Category: Car Review

The Honda CR-V e:HEV RS drives beautifully and is built to last, but 135kW, a small screen and $64,400 drive-away leave it exposed to cheaper Chinese rivals

The 2026 Subaru Outback Premium looks the part, but 137kW, a CVT and a nagging driver monitor leave it badly exposed to cheaper Chinese hybrids.

Geely Starray EM-i Extended Range is bigger than a RAV4, asks about two-thirds the money, and leaves Toyota's new 2026 update looking very old indeed.

Subaru Trailseeker AWD does 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds from $63,990, and the base car beats the $69,990 Touring on both driving range and ride comfort.

Subaru Uncharted AWD is $59,990 plus on-roads with 252kW/437Nm, but a packaging choice leaves just 403L of boot against Model Y's 854 litres.

Honda Prelude is back after 25 years with a 135kW hybrid, Civic Type R suspension and fake gears, from $65,000. We drove it through Sydney's east.

Subaru Uncharted drives well and dodges the Android mess, but the 522km WLTP claim showed 430km on the dial, and China now takes 32.2% of the market.

Mazda 6e makes 190kW/290Nm and, at 2015kg, is 0.2 seconds faster than the old 1627kg Mazda 6 turbo. Charging is 194kW on a 400V system.

GWM Tank 300 Ultra Hi4-T exposes the new Prado's lazy engineering and nasty plastic box, with 300kW of hybrid power for under $60,000 drive-away.

Haval H7 Vanta is a comfortable, well-equipped hybrid SUV with huge rear-seat space and an impressive cabin, even if its styling remains one of the segment’s strangest.

The GAC Aion UT costs $31,990 with a 60kWh battery, 430km of range and 150kW, which is Dolphin Premium hardware for Dolphin Essential money.

The Honda Prelude e:HEV is back after 25 years, a $65,000 front-drive grand tourer with 315Nm from zero revs and a fake eight-speed gearbox to play with.