Coupe News

A big change is coming for one of the most iconic sports cars in the world, with the next generation of Mazda’s convertible to go electric.Masahiro Moro, CEO of Mazda, has confirmed the fifth generation of the Mazda MX-5 must be able to forgo a combustion engine in order to be viable."The successor must also be ready for a scenario without a combustion engine,” the CEO told German outlet Auto Motor und Sport.The surprise confirmation raises one of the biggest questions regularly asked in regards to electric sports cars: what about the weight?Moro says the goal weight is between 1000kg and 1200kg. That would keep it close to the low weight of the current ND MX-5, which weighs around 1100kg, depending on the variant.“The challenge for us is to make the basic structure lighter without using exotic materials like carbon fiber.”Earlier this year Mazda’s General Manager of Global Sales and Marketing, Manabu Osuga, told CarsGuide electrification was unlikely for the fifth-generation MX-5.“At the moment, electric is going the opposite direction of fulfilling the MX-5’s (core) concept, as it needs to remain a lightweight sportscar, and electric means heavier,” he told CarsGuide in Melbourne.“We want to make the weight less than one tonne before additional equipment, then with additional equipment 1.1-tonne, but we don’t want it to exceed 1.2-tonne (in total) if it is to be a lightweight sportscar.”European outlets report similar statements from executives, with Christian Schultze, Director of Research & Operations at Mazda Motor Europe telling Dutch publication AutoRAI in February the same thing.“The moment you go fully electric, you fundamentally change the car’s architecture. That means different proportions, a different weight, and a different balance,” he said.An electric version of the fifth-gen MX-5 - which we expect to follow the generational NA, NB, NC and ND names of the first four - is coming, but it won’t be the only drivetrain available.Earlier this year, Mazda also announced the MX-5 would use the upcoming Skyactiv-Z engine, a 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine with hybrid capability.A mild-hybrid would more easily allow Mazda to equip the MX-5 with a manual gearbox, as heavier electrification complicates the system and automatic transmissions become preferred.We won’t see the fifth-gen MX-5 until at least next year, for a launch likely sometime in 2028.

Nissan’s snappy sports car has been updated and will now be available in sought-after Nismo form with a six-speed manual transmission in Australia.The Nissan Z Nismo is the higher-performance grade of the brand's rear-wheel drive coupe.The new manual Z Nismo will be priced from $95,000, before on-road costs, making it a near $20,000 jump over the standard Z manual.Nissan’s announcement also confirms the automatic Z Nismo is just less than a $1000 more expensive as part of this update, starting at the same $95,000 price tag.Meanwhile, the standard Z coupe starts from $76,800, which is $640 more than it was before. The updated Z range will be available for order from this month, with deliveries beginning in September.It competes in the hotly contested sports car segment against the likes of the Ford Mustang (from $72,990).The Mustang remains the dominant player of the segment, with the Nissan Z trailing its competitors currently.The Z Nismo continues to be powered by a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 engine, producing 309kW and 520Nm, representing an 11kW and 45Nm increase over the standard car. The Z has also received some tweaks as part of the updated range.There are new two-piece front brake rotors, resulting in a 9kg weight reduction. A redesigned front bumper adds 30mm to the car’s length to reduce front lift by 3.3 per cent and drag by 1.0 per cent. There is also a new wireless phone charger standard across all variants, along with a frameless auto-dimming rear view mirror.The new Z range was first revealed at the start of January as part of global preview even at the 2026 Toyota Auto Salon.The car went on sale in Japan recently, ahead of its arrival on Aussie shores. 2027 Nissan Z pricing (before on-road costs - manual a no-cost option)

A new performance electric car is coming soon.The Geely Galaxy TT has opened for pre-sale in China, and will be the latest four-door electric sports coupe to hit showrooms.Coupe-style sports cars out of China are surging in popularity as cheaper alternatives to the Porsche Taycan and Audi e-Tron GT off the back of the smash-hit success of the Xiaomi SU7.The Geely Galaxy TT has a front-mounted 180kW motor and a rear-mounted 245kW motor that combine for a total of 425kW.It has a one-button boost mechanism that offers an increased power output for up to 20 seconds. The Galaxy TT can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 3.8 seconds, and has a top speed of 210km/h. It is equipped with a 75kWh lithium-iron-phosphate battery that has a 650km driving range, according to more generous CLTC standards. The car rides on an 800-volt platform, meaning it can DC fast charge from 10 to 80 per cent in less than 12 minutes. It measures up at 4999mm long, 1919mm wide, 1479mm high, with a wheelbase of  2920mm, so it is a little bigger than a Toyota Camry. The exterior is similar to many of its rivals, showing off a sleek body shape and frameless windows. It comes with 19-inch wheels as standard. The TT’s interior features a 15.4-inch central touchscreen and 10.2-inch digital driver display, along with a 25.6-inch panoramic head-up