As the future of Top Gear TV remains under a cloud in the UK, secret plans about the revival of the show in Australia have surfaced – and industry insiders say production is due to start within months.

Top Gear Australia could make a surprise return to local TV screens, even though the future of the original UK version of the show remains under a cloud following a serious crash that injured one of its stars, former cricketer Freddie Flintoff, late last year.

After television industry website TV Blackbox broke the exclusive story last week about a possible revival of the Top Gear Australia motoring show, Drive has managed to unearth more details.

According to well-placed industry sources, the new version of Top Gear Australia will be produced by a BBC crew to be based here for three months over summer.

It is unclear at this stage who will host Top Gear Australia but Drive has been told an announcement is imminent.

Drive understands representatives for BBC have already canvassed a number of car companies in Australia for vehicles to test – including a new twist on the ‘Star In A Reasonably Priced Car’ segment, in which famous people test their skills on a closed course against a stopwatch.

Industry sources have told Drive production is due to start later this month and stretch into next year over a three-month period.

MORE: Top Gear future in doubt following presenter’s hospitalisation

It is unclear if the program is being established for a one-off Australian special or an entire season based Down Under, but those familiar with the plans say it will be for a season of the popular motoring TV show.

Drive has been told one proposal is to broadcast Top Gear TV Australia on Channel 10 on a Sunday evening – rather than its former homes SBS or Nine (owner of Drive) – as well as via multiple streaming platforms such as Paramount Plus and the BBC’s iPad app, though this is yet to be confirmed.

While TV Blackbox reports the show will be heading to Paramount Plus – an online subscription-based streaming website with ties to Channel 10 – other sources have suggested the show has been picked up by Amazon’s online streaming website, Prime Video.

Drive has contacted Paramount Plus and Prime Video for comment.

Starring Warren Brown, Charlie Cox, Steve Pizzati, and James Morrison, Top Gear Australia ran for two seasons between 2008 and 2009 on SBS, before moving to Channel Nine for its third season with Shane Jacobson and Ewen Page presenting alongside Pizzati.

Season three was comprised of four episodes, airing in 2010, with just two episodes of season four understood to have been aired – one each in 2011 and 2012.

Interview: Top Gear’s Chris Harris on Australian cars, fast EVs and taking the job

Top Gear Australia was axed by Channel Nine in 2011 when season four was halfway through production.

The original British Top Gear remains under a cloud, with the television show suspended indefinitely following a major car accident involving presenter Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff in late 2022, who sustained multiple facial injuries after reportedly rolling a three-wheeler Morgan.

Earlier this month, a spokesperson for BBC said a decision about Top Gear’s future is yet to be made.

The post ‘Top Gear Australia’ television show to be revived – report appeared first on Drive.

The first 300 customers of the Toyota Tundra pick-up in Australia will be asked to sign a contract with strict conditions never seen before for the rollout of a new vehicle locally.

EXCLUSIVE

Customers who sign up to be among the first 300 people to take delivery of a Toyota Tundra pick-up in Australia will be asked to sign a contract with strict conditions that ban them from sharing their ownership experience on social media, and compel them to meet a number of other requirements.

Following the success of the Ram 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado in Australia – and the imminent arrival of the Ford F-150 – Australia’s largest car maker is poised to join the US pick-up battle locally with the arrival of the Toyota Tundra around the corner.

However, Toyota is taking the extraordinary step of putting the first 300 vehicles – which will be converted from left- to right-hand drive by the Walkinshaw Automotive Group in Melbourne, the former parent company of Holden Special Vehicles – in a real-world customer trial before making the vehicle available as part of the Toyota showroom line-up.

A letter from Toyota to prospective participants in the Tundra Insider Program advises customers will need to make their vehicles available for frequent detailed technical inspections, and to not share their experiences on social media or with motoring media outlets.

While the more frequent technical inspections are understandable – given the program was established to detect early any rectification work that may be required before ramping up production – the ban on social media activity is unusual given the vehicles will be in the public domain and on public roads.

