Green Cars

Kia’s EV5 electric mid-size SUV is about to get a major update in Australia.  A facelifted EV5 has just appeared in Australian sales approval documents for the first time. The EV5 is Kia’s best-selling fully-electric model on sale in 2026, edging out the smaller EV3 for the title. It tackles the Toyota bZ4X ($55,990) as well as hugely popular rivals the BYD Sealion 7 ($54,990) and Tesla Model Y ($58,900), all before on-road costs. The new EV5 should arrive in showrooms in mid-2027. The EV5 will receive a minor power boost for its updated model. The two-wheel drive variant’s single electric motor now produces 175kW instead of 160kW, while the dual motors in the all-wheel drive make 249kW, up from 230kW. Kia will continue to equip the EV5 with either a 64kWh or 88kWh battery, but we don't know if they will provide greater driving range.  The current EV5 offers between 400km and 555km of driving range, depending on the variant, according to WLTP standards.  It’s rumoured the EV5 will feature an updated ride and handling tune for Aussie roads in line with other models in Kia’s line-up.  The 2027 EV5 has some subtle styling tweaks for its mid-life update, with some new body creases and a sharper design.  It also features what looks to be a front camera bar fixed to the grille area. The car is basically dimensionally identical to its soon-to-be predecessor, measuring 4613mm long, 1875mm wide, 1715mm tall, with a 2750mm wheelbase.  The EV5 is scheduled to launch in mid-2027, but it’s unclear exactly when it will hit showrooms.  Buyers can expect more official news on the updated EV5 before the end of 2026. Kia will reveal pricing closer to the new EV5’s arrival, with a firm price yet to be confirmed.   The EV5 range currently kicks off from $56,770, with prices rising up to $71,770 for the top-spec car (before on-road costs). 

Aussie buyers have a new hybrid compact SUV from Europe to consider. Volkswagen has just confirmed its next-generation T-Roc will launch in Australia with a mild-hybrid set-up.  The T-Roc will rival the full-hybrid Hyundai Kona ($33,700, before on-road costs) and Kia Seltos ($39,990, drive-away). The brand says the new T-Roc will arrive in Aussie showrooms in early 2027. The next-generation T-Roc will feature a mild-hybrid set-up in Australia at this stage. Volkswagen said the new set-up will contribute to lower fuel consumption and provide a responsive performance.  VW has not confirmed yet whether the full-hybrid variants of the T-Roc will land Down Under.  "We’re continuing to evaluate opportunities for the T-Roc range in Australia and will share further details as they become available," a spokesperson for VW Australia told CarsGuide. "At this stage, we have no additional variants to announce." The fully-hybrid T-Roc uses a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine and two electric motors to produce either 100kW/288Nm or 125kW/310Nm. Power has dropped slightly across both grades compared to the outgoing petrol line-up (previously 110kW/250Nm and 140kW/320Nm). However, the new entry-level hybrid gains a noticeable torque bump to 288Nm, while the up-spec grade delivers 310Nm. The full-hybrid T-Roc is equipped with a 1.6kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt battery, which enables the car to drive on electric-only power at speeds less than 60km/h without heavy acceleration.   The T-Roc boasts a more rounded overall design, with sharp creases either side of the bonnet. It has a sleek headlight design and single daytime running strip with black cladding on the grille, air intakes and wheel arches, as well as on the roof rails. Volkswagen is promising more interior space and increased practicality as well as better technology, safety and convenience features. VW has moved the gear selector to a steering column stalk, freeing up more centre console space. Inside, there’s a rectangular digital driver display and central multimedia screen, along with plenty of physical buttons on the steering wheel. The German brand said the car will have its latest software system, which has new driver assistance technologies and comfort-focused features. Volkswagen will reveal pricing for the new T-Roc close to its early 2027 arrival date. The current generation T-Roc kicks off from $38,990, with prices rising up to $49,990, before on-road costs. Buyers can expect an increase on those prices for the T-Roc’s new generation, with it likely to kick off from over $40,000 when it arrives. This will place it in a similar bracket to other conventional hybrid rivals, including the Toyota Corolla Cross (from $37,440), Hyundai Kona (from $36,950) and incoming Kia Seltos (from $37,990).

