Hammer time – 2021 Mercedes-AMG E 63 S review
For those of us that remember, the 80s was a time of great music, long lunches, dubious fashion and big shoulder pads (for women and men). But It was also a time of big performance engined sedans and Mercedes-AMG released one of the biggest – The ‘Hammer’. Well, now Mercedes-AMG NZ has launched the latest […]
2021 VW Passat Alltrack NZ review
The Volkswagen Passat Alltrack is billed as ‘an adventurous all-rounder’ and with its 173mm ground clearance, 4Motion AWD system and 2L turbocharged 4-cylinder engine it’s easy to see why. However, unfortunately the day after I took possession of the valiant Vdub, Auckland was thrown into level 4 lockdown (seriously not my fault). If I’m honest, […]
2021 Mercedes-Benz C-Class – first drive
Mercedes-Benz has just released their sixth-generation C-Class and with it their best selling Sedan has been significantly overhauled. It’s bigger than before, sleeker in style, comes with a full range of mild-hybrid enhanced powertrains and a suite of technical goodies that are straight out of their flagship limo S-Class. In fact, it sounded so good […]
Copper the new Gold – Cupra Formentor VZ review
Thanks in part to their exclusivity and scarcity, the value of precious metals such as Platinum and Gold is soaring, however, so too is Copper. In fact, this malleable element with a high thermal and electrical conductivity is currently sitting at an all-time high price and demand is just as high. In the meantime, of […]
Great 3008 – 2021 Peugeot 3008 & Hybrid4 review
Originally launched a shade over a decade ago as a replacement for the 4007/8, the Peugeot 3008 almost instantly gave the French automobile producer a VIP entry to the very popular compact SUV segment. Two generations later the 3008 has been facelifted, and Peugeot New Zealand let us test a couple of models (3008 and […]
Pukka Trucka – 2021 Mazda BT-50 review
In British terminology, to be ‘Pukka’ is to be great, top draw, excellent even, however, as we found out, in the truck or specifically the Ute market, it just means it’s a Mazda. The long awaited 3rd generation BT-50 has arrived and Mazda NZ let us try it out. The BT-50 first hit the market […]
Mild and wild – 2021 Skoda Octavia review
Several weeks ago we attended the NZ launch of the new 4th Generation Skoda Octavia where we were told that it was bigger, faster and simply ‘clevererer’ than ever – well now thanks to Skoda NZ, we got to test that out. The Shhhkoda brand (said in a Connery accent) has come a long way […]
3 Kings of Leon – SEAT & CUPRA Leon first drive
The fourth generation Leon has arrived in New Zealand and it’s better than ever, with stunning new designs, advanced technology and both ‘clean car’ economical or ‘heart-racing’ ferocious powertrains. There are three models on offer and we got to test them all. Named after the Spanish city of Leon (which incidentally also means lion), the […]
All-new Hyundai Tucson first drive
To celebrate the launch of the all-new 4th generation Tucson, Hyundai New Zealand had created a special ‘design’ themed event that began at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery/Len Lye Centre in New Plymouth. Not only would there be a tonne of driving ahead of us but we’d also be taking in a bit of Kiwi artistry […]
A corker of an EV – Mazda MX-30 review
Car maker Mazda has come a long way since it first started out producing corks in 1920 (Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd). Over the years it’s created machine tools, rickshaws and three-wheelers, bubble-sized cars, sports cars, SUVs, rotary engines, fuel-efficient petrol and diesel engines, even petrol engines that act like diesel engines! Well now, with […]