Articles by Tim Nicholson

Apple-loving Geely drivers rejoice! Your Geely EX5 electric SUV now has Apple CarPlay.

One of Australia’s most popular SUVs is gearing up for a new-generation changeover in the next 12 months, and now we have an idea of what it might look like.

The rugged Warrior version of Nissan’s next-generation Y63 Patrol has been previewed via the Infiniti QX80 Terrain Spec concept at Monterey Car Week over the weekend.

Honda's hybrid car plan to ride emissions law wave

Budget Korean 4x4s get major upgrades

Jeep has cut the price of its outgoing plug-in hybrid Grand Cherokee 4xe by tens of thousands of dollars as the carmaker clears old stock dating back two years.

Honda could add a cheaper, smaller model to sit under the HR-V as part of its plans for growth in Australia.

It’s been a favourite of growing families for a couple for decades but the Volvo XC90 has just had its life extended. A significant late-life update has arrived in Australia, headlined by a plug-in hybrid version, but is the big seven-seat Volvo still the king of the private school drop-off brigade?

The Nissan Patrol has copped its second price increase in four months, with the company blaming Australia’s new emissions laws, among other factors.Each grade of the Patrol has gone up by $5000, meaning the line-up now kicks off from $95,600 before on-road costs for the Ti, increasing to $107,100 for the Ti-L and topped by the tricked-out Warrior at $110,660.The updated version of the Y62 Patrol went on sale in April this year with Nissan increasing the price marginally over the pre-update version. The entry grade Ti increased in price by $1340 with the other two grades only up by $140 apiece.The Japanese carmaker has outlined the reasons for the price hike and one of the key factors is the Federal Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES)“There is a price increase across the Patrol range effective August 1st, 2025. A range of factors contribute to the pricing of a vehicle including cost of raw materials, logistics, foreign exchange rates, market dynamics and regulatory considerations such as NVES,” a company statement read.NVES punishes carmakers $100 for every gram of CO2 emitted over a certain threshold for every vehicle sold. The threshold lowers every year until 2030. Carmakers can offset the penalties with sales of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and electric cars.Nissan is an electric vehicle pioneer, but it does not currently offer an EV in its line-up. The long-running Leaf ended production last year and stock has since dried up.However, the Ariya mid-size SUV is finally about to arrive in Australian dealerships in September after years of ‘will they or won’t they?’ from Nissan Australia.The Ariya was revealed in production guise back in 2020 but the COVID pandemic pushed back its on-sale date in Japan to 2022.The Patrol is one of Nissan’s best-selling models, with 4287 units shifted to the end of July this year. It’s only outsold by the X-Trail and Navara in Nissan’s line-up.The massive seven-seat SUV rode a wave of interest in off-roaders with towing capability that reignited during the pandemic when people were forced to holiday at home due to border closures.The V8-powered Patrol is one of the highest emitting vehicles on sale in Australia when it comes to CO2. The Federal Government’s Green Vehicle Guide says the Patrol has a combined emissions figure of 334g/km. Official fuel consumption on the combined cycle is 14.4 litres per 100km.In comparison, the V6-powered Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series emits 235g/km - still deemed ‘worse than average’ by the government - and consumes 8.9L/100km.The LandCrusier is still more expensive than the Patrol, kicking off from $97,990 for the GX and topping out at $146,910 for the Sahara ZX.A new Patrol, the Y63, is set to arrive in Australia late in 2026 and it drops the V8 in favour of a more economical twin-turbo V6. 

Honda will ramp up its model offering in Australia after a lean few years in a bid to grow its presence Down Under and fend off new and old rivals alike.