Volkswagen is officially in trouble, as the German giant pauses work on its new electric ID.Golf. The Volkswagen Golf was once the brand’s bread and butter, but changing buyer tastes and rising prices has pushed the hatchback into the background. "We simply can't afford this work right now," said Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schaefer, according to Reuters. "I know what the Golf means for Volkswagen and for Wolfsburg. That's ​why this decision was really not an easy one for us,” said Schaefer. He said the ID.Golf isn’t cancelled, just postponed, but if the situation doesn’t improve it might be the end of the road for the famous Golf.  The German carmaker is undergoing one of the biggest restructures in its history, with it likely to cut up to 100,000 jobs, close four factories and slice vehicle variants by up to 75 per cent in an attempt to make it leaner and more agile. Volkswagen posted a €5.9 billion ($9.43B) loss in the past three months, its largest quarterly loss in more than a decade. The problem is new ultra-affordable brands from China hitting Europe with incredible force. The German giant’s business model is to sell volume at low margin in Europe. "This business model is ⁠under ​enormous pressure in Europe," said Volkswagen Group boss Oliver Blume. Industry analysts have crunched the numbers and said Chinese makers can produce an equivalent electric vehicle for $11,000 less than a European maker.  The ID.Golf was expected to be based on the company’s new Scalable Systems Platform (SSP). This is an 800-volt EV platform that puts software at the heart of the car. Audi, Porsche and then VW were to get vehicles made on this platform. Software has been the thorn in Volkswagen's side. The company’s Cariad software division has been bleeding money and has not been delivering on its investment. Volkswagen has been forced to invest in US start-up Rivian to gain access to its software. Volkswagen also has a joint-venture with Chinese brand XPeng, which has spawned several vehicles in China. It also gives the brand access to XPeng’s software knowledge.

Toyota launched the Performance Hybrid version of its LandCruiser 300 Series in Australia earlier this year and it’s claimed to only be making up a small portion of overall sales. So far diesel versions of the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series are claimed to be outselling the petrol-electric Performance Hybrid trims almost seven-to-one. Toyota says the amount of LandCruiser 300 Series Performance Hybrid sales is what it expected. “Yeah, it’s going well,” said Toyota Australia Vice President national sales, marketing and franchise operations John Pappas to CarsGuide. “The Performance Hybrid is sitting where we thought it would be, which is roughly at around 15 per cent of our sales of the overall LandCruiser .” Toyota sold a total of 9787 LandCruiser wagons through the first nine months of this year, which is up 10.1 per cent year-on-year. A small portion of these sales include the LandCruiser 70 Series wagon and troop carrier. Toyota doesn’t split out sales and instead only reports it as LandCruiser wagon and LandCruiser pick-up/cab-chassis. Part of the LandCruiser wagon’s recent sales success is due to the runout of the Y62-generation Nissan Patrol. The new Y63 Patrol is due to launch in early 2027. This improvement in LandCruiser wagon sales defies Toyota’s overall sales so far in 2026. It sold a total of 152,944 vehicles until the end of September, which is down 15.9 per cent year-on-year. Toyota is still on track to be the best-selling carmaker in Australia in 2026. This will make it the 31st consecutive year. As it stands, both the diesel and Performance Hybrid versions of the LandCruiser 300 Series are above the threshold for ‘Type 2’ vehicles under the Australian Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES). The threshold for ‘Type 2’ vehicles in 2026 is 180g/km and the LC300 diesel and Performance Hybrid are claimed to emit 235g/km and 220g/km, respectively. This theoretically means each LC300 imported into Australia attracts an NVES fine of $2750 and $2000, respectively this year. Toyota may not need to pay this fine if it can import other vehicles under the CO2 thresholds, or purchase credits from other carmakers. Toyota has previously warned that price rises may occur, especially on models that are high-emitting. “Due to the challenging NVES targets for commercial vehicles from 2027 onwards, we cannot rule out price increases,” said Pappas. The LandCruiser 300 Series Performance Hybrid is dubbed the most powerful LandCruiser sold to date in Australia. It has a 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol engine with an electric motor for total system outputs of 341kW and 790Nm. This is 114kW and 90Nm more than the 3.3-litre twin-turbo V6 diesel. Only two versions of the LC300 Performance Hybrid are offered in Australia - Sahara ZX and GR Sport. They’re priced from $156,740 and $156,990, before on-road costs, respectively. This is roughly $9000 more than the equivalent diesel-powered version. While the LC300 Performance Hybrid can still tow 3500kg, it only offers five seats and is claimed to consume more fuel than the diesel.

