Performance / Sports Cars

When a car maker calls its driving mode “Ludicrous” it must be dead serious about it. Found in the Tesla Model S P90D, Ludicrous mode transforms the electric car into the world’s quickest accelerating four-door sedan. We are talking zero to 100km/h in 3.0 seconds flat! And no, it’s not a wishful …

We are living in a world where we are spoilt for choice when it comes to fun driving machines. For those stepping up from game console into the real world, there are cars like the Peugeot 208 GTi and Ford Fiesta ST. At the other end of the spectrum there …

After a 15-year absence, the GTi badge returns to the Peugeot 308 range with the launch of two 308 GTi models in Australia. Extensively developed by Peugeot Sport, the French car maker’s in-house motorsport division, the 308 GTi is the fourth road car project in three years following the RCZ …

The all-new 2016 Ford Mustang GT Convertible is currently the cheapest V8-powered open-top sports car you can buy in Australia. At $63,990 plus on-roads, the pony car costs almost $100k less than the next nearest V8 cabriolet. To step up from the Mustang without losing cylinders, you’ll be looking at …

The Peugeot 208 GTi was the car that brought the mojo back to the French car maker after it went wandering about for over a decade. Launched in late 2013, the 208 GTi instantly put smiles on our faces the moment we got behind the wheel. It was engagingly fun …

Introduced in 1990, the original Honda NSX was a groundbreaking supercar. It was the world’s first road car with an all-aluminium monocoque body, its shell was 50 per cent stronger than the Porsche 911 of the time and its 8000 rpm 3.0-litre V6 engine features titanium connecting rods – a …

If you have just graduated from go-karts academy, or progressed from Gran Turismo to the real world, chances are you will be looking at one of these: Toyota 86, Mazda MX-5, Subaru BRZ, Ford Fiesta, Honda CR-Z, Peugeot 308 GTi, Hyundai Veloster Turbo, Kia Pro_Cee’d GT, Abarth 595, Renault Clio …

The Mazda MX-5 is the world’s most successful roadster, with global sales fast approaching the one million mark since its launch in 1989. First hatched by a group of Mazda U.S. staffers that wanted an affordable, fun-to-drive lightweight sports car modeled on early European sports cars such as the original …

After more than 50 years, Australians can finally buy a brand new right-hand-drive Ford Mustang from a local Ford dealership with full factory warranty. It’s the first time in history the iconic pony car is sold globally and comes with its steering on the right direct from the US production …

In a world increasingly dominated by turbochargers and tricked twin-clutches, it’s refreshing to see Lexus giving the one finger salute to the establishment and persevere with its large capacity, naturally aspirated engines and torque converter automatics. Like the Lexus IS F and RC F before it, the GS F is …

Conceived on different continents and philosophically opposed, these three fun machines – Holden Commodore SSV Redline, Subaru WRX STI and Audi TTS – can’t be closer rivals when it comes to performance, and just performance. They all crack 100km/h from rest in less than five seconds, have immensely addictive aural characteristic …

After decades of watching the Germans dominating the luxury sports coupe segment like nobody’s business, Japanese premium marque Lexus finally rocked up to the party in 2015, unfashionably late but promising. The rear-wheel-drive RC coupe is Lexus’ answer to the BMW 4 Series, Audi A5 and Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe. And I’m utterly …

This is it, the last Australian developed and built Holden VF Commodore, signalling the end of an era with the Series II revision, the biggest update since the VF’s launch in 2013. Appropriately, the countdown to the end of local production has shifted the public’s attention toward the lineup’s performance hero, the V8-powered …

It is hard to do a hot hatch review without judging the incumbent against the well-liked and accomplished Volkswagen Golf GTI. It has been the perennial hot hatch of choice for the past two generations and it is not hard to see why. It is well rounded, reliable and relatively good …