We were told last year to expect more heritage themes in Volkswagen’s updated and next-gen ID electric models. Here’s our first look: the ID Every1 concept.

VW says the ID Every1 concept will evolve from here into a 2027 production model, “with a starting price of around 20,000 euros” ($34,000).

We’ve seen what happens when electric powerhouse Tesla promises a new model will begin below or around a certain price, but Volkswagen should be able to steer a little closer to its stated goal.

Don’t be surprised if the price creeps up a little, but with the bigger ID 2all concept set to reach production next year “in the 25,000-euro class” ($45,000), the Every1’s price shouldn’t venture too high.

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Whether we’ll see the ID Every1 in Australia is not yet known, but Wheels has contacted Volkswagen’s local arm for word. (This story was published before business hours.)

The ID 2all is expected to reach Australia sometime beyond its European launch, but exactly when, and how much it will cost, is another unknown.

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Design and dimensions

The concept’s styling calls on the boxy lines of all ’70s and ’80s hatches, demanding no great stretch of the imagination in identifying cues from the first- and second-gen Golf and Polo hatches.

If this is the vision VW design chief Andreas Mindt described in November last year for future ID models – including promises of an evolved look for the ID 2all – fans will likely be pleased with the results.

We’re expecting to see similar updates to the ID 3 hatchback and the ID 4 and ID 5 SUVs, although these will likely get less extensive changes than the clean-slate look shown with the ID Every1.

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The ID Every1 will enter at the compact end of VW’s Electric Urban Car Family, riding on the same MEB platform that underpins the brand’s current, expansive EV line-up.

In concept form, the Every1 measures 3880mm long, placing it between the retired Up city car (3600mm), the ID 2all (4050mm) and the current Polo (4074mm).

As with all dedicated EVs, the Every1’s interior will likely prove more spacious than its exterior dimensions suggest, thanks to a flat floor and the freedom for its design to push all four wheels out to the furthest reaches of each corner.

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Motor and driving range

Power in the Every1 concept comes from a newly developed 70kW electric motor.

The hatch’s battery pack hasn’t been detailed, but Volkswagen claims a driving range of “at least” 250 kilometres.

Volkswagen emphasises the vehicle’s software architecture, stating it will be the first model in the Volkswagen Group to feature a fundamentally new, powerful system. This system is designed to facilitate lifelong updates and upgrades, allowing customers to adapt the vehicle to their needs after purchase.

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The ID Every1 is one of nine new models Volkswagen plans to release by 2027, including four electric vehicles based on the new MEB platform with front-wheel drive.

Volkswagen’s future strategy involves a three-phase plan: strengthen competitiveness and expand the model range, introduce nine new models by 2027, and aim to become a technologically leading high-volume manufacturer by 2030.

The company plans to deliver a further preview of the Electric Urban Car Family towards the end of 2025.

The Australian new-car market experienced a 7.9% decline in February, compared to the same month in the previous year.

The downturn left no brands untouched, affecting even the big-hitters in Toyota and Ford, which both saw a decrease in sales.

Data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), combined with Polestar and Tesla figures (both brands having left the FCAI last year in protest (Tesla, Polestar)), revealed a February total of 96,710 vehicles.

Electric vehicle (EV) sales were particularly hard hit, plummeting by 43.8% to 5684 units. The decline is largely attributed to another disappointing month for Tesla, which saw deliveries fall by a staggering 71.9%.

FCAI boss Tony Weber said: “We are now two months into the Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard, and while the supply of battery electric vehicles has risen dramatically, consumer demand has fallen by 37 per cent this year compared with the first two months of 2024.”

(NOTE: Including Tesla and Polestar would adjust the decrease to 26.8%.)

“We knew the supply of EVs would increase and there are now 88 models supplied to the Australian market. However, our grave concern has always been the rate of EV adoption and what assumptions the Government had made in its modeling around consumer demand for EVs in the NVES. This modelling remains secret.