The social media ban is also at odds with other owners’ groups that have been established on platforms such as Facebook where customers can openly and honestly share their experiences, both good and bad.

Toyota Tundra customers who take part in the ‘Insider Program’ must agree to “avoid any comment about the Tundra on social media, and refrain from mentioning or discussing the lease agreement, or the Tundra itself, with any media outlets.”

In addition, the letter to Toyota Tundra customers says “participants are prohibited from loaning their Tundra to any motoring press, other journalists or any influencers/bloggers for review or coverage purposes.”

The Toyota Tundra contract also prohibits customers from fitting any non-genuine accessories to their vehicles for the first 12 months of the lease program.

Participants do have the option to extend their lease program for a further six months (for a total period of 18 months), upgrade to a new model, or hand the vehicle back after the trial program has concluded.

Drive has been told customers are being quoted a lease fee in excess of $2000 per month to be part of the Insider Program.

As part of the more frequent technical inspections, once the first service is completed one month or 1000 kilometres after taking delivery, customers will be required to take their vehicles to a Toyota service outlet every three months or 5000km, whichever comes first.

Vehicles that clock up more than 30,000km in the first six months will only need inspections every six months or 10,000km from that point onwards.

The Toyota Tundra may be the last of the four US-made pick-ups to arrive in Australia with factory backing, however it is expected to be a formidable competitor.

If the first 300 Toyota Tundra vehicles pass muster during the trial, the vehicle will then become part of the Toyota showroom line-up locally.

Given Toyota has a network of more than 250 dealerships nationally – compared to about 180 Ford outlets, and about 55 showrooms each for Ram and Chevrolet – it has a broader footprint to sell the Tundra in much greater numbers than its US pick-up rivals.

For now Ram Trucks Australia remains the dominant force in the US pick-up market locally, outselling Chevrolet by more than two to one.

The post Exclusive: Strict rules for Toyota Tundra trial customers in Australia exposed appeared first on Drive.

Nissan has revealed a self-driving electric people-mover concept that uses Artificial Intelligence it claims can sense the mood of occupants.

The Nissan Hyper Tourer concept has been unveiled ahead of the 2023 Tokyo motor show, now known as the Japan Mobility Show.

The Hyper Tourer concept is the third in a series of four electric show cars that will be part of the Japanese car maker’s show stand, with the Hyper Urban concept SUV and Hyper Adventure concept SUV shown earlier in October.

Making the Hyper Tourer different is that Nissan will have a physical concept car at Tokyo, while the Hyper Adventure previously announced will be shown in digital form only.

The Hyper Tourer concept could form the basis of an electric people mover for showrooms in the future. 

The battery pack has been arranged specifically for the Hyper Tourer concept to help increase available interior room, which brings a low centre of gravity to aid driving dynamics.

The Hyper Tourer also has autonomous driving capability, which sees the front seats – including the driver’s seat – able face backwards as part of a 360-degree swivel function.

Passengers can access the Hyper Tourer concept’s navigation and audio systems using a wearable display.

Additionally, the concept also uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) that occupants can use to measure biometrics.

This includes heart rate, breathing, perspiration and brainwaves, which the AI will use to adjust lighting and select music to suit the seat for that specific passenger.

As with Nissan’s other electric vehicle concepts revealed for the show so far, the Hyper Tourer’s technology includes Nissan’s e-4orce all-wheel-drive system, as well as V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything) communication.

V2X communication enables the vehicle to interact via Bluetooth, radar and other means with other vehicles and devices, and is designed to improve traffic flow among other benefits.

The fourth and final of Nissan’s 2023 Tokyo motor show reveals – the Hyper Force concept – will be revealed later this week, with the Japan Mobility Show to be accessible to the world’s media from 25 October before the event opens to the public on 28 October. 

The post Nissan Hyper Tourer concept can measure your brainwaves and calm you down appeared first on Drive.

The BYD Dolphin – the cheapest new electric car in Australia – has arrived in Australia ahead of first customer deliveries due next week.

