Table of contents for September 2023 in Wheels

THE FIRST all-new Toyota LandCruiser Prado in 14 years has debuted, featuring mild-hybrid tech powering a bigger body and likely to boast an uprated towing capacity. The latest ‘250 Series’ Prado, due here in mid-2024, is closely related to the new Lexus GX (see below) also due in Australia around the same time. Globally, it will wear LandCruiser 250 badging, but the Prado nameplate will live on in Australia. The currentToyota Prado dates back to 2009 and is fitted with a 2.8-litre four-cylinder diesel shared with the local HiLux. The latest 250 Series will launch with five powertrains globally, including two LandCruiser-first hybrids. A 48-volt mild-hybrid version of the current 2.8-litre four-cylinder diesel will be offered in Australia producing an identical 150kW and 500Nm. It will be matched to a…

MITSUBISHI’S SIXTH-gen Triton boasts fresh underpinnings, a more potent twin-turbo diesel engine, and an uprated 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity. It’s expected to arrive in Australian showrooms in early 2024, around the same time it returns to Japan for the first time in over a decade. Triton’s new ladder-frame chassis is claimed to be much stronger, with its bending rigidity up by 40 percent, and torsional rigidity up by 60 percent. Extended use of high-tensile steel has minimised overall weight gain, and the new Triton boasts a lighter body than the car it replaces, though Mitsubishi has yet to confirm a final kerb weight. The Triton’s stiffer frame is likely to provide a better platform for its double-wishbone front suspension. Mitsubishi has increased its front stroke by 20mm with a higher…

Honda’s new mid-sized ZR-V SUV hasn’t translated into booming sales yet, with the brand recording just930 total deliveries last month – a stagnant performance from 2022 with just two more vehicles registered, and down 10.1% year-to-date. Honda Australia’s aspirations are for around 20,000 sales per year – well short of the circa-30,000 annual sales it did in the previous decade – and it will need to do it without an EV or plug-in hybrid in its line-up. That leaves the four-strong ZR-V range, priced from $40,200 to $54,900 (drive-away) to do much of the heavy lifting.…

The part-oval section of Charlotte’s ‘roval’ is the place to test the Dark Horse’s No Lift Shift function THE FORD MUSTANG will soon be the last pony car standing. At least one with an internal-combustion motor under the bonnet. Chevrolet is about to axe the Camaro (again) and Dodge’s Challenger/Charger duo are set to be replaced by an electric interpretation of the classic American sports car. Will the biggest seller of the breed see another generation after this seventh iteration in nearly 60 years? For now, Ford says it sees no end date for its iconic Mustang coupe/convertible, though it hasn’t gone overboard with the development budget for the new S650 Mustang. Based on the same platform as the previous S550 model, it carries over parts including roof, windscreen pillars…

ANDREAS PREUNINGER is great company. Porsche’s director of GT products is the man who dreams up all the really illicit stuff. While SUVs like the Macan and Cayenne swell the coffers, the beating heart of Porsche is borne of purity: of pared-back, fierce sports cars and we’re in a familiar spot in Germany to drive one of its very finest. The elevator pitch for the 718 Spyder RS is simple. Take the lightest mid-engined body available and plumb the incredible engine from the 911 GT3 into it. With 368kW propelling a mere 1410kg up the road, the results are predictably explosive. Yet behind Preuninger’s signature bonhomie and effusiveness is an element of sadness because this is, in some regards, the end of an evolutionary line. There will be no more…

SUBARU OUTBACK SPORT XT Price as tested $52,190 This month 1736 @ 9.1L/100km Overall 1736 @ 9.1L/100km I HAVE AN admission to make. I’ve been driving a Subaru for the last month and I don’t actually know which one it is. I know it’s an Outback and that it’s the turbocharged one, but beyond that, I’ve trailed off a bit. Subsequent research has informed me that there’s a Sport and a Touring variant, but it took me a couple of weeks to figure out which was which. That, my friends, is aVery Good Thing because, as it turns out, I’m in the cheap one. Subaru suppled a Sport version for me to try and my lack of interest in the trim level speaks volumes. It’s not because I can’t be…

