Articles by Laura Berry

Toyota buyers around the world are facing extended delays on delivery of their newly purchased cars due to a rise in the popularity of hybrids. We asked Toyota Australia if the shortage affects us here, too.The delays are all down to a shortage of components for hybrid vehicles which have become popular following several years in which fully electric vehicles went through a boom, only for interest to start tapering off.The surge in popularity for hybrids has forced Toyota to rush to meet the increase in demand with the company saying it would boost production. Toyota also released a statement appearing to play down the matter. "Currently, the production capacity for hybrid parts and components from our suppliers and our in-house parts manufacturing is line with our annual production plans and our vehicle assembly capacity," it said.A concerning factor is that the shortage of parts affecting vehicle delivery time is widespread. Hybrid stock is low in the United States, Japan, China and Europe according to a report from Reuters news agency.Australia has also seen an increase in demand for hybrid vehicles with last year’s total sales up by 39.9 per cent on 2023 and while there is still a growing appetite for electric cars here, the uptake appears to be slowing with 2024’s total up by 10 per cent.The news appears to support Toyota’s long held view that despite an interest in fully electric vehicles consumers would return to hybrids. Toyota Australia has long maintained hybrids would become the preferred choice over electric cars. The company has only one electric vehicle - the bZ4X - on sale here, while the rest of its range is almost entirely hybrid including the RAV4, Kluger, Corolla, Corolla Cross, Yaris and Yaris Cross. CarsGuide asked Toyota Australia if the current hybrid shortage would affect local buyers.“Hybrid-electric vehicles account for more than half our sales this year,” a Toyota Australia spokesperson said. “Supply is healthy, both now and confirmed for the coming months. Customers placing an order today can expect to receive their vehicle in less than four months on average.”Currently wait times are nothing compared to how long customers were waiting on cars in 2022 when COVID-19 and a semi-conductor shortage blew delivery times out to a year for certain in-demand Toyota models.  

Does anybody really do April Fools' Day pranks anymore? Apparently so.

Hyundai has launched its latest software and technology platform, calling it a significant step towards becoming a “mobility tech company”. Hyundai’s new software brand is called Pleos and the plans were announced recently at the Pleos 25 developer conference where the Korean giant outlined five key elements of its vision. The first is a proprietary vehicle operating system, an in-house designed-and-owned system the company says will improve vehicle performance.The next was Pleos Connect, which is Hyundai's next-generation infotainment system that will launch in the second quarter of 2026 and be rolled out to millions of vehicles around the world. The third is Pleos Playground. which is designed to encourage outside developers to produce apps that can be downloaded by owners and used in their vehicles. Fourth is what the Hyundai Group calls the next Urban Mobility Alliance. This will be introduced as a way for the public and private sectors to partner up to improve autonomous transport. Finally, Hyundai wants to attract companies such as Google, Uber and Samsung to collaborate on developing the new generation of cars, now called 'software-defined vehicles'.President and Head of Hyundai Motor and Kia Advanced Vehicle Platform Division, Chang Song, said Pleos was the start of connected mobility for the Korean group.“In the rapidly changing automotive industry, Hyundai Motor Group has been dedicated to SDV development since 2023. Today, starting with Pleos 25, we are transforming into a company providing software-centered mobility experiences,” Song said.“Our ultimate goal is to achieve Cloud Mobility, where all forms of mobility are connected through software on the cloud, and continuously evolve over time. Pleos serves to create a connected mobility experience expanding from a vehicle to fleets, hardware to software, and ultimately to the entire mobility infrastructure and cities.”Pleos is what Hyundai calls an end-to-end software platform that will integrate vehicle operating systems, infotainment systems, cloud infrastructure, the management of fleets and transportation logistics.Hyundai has long had a vision of being more than just a car company, with connected transportation part of its future plans. In 2020 at the Consumer Electronics Show in the United States, Hyundai announced its future mobility vision which consisted of an urban air mobility transport system called HUB connected by personal air vehicles and ground-based autonomous purpose-built vehicles. In 2021 Hyundai Group bought Boston Dynamics, the cutting-edge robotics company.The company is also investing heavily in alternative fuels such as hydrogen. Last year Hyundai provided a preview of its Initium hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle to show its commitment to the fuel's development.

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Here's everything we know about Nissan's finally-confirmed next-generation Navara.