The 2026 Polestar 5 Dual motor is the entry-level version of this flagship electric grand tourer (GT) in Australia. It’s priced from $171,000, before on-road costs. This is around $10,000 less than the entry-level Porsche Taycan, which is notably rear-wheel drive only. Power comes from a dual-motor all-wheel-drive set-up with healthy total system outputs of 550kW and 812Nm. It’s enough to send this car from 0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds. The electric motors are fed by a sizeable 112kWh lithium-ion battery pack, which allows for a WLTP-claimed range of up to 670km. Thanks to its 800V electrical architecture, peak DC fast-charging is available at rates up to 350kW, whereas AC charging is only offered at rates up to 11kW. Standard equipment includes the following: 4+1 seating configuration Matrix LED headlights Brembo brakes Panoramic glass sunroof 9.0-inch digital instrument cluster 14.5-inch touchscreen multimedia system Google Built-in and Google Gemini Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto Head-up display 10-speaker sound system Digital rear-view mirror 'MicroTech' upholstery made from recycled materials 12-way power-adjustable front seats Heated front seats Heated rear seats Heated steering wheel Even though this is a lot of standard equipment, if you want genuine Nappa leather, you’ll need to fork out an additional $12,000. Like many luxury cars, there are a series of other cosmetic optional extras that further inflate the price. The Polestar 5 hasn’t been crash tested by ANCAP or EuroNCAP yet and is therefore unrated. However, a full suite of safety kit comes as standard across the line-up. This includes the following: Eight airbags Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) Blind-spot monitoring Rear cross-traffic alert Lane-keep assist Lane-change assist Adaptive cruise control Driver attention monitoring Intelligent speed-limit assist Front, side and rear parking sensors Surround-view camera The Polestar 5 is covered by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, whereas the high-voltage battery is covered for eight years or 160,00km. This is fairly standard for premium brands. Every Polestar 5 comes with five years of roadside assistance and logbook servicing is required every 24 months or 30,000km. At this stage Polestar hasn’t announced servicing pricing for the Polestar 5.

Jaecoo has just given its Toyota RAV4 competitor some special flair.  The brand has unveiled the Jaecoo J7 Black Edition as the range-topping grade for the mid-size SUV, starting from $49,990 (drive-away).  It’s $2000 more expensive than the plug-in hybrid all-wheel drive grade of the J7 ($47,990) and is $10,000 more expensive than the base PHEV grade of the car ($39,990).  The new sleek and blacked-out J7 is much cheaper than the bigger BYD Sealion 6 AWD ($52,990) and AWD PHEV grades of the Toyota RAV4 ($64,015), both before on-road costs. The Black Edition will arrive in Aussie dealerships in November 2026 as a permanent fixture, with no scheduled departure date. The car features a suite of blacked out exterior finishes that replace chrome details, including on the vertical grille, wheels, mirrors and roof rails.  Inside the cabin, there’s a dark headliner and pillar trims, while the car keeps its 14.8-inch central multimedia screen and its 10.25-inch digital driver display.  Seats are wrapped in a synthetic black leather, with heating and ventilating functionality in the front ones.  Omoda Jaecoo said the new look is designed to provide a more striking presence on the road.  The Black Edition’s PHEV set-up is the same one found in the J7 Summit AWD grade, which combines a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine and two electric motors to make 260kW and 490Nm.  This means it also has the same AWD system that has an electric motor on each axle. This is more power than AWD grades of the Toyota RAV4 that only produce 227kW, with the Japanese brand not quoting a combined torque figure for the car.  It’s a minor step up on power over the most powerful BYD Sealion 6 example that has 253kW and 550Nm.  The car can DC charge from 30 to 80 per cent in about 20 minutes.  The J7 is one of three models sold under the Jaecoo name, joined by the J5 small SUV and J8 large SUV. The J5 small SUV launched in January 2026, with its EV variant surging to become the brand’s best-selling model.  The J7 is the second-best selling model in the line-up, followed by the J8 and the Omoda 9. The Omoda 9 three-row SUV is currently the only Omoda-badged model remaining on sale, but buyers can expect two new models from next year.  The Omoda 4 small SUV and the Omoda 7 mid-size SUV are both scheduled to arrive in the first half of 2027. 

