Drive Section

Toyota’s latest generation of its halo Supra sports car was criticised, perhaps, unfairly for being too much like BMW’s Z4. After all, they do share many of the same underpinnings. This always struck me as a bit of an odd critique to level against a car, though. It would be like saying that I’m a bit too much like Chris Hemsworth. In my eyes, that seems like nothing less than a massive compliment. The JDM puritans didn’t it see it this way.

Although the soon-to-be-replaced Toyota Camry almost has a complete monopoly on the mid-size sedan market in Australia, it always pays to shop around even when there appears to be an obvious choice. The 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is perhaps one of the best examples of just how much you can get by doing your research and shopping around – especially if performance is what you’re looking for.

Every once in a while, a car comes along that is more than the sum of its parts. Think along the lines of the Lexus LFA or BMW 1 Series M and you’ll know what I’m talking about. The 2024 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio is one such car. First hitting the market in 2016, production of this super sedan is due to end later this year. Before it does, I grabbed the keys to one for a week to give it proper send-off.

Japan has long been a treasure trove of hidden automotive gems the rest of the world misses out on, and although the modern JDM market is populated largely by kei cars which the country’s road taxes create unique demand for, there are still a few offerings now and then which could work elsewhere. One of those is the Nissan Note Aura – a hatchback which rivals the likes of the current Volkswagen Polo for size, but utilises Nissan’s unique e-Power hybrid drivetrain.

If you’re ever in charge of a rebrand at a company – whether you’re selling cars, phones, shoes, kitchenware, or anything else you can think of – the blueprint to follow has to be the way Kia has turned itself from a maker of economy cars to seriously desirable and head-turning eye candy.

Few cars stand the test of time quite the way the Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series has. Despite launching 40 years ago, astonishingly, it’s still in production and selling just as well as ever. In fact, the waiting list stretches around the block a few times over, attesting to what an icon this utilitarian off-roader is. Last year, an impressive cab chassis ute versions alone found a new home, with farmers and the mining sector accounting for a great proportion of that.

It’s not often these days that when a company gives one of its cars a facelift, the looks are largely left alone in favour of totally switching up its underpinnings instead. Sure, you might get the occasional introduction of a new engine or transmission option, but the changes certainly wouldn’t be as major as, say, switching the car’s entire platform from a front-wheel drive one to rear-wheel drive instead. Yet, that’s precisely what’s been done to the 2024 Polestar 2.

Saying goodbye is never easy, and the direction the automotive market is going means we’re starting to say goodbye to some real gems. Hotted-up sedans, sports cars, and even some brands’ entire petrol-powered lineups have been given the axe in recent months and years. However, the hardest goodbye I find myself having to say is to the gloriously stunning 2024 Jaguar F-Type. Since it first entered production way back in 2013, I’ve been besotted with it.

The gravel crunched below the sticky tyres as I pulled around behind the McLaren Vale Visitor Information Centre, before turning to a dull spongey squish as I pulled the borrowed Hyundai Sonata onto the cold, dew-soaked grass at the rear of the building. A few other journalists I knew were already there in familiar press cars, while gradually, an eclectic mix of six-figure high-end sports cars, family SUVs with child seats in the back, and 1980s Japanese retro filled the paddock.

While for many, Ferraris and Lamborghinis may be the first cars that come to mind when you think of Italy and its penchant for flair and style, I’d argue that the Fiat 500 is actually the quintessential Italian car. With iconic styling that transcends generations and the ability to look at home anywhere, it’s as Italian as a Mini Cooper is British. Coincidentally, both the 500 and the Mini are tiny hatchbacks originally built with utilitarianism, practicality, and affordability in mind.