Autos For Us

The design of the new Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray hybrid has been revealed, not by a leaked patent filing, or unapproved photo taken at a factory or proving ground, but by the online configurator going live ahead of schedule.

User KK87 on the Mid-Engine Corvette Forum found the configurator, and managed to post screen caps of it before GM took down that part of the Chevrolet website.

From what we can see, the E-Ray seems to use the wider body panels fitted to the Z06. To help differentiate the two, the vents at the rear, the plastic trim around the side air intakes, and the blade that spans the grille and front intakes are all colour coded instead of being finished in gloss black.

The E-Ray also misses out on the Z06’s front splitters, side sill extensions, and large rear wing.

There doesn’t seem to be a visible flap for a

General Motors has filed a trademark in Australia for the Cadillac Lyriq, its flagship brand’s first electric vehicle.

There are two separate filings for the nameplate, both with a filing date of November 14, 2022.

“The Cadillac Lyriq name and logo were recently trademarked, which has caused speculation,” said a spokesperson for GM Specialty Vehicles, which imports and distributes GM vehicles in Australia and New Zealand.

“It is common practice for GM to secure key trademarks globally. GM has several brands registered, to protect them from unapproved usage.

“Given the strong interest, it’s not unusual for some registrations to create excitement.

“But we aren’t making any announcements about Cadillac and our focus is on Chevrolet Silverado and Chevrolet Corvette.”

GM doesn’t currently have any other local trademark filings for Cadillac products. For example, a search on IP Australia doesn’t reveal any listings for, for example, the Escalade. Nor are

If you’ve never driven a 2022 Ford Mustang GT before, and you jump in, sling it into Sport+ or Race mode, and stomp the gas, you’re going to think you’re driving a pig, and a very angry one at that.

You see, while you can drive the Mustang like you stole it from a train station car park in the dodgiest suburb nearest you, you really shouldn’t, not straight out of the box, and not until you’ve had time to become properly acquainted with this beast.

You need to learn its various drive modes and the behaviours in each one first, so that you’ll also discover that it’s mostly not a piggy wiggy, but rather a higher performance car that offers good on-road behaviour, and makes a great daily driver for sports car fans.

Under the hood is a 5.0-litre V8 delivering 339kW power and 556Nm of

With Europe, and then later Japan, the initial target markets, Abarth is going electric, with the 500e recently launched. Developed in partnership with its fan base, it will even include a sound generator to ensure lovers of the “roar” won’t have to give it up.

A special launch edition of the Abarth 500e called the “Scorpionissima” will be limited to 1,949 units worldwide, paying tribute to the company’s birth year. The launch edition comes in optional Acid Green or Poison Blue paint, new side graphics and one trim level.

It features exclusive diamond-Cut Titanium Grey alloy wheels and will be available in both hatchback and cabrio. The interior has a fixed glass roof in the hatchback, with rear privacy glass, some sporty pedals and a kickplate, engraved with the new Abarth lighting bolt logo.

The Dashboard is nicely laid out and features some sports mode screens, specifically

Toyota Australia has introduced a new GR Sport variant to the Yaris Cross light SUV range for the 2023 model year.

The Toyota Yaris Cross GR Sport is priced from $35,840 before on-road costs, which is $3850 more expensive than the GXL 2WD Hybrid it’s based on. It’s also $2150 cheaper than the range-topping Urban AWD Hybrid.

The Yaris Cross GR Sport has retuned suspension that’s said to help sharpen steering feel and response.

Toyota engineers have made changes to the suspension to reduce body roll and improve ride comfort, and argue the steering should feel more direct thanks to detail changes at both ends of the car.

Overall the suspension has been lowered by 10mm to “further aid handling”, with additional chassis improvements including an underfloor brace and a second brace running along the lower rear of the vehicle.

There have been no powertrain modifications.

The Toyota Yaris

We’ve all heard about how affordable EVs can become when you charge at home and take advantage of solar energy. But, what about longer distance drives? Do EVs make as much sense if you’re packing up your things to head away with the family compared to traditional modes of transport?

We wanted to put the latest EV technology to the test on a road trip from Adelaide to Sydney. We also wanted to test what EV infrastructure was like regionally and chose a route that would take us slightly inland and away from the well established charging network.

Alborz and I decided to pick a set of cars that led their field in EV tech and efficiency, so Alborz picked the entry-level Audi Q5 diesel and I picked the Kia EV6 Long Range rear-wheel drive. We then stuck our video team in the Kia Sorento Hybrid to see how that

Mitsubishi has given its non-hybrid Outlander SUV range some tweaks for the 2023 model year ahead of first arrivals during January next year.

Pricing for existing Outlander variants are up by up to $1000, with the range now starting at $36,240 before on-road costs for the ES five-seat 2WD, and extending to $53,490 before on-road costs for the Exceed Tourer seven-seat AWD.

Updated pricing and specification for the 2023 Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in hybrid (PHEV) range hasn’t been detailed yet.

A new LS Black Edition 7-seat 2WD variant has joined the Outlander range for the 2023 model year, plugging the gap between the regular LS and Aspire. It’s priced from $41,490 before on-road costs.

The LS Black Edition adds 20-inch black alloy wheels, premium paint, and blacked-out door mirrors, bumpers and grille. Inside it gets black headlining, a black “laser etched” gearshift surround, plus ‘Mi-Suede’ seats

Unlike some, I didn’t have a strong connection with Honda’s last Civic Type R hatch, or even a desire to ever drive one, primarily because of the outrageously-styled body kit that inflicted it with an overtly cartoonish profile.

That was early 2018, before I ended up in the driver’s seat of a Championship White FK8 Type R and proceeded to systematically take apart a number of the more challenging sections in the Victorian high country in less than ideal conditions – it was a bit damp and a bit sketchy.

Just to make sure we didn’t drink too much of Honda’s Kool-Aid, we brought along two of its toughest rivals; the Ford Focus RS and Renault Megane R.S.

The Focus was my preordained favourite for its added poke and all-wheel drive stickiness on damp surfaces, while the Megane wasn’t far behind in the power stakes but also gained all-wheel

Peugeot Australia is looking into offering the people mover version of its smaller Partner van, which would give the French brand a direct competitor to the Volkswagen Caddy.

The Peugeot Rifter is the passenger version of the Partner, based on the same platform as the latest Citroen Berlingo – a long-running van that is no longer sold in Australia – as well as the Opel/Vauxhall Combo, and the Toyota ProAce sold in Europe and the UK.

At the recent launch of the new Peugeot 308 Hatch and Wagon, managing director for Peugeot Citroen Australia, Kate Gillis, told media the compact MPV is not a sure-fire starter for our market, but it’s under consideration.

“We’re always looking at what’s being developed and seeing whether it’s right for our market. So it’s definitely not a no, and at this point it’s still under consideration,” Ms Gillis said.

“There’s definitely opportunity for

The upcoming Lamborghini V12 hybrid set to replace the 12-year-old Aventador, which ended production this year, is likely to start at a higher cost – but the Italian brand insists that has more to do with the increasing cost of materials than hybridisation.

Set to be unveiled early 2023, the new flagship Lamborghini V12 will be utilising an all new chassis, V12 engine and a hybrid system that the Italian brand says is entirely in house. The new model already has over 3000 orders.

Speaking to CarExpert at the opening of the revised Lamborghini dealership in Brisbane this week, the brand’s regional director of Asia Pacific, Francesco Scardaoni, said the new model will have a price rise due to the rising cost of materials.

“The cost price will be slightly higher than Aventador, but not because of the hybrid but because of the materials, the cost of material, cost of