2013 Audi RS6 Avant Review

Hitting a cattle grate at 130km/h is no problem for the Audi RS6 Avant. This $225,000 wagon-only may have been engineered as a autobahn-stormer but it is also utterly adept at dealing with Aussie outback bitumen, as our local first drive proved. Audi Australia imported three RS6 Avants two months before the model�??s official on-sale to coincide with the launch of its first local advertising campaign tagged �??land of quattro�??. It shipped them...

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Audi A1 Competition Pack Review

Shuffling through the Audi A1 Sportback range tests the definition of the term �??hot-hatch�??. The $29,900 Audi A1 three-door squeezes a Golf�??s 90kW/200Nm 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine and six-speed manual into a 3.95-metre, 1100kg body. The upshot of being a light hatchback with a turbo engine is 0-100km/h in a claimed 8.9 seconds, just 5.3L/100km official combined consumption and stacks of cornering agility. An affordable, quasi-hot-hatch,...

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Mini Countryman JCW Review

The Mini Countryman JCW marks the first time the John Cooper Works badge has adorned an all-wheel drive vehicle. Combining JCW performance enhancement with the practicality of five doors, and the promise of some light off-roading capability, the most athletic Countryman has now officially joined its spirited siblings in the local seven-car range. At $56,800 the Mini Countryman John Cooper Works appears to be the bargain of the JCW line-up. While...

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Land Rover Defender Electric Review

The concept of an electric off-roader might conjure images of a 4WD that�??s all hat and no cattle, but the Land Rover Defender Electric is a surprisingly capable all-terrain vehicle. While most EVs (electric vehicles) are built with emissions reduction in mind, the Land Rover Electric Defender was created on a very different remit, when a South African game park commissioned Land Rover to build a quiet vehicle for game watching. That first-generation...

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Fringe benefits tax changes likely to get through before election

The federal government�??s proposed changes to the fringe benefits tax might pass through the senate before the election, if Kevin Rudd has his way. Mr Rudd has been in contact with numerous world leaders in regards to the G20 summit and is rumoured to be making preparations to attend the event before an election is called.� This would likely delay the federal election until October. The net result of this means there will be another sitting of...

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Holden redundancies: 400 Elizabeth workers depart as Melbourne staff dig in their heels

Four-hundred Holden employees in South Australia will clock off for the last time today as the voluntary redundancies announced by the local car maker in April take effect. The workers at Holden�??s vehicle assembly plant in Elizabeth represent 80 per cent of the employees planned to leave the company as part of the April job cuts, with a further 100 engineering staff from Holden�??s product development operations in Port Melbourne due to join...

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Jaguar XF 2.2D Review

It isn�??t quite a wolf in sheep�??s clothing, the Jaguar XF 2.2D, but it definitely is a four-cylinder diesel with big alloys and sports trimmings. Make of that combination what you will, but our optioned-up Jaguar XF 2.2D test car is a surprisingly alluring package. Surprising, first, because even when the $76,500 XF 2.2D Premium Luxury is optioned with 35-aspect 20-inch gloss black alloys ($3570), an exterior �??black pack�?? ($1500), interior...

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Tata Xenon ute headed for Australia in November

Tata Motors has confirmed its entry into the Australian market, with new independent distributor Fusion Automotive set to introduce a range of light-commercial vehicles in the final quarter of this year. Fusion will launch the Tata Xenon across Australia in November, offering 4�?2 and 4�?4 versions of the Toyota HiLux-sized ute in single- and crew-cab body styles. The Indian-made Xenon will compete at the budget end of the market against similar...

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Renault Megane GT 220 Sport Wagon Review

On paper the Renault Megane GT 220 Sport Wagon looks like an ideal blend of performance and practicality. Up front there�??s a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine producing 162kW of power and 340Nm of torque. Out back there�??s 524 litres of boot space, or 1600L with the rear backrest and front passenger seat folded. Cloaked with a sports bodykit and black 18-inch alloys wheels, and equipped with dual-zone climate control, cruise control...

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