Customer deliveries of the 2024 BYD Dolphin – Australia’s new most affordable electric car by a margin of $100 – are due to commence in Australia next week.

Luke Todd, managing director of BYD’s Australian distributor EVDirect, told Drive the first Dolphin hatchbacks have arrived in the country for test drives and, starting next week, customer deliveries.

The Dolphin is a Toyota Corolla-sized hatchback that becomes the smallest model from the Chinese electric-car specialist in Australia.

At $38,890 plus on-road costs for the base Dolphin Dynamic model, it is the most affordable new electric vehicle in Australia – $100 cheaper than another small Chinese hatchback, the MG 4 Excite 51, at $38,990 plus on-road costs.

Once on-road costs are included, the BYD is between $610 and $808 cheaper, due to differences in dealer delivery and other mandatory charges in different jurisdictions.

There are three BYD Dolphin models: the price-leading Dynamic, long-range Premium, and more powerful Sport. The Dynamic and Premium are due imminently; the Sport is due in early 2024.

Mr Todd told Drive this time last month among pre-orders for vehicles due this year, the Premium is the top seller – however he predicts demand for the split between the Dynamic and Premium to even out.

“A lot of people are waiting to test drive, and waiting to see the difference between the two,” said the executive.

In July 2023, the company was holding more than 1000 pre-orders for the Dolphin, a number which Mr Todd says has continued to gtow.

A limited allocation of BYD Dolphin Sport editions – priced from $49,990 plus on-road costs – remains available to order, of the 1000 vehicles planned to be produced.

The Sport model adds more power – as confirmed to Drive by Mr Todd – plus unique 17-inch wheels, a sports body kit with wheel-arch extensions, revised suspension, and performance tyres.

The post 2024 BYD Dolphin electric-car deliveries to begin in Australia next week appeared first on Drive.

In 1983, Toyota set out to make ‘the best car in the world’ with an epic budget, epic manpower and even-more-epic engineering targets

If it was yellow it might almost look like a New York taxi, but for the forgettable figure it cuts the original Lexus LS remains one of the greatest and most important cars ever developed in Japan. 

It was the 1980s and the Japanese economy was so hot you could hold a wok over it and cook a stir-fry.

Japan had risen from the ruins of World War II to become the planet’s factory floor, including for cars.

Japanese automakers were swimming in yen, their designers and engineers eager to strut their talent against the world.

While that meant for a time ever-whackier concepts – the Tokyo Motor Show started to assume an almost vaudeville sheen as designers competed with each other with ever-radical cars and idea – it occurred to Toyota they needed to mature if they were to be taken seriously on the world automotive stage. 

FURTHER READING: Unremarkable (but surprisingly good) cars: Mitsubishi 380
FURTHER READING: Unremarkable (but surprisingly good) cars: Toyota Prius

In August 1983, Toyota president Eiji Toyoda selected 4000 of Japan’s brightest designers and engineers for project codenamed “Circle F”, F meaning flagship. The goal? Make the best car in the world.

There would be unlimited budget and unlimited time – within reason – and a singular target: crack the lucrative US luxury market, which sparkled for Toyota like a distant beacon on the horizon.

It would not be easy, as the wounded figures of past protagonists would attest. In the US, Mercedes-Benz was king, BMW held sway and Audi’s star was ascendant. But after its own crack, Jaguar was left licking its paws while Honda’s Acura and its Legend sedan was at risk of becoming a legendary flop.

The stakes were high, and Toyota couldn’t launch with any ordinary car. Extraordinary engineering targets were set for Toyota’s rear-drive luxury sedan, including efficiency that would avoid the then US ‘gas guzzler’ tax, but in a vehicle capable of 250km/h – at that time a speed only achievable by Supra. ‘Circle F’ had also to carry passengers in superb comfort, while being effortlessly luxurious and studiously reliable.

The targets were so bold, Toyota’s own engineering director personally distanced himself from the project.