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The trend was bucked by plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs), however, with a remarkable surge in sales increasing by 346.1% to reach 4871 deliveries.

Top sellers

Toyota led the market with 18,832 sales, followed by Mazda with 8797 and Kia with 6707.

The Toyota RAV4 was the top-selling vehicle overall with 4405 sales, followed by the Ford Ranger (4040) and Toyota Hilux (3616).

The chart success of Mazda and Kia is significant, too, given both brands have only one model in the top 10 – showing the strength of their overall line-ups.

Overall Top 10 for February 2025

EV sales for February 2025

Vehicle type

SUVs and light commercial vehicles remained popular, accounting for 60.4% and 22.5% of sales respectively.

Passenger vehicle sales declined again, representing 13.5% of the market.

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) made up 7.65% of total sales, marking a decrease compared to the 9.6% share in February 2024. The FCAI expressed concern for the rate of BEV adoption, despite an increase in the number of available models to around 91.

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Fuel type

Compared to February 2024, petrol and diesel vehicles saw a decline, with petrol dropping by 12.04% and diesel by 16.74%.

Hybrids are up 35.65%, while battery EVs, including Tesla and Polestar, decreased by 26.8%. PHEVs saw the most dramatic rise, surging by 305.92%.

• Petrol: 40,496 vehicles (41.87%)
• Diesel: 26,863 vehicles (27.78%)
• Hybrid: 15,348 vehicles (15.88%)
• Electric: 7,401 vehicles (7.65%)
• Plug-in Hybrid: 4,871 vehicles (5.04%)

State/Territory

The Australian Capital Territory saw the largest decrease at 16.2%, followed by Tasmania at 18.6% and Victoria at 13.0%.

• New South Wales: 29,801 vehicles
• Victoria: 27,944 vehicles
• Queensland: 20,202 vehicles
• Western Australia: 9,898 vehicles
• South Australia: 6,215 vehicles
• Tasmania: 1,528 vehicles
• Australian Capital Territory: 1,460 vehicles
• Northern Territory: 863 vehicles

This past month has been a busy one, not allowing much time to get away for long drives in the EX30. Not that it’s a bad thing, the tiny Volvo is excelling as a daily driver, getting around Melbourne’s inner city areas.

Its diminutive size is great for finding gaps in traffic and its instant torque is a hoot for zipping around in almost complete silence.

There are parts of our neighbourhood which do bring to light one of its shortcomings though.

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One of the streets in our area that I use almost everyday runs parallel to the main drag, heading towards our central business area. Locals and people in the know use it as a rat-run as it avoids the traffic, buses and seven sets of lights. At the end of the straight there’s an S bend that was quiet fun to run through. Unfortunately there were far too many talentless drivers hitting them too fast who ended up losing control of their cars and straddling the concrete barriers – as if trying to grind them with a skateboard.

The council caught onto this and a few years back dropped enough speed humps onto it that it now resembles a BMX track. Driving the street now with the EX30’s firm ride demands that these be treated with respect as going over them a touch too briskly can be jarring – it will also draw the stink-eye from my partner.

That’s been one common take with any passengers who’ve had a ride in the bumblebee-coloured Volvo. All other comments have been flattering of its styling and build quality.

Regardless of the ride, it doesn’t deter using the road (much to the disgust of a neighbour involved in the project to reduce traffic) but annoyingly the cadence of slowing down and accelerating repeatedly always blows out fuel figures. Even with that, it’s still quicker than the main strip – yes, I have timed it.

So far I’m finding I only need to top up the battery once a fortnight and there’s a DC charging station that’s less than two kilometres away. The app for the service lets you know how many of the four stations are available and functioning, so it helps avoids wasting time showing up to a full house.

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Charging has generally taken under 40 minutes going from under 20 percent back up to 90, costing $30-$45 depending if it’s off-peak.

