Indice dei contenuti per April 2021 in Wheels

THE ELECTRIC VEHICLE COUNCIL (EVC) has lashed out at government inaction on EV incentives and infrastructure in Australia, with data showing we are way behind in adoption rates while other markets around the world go gangbusters. New sales figures collated by the EVC reveal there were 6900 battery electric vehicles sold in Australia in 2020 – up only 2.7 percent on 2019 – and accounted for just 0.7 percent of the total new-car market last year. As a percentage of all cars sold, Australian EV sales lag behind the rest of the world by a large margin. EV market share in Europe increased from 3.8 percent in 2019 to 10.2 percent in 2020, while in the United Kingdom they leapt from a 3.1 percent market share to 10.7 percent last…

DUE Q2 VOLVO XC40 RECHARGE The 2019 Wheels Car of the Year is going electric. By mid-year we should see Sweden’s XC40 Recharge EV landing in Australia, with drive to all four wheels from a combined 300kW/600Nm from two electric motors. Claimed range is more than 400km from its 78kWh battery, with a sprint to 100km/h taking 4.9 seconds. We’re expecting a price tag near $75,000. DUE Q2 MERCEDES-BENZ EQA While we don’t know pricing yet, the EQA is set to be the most affordable Mercedes EV to date. Based on the GLA, an EQ250 will kick things off with a single electric motor driving the front wheels, 140kW/375Nm, 0-100km/h potential of 8.9sec and 486km of claimed range (NEDC). DUE SOON BMW 128ti BMW Australia is currently working on the…

YOU COULD PROBABLY write a coffee-table book on the ‘Rise and Fall of the Japanese Personal Coupe’ because there’s so much fodder to feed the melodrama surrounding this once-ubiquitous vehicle type. But which one would you put on the cover? Arguably the grand-daddy of the personal-coupe breed is Toyota’s 1970 Celica, even though it wasn’t the first, but if it were up to me I’d be tossing up between the original front-drive Celica SX (1985) and what you see here, the third-generation BA4 Honda Prelude 4WS (1987), as to which one should gleam in glossy print. They were both icons of their time – categorically rejecting the ‘hairdresser’s car’ tag so often used to denigrate Japanese coupes – yet only one of them became an award winner and is arguably…

THE SUB-GENRE of warmed-over compact and small SUVs and crossovers has suddenly become motoring’s hot new ticket. Into this increasingly populated zone comes the Kona N-Line, looking fast standing still and, in Premium spec tested here, the cream of the Kona crop. The N-Lines (there’s a regular version priced $8100 lower than the Premium) pack 1.6-litre turbo-petrol power, a dual-clutch transmission, AWD and a multi-link rear suspension. And if you’re thinking, ‘Hang on, you can get all of that stuff on any of the regular Konas’, well, no you can’t. Not anymore, in facelifted form. ‘Range consolidation’ has left the four-tier pedestrian Kona range with what was and remains the lower-grade underpinnings: atmo engines, front drive, a torsion beam rear-end and, now, a CVT transmission Back inside the N-Line Premium,…

IT’S DEADLY QUIET in this little pocket of Victorian wilderness near Healesville, east of Melbourne. Neon-green ferns hide at the bottom of faded eucalypts that themselves slump under a typical Victorian sky – grey, white and more shades of grey, all the colours of the German rainbow. Pulled over on the side of Chum Creek Road in my fat-stanced BMW M2 CS, engine off, door open, I can hear the distant growing-then-subsiding bark of what could be nothing but a Porsche flat-six. (I suppose it could be a very hot naturally aspirated flat-six Subaru Liberty… or a lyrebird doing one hell of an impression.) Former editor turned YouTube star Alex Inwood is giving the 718 Cayman GTS 4.0 plenty of curry. Without a turbocharger (or two) stimulating the engine’s mid-range,…

