Articles by John Law

BMW Australia has plugged the sizeable gap between base and flagship of what is likely to be its most popular model.

The first spy pictures of the second generation Kia Seltos have been shared after a prototype was snapped testing in South Korea. The images, snapped by HealerTV on YouTube, show a heavily camouflaged small SUV that looks to follow Kia’s current design direction. Earlier reports from Korean newspaper ETNews along with online outlet TheKoreanCarBlog confirm that the next-gen Seltos will launch with a petrol electric hybrid to help it fend off the Toyota Corolla Cross and Nissan Qashai. Labeled 'SP3 Proto', according to TheKoreanCarBlog, the next Seltos will be unveiled in the second half of 2025 before going into production in August at Kia’s factory in Gwangju.It is expected to use petrol power alone along with a hybrid system, likely lifted straight from the latest Hyundai Kona and i30 Sedan. That means a 1.6-litre petrol four-cylinder combined with a gearbox mounted motor for 106kW and 3.9L/100km efficiency rating is on the cards. It is not clear whether the Seltos’ arrival will affect Kia’s strategy with the Niro, which is around the same size as the Seltos and currently sold in both hybrid and pure electric configurations. Kia is reportedly looking to develop an electric all-wheel drive system to help the Seltos thrive in Europe. It sounds initially like a similar set-up to the Corolla Cross with a separate electric motor driving the rear axle but no details are available yet. Visually, it’s hard to tell what the Seltos will look like in such deep camouflage. The proportions look to remain faithful to the current boxy Seltos, rather than a sleek fastback design. Additionally, we can see some of the headlight details which look very similar to those adopted by the facelifted Kia Sorento along with the upcoming EV3 electric car. The Seltos arrived in Australia in October 2019 and scored a deep facelift in November 2022. It is currently Kia’s fifth best-selling model behind Sportage, Cerato, Carnival and Sorento.Seltos sales have slipped this year, down 22 per cent on the same period last year, while hybrid rivals such as the GWM Haval Jolion, Hyundai Kona, Corolla Cross have surged in popularity. 

The 2025 LDV D90 seven-seat large SUV has been released in Australia after an extended period of the updated version being spotted at local importer Ateco’s headquarters.

The Kia Picanto has had a price bump for the 2025 model year to the tune of $400. The stubby city car remains Australia’s cheapest new vehicle, though, with the Suzuki Swift and MG3 both moving upmarket in their latest guises and the Suzuki Ignis still that little bit dearer. From 2025, the Kia Picanto range starts at $18,290, before on-road costs, for the Sport manual, rather that $17,890. At the pointy end, it's now $21,690 for the GT-Line automatic. Aside from Sport variants picking up height adjustment for the driver’s seat (a welcome addition), there are no changes to equipment levels. A Kia spokesperson clarified the price change is a purely economic adjustment. That means the Picanto range still gets a 1.3-litre petrol four-cylinder developing peak power and torque of 62kW and 122Nm, respectively. A five-speed manual is standard while a four-speed auto demands an extra $1000. The peppy turbo GT variant was sadly dropped with the Picanto’s latest visual and technology update.The MY25 Picanto Sport includes wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity through the 8.0-inch multimedia touchscreen, little 14-inch alloy wheels, synthetic leather on the steering wheel and gear shift, cloth upholstery and power-folding exterior mirrors. Safety gear includes lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, safe-exit warning and auto emergency braking with forward collision warning. Pretty decent for Australia’s cheapest new car. GT-Line grades get sportier 16-inch alloy wheels paired with a body kit, flat bottom steering wheel, premium seats with grey accent, a USB-C charger and full LED exterior lighting. The revised MY25 Kia Picanto range is in dealers now. The Kia Picanto dominates its official ‘Micro’ car sales category with its 4412 sales year to date reflecting a 91.3 per cent share. The MG3 and Suzuki Swift, both technically ‘Light’ cars, are ahead with 9501 and 4603 sales this year, respectively. Prices listed are before on-road costs

Ram Trucks Australia has announced a special edition of its full-sized 2500 work horse. 

The 2025 Honda Civic will go hybrid only when it arrives in Australia imminently, except of course for the flagship Type R. 

Geely has moved the game on, or so it claims, with its new plug-in hybrid powertrain. 

The 2025 LDV Deliver 7 diesel has arrived in Australia joining the electric eDeliver 7 van. 

Porsche has released its most driver focused non-GT series 911 in facelifted ‘992.2’ trim, proving there’s life left in the purist sports car yet. 

Following up the electric LDV eDeliver 7 comes the diesel-powered model which may look identical from the outside but is an altogether more traditional package.