I’ve tried charging from a wall socket at home but that’s painfully slow, taking around 22 hours to charge up 80 percent of the battery. We own a plug-in hybrid which we charge at home every second day or thereabouts, so I’m finding the charging station far more convenient. The single car driveway unfortunately is not ideal for owning two cars that need to be plugged.

I’m yet to experience range anxiety as some of the road testers have had to suffer on extended jaunts, but if I was still working at an office and travelling 60 kilometres on a daily basis like I used to, careful planning for charging would certainly be part of the owner experience. Forking out for a home charger would certainly be a strong consideration if that was still the case.

For all the naysayers that oppose EVs so far I’ve enjoyed the experience of living with one. If only it made a bit more noise.

More and more people are driving around in the dark. Literally in the dark.

You can see them every night, breezing comfortably through the traffic like blacked-out stealth bombers closing in on a target drop zone.

The drivers are obviously to blame but for once, not totally, thanks to one of the latest examples of the Law of Unintended Consequences. It’s something that’s been known about for close to 100 years but is now showing up more often in the high-tech world of cars.

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Basically, it’s when one seemingly smart choice trips the wire on something totally unexpected. When Australian car buyers switched from traditional Holden Commodores and Ford Falcons to SUVs, it helped trigger the death of local car making because the industry could not pivot fast enough.

Now we’re seeing that blacked-out night driving is the result of: digital dashboards.

The first car with a TFT (thin-film-transistor) screen in place of analogue dials, as best I remember, was the Lexus LS400 in 1989. It was a giant breakthrough, promising all sorts of new accuracy, flexibility and gee-whizzery to tantalise showroom shoppers.

These days, ‘bells and whistles’ has become showroom shorthand for a couple of giant screens to handle the infotainment, the apps and phone, the speedometer, fuel gauge and everything else you might want or need to know.

But, beyond the obvious distraction, giant display screens have created an unintended blackout on our roads, with help from daytime running lights.

This combination tricks people into thinking they are running fully lit, safe and obvious to anyone else on the road – when they are not.

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Think about it. You hit the ignition and the dashboard screens light up, and so do the DRLs in the nose. The glow in the front end can be mistaken for low beams and the bright niceness of the screens means you can easily assume the headlights and tail lamps are also fully lit.

But they can still be as dark as Vader, with nothing showing on the rear end and only the soft glow of DRLs on the nose.

Most cars now have an ‘auto’ setting for the lights that should be the set-and-forget position for everyone. But there are still people who believe that going auto could cost them more for fuel, or age the globes prematurely, or just think they know better.

So please give them a polite warning toot at the traffic lights, or flick your high beams from behind, to let them know they are dangerously dark. It’s worked for me with only a couple of middle-finger moments.

The unintended consequences keep on coming, as the results of a new European study into the impact of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) – lane-keep assistance, advanced automatic braking, active cruise control and all the rest – show a worrying side effect.

Elsevier, a Dutch company claiming to be “the world’s leading scientific publisher and data analytics company” has many good things to say about ADAS but reports worrying results from one of the most-used systems.

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It singles out active cruise control for a whack, based on results from 47 million vehicles and 2.4 million crashes, sourced from governments and insurance companies. It says active cruise is responsible for an eight per cent increase in real-world incidents.

“The observed detrimental effects of such systems may result from insufficient supervision of the system by users, in turn due to inappropriate expectations of system capabilities,” said Elsevier.

So now we have safety systems creating danger and contributing to turning us from drivers into passengers.

Talk about unintended consequences…

Nissan has confirmed that order books for the R35 GT-R supercar have closed with production ending once the remaining orders are filled. A successor is confirmed, but could be at least three years away.

A statement on Nissan’s Japanese website reads: “We have received many orders for the Nissan GT-R, and we have now finished accepting orders for the planned production quantity.

“We would like to express our sincere gratitude to our many customers for their patronage over the years since its release in 2007.”

It’s unclear how many examples are still yet to be built, or when production will end, but remaining stock is now sold out in Japan.