So, having established the case for the existence of conventional sedans, which one do you want? REMEMBER VINYL? The LP record? Maybe you don’t. But just as digital formats have taken over the music world, so have new-age packaging and technology alternatives (yes, the SUV and hybrids) colonised the motoring landscape almost to an equivalent extent, largely at the expense of the previously conventional. And yet here we are, faced with three mid-sized sedans, vinyl throwbacks the lot of them, none of which rely on electrified driveline tech (the Audi claims hybrid content, but stay with us), front-wheel-drive packaging nor, crucially, the SUV mindset. Be they dinosaurs, then? No, they are not. They simply represent an alternative that will appeal to the purists out there. People like us. Again, the…

ALLOW US A quick recap, for those of you playing along at home who may have lobbed back in late from a commercial break. For the past four months I’ve been the custodian of a top-spec Sorento GT-Line diesel all-wheel drive, the Korean company’s flagship seven-seater SUV. Contrary to my default setting, I’ve been a largely non-grumbling one. That car ended its tenure last issue, with the only real caveats to its all-round goodness being no third-row airbags and the typical diesel NVH drawbacks. Not awful, but the vibey idle was at odds with the otherwise well-polished manners, and the level of clatter under modest acceleration, while not bad by four-pot-oiler class standards, still left room for improvement. We knew from our most recent COTY testing of both engine variants…

IT’S RARE WHEN a new model is unveiled with styling so loyal to the show-car concept that came before it, but Hyundai has managed just that with the Ioniq 5 electric car due for release here in the third quarter of 2021. The Ioniq 5 follows the 2019 debut of a ‘modern retro’ concept known as the 45 – a tribute to the Giorgetto Giugiaro-penned 1974 Pony Coupe Concept that loosely previewed the important but decidedly more pedestrian 1975 Pony hatch. The 45 concept was anything but dull, and Hyundai has bravely retained its essence and key design details in the production car. It brings the same boxy and angular lines that were common to most models in the Pony’s day, while adding bold character lines and details for futuristic…

FORD HAS GIVEN its Melbourne design studio a $12 million makeover and intends to invest another $2.3 million in new studio technology before the end of this year. The redesign continues Ford’s ongoing investment in Australia, where more than 2500 of the company’s engineers, designers, technical and automotive specialists work on Ford vehicles destined for Australian and global markets. Ford remains Australia’s largest automotive employer and spends $500 million a year on R&D. The Broadmeadows facility will continue as the lead design studio for the Ranger pick-up and Everest SUV, but will also contribute to designs of global-market cars under design director Max Wolff. The latest works, the first since the 1970s, doubled the studio’s footprint to offer a brighter, well-lit facility.…

THE DANGERS OF driver distraction are well known, whether it’s the all-too-frequent smartphone in the driver’s hand or simply looking down at the navigation. It only takes a momentary glance away from the road ahead to end in disaster. That’s why tech companies and car makers are developing advanced new display systems that put more essential information right where the driver needs it. Audi’s Virtual Cockpit was the first mainstream, widespread application of a fully digital instrument cluster. Launched in the 2015 TT, the technology has since spread to almost every offering in the four-ring family. Many other manufacturers have followed suit, offering their vehicles the same advantages associated with placing almost limitless information in the driver’s line of sight. But the concept is evolving rapidly to offer even more…

WHEN THE Mercedes-Benz 190E was launched back in 1982, many pundits described the car as a ‘Golf-fighter’, pitching it as Stuttgart’s first foray into the affordable small car mainstream. In truth, the 190E was never really that small, or that inexpensive. And over the past four decades successive generations of the so-called baby Benz, rebadged the C-Class with the launch of the W202 in 1993, have become bigger and pricier. At first glance, the 2021 C-Class emphatically proves the point. Codenamed W206, this new C-Class is longer and wider, with a longer wheelbase than the iconic W124 E-Class launched in 1984. And don’t expect much change from $70,000 for the entry-level C200 sedan when the car arrives in Australia. That’s around four grand more than a W124 300E cost when…

The Outback Sport is capable of far more than most would give it credit for WE’RE LOST. Not terribly – this isn’t a tragic tale in the style of Burke and Wills, a story of the unforgiving Australian landscape claiming two more scalps – but the fact remains that I don’t really know where we are or how to get to where we need to be. My stress levels would be higher if we didn’t have the latest Subaru Outback Sport at our disposal, a car that has already proven capable of far more than most would give it credit for. If you occasionally – or even frequently – venture off the beaten track and think you need a towering SUV to do so then we have news for you.…

