North East Motor Guide

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N O R T H E AST V I C TO R I A

AUGUST 17 - 23 | 2018

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STILL GOING STRONG: There’s a sleek semi-sporty look to the new 12th generation Toyota Corolla.

All new Toyota Corolla for 2019

By EWAN KENNEDY of all car races, the famed LeMans 24Hour.

New Corolla hatch is based on the modular Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) and has a 60 per cent more rigid body and uses a sophisticated suspension that’s complemented by the body having a lower centre of gravity.

At this stage only the Corolla hatch is being sold and the local importer will neither confirm nor deny that a sedan will be offered later.

STYLING There’s a sleek semi-sporty look to the new Corolla. The grille is large and

slightly closer to vertical than before, while the tail has a steeper slope.

Inside there’s a non-symmetrical shape to the dashboard similar to that we have praised in the new Toyota Camry.

The overall effect is good though, surprisingly, not as striking as that of the new Toyota Camry to our eyes.

INFOTAINMENT Corolla Ascent Sport has an 8.0-inch touchscreen display and a 4.2-inch multi-info display. Satellite navigation is a $1000 option on the Ascent Sport and standard on other models.

Corolla SX gains a wireless phone charger and DAB+ digital radio as well as a rear USB port.

The top-of-the-range, Corolla ZR features a large colour head-up display, an eight-speaker premium JBL sound system and a 7.0-inch colour multiinformation display.

POWERTRAINS A new design 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine delivers 21 per cent more power and torque (125kW / 15 200Nm) than the outgoing 1.8-litre unit.

Also new is what Toyota calls a Direct Shift continuously variable transmission (CVT) with clever engineering that gives it nice punch off the line that is useful in day-to-day suburban driving. It has three driving modes – Eco, Normal and Sport.

Continued page 2 21d13123-v8/3318

AFTER 52 two years and 45 million cars the Toyota Corolla powers along as the biggest selling car of all time. Almost 1.5 million of those global sales have been Downunder and the just superseded model has been the top selling passenger car here for years.

Toyota Australia has every intention of keeping Corolla at the head of the pack in this country and the 12th generation car has just been launched here.

The Japanese giant is pushing harder than ever on hybrids, hardly a surprise when you consider it has been selling these petrol-electric models here for close to 20 years. And that Toyota hybrids recently won one of the toughest

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2

August 17 - 23 | 2018

BMW M5 Competition EXTRA GRUNT: With a lower stance than even the standard BMW M5, the new M5 Competition means business.

THE new BMW M5 Competition highperformance sedan is coming to Australia in October. Featuring a more powerful engine, upgraded suspension, wheels and tyres and even engine mounts, it is aimed at giving a driving experience for those very serious about their highperformance motoring.

The 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 engine has a 25 horsepower increase in engine output over the standard BMW M5 - lifting it from 600 to 625 hp at 6000 rpm. (In Australian numbers that’s 441 kilowatts.)

Peak torque is 750 Newton metres and is on tap over an extremely wide rev range -1800 to 5800 rpm.

BMW has measured the new M5 Competition’s zero to 100 km/h sprint at just 3.3 seconds. Should you be on an

unrestricted road the accelerative urge sees it get to 200 km/h only 10.8 seconds after leaving the line.

Power is taken to all four wheels via an eight-speed M Steptronic transmission with three modes: Efficient, Sporty and Ultra-dynamic.

Interestingly, a Rear-wheel-drive-only setting allows those BMW describes as “experienced and skilled drivers to revel in the experience offered by past generations of the BMW M5 - handling in its purest form, with no control systems holding the car back”.

As well as lowering the vehicle by seven millimetres, the model-specific chassis tuning also includes tweaks to the wheel suspension, springs and dampers.

Lightweight M with fixed six-piston

calipers clamping on inner-vented discs are used at the front, at the rear a lightweight, floating single-piston calliper is used.

Forged 20-inch wheels are fitted as standard to the BMW M5 Competition.

With a bi-colour, Y-spoke design these strong, light forged alloys are exclusive to the model.

The 20-inch forged wheels are shod with mixed-size tyres measuring 275/35 R 20 at the front and 285/35 R 20 at the rear.

