If you prefer your practical family car to come in the form of a sedan or wagon, you might soon be out of luck when it comes to new cars.

Trying to find a new car with a manual transmission is hard enough these days, but an affordable low-riding family hauler is nearly as hard. Some brands continue to plug away in the segment, but your widest selection is absolutely in the SUV space.

And boy are they selling, to the point of absolutely dominating Australia’s top 10 – beaten only by the no-longer humble ute.

Australia’s best-selling vehicles overall

Here’s how the top 10 shook out from January to June 2024

1. ? Ford Ranger
2. ? Toyota HiLux
3. ? Toyota RAV4
4. ? Isuzu D-Max
5. ? Mitsubishi Outlander
6. ? Toyota Corolla
7. ? Tesla Model Y
8. ? Mazda CX-5
9. ? MG ZS
10. ? Ford Everest

Of course, that’s only part of the story

If you’ve decided your next car will be an SUV, you might like to know which were the most popular.

Below, you’ll find lists of the top models in each SUV size class, linked to our pages for each model.

Of course, popularity isn’t the greatest mark of a car – so you’ll also find links to our Best SUVs stories, again organised by size and price. Read on!

Top selling Light SUVs for June 2024

1. Mazda CX-3 – 1598
2. Suzuki Jimny – 795
3. Hyundai Venue – 592

Top selling Small SUVs for June 2024

1. MG ZS – 1970
2. Hyundai Kona – 1804
3. Mazda CX-30 – 1306
4. Audi Q3 – 666
5. BMW X1 – 639
6. Volvo EX30 – 420

Top selling Medium SUVs for June 2024

1. Toyota RAV4 – 3907
2. Mitsubishi Outlander – 3045
3. Tesla Model Y – 2906
4. Mazda CX-5 – 2687
5. Lexus NX – 676
6. Mazda CX-60 – 542

Top selling Large SUVs for June 2024

1. Ford Everest – 2267
2. Isuzu MU-X – 1564
3. Subaru Outback – 1286
4. Range Rover Sport – 349
5. Land Rover Defender – 310
6. BMW X5 – 294

Top selling Upper Large SUVs for June 2024

1. Toyota LandCruiser 300 – 1288
2. Nissan Patrol – 669
3. Kia EV9 – 47
4. BMW X7 – 139
5. Land Rover Range Rover – 106
6. Mercedes-Benz GLS – 35

My name is Andy Enright and I love the C8 Corvette. There, I said it. And I can already feel you judging me.

Let me attempt a little mind-reading. You’ve pigeonholed me as some sort of antipodean analogue of a Floridian dentist, a man unencumbered with anything much by way of refinement and who is blithely unaware that a cheaper BMW M3 Competition does just about everything better. Am I close? I’ll happily take all of those on the chin and admit that these barbs are built around a faint germ of truth.

That said, I have yet to pedal a Vette in socks and sandals, I don’t drive with a Cohiba sticking out of my head, I have no friends called Larry and I don’t own a golf bag, so I’m not a complete overlap on the stereotypical owner Venn.

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I first got my hands on a Stingray at MOTOR for a four-car review ahead of 2022’s Performance Car of the Year.

It beat the Audi RS5, the Jaguar F-Type P450 and the Mercedes-AMG C63 S coupe. It finished a very credible fifth at PCOTY that year, beaten by, yes, an M3, two Porsches and a Lamborghini.

That very same car – BSN 388 – was also compared to the new BMW M2, the Toyota GR Supra and the Lotus Emira at the start of this year. Two hard years on press fleet duties had clearly started to weigh on it.

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The white leather interior felt grubby and worn. The body control felt notably laxer than when we first drove it. It could still entertain but gave that background impression of a bunch of parts flying in close formation.

Thankfully, I’ve just had a chance to drive Corvette’s new 3LT demonstrator. The cabin so red it feels like the aftermath of a Mexican cartel standoff, but the exterior is, thankfully, a far more muted execution.

The Silver Flare paint is complemented by some tasteful alloys. Where its predecessor on fleet was a garish bleach-bottle blue, with stripes and chrome wheels, this one instantly feels a more refined confection. It just goes to show that specifications really do matter. I’m told that forest green with a tan leather interior would have been quite the combo.

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It got me thinking about how we ‘dress’ an individual car can have a profound effect on its perception. There’s certainly a gap in the market for an atelier service that helps manufacturers get this right with their demonstrators. People with taste have clearly been consulted by Bentley to help its clientele.

Jump onto its configurator and you can see a number of pre-set colour and trim combinations to point those who might struggle in the right direction.

Trouble is, there’s likely an element of style-oriented Dunning-Kruger syndrome at play here. Those who have terrible taste are also the ones least equipped to recognise the fact.

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Being someone who is constantly amazed by people who dress impeccably, I have few delusions about my sense of aesthetic. Modestly tease that strand of logic and you might surmise that is part of the reason I’m so enamoured of the Corvette C8.