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Originally released in 2007, the GT-R was pulled from European markets in 2022 due to then-new noise regulations while Australian sales were stopped in 2021 thanks to side impact Australian Design Rule, which also killed cars like the Lexus IS and RC locally.

Japan is one of the few remaining markets where the GT-R is sold.

In its development, the goals for the R35 GT-R were reportedly to make a car quiet enough to have comfortable conversations at 300km/h, a power-to-weight ratio of under 4kg per horsepower and to lap the Nurburgring in under eight minutes.

Upon its release in 2007, the R35 GT-R was proclaimed by Nissan as “A supercar, for Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime”. It then set a Nurburgring lap time of 7:38.54 minutes in damp conditions – two seconds faster than the Porsche 911 Turbo it was benchmarked against in dry conditions, yet the Porsche cost twice as much.

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Over the years, the R35 GT-R received various subtle updates aimed at making it both more comfortable – but also even faster.

The 2016 update was the largest one, with the power increased to 419kW, a remapped transmission, revised ride and handling, increased noise insulation and even a new centre console aimed at making the GT-R even more capable than ever before.

Nissan also produced several special editions of the GT-R over the years, including the Spec V, 50th Anniversary Edition, Gentleman Edition, Naomi Osaka Edition, Bolt Edition, Tomica 50th Anniversary Edition and, of course, the 447kW GT-R Nismo.

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The final and current iteration of the GT-R uses the 419kW tune of the twin-turbo 3.8-litre V6 but in two specifications in Japan: the Premium Edition and T-Spec. It features the latest revised face with hexagonal daytime running lights and is available in the iconic ‘Bayside Blue’ colour.

It sprints to 97km/h in just 2.7 seconds and hits a top speed of 328km/h – 0.5 seconds and 10km/h improvements on the 2007 model.

Since 2007, over 40,000 units of the GT-R were sold globally and over 1,000 of those were in Australia.

An R36 GT-R is yet to be revealed, however, Nissan showed a 1,000kW electric Hyper Force concept car at the 2024 Tokyo Motor Show with reports from Japan claiming that it will morph into the next-generation car.

A contender in this year’s Wheels Car of the Year award, the MG Cyberster has now properly arrived in Australia after much anticipation last year about the all-electric convertible from the company that – in its earlier incarnation mid last century – made sports cars truly cool.

Slick exterior styling including showstopping electric scissor doors opening upwards certainly ensured Cyberster made a splash when unveiled, as MG seeks to address the perception it only makes SUVs these days.

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And while there have been quibbles about the roadster’s drive quality over less-than-perfect road surfaces and its lack of engine noise (though with the option of ‘fake’ engine noise), there is no questioning its impressive basics: an electric motor on each axle making 375kW and 725Nm and delivering all-wheel-drive acceleration for a claimed zero to 100km/h sprint of 3.2 seconds, combined with a claimed 443km driving range.

And as we discovered during COTY testing, the MG Cyberster is seriously fast in a straight line, a sensation enhanced with the roof down and the air howling around you. It’s ability to dart into the distance is enhanced by its classic roaster proportions and aerodynamically designed ‘Wind Hunter’ front for maximal airflow.

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Hi-tech interior

Inside, we’re a long way from a 1955 MGA, with three screens set up in a futuristic cockpit to keep the driver fully informed. The central 10.25-inch instrument cluster displays driving information including speed and the customisable ADAS system, while the left touchscreen displays navigation, radio and phone mirroring via CarPlay or Android Auto. The right screen displays battery status and 360-degree camera when activated.

Alcantara racing-style seats befit the convertible’s sports car spirit and feature electric adjustability and lumbar support, while the Nappa leather steering wheel is lovely to hold.

Dual-zone climate control, eight-speaker BOSE audio system and Apple CarPlay & Android Auto make the effort getting into the car totally worth it. As in any new-gen car, driver safety and assist programs are on tap via MG Pilot Technology Safety suite.

