This Month
Japan’s car industry consolidates: Honda and Nissan reveal merger plan
The Japanese car giants will merge to create the world’s third-largest automotive group by 2026, as the two companies struggle to keep up with global competitors.
- Jessica Sier
- Analysis
- Analysis
Merge or die: Honda-Nissan talks mark pivotal moment in painful transition
Japanese discussions signal industry-wide consolidation as carmakers struggle with electric vehicle transition costs and growing competition from China.
- Updated
- Jessica Sier
The love affair between watches and cars is only just revving up
Lamborghini, Porsche, Tag Heuer and Bulgari are just some of the brands that drive the connection between fancy watches and fast cars.
- Luke Benedictus
Why this ‘extraordinary’ global CEO was axed
Carlos Tavares was forced from major carmaker Stellantis, which has brands like Jeep, Peugeot and Maserati, as global EV sales slump and cost-cutting ramps up.
- Silvia Sciorilli Borrelli, Kana Inagaki and Ian Johnston
November
IAG in big Queensland push with $855m RACQ insurance deal
The major insurer already owns NRMA and CGU, and has a joint venture with RACV. This deal gives it access to RACQ’s 1.7 million members.
- Updated
- James Eyers
Why this FIFO construction firm ‘never loses a client’
Fostering long-term relationships with clients such as gold miner Newmont has helped this business more than double revenue to $80m in a year.
- Larry Schlesinger
Amid a glut of EV supply, one car maker decided to become the cheapest
MG, now owned by China’s SAIC Motors, slashed $10,000 from its entry model. The big price reductions are one way manufacturers are keeping sales up.
- Simon Evans
Prestige new electric vehicles being sold for a loss by dealers
Demand for EVs above $70,000 is stalling, and the government’s tougher emissions standards scheme may worsen an oversupply next year.
- Simon Evans
Tesla sales disappoint despite Elon Musk’s carmaker slashing prices
The company makes the dominant electric vehicle model in the country. But it faces intense competition from luxury European rivals and cheaper Chinese brands.
- Simon Evans
October
Why Europe’s car crisis is mostly made in China
The once-lucrative market is now highly competitive and more Chinese EVs are being exported, compounding slower sales at home.
- Kana Inagaki, Edward White and Sarah White
- Opinion
- Driverless cars
Ride-sharing robopods are the future of cities
Self-driving, on-demand cars could change the way we move around cities and dramatically increase throughput of congested streets.
- Vinod Khosla
Are you ready for a driverless taxi?
No steering wheel, no brake, no accelerator, no door handles: Musk says Tesla’s Cybercab will be in production before 2027 – and to cost less than $US30,000.
- Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson
What it’s like to drive a hot lap in a $1m Ferrari
Daunting, nerve-racking and exhilarating. Behind the wheel of a $1m Ferrari for a course that mimics the most challenging racetrack corners.
- Tony Davis
September
Luxury cars among Plutus Payroll tax fraud spoils up for grabs
A Porsche Cayenne GTS, a Porsche 911 GT3 and two Wolf GB08 Tornado racing cars are among 30 vehicles confiscated from instigators of the fraud that will be auctioned off.
- Ronald Mizen
Federal government warned of Chinese EV software security risk
The federal government is being warned that a timid approach to risks from Chinese vehicle software could undermine national security.
- Simon Evans, Tom Rabe and Jessica Sier
ASX slumps; Westpac gets new CEO; Boomers drive luxe apartment demand
Read everything that’s happened in the news so far today.
- Exclusive
- Uber
Uber jumps straight back into car sharing with global partnership
Two weeks after pulling the pin on the product that let people rent out their cars, Uber has signed an international partnership with US-based operator Turo.
- Paul Smith
Car buyers going greener turn to hybrids not full EVs
The No.1 selling vehicle in Australia in August was the Toyota RAV4 hybrid.
- Simon Evans
- Driving With Tony Davis
- Electric vehicles
Your electric car choices are about to explode
The first Zeekr, a small SUV, will be sold from October, and will be followed by as many as 10 other brands from China’s vast portfolio of carmakers.
- Tony Davis
‘More for a second-hand toothbrush’: Why EVs are on the nose
The most commonly held concerns about buying an electric vehicle related to upfront cost, charging facilities, and deterioration.
- Gus McCubbing