Articles by Stephen Ottley

Stephen Ottley

Contributing Journalist

Steve has been obsessed with all things automotive for as long as he can remember. Literally, his earliest memory is of a car. Having amassed an enviable Hot Wheels and Matchbox collection as a kid he moved into the world of real cars with an Alfa Romeo Alfasud.

Despite that questionable history he carved a successful career for himself, firstly covering motorsport for Auto Action magazine before eventually moving into the automotive publishing world with CarsGuide in 2008. Since then he's worked for every major outlet, having work published in The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Drive.com.au, Street Machine, V8X and F1 Racing.

These days he still loves cars as much as he did as a kid and has an Alfa Romeo Alfasud in the garage (but not the same one as before... that's a long story).

Can V8 Supercars survive without Ford?

By Stephen Ottley · 01 Aug 2023

V8 Supercars is risking driving Ford out of the sport and in doing so bringing the future of the racing category into question.

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Why the Ford Mustang has out-lived its rivals

By Stephen Ottley · 31 Jul 2023

Ford admits it’s unlikely to lure disgruntled Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger buyers, even though its new-generation Mustang is the final V8-powered muscle car available in the world.

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How Honda wants to take on the Toyota RAV4

By Stephen Ottley · 30 Jul 2023

Honda has revealed that demand for its all-new ZR-V e:HEV is so great that the order books are full until December for the range-topping model. Which is why the Japanese brand is already planning an expanded hybrid line-up.

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Is the EV race over before it really began?

By Stephen Ottley · 30 Jul 2023

Is the electric vehicle race over before it’s truly begun? That certainly looks to be the case if you dive into the sales data for the first six months of 2023, with Tesla so far ahead of the competition it’s hard to see the catching up anytime in the near future.

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Ford's wild new Mustang revealed

By Stephen Ottley · 28 Jul 2023

If you want to feel like a V8 Supercar driver but don’t have the budget or connections to buy one of the racing cars, don’t worry because Ford has the answer. The Blue Oval has bridged the gap between its racing-spec Supercar and the new road-legal Mustang with the reveal of the Dark Horse R.

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How to design an electric car

By Stephen Ottley · 27 Jul 2023

The transition to electric powertrains has provided the biggest opportunity for change since the invention of the automobile. Designers and engineers are no longer restricted by the demands of an internal combustion engine and instead have more freedom to create fresh looks and more spacious cars.

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Bentley Continental GTC 2023 review: S

By Stephen Ottley · 26 Jul 2023

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the Bentley Continental GT has become an iconic member of the British brand’s line-up. We take a spin in the latest iteration to see how this luxury grand tourer is ageing.

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Honda finally finds large SUV answer

By Stephen Ottley · 23 Jul 2023

The imminent arrival of the new-generation Honda CR-V will finally fill in the biggest gap in the Japanese brand’s line-up.

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Honda ZR-V 2023 review

By Stephen Ottley · 18 Jul 2023

It's the first all-new nameplate for Honda in two decades so the ZR-V has a lot of pressure and expectations riding on it. It gives the brand a new SUV, slotting between the compact HR-V and the growing CR-V but that puts it into the same contest as the popular Hyundai Kona, Mazda CX-5 and Toyota Corolla Cross.

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Can Alfa Romeo be Italy's Tesla?

By Stephen Ottley · 18 Jul 2023

Alfa Romeo will reinvent itself - again - to become an all-electric rival to Tesla by the end of the decade.

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