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Heritage-inspired exterior

Of course, it’s the exterior where the Cyberster comes into its own in the head-turning department. Power-folding fabric roof (which can be raised or lowered in 15 seconds), LED head and tail-lights, 20-inch alloy wheels and an overall shape inspired by the MGB roadster. The scissor doors are naturally the focal point when getting in and out, raising directly into the air for a show-stopping trick.

Paint choices are sports car hero colours, from Diamond Red Metallic to English White, Camden Grey Metallic, Sterling Silver Metallic and Royal Yellow Premium.

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Driving experience

As Wheels discovered during COTY road testing, the Cyberster behaves more like grand tourer than sports car around bends and over uneven road, but no one can question its thrilling acceleration, particularly in Sport or Super Sport mode.

Activate Launch mode – signified by a rocket logo on the instrument panel – and that instant acceleration is a thing to behold. Steering can be a little airy, while the suspension could do with a tuning for Aussie conditions, but the tech also allows for plenty of adjustment to the ride.

And it’s hard to argue with ride quality when the top is down while opening up on a country lane.

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Range

MG claim a 443km range from a full charge of the 77kWh lithium-ion battery, or nearly 400km from a recommended 90 per cent battery charge.

Full charge is reached in approximately nine hours from the 11kW AC on-board charger (around 6hours and 15 minutes to charge to 90 per cent), or closer to 11.5 hours on a 7.4kW home charger. On the road, the Cyberster manages a maximum charge rate of up to 144kW, which facilitates an 10–80 per cent top-up in about 40 minutes.

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Kia Australia has launched a new ad campaign for its upcoming Tasman ute, which debuted at yesterday’s season debut NRL match.

Created as a follow up to the high-rotation ‘Kia’s Getting A Ute’ ad that aired in March 2024, the new commercial once again features some of Australia’s biggest sporting legends, as well as Buck the Brisbane Broncos mascot. Buddy Franklin, Darren Lockyer, Alfie Langer, Steve Waugh and Dylan Alcott all make appearances.

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Unlike the first one, it features full exterior and interior footage of the now-revealed Tasman.

The latest ad is, like the Tasman, homegrown. Much of the new ute’s development was done in Australia. According to the company, from concept design, naming decisions, focus group studies and benchmarking tests, Kia Australia played a pivotal role in shaping the Tasman, ensuring it meets the demands of our market.

As we’ve come to expect from Kia, the Tasman will feature a local ride and handling tune to further adapt it to our conditions.

The Tasman range will be powered by the same 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine seen in the Sorento SUV, 154kW/440Nm outputs and mated to an eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission.

It will also be capable of towing a 3,500kg braked trailer, a one-tonne payload and even feature an integrated brake trailer controller – all features that Kia describes as “non-negotiable”.

Its four-wheel drive system will include a low-range transfer case, rear differential lock, and an intelligent traction control system to deliver “exceptional capability for serious off-road adventures”.

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It will be available in dual pick up, double cab chassis and single cab chassis body styles with combinations of various trims across two- and four-wheel drive drivetrains.

The Kia Tasman will launch in Australia mid-year, with local pricing and full specifications yet to be announced.

A new BMW M3 remains a genuine event. While most of us are media-saturated these days to the extent that we barely looked up when the latest version of the 911 GT3 was announced, BMW is planning the biggest change to the M3 formula to date, and it’s something that certainly got our attention.

The big news that you probably knew already is that because it’ll be built on the Neue Klasse chassis, it’s a pure battery-electric vehicle. Yet BMW, as has been their strategy to date, is hedging and has vowed to follow it up with a twin-turbo six-cylinder petrol version.

BMW recently displayed the Vision Driving Experience, a prototype that acts as a mobile test bed for much of the tech that will end up in the Neue Klasse, which is due next year.

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A new electronic suite has been developed for the Vision Driving Experience that BMW calls Heart of Joy that promises to deliver 10 times the processing power of current distributed ECUs. This takes integration of the drivetrain, steering, braking and energy recuperation to a level not yet seen in production EVs.