PRICE Recommended retail figure at time of publication (asterisk indicates driveaway price) ENGINE TYPE L, in-line; V, vee; F, flat. Number of cylinders. T, turbo; S, supercharged; D, diesel; H, hybrid; E, electric SIZE Litres or kWh POWER kW TORQUE Nm TRANSMISSION M, manual; A, auto; D, dual-clutch; C, CVT WEIGHT Kerb, kg 0-100 km/h, acceleration in seconds (Wheels as-tested figures in italics) FUEL CONS Consumption in litres, or kWh, per 100km RON Octane of fuel required, as numbered, or D for diesel RESALE percent, 3-year resale in Glass’s ISSUE TESTED month/year DRIVE A, all-wheel; F, front; R, rear. Any figure in bold is our own estimate.…

IF YOU thought 2023’s 24 Hours of Le Mans was good, wait until next year when Lamborghini joins the hypercar fray. The famed Italian marque has used the Goodwood Festival of Speed to whip the covers off the SC63, which comes under the control of its Squadra Corsa motorsport division. “The SC63 is the most advanced racing car ever produced by Lamborghini and it follows our roadmap ‘Direzione Cor Tauri’ laid out by the brand for the electrification of our product range,” said Stephan Winkelmann, Lamborghini’s Chairman and CEO. “The SC63 LMDh is the step into the highest echelons and into the future of motorsports for our Squadra Corse.” The car will race in two series in 2024 – a single entry in both the World Endurance Championship and the…

DUE Q1 ’24 LAMBORGHINI STERRATO Unexpected ‘Outback’ version of about-to-die Lambo Huracan is claimed to be an “all-surface supercar” with raised ride height (by 44mm), bespoke suspension set-up with a Rally mode, and 19-inch wheels with all-terrain tyres. Visually defines its mission statement with bolt-on composite wheelarch flares, fog lights and roof rails, while mildy detuned V10 produces 449kW. DUE Q1 ’24 VOLVO EX30 Smallest Volvo in the line-up is also the fastest, if you opt for the top-spec dual-motor variant producing 315 and 543Nm, and sprinting from 0-100km/h in 3.6sec. Not essential, however, as base- and mid-spec rear drivers are still lively enough to deliver 0-100km/h in 5.7sec. Cool interior design touches include a dash-mounted soundbar for the audio speakers. DUE Q3 ALFA ROMEO TONALE PHEV Punchy 208kW plug-in…

Keep it tight (no more than 200 words) and do include your suburb if via email: wheels@wheelsmag.com.au You can also have your say on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter (search for Wheels Australia) “I got to the hot hatches in the 70 Greatest only to find no Hyundai i30N…” WHEELS ALIGNMENT I LOVED PORING over the Greatest 70 as pulled together by Wheels. No doubt a tough task. I thought you were off to a flying start when I saw Australia’s own VF Commodore in amongst the greatest sedans. Couldn’t agree more; we have a late-2014 Evoke, bog standard and well and truely surplus to our needs now, but I just can’t bring myself to sell it. Then I turned the pages and saw the Mazda MX-5 listed in amongst the…

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AWARD FOR biggest improver of 2022? That probably goes to BMW’s X1 which, in third-generation guise, really seemed to find its feet. But as much as we approved of the petrol versions of the X1, the electric iX1 xDrive 30 was always going to be the most intriguing addition to the line up. We’ve driven the iX1 overseas, but much was clearly going to hinge on how this low-key but high-featured EV would tackle the very specific challenges of Australian roads. With the demise of the wholly lovely i3, the iX1 now finds itself – for the time being at least – as the entry point to BMW’s fully electric range. That entry point will demand $84,900 before on-road costs and offers a choice between identically-priced xLine and M Sport…