Against all odds, however, they succeeded, producing a rear-drive luxury sedan on an all-new platform and with a brand new 4.0-litre quad-cam V8 producing 190kW and 360Nm, mated to a buttery smooth four-speed auto. Its length? An identical 4995mm to the then all-conquering W126 S-Class it had to best.

There was just one last problem, however. Toyota was too scared to call it a Toyota. Market research indicated Americans thought of Toyota as a maker of budget passenger vehicles. A new moniker was created: Lexus.

Rumours abound even today it stood for “Luxury Exports to the US” but this is a myth – one, notably, Toyota has made little effort to correct. 

The first LS, as Circle F became known, rolled off a Japanese production line in May 1989. It was the wedge that found a crack in the US luxury market, and levered it open for Toyota. Not just the US, either, Australia being only the third market the LS tackled after Japan and America, where it helped launch the brand we know today.

Since then, several generations have followed, but none quite as memorable as the original – as big an engineering milestone as LFA. Even if it doesn’t quite look it.

Have you ever owned a Lexus LS? Or do you own one still today? Tell us a bit about your experience in the comments below.

FURTHER READING: Unremarkable (but surprisingly good) cars: Mitsubishi 380
FURTHER READING: Unremarkable (but surprisingly good) cars: Toyota Prius

The post Unremarkable (but surprisingly good) cars: Lexus LS appeared first on Drive.

Australia’s biggest automotive rivalry will be detailed in a 100-minute documentary about Ford and Holden, due in cinemas from 19 October 2023.

The decades-long rivalry between Ford and Holden – both in showrooms and on the race track – will be explored in a feature-length documentary, set to be released in Australian cinemas this week.

The aptly-titled ‘Ford vs Holden’ film explores the relationship between the Australian public and the two car makers, which battled each other in the sales charts for decades after racing for glory around Bathurst.

Narrated by actor and comedian Shane Jacobson – of Kenny, Charlie and Boots, and Top Gear Australia fame – Ford v Holden was produced by Veronica Fury, who earned an Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) nomination for the Brock: Over the Top documentary in 2020.

As well as speaking to race drivers and historians, the film also features interviews with former employees of Ford and Holden who worked for the car makers before their local manufacturing facilities were shut down in 2016 and 2017, respectively.

While Ford still has a presence in Australia – with its Thailand-built, largely Australian-developed Ranger ute currently sitting second in the new-car sales race behind the Toyota HiLux ute – Holden officially withdrew from the local market at the end of 2020.

In 2020 Holden reported 16,688 new vehicles as sold, its lowest sales tally since 1949 – the year after it was established – and down from its peak of 178,392 sales in 2002.

Ford v Holden will be released in cinemas across Australia from 19 October, 2023.

A list of cinemas where the documentary will be shown is available here. 

Which side of the Ford vs Holden fence do you sit on? Let us know in the comments below.

The post Video: ‘Ford v Holden’ film preview released ahead of October 19 cinema debut appeared first on Drive.

The latest Nissan X-Trail has received a facelift in the US, where it is now three years old. In Australia – where it has been on sale for less than 12 months – the new look is a while away.

A facelift for the 2024 Nissan X-Trail mid-size SUV has been unveiled in the US – with a revised exterior design and new interior features – but it remains some time away from Australian showrooms.

While the new X-Trail has been on sale in Australia for less than 12 months, it has been in US showrooms for nearly three years, where it is sold as the Nissan Rogue – so it is due for an update stateside.

Australian arrival timing is yet to be announced, however given the new X-Trail arrived in Australia two years after it launched in the US, this facelift may not be in local showrooms until 2025.

There is also no guarantee the updated model for Australia will look like its US counterpart – and it may add new features that are not ready in time for the US version, which is due in showrooms there early next year.

“Nissan North America has recently announced details of mid-life revisions to its … Rogue SUV which was launched late in 2020,” a Nissan Australia spokesperson said in a media statement to Drive.

“However, there are no imminent mid-life revisions yet finalised for X-Trail here where it is still relatively new in the marketplace,” the spokesperson said.