display. It also includes is also a 50W wireless phone charger and 23-speaker sound system. The Galaxy TT will be a direct competitor to the seriously popular Xiaomi SU7 which sold its first 15,000 units in roughly half an hour earlier this year.The Denza Z9 S electric sedan will provide further competition, with its wagon variant due in Australia before the end of the year. The Galaxy TT is not in Geely’s Australia schedule in the short term, but the brand has demonstrated a methodical approach to introducing models rather than the explosive range expansions of some of its rivals.The TT is priced from 200,000 yuan in China, which is roughly A$42,000. Most Chinese cars carry a roughly 20 per cent premium by the time they arrive in Australia in right-hand drive, making a potential local price somewhere just north of $50,000.This would make it slightly more affordable than the Zeekr 7GT and significantly more affordable than the Denza Z9.The Xiaomi SU7 which it is seemingly designed to target is not headed to Australia in the short term, with the Chinese tech company overwhelmed by demand in its home market.

Recently, a realisation from behind the wheel of the current generation of a widely beloved rear-drive two-door coupe raised a question for me.Are sports cars doomed? The question came as I realised that because of the development of the car I was driving, the 2026 Nissan Z (specifically the Heritage Edition), underneath was essentially a Nissan 350Z that had been given enough surgery to be relevant in two decades later.But the last of the ancient platforms won’t be around for much longer, surely, and the cars built on them are, at least in two cases, some of the most-loved sports cars around.The other is the Ford Mustang, which rides on a platform closely related to one older than you might think.Back to the Z for a moment, because the platform it rides on comes from so far back that I was just getting into primary school when it debuted. The 2002 Nissan 350Z was released when I was in grade 2, about a decade and a half ago, when I was only allowed behind the wheel of one if it was on Need for Speed: Underground 2.Nissan recently celebrated 35 years of its Infiniti sub-brand, which kicked off with the G35 Coupe - a sibling car to the V35 Nissan Skyline - and gave the Front Midship (FM) Platform its flowers.The aim was to get a V6 nestled in just behind the front axle, which resulted in a 52:48 front/rear weight distribution. Slightly more weight over the front was a deliberate choice, according to the engineers.The FM platform would go on to carry the Z33 350Z to cultural relevance in the aforementioned Underground 2 and Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift, before the Z34 370Z came along with a heavily updated version of the platform in 2009 and hung around for 12 years. The FM was just about old enough to vote in Australia when the 370Z was discontinued.The RZ34 is already coming up on four years old, and its platform is 20 years older than that.Even though its chassis feels heavy for something carrying a two-door coupe, it’s not alone in the world of heavy hybrid and electric ‘sports cars’, but it retains a level of engagement and trust in the driver that doesn’t rely on tricks and electronics.If Nissan built another platform for the Z, not only would it have possibly sent the company bankrupt, it might have lost some of its magic.Nissan’s FM platform is not alone in this. In fact, even though Ford probably could afford to create a new Mustang platform, you could argue the platform it rides on is even older than the Z’s. Depends who you ask. While Ford says the S550 Mustang is built on a ‘ground-up’ platform developed just for the Mustang in 2015, it’s to some extent based on the existing D2C platform that the Mustang rode on since 2004, itself an evolution of the DEW98 platform used from the late 1990s.While the Mustang’s platform is now different in a few key areas, including the addition of independent rear suspension for the S550 generation onwards, it’s still related to that of the early 2000s.And it’s still quite capable and really, really fun, just like the Nissan Z.I point all of this out because I’m a little worried about what happens to the other, even more affordable sports cars when it’s time for their next generations. Will the Mazda MX-5 or Toyota GR86 (and Subaru BRZ) hold onto their platforms until it’s no longer possible to release a car on them?We’re going to be waiting until after 2030 for a new Nissan Z according to Nissan Americas’ Senior Vice President Chief Product & Planning Officer Ponz Pandikuthira, though given he says the next GT-R will ride on a new platform the FM Platform might also be outta here.A new Ford Mustang won’t be around until a similar time, though Ford CEO Jim Farley has notably said the V8 would stick around “as long as God and the politicians let us”. The platform might need some more work by then if the brand intends to electrify the pony car, though it won’t go full-EV if Ford can avoid it.If you’re anything like me, you’d probably be okay with the next generations of each of these cars riding on a very similar platform to their predecessors.Of course evolution needs to take place, otherwise the Mustang would still have a solid rear axle and the likes of ANCAP would have thoughts about that.The current Mazda MX-5 and Toyota GR86 are two properly affordable sports cars, and if keeping them within reach of most people means a new generation on the same highly acclaimed platforms as before, I’d be all for it.