Xiaomi, the tech giant turned car manufacturer, has quietly gone official in Australia as hiring has begun for positions in its automotive division, laying the groundwork for a future launch. The brand, made famous for its smash-hit-in-China SU7 sedan and YU7 SUV, is still thought to be years away from a local debut, with the new positions in legal and automotive financing early steps in its local arrival. Despite its overwhelming success in China, which has seen models with hundreds of thousands of units on back-order as its Beijing factory struggles to keep up with demand, Xiaomi is seeking export markets to make its business sustainable into the future as the Chinese new car market faces a contraction after years of explosive growth. The two new positions available on LinkedIn are located in Sydney, and come shortly after the brand announced its roll-out plans across continental Europe. Xiaomi is yet to lock in firm plans for right-hand drive markets, despite eyeing a Japanese debut. The news of local position hiring seems to confirm this will be part of the company’s future direction. Xiaomi currently offers the SU7 four-door coupe and YU7 mid-size SUV both as performance-oriented fully electric cars. It also recently launched its SkyNomad range of large hybrid SUVs, consisting of the two-row N70 and three-row N90, both use a 1.5-litre range-extender hybrid set-up. Xiaomi is positioned as a tech-luxury marque in China, and competes directly with the likes of Zeekr, XPeng, and the also-yet-to-arrive-in-Australia Nio. Xiaomi will face some tough barriers to entry. It will be comparatively late to the Australian market compared to its Chinese rivals, and is only just overcoming a production bottleneck at its Beijing factory ahead of its European debut. Wait times for the YU7 at its launch in China extended beyond a year, although this has now been brought down to just a handful of weeks. The YU7 was moving 40,000 units a month in its peak in December 2025, according to figures reported by Chinese media. The much-hyped SUV, which has styling and performance features influenced by everything from the Tesla Model Y to the Ferrari Purosangue, amassed 240,000 orders within 18 hours of going on sale. The success of Xiaomi’s automotive division has caused rivals to respond by launching similar performance-oriented models, like Geely’s Galaxy TT, MG’s MG07 and the Luxeed RX from Chery’s joint-venture with Huawei. Xiaomi’s take on the explosively popular large SUV segment goes in a different direction to its rivals with its Range-Rover inspired new products betting more on adventure than straight-up luxury, featuring a pop-up roof tent version from launch. Other expansion plans from Xiaomi recently include its acquisition of a large ownership stake in battery supplier Sunwoda, and the establishment of a research and development centre in Munich, Germany. The brand has also been spotted testing an updated version of its SU7 Ultra high-performance model at the Nurburgring featuring a new aero package. The company also hasn’t been without its dramas, from delivery bottlenecks frustrating customers in China to various quality issues and several fatal crashes whilst vehicles were being operated under self-driving software. All of which the brand is rapidly addressing ahead of its international debut. Regardless, expect to learn more about Xiaomi’s future automotive plans in Australia imminently.

Lepas is yet another brand from Chery that's launching in Australia and its first model is an electric mid-size SUV. Does it have what it takes to stand out from the crowd?

China has revolutionised new cars and it is only the beginning. The China Society of Automotive Engineers has come together to show carmakers and third-party suppliers aren’t sitting on their laurels and are planning a big 2027. These are the trends and tech to revolutionise it all again in 2027, according to the gaggle of engineers. This game-changing technology is becoming a reality. The futuristic cells are entering the pilot production stage with an energy density of 400Wh/kg, which is more than double that of conventional electric car batteries. Solid-state batteries are said to be more energy dense, less fire prone and faster to charge than current batteries. This means range can be doubled, or carmakers can use batteries half the size for the same driving range as current EVs. This will allow for lighter, more efficient EVs and will make electric utes, 4WDs and sports cars more palatable.  Nearly every carmaker and battery supplier on the planet is working on this. Watch this space. Harnessing the stored energy inside a car’s battery to power homes and neighbourhoods during times of high power demand and emergencies is the holy grail of EV capabilities. This technology isn’t just being trialled in China, but is also being tested in Australia where is is arguably more valuable. V2G when paired with solar can effectively allow owners to live off the grid and to earn money by sending power back to the grid during peak times. The infrastructure is what is holding it up, the majority of electric cars are not yet set up to handle V2G and it can void the warranty if owners try to use the tech now. Chinese carmakers such as BYD, Geely, MG and others are trialling die-casting using a magnesium alloy which is lighter, stronger and better at reducing vibration than current materials. The die-casting method will make for more affordable construction methods thanks to reduced components, while the material will make EVs more efficient and pleasant to drive via increased structural rigidity and reduction of NVH. This new tech could revolutionise mining operations with a group of trucks following a prescribed route - from the mine to port for example - with one elad vehicle and several following it along major roads. This helps reduce the cost of freight, improve safety and reduce fuel use due to the following vehicles benefitting from reduced drag. 3D printing is common, but an emerging tech is 3D printing using metal. It can be used to make vehicle structures and complex single-piece mouldings. There are numerous constraints currently with the technology, but it has the potential to reduce weight from fewer parts used. It can improve strength, durability and crash safety performance by creating a stiffer structure with fewer welds. The engineers society believe there will be significant breakthroughs next year. Low-cost metal powders are expected to be used as building materials, plus layer thickness to make sturdier structures and improved printing performance. This works by cars and infrastructure all talking to each other to help make collaborative scenarios.  This can help improve road safety with advanced identification of hazards and reduced crash scenarios. It can also help reduce traffic with traffic lights prioritising the flow of traffic in real time rather than on set parameters. It also allows for better pedestrian safety with the cars able to effectively see around corners and other blind spots thanks to integration with static infrastructure and public cameras.

MG has just launched its first ute, but it isn’t resting on its laurels, with the odds shortening on more electrified workhorses and a Pajero fighter.