Articles by Stephen Ottley

The Toyota Tundra looks a step closer to Australia with news the Japanese giant is investing in an upgraded factory in the US.

Volkswagen is preparing to unleash its hot hatch knowledge onto the electric car.

Tesla is getting ready to unleash its most potent models yet.

Holden might be a shadow of its former self as its sales performance continues to decline after the cessation of local car manufacturing in 2017, but don’t count the brand out of top-tier contention just yet.

Tesla has postponed plans to try and beat Porsche’s new Taycan around the Nurburgring, only days after announcing it would attempt the fearsome German circuit.

Is Tesla feeling the heat from Porsche already?

Hyundai Australia has released pricing and specification for its long-delayed Veloster four-door hatchback, which was first revealed at last year’s Detroit motor show in January.

Police in America will be able to sneak up on criminals thanks to the new addition to their fleet - a Tesla Model 3.The law enforcement in Bargersville, Indiana has added what is believed to be the first of its kind. While other police departments around the world have already got Model S patrolling the streets, this is the first Model 3.Interestingly, the police department say they purchased the Model 3 instead of a Dodge Charger  because it will save taxpayers money. According to the department while the Tesla has a higher initial purchase price than the Charger, it will have significantly lower running costs than the V8 Dodge because it will save more than $11,000 per year on fuel alone. Over the six year life of the car the police claim it will save them more than $38,000.That's why this new addition is the first of several, with Bargersville's boys in blue planning on adding four more Model 3 to its patrol fleet in the next few years at the expense of the Dodge Charger.Officer Jeremey Roll told local television crews the Tesla would also help in the line of duty, thanks to its quiet electric motor."Especially night time the sound of the cars, when we're trying to come up on something more discreetly than in the day time, it will help out with that. We have a lot of back alleys in the old town."Police forces in California, Colorado and Luxembourg already use Model S on their fleets.

Anyone still doubting the performance of Porsche’s first electric car can relax.

Chevrolet is reportedly ready to give the new Corvette C8 a major power upgrade.The company promised more was to come, and while officially they are keeping quiet that hasn't stopped rumours and speculation about what we can expect next. Naturally the most prominent chatter surrounds the next generation Z06 and ZR1, the high performance variants of the Corvette.According to a report in Automobile magazine, the Z06 is in line to get a new twin-turbocharged V8 that should boast a whopping 596kW of power (that's 800-horsepower in the old money) and 950Nm of torque. To put that in context the current Z06 already packs a 485kW/880Nm punch from its front-mounted supercharged 6.2-litre V8, which is hardly meek.The engine is question is likely to be based on the Cadillac 'Blackwing', a 4.2-litre twin-turbo V8 that makes 410kW and 850Nm in the luxury brand's CT6-V sports sedan. While Cadillac has previously dismissed the notion that the Corvette would get the Blackwing, it seems the most logical choice, as it not only provides scope for more performance than currently offered by Caddy, but is also built at the Corvette factory in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The Automobile report suggests Chevrolet will simply rename the more potent version of the engine to fit its purposes and not make a liar out of the Cadillac boss; LT7 is tipped as the most likely moniker.For those not familiar with the Corvette range, the Z06 is the equivalent of the Porsche 911 GT3, a track-focused offering for enthusiasts. Because of this it's possible that the Z06 could introduce a manual transmission to the C8 (with the Stingray only available with a new seven-speed dual-clutch automatic) in order to cater to the purists; a strong audience in the US market.While Chevrolet has invested heavily in creating the new dual-clutch ‘box the Cadillac CT6-V runs a 10-speed automatic paired to its V8, which could also be an option for the new Z06.Other upgrades to the Z06 will likely include a more aggressive aerodynamic package, bigger brakes and better tyres.Expect it to debut sometime in 2020, when we'll find out how accurate these early reports are, before going on sale in the US sometime late in the year. It's unclear this far out if Australians will also get the Z06, but given our love of high performance sports cars it seems like a logical choice for Holden to add it to the stable when it becomes available.Of course, the Z06 isn't the top of the Corvette performance pyramid. That honour belongs to what is currently known as the ZR1, a track-tuned monster that should be able to hold its own against Europe's finest supercars.The out-going C7 ZR1 features a supercharged V8 good for 563kW/970Nm, so if the Z06 gets the expected power boost Chevrolet will need something special for its ultimate Corvette. That is expected to come in the form of a hybrid powertrain that will push the ZR1 to more than 740kW (1000hp) and could even add all-wheel drive to the mix for better traction.The ZR1 - which could also be renamed Zora in tribute to engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov the so-called ‘father of the Corvette' - isn't expected to arrive until 2021 at the earliest. The current generation C7 ZR1 debuted more than three years after the Stingray arrived.Chevrolet has also already started testing the Corvette C8 GTE racing car (pictured) for next year's Le Mans 24-hour endurance race where it will compete against the likes of the Porsche 911 RSR and Ferrari 488 GTE.