Australian New Car Buyer

Until recently, it was almost impossible to get an accurate estimate of the cost of servicing your new car, either for a specific service or over the long term, because individual dealers and independent workshops could basically charge whatever they

One of Australia’s most accomplished motoring writers, over three decades, John is a long-time contributor to Wheels magazine, where he is a Car of the Year judge, and publications in the USA and UK. He lives in Bergamo, Italy, and covers new Europea

In our tests on the following pages and in the Showroom, we have used symbols to give you a quick indication of the strengths of each car, and star ratings to indicate in more detail how each car stacks up in its class. Here’s what the symbols and st

In Australian New Car Buyer, we include trade-in values for every model in our Showroom section. These are provided to us by Redbook, Australia’s leading authority on used car values. Each model we test includes three- and five-year retained values,

Alfa Romeo’s Giulia is aggressively priced and generously equipped. It deserves to disrupt your Audi A4/BMW 3 Series/Mercedes C Class buying decision. Start money is $59,895 for the 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbopetrol Giulia, with 147kW of power and

Audi’s current A3 range, like its predecessors, shares its architecture and most of its componentry with parent brand Volkswagen’s Golf. Prices for the five-door A3 Sportback start at $36,200 for the 85kW 1.0-litre turbopetrol threecylinder/ seven-sp

Today’s Audi Q5 might seem barely changed since the original in 2009, but there’s exciting new stuff underneath its almost the same skin. Kicking off from $65,900 for the 2.0-litre TDI diesel quattro and $73,211 for the 2.0-litre TFSI petrol quattro

BMW’S 1 Series is now the only small hatchback in the world that still uses rear-wheel drive. Is this a big deal? BMW used to argue, forcefully, that rear-wheel drive produces a better-balanced car that has more neutral handling characteristics and s

BMW’s seventh-generation 5 Series range opens with the $92,200 520i, with a 135kW, 2.0-litre turbopetrol four. At $95,200, the 520d runs a 140kW/400Nm 2.0-litre turbodiesel four, while the $110,500 530i, tested here, has a 185kW/350Nm 2.0-litre turbo

It might not look like it, but this is Ferrari’s answer to the Toyota Prius. Well, sort of. The Italian supercar maker has been forced to join the rest of the car industry and downsize its engines to meet strict new emissions regulations in Europe. A

Falcon is dead and buried so the European-designed and -built Mondeo is, effectively, Ford Australia’s new flagship family and fleet car. There are three spec levels (Ambiente, Trend, Titanium), available in hatch or wagon, with a choice of two turbo

Ford’s Kuga has now been renamed the Escape, the name it carries in most other world markets. The 2017 range range opens with the 110kW 1.5-litre turbopetrol/six-speed manual/front-wheel-drive Ambiente, priced at $28,490. The six-speed auto is $29,99

Kicking off from $14,990 for the VTi, the latest GK-series Honda Jazz hatch brings fewer variants, lower prices and — bar one backward step — more for your money. For example, you’ll find a reversing camera, emergencybraking indicator flashes, hill-s

Named after a famous Spanish fighting bull from the late 1800s, the Huracán is Lamborghini’s current “junior” supercar. It also shares familial DNA with Audi’s R8. Huracán is powered by an upgraded version of its predecessor’s 5.2-litre naturally asp

Mazda’s mid-size 6 is available as a sedan and wagon. Prices start at $32,490 for the 138kW 2.5-litre fourcylinder petrol/six-speed automatic Sport sedan. The Touring is $37,290, the GT is $42,690 and the top-of-therange Atenza is $45,390. Wagon vers

Evolution is the name of the game for Australia’s most popular SUV. Starting from $28,690, the front-wheel drive Mazda CX-5 Maxx has the best safety specification of any base model in this class, with autonomous emergency braking front and rear as st

The 570GT is the flagship of McLaren’s recently drafted Sports Series, the entry level of its three-tier range. Priced at $406,800, it sits above the less well-appointed 570S Coupe at $379,000 and the 540C, the most affordable McLaren at $325,000. Vi

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class starts at $38,700 for the 90kW 1.6-litre turbopetrol/ seven-speed automatic/frontwheel- drive A180. It’s then a big hike to the A200 at $44,300, with a more powerful 115kW version of the 1.6-litre engine. The A200 d 100kW 2.

The Mercedes CLA-Class is essentially the frontwheel- drive A-Class with a different body, in this case a four-door coupe. It’s the most aerodynamically-efficient production car body in the world, a significant factor in minimising fuel use and wind

The Mercedes GLA SUV range starts at $43,900 for the 90kW 1.6-litre turbopetrol front-wheel-drive GLA180. The 130kW 2.1-litre turbodiesel front-wheel-drive GLA220d is $51,200. Opt for the sportier performance and all-wheeldrive grip of the 155kW 2.0-

Rather than a new Mercedes- Benz, what we have here is a new Mercedes-Benz name. There’s little more than a simple badge swap involved in the transition from M Class to GLE. The basic virtues of the line-up — comfort, capable handling, formidable saf

Anthropologists know it refers to a nomadic people of Middle Eastern origin but Nissan hopes Qashqai (pronounced “kash-kai”) becomes the byword for compact SUVs in Australia. Like the successful Dualis it replaced, the five-seater crossover is design

Peugeot claims the new 3008 “has moved itself above” mainstream SUV rivals such as VW’s Tiguan, Mazda’s CX5, Subaru’s Forester and Honda’s CRV, but the French maker is dreaming. Start money — $36,990 for the base Active — is about $5000 over the odds

The Renault Clio RS200 Sport, tested here, costs $30,990, or $32,490 in Cup specification, which adds a lower, stiffer suspension and 18-inch alloys. The 147kW 1.6 feels more like a 2.0-litre turbo in its delivery, which features outstanding flexibil

The Renault Megane GT is powered by a 151kW 1.6-litre turbopetrol engine, matched with a seven-speed dual-clutch automated manual gearbox (Efficient Dual Clutch, or EDC, in Renault speak). GT’s interior features highquality, soft-touch materials and

Skoda’s Kodiaq SUV is named after the largest carnivorous mammal on earth, the Kodiak bear, but as far as seven seaters go it’s light, manoeuvrable and compact. More like a koala. The Kodiaq, like other Skodas, is basically a rebadged VW — in this ca

Subaru’s second-generation XV is the only compact SUV with all-wheel drive as standard, so it’s as capable and confident on a dirt road as it is on the bitumen. As with the original, it’s a jacked-up Impreza hatchback with tougher bodywork. XV prices

Subaru cut prices on its fifth-generation Outback, launched in 2015, by up to $10,000. The Outback has always been one of the best midsized SUVs on the market, so big discounts and more equipment have made it a compelling proposition, especially agai