The race car in which Australia’s most recent Formula 1 world champion and Australian Hall of Famer Alan Jones made his 100th world championship start will be a star attraction at the 2026 Canberra Festival of Speed next weekend. The 1985 Lola-Hart THL1 will be one of the major drawcards at this year’s event, alongside the Holden Commodore in which Larry Perkins won the 1997 Bathurst 1000. The two iconic racers will be among more than 200 entries at this year’s Canberra Festival of Speed, now in its third year, which will take place at Thoroughbred Park on the weekend…

Taste is subjective, and that goes for car design, too. And isn’t that a good thing? Otherwise, we’d all be driving generic-looking, virtually indistinguishable SUVs and utes. Okay, so a lot of Australians are. Nevertheless, in our diverse market, if you look beyond the ubiquitous and often conservative mid-size SUVs and utes, you’ll find everything from fashionable French cars and futuristic Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) to flashy American pickups and SUVs, and seemingly everything in between. Those of us in the CarExpert editorial team have decided to share the vehicles we find the most attractive. Yes, we’re just judging a…

We’re a long way from the days of the Button plan and rampant model rebadging, but there are still some vehicles in Australia that appear to differ only in the logo on their grilles. Sure, the recently launched LDV Terron 9 and the even more recently launched MG U9look almost identical inside and out, but this isn’t just a redux of the old Ford Falcon and Nissan Ute twins as there are some key differences between these two Chinese-made dual-cab 4×4 utes beyond their badges. Launched last year, they’ve entered a hotly competitive segment that contains three of the top…

The Bugatti Veyron FKP Hommage is the second car from the company’s Solitare bespoke commission division, and is named after Ferdinand Karl Piëch, the former CEO of the Volkswagen Group, and the driving force behind the original Veyron project. While the Veyron FKP Hommage looks as though it uses the same body as the hypercar produced between 2005 and 2015, the FKP actually uses “the highest evolution” of the W16 platform, which means it is actually a Chiron that’s been extensively restyled to resemble the Veyron. According to Bugatti, the FKP’s exterior is a “subtle yet significant evolution” of the…

The theme of the past 12 months has been the never-ending onslaught of new electric vehicles (EVs) in Australia, but Polestar is confident it can cement a place in the local market despite its niche status. Polestar – owned by China’s Geely and therefore a sister brand to Volvo, Zeekr, and Lotus – has struggled to penetrate global markets since its 2017 launch. It’s by no means the only brand to have adopted an EV-only strategy globally, but it’s consistently and comprehensively outpaced by brands like Tesla, while also grappling with the rapid growth of China’s EV industry as a…

An updated GWM Haval H6 GT PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) SUV has been spotted in Australia, showing interior and powertrain changes ahead of its expected arrival in local showrooms in the coming months. A rival to the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and BYD Sealion 6, the Haval H6 GT PHEV spied at a Melbourne shopping centre carpark wears ‘PHEV Hi4’ badges, signifying the fitment of the brand’s upgraded PHEV all-wheel-drive system already offered locally on the regular Haval H6 PHEV. It also shows an updated interior, including a larger centre screen, simplified centre console and a new steering wheel —…

Toyota has confirmed it’s actively working on a mid-engined sports car, but says it’s still a ways off. Gazoo Racing president Tomoya Takahashi said the performance division was working with Toyota to develop a model with a mid-mounted version of its forthcoming 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder performance engine, but stopped short of naming it the MR2. Between 1984 and 2007, Toyota produced three generations of the MR2, with the transverse engine sitting ahead of the rear axle and driving the rear wheels. However, unlike earlier MR2 models, the next one appears as if it will have all-wheel drive. CarExpert can save…

Double demerit points are now in effect for the Australia Day long weekend across several Australian states and territories. The Monday, January 26 public holiday brings double demerits for New South Wales, Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory from and including Friday, January 23. “This long weekend, police will be out in force to keep people safe on our roads. Double demerits are in place, and enforcement will be highly visible,” said NSW Acting Minister for Police and Counter-terrorism Paul Scully in a statement. “Speeding, drink or drug driving, using your phone or not wearing a seatbelt are choices…