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Hyundai has teased images and video of its Insteroid - a wild concept based on the brand’s Inster electric hatch.Looking like something that’s just arrived back from an apocalyptic future the Insteroid is a pumped up beast. And if you hadn’t worked it out, Hyundai says the name Insteroid comes from the combination of 'Inster' and 'Steroid' to emphasise the meatiness of this concept hatch.Due to be revealed to the world globally in April 2025, the Insteroid features massive wheel arch air vents, 21-inch wheels and signature pixel LEDs.Then there’s the monstrous rear wing the likes of which we’ve only seen on Hyundai's Pikes Peak racers such as the Ioniq 5 N or World Time Attack cars. Could the Insteroid be Hyundai’s hint of its next Pikes Peak entry for the event in June?What’s more possible is the Insteroid continuing Hyundai's recent tradition of creating one-off wild cars to demonstrate the company’s fun take on vehicles.“Insteroid is designed to boost the emotional experience of electric cars,” the brand said.“Equipped with fun details, it offers plenty to discover; every element – from the control buttons to the instrument cluster, the rear spoiler to the brakes – reflects Insteroid character.”At the same time, Hyundai also uses such concepts to gauge public reactions towards cars or ideas it may be thinking of actually sending down the production line.Back in 2022 Hyundai unveiled its N Vision 74 concept which was based on its 1974 Pony Coupe. The reaction was so overwhelmingly good from the public Hyundai announced in 2024 the model would go into production.Hyundai’s announcement of the incoming Insteroid concept follows the recent teasing of similar shadowy images of cartoon-ghost motifs on interior controls ahead of the Seoul Mobility Show in April. Whether these images are connected to the Instroid is yet to be seen, although the Inster is called the Casper in its South Korean home market.   In Australia, Hyundai's Inster will launch in the next few weeks and serve as the Korean brand's rival to small affordable electric SUVs such as the BYD Dolphin, GWM Ora and MG ZS EV.

Those looking for an even tougher street presence from a small SUV will be happy to hear Volkswagen has launched a Wolfsburg Edition of its popular T-Roc R which brings unique styling and an Akrapovic exhaust for a more aggressive growl.

Pricing and specifications for a special ‘A90 Final Edition’ Toyota Supra GR have been announced in Japan where the asking price will nudge the equivalent of A$160,000 and we now know if it will ever see Australian shores.Back in November of 2024 Toyota confirmed it would end the current generation (the A90) of the Supra GR in 2025, but along with the sad news there was a treat as well - a Final Edition version would be made, plus a less powerful Track Edition.Now the specifications and pricing has been announced for the A90 Final Edition with the coupe coming with a Japanese list price of A$159,465. Only 300 of the A90 Final Edition will be made with about half going to Japan and the other half most likely headed towards Europe.Unfortunately for die-hard fans of the nameplate, Toyota Australia has confirmed to CarsGuide no examples of the Final Edition are earmarked for Australia.It’s a shame - the A90 Limited Edition is very special with bigger brakes, a more rigid body, suspension upgrades and high grip tyres.The A90 Final Edition also gets a lot more grunt with the inline six -cylinder twin-turbo petrol engine getting a big bump from 285kW to 324kW.All A90 Final Editions will have an eight-speed manual gear box sending drive to the rear wheels.For disappointed Australians Toyota still has something you might like very much - a Track Edition of the Supra GR.Due by the middle of 2025 the Track Edition won’t come with an increase in power over the current 285kW but will land here with upgrades to improve dynamics.These include a reinforced rear subframe rubber mounting for sharper steering, stiffer rear underfloor bracing, a larger anti-roll bar, negative front camber adjustment, re-tuned electronic shock absorbers, re-tuned active differential and power steering and larger front brakes.There’s also improved aerodynamics in the form of a carbon fibre ducktail rear spoiler, and front underlip tyre spats aero flaps.Pricing for the Australian Track Edition will be announced closer to its arrival in the coming months but as a guide the regular version of the Supra GR lists from $86,295 (before on-roads) for the entry-grade GT. While this might be the final A90 Supra, a next-gen model is expected to follow with hybrid power. So it's not over by any means for this iconic sportscar.

