Have a think of how many diesel performance cars are left in the market. Audi have a couple of TDI powered S cars, BMW have a couple of fast diesel engines around, but that’s about it. What was once the promised engine combing big torque and even bigger range, diesel cars are slowly being phased out in favour of petrol-hybrids and...
Who doesn’t love a hot hatch? For hot hatch lovers, at last we get the latest Ford Fiesta ST. That’s not to say the last Fiesta ST was not a good car – far from it. But when I say we get it, well the first shipment sold out, and Ford are taking orders for the next.So the new model…Ford have taken away a piston, and given...
There’s no Redwood in Japan yet. They tried to bring the cool retro show over to Japan along with the help of SpeedHunters last year but had to cancel due to the severe lack of participants. Perhaps Japan isn’t quite ready for an American-based retro car show but that doesn’t mean there’s no appreciation of neo-classic cars in...
1969 put man on the moon, The Beatles recorded Abbey Road, and the Nissan Skyline GT-R was born. For five decades the car known as ‘Godzilla’ has been redefining the term ‘affordable performance’. The GT-R has always been, and should always be, accessible speed for the masses. Carrying on the traditional boxy sedan shape, the...
The previous Vantage, you know the pretty one introduced from 2004, was a roaring success for Aston Martin. During its 13 year lifespan, over 21,000 Vantages were produced. These included those with V8s and V12, manual and autos, coupe and roadsters. 21,000 might not sound like a big number in the grand scheme of things but for a small...
It’s Tuesday, so that must mean another new SUV is being released. All joking aside, we’re a fan of all of the Skoda SUV range. Each one has that little bit of extra something that makes them special, and enjoyable.But Škoda NZ decided they needed a compact SUV to complete their range, and so we have the Kamiq coming to New...
There aren’t many new cars that get me all hot and excited. They’re all pretty much the same, few cars stand out from the crowd with distinct personalities. I’d say there’s probably only a dozen or so brand new cars I’m vaguely interested in, the Lexus LC500 being one of them. I remember when the production car was first...
We’ve always liked the Outlander PHEV at DriveLife – in fact, all of the Outlanders are pretty good, with the PHEV having that plug-in hybrid edge over its siblings. For the uninitiated, PHEV stands for Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle. Basically it means you have a larger battery pack than a car that’s only a hybrid, and you can...
MELBOURNE – The Holden brand will be retired from sales in Australia and New Zealand and local design and engineering operations will wind down by 2021, General Motors (NYSE: GM) announced today. Maven and Holden Financial Services operations will also wind down in Australia.GM International Operations Senior Vice President Julian...
The redesigned 2020 Civic Hatch gets fresh styling & upgraded interior, and now the sporty RS grade is back in the line-up, including Honda Sensing Safety Suite.The full suite of Honda Sensing Active Safety technologies have been added to the Civic RS Sport, including the High Beam Support System, while the RS Sport Sensing...
It’s regularly the biggest selling small SUV in New Zealand. Sharp pricing, good features and well-produced TV ads all help the Mitsubishi ASX to climb the small SUV charts. There’s been no chassis updates to this model, the changes are based around the front and rear facelift, a switch of tyres to help reduce road noise,...
Mazda’s newest snazzy crossover, the CX-30, is due on New Zealand shores in March so in preparation of the CX-30’s New Zealand launch, Mazda Japan kindly gave me the keys to on in Japan for a few days to get a taste of what it’s like. The variant I got was the 2.0-litre Skyactiv-G petrol with AWD and, wait for it, a...
The all-new Ford Puma will go on sale in New Zealand in the second half of 2020.Sourced from Europe, Ford says the Puma is an all-new urban SUV with fresh design, practicality and technology. Arriving alongside the new-generation 2020 Ford Escape, together the Puma and Escape will bring Kiwi customers greater choice through Ford’s...
We've been a fan of the Impreza here at DriveLife. Priced at $29,990 for an AWD station wagon with Subaru's Eyesight technology, that includes adaptive cruise control? It has always been a bargain.When we last tested it in 2017, we gave it a thumbs up and a 3.5 chevron rating.Now, Subaru’s Impreza has undergone a cosmetic...
A few months ago Fred got to spend time behind the wheel of the Mercedes-Benz GLE 300d. With little to dislike about it, Fred gave it top marks, 5 chevrons. Not long after, I was booked in to review the GLE 400d. I was keen to see if the 400d would rate as well and if the $10,000 difference is worth it?The RangeThe Mercedes-Benz...
DriveLife reviewed the Audi Q8 in February 2019, and liked it a lot, giving it a 4.5-Chevron rating. The Q8 has stunning looks and it reeks of luxury – hence, it won our 2019 Luxury Car of the Year award.With a 210kW/600Nm twin-turbo V6 diesel, it didn’t really seem like the Q8 needed more power or torque. Audi New Zealand...
When the Lexus RC F first burst on to the stage with its thumping old-school 5-litre V8 as a Japanese alternative to the likes of the BMW M4, Mercedes-AMG C63 Coupe, and Audi RS5 it was always seen as a left-field choice. Reviewers said it was a bit of a blunt compared to its Teutonic rivals with its weight being the biggest...
Let’s play an automotive word association game. If I say ‘EV’ what car comes to mind? You probably said Tesla or Leaf. Alright next one, what if I said ‘sports car’? A Porsche 911 perhaps, Mazda MX-5? Easy enough. Right, last one. What about ‘hybrid’? I’m sure 9/10 of you would’ve said Prius and for good reason. Ever...
The V12 Aston Martin DB11 is dead. If you want a DB11 you’re stuck wit the AMG-sourced 4-litre twin-turbo V8. That’s not the worst thing in the world, it’s still a wonderful engine and Aston’s exhaust tuning still makes it sound quintessentially Aston. Except, that’s not entirely true because the DB11 AMR exists....
Cadillac was synonymous with American luxury. For many, mention Cadillac and images of land yachts with tail fins and bright pastel colours come to mind. An icon of post-war Americana and the epitome of Western opulence and excess. It was to America what Mercedes-Benz was to Germany and what Rolls-Royce was to...