CAN MAZDA’S Zoom Zoom ethos, which imbues everyday cars with driving spirit, do the same for a dual-cab ute? That’s the question at the heart of this long-term test. I want to see how one of the newest utes on the block handles my weekday work commutes and weekend DIY duties. You see, we bought a house during the 2020 Covid pandemic and it needs a lot of work. Bunnings is going to love me. The BT-50 GT will have to keep up with all of that, plus it needs to cart me, the wife and our baby around, which will test the BT-50’s newfound interior class. This BT-50 launched in Australia in October 2020, replacing the previous generation that had been around since 2010. While the last BT-50 was…

FOR ANYONE WHO appreciates the individuality and flair of a stylish coupe, the Hyundai Veloster’s demise in Australia should signal alarm bells for affordable sporting coupes across the globe. They’re dying, to the point where extinction is a real possibility, and that trend is both stultifying and sad. The second-generation Veloster – only launched here in September 2019 – never even made it to Europe, and in the US its popularity has nosedived in recent years. Not that the Veloster deserves this level of apathy because the second-gen car is actually a bloody good thing. And you have to applaud any manufacturer with the moxie to champion a two-plus-one-door hatchback parading as a coupe. Hyundai gave the Veloster a red-hot go, though, and for a time it sold strongly –…

PORSCHE’S DROP-DEAD GORGEOUS Taycan Cross Turismo is a 460kW all-wheel drive electric rally wagon headed to a dirt road near you soon. Stuttgart will offer Australia two all-wheel drive powertrain options of its all-electric, jacked-up wagon, a 360kW 4S and the aforementioned Turbo with 0-100km/h potential of 3.3sec (on bitumen, of course). Adjustable ride height with a Gravel mode will also make the features list when this plug-in bruiser hits our shores, Porsche stinging you $201,000 for the 4S and $271,200 for the Turbo. Porsche at least throws in the Performance Plus battery as standard, a $11,590 option on the four-door Taycan. Range is a claimed 388-452km for both. Available in Oz from the third quarter.…

“Its interior is less swish SUV; more luxo Learjet” MERCEDES-Maybach’s first SUV will come to Australia, topping Benz’s SUV family with a generous slather of luxury… but at a steep price. The Mercedes-Maybach GLS600 takes the already-opulent GLS and elevates its levels of luxury to the extent that its interior is less ‘swish SUV’ and more ‘luxo Learjet’ to take on the likes of the Bentley Bentayga and Aston Martin DBX. The recommended list price is $358,300, with the GLS600 expected to arrive in August this year. Of course, on-road costs and options will see that price head further north. The next most expensive variant in the GLS range, AMG’s 63 S, is more than $100K cheaper at $255,700, while being more powerful (450kW) in keeping with the AMG ethos.…

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 (search for Wheels Australia), Instagram or Twitter LETTER OF THE MONTH “The Jag got so much air the landing almost ejected me, James Bond-style, through the sunroof PRETTY FLY FOR A JAG GUY ASH WESTERMAN, YOU’RE not alone in vehicular lift-off mishaps. In the late-’80s, a colleague and I retrieved a stolen V12 XJ-S Jag from country Queensland for an insurance company. Of course, I commandeered the Jag while my mate followed in our XF Falcon. On a deserted stretch of road, I coaxed the tired Jag to an indicated 225km/h. Laughing at the Falc receding in the mirrors, I totally missed the ‘DIP AHEAD’…

FROM $20 TOYOTA GAZOO RACING AUSTRALIA CAPS If you’re one of the lucky few who own a GR Yaris or Supra in Australia, why not show your pride and wear a GR cap to really drive the point home. Alternatively, grab one for the next time Rally Australia rolls around to show the Bates fam your support. It’s available in flat-brim style for $20, or as the more traditional cap for $25. shop.toyota.com.au RYOBI ONE+ BUFFER & POLISHER Weirdly, some of you are out there hand-polishing cars or using a grinder/sander that leaves swirls. One with a random orbital action is better, and this one’s $100 RRP is quite reasonable. PORSCHE 911 CARRERA RS 2.7 PRINT If your walls are in dire need of more car art – ours are…

