Ute News

There’s nothing like the floor of a motor show for catching senior automotive executives with their guard down.

GWM is continuing its march as a top-ten car brand in Australia, with the Chinese automaker announcing key upgrades for its most popular ute.

Australia finally has vehicle emissions regulations, but what does that mean for new car buyers?

The car industry is based on constant model renewal. Cycles have been getting shorter and shorter, with the main industry settling on between six and eight years as the norm. 

RAM’s 2500 and 3500 Heavy Duty full-sized pick up trucks have been given an update, bringing more safety features, better in-car tech and an overhauled powerplant that now produces almost 1500Nm.

BYD is the new Goliath in the car industry. The Chinese giant sold more than 4.2 million cars last year according to reports from the BBC, and 1.76m of those were fully electric cars.

In recent years the pointy end of the Australian new vehicle sales race has reflected our seemingly insatiable appetite for dual cab utes, with the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux locked in a fierce arm wrestle to determine the annual winner.

Looks like the new Toyota HiLux might not be so fresh after all.  Despite hopes that Toyota’s new most popular ute would jump onto the brand’s advanced GA-F platform, it looks like the workhorse will continue in a similar guise to its current shape, following new pictures from Thai outlet Headlight Magazine.

Ford is looking to move some serious metal and is putting its money where its mouth is. The Blue Oval is offering cold hard cash — in the form of Mastercard gift cards — as incentives to buyers of Ranger, F-150, Transit, Transit Custom and Mach-E.

Law firm Maurice Blackburn has launched a class action lawsuit against General Motors Australia and New Zealand.It alleges faulty transmissions were fitted to “hundreds of thousands” of Holden Commodore and Colorado models, with owners possibly getting a pay-out. The gearboxes in question are codenamed: GM 6L 45, 6L 50 and 6L 80, along with their derivatives. They were sold in new vehicles between January 1, 2011 and December 24, 2024. Models include the Commodore VE and Commodore VF also in Ute, Caprice and Calais guises. Some versions of the Colorado ute and its derivatives — the Colorado 7 and Trailblazer — also used the automatic transmissions. Maurice Blackburn’s class action “alleges that the transmission systems in the affected Holden vehicles are defective due to a design fault in the Torque Converter and Torque Converter Clutch.” “As a result of the alleged defect, the affected vehicles have a propensity to experience various problems including intermittent transmission shudders, excessive vibrations, harsh gear shifts, leakage of Automatic Transmission fluid, accelerated degradation of the components of the transmission system and greater servicing requirements. “The class action alleges that General Motors failed to comply with the guarantee of acceptable quality under the Australian Consumer Law and engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct. ”The class action is open to those who bought new or used vehicles affected. It is also open to those who have sold their vehicle or who own a vehicle, and those who have not yet experienced any issues. Maurice Blackburn is seeking to recover compensation from General Motors Australian New Zealand for loss and damage on behalf of the consumer. A GM spokesperson told CarsGuide, "GM does not comment on ongoing litigation."GM stands by its commitment to achieving the best outcomes for Holden customers."There is precedent for transmission-related class actions, with one being brought against Ford’s ‘Powershift’ dual-clutch transmission in 2016. The case evolved into an ACCC matter and Ford was ordered to pay a $10 million fine for its handling of the situation.