Model-specific design features include BMW individual high-gloss Shadow Line trim complemented by sporty high-gloss black for the kidney grille surround, the decorative mesh of the signature BMW M gills in the front side panels, the trim

for the rear bumper covering, and the exterior mirror caps.

The rear spoiler and “M5” boot lid badge – which gains “Competition” lettering – also come in high-gloss black.

Inside the Competition is an “M Competition” graphic that appears in the instrument cluster when the engine is starting up. There are stripe designs in BMW M GmbH colours for the seat belts, plus floor mats with piping and “M5” logo.

BMW M5 Competition is due in Australia in October at a recommended retail price of $229,000 to which on-road charges have to be added. Final local specifications have yet to be announced but it might be an idea to call your local BMW contact very soon as it’s likely all will have been pre-sold.

my wife stopped working and three children arrived. The little Toyota ran without missing a beat for 180,000 km.

Ten generations down the track the new model is likely to do the same thing for today’s young families.)

Luggage space is good and the boot is deep and easy to load in all but the hybrid which is significantly shallower.

The slope of the sportier tail restricts carriage of boxy items because the top of the hatch is pretty well over the rear seat backrests.

While this is no sports sedan new Corolla has impressive dynamics that give it handling that will please the keen driver. A bonus is that the typical driver will be so far under the Toyota’s limits

that there’s a big safety margin.

Every new Corolla hatch is covered by Toyota Service Advantage capped-price servicing at a maximum of $140 per service. Contact your selling dealer for details.

All new Toyota Corolla for 2019

From page 1

There’s the option of a six-speed manual in some models but it’s not likely to be chosen by many as ours is rapidly becoming an auto-only market. However, rev-matching makes this manual simple to drive in heavy traffic conditions Corolla’s improved hybrid system is lighter and more compact than before and its 1.8-litre Atkinson Cycle petrol engine has a very high 13.0:1 compression ratio. Combined petrol-electric output is 90kW and fuel consumption is listed at just 4.2 litres/100km. Sold across the range, hybrid variants are priced at only $1500 over the equivalent petrol models.

SAFETY Toyota anticipates a five-star ANCAP safety rating when testing is carried out here. It features a pre-collision safety system with pedestrian and cyclist detection during the day, autonomous emergency braking and emergency brake assist.

Corolla’s windscreen-mounted

camera recognises speed-limit signs.

Other standard safety features include automatic high beam, reversing camera, hill-start assist, seven airbags and two IsoFix child safety seat anchor points in the rear.

DRIVING The front seats are large and comfortable and support well, the wider cabin is noticeable and while it doesn’t exactly feel like a Camry inside the occupants will enjoy the space offered.

Though it’s a five-seater the new Corolla is tighter for space in the back seats than we had anticipated. That’s to the extent that if I sit my 181cm frame behind itself the rear legroom is cramped. So the new Corolla is better suited to the mum, dad and three-kid family.

(As a personal aside we owned a gen-two Corolla for nine years during the 1970s and early ‘80s during that difficult financial stage in life when

3

August 17 - 23 | 2018

BEAUT UTE: The oversize three-pointed star in the grille is a major feature of the mighty Mercedes X-Class ute.

Mercedes-Benz

By EWAN KENNEDY

X-CLASS 250d

THE Mercedes-Benz X-Class is the talk of the town among admirers of pickup trucks and utes in Australia.

The thought of having the prestige of a three-pointed star for only a few thousand dollars more than a somewhat mundane ute has led to instant takeup of sales of the working Mercedes.

It’s no secret that the X-Class is based on a Nissan Navara ute, but it has received quite a bit of work by the guys and gals at the German company, including a different body and interior and revised underpinnings. The latter include the use of coil springs front and rear.

Mercedes X-Class in Australia is certainly no toe-in-the-water exercise, no fewer than 13 models are now here, with more on the way. (And keep in

mind that Mercedes vans and trucks have been on Australian roads for many years so the ute has a strong heritage.)