Model Porsche Taycan Turbo Motors Dual (front + rear axles) Battery 93.4kWh (83.7kWh net) lithium-ion Max power 460kW (500kW ‘overboost’) Max torque 850Nm Transmission single-speed (f); 2-speed (r) Kerb weight 2305kg 0-100km/h 3.2sec (claimed) Economy 22.9kWh/100km (WLTP) Price $268,500 On sale Now THE PORSCHE Taycan Turbo’s party trick is its launch control, a silent assassin that allows you to surprise unsuspecting passengers by soundlessly and instantly unleashing 500kW and 850Nm of furious electrical power upon them. Don’t do this with people of a frail disposition, or anyone with an iffy neck, as their (and your) head will be slammed against the seat as 2305kg of Taycan Turbo teleports to 100km/h in 3.2sec, two black lines evidence of the tyres’ struggle to facilitate the recent and rapid departure of this remarkable…

Model Mazda MX-5 GT RS Engine 1998cc 4cyl, dohc, 16v Max power 135kW @ 6750rpm Max torque 205Nm @ 5000-5250rpm Transmission 6-speed manual Weight 1052kg 0-100km/h 6.5sec (claimed) Economy 6.8L/100km Price $47,020 On sale Now THOSE TWO LETTERS, RS. You’re in for a stripped-out MX-5 that’s lighter and racier, right? If that’s what you were hoping for, you’re in for disappointment. That’s until you start driving the Mazda MX-5 GT RS, at which point you will quickly realise what the RS is all about. It’s stiffer, sure, but there are a handful of key additions to this car that place it at the top of the ladder of soft-top MX-5s. In a very similar vein to the MX-5 RF GT Limited Edition of 2018 (minus the Targa-style roof), the GT…

GORDON MURRAY IS no stranger to benchmarks. He has designed Formula 1 cars that have been driven by the greats and won multiple world championships. His McLaren F1, designed 30 years ago, was a supercar so preposterously fast it rewrote the rulebook. And his latest cars, the GMA T.50 and T.50s Niki Lauda, promise to tease the edges of the performance envelope even further, combining ultra-light weight with an ultra-responsive naturally aspirated V12 engine that screams to 12,100rpm. Murray has spent most of his adult life thinking about making cars work better and go faster. His father, Bill, raced motorcycles and prepped racing cars, and Murray started working as a mechanical design draughtsman while studying engineering at Natal Technical College and building himself a club racing car in his spare…

The air slips quietly over the aero-tweaked body as the corners arrive with a furious but soundless rush IT’S A PRETTY abstract concept, this whole ‘future’ thing. But here’s one indicator you may have noticed: it doesn’t actually feel like the future. Instead of being startlingly unfamiliar and difficult to navigate, it actually feels the way things should have always been. Perhaps you remember Apple founder Steve Jobs on stage unveiling the then-new iPhone back in 2007. If you were like me, your first thought was: “This guy sure doesn’t spend his billions in clothing stores.” But then, watching as the iPhone’s multifunction smarts and user-optimised interface were explained, you may have sat there going: “Of course. Makes complete sense. Why did anyone bother trying to do it differently?” I’m…

TWO THINGS have become apparent this month. The first is that the Genesis is quicker and lighter on its feet that its size suggests. Watch a GV80 roll by and you could be forgiven for thinking it has the dynamic panache of a Sherman tank, but the numbers don’t lie; this heavyweight wears ballet shoes. Well, in a straight line anyway… With some spare time up our sleeves after filming our latest Drag Race video for our sister title, MOTOR magazine (look us up on YouTube!), we decided to run the GV80 down the strip. And the figures were illuminating. Our GV80 is the 3.5-litre petrol twin-turbo V6 with 279kW/530Nm on tap, which is the quickest variant in the three-strong GV80 range, and it knocked over the 0-100km/h sprint in…