Mercedes-AMG has made the bold decision to remove the internal combustion engine from its CLA45 coupe-style compact performance car and replace it with a trio of electric motors derived from those found in the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-door Coupé.Boasting 500kW/1759Nm and 0-100km/h acceleration in a blistering 2.7 seconds, the new CLA45 4Matic+ is powered by two axial flux motors on the rear axle and one on the front with adaptive suspension and active aero standard across sedan and Shooting Brake (wagon) variants.The obvious elephant in the room is engine noise, or by definition, the lack of it, with prior iterations of AMG 45 models known and loved by owners for their rasping engine sound and throaty exhaust note.Mercedes-AMG believes it has that significant base covered with the AMGForce S+ setting.Positioning it as “combustion engine emotion at the touch of a finger”, the engineering boffins in Affalterbach say this driving mode “delivers an authentic, AMG typical combustion engine experience with the characteristic sound of a high-performance AMG four-cylinder engine.”“Coupled with a haptic, immersive experience, including interruption of traction during simulated gear changes, the result is a driving experience that makes performance intensely tangible,” the car’s launch statement said.Which sounds similar to Hyundai’s N e-Shift system that virtually simulates an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission in its Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 N models.Mercedes-AMG is at pains to point out “the sound of an original Mercedes-AMG A 45 S four-cylinder engine was meticulously documented using 13 microphones positioned in different locations recording more than 1600 detailed measurements, inside and outside.”The AMG Dynamic+ track-focused package is onboard as is AMG Track Pace which is claimed to “turn every visit to the racetrack into a professional training session.”In terms of day-to-day practicality an 800-volt architecture allows fast-charging of the 94kW lithium-ion battery at up to 330kW (22kW AC) and claimed range is over 670 or 640 kilometres (WLTP) depending on the model. Combined cycle (urban/extra-urban) energy consumption is between 18.7 and 16.5kWh/100km, again depending on model.Active aero includes a rear spoiler on the sedan and roof-edge unit on the wagon. In Eco, Comfort and Sport driving modes, the speed threshold for their activation is 145km/h, while in the AMGForce S+ and Race settings they raise immediately.Standard rims in Germany are 19-inch shod with 245/40 Z-rated rubber at the front and 265/40 at the rear. It’s likely Aussie versions will come with the optional 20s wearing fatter  255/35 and 275/35 tyres.Inside there are four seats only and the latest-gen MBUX multimedia operating system is included. Standard upholstery combines synthetic leather and synthetic microfibre with genuine leather and AMG Performance seats available.Mercedes-Benz Australia told CarsGuide the new CLA45 is set to arrive here in the first half of 2027 with the Sheeting Brake "under consideration" for local sale.For reference, the now superseded 310kW/500Nm internal-combustion CLA45 AMG 4Matic+ was priced at $126,500, before on-road costs.