PUT TOGETHER on a shoestring budget by a small team operating in makeshift premises, the first Lotuses were the brainchildren of Colin Chapman, the half-crazed purveyor of ultra-lightweight constructions, radical aerodynamics, brutal decontenting and reductive engineering. One could argue that the zero-body-fat Emira and the high-downforce Evija electric supercar still incorporate key elements of the master’s rebellious original approach to sports car design, but the Eletre – all 2.5 tonnes and over five metres of it – surely is a different animal. A large, D-segment SUV, this is the first four-door, five-seater since the Lotus Omega/Carlton which was more of a marketing-driven emergency fund-raiser than an authentic brand-shaper. Based on an all-new bespoke platform unrelated to other Geely brands like Polestar, Volvo and Zeekr, the full-size crossover signals the marque’s…

THE LITTLE orange hatchback edges down the production line, sitting atop a metal jig. Yet to receive its headlights, wheels, engine, doors or even interior, it’s but a naked body. Looking down the production line, which inches forward slowly but unceasingly, there’s a queue of vehicles in a similar state – whites, oranges, blacks, blues and silvers. There’s the din of distant machines, the clack of far-off hammers, and giant ceiling fans the size of helicopter rotors circulate the hot air in a gentle artificial breeze. Men, and the occasional woman, dressed in the same standard-issue blue overalls, move about the bare vehicles calmly and wordlessly, like they’ve done it a thousand times before. No matter where it is, there’s something endlessly positive about a new-vehicle production line. Cars being…

VOLKSWAGEN TIGUAN ALLSPACE 132TSI LIFE Price as tested $54,990 This month 1058km @ 9.4L/100km Overall 3464km @ 9.1L/100km AND SO my family comes to the end of its time with the Tiguan Allspace Adventure 162TSI 4Motion. We’ll miss it. With power in spades, a smart and responsive dual-clutch auto, comfortable yet sporting ride, modern safety and convenience tech, near-premium interior, loads of room and a few clever storage tricks, this variant of the popular Tiguan is easy to recommend. It isn’t without fault, given the semiconductor shortage that gave us this unique variant means it also arrived without blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and powered controls for the seats and tailgate – but at $54,990 drive-away, it’s sharp buying for a powertrain normally reserved for the $56,990 (before on-road costs)…

PITT STOPPED It seems Brad Pitt’s on-screen ambitions to be a fast but old (he’s 59) F1 driver have hit a roadblock. Production for his next film, about a driver who comes out of retirement to help a struggling rookie, was underway at the British GP at Silverstone in July. Pitt rubbed shoulders with the real drivers while the fictional Apex GP team lapped the track in an F2 car rebodied to F1 spec. But production has stalled due to the Hollywood creatives’ strike, with no green flag in sight. WORK THE QUADS Here’s a bit of internal combustion goodness to brighten the EV horizon. Danish supercar builder Zenvo has partnered with Mahle Powertrain to produce what’s being touted as the world’s most powerful production V12. It’s a 6.6-litre quad-turbo…

HYUNDAI CLAIMS its fifth-generation Santa Fe large SUV, due for local launch early next year, has adopted a “life style based design typology”, which would seem to translate to bluff, boxier, Land Rover-inspired styling, new H-shaped lighting, and a more premium cabin. Hyundai Australia has confirmed the new Santa Fe will arrive in local showrooms in the first half of 2024, with full details – including specific timing and pricing – to be announced closer to launch. Replacing the current Santa Fe launched in 2018, the newcomer is wider by an unspecified margin compared to the outgoing model, and rides on a longer wheelbase. It is believed to be underpinned by an updated version of the current N3 platform first introduced with a heavy mid-life update in 2020. Rectangular headlights…

SHOPPING IN JAPAN is an exercise in being overwhelmed by the tyranny of choice. You’re buried in an avalanche of features, specifications, colours and nested niches to the extent that you begin to wonder how this Darwinian proliferation of products is set to play out. Yet if want a Japanese production car with a V12 engine, the choice is really rather simple because there’s only one and you’re looking at it right here: the Toyota Century. Of course there have been Japanese V12 racing engines from the likes of Isuzu, Yamaha, Nissan and Honda. The Nissan Dump Truck WD38 also sported a twelve-pot 15-litre diesel but that’s not quite the same thing. In fact, the Century’s engine is not only the reason Lexus stopped at 10 cylinders, and is also…

