Wheels

Wheels is Australia’s original motoring magazine. Launched in 1953, we’ve been trusted by generations of Australians to provide entertaining and forthright opinions on the good, the bad and the ugly of new and used cars. A world-class car mag with a formidable international reputation, Wheels covers the full gamut of cars – from sports cars to four-wheel-drives, economy to family cars – but it also covers the people, personalities and the power plays behind one of the world’s most dynamic industries.

Campbell • “I WAS ASKED WHY WE DIDN’T HAVE ANY DUAL-CAB UTES AT CAR OF THE YEAR LAST ISSUE, AND THE ANSWER WAS EASY: AS A PASSENGER VEHICLE, THEY’RE JUST NOT GOOD ENOUGH”

SUBSCRIBE TO wheels • GET 13 ISSUES OF YOUR FAVOURITE CAR MAGAZINE DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR FOR JUST $89

Hyundai’s retro EV • HIGH-TECH DUAL-MOTOR IONIQ 5 WILL HAVE 225KW/605NM AND CLIP 100KM/H IN 5.2SEC – AND IT’S DESTINED FOR OZ LATE THIS YEAR

The hottest EV yet?

Aussie EVs at snail’s pace • NEW TAXES, DELAYS ON INFRASTRUCTURE … WHY DOES GOVERNMENT NOT WANT AUSTRALIA TO EMBRACE THE ELECTRIC REVOLUTION?

Ford invests $12M in Australian design studio • MORE AUSSIE DESIGN FOR THE GLOBAL CAR WORLD

Maybach builds a Bentayga rival • MERCEDES’ ULTRA-PREMIUM BRAND DELIVERS A FOUR-WHEELED VIP SECTION FOR A MEGA PRICE

Incoming • THE NEW METAL HEADING OUR WAY

TheMarket • NEW CAR SALES STILL ON THE UP

Inbox • GO AHEAD, TELL US WHAT YOU REALLY THINK

MacKenzie • “I KNEW THAT, ALTHOUGH THE BUICK DEAL HAD BEEN NIXED, HOLDEN STILL PLANNED TO BUILD LEFT-HANDDRIVE VTs. WITH THAT, AN IDEA BEGAN TO TAKE SHAPE”

Carey • “CAR MAKERS ARE REACHING THE CONCLUSION THAT REAR-DRIVE IS RIGHT FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES”

Westerman • MY PARTNER GLANCED OVER MY SHOULDER AT THE COMPUTER AND ASKED WHAT I WAS SEARCHING FOR. “OH, JUST A PRECIOUS CHUNK OF MY LONG-DEPARTED YOUTH” I EXPLAINED

HONDA Prelude • A ‘PERSONAL COUPE’ WHICH STANDS AS AN ENDURING TESTAMENT TO WHEN HONDA REALLY WAS THE ‘BMW OF JAPAN’

POWER TO THE PEEPERS • INSTRUMENTS AND DISPLAYS ARE GOING TO LOOK VERY DIFFERENT IN ONLY A FEW YEARS. THIS IS HOW

PRODUCTS

A TRUE DRIVER’S DELIGHT, BY MORE THAN A NOSE

RX-8 DNA FOR FIRST-EVER MAZDA EV

PERFORMANCE BOOSTED; NO TURBO REQUIRED

‘E’ FOR ELECTRIFIED EFFICIENCY

CHEAPEST PHEV SUV IN OZ. A BARGAIN?

WHEN ‘RS’ EQUALS ‘RIGID ‘N’ STIFF’

SHARP TRAINER; LIGHT ON ITS FEET

Class evolution • WITH MORE THAN A TOUCH OF E-CLASS AND S-CLASS IN ITS DESIGN, THE FIFTH-GENERATION C-CLASS IS SET TO BREAK NEW GROUND FOR MERCEDES’ MOST POPULAR MODEL

Murray’s corner • DESIGN GURU GORDON MURRAY RETURNS WITH AN ATMO V12 SUPERCAR THAT’S POISED TO BE JUST AS SEGMENT DEFINING AS HIS LEGENDARY McLAREN F1

Back to the test • LAST YEAR CHALLENGED OUR ABILITY TO ROAD-TEST CARS LIKE NO OTHER. SO WITH THE ROADS NOW OPEN AND FREEDOM RETURNED, ALLOW US TO BLAST YOU WITH AN OVERDUE 40 PAGES OF OUR HOTTEST, LATEST COMPARISONS. THIS IS WHAT WE’VE GOT…

Thrill of the chase • THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO WAYS TO REACH SIX-CYLINDER MANUAL SPORTS CAR NIRVANA, AND ACCORDING TO BMW AND PORSCHE THEY LOOK VERY DIFFERENT

Dirty deeds • KICKING UP SOME DIRT IN SUBARU’S LATEST OUTBACK SPORT REVEALS ONE SERIOUS SHORTCOMING AMID THE COMPETENCE

Couple of bright sparks • TESLA AND JAGUAR MAY HAVE BEATEN THE GERMANS INTO THE ELECTRIC SUV SPACE, BUT NOW AUDI AND MERCEDES-BENZ ARE ARMED FOR HIGH-VOLTAGE BATTLE

Three for the road • FOR ANYONE PREPARED TO SWIM AGAINST THE SUV TIDE, THESE THREE PREMIUM MID-SIZE SEDANS DELIVER AMPLE DRIVER REWARDS. BUT WHICH DOES IT BEST?

Garage • WE DRIVE ’EM LIKE WE OWN ’EM

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY, BIG FELLA...