I’d put it down to the fact that, with typical optioning, for four-cylinder Porsche Cayman money, you’re getting a V8, naturally-aspirated, mid-engined sports car that’s only 6kW down on a 992 GT3.

I might not know which tie knots are in vogue right now or whether caramel dress shoes have had their day, but I know a cracking performance car when I see one. Just tone it back when you get to the colours, hey?

There aren’t very many TVR Cerberas in Australia. Why would there be? There aren’t that many in the UK.

From a high of 1023 licensed vehicles there back in 2003, there were only 276 left on British roads by the end of last year.

In other words, the magnificent Cerbera is becoming a very rare vehicle everywhere. Flawed but fabulous, it’s a car with such breathtaking audacity and ambition that it certainly deserves to be saved, so when we tracked down this beautiful Cerbera Speed Six in Melbourne, we were determined to give this Blackpool unicorn its moment in the spotlight.

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The Cerbera developed a reputation as a metronomically unreliable car. Owners wanted a classic British sports coupe. What they got was a classic British project.

When asked what they would like to see improved on the Cerbera, owners cited better ventilation, rear suspension that was more accommodating, a handbrake that worked, brighter air conditioning LEDs, less wind noise, a better stereo and windscreen wipers, fewer electrical problems with doors and security, a clutch footrest, non-vibrating rear-view mirrors, better rear ground clearance and less brake squeal. Oh, and you only got a one-year warranty from new. That’s if the dealers would entertain your claim.

That was then. It’s fair to say that any Cerbera still perambulating the roads will likely have had most, if not all, of its snagging points fixed at least once by now.

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Given that nobody buys a TVR to cover big mileages, they’re now in a comfy spot where they become event cars – the sort of thing you’d take to a car meet, to an owners club event, down the pub of a weekend or just to squirt around when the sun’s out.

After more than 30 years, the Cerbera might have settled comfortably into its niche.

Although the Cerbera was first unveiled in 1993 at the London Motor Show, its lineage can be traced to when then-38-year-old Peter Wheeler parked himself behind the TVR chairman’s desk in 1982. Ironically, it was unreliability that had landed him there. He’d just sold his company, ETA, a business that sold desalination gear to the North Sea oil industry, and his flaky TVR Taimar Turbo was due another visit to Blackpool to be fixed.

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While chatting to staff he had come to know rather better than he had initially expected, he realised that the company was on its uppers. Rather than blow his bulging bank account on a Scottish hunting estate, as was the original plan, Wheeler instead bought TVR.

Out went Ford engines and in came Rover V8 units – a smart and practical decision that helped elevate the company’s performance credentials. The old M Series cars were replaced by the wedge-shaped Tasmin bodies, reaching their apogee with the wild 420 SEAC. In 1988, TVR sourced a 5.0-litre Holden V8 through HSV. The engine was installed in the TVR White Elephant (see Fast Facts below) and whetted Wheeler’s appetite for even higher performance.

A turning point arrived in 1990 with the beautiful Griffith. Gone was the angular wedge design language of the Eighties and in came a classic lozenge-shape, retro-tinged roadster.

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It featured a grunty Rover V8, a bulletproof Borg Warner manual ‘box and not a whole lot else. It was followed by the even more successful Chimaera which saw more than 1000 cars rolling from the gates of the Bristol Avenue plant.

Being deluged in orders from enthusiasts who couldn’t get enough of a great-looking British sports car with aV8 under the bonnet created a moment of extreme ambition. Some would call it insanity. TVR made the decision to start building its own engines and the first car to receive them would be the Cerbera.

While he was clearly a talented chemical engineer, perhaps Wheeler had failed to fully acknowledge the budgets required to thoroughly design, test and build your own engines.

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The first engine on display was the Speed Eight – an all-alloy, flat-plane-crank 4.2-litre V8 that was good for 268kW and 434Nm.

That was ample in a car that weighed just over 1100kg, or about the same as a modern MX-5. This later morphed into a 4.5-litre V8 – good for either 313kW or, in Red Rose trim, a hefty 328kW.

Buyers got a limited-slip differential as standard, or could pay extra for a viscous Hydratrak diff. What you couldn’t pay for were anti-lock brakes, traction control or airbags. It was just you to figure out how that torque curve, the Borg Warner T5 manual ‘box, a long-travel throttle pedal and four contact patches made nice with each other. Get it all right, keep the power pouring through its 6500rpm peak and a 4.4-second 0-100km/h time was theoretically possible.

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The performance may have been searing, but quite a few of those initial press demonstrators ended up on a flatbed back to Blackpool, plagued with some gremlin or another.

If the decision to build an engine family was bold, that left-brain creativity was on full display in the Cerbera’s design. A long, low 2+2, it shared little with the Chimaera and the cabin still has the capacity to shock. And there are rituals. The steering wheel holds push-button controls for lights, washers, wipers and horn. Once you’ve worked out