HERE’S THE snapshot: the MG4 X-Power is a dual-motor battery performance car touted as the world’s first dedicated, all-electric hot hatch – and it’s coming to Australia in late 2023. The MG4 X-Power comes with a 64kWh battery offering 385km of claimed range (WLTP), while dual motors serve up 320kW/600Nm and a claimed 0-100km/h figure of 3.8 seconds. Top speed is 200km/h. The MG4 is around Corolla sized at just 4.3 metres long, although its 2.7-metre wheel base maximises interior space, especially in the back. The X-Power is eye-catching, especially in the retina-burning Volcano Orange of our test car. Inside, it feels well built and there’s even something satisfying about the way the doors close. The materials are a bit economy, giving it an almost Skoda-like ambience. A 7.0-inch digital…

THE FORD Ranger swept all before it when it was unleashed on Australia’s booming dual-cab market in 2022. A range-topping Platinum model has now been perched atop the regular Ranger line up, albeit still a good deal more affordable than the special interest Ranger Raptor. It’s only available with the top-spec 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine and borrows much of its trim and finish from its Wheels Car of the Year-winning sibling, the Everest SUV. In other words, you know it’s off to a great start. But at this price point come some fairly serious expectations. Can the Ranger Platinum live up to the big billing? As you might expect, the Platinum gets a stack of the good stuff poured into it. There’s really very little that you can point to…

one BRAIN POWER Thanks to two Qualcomm 8155 ‘System-On-Chips’, Lotus claims bestin-class processing power from the head unit behind the 15.1-inch OLED touchscreen. As for premium audio, it’s from KEF. The set-up provides 2160 watts of amplification and Dolby Atmos processing driving 23 speakers. two FUTURE PROOF Four pop-out LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensors are fitted – one at either end of the roof and on each of the front guards. They’re among a suite of 34 safety sensors and cameras that give the car what Lotus touts as a ‘360-degree view of the world’ and provide capability for L4 autonomy. three WIND CHEATER Eletra claims a drag coefficient of 0.26 – so very slippery for an SUV. Petal-style vents in the front grille can open or close to improve cooling or…

HERE’S A TRUTH about comparison tests. You often learn more about a new car by taking it out of its segment pigeonhole and applying a bit of wider-focus perspective than you do by finding the closest rival possible. People don’t shop for the performance cars of their waking dreams with painstaking reference to vehicle segments and mechanical type, after all. Buyers just tend to like what they like – especially if it’s something new. Which is why we’ve decided to throw the BMW M3 xDrive Competition Touring against arguably the toughest opponent that any fast, all-wheel-drive wagon could face in 2023: the ultimate performance five-door in its new-and-improved, even-more-ultimate form. Welcome then, in Nardo Grey with carbonfibre trim, the new Audi RS6 Avant Performance – all 463kW and 850Nm of…

NISSAN X-TRAIL Ti AWD Price as tested $49,990 drive away This month 1211km @ 9.2L/100km Overall 2101km @ 9.0L/100km THIS MONTH WAS a lot more serious in the X-Trail. We did longer trips. We bought stuff that had to go in the boot. Trips to airports were made. People were moved. It was an altogether more typically suburban life than the big Nissan has had thus far. Some people will pull me up and say that, actually, it isn’t big. But it is big. While the X-Trail occupies the same segment as the Mazda CX-5, they are from different planets. Five adults is a reasonably agreeable proposition in the Nissan whereas the CX-5 would require a level of financial compensation and physical therapy to convince the middle-seater to join in…

THERE ARE CERTAIN small indulgences that make life that little bit more tolerable. It might be a decent cup of coffee or the luxury of a weekend lie-in. The Kia Picanto GT always felt like one of those slightly giddy joys that felt so good it almost seemed illicit. But, like most such petty vices, it’s not long for this world. When Kia facelifts the Picanto, the GT, with its three-cylinder turbo engine and manual gearbox, is set for the chop. The mantle of Australia’s cheapest performance car will pass from the baby Korean to the Suzuki Swift Sport, an uptick of about eight grand. We’ll miss those caster-like 16-inch wheels, and then get slightly depressed when we’re reminded that Ferrari 308s used to look the business on sixteens. We’re not…