Articles by Stephen Ottley

Why tough new emissions laws face a reckoning the world over.

Porsche is set to introduce an all-electric 718 Boxster soon, but before it does it had one last petrol-powered version to build. The 718 Spyder RS is the ultimate iteration of the mid-engine sports convertible, taking every element and winding it up to 11. We get behind the wheel to find out if this is a worthy swansong for the petrol-powered 718 - and if it can compare to Porsche's own 911.

You can thank/blame (take your pick) Scottish engineer James Watt for the confusing way we measure engine performance in cars. He was the person that came up with the bright idea of measuring power based on a horse.

In 2011 there was a seismic shift in the Australian car market - the Holden Commodore was dethroned as this country’s favourite car by the Mazda3.

I tried it lengthways, sideways and even on the diagonal, but despite my best efforts the box holding my new desk wouldn’t fit in the back of the Mitsubishi Triton.And then it struck me — modern utes are a bit useless.Alright, so ‘useless’ may be too strong a word, but the idea of a dual-cab ute and the reality of a dual-cab ute are incredibly different when it comes to practicality. Dual-cab utes are incredibly popular these days and are driven as much by families as they are by working tradies.Now, if you’re a tradie, I’m sure they’re a very practical choice and make working life easy, in the way you can throw your tools in the tray and blaze off to the next job. But even for tradies who need to carry anything longer than your typical desk, the tray size in a modern dual-cab is problematic.Modern dual-cab utes effectively have a square tray, not perfectly square but pretty close, which makes it convenient for smaller and shorter items but challenging when it comes to longer packages. For example, the Toyota HiLux tray is actually wider than it is long, measuring 1645mm wide but only 1570mm long. The Triton I was driving when I had my epiphany had a tray that measures 1520mm long and 1470mm wide. As for the most popular ute, the Ford Ranger, it has various sizes of tray but measures 1464mm long and 1520mm wide in the popular dual-cabs.At this point I’ll concede that a 1500mm desk is a long item and not many vehicles would accommodate such a lengthy box… except I could squeeze it into a large SUV, with the seats folded down. Or in a van. Which brings me to the most painful part of my realisation that utes aren’t as practical as they first appear - I have to concede my older brother is right about vans.You see, my brother spent over 20 years in the USA and despite many years of happiness he eventually fell in with the wrong crowd — minivan drivers. He had a US-spec Honda Odyssey and loved it so much that when he returned to Australia he found the closest possible replacement — a Kia Carnival.Being the helpful brother that I am, when he needed to move house, I offered to borrow a ute (for strictly review-related purposes, obviously) and take some of the bigger loads — you know, like fridges, couches, desks, those sorts of things. Except, it quickly emerged that the tray in the ute was basically useless (sorry, there’s that word again) when it came to shifting bigger items, the tray was far too short. Even with the tailgate down and the load secured safely it would have been protruding too far behind the ute to be safe to drive.But you know what could fit all the biggest items? My brother’s van. It was a major blow to the idea that the ute is Australia’s great invention and far superior to the daggy van.The silver lining for the ute owners, who are no doubt seething at my anti-ute attitude (even though I don’t hate them, I just don’t think they’re as practical as people think), is you’re officially off the hook to help your friends move. Because now you can simply tell them that your ute’s tray is too small and they should ask their friend with the people-mover instead. You’re welcome…

The saga of the Toyota LandCruiser Prado’s unorthodox boot may have resulted in one less rival. Ford has ruled out a Ford Everest PHEV indicating the packaging compromises seen on the Prado’s seven-seat boot has played a major part.Despite the obvious connection between the SUV and its new Ranger plug-in hybrid, Ford is focused on not compromising practicality in its SUV, with Toyota forced to install a drawer in the boot of the Prado due to the mild-hybrid system underneath the rear end of the vehicle.The problem Ford faces is the introduction of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES), which requires it to cut average CO2 emissions. This will be challenging as the approximately 90 per cent of total Ford sales are the Ranger and Everest, which naturally produce more emissions than smaller, petrol or hybrid vehicles. Ford has already ditched the Everest 4x2 models, as they are classified as a ‘passenger car’, while the 4x4 models are ‘commercial vehicles’ and therefore have a higher emissions target. Seemingly, then, an Everest PHEV would be a logical option to try and cut emissions, but Ford doesn’t want to face the same feedback the Prado has garnered.The Everest and Ranger are based on the same underpinnings and share engine options, but Ford Australia has admitted some key differences make an Everest PHEV nearly impossible. Obvious differences are the rear packaging and suspension between the seven-seat SUV and dual-cab ute. Seeming the Everest’s more complex rear suspension gets in the way of the PHEV batteries, but there are multiple factors.“ Yeah, so there's a lot of considerations that go into future power packs and cycle plans, as you can imagine,” explained Ford Australia marketing chief, Ambrose Henderson. “One of them's about who's taking the program globally, the plant it's coming from, what the business case looks like ultimately.”While not naming the Prado, Henderson made it clear that Ford’s ‘no compromises’ approach to the practicality and capability of the Everest is a major factor in the decision to not push ahead with an Everest PHEV.“For us as an Australian market and what we look for and what we're pushing the globe for is products that deliver for the customer’s needs. And as we talked about… we will not compromise on the key things that our customers are seeking. Some others have gone and started doing some things in this space and they've taken significant compromises to the package of the car. And when we look at our car and we look at the customer research and what we need to deliver. We don't think that that delivers for Australian customers where they need the space in the car, they need the power and torque. They want the full 4x4 and they wanna be able to tow, and right now that package and the technology that's available doesn't support that.“So, number one, before you pass go, we need to deliver what customers want. And that's our absolute guiding line. So that's how we approach it.”

Ford has hit back at Toyota’s suggestions that the ute market is softening, claiming the addition of the all-new Ranger PHEV (plug-in hybrid) and Ranger Super Duty should keep the Blue Oval’s ute on top in 2025.

Isuzu’s updated 2025 MU-X range has a new flagship, the X-Terrain. To separate it from the rest of the range it comes with a range of unique black elements, including its 20-inch gloss black alloy wheels, the horizontal bars on the grille, fog light surrounds and fender flares.It also gets a 7.0-inch digital instrument display, red ambient lighting and leather-accented trim with red and grey contrasting stitching. The X-Terrain is also exclusively available in Slate Grey metallic paint.The MU-X X-Terrain is only available with the 140kW/450Nm 3.0-litre turbo diesel engine, with a six-speed automatic transmission and 4x4 (no 4x2 option). The X-Terrain is priced from $74,400 (plus on-road costs), but Isuzu is offering a very appealing drive-away price from launch at $73,990.

Ford isn’t taking any prisoners when it comes to the introduction of its Ranger PHEV (plug-in hybrid), openly dismissing the BYD Shark 6 and GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV as serious rivals.

The entry to the updated Isuzu MU-X range remains the LS-M variant, which leads on value but still comes with meaningful choices for buyers.The biggest choice is the powertrain, with buyers able to pick between the 110kW/350Nm 1.9-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel or the 140kW/450Nm 3.0-litre turbo-diesel, with the former available only with 4x2 but the bigger engine can be 4x2 or 4x4.For 2025 the LS-M gets some new equipment, including updated cloth upholstery, a 4.2-inch digital display on the instrument panel, an 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as USB-C ports and bi-LED headlights.The LS-M begins the range with a $46,990 drive-away deal from launch for the 1.9L 4x2 (list price is $48,400 plus on-road costs. The 3.0-litre 4x2 LS-M starts from $50,400 (plus on-road costs) and 3.0L 4x4 starts at $56,400 (plus on-road costs).