I spent real time with the reigning Drive Car of the Year over a busy holiday period. These are my thoughts on how the 2024 Kia EV9 GT-Line kept pace. As 2023 drew to a close there was one final car that made its debut throughout the year that I was dead keen on giving a go. The Kia EV9 launch snuck in just before December 2023 and it’s a model that took my intrigue as soon as it was revealed thanks to its bold, boxy styling, renowned E-GMP electric platform, and expansive interior. I was also keen on seeing how an electric vehicle would fare on longer trips, relying heavily on the nation’s ..read more

Chinese SUV’s hybrid powertrain claims to deliver up to 1500km of range – enough to drive between major Australian capitals. The petrol-electric Chery Exceed Sterra ET has been announced in China with a claimed range of up to 1500km, thanks to new battery technology from CATL. Reports from CarNewsChina say the Exceed Sterra ET is the world’s first production vehicle to use new-generation lithium phosphate (LFP) technology from CATL, the world’s largest producer of batteries. The technology endows the large SUV with the fuel touring distance to rival diesel-powered SUVs of a similar size – a ..read more

Authorities said the car collided with a parked vehicle, which resulted in one person trapped inside the rolled SUV. Photo Credit: Brad Rowswell MP/Instagram A photo of a Mitsubishi ASX rolled over on a footpath has emerged online – with commenters questioning how the situation unfolded. The incident occurred along Seaview shops in Beaumaris – a suburb approximately 20km southeast of Melbourne – at approximately 11:00am on 17 April 2024. In the photos – uploaded to Instagram by Sandringham Parliament member Brad Rowswell – the SUV can be seen flipped on its right side, with orange cones ..read more

New electric trio spearheads model onslaught from the Japanese car maker as it takes on Chinese rivals. Honda has revealed the first of its Ye Series electric vehicle range with plans for the first models to be in Chinese showrooms by the end of 2024 as it looks to reverse a sales slump in China. To be shown at the 2024 Beijing motor show starting on 25 April, three Ye Series vehicles were unveiled – two SUVs and a family-sized five-door ‘GT’ hatchback – with the Chinese character for ‘Ye’ translating to ‘shine brilliantly’, not to be confused with the US rapper formerly Kanye West. Honda ..read more

The owners of one of Australia’s first mobile EV charging businesses have revealed the real reason electric car owners get stuck on the side of the road – and the struggles they faced in building their brand. As electricians, Daniel Henry and Toby Batters-Holding were spending their days travelling around Melbourne when they started noticing more and more electric vehicles stuck on the side of the road with little to no help. “Where we are down the [Mornington] Peninsula, we started seeing so many Teslas and all EV makes occasionally getting towed and we thought what’s happening here? Are t ..read more

The South Australian Government has announced the addition of automatic direct debit payments for vehicle registrations. Motorists in South Australia now have the option of having their car registration automatically renewed. The State Government announced the new automatic direct debit feature for vehicle registrations, with owners able to choose renewal periods to suit their budgets. Registration can be paid by the month, every quarter, or annually. The vehicle’s registered owner will also receive SMS and email reminders about when payments are soon due, allowing households to ensure they ..read more

Kia EV9 owners in the US can show their fandom on their infotainment system with a fun new technology update. Could we soon see it come to Australia? Kia is rolling out a new feature on its EV9 electric car that will allow owners to customise their vehicle’s displays to show the colours and logos of their favourite basketball teams – but the technology is not yet available in Australia. Ahead of the 2024 National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs in the United States, Kia will release 30 display themes (one for every NBA team) on its Kia Connect Store via an over-the-air update. RELATED ..read more

Nissan’s Juke and Qashqai models offer great value for money, comprehensive standard features, and a five-star ANCAP safety rating, but how do these two SUVs differ? We compare the pair. Nissan offers five SUVs that cover all shapes, sizes, and powertrains. The Juke is the smallest of the range, competing in the light SUV segment, while the largest offering is the Patrol, which sits in the upper large SUV class. One step up in size from the Juke is the Qashqai small SUV, which sits under the Nissan X-Trail as an option for city dwellers in need of a little more cargo space. RELATED: The new N ..read more

It was meant to be the indirect replacement for the Kia Stinger – an electric high-performance sedan with a long driving range – but a new report claims the vehicle has been dropped from the company’s plans. An electric performance sedan – previously reported as the spiritual successor to the Kia Stinger – may have been cancelled before it saw the light of day. According to The Korean Car Blog, unnamed sources from within Kia have claimed plans for the so-called ‘GT1’ project – which may have been badged EV8 – have been dropped. The website claims to have seen different drafts of internal m ..read more

Tune in to Nine Rush this weekend to catch an all-new season of Drive Review. The first epsiode of Season 2 airs tomorrow! Tune in to Nine Rush tomorrow, 20 April 2024, at 4pm to catch the first episode of Drive Review for Season 2. In this episode, Ben takes the Ford F-150 for its first drive since being remanufactured to right-hand drive. Trent takes a thrilling drive through New Zealand in Ferrari’s first-ever SUV, and James takes a deep dive into a new electric offering from Audi. If you missed Drive Review Season 1 on Nine Rush, you can catch up on all th ..read more