Articles by Stephen Ottley

The Ford Everest is the Blue Oval's most popular SUV and for 2025 the range has been expanded. The new Everest Tremor has arrived to take on the latest Toyota Prado in what should be an epic battle of family-friendly off-roaders.We hit the bush in the Everest Tremor to find out if it's tough enough to worry Toyota.

The Isuzu MU-X LS-U sits in the middle of the range and arguably offers the best value as well as the most choice.It is available with a choice of the 1.9-litre turbo diesel engine with 4x4, or the 3.0-litre four-cylinder with 4x2 or 4x4. The smaller engine makes 110kW/350Nm and the bigger punches out 140kW/450Nm.Some of the most noticeable enhancements for 2025 include new 12-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels, a new leather-wrapped steering wheel, piano black interior trims, a 7.0-inch digital instrument display panel, a 9.0-inch infotainment touchscreen, USB-C ports, LED fog lights and tyre pressure monitoring.The LS-U 1.9-litre 4x4 is priced from $61,400 (plus on-road cost), the 3.0L 4x2 from $57,400 (plus on-road cost) and the 3.0L 4x4 $63,400 (plus on-road cost).

Tesla has been making headlines recently with a decline in sales, both internationally and around the world. While there are a variety of reasons for this, at least part of that can be put down to the relative lack of choice, with only the mid-size Model 3 sedan and Model Y SUV available to local buyers.There is no larger sedan, no smaller sedan, no Roadster, no Cybertruck and, most relevant for Australia, no seven-seat SUV. Australians have demonstrated a love of family friendly SUVs, with record sales for the Ford Everest and Isuzu MU-X in 2024 and big sales expected for the new Toyota Prado in 2025.In this article we’ll tell you everything you need to know about Tesla’s seven-seater plans.No, at least not in Australia. Tesla dropped its 7 seater electric car, the Model X from its Australian line-up in 2023 along with the Model S sedan. Its current local range consists of the five-seat-only Model Y SUV and Model 3 sedan.Maybe. Tesla has no current public plans to bring back the Model X, as it no longer builds it in right-hand drive. But it does have a potential new 7 seater Tesla, in the form of the three-row Model Y that’s available in the US market. The seven-seat Model Y has been available in the USA in the Long Range AWD variant since 2020. It features the same seat arrangement for the first two rows (two in the first row and three across the middle), with two extra seats where the boot would be. Tesla traditionally reveals very little details about upcoming models, which makes it incredibly difficult to predict when, or even if, Tesla will launch its new models in Australia. However, a report from Reuters in late 2024 suggested the three-row Model Y will soon be produced in China for potential right-hand-drive markets.It’s too early to know any details on price, as the three-row Model Y isn’t confirmed for the Australian market. Tesla is also known to adjust its pricing to try and drive sales, so it’s impossible to predict the brand with accuracy.However, what we can say is it’s likely to carry a small premium over the five-seat Model Y to account for the extra seats.You may have noticed we have referred to it as the ‘three-row Model Y’ as opposed to a seven-seater. That’s because the expectation is the Chinese-built variants will feature six-seats, spread across three rows of two.There is a seven-seater version of the Model Y built in Germany for European markets, but that may not be an option for Tesla in Australia due to the logistics, production complexities and costs.The biggest difference between the Tesla Model Y 7 seater Australia could see in the next few years, compared to the previous Model X will be size. The Model X was a large SUV while the Model Y is mid-sized.The Model X also famously had the so-called ‘Falcon wing’ double-hinged doors that allowed for easier access to the third row. In contrast, the Model Y three-row has the conventional doors.If the Tesla Model 7 three-row variant comes to Australia, besides only having six seats instead of seven, it will differ from key rivals in size. Instead of competing against the likes of the Ford Everest, Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento, it will be a much smaller SUV and be more directly rivalling the Nissan X-Trail and Mitsubishi Outlander.The problem with the three-row Model Y is the extra seats appear to be both limited for space but also take up much of the luggage space.If anything changes, we’ll let you know, so keep reading CarsGuide to stay up to date with everything happening in the motoring industry.

Ford Australia senior management has taken a swipe at the controversial Toyota Prado boot saga. Speaking at the launch of the new Ford Everest Tremor, Ford Australia marketing boss, Ambrose Henderson, has made it clear he believes his company’s product offers better luggage space than its arch-rival.While the Prado has a theoretical advantage, measuring 906-litres compared to the Everest’s 898L, Toyota didn’t design the third row seats to fold flat into the floor, so added a plastic riser box on the seven-seat Prado GXL, VX and Kakadu variants. The result is a higher load height and question marks over its usability from critics and would-be buyers.The Everest was the best-selling large SUV in Australia in 2024 but the arrival of a new-generation Prado should create an intense fight for that honour in 2025. But if Ford is worried, Henderson is not showing it.“You know, we're here to run our own race,” Henderson said. “And we're really confident in the range that we've put forward and the value proposition that that presents to customers as well. Really top of mind for us on everything we do is delivering for customers what they want and what they're telling us and making no compromise on that. And our strong belief is we've done that and that's why we got the results that we did last year.“The that you speak of is a formidable competitor. And you know, they've had a very long run of having wonderful products in these spaces. But, I think when you compare our products back-to-back, you can see where we've made strategic decisions not to compromise, and others may have compromised items that are very important to customers in these segments.”Henderson continued and made an unsubtle swipe at Toyota’s boot design for the Prado.“As an example, being able to fit your luggage in the boot,” he said. “So, you know, there are really important things that we will not compromise when we deliver our products.”He added: “When we deliver our products, it's about delivering what customers want and not compromising on that.”However, Toyota may have the last laugh if the January sales data is a trend for the year. In the first month of 2025 the Prado out-sold the Everest 2847 to 1679 - more than 1100 units.As we’ve previously reported, Toyota is confident in the packaging and presentation of the Prado, with customer interest remaining high. "The order bank for the new Prado remains very healthy and we are delighted with the level of customer acceptance for the new vehicle," a Toyota Australia spokesperson told CarsGuide in November.

