Motoring

Carmakers cover up sexy models

Scantily clad models were once as much a part of motor shows as shiny sports cars and roaring engines, but as women buy more cars and green credentials dominate, carmakers are slowly changing their ways.

X-Trail gets better yet cheaper

Already highly regarded, the Nissan X-Trail has had a meaningful trim to its fuel use and pricing as well as an aesthetic nip and tuck.

Electric car creates sound for safety

Hyundai's just-unveiled electric car, the BlueOn, creates an artificial sound for the safety of pedestrians, because electric vehicles are near-silent at low speeds.

DIY Citroen a hatch that's hard to match

A new Citroen is shrieking "look at me" as it joins the hard-fought turf war in the burgeoning $30,000-$45,000 European hatch segment. If you want to be noticed, the DS3 will do it.

Good argument for wagons

Despite offering snazzy features like an automated parking system, the station wagon I drove for a week is unlikely to register on the radar of many buyers.

Ute beauty, Maloo celebrates 20 years

The special-edition Maloo R8, which celebrates 20 years of the nameplate, shows just how far utes have come in that time.

Grange gets a blind-spot alert

A gizmo that should stop you ever cutting off another motorist is among an array of high-tech features in HSV's luxury flagship, the Grange.

Drive of my life is high-tech

This is a tale of a day that is bound to stir the envy in a lot of boys, young and old, not to mention a fair few girls.

Keeping track of Perth's traffic

Perth motorists now have access to up-to-the-minute traffic information with SUNA Traffic Channel extending its service to include 24/7 automated traffic monitoring.

V8 muscle car barriers vaporised

Green-cred and running costs have never been the strong suits of muscle cars but HSV has an answer to these concerns.

Smashing Skodas all part of the job

Skoda has carried out a unique crash test of its Superb wagon and Yeti SUV in the brand's Czech Republic homeland.

Bentley recalls 820 cars on hood ornament fears

Luxury carmaker Bentley says it's recalling 820 cars worldwide over fears that its famous "Winged B" hood ornament could injure people in an accident because it might not properly retract.

Sexy coupe may not be so far away

The term budget-priced sports car doesn't usually get used in the same breath as Mercedes-Benz but, with the CLC 200K, it's appropriate.

Go for thrift that can shift

When most people, even those who are not car enthusiasts, see or hear the letters GTi they conjure up an image of a small, dynamic hot hatch.

Holden flexes its fuel muscle

The headline act at the launch of the new Series II Commodore range in Adelaide last week was the flexi-fuel engine that can be run on up to 85 per cent ethanol.

Peugeot's coupe makes a statement

Peugeot's all-new RCZ coupe, the first of a new exclusive range of vehicles the French carmaker will add to its line-up over the next few years, is a car designed to make a statement.

Morells drive away with dream prize

WRX STi ready to fly

One of the auto world's most startling spoilers is back, with Subaru swinging back to offering a big-winged sedan model in its iconic Impreza WRX STi range.