Articles by Matt Campbell

The Lexus RX 300 2020 model is the entry-point to the large luxury SUV line-up. The RX 300 delineates the engine offered in this model, which is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine with 175kW of power (at 4800rpm) and 350Nm of torque (at 1650-4000rpm). It is front wheel drive only, and comes with a six-speed automatic transmission. Fuel consumption is rated at 8.1 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined cycle. The RX 300 is available in three trim levels: the entry-level Luxury, mid-grade F Sport and top-spec Sports Luxury. Unlike the other powertrains which have a seven-seat option, the RX 300 is only sold as a five-seater.The RX 300 Luxury grade is priced at $71,920 plus on-road costs. It comes with 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and daytime running lights (with auto on/off function and auto high-beam), front cornering lamps, rains sensing wipers, and a power tailgate with kick-to-open function. Inside, Luxury models have the new 12.3-inch touch screen infotainment display with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with a GPS navigation system (sat nav), DAB digital radio (as well as CD player and AM/FM radio), Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, a 12-speaker sound system, six USB ports (four front, two rear), wireless phone charging, smart key entry and push-button start, power adjustable steering column, climate control air-con and rear privacy glass (tinted windows). It runs a fake leather trim standard.The step up to F Sport ($86,800) and Sports Luxury ($92,700) grades sees adaptive “blade scan” LED headlights and 20-inch wheels. These models gain adaptive variable suspension, plus leather interior trim (with sports seats in the F Sport) with heating and cooling for the front seats. The rear seats have retractable sunshades.The F Sport features additional bracing front and rear for “an even more dynamic character”, with sports suspension, a Mark Levinson sound system with 15 speakers, and a 360-degree camera display.Top-spec Sports Luxury versions include the audio-visual upgrades, but also add power-adjustable rear seats, second-row seat heating and semi-aniline leather upholstery.

The Lexus RX 2020 range consists of three powertrains and 13 variants, with four of those being seven-seaters. It's a big line-up that's big on value. And although there have been some changes made to the model, it's hardly a big update.

The Lexus RX 350 2020 model is the mid-point in the large luxury SUV range, and it comes in a few different derivatives - including a five-seat model and a seven-seat version (RX 350L).The RX 350 name relates to the powertrain it uses - a 3.5-litre petrol V6 engine producing 221kW (at 6300rpm) and 370Nm (at 1650-4000rpm) in five-seat guise. The seven-seater has slightly less power due to packaging constraints on the exhaust system - it has 216kW and 358Nm. The RX 350 and RX 350L models have an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive, and fuel consumption is rated at 9.6 litres per 100 kilometres for the five-seater and 10.2L/100km for the seven-seater.As with the other models in the range, the RX 350 powertrain can be had in Luxury guise (list price $81,890 for the five-seater, $85,000 for the RX 350L seven-seater), or as an F Sport five-seater ($93,970) or in Sports Luxury trim ($99,870, or $101,600 with three rows of seats).The RX 350 Luxury grade has 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and daytime running lights (with auto on/off function and auto high-beam), front cornering lamps, rains sensing wipers, and a power tailgate with kick-to-open function. Inside, Luxury models have the new 12.3-inch touch screen infotainment display with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with a GPS navigation system (sat nav), DAB digital radio (as well as CD player and AM/FM radio), Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, a 12-speaker sound system, six USB ports (four front, two rear), wireless phone charging, smart key entry and push-button start, power adjustable steering column, climate control air-con and rear privacy glass (tinted windows). It runs a fake leather trim standard.Stepping up to F Sport or Sports Luxury sees adaptive “blade scan” LED headlights and 20-inch wheels. These models gain adaptive variable suspension, plus leather interior trim (with sports seats in the F Sport) with heating and cooling for the front seats. The rear seats have retractable sunshades.The F Sport features additional bracing front and rear for “an even more dynamic character”, with sports suspension, a Mark Levinson sound system with 15 speakers, and a 360-degree camera display.Top-spec Sports Luxury versions include the audio-visual upgrades, but also add power-adjustable rear seats, second-row seat heating and semi-aniline leather upholstery.

The Lexus RX 450h 2020 model is the flagship powertrain offering in the Japanese luxury brand’s large SUV line-up. You can get it as a five-seater or a seven-seater.The RX 450h name relates to the powertrain this model uses. It’s a 3.5-litre V6 engine backed by a 50kW electric motor on the rear axle and a nickel-metal hydride battery pack. The combined power output of the hybrid model is 230kW, but Lexus doesn’t specify a combined torque figure. It is AWD and uses a CVT with six-step ratios.Being a hybrid, fuel use is the big selling point - and in five-seat guise it uses a claimed 5.7 litres per 100 kilometres, while the seven-seater RX 450hL uses 6.0L/100km. As with the other models in the range, the RX 450h powertrain can be had in Luxury guise (list price $91,090 for the five-seater, $94,470 for the RX 450hL seven-seater), or as an F Sport five-seater ($103,440) or in Sports Luxury trim ($109,340, or $111,070 with three rows of seats).The RX 450h Luxury grade has 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and daytime running lights (with auto on/off function and auto high-beam), front cornering lamps, rains sensing wipers, and a power tailgate with kick-to-open function. Inside, Luxury models have the new 12.3-inch touch screen infotainment display with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with a GPS navigation system (sat nav), DAB digital radio (as well as CD player and AM/FM radio), Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, a 12-speaker sound system, six USB ports (four front, two rear), wireless phone charging, smart key entry and push-button start, power adjustable steering column, climate control air-con and rear privacy glass (tinted windows). It runs a fake leather trim standard.Stepping up to F Sport or Sports Luxury sees adaptive “blade scan” LED headlights and 20-inch wheels. These models gain adaptive variable suspension, plus leather interior trim (with sports seats in the F Sport) with heating and cooling for the front seats. The rear seats have retractable sunshades.The F Sport features additional bracing front and rear for “an even more dynamic character”, with sports suspension, a Mark Levinson sound system with 15 speakers, and a 360-degree camera display.Top-spec Sports Luxury versions include the audio-visual upgrades, but also add power-adjustable rear seats, second-row seat heating and semi-aniline leather upholstery.