Hyundai’s Chinese joint-venture has revealed more details on its upcoming Ioniq V coupe as it nears its overseas launch.The new member of the Ioniq family moves the brand in a new design direction, but with the same retro-futuristic vibe found with the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 SUVs which are sold in Australia.The wedge-shaped coupe features a new headlight signature, with thin strip-style LEDs rather than the blocky pixel LED light fittings the Ioniq brand is known for. Interestingly, these styling motifs are also seen on the upcoming Avante (likely to be called the i30 sedan in Australia), suggesting a new design direction for Hyundai.The Ioniq V also features frameless doors, and an interior that's virtually unrecognisable for a Hyundai, with a dramatic and minimalist dash and new octagonal steering wheel. Like the recently launched Elexio, which is also a Chinese-built joint-venture model, the Ioniq V features a multimedia screen spanning both the centre and passenger side.In this case it's a whopping 27 inches and has a 4K resolution. It also features a head-up display sunken into the dash, similar to the one perched atop the dash in the Elexio.The brand also revealed the car’s exterior colour palette, which will include seven colours, from the usual white, silver, grey, and black, to more adventurous shades like gold, green and purple.The company also confirmed it will use an array of local suppliers in China, like sourcing its 800-volt battery from CATL, its self-driving system from Momenta, and various software and hardware components from other Chinese companies.At 4900mm long, 1890mm wide, and 1470mm tall the Ioniq V is similar in size and four-door coupe design to the Polestar 4. Hyundai says its design allows for an 86 per cent usable floor area ratio.Hyundai Australia told CarsGuide the incoming Ioniq V is “under study” for the time being. It is likely it will be significantly more affordable than the outgoing Ioniq 6 (which started from $67,300 before on-roads), which could help the company comply with tough new emissions rules as some of its pricier Korean-sourced models struggle for sales in the face of cheaper options flooding the market from China.The Elexio, Hyundai’s first China-sourced model for Australia (priced from $58,990 before on-roads), has gone on to register 639 units since its recent arrival, nearly tripling the tally of the more expensive Ioniq 5’s year-to-date sales.The next Ioniq model for Australia will no doubt be the Ioniq 3, although it will be sourced from Europe, casting doubt on whether it will be price competitive with Chinese rivals.Hyundai’s renewed push into the Chinese market with its BAIC partner (which has had $1.1 billion USD invested in it) will also spawn a larger and also more dramatically styled SUV to join the Ioniq V at a later date, with 20 new models planned in total.The company has racked up 94,697 units in China so far in 2026, making it a minor but growing player in the world’s second largest market.Expect full specs and more information for the Ioniq V to be revealed closer to its launch later this year in China.

Hyundai's premium brand Genesis has detailed its plan to supercharge sales, with the group's local CEO suggesting deliveries could more than triple under a new strategy.Genesis launched in Australia under a direct model, in which the brand itself held the limited retail spaces (just one store each in a handful of capital cities) and sold the vehicles direct to customers without enlisting a dealership network.New Hyundia Group president and CEO Don Romano has previously labelled the strategy a "distraction", and vowed to return to a more traditional national network of dealer locations he refers to as agencies.Now Romano has forecasted the results it could deliver, telling CarsGuide 500 sales a month was a possible target, which would mean annual sales of 6000. Last year, the brand managef 1602 total deliveries."We're moving from a direct model to an agency model," Romano says."We've opened two stores that are operational right now, and we're opening a third hopefully next week. A fourth, we're just finalising the design plans."It is the direction that we're going to head in. It doesn't mean we're not going to keep the direct stores, because we invested all that money and they're in certain strategic locations, so we're still kind of working both at the same time."We could continue to do that, or we could convert those stores to dealer (owned), it simply depends on the development of the brand and the rate it develops. But right now the main focus is just to expand through the country with agencies owned by dealers."Even now, with five stores operational, Mr Romano says Genesis is massively underrepresented in Australia, which is hampering the brand's advertising spend that he describes as "wasting money" given the current location penetration."I think right now we're a niche brand. We're not advertising or promoting because we don't have the coverage necessary to be able to go out and tell the story," he says. "With five stores across a country of this size, it makes no sense. So we just need to go on the path we're on right now. But we don't want to force it because it's Genesis, not a mass-market brand, so it's best that we get the right dealers in the right place at the right time and if it takes two to three years longer that's fine."For us to take that next leap we've got to tell the story, and to tell the story, we have the resources to do it, but I'd be wasting money, because if you're for instance in Adelaide it means nothing to you because there's no representation. If you're in parts of Sydney, parts of Melbourne, parts of Perth, we just don't have the proper coverage to service the customers."Genesis has always been loath to talk about sales targets, instead referring to customer loyalty as a target, but Mr Romano says that, once the network is in place, monthly sales of at least 500 would be a viable goal.Hitting it would at last put Genesis on the premium-brand map, though one with plenty of work still to do to catch its closest legacy competitor in terms of sales, Lexus, which is managing around 1000 sales per month at the moment. It would also be well-timed to take advantage of the brand's new performance focus under its Magm Magma performance division."I'm not as focused on the volume growth as I am on the loyalty and the customer service ratings to get the word of mouth to help get the exposure, but I would say...double and triple would be the minimum if we had full coverage," he says. "Because right now we're doing 150 a month, so we should be able to do 500 absolutely, but probably way down the road when it's done organically and not done with incentives and prices and dumping vehicles and demos – I don't want to get near that."

