connected Company Development Stephan Durach specifically stated its cars’ interiors were not a commercial space. ‘In-car commerce’ has emerged in parallel with the proliferation of automotive subscription services and increasing efficiency of over-the-air updates.  BMW has history with more formal (and commercial) software-based subscription sales, previously pitching monthly fees in a variety of markets for unlocking everything from heated seats and remote engine start to adaptive cruise control and Apple CarPlay. But this time around the company said the Spider-Man activation is a one-off promotion rather than the leading edge of a longer-term marketing strategy. And it’s worth noting BMW Australia opted out of the campaign.

Porsche Cars Australia has produced a unique version of the 911 Turbo S to mark 75 years of the iconic German brand’s presence in Australia. Dubbed the Porsche 911 Turbo S Land Down Under, the one-of-a-kind supercar's specification and presentation are the result of a collaboration with Porsche Sonderwunsch (Special Request), the Style Porsche design team and Sydney-based contemporary artist, Werner Bronkhorst. The car features dual Chromaflair colour gradient paintwork and elements inspired by the country’s landscapes and “the distinct character of the Southern Hemisphere sky”. Applied by hand, the exterior finish transitions from “the warm amber tones (Terra Australis Red) of an outback sunset to pale blue (Southern Cross Blue) as day fades into night”. Porsche said, “Chromaflair pigments use ultra-thin flakes to create a dynamic colour-shifting effect that changes with light and viewing angle. “Each flake features an opaque, reflective aluminium core encased in a glass-like transparent layer, whose varying thickness produces different perceived colours. “Applied across seven layers by hand, the finish required over 300 hours of craftsmanship,” the company said. For anyone following this special 911, the script ‘See ya later mate’ has been applied to the rear of the car in a typeface developed by Werner Bronkhorst, the message only revealed when the rear wing extends either via engagement of Sport Plus driving mode or auto-deployment at speeds above 80km/h. The exterior theme continues inside with a combination of Dark Night Blue, Kalahari and Coolibah Brown leather trims, the latter conceived specifically for this project. The centres of the Adaptive Sports Seats Plus feature Bronkhorst ’s distinctive brushstroke style with each of 14,417 perforations arranged to form a “coherent visual pattern.” The roof lining features an embroidered Southern Hemisphere constellation map showing the night sky as it appeared over Uluru in 1951, the year Porsche first arrived in Australia. After its world premiere today in Sydney, the 911 Turbo S Land Down Under will embark on a “curated journey” to select locations across the country.

Ferrari has a proud history of front engine, rear-wheel-drive GTs, many with a V12 engine, but while the twin-turbo V8 Amalfi is down four cylinders it produces 'ample' power in a beautiful, refined 2+2 coupe.

Volkswagen Australia is rapidly expanding its commercial vehicle portfolio with the introduction of a stripped back ‘Runner’ version of its large Crafter van, a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powered Multivan scheduled to arrive in mid-2027 and a PHEV version of the compact Caddy van also looking likely for arrival next year. Pitched at $59,990, drive-away, the Crafter Runner Van returns in the current-generation version of VW’s ‘big box’ workhorse, sitting more than $10K under the Crafter 35 MWB Van TDI360 it’s based on ($72,600, before on road costs). Positioned by VW as “optimised for basic needs” the Runner is offered exclusively in (103kW/360Nm) turbo-diesel, front-wheel drive, mid-wheelbase form with changes including: Black rather than a painted front bumper Barn doors without windows Base seats (two) in synthetic leather (rather than three-across ‘Comfort’ seating) But it retains the technical specs of the Crafter 35 MWB Van TDI360. The Runner’s sliding door aperture is a generous 1311mm, it boasts four-Euro pallet load capacity, a low (570mm) load sill, 2.5-tonne braked trailer towing capacity and a partition with fixed windows and grille. At the same time Volkswagen Australia Commercial Vehicles Head of Marketing & Product Michelle Rowney has confirmed mid-2027 arrival timing for the PHEV Multivan eHybrid. The current T7-generation Multivan eHybrid is powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine, working in concert with an electric motor to deliver a combined 180kW/350Nm to all four wheels via a six-speed dual-clutch transmission and VW’s ‘4Motion’ drive system. It features a 19.7kWh (net) NMC battery for a maximum pure-electric driving range of 93km (WLTP) and a 50kW DC charge rate allows a 10-80 per cent top up in around 26 minutes. AC charge rate is up to 11kW. Zero to 100km/h acceleration is a sprightly 8.9 seconds with a top speed of 200km/h (130 km/h in pure-EV mode). And Ms Rowney has also hinted that the Caddy eHybrid is a strong candidate for local sale, telling CarsGuide, "We're in the planning stages of that." Using essentially the same 1.5-litre petrol engine/electric motor powertrain as its larger Crafter sibling the Caddy extends pure-electric range out to 122 km (WLTP) and also supports 50kW DC fast charging.

