US pickup storm won’t include Lightning
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Three heavyweight champs of the US pickup scene are in the news. But only one has immediate relevance to Kiwis.
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Tucson feeling same fire heat as Sportage
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THE Hyundai equivalent of a popular Kia sports utility, now pulling mainstream media interest as result of its recall, is also at risk of catching fire due to an electronic fault in the engine bay.
A remedial action for the current generation Hyundai Tucson sold here posted nationally in early April, so almost five weeks ago, though the brand was taking questions about it much earlier – MotoringNZ.com first publicised the matter in a story on February 11.
Read MoreKia Sportage pulled from NZ
/POPULARITY has apparently proven the undoing of the top-selling Kia in New Zealand last year, the Sportage.
That’s the gist of explanation from Kia New Zealand in respect to why it has determined to stop selling the current generation of medium SUV, which achieved 36 percent of Kia NZ volume last year, with immediate effect.
Read MoreCamry hybrid – TNZ claims CO2 credibility
/AN update for the Toyota Camry hitting soon has refined the range to hybrid-only, in three trim levels, across a $8500 span, and given the brand opportunity to offer some mild criticism of a recent fleet announcement.
Read MoreHyundai Nexo super-feat: Slow and steady re-sets record
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AN Australian team has, by driving a Hyundai Nexo fuel cell electric vehicle somewhat conservatively, broken the world record for the longest distance travelled in a hydrogen-powered vehicle on a single tank.
Brendan Reeves, an Australian rally driver, drove a production specification Nexo for a claimed distance of 887.5km, exceeding the previous world record of 778km set by a Frenchman, Bertrand Piccard, also at the wheel of a Nexo, and the manufacturer-claimed range of 666km (measured on the WLTP scale).
Read MoreRenault Megane RS: Bonjour … and adieu
/LATEST editions of an iconic French performance car just becoming available in New Zealand now seem set to be the last of an illustrious line.
Renault’s announcement of having officially dissolved its Renault Sport line, in favour of making a fresh start with electric cars with the Alpine badge, is hardly a hot timing for the make’s national distributor.
Read MoreVW Tiguan Allspace: NZ-confirmed update revealed
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HAVING established the ‘regular’ updated Tiguan in markets including New Zealand, Volkswagen has now allowed a first proper look at the ‘plus-sized’ seven-seater edition set to arrive locally later this year.
The refreshed Allspace which starts local roll-out in the third quarter unsurprisingly achieves the same suite of updates applied to the regular five-chair variants earlier this year, including tweaks to the styling and cabin, a rejigging of the line-up and engines and more connected and safety technology.
Read MorePower up – is this the sound of an electric M?
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REALITY check – electric BMW cars are coming and the vaunted M Division is not excluded from the battery drive.
So, with that in mind, we know electrics can be made to go fast – and be remarkably quick off the block. The big hang-up with petrol-addicted purists is what they sound like.
Read MoreElemental approach with Solterra
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WHEN it comes for a love of the outdoors, Subaru is right up there with the best of them – so quite fittingly, it has given its first electric car, a robust-looking compact crossover, a name that fits.
New Zealand is in line to see the Solterra, a tag that presents as a conjunction of the Latin for ‘Sun’ and ‘Earth’ and emphasise the car's environmentally friendly context.
Read MoreChips are down for all
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SOME new vehicle distributors here are contemplating cutting back on some advanced supplementary safety features.
This from the head of the organisation that acts on behalf of the industry, speaking in respect to the local market impact of a global shortage of computer chips.
Read MoreTNZ stock shortfall hits 11,000 vehicles
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FORWARD orders for new Toyota and Lexus models have reached 11,000 unites, effectively six months’ sales, and buyers are generally in for prolonged wait times.
An unprecedented accrual for Toyota New Zealand affects every model it represents, general manager of new car sales Steve Prangnell says, including one still to come, the next version of a traditional big seller, the Toyota Highlander.
Read MoreNZ-developed EV battery monitoring tool announced
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CONSIDERATION into resolving perceived environmental problems related to the disposal of expended electric vehicle batteries has spurred development of an online tool called a ‘battery passport’.
Audi New Zealand, which has several cars in the premium EV sector with two more to shortly launch, has supported the concept and is encouraging other car brands to also involve.
Read MoreFresh car to sell … fresh way of selling
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Honda NZ high-ups discuss the reasons for changes to the long-standing Price Promise policy and talk cars.
Read MoreVan, SUV drive Ford’s EV promoter link
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ANNOUNCEMENT today of Ford New Zealand having joined the primary independent pressure group for electric vehicle uptake isn’t a signal it is any closer to including the Blue Oval’s first fully-fledged battery-compelled car, the Mustang Mach E, into its portfolio.
This today from the brand’s communications manager, Tom Clancy, who says there is still no clarity as to when, or even if, the five-seater sports utility might be sold here.
Read MoreFull confession on police deal
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CASE closed: Skoda itself has shared key information, never disclosed locally, in respect to the police buy-up of Superb station wagons as front-line cruisers – exactly how many are coming and over what period.
In a release it sent out from its headquarters in Mlada Boleslav to celebrate to contract, the Czech marque has identified that the contract is to supply 2000 cars over the next four years.
Read MoreKona EV recall will be a long haul
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POTENTIALLY more than half of the 800 electric Hyundai Konas so far sold in New Zealand are set to require a battery transplant, with surgery unlikely to start before August.
Even this is still something of a guesstimate for Hyundai New Zealand, with the Auckland-based distributor admitting it is still chasing up vital information from the factory, two months after Seoul announced a worldwide plan to replace the drivetrain-vital battery pack.
Read MoreNew Fabia set for 2022 release
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NEW platform, new kit, new look – and, perhaps, a fresh new start?
Skoda New Zealand intends a second-quarter of 2022 release for the next-generation of the Fabia, the Czech marque’s baby hatchback whose latest look and technical detail has just been unveiled internationally.
Read MoreApril car sales raced away
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PLENTY of fresh stock, plenty of willing buyers – despite all the travails occurring here and overseas, the new car market nonetheless ran extra hot last month, with a record return according the distributor organisation.
The Motor Industry Association says it was the strongest April on record for sales of new vehicles.
Read MoreYear-end landing for first Lexus electric
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AN end-of-2021 local market arrival timing has been announced for the UX 300e, the first Lexus to be wholly reliant on battery-fed electric power.
Confirmation of the small SUV’s local availability comes more than a year after the local arm expressed interest and almost two years since its global debut at a motor show in China.
Read MoreWhy 'e' isn't just for 'electric'
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BEING in the business of making and selling products that create greenhouse gases responsible for global climate change also fuels Mazda’s eco-consciousness.
It all began in 2007 with Sustainable Zoom-Zoom, a multi-solution plan to reduce vehicle emissions; including a key resolution to reduce “well to wheel” CO2 emissions from its vehicles by 50 percent by 2030 and by 90 percent by 2050.
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