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Lotus has the Porsche Taycan and Tesla Model S Plaid in its sights, with a high-performance sedan undergoing final testing. The 2023 Lotus Envya – as it’s expected to be called – has been seen with minimal camouflage in the Arctic Circle, but it seems not everything went to plan. The electric Lotus sedan – codenamed Type 133 – was caught on camera while testing, complete in a celebratory wrap marking the British car-maker’s 75th anniversary. After a short drive in the snow, our European spy photographer partners report the Lotus was then loaded onto the back of a tow truck. The Lotus is positioned to compete directly against the electric Porsche Taycan, based on the same Electric Premium Architecture that underpins the Lotus Eletre SUV. The larger SUV is fitted with a 112kWh battery pack, with either 450kW/710Nm or 675kW/985Nm on tap from its dual electric motors, depending on the variant. MORE: 2023 Lotus Envya – Type 133 electric four-door spied for the first time ...

Chinese brand Great Wall Motors (GWM) is preparing to go hunting for the Toyota HiLux GR Sport and Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior with a new version of its GWM Ute. The 2023 GWM Ute is set to gain an off-road-oriented flagship variant to rival top-of-the-range Toyota HiLux, Ford Ranger, Mitsubishi Triton, Nissan Navara and Volkswagen Amarok, government documents reveal. The company has certified a new version of the dual-cab GWM Ute for sale – provisionally dubbed ‘Off-Road’ – with upgraded suspension, off-road bumpers and side steps, and taller all-terrain tyres. GWM Haval Australia has been contacted for comment on launch timing for the new model, however the company typically introduces vehicles three to six months after they are certified for sale, if history is a guide. Already on sale in China, the flagship GWM Ute gains off-road side steps, a snorkel, new front and rear bumpers with tow hooks, black wheel-arch flares, a black metal sports bar, and black 18-inch whee...

New South Wales is among the first Australian jurisdictions to impose fines on drivers of petrol and diesel cars who block electric vehicles from charging. The New South Wales Government has discreetly introduced a new law which could see drivers of petrol and diesel vehicles fined up to $2200 for parking in an electric-car charging bay. Nicknamed ‘ICEing’ – referring to the internal-combustion engine (ICE) powering petrol and diesel vehicles – the practice leaves electric-car drivers unable to charge at dedicated locations, potentially forcing owners on flat batteries to wait for long periods until the charging bay is no longer blocked. Electric-car publication The Driven reports petrol and diesel car drivers can be fined up to $2200 for stopping in a parking area which has been allocated for charging electric vehicles – indicated by the signs below.   The most recent amendment to the NSW road rules – made in November 2022 – states a driver must not stop in a...

Volvo’s electric-car spin-off Polestar is finding early success in its pursuit of market leader Tesla, but it risks infringing on the turf of its sibling brand. Why not embrace its origins? “If I ran the company…” The Drive team play ‘fantasy football’ with the automotive industry and take turns in the top seat of the big brands. What would we do if we ran the show? This time, Alex takes over Volvo-backed electric-car upstart Polestar. Polestar – the electric-vehicle (EV) brand owned by Volvo and its Chinese parent company, Geely – is on something of a collision course with its sibling. To explain, let me recap. Polestar began as a Volvo racing team in the late 1990s – under a different name – but by the mid-2010s, it had become Volvo’s official performance tuner churning out hot versions of Volvo road cars, before being acquired by its parent in 2015. But come 2017 the script had flipped. Polestar was spun off to become its own brand building standalone ‘electrified’ pe...

Chery – the Chinese brand returning to Australia after eight years – has opened pre-orders for its Mazda CX-30 rival ahead of first deliveries due late next month. Chinese car maker Chery – which returns to Australia next month after an eight-year hiatus – has opened pre-orders for its first new model, the 2023 Chery Omoda 5 small SUV. Buyers can now place a $500 refundable deposit on Chery’s website ( click here ) to “secure their spot” in the queue, ahead of the Omoda 5’s official on-sale date on 23 March 2023, when orders are slated to open formally. Pricing is yet to be confirmed, however Chery Australia confirmed earlier this month the entry-level Omoda 5 would cost less than $40,000 drive-away. It is unclear how much cheaper than $40,000 the Omoda 5 base model will be – however as a guide, rival small SUVs from other Chinese brands with similar levels of standard features cost less than $35,000 drive-away. According to a Facebook post by Chery Australia, buyers w...