Despite the hype surrounding new cars from China, the world’s largest carmaker has retained the top spot for global vehicle sales in the first half of 2026. Toyota Motor Corporation has reported sales of 5.39 million vehicles worldwide from January to the end of June this year, which puts Volkswagen in second position. The German giant posted a H1 sales score of 4.13 million units earlier this month. Despite softer demand for its products in the critical Chinese market and conflict in the Middle East driving higher oil prices and unsettling supply chains, Toyota recorded the highest first-half sales number for the seventh straight year. But a 2.9 per cent decline from the same period in 2025 marked the first Jan-Jun decrease for Toyota in two years. The Toyota group's global production output for the first half slipped just 0.3 per cent with an output of 5.51 million vehicles. Toyota exports from Japan to the Middle East fell 36 per cent (to 104,093 units), sales in China (including Hong Kong & Macau) were down 17.1 per cent to 694,670 units but the result for North America (including the USA, Canada and Mexico) was almost unchanged at 1.45 million units (+0.9 per cent). Total sales outside Japan dropped by 4.5 per cent (to 4.30 million units). Strong demand for hybrids, particularly in the US, saw global sales of ‘electrified’ Toyota  models grow 9.1 per cent to 2.71 million cars, with pure-electric vehicles up 135 per cent to a record 193,172 units. It’s a similar story in Australia with Toyota facing a plethora of new competitors but retaining a tight grip on the number one sales spot for the first half of 2026. January to June sales for Toyota of 95,141 vehicles in 2026 was down 21.4 per cent on the year prior (120,978 units), with reduced supply of the top-selling RAV4 SUV a key constraint. But earlier this month Toyota Australia announced it had secured an additional 10,000 vehicles for 2026 (mainly RAV4, HiLux and bZ4X), in the process lifting the brand’s full-year sales forecast to 220,000 units, which would put it close to the company’s 239,863 sales number in 2025.

Volkswagen Australia has confirmed its shift to a “V6-led” strategy for the Amarok dual cab ute, largely driven by Ford’s deletion of the 2.0-litre ‘Bi-Turbo’ diesel engine from its Ranger ute and Everest SUV line-ups in late 2025. The current VW Amarok was co-developed with the Ford Ranger, with Ford Australia’s decision to drop the 184kW/600Nm 2.0-litre, twin-turbo, four-cylinder diesel engine a result of tightening emission regulations, including the escalating impact of the Federal Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) scheme. The Blue Oval is redirecting engine development dollars towards the ‘Panther’ series engine family, the single-turbo diesel four-cylinder version of which is still offered in the Ranger.  But rather than go down that route VW has sidelined single- and twin-turbo four-cylinder turbo-diesel Amarok variants while expanding its 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel line-up from three to five grades, including the recently released, limited edition Dark Label V6. Volkswagen Australia Commercial Vehicles Head of Marketing & Product Michelle Rowney told CarsGuide, “We’ve moved towards a V6 strategy.  “So, we’ve dropped the four cylinders from the range. We still have the petrol, but then we go into our V6 offerings,” she said. Gone are the Amarok TDI405 Core, TDI500 Life and TDI500 Style, with the only remaining four-cylinder option (TDI452 Style) powered by the Ford-sourced 222kW/452Nm single turbo-petrol engine already offered in the VW (but not the Ford Ranger). Ms Rowney added that following its announcement earlier this year, the Amarok Dark Label V6 “is now being distributed and has started to land with dealers.”  Based largely on the Style V6, the special edition is limited to 200 units with a roughly $4K premium adding the following styling changes and feature upgrades:  20-inch ‘Matte Black’ ‘Bendigo’ alloy wheels (unique to the Dark label) LED matrix headlights (with black surrounds) Darkened tail-lights Black sports bar, side steps, rear bumper, door handles and mirrors Front bumper ‘X‑design’ in black Black front skid plate Matte Black B‑pillar foil and roof rails Dark Label sticker pack (bonnet, doors, tub sides, tailgate) Dark privacy glass (rear and side)  Dark Label seat package in synthetic microfibre Dark Label branded floor mats  Ebony Black headliner  Spray in tub liner (with 230V power) Black soft tonneau cover Factory towing kit & electronic brake controller

Volkswagen has upgraded its pure-electric ID. Buzz people mover and light commercial van line-up for the 2027 model year. Arriving in the fourth quarter of this year, the range will feature a new Pro+ model, extra standard equipment, more options and an additional colour choice, all with no change to pricing for the entry grades. The entry-level, single-motor ID. Buzz Pro has picked up a heap of new equipment including an under-chassis stone guard, bi-directional charging, updated driver attention monitoring, a predictive speed limiter, ‘driving experience selection’ (allows switching between drive modes) and Dynamic Road Sign Display. There’s even a dual-tone horn and the new colour option is a white/red two-tone finish. Price for the five-seat short-wheelbase version stays at $75,990, before on-road costs, with the long-wheelbase seven seater at $80,990. There’s also a new Infotainment package option which includes built-in navigation. The new Pro+ variant pulls together the most popular options applied to the base Pro and packages them into a stand-alone model positioned at what VW positions as “a more attractive price.” It brings all the equipment added to the Pro, plus 20-inch alloy wheels (up from 19s), Park Assist (with memory) and built-in navigation.  This grade’s Infotainment package option features high-end Harman Kardon audio and a head-up display with the price stepping up to $84,990, BOC, for the SWB five-seater and $89,990 for the seven-seat LWB version. At the top of the ID. Buzz pyramid, the dual-motor, all-wheel drive, seven-seat LWB-only GTX adds Park Assist (with memory) and built-in navigation to its included features list, only this time around the price increases by $2.0K to $106,990, BOC. And VW hasn’t forgotten the tradies with the ID. Buzz Cargo SWB three-seater picking up the Pro’s new standard inclusions as well as wireless phone charging, and built-in nav with no change to the $69,990 MSRP.