The Isuzu MU-X LS-T is the brand’s rival to the Ford Everest Tremor 4WD, sitting just below the flagship X-Terrain.The LS-T is only available with the 140kW/450Nm 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel engine, but it can be had as a 4x2.Key equipment for the LS-T includes a new 360-degree surround-view camera system, 20-inch alloy wheels, leather-accented upholstery, black headlining, white ambient lighting and black elements on the front bumper, grille and rear bumper.The MU-X LS-T is priced from $65,400 (plus on-road costs) for the 4x2 and from $71,400 (plus on-road costs) for the 4x4. However, at the time of launch, Isuzu Australia is offering a drive-away deal of $69,990 for the 4x4 model.

When is a Mazda CX-5 not a Mazda CX-5?

Australian families are flocking to rugged, seven-seat SUVs like the Ford Everest and Toyota Prado. The underdog in this contest is the Isuzu MU-X, which has become one of the most popular, has been refreshed for 2025.But this is more than just a 'nip and tuck' facelift, with some major changes underneath. We drive the new MU-X on- and off-road to put it to the test.

Isuzu is studying hard in the hope it can pass its toughest test — the federal government's New Vehicle Efficiency Standards (NVES).

Affordable electric cars are an emerging market in Australia - and the timing couldn’t be better.

Mazda has vowed to focus on customers, not the incoming government-mandated efficiency standards, but admits it has plans for more hybrids and electric vehicles before the end of the decade.With the New Vehicle Efficiency Standards (NVES) coming into effect on January 1 of this year, Mazda and other brands are now required to meet an average emissions target for their fleet of models sold in Australia or face financial penalties. However, the car industry has negotiated some leeway, with higher targets for 2025 and ‘26 and fines only applicable from July 1.The introduction of NVES is meant to push car makers to offer more fuel-efficient models to customers but with a clear incentive to offer electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid powertrains.Despite the government’s prerogative for more EVs, Mazda currently has now electric cars in its showrooms and no confirmed plans to re-introduce one in the immediate future. Instead the brand’s local boss, managing director Vinesh Bhindi, says customer preference will come first and the company will worry about complying with the NVES targets after.“ So, this efficiency standard, I suppose you can look at it from a couple of points of view,” Bhindi told CarsGuide. “One point-of-view is, do you comply to a standard? Or alternatively, which is where our position is, provide customers what they want. And that's where we're going to focus.“The compliance of the efficiency standard. Yes, we look at and yes, we map out our pathway on how in the end we have to reduce CO2 or carbon - that's the ultimate objective. Compliance off it is a pathway there. So our focus at this stage is the customer will decide what technology they want. The customer will decide how quickly they would like to move to a different technology and we would like to continue to provide what the customer wants.“Now there is a small but growing customer base as you have seen. It's stagnated a bit on battery EVs but there's a very clear trend on hybridization. We have in our portfolio plug-in hybrids, we have mid-hybrids, the next generation CX-5 will have full hybridization. So our plan is to continue to offer those technologies as the customer says ‘that's where I want to be.’ And we’ll have battery EVs as well, by the way.”While other brands have made a clear and early move towards EVs, the slowing sales growth has seemingly justified Mazda Australia’s position not to dive into that market. Asked if the cooling off of EV interest had justified Mazda’s approach, Bhindi dismissed the notion and pointed out many other brands were driven by EV-centric regulations in Europe and China - two smaller markets for the brand.“You remember some of these brands made decisions based on their home country requirements by regulation, mainly Europe, mainly China, where this technology is a lot more mandated, if I can say those words,” he said. “So they needed that technology for their customers in other regions.“We look at it from an Australian point-of-view. Yes, there's a small percentage of customers who are early adopters of new technology. And yes, we currently don't have an exact offering for them, but it's only a matter of time.”However, that doesn’t mean Mazda intends on ignoring the EV market and there are plans for more hybrids, plug-in hybrids and EVs by the end of the decade — even if Bhindi stopped short of confirming when Australians can expect these models.“ Without naming which models, which cars and exact timing, we will have multiple battery EVs before the end of 2030,” he revealed. “Earlier, but I can't tell you when we'll have next generation CX-5 with hybrid and much more in terms of hybridization and plug-in hybrid technologies between now and the end of the decade.”