Porsche is set to bring back the 911 Speedster, with the covers reportedly due to come off the convertible in November ahead of deliveries starting in 2024. A new Porsche 911 Speedster will reportedly be revealed later this year before going on sale in 2024. The last 911 Speedster was revealed in April 2019 as a homage to the original Porsche 356 Speedster from the 1950s, while also farewelling the previous generation of the sports car – known as the 991.2 – before production of the current ‘992’ model started. According to UK publication Car Magazine , the 992-generation 911 Speedster is due to be unveiled by Porsche at this year’s Los Angeles motor show in late November – which is slated to see the car maker put the best parts of the 911 GT3 track special into a convertible body. In the past, the 911 Speedster has been powered by the flat six-cylinder engine from the Porsche 911 GT3 – the most recent version of which develops up to 375kW and 470Nm without turbochargers...

The waiting times for a new Renault Trafic van stretch up to six months, however the Australian distributor is working with the factory to beat the June 30 financial-year deadline. Customers in the queue for a Renault Trafic van face wait times of up to six months – amid stock shortages and production slowdowns affecting most of the car industry. However, the Australian distributor of Renault vans says it is working overtime with the French factory to get a large allocation of vehicles to clear backorders before the end of the financial year. The lead-up to June 30 is historically the strongest sales month for utes and vans as businesses big and small refresh their fleets for tax reasons. While Renault Australia says there are pockets of Trafic vans available at some dealers in certain configurations, long wait times remain for crew versions, and the regular models with a ‘barn door’ tailgate. “Every Renault Trafic van in the country is spoken for, everything is al...

China’s answer to the Toyota Corolla has been spied on Australian roads, ahead of first showroom arrivals due by the middle of the year. The 2023 MG 5 sedan has been spied in Australia, ahead of its arrival in local showrooms due in showrooms by July. The Chinese car maker’s competitor to the Toyota Corolla , Hyundai i30 and Mazda 3 sedans has been caught on camera in Melbourne wearing a light camouflage wrap, with its badges removed. As previously reported by Drive , the first examples of the MG 5 are due in Australian showrooms in the first half of 2023 (by July) – with pricing and local specifications to be confirmed closer to launch. If prices in China are a guide, entry-level versions of the MG 5 in Australia – which will be built in China for local sale, rather than Thailand as initially anticipated – with a 1.5-litre petrol engine may cost less than $25,000 drive-away. Meanwhile, top-of-the-range MG 5 variants with 1.5-litre turbo engines are forecast to...

Has your neighbour ever parked their car outside your house? This woman in the US has taken her retaliation to the extreme. Footage of an angry driver pushing their neighbour’s car down the street – after it was parked in front of the “wrong” house – has gone viral on social media platform TikTok . A string of videos uploaded by TikTok user Joewella DeVille detail the act and aftermath of her unoccupied Toyota RAV4 SUV being pushed down her street in the US state of New York – after it is parked in front of an angry neighbour’s house. In a follow-up video, the neighbour claims she has complained about DeVille’s car being parked outside her house “three times” – and that she “doesn’t want the car in front of her house.” @joelledevincentis #myfirsttiktok #neighborsfromhell ♬ original sound – Joewella DeVille However, the social media user and videographer argues there are no restrictions on parking on their street – 24 hours a day and seven days a week – and calls ...

Demand in Europe for the petrol-electric versions of the Renault Captur city SUV and Renault Arkana small SUV will likely delay their arrival in Australia. Fuel-efficient hybrid versions of the Renault Captur city SUV and Renault Arkana small SUV could still be years away from local showrooms even though they are already on sale in Europe. Demand in Europe has pushed waiting times beyond three months for the Renault Captur E-Tech Hybrid and Renault Arkana E-Tech Hybrid – and that has had a knock-on effect for other markets such as Australia. “We think the hybrid version of the Arkana and the hybrid version of the Captur would be great additions to the Australian showroom line-up, but it will take time,” the boss of Renault Australia Glen Sealey told a recent media briefing. “Timing will depend on European demand. We’re not expecting it this year. Hopefully, 2024, maybe 2024. “If you have a look at the financials for Renault, they say every (hybrid) model in Europe...

The Sono Sion – a solar-powered electric car with a €29,900 ($AU43,600) price – has been axed before the first examples hit European roads. German start-up Sono Motors has cancelled plans to build the Sion – tipped to become the first mass-produced ‘affordable’ solar-powered electric car – after failing to secure funding for the project. In July 2022 , Sono Motors planned for Sion production to begin in early 2023, priced from €29,900 ($AU43,600) in Europe – approximately €20,000 ($AU29,000) less than an entry-level Tesla Model 3 electric car. The Sion claimed up to 305km of electric driving range on a charge while the 456 solar half-cells built into its body panels could provide up to 245km of additional range per week. However, in a media statement late last week, Sono Motors said it had “decided to pivot … to exclusively retrofitting and integrating its solar technology onto third party vehicles, and to terminate its Sion passenger car program,” effective immediately. ...