With a ground clearance of 222 millimetres and good approach and departure angles this is no fancy toy with a famous badge - it is a serious RII URDG ZRUNHU ZKHQ :' LV VSHFL²HG (see the late section on Powertrains.)

The width between the wheel arches can take an Australian-size pallet.

The X-Class can tow up to 3.5 tonnes.

With a smile on their faces the authors of the press release on the new X-Class Mercedes say, “it can pull a trailer containing three horses or an eightmetre yacht.” Love it.

POWERTRAINS At this stage there is a choice of two 2.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engines. The single-turbo X-Class 220d producing 120 kW of power and 140

Nm of torque and the twin-turbo 250d with 140 kW and 450 Nm. A 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine with 190 kW and 550 Nm will be released later this year as the X-Class 350.

A six-speed manual gearbox is offered in all models as Mercedes Benz Australia feels some will buy the X-Class as a genuine knockabout working vehicle. A seven-speed automatic transmission is optional with the 250d engine.

Mercedes X-Class can be bought with 2WD (rear wheels) or the Mercedes’ 4MATIC 4WD system. This is a ‘proper’ 4WD with low-range gearing and a differential lock.

The 220d is offered with either powertrain, the 250d is all-wheel drive only.

SAFETY It comes as no surprise that Mercedes X-Class comes with a comprehensive array of safety equipment, or that it KDV D ²YH VWDU $1&$3 VDIHW\ UDWLQJ Standard are seven airbags, those for driver and front passenger come with a two-stage, deferred-triggering mechanism; Active Brake Assist (an advanced type of Autonomous Emergency Braking); and Lane Keeping Assist.

DRIVING This is a large vehicle with a length of 5340 millimetres, width of 1920 mm and a height of 1819 mm. Not big for a pickup truck, but a hassle at times if used as a car. There were frustrating RFFDVLRQV ZKHQ LW ZDV QHFHVVDU\ WR ²QG a wider than average parking space in the airport and shopping centre carparks during our test week.

The front seats are large and support well in the typical German way.

However the back seat is high and headroom will be tight for some adults.

Legroom is okay back there but try for yourself if you’re going to be using the big Merc as a family car with teenage kids.

Ride quality is good though not to the Mercedes high standards of Merc’s passenger cars - you could argue that it is a working truck, but try for yourself, particularly on roughish roads to see what you think, Noise levels are well damped, in fact impressively quiet on smooth roads, but rose quite a bit on harsher surfaces.

Road holding is good though obviously the higher centre of gravity does reduce the safety factor if you want to corner at silly speeds.

SUMMING UP 2XU KRPH EDVH LV LQ D IDLUO\ DI³XHQW area of the Gold Coast, a city that’s not exactly known for shy and retiring people. Already we are seeing plenty of X-Class Mercs on the road and in driveways. We expect the same to apply Australia-wide when these relatively affordable prestige pickups are taken for test drives.

4

August 17 - 23 | 2018

Say ‘Hi’

to the last word in car connectivity

By DEREK OGDEN HI, Mercedes, what’s the go? The ’go’ is that the German maker of prestige cars wants buyers of its latest A-Class to treat the compact as their new best friend.

A new level of human / machine interaction through MBUX (MercedesBenz User Experience), can be activated by saying ‘Hi Mercedes’ to gain access to important functions, destination details, phone calls, music choices, as well as the ability to write and hear messages.

I asked MBUX a question in one of the two phrases I remember from O-level German. Disappointingly, no answer was the reply. It must have lost something in translation.

New mate MBUX can even anticipate what the user would like next, given some time (up to six weeks, says the maker) to suss out the his-or-her trail of consistently repeated actions.

For example, regular phone calls to people at set times can be suggested by MBUX by delivering the phone number on cue.

Regular radio programs, such as news reports, will be suggested to the interested listener. All this can be obtained through a new advanced voice recognition system that understands ‘natural’ language, doesn’t need set commands and can get its head around accents. Mercedes-Benz says safety is the winner here with drivers no longer having to spend time looking at screens and entering text manually.

7KH ² UVW 0HUFHGHV YHKLFOH WR EULQJ WKLV exciting innovation to Australia is the justreleased A-Class in A 200 hatchback form.

