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While Walkinshaw – famous for its work on numerous vehicles including performance Holdens – has put its spin on the D-Max’s styling and suspension setup, a notable omission is any power bump for the diesel ute. As it stands, the Blade is powered by the same 3.0-litre litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine used by other D-Max models.
It highlights everything from the latest medical equipment through to developments in AI, VR, AR, robotics and of course every type of electric vehicle (cars, bikes, dirt bikes, water propulsion, scooters, earth movers, drones and more). litre V8 hydrogen internal combustion engine.
A peek behind the curtain of Hyundai’s N division, and an interview with a key member in the development of the watershed electric performance car The subject of suspension design, tuning and performance is always an interesting one for car enthusiasts. And to a layman like me, it feels like a dark art of intrigue, expertise and feel.
It’s a clever feature that we hope to see spread to Ford passenger cars, not just vans. Australia-bound E-Transit Customs receive the more powerful of the two electric motors offered in regular versions of the van in Europe developing 160kW and 415Nm. Charge time (125kW max.)
Rear passengers are also able to spread out, as the middle seat is only suitable for very small children due to a high transmission tunnel. The petrol engine makes 223kW and 400Nm on its own, while the rear-mounted electric motor develops 107kW and 309Nm. The top-spec S60 T8 Recharge Plug-in Hybrid teams a 2.0-litre
The boot is huge, with a claimed 854-litre capacity spread across the roomy main cargo area, an under-floor area big enough for a carry-on suitcase, and large compartments on each side for smaller items – plus another 117L under the bonnet. There is no top-down 360-degree camera, unlike many rivals. Is the Tesla Model Y a safe car?
The C412 from Belgrave to Gembrook rolls easily beneath the RS’s fat 335-section rear tyres, the suspension doing a decent job of the bumps without upsetting us too much. Even though the drivetrain has seven gears to spread its performance across, none of them are moonshot ratios tuned for fuel economy.
Looking around the cabin the MU-X LS-M has a large spread of harder plastics, but this to be expected given it is an entry-level model. litre develops the full 350Nm of torque from 1800 to 2600rpm. The suspension tune is supple and compliant, able to soak up road imperfections and speed bumps easily.
I love to see that Porsche has retained the cool curved instrument display in front of the driver – it first made its debut on the Taycan and has since spread throughout the brand’s line-up. The Macan holds its line resolutely through bends and doesn’t get thrown off balance by mid-corner bumps or creases in the tarmac.
This Thai-built ute was Australia’s top-selling vehicle bar none for seven consecutive years, but for the last two years it has been pipped at the post by the locally developed but also Thai-made Ford Ranger. However, it’s still not perfect, with bumps frequently unsettling the car, making it feel lumpy in the cabin.
The boot is huge, with a claimed 854-litre capacity spread across the roomy main cargo area, an under-floor area big enough for a carry-on suitcase, and large compartments on each side for smaller items – plus another 117L under the bonnet. There is no top-down 360-degree camera, unlike many rivals.
Kias people-mover is a little less cavernous inside but still incredibly spacious, though thanks to being developed as a people-mover specifically rather than a commercial van, it offers impressive refinement. This works great on its smaller cars, but can revel itself as jiggling and jostling, or hard slaps over big bumps.
As for the other considerations for driving behaviour, the LWB models tend to have slightly better ride comfort unladen – as you would expect with more space to spread the bumps out, with the SWB transmitting more of the smaller lumps and bumps into the cabin. tonne payload capability. Less downtime means more productive time.
There’s a really cool animation that spreads across the entire digital instrument cluster to let you know this is something serious. Even in its softest setting the suspension still tends to err on the firmer side which will see you grimace over speed bumps and pot holes. Dialling up speed is too easy to do in this car.
Mazdas newly developed eight-speed automatic, developed specifically to work with the new six-cylinder engines in the CX-80 (and its new-generation range-mates), is often problematic. It is smooth and quiet and, from inside the cabin, you can barely tell its a diesel at all. Live in Bendigo and travel to Shepparton or Echuca often?
Indeed, MG will launch a new-generation HS this year which should see a significant bump in sales for the model range. There’s some faux carbon-fibre trim spread sparingly around the cabin, but it too is of a higher quality than you might see across other makes and models – some costing plenty more than the Tiggo 7 Pro, too.
Its leaf-sprung rear axle feels firm, and causes the car to fuss over some lumps and bumps, but not many - while the Ranger steers unusually fluently and precisely for a pick-up, with decent body control and a respectable Tarmac grip level. Most Ford Rangers are sold as double-cabs, but remains available as a single-cab model as well.
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