At the start of this month Jeep’s parent company Stellantis announced the iconic Grand Cherokee large SUV would be discontinued in Australia.While axing the second best-selling model of a brand that was already struggling might seem like a good way to accelerate the demise of Jeep in Australia, it won’t. That’s because Jeep has something left that many brands have never had. Stellantis's Grand Cherokee announcement was both a shock and unsurprising at the same time. It was like hearing that your professional stunt actor friend had broken every bone in their body again, but they would probably be alright. It was coming and so was the Grand Cherokee’s axing.The surprising part of the Grand Cherokee's demise was that the new-generation version had only just arrived in Australia - well it was less than two years ago in 2023 with the 4xe plug-in hybrid variant following later in the year.What’s thrown most people is that the Grand Cherokee had a hugely successful past in Australia. In 2014 it was the best-selling large SUV under $70K, beating even Toyota’s Prado for the year with 16,582 sold.A big part of the previous-gen Grand Cherokee's allure was the price which, thanks to the strong Australian dollar, meant you could get into an entry grade Laredo for $47,000. Compared to the Japanese models which dominated the market at the time the Grand Cherokee felt like a lot of car for the money.Big, luxurious, comfortable and with a range of engines that stepped all the way up to a high-performance Hemi V8 in the SRT, many buyers found the Grand Cherokee more desirable than a Mazda CX-9 or Toyota Kluger and more affordable than SUVs with Mercedes-AMG, BMW M or Audi RS badges.That was it in a nut shell. Grand Cherokee was a flash in the pan for Australia that led to a surge in growth for Jeep, but there wasn't much to follow it up. Apart from a disastrous reliability record for the Grand Cherokee which saw recall after recall. Even after this new fifth-generation Grand Cherokee launched the 4xe was recalled in the United States due to 13 separate fires.If you’re superstitious then you’d believe the Grand Cherokee was cursed.Parent company Stellantis would not go into why the Grand Cherokee was pulled from sale in Australia other than to say it was looking for a more relevant model for the market.“As we look to right-size the Jeep product portfolio to match local market dynamics and customer preferences, we’ve made the difficult decision to pause availability of the current model Jeep Grand Cherokee  in Australia,” a Stellantis spokesperson said."While the Jeep Grand Cherokee will continue to be sold in many countries around the world, this decision allows us to focus our efforts on placing the right products in the right segments that can have the greatest relevance for our customers."Of course as any PR person would say Jeep remains committed to Australia, the spokesperson told us."The Jeep brand remains fully committed to the Australian market and Stellantis continues to invest heavily in its global product portfolio,” the brand’s spokesperson said.'Committed' as long as there’s a business case for staying is what this really means and there’s nothing wrong with that logic.Why Jeep will likely stay in Australia isn’t because a new model like the new electric Wagoneer S is just around the corner. It's because Jeep offers something many brands don't have - a lifestyle identity. Jeep’s Wrangler off-roader is central to this ethos and the connection the SUV has with cultural identity is important in its lineage back to the World War II Willys Jeep and forward to 21st century adventurers and the perceived freedom that goes with the lifestyle. The appeal is almost a rebellious one against the wrapped-in-cotton-wool safety standards of less adventurous SUVs that are seemingly secure so as to cut off all contact with the outside world. The Wrangler on the other hand has doors and a windscreen that can literally be removed. That emotional ingredient is a quality only some car brands have. Ford has its Mustang,  Toyota has the LandCruiser, Nissan the Patrol and even Subaru has the WRX . All offer more than just transport but membership to a club.Of course there needs to be regular buyers who give the brand huge spikes in sales, as was experienced by the Grand Cherokee.And while sales of Jeep's other models aren't outstanding among rival brands, they don't appear to be dangerously low either. Last year's total sales amounted to 2377 and that was 492 for Compass, 151 for the Gladiator, 646 for Grand Cherokee and 724 for the Wrangler.Citroen, which is also owned by Stellantis but imported through a different operator - Inchcape - was pulled out of Australia last year after selling just 147 vehicles.So we know where the line is and currently Jeep is not in danger of crossing it. Still, the brand needs another model to boost sales again and it's unlikely to be the just-arrived Avenger EV which will be up against more affordable small electric Chinese SUVs.So while Stellantis searches for another hit model, Jeep will be supported by the emotional engagement and identity it brings to those drawn to a life of adventure, even if their real life is mainly spent in an office or in traffic.