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Powered by a new four-cylinder 1.3-litre turbocharged petrol engine it puts out up to 120 kW of power and 250 Nm of torque, driving the front wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

An entry-level A 180 and an upmarket A 250 will be available later in the year. A sedan is due here in 2019.

The A 200 sells for $47,200, plus onroad costs, but is available with a host of add-ons, including vision package, seat comfort package and night package, plus an AMG Line sports package and AMG Exclusive package.

Options include ambient lighting, keyless go and wireless charging for mobile devices. There is also a special edition A 200, in strictly limited numbers, for an extra $7090. From October a driving assist package will put the A-Class in line with S-Class safety.

Made available to the media on launch day were standard versions and a couple with active suspension. The standard model showed a handling pedigree far above its class, with taut steering, while the ride lagged with a few bumps along the way.

There was intrusive tyre roar on course road surfaces and wind noise around the mirrors above 80 km/h.

The Mercedes-Benz A 200 with active suspension did its stuff amiably on some twisty country roads. I can’t see many buyers going for the standard model after driving the electronically elevated active VXVSHQVLRQ :RUWK WKH ² QDQFLDO LPSRVW Lower on the road, the new compact 0HUF KDV D VOHHNHU SUR² OH ZLWK IHZHU

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ALUMINIUM Bull bar, Brahma brand, undamaged, taken o ff To y o t a H i l u x 4x4 ute, $150. Ph 5721 6231.

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COMPASS caravan, 2000 model, double bed, microwave, 3 way fridge, new tyres, CARAVAN, sleeps 2, bearings, electric brakes, with reg, very clean, in excellent condition, $3500 ono. Ph 0400 979 $12,000. Ph 0412 331 383 393 or 0419 546 706.

creases to offend the hot-hatch lover’s eye.

The cabin boasts an adjustable instrument display with a choice of modern classic, sport or understated layouts, with the possibility of up to 25 SUR² OHV Thanks to a redesigned windscreen and dashboard, the new A-Class is larger inside than the model it replaces, with more shoulder space (plus 9 and 22 mm front and rear), elbow room (+35 / +36 mm) and headroom (+7 / +8 mm).

Easier entry to the rear seats is another feature, while at 370 litres the boot is 29 litres larger than before and more accessible due to a larger opening. Rear visibility has also been improved.

There is a host of standard safety features, including nine air bags - front, pelvis side and window bags for driver and front passenger, side bags for rear occupants and a knee bag for driver,

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2 0 11 V E B e r l i n a international, auto, 7 TOYOTA Tarago 2002 months rego (YGC052), GLX, auto, 261,000km, RWC, $9850 ono. Phone 8 seats, cruise control, John 0458 223 403. regularly serviced, (STN166), $5999. Ph 0417 586 772.

2010 Mitsubishi Outlander LS ZH Manual 2WD for sale, power mirrors, cruise control, remote central locking, air conditioning, only travelled 76,973km, registered until March 2019 (1FO1YS), one owner since new, full service history available, never had a problem with SSANGYONG Rexton, it, $12,000. Ph 0427 new windscreen, near 000 833. new tyres, good running order, always serviced, CLASSIFIEDS (YHY081), registered, $5000 ono. Ph 0400 979 393 or 0419 546 706.

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1997 Nissan Navara DX 3.2D, manual, (OIB950), 353,300km, good condition, trade carry racks, electric brakes, $6000. Ph 5727 9511, 0425 728 156.

HOLDEN Rodeo 4x4, twin cab, with canopy, 2.8L turbo diesel, 5 speed manual, aircon, p/steer, RWC, cloth seats, very clean vehicle, drives well, (OLT003), $7500 ono. Ph 0418 579 368.

SOLD

TRUCK

CONNECTED: High-tech systems abound in the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class.

High-tech systems abound, with active brake assist with semi-autonomous braking, active park assist with Parktronic, active lane keep assist, blind spot assist with exit warning not opening the door if WUDI² F RU SHGHVWULDQV DUH FRPLQJ XS FORVH WR WKH YHKLFOH RQ WKH RXWVLGH WUDI² F VLJQ assist and reversing camera.

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