There are no other Chinese vans on sale in Australia at the moment, so there's that. But aside from a budget-friendly price tag, does the LDV G10 diesel automatic van offer more worth considering? We tested it - with and without a load - to find out.

The dual-cab ute market is huge, and this test is a big one, too. We've assembled the six most popular 4x4 utes to see which is the king of the class.The contenders include the big-selling Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger, as well as the Holden Colorado, Nissan Navara, Isuzu D-Max and Mitsubishi Triton.Which will win? Read on to find out!

The Volvo V60 is perhaps the best representation of how far Volvo has come in recent years.

The Volvo V60 2020 model range is opened by the Momentum variant, which is priced at $56,990 plus on-road costs, undercutting rival luxury models by thousands of dollars. The V60 wagon - range-wide - represents a $2000 increase over the S60 sedan variants. The V60 Momentum has 17-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and tail-lights, a 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen supporting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as DAB+ digital radio, keyless entry, auto dimming rear vision mirror, auto dimming and auto folding wing-mirrors, dual-zone climate control and real leather trim on the seats and steering wheel.Safety equipment for all V60 models includes standard auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, rear AEB, lane keeping assist with lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring with steering assist, rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, and a reversing camera with front and rear parking sensors. The V60 Momentum is powered by the T5 engine and transmission setup - a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine with an eight-speed automatic with permanent all-wheel drive (AWD). The T5 arrangement produces 187kW of power (at 5500pm) and 350Nm of torque (1800-4800rpm), and offers a claimed 0-100km/h sprint time of 6.5 seconds. Fuel use is claimed at 7.3 litres per 100 kilometres.

The most luxury-focused model in the Volvo V60 2020 wagon line-up is the Inscription variant, which has a list price of $62,990 plus on-road costs.It builds upon the extensive equipment offered in the Momentum grade with 19-inch alloy wheels, directional LED headlights with LED daytime running lights, four-zone climate control, wood interior highlights, ambient lighting, heated front seats with cushion extensions, and a 230-volt power outlet in the rear console.Further standard gear includes LED tail-lights, a 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen supporting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as DAB+ digital radio, keyless entry, auto dimming rear vision mirror, auto dimming and auto folding wing-mirrors, dual-zone climate control and leather trim on the seats and steering wheel.Safety gear includes auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, rear AEB, lane keeping assist with lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring with steering assist, rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, and a reversing camera with front and rear parking sensors. The Inscription also has a head-up display, a 360-degree parking camera and auto-parking assist.The Inscription comes only with the T5 powertrain - a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine with an eight-speed automatic with permanent all-wheel drive (AWD). The engine produces 187kW of power (at 5500pm) and 350Nm of torque (1800-4800rpm), and offers a claimed 0-100km/h sprint time of 6.5 seconds. Fuel use is claimed at 7.3 litres per 100 kilometres.

There are effectively two range-topping models in the Volvo V60 2020 wagon range - and they both have the R-Design treatment.There’s the T5 R-Design, with a list price of $66,990 plus on-road costs, and the more expensive T8 plug-in hybrid, which lists at $87,990 plus on-roads.The T5 has a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol four-cylinder engine with 192kW of power (at 5700rpm) and 400Nm of torque (1800-4800rpm) - that’s 5kW/50Nm more than the other T5 models. It uses an eight-speed auto, and has permanent AWD. Its 0-100km/h time is claimed at 6.3 seconds. Fuel consumption is claimed at 7.3L/100km.The T8 is a more tech-heavy powertrain. It also uses a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo engine (with 246kW of power and 430Nm of torque) that is paired it to an electric motor producing 65kW/240Nm. Combined outputs equate to 311kW and 680Nm, and the 0-100km/h time is claimed at just 4.5sec! And because it has electric power that can run the car for 50 kilometres, fuel consumption is claimed at just 2.0L/100km.As for equipment, the T5 and T8 R-Design models are almost identical - though the T5 version gets Volvo’s Four-C adaptive chassis setup, which isn’t available on the T8.Otherwise, R-Design variants have ‘Polestar optimisation’ (a bespoke suspension tune from Volvo’s performance division), 19-inch alloys with a unique look, a sporty exterior and interior design pack with R-Design sports leather seats, paddle-shifters on the steering wheel, and mesh metal interior finishes.That’s on top of standard LED headlights, daytime running lights and tail-lights, a 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen supporting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as DAB+ digital radio, keyless entry, auto dimming rear vision mirror, auto dimming and auto folding wing-mirrors, dual-zone climate control and leather trim on the seats and steering wheel.Safety gear is extensive, too, with auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, rear AEB, lane keeping assist with lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring with steering assist, rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, and a reversing camera with front and rear parking sensors. The R-Design also has a head-up display, a 360-degree parking camera and auto-parking assist.