So powerful is the energy recuperation that BMW claimed in a media release that it “allows energy to be used more sustainably… 98 percent of drivers do not need to make any inputs using conventional brakes”. The company touts a 25 percent gain in energy efficiency as a result, which could well enable the next-gen M3 to utilise a smaller, lighter battery.

“The Heart of Joy enables us to take driving pleasure not just to the next level, but another one beyond that,” Frank Weber, a BMW board member, said in a statement.

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“In addition, we are further increasing efficiency, and therefore boosting range, as in future the driver will brake almost exclusively using energy regeneration. This is Efficient Dynamics squared.”

It’s not likely to be shy of torque. BMW has been testing the Vision Driving Experience at its M Performance Driving Centre in Spartanburg, South Carolina, where it has a track and factory, and claims a peak torque figure of a brain-bending 18,000Nm.

“If the control system can deal with an explosion of power of this magnitude,” BMW says, “it will be able to handle the demands of everyday driving with ease.”

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BMW has already shown what the next M3 should look like. It takes the Neue Klasse body and pumps it up with wider fenders, more aggressive front and rear bumpers, and much bigger brake discs. Speaking to the UK’s Autocar, BMW M CEO Frank van Meel confirmed that the ICE version is very much integral to the company’s plans.

“We’re also working on the newest emission regulations on combustion engines. We’re planning to keep up our combustion cars as well,” he said. Asked if the gasoline and electric M3s will feature different badges, van Meel said, “Do we need to set them apart? An M3 is a promise, not an engine.”

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A test car that BMW calls Nadine has been undergoing cold weather testing in Arjeplog, Sweden, and video from that test appears to show a Hyundai-style synthetic engine sound and possibly a paddle-shift fake gearchange too.

The sound overlays the mechanical bass tones of an ICE with the keening of an EV motor. It’s not actually that far off a supercharger whine, and the driver is seen reaching for a paddle before the video ends. It seems likely that this car is to be built around a version of the Heart of Joy electronic architecture as seen on the Vision Driving Experience.

One thing’s for sure. BMW is hugely bullish about what this car can do. That can only be good news for Aussie car enthusiasts whose patience may well be richly rewarded.

I managed to defer its collection by a couple of weeks, but eventually there was no getting away from the fact. The Genesis GV70 was heading home. Over the last four months, it’s become a bit of a family favourite.

There have been no arduous torture tests or thousand kilometre road trips. Instead it’s been subjected to the sort of daily use that is more representative of how people will use an almost $80,000 luxury SUV.

Life hasn’t been completely plain sailing. The infotainment system has, like its GV80 predecessor in the Wheels garage, been noticeably fritzy. It can drop an existing wireless Android Auto connection with no provocation and then point blank refuse to recognise the handset, even when it’s plugged in with a known good USB cable.

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The phone is clearly connected to the car for Bluetooth calls but the system then can’t fire up Android Auto for some reason.

Last month I was lamenting the lack of an exterior hatch release on the GV70. Thankfully, a reader was able to point me in the right direction here. The button on the rear wiper that I’d taken to be the pop-out rear window was the answer, he claimed. Technically, Herman was absolutely correct. The problem was, it did nothing.

No amount of prodding would open the tailgate. I eventually resorted to a bit of home mechanics, and it appears that at some point the tailgate had been slammed and given the switch assembly one heck of a shaking. A bit of jiggling back into place and presto, I belatedly have a functioning external tailgate release.

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I’ve also had a number of tyre pressure warnings appear after the first chilly mornings of late summer. This is because, as you’ll no doubt know, tyres hold less pressure when cold than they do when warm. It’s not really an issue because a kilometre or so down the road, they’ll return to a pressure reading within their map.

Strangely, there’s no reset function, so were an unwitting owner to pull into a servo and pump their tyres up, as soon as they got up to speed, the system would then signal an overinflation.