Geely has detailed its upcoming TT halo four-door sports coupe.Sharing its name with a famous Audi, the Geely TT is instead a fully electric sports coupe with a similar layout to the Porsche Taycan or Audi e-Tron GT.Measuring nearly five meters long and featuring an 800-volt electric platform, the TT is available in either rear-wheel drive form with 245kW or all-wheel drive from nearly doubling power to 425kW.Three battery sizes will be available, according to previous data filings with the Chinese government, including a base 52.4kWh version, a 63.8kWh version and a 75.2kWh version with driving range up to 725km according to the more lenient CLTC scale.The Galaxy TT is part of a new halo range of Geely models from its Galaxy sub-brand, which incorporate new design elements for the brand, alongside the incoming and much-hyped Galaxy Cruiser off-roader.Geely has also now revealed the TT’s interior, which has significant crossover with its Zeekr premium arm, including a familiar dash layout, digital instrument cluster, and steering wheel design to vehicles like the Zeekr 7GT.It also features Geely’s new in-house Flyme Auto 2 software for its large central touchscreen unit, and like other cars in this class has a giant fixed glass roof and active spoiler piece at the rear.It even has a 110-litre frunk and a 5.2-litre refrigerated or heated drawer under the centre console, which itself shares a split-console feature and sunken cupholders similar to those which appear in Zeekr models.While the TT moves Geely’s Galaxy sedan range in a new performance direction and features a lot of premium Zeekr hardware, Chinese media is speculating that it will be more affordable than its direct rivals, which include the overwhelmingly popular Xiaomi SU7, which was the original Chinese four-door sports coupe success story, and the new Chinese-market MG07 which follows a similar format.Both the Geely and the MG are chasing the success of the Xiaomi which set Chinese sales charts on fire and was celebrated by global Ford boss Jim Farley who imported one to the US to personally drive as “fantastic”.CarsGuide understands the Geely TT isn’t currently on the schedule for an Australian launch, but isn’t ruled out for a future arrival either as the company rapidly expands its sales footprint Down Under.Its EX5 mid-size electric SUV has quietly become one of the best-selling electric cars in Australia, and the Starray EM-i plug-in hybrid spin-off is also one of the best-selling plug-ins.The company will next launch its fully electric EX2 hatchback, which has garnered lots of interest in the lead-up to its arrival. Geely will also launch both the Camry-rivalling Emgrand hybrid sedan and an unnamed three-row SUV in 2027.Geely's Zeekr premium arm has also been a resounding success in 2026, with its smash-hit 7X mid-size electric SUV outselling its primary rivals and causing a renewed surge of interest in both the updated X small SUV and incoming 8X plug-in hybrid large SUV.

