Car Reviews

The Holden Barina RS is the latest addition to the company’s city hatchback. Joining the lineup as the sports model, the RS’ extra punch comes from a 1.4-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder petrol engine pinched from the locally made Holden Cruze. It produces 103 kW of power at 4,300 rpm and 200 …

The last-generation Nissan Pathfinder was an unapologetically rugged SUV, with genuine rock climbing and mud crawling abilities. Built on a tough ladder-frame chassis shared with the Nissan Navara work horse, it came with a full set of low range gears and lockable diff. Its off-road abilities meant refinement and comfort …

When it was first launched in 2011, the Kia Optima was a game changing model not only for the once cheap, and well…. not much else really, Korean brand, but for the segment it competes in. It brought style to the affordable mass market mid-size sedans and with it, confidence …

The Ford Focus ST is one of the household names when it comes to hot hatches. Along with the Volkswagen Golf GTI they define the best recipe to inject performance into a mainstream hatchback. Now in its third generation, the new ST – for Sports Technologies – is set to …

Panda – a large, adorable bear-like animal from the forests of China, high on the endangered species list. Fiat Panda – a five door, compact minivan-like automobile built in a Polish factory with a range of two- and four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines, potentially high on the endangered species list. …

Pulling off the perfect crime requires not only the right men for the job, but also some serious getaway power. As important as the heist itself, a clean getaway ensures all those hard work is not wasted. But if it all goes to hell, how fast you flee would determine …

GTI – the three letters that is synonymous with Volkswagen’s famous hot hatch. Based on the equally celebrated Golf, the original Mk1 GTI was a guerilla project by a handful of VW engineers who saw the potential in the Golf’s chassis. The philosophy behind it was simple. Take a basic …

Back in the old days, Alfa Romeos could be sold on looks alone. But those days are long gone. Now the Italian company wants their cars to be known for their sophistication, technology and driving fun. And, the new Giulietta is sent off for this mission. From the outset, the five-door …

The 2nd-generation Kia Cerato Koup is the third and final model of the new Cerato lineup that has been gradually rolled out in the last year. According to Kia’s figures, the trio has achieved more than 2.5 million global sales since their introduction in 2004, including 385,000 units in 2012 …

The new Lexus RC F stormed into the opening day of the 2014 North American International Auto Show looking like it’s ready to pounce on the BMW M4 on display a few stands away. The RC F is Lexus’ answer to BMW’s recently launched M4. Both are high performance rear-wheel-drive …

When Lexus brought out the LFA supercar in 2011 we knew the marque was onto something. The once librarian of the car world had decided to ditch its thick reading glasses for some party hats. Lexus wanted to be fun. And the new GS mid-size saloon is the first mainstream …

617kW of power and 1,161Nm of torque. Enough fire power to launch the Apollo 13 to the moon. One Australian. One American. Both with a big petrol V8 at the front that powers the rear wheels and big Brembo stoppers as anchors. And the best part – both are ForceGT’s …

The Peugeot 208 GTi has a lot on its shoulders. Not only does it have to face stiff competition from the Ford Fiesta ST and Renault Clio RS, it is also charged with reenacting the brilliance of the iconic 205 GTI in the 80s, which was tarnished by the 206 …

Small, stylish runabouts used to be French manufacturers’ forte. But in recent times, the Germans have been leading the way with the reborn MINI and its endlessly customisable options. Fiat followed suit with its adorable Fiat 500 and lately, Audi has been tempting buyers with its A1. Citroen, a brand …