Otherwise there’s been little to disrupt the GV70’s serene progress. Fuel economy has been surprisingly dismal, averaging 11.7L/100km over its tenure. Much of that is down to its largely suburban usage, against a manufacturer’s claim of 10.3L/100km combined. But then it is worth remembering that this is a two-tonne, 224kW petrol-engined SUV.

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While delving into the owner’s manual to try to solve my tailgate issues last month, I came to realise that the mystery unmarked dimple next to the rotary controller is, in fact, a fingerprint scanner. This can be set up to remember the settings of two users, which is pretty neat.

Aside from some minor issues, running the GV70 has been enjoyable. It’s safe, comfortable, quick enough, beautifully appointed inside, spacious and is one of those cars that most people seem to think is way more expensive than it actually is.

It makes all kinds of sense if you’ve had a look at the usual options in this price bracket and don’t feel they offer stellar value for money. Nobody likes to feel as if they’re on the end of a bad deal. In that regard at least, this Genesis punches way above its weight.

A huge experiment is about to unfold in the Australian new car market, and the entire motoring world will be watching.

By my count, 10 new brands headquartered and manufacturing cars in China are set to arrive in Australia in the next handful of years. In no particular order: GAC Motors, Aion, Geely Auto, Zeekr, Lynk & Co, Leapmotor, Xpeng, Skywell, Jaecoo and Jetour.

They will join the existing 10 marques already hailing from that country: LDV, BYD, Chery, MG, GWM, JAC and including Volvo, Polestar, Smart and Lotus. Another four are potentially mooted for Aussie shores – Aiways, Changan, Nio and IM Motors – and I’m certain just as many others have at least thought about it. There are, after all, 119 brands in China making electric vehicles.

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In Australia’s case, that’s approximately 20 to 25 brands, most of which didn’t exist here that long ago. Half an issue of Wheels will be the Databank section in the back.

Many of these brands I’ve never heard of – and I’d hardly describe myself as living under a motoring industry rock.

The influx of Chinese brands into Australia is being driven by an overcapacity of manufacturing in China itself, coupled with a soft domestic market – and other Western countries whacking Chinese-made cars with tariffs. Of course, and sadly, we no longer have any cars to protect.

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For the brands that are here, the Australian new car market was already a crowded place. The next five years or so are going to be interesting. And possibly unpleasant.

It’s been fascinating to sit across from several Australian automotive executives in the last few months and get their take, which has generally been a cool and collected one – with plenty of knowledge of the brands that are coming and their cars. They’re watching closely.

“We know we’ve got to continue working hard,” said Sean Hanley recently, Vice President for Sales and Marketing of Australia’s biggest car brand – Toyota.

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“It’s a super competitive market. It’s going to get more competitive, there’s no doubt. We have the entry of many new brands – I think someone was suggesting we could have up to 70 brands in a market of 1.2 million. It’s an interesting time.”

Many of the new brands in Australia won’t last, say some executives. “No doubt you’ll write about the new entrants and dress it up as you will, but we’re a long-term company and we’re here for the long run,” said Hanley.

Predictably, existing importers will play the we’re-here-for-the-long-haul card. But if you ask me, it won’t just be new brands from China that falter. Some legacy ones might have to exit the market, too. Citroën might just be the beginning.

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The government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) adds to the pain. Beginning on 1 January 2025, it represents an unhappy new year for many existing Australian importers. No such problem if you only sell EVs, as is the case with many China-based brands.

While the eventual winners and losers in the Australian car market remain to be seen, there’s one surefire winner: you. In China itself, the new car industry is Darwinian – engineers and designers battle to outdo each other out of necessity. That means more interesting and better cars, many of which will be coming to Australia.

There’ll be something for everyone – off-roaders, SUVs, hatchbacks and sedans. And we aren’t talking a torrent of MG ZS-type vehicles. Lots of these cars from these companies are clever and original – even decently built. Some of that you can’t say about many of the cars from traditional car-makers today.

What’s about to happen in Australia could be the wake-up call they need.