Toyota has too many models? The company’s new global boss seems to think so, and he is sharpening his axe in his hunt to save money. Why is this happening? Which models doesn’t Toyota need?Toyota is the world’s biggest car manufacturer and has been for the past six years running. In 2025 Toyota sold 11.2 million vehicles across its three brands - Toyota, Lexus and Daihatsu.That global dominance is replicated in Australia where Toyota has been the biggest selling car brand for 23 consecutive years.So, you’d think it was doing everything right. And why on Earth would you change anything?Toyota’s Kenta Kon became the new global CEO of the company on June 17, and has hit the ground running as he looks for what could be done better, while he hasn’t mentioned any models by name he’s made it clear there will be cuts.In an interview with Automotive News, Kon said he was touring facilities looking for inefficiencies. It’s enough to send a chill down even the most hard working employee’s spine.“We’ve become increasingly able to identify things that don’t seem quite right, areas where operations have become somewhat inefficient, or where the amount of work that doesn’t directly add value has increased,” Kon told Automotive News.“We’re now at the stage where we can really start addressing them – making corrections and implementing improvements.“If you go to a development division, you see issues such as an increasing number of different specifications and variants being created, which in turn is driving up costs.”Carmakers, as many companies do, often go through a streamlining process where they prune back on activities deemed superfluous in a bid to save money.This cutting back is already happening. The fully electric Lexus LF ZC was axed before it even went into production, just before Kon succeeded Koji Sato as President and CEO. Before the promotion Kon was Toyota’s Chief Financial Officer.Mr Sato is a “self confessed” car guy - a mechanical engineer by trade and a performance car enthusiast. Mr Kon calls himself a “numbers guy”.According to Toyota’s Financial Year 2026 summary, the company sold 2.5 per cent more cars and sales revenue was up by 5.5 per cent, but the operating profit fell by 7.3 per cent.Add to this the billions lost from the bottom line caused by tariffs imposed by the United States, a massive loss in sales in China (a 31 per cent drop in May this year alone), a conflict in the Middle East putting pressure on fuel prices and the sudden huge popularity in Chinese electric vehicles, and even the biggest car girl or guy can see the need to cut back on spending.The axing of the LF ZC is interesting and it happened just as Kon was moving into his new office. This was to be an electric successor to the IS sedan, but perhaps being a sedan was the reason it was axed. SUVs being where the money is these days and all that.In a time when sales are being stolen from right under mainstream brand’s noses by affordable, high-tech and good looking vehicles made by Chinese manufacturers, surely EVs aren’t the models Toyota should be axing?But then Toyota’s EVs haven’t really taken the world by storm. One of the brand’s worst selling cars is the C-HR SUV and the electric version, which recently arrived has done nothing to help sales anywhere globally for Toyota.Toyota’s other electric SUVs, such as the bZ4X, haven’t been major hits either. Toyota’s focus doesn’t appear to be EVs for now. Instead, hybrids are bringing in the money for Toyota.The axing of the LF ZC was also only just one model, but it's a good indication of how Toyota is now in a phase of conservative growth and not willing to take risks.That's not to say the brand won’t make EVs, of course it will, but rather than sedans like the LF ZC they’ll be electric SUVs.Currently Toyota has 23 models in its Australian range. The worst performers are the Yaris, C-HR and GR86, all with less than 1000 sales so far this year.Which models will Toyota axe next? Most likely the C-HR first. This SUV, while great to drive, isn’t selling well here and around the world - even the fully electric version.What about the bZ4X? That’s actually selling well in Australia and globally even if it had a bumpy start with recalls and a battery that didn’t offer enough driving range in the first iteration. Toyota has sold 1526 of them this year. That’s more than the 1340 combined sales of closely priced Volkswagen ID. 4 and its ID. 5 coupe twins.But when you compare that to its Zeekr 7X rival, with 3664 sales for the same period, then you begin to see that EVs are currently really just a side hustle for mainstream brands that make nearly all their income from traditional models.Does it annoy Toyota that it’s not the go-to for EVs when it has been for ICE cars for decades? I’d say it does, a lot. Even if Toyota would tell you it doesn’t and say that it's all about having models for every body - the multipathway powertrain approach is the marketing phrase it uses.Toyota may even feel that it exerts such a colossal influence over people’s purchasing habits that customers will continue to buy what the brand’s range offers. The company may just think that “until we make and sell it, people won’t buy it”.Yes, it’ll lose a relatively tiny amount of sales to BYD, Zeekr and other Chinese rivals but it’ll stay its course and bring in electric versions of its successful models.In the meantime, for Toyota you can probably forget design studies like the LF ZC or wild reborn models such as the Celica or MR2. The Toyota 86 as we know it is also on borrowed time.Yep, if you thought Toyota was boring now… you ain’t seen nothing yet.

