Mazda B2000 Reviews

interested in Australia's most popular new vehicles? Here is a list ranking sales from from 1-100 between January 1 and June 30, 2024.

While electric cars and traditional hybrids have exploded in popularity, plug-in hybrids have remained a relatively niche alternative. By the middle of 2024, though, sales are up 130 per cent, from 3582 sales in 2023 to 8223 thanks to more models becoming available and improved vehicle supply. Driven by the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and new BYD Sealion 6, the plug-in hybrid landscape is only going to become more populous in the coming months, including when BYD launches the first PHEV ute to be sold in Australia. Plug-in hybrids offer a unique combination of electric mobility but without range anxiety. Their battery packs, typically between 10-20kWh in capacity, offer between 50-150km of electric-only range, matching early electric cars. There is the added benefit of a combustion engine that can kick in when you run out of battery. This means long distance road trips, like Sydney-Melbourne, require less charge stop planning than in a battery electric car. The technology is only improving, too. Manufacturers are fitting larger battery packs, more efficient motors and adding DC fast-charge capability to their plug-in hybrids. BYD is heavily invested, releasing its fifth-gen Dual Motor intelligence (DM-i) system in China with claims of 2100km total driving range and nearly 200km from the battery alone. It is not a perfect solution. Owners need to be diligent with charging to get anywhere close to the official fuel consumption ratings, typically below 3L/100km. Dragging the extra battery weight around often means similar fuel consumption to a petrol vehicle when out of charge, too. In its first month on sale, the new BYD Sealion 6 medium SUV notched up a healthy 482 registrations – it’ll be quick to challenge the established Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (2422) and Eclipse Cross PHEV (1482, both year-to-date).Following the mainstream nameplates come some more premium options, including the Mazda CX-60 (460 to end of May), Volvo XC60 (390), Cupra Formentor (313), MG HS Plus EV (307), Porsche Cayenne e-Hybrid (304), Audi Q5 (301), Lexus NX (175) and Mercedes-AMG C63 (163).Expect plug-in hybrid sales to easily reach beyond 15,000 this year. That’s still a long way off projected electric car (100,000) and hybrid (160,000) sales, but it is a big increase for the powertrain style. Also helping to drive sales are the current FBT exemptions for novated leasing on plug-in hybrid vehicles making them more attractive to buyers. This benefit will end on April 1, 2025. Hybrid hero Toyota sells a selection of plug-in hybrid models overseas, including the RAV4 and Prius Prime. Having committed to a 100 per cent hybrid or electric passenger car line-up (excluding GR) in Australia, Toyota may also join the fray. “As we evolve and battery technology evolves, there will be certain benefits that PHEV can offer that will also fit into those top three categories. Eventually, we'll have plug-in hybrids. What variants? We will have to decide,” Toyota Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations Sean Hanley told CarsGuide in May.

Mazda might be set to lose its long-held place as Australia’s second favourite automotive brand, but the company’s local brass isn’t too concerned.

Australia's ever-booming new car market has hit a bump in the road, with the June sales result recording the industry's first year-on-year decline in around 16 months.

Mazda Australia says it is not concerned its new large SUV strategy will confuse buyers, and believes the four new models will have their own distinct identity on dealer showroom floors.

If you think electric vehicles might be just a fad, like a Rubik’s Cube or a Livestrong bracelet, or even those Oakley stickers everyone had on their windscreens that said “Thermonuclear Protection”, we have news for you: EVs aren’t going anywhere. They’re going everywhere.

A traditional sports car is a lot like the barfly at your local pub - it consumes a hell of a lot more, and is a lot louder than pretty much anything within a one kilometre radius. 

We know the next-gen Mazda CX-5 is coming. What it will be called, its powertrain offering and underpinnings remain a mystery, though. 

One of the most affordable and popular seven-seat family SUVs available in Australia is about to be pulled from the market.

It’s easy to get swept up in the excitement of new-model releases. Lately, product cycles have been getting ever shorter with China in particular’s immense speed of design, development and production eschewing traditional carmakers' usual six, seven or eight-year model replacements.But that doesn’t mean everyone wants the latest and greatest and, in Australia, there remains a huge appetite for familiar nameplates like the Mazda CX-3, MG3 and Nissan Patrol despite fresher models being available in the same class. In fact, until this year, the now nine-year-old Toyota HiLux has dominated sales charts. It’s taken the ‘T6.2’ Ford Ranger over a year to usurp Toyota’s ute despite its much newer cabin, more powerful engines and fresher tech. Even still, the Ranger held a slim 210 sale margin over the HiLux in May. It’s a little easier to imagine how ute buyers – those after a dependable, rugged vehicle with less concern for the latest and greatest – might be less interested in buying the newest model.Though the media expected the CX-30 to become Mazda’s new entry-level SUV, the plan all along was to sell them side by side. At 10 years old, the CX-3 is no spring chicken any more yet with 1300 sales in may it remains firmly ahead of the Yaris Cross and Hyundai Venue in the light SUV class. It is, amazingly, still more popular than the CX-30 (1010 sales in May) as well. Entry-level Pure leads the way as a first-car option that is bigger than a Mazda2 but not unwieldy. Safety features like AEB and collision warning feature and the CX-3 is a known quantity for both reliability and parts availability. MG is finally replacing the MG3 as it celebrates its 13th year on sale – such age is very rare in cars from China. In its final 31 days in dealerships as a ‘new’ model, 1077 MG3s were registered. This puts it leagues ahead of the Mazda2 and Toyota Yaris. The same vintage Mitsubishi ASX may not be quite as popular as a CX-3 (842 sales in May) though like the others in this list, the ASX is having a bumper year of over 5000 sales – up nearly 30 per cent on 2023. Nissan sold 622 Patrol off-roaders last month for 3274 year-to-date. That may be less than half of Toyota’s LandCruiser 300 Series volume but when you consider the basic design is 14 years old (and therefore cost is long since amortised), Nissan is doing very well. Like ASX, the Patrol’s sales are up for 2024 as well, by an impressive 46.3 per cent. Put that down to demand for the new rough-and-tumble Warrior model. We couldn’t write this article and ignore the oldest car on sale today in Australia. Celebrating its 40th year in production and continuing to sell incredibly is the 70 Series LandCruiser range. An iconic vehicle for Australians who buy more of these things than any other nation – mining fleet is a huge part but a renewed popularity with the off-road crowd helps, too.Toyota’s old fourby may not get another ANCAP test any time soon but the new four-cylinder turbo-diesel will extend its sales life further as emissions regulations take hold. There were 1096 sales of the LandCruiser 70 Series in May for a total of 5030 this year, not including Troop Carrier body styles. Its enduring popularity is unlikely to end soon, either, with the new downsized diesel carrying the ageing Toyota into its next decade of sales.