Spirit of Adventure – 2022 Toyota RAV4 Adventure Hybrid review
When I think of the ‘Spirit of Adventure’ it’s the three-masted barquentine tall ship located in Auckland’s downtown wharf that immediately comes to mind. However, thanks to Toyota (a company that has become rather synonymous with boats of late) I have a new adventurous spirit to call upon – the 2022 Toyota RAV4 Adventure Hybrid […]
Luxury Underdog: 2022 Lexus ES300h Limited Review
The Lexus ES300h has been something of a dark horse for the premium Japanese brand. For some time it has been in the shadow of SUVs in the Lexus family but still manages to soldier on. There is a good reason for this too. I think the ES is one of the most underrated cars […]
Less Torque, More Action – 2022 Kodiaq RS review NZ
It was early 2019 when we last got behind the wheel of a Skoda Kodiaq RS. Covid hadn’t been invented and we were free to explore the expansive ‘driving’ roads that surround Clevedon in their performance SUV that boasted lapping the Nürburgring in a record breaking time of 9m 29.84 seconds. Anyway, as NZ seems […]
The Three Rs – VW extend their R Range
When I attended school (on the odd occasion), the importance of the three Rs (Reading, wRiting and aRifmatic) was incessantly drilled into me and for obvious reasons. Well VW have now released their own 3 Rs (Golf, Tiguan and T-Roc) which are equally important from a brand point of view, but as we found out […]
Lounging Around: 2022 Fiat 500 Lounge Review
Few cars can charm the birds from the trees like the Fiat 500. The spiritual descendant from Dante Giacosa’s original Cinquecento masterpiece for the masses still has all the charm and appeal of the classic Bambina. Today the 500 family is bigger than ever. With the hot Abarth models still going strong and selling well, […]
Cheap as Chips – MG3 Auto review NZ
‘Cheap as Chips’ is an idiom that best describes something that’s inexpensive and when it comes to chips/fries, rather tasty. Of course in NZ this has been shortened to ‘cheap as’ but when it comes to the automotive industry, it’s been brought to life in the new MG3, and MG New Zealand let us review […]
Xtreme DB: Aston Martin DBX Review
These days the luxury SUV market is huge. Countless manufacturers are all clambering to get a piece of the pie. However, in recent years we have seen a new “Super SUV” niche of that market really take off. Maserati, BMW, Porsche, Mercedes, Audi, Bentley and Lamborghini have all offered their rendition of a luxury SUV […]
Climb Every Mountain: Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GR Sport Review
Some say that life begins at 40, or was it 30? Or was it neither? Anyway, one could argue that for the Toyota Land Cruiser, life could very well begin at 70. Yes it’s hard to believe Toyota’s go-anywhere warrior has been with us for over seven decades. During that time, both here and aboard, […]
Bells, whistles and growls – 2022 Jaguar F-Type R P575 review
There’s a refreshed F-Type in town and to celebrate its significantly restyled face and upgraded tech, Jaguar New Zealand has put the top of the line P575 on the press fleet with all its bells and whistles – luckily, we managed to snag the keys. Although the F-Type is touted as the ‘spiritual successor’ to […]
One night in (a) California
A couple of years ago, maybe a few now, VW launched their all new Kombi named the California and I (like many other NZ motoring journalists) jumped at the opportunity to take the family away on a NZ adventure weekend away. Well now there’s a new and improved model (California 6.1) and VW New Zealand […]