Fifty years ago, on July 1, 1976, the worst new Holden up to that point was released, the HX series. And everything changed.Not coincidentally, it was also the date that all new internal combustion engine vehicles except those under 850cc in capacity or with liquid petroleum gas had to comply with stricter emissions standards known as Australian Design Rule 27A (ADR27A).This law proved to be a nightmare for parent company General Motors-Holden’s (GMH) Ltd.With fuel consumption up, power down and prices jumping to cover the extra technology necessary to meet the new regulations over the preceding HJ series, Holden’s engineers struggled to make its 1960s-era engines cope with the required updates in what was the country’s best-selling car line since the early 1950s.Critics and road testers alike savaged the HX as a result, accusing Holden of being cynical and out of touch, though it managed to hang on to the top spot for 1976.“Perhaps we would be better off with dirty engines and improved driveability,” quipped Wheels magazine editor Peter Robinson.Unfortunately for GMH, three unexpected things also happened right around that time that led to fundamental shifts in consumer tastes.Firstly, Japan was ready to launch its next phase of world-beating passenger cars that could easily meet ADR27A, headed by the original Honda Accord that almost single-handedly elevated that country’s entire industry overnight.Others followed in its footsteps, including the Mazda 323 and Datsun Skyline.Yet it was the shock success of the Chrysler Sigma, supplied by Mitsubishi, that became GMH's second big setback, shooting up the charts to a podium finish soon after its 1977 launch, and stayed there for half a decade.The Sigma lured many former and would-be Holden owners away in droves, particularly from the brand's waning Torana and Sunbird models it competed directly against, and even cannibalised Chrysler’s own Valiant in the process. Sigma was an automotive phenomenon that led directly to the iconic Australian-developed Magna later on.And last but not least, arch-rival Ford, which had been nipping at the Holden’s heels with the Falcon since the XB Falcon snatched number one for just one month in late 1973, had pulled out all stops in making the succeeding XC series demonstrably superior. GMH certainly wasn't expecting that.While the change from HJ to HX was little more than a fussier grille, revised instrumentation and several other, mostly minor, alterations, Ford expensively reengineered its engines to make them better than before, not worse. And it also redesigned the Falcon's nose, tail, back doors and dashboard, for a far-fresher look and feel.Plus, the XC launched the Fairmont GXL sports/luxury flagship. In the spirit of the legendary Falcon GTs, contemporary reviewers declared it as one of the greatest Australian-made family cars to date.In stark contrast to the basting the HX endured, XC sales flourished, with the Falcon becoming Australia’s best-selling car in 1977, period – an achievement it managed again from 1981 through to 1989, signalling the start of Ford Australia’s halcyon days.Half a century after the HX’s painful birth, perspective shows us a company grappling to deal fast enough with rapid change – something that Holden would pay the ultimate price for by 2020.Yet, to GMH’s credit, the more-comprehensively changed HZ series that followed in October, 1977, addressed most of the HX’s issues, whilst leap-frogging the Falcon in both sales as well as a driver’s car, thanks to chassis tweaks marketed to great effect using a tagline borrowed from Pontiac in the US called Radial Tuned Suspension.A stunning turnaround, it restored the Holden to the top spot for 1978, in time for the smaller, Opel-based VB Commodore to turn the market on its ear leading into the 1980s.A brief hiccup then largely due to ADR27A, a total of 110,669 HXs were built. And though the series has long lived in the shadow of the massively popular HQ/HJ models before it and the beloved HZ afterwards, 50 years later, its appeal is palpable. Who wouldn't have one?As a colourful piece of Australian motoring history, recognition is deserved. If nothing else, the garish Monaro LE two-door coupe runout edition remains one of the most 1970s things ever to happen in local motoring folklore!And it was the first Holden that actively attempted to minimise its emissions impact. That’s got to be worth celebrating. Happy 50 birthday, Holden HX!