The US model is built in Tennessee – while the version sold in Australia, Japan and Europe is manufactured in Japan, where production did not begin until mid-2022.

New for the 2024 Rogue are restyled front and rear bumpers, a wider front grille with a new pattern, fresh 18-inch and 19-inch wheel designs, and gloss black body trim on the top-of-the-range Platinum model in the US.

Nissan US also claims “new” tail-light internals, but the changes are almost impossible to spot. Satin-finish badges are also added, as well as three new exterior colours: Everest White Pearl, Deep Ocean Blue Pearl, and Baja Storm.

Inside, the US-market Rogue gains the option of a 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen which has been available in Australia since the current X-Trail launched last year, as an upgrade over the standard 8.0-inch display.

Models with this larger screen are the first Nissans to offer support for Google services such as Google Maps, Google Assistant and the Google Play app store, which are built into the infotainment system.

It does not replace traditional Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, which remain available and operate wirelessly on models with the larger screen.

Also new is Amazon Alexa voice assistant functionality with the 12.3-inch screen, USB-C ports in the cabin (already available in Australian models), and an expanded smartphone companion app that can locate, lock/unlock the vehicle, start the engine, or call emergency services remotely.

There are also “new colours and textures” for the seat, door, centre console and dashboard trim, and a tan leather seat upholstery option.

The only engine available in US models remains a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol three-cylinder with 150kW and 305Nm, mated with a continuously-variable automatic transmission and front- or all-wheel drive.

In Australia there is a choice of a 2.5-litre non-turbo four-cylinder petrol engine (135kW/245Nm) – which was discontinued in the US two years ago – or the ‘e-Power’ hybrid, combining a 1.5-litre turbo three-cylinder with two electric motors.

The post 2024 Nissan X-Trail facelift unveiled in the US, but years away from Australia appeared first on Drive.

A scale model of a ‘Tesla Cybertruck’ mounted on top of a van has been spotted on Australian roads. So what’s the story behind it?

Images of a work van with a scale model of a ‘Tesla Cybertruck’ mounted on its roof – and being driven on Melbourne roads – have gone viral on social media, and now we finally have the lowdown on the stunt.

Customers in North America are yet to take delivery of their Cybertrucks – despite production reportedly starting in July 2023, some 18 months behind schedule – and it’s not clear whether Tesla will eventually offer the electric pick-up in Australia.

So a local sighting of a Tesla Cybertruck – in any size – has piqued interest among local fans and the car curious.

While some on social media suspected it was a publicity stunt for Tesla, it’s actually a prop used by an Australian business called Cyber Plumbing, Electrical and Air Con – apparently playing on the word ‘Cyber’ in its company name.

“Our Mercedes vans now feature a fibreglass replica of a Tesla Cybertruck on the roof, which can be fully illuminated at night. The vans have been designed by top-quality engineers and comply with Australian road safety standards,” a spokesperson for the company told Drive.

“The new look is a reference to the 50 Cybertrucks the home maintenance business currently has on order, with the hope of using them as service vehicles in the future,” according to Cyber’s managing director David Ellingsen.

It’s not the first time the business has taken advantage of buzz around the Tesla. Some of its vans have been sign-written (or ‘wrapped’) to look as though their vans were Cybertrucks when looking at them side-on.

Conversely, in the US, Tesla ‘wrapped’ a number of its Cybertrucks during testing in a rather unsuccessful attempt to make them look like Ford F-150 and Ram pick-ups, which was quite the challenge given the blunt and triangular shapes of its own vehicle compared to its more traditionally-styled rivals.

Meantime, calling for a repair of your air conditioner or a leaky tap might be the closest thing most Australians get to a Tesla Cybertruck in real life.

Despite initially offering $150 refundable deposits when the Cybertruck was unveiled, Tesla Australia removed the ability to place a deposit from its website in May 2022, and there’s some doubt about whether the pick-up would ever pass Australian Design Rules – regulations which all new cars must abide by.

MORE: Taking delivery of Australia’s first Tesla Cybertruck … kind of

In 2020, Tesla CEO Elon Musk also said the Cybertruck had been engineered with US regulations in mind, with the car-maker deciding to “not make this a world truck” for global markets.

Though the Cybertruck has yet to be ruled out by Tesla for Australia, you might be lucky enough to end up seeing one next time you need repairs done to your home.

The post Australia’s first ‘Cybertruck’ could visit your home – to fix your leaky tap appeared first on Drive.

It appears the rumours were true. A high-performance version of the reborn Toyota GR Supra sports car has been photographed testing on Germany’s Nurburgring race track.

The long-rumoured high-performance GRMN version of the latest Toyota Supra sports car appears to be headed for reality, if new photos captured in Europe are a guide.

Reports out of Japan have for years claimed there are plans to fit a new ‘GRMN’ Supra with the 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine from the BMW M3 and M4, as a send-off to the current model.

GRMN – short for Gazoo Racing Meisters of the Nurburgring – is Toyota’s top performance badge, and is reserved for limited editions with more performance than standard GR cars.

Now Toyota has been photographed testing a lightly-disguised Supra with upgraded aerodynamics, and larger wheels and brakes on and around the Nurburgring race circuit in Germany.

Visible in the photos is a longer front splitter, aero ‘flics’ on the front bumper, and a fixed rear spoiler on the tailgate – plus new, seemingly 20-inch alloy wheels, larger drilled brake discs, and what appear to be larger brake calipers.

The rear spoiler appears to be shared with a 45th Anniversary Supra special edition introduced in the US earlier this year. The upgrades visible on this prototype are not as extreme as those previewed by illustrations in Japanese media.

However the photos cannot confirm the rumours of BMW M power under the bonnet.

Japanese magazines such as Best Car report Toyota has secured a batch of the M3 and M4’s 3.0-litre twin-turbo ‘S58’ inline-six engines, developing about 405kW.

It would represent a significant upgrade over the single-turbo 3.0-litre ‘B58’ inline-six in the current GR Supra, which develops 285kW and 500Nm – and is an engine not available in the Supra’s twin under the skin, the BMW Z4 roadster.

Unusually, reports claim the S58 engine will be matched with the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission used in the previous generation of BMW M cars, last used in the final run of first-generation M2 coupes built in 2021.

The latest BMW M3 and M4 – and all other current BMW M cars – use the same eight-speed torque-converter automatic transmission as the Supra, designed by Germany’s ZF.

Japanese reports claim the GRMN Supra will be a limited edition designed to send off the current-generation ‘A90’ Supra, which is due to end production in 2025 or 2026 in line with its BMW Z4 twin built on the same production line in Austria.

Plans for a new Supra remain unclear, and Japanese media speculation ranges on if it will use BMW inline-six petrol power once again, or will go electric.

The post 2025 Toyota GRMN Supra caught on camera appeared first on Drive.

A teenager’s joy over buying her first car was short-lived after it caught fire minutes after taking delivery.

A novice 19-year-old driver has been left in a state of disbelief after the used car she just bought burst into flames minutes after taking delivery.

Ms Hajar Yassini, who purchased the pre-owned Mazda 3 sedan on 10 October 2023, claimed she only spent 15 minutes driving the vehicle after purchasing it from a used-car dealership for $5000, according to a report by 7 News.

The report by7 News claimed the dealership was closed a day after the accident was lodged with road and emergency service authorities – with no staff in attendance, the sign pulled down, and the gates locked.

A reporter for 7 News contacted the dealer who claimed the car was sold “in a private capacity” and not through the business.

The unfortunate buyer claimed the man who sold her the vehicle informed her: “The car is good, the engine is fine, everything is good.”

Local media reported the Consumer and Business Affairs Commissioner will investigate the purchase of the faulty Mazda car.

Police said the fire was caused by a mechanical malfunction.

The dealership is yet to make a statement.

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