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Hyundai Australia is hoping an Ioniq 3 N hot hatch will be the next to join its growing electric performance stable. Hyundai Australia has hinted at its desire for an electric hot hatch to line up next to its newly-launched Ioniq 6 N performance sedan and the Ioniq 5 N hot hatch-styled SUV. The Ioniq 3 , revealed last month at Milan Design Week and due in Australia in 2027, has only been confirmed in N Line guise for now, it is highly speculated to be among the next EVs to receive the full N performance treatment. While the current flagship N EV models focus on ultra-fast 800-volt architectures and premium price points, the Korean brand’s focus is expected to pivot toward a more accessible entry point and 400-volt architecture. The most likely candidate to follow on from the current niche Hyundai EV N models would be a smaller and more affordable hatch or sedan to suit a wider range of enthusiasts. The Ioniq 5 N , which was introduced in 2024, and...

Bathurst-winning Moffat Ford tribute goes under the hammer. But those of you who know your history will know there’s a catch… If you’re fed up with looking at yet more dull SUVs and want to live a bit larger, you could consider this 1973 Ford Mustang Fastback up for auction, finished in Allan Moffat’s Bathurst-winning livery. Available on Grays auctions , there is more to this car then first meets the eye though. “Wait , what?” says everybody who knows their judo Bathurst history well. “The Ford Mustang never won the Great Race back then!” Well yes, you’d be entirely correct there. But this is just a bit of fun and we’re not taking things too seriously. A mint Ford XC Falcon Fastback – the model Moffat did claim victory with in the famous 1977 1-2 – would cost you the best part of quarter of a million for a Cobra model. Let’s face it, in these straitened times, that’s a lot of money to...

A Geely four-wheel-drive ute is all but locked in for Australia as a more heavy-duty proposition than the car-derived Riddara ute available overseas. Geely is working on a four-wheel-drive ute for Australia, which could be in showrooms in 2028 or 2029 with plug-in hybrid power to rival the BYD Shark 6 and GWM Cannon Alpha. It is according to Geely Australia CEO Alex Gu, who told Australian motoring media about the brand’s intentions in the off-road space. And while the Chinese automotive giant does not plan to offer a pure internal combustion-engined version, there is scope for hybrid and/or plug-in hybrid technology, potentially with diesel as well as petrol. MORE: Geely Battleship 700 – tri-motor SUV off-roader brings Galaxy Cruiser concept to life Geely’s future ute could receive a new 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged petrol V6 hybrid powertrain developed by Horse, an engine joint-venture between the Chinese giant and Renault , which can devel...

Chery is in the running to sell one of Australia’s cheapest electric cars when its rival to the Geely EX2 and BYD Atto 1 arrives in showrooms next year. The Chery Q electric hatch will become the brand’s first new electric car for Australia in about three years when it arrives in showrooms sometime in 2027. And it is in with a strong chance of becoming one of the country’s most affordable electric cars, if sharp prices in China translate to local showrooms. Sold in China as the Chery QQ3, but due to be badged Chery Q in export markets, the EV is a compact hatch-styled SUV similar in size to the MG 4 Urban , or a petrol-powered Volkswagen Golf or Toyota Corolla . Prices are yet to be confirmed, but in China, a top-of-the-range version with a 41.3kWh battery similar to what’s expected to be standard in Australia is listed at 78,900 yuan (AUD$16,000). MORE: Chery will not race to the bottom with an Atto 1-competing electric car It i...

Following customer reports of failures, Hyundai, Kia and Genesis have extended the ICCU warranty of some EVs in Australia to 15 years. Hyundai, Kia and Genesis have introduced an extended 15-year warranty in Australia for the Integrated Charging Control Unit (ICCU) in some electric vehicles, following customer reports of component failures. The extended warranty applies to early versions of Hyundai , Kia and Genesis electric vehicles underpinned by the Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP), including the Hyundai Ioniq 5 , Kia EV6 and Genesis GV60 . It also applies to the Genesis G80 EV and Genesis GV70 EV , which ride on separate platforms but share electric-vehicle components.  The ICCU includes a low-voltage DC-DC converter – the EV equivalent of an alternator – and a bidirectional on-board charger for converting alternating-current (AC) power to direct-current (DC), and vice versa for the vehicle-to-load (V2L) function.  MORE: Hyundai re...

Honda is keeping shipments of the Civic Type R hot hatch tight to ensure it does not go too far in the red on government fines for not meeting strict Australian new-car emissions targets. Tough CO2 emission rules on new cars in Australia – not the $85,500 drive-away price – are holding the brakes on sales of the Honda Civic Type R hot hatch. Production of the Civic Type R in Japan is already limited, but Australian regulations penalising car makers for selling too many vehicles that don’t meet strict CO2 targets are forcing shipments of Honda’s flagship performance car to be even smaller. Honda needs to sell two regular Civic hybrids – or three CR-V hybrids – to offset the emissions produced by one Type R, demand for which has remained healthy since the current model arrived three years ago at $72,600 drive-away. The solution, in addition to selling more hybrids, is to import fewer Civic Type Rs. MORE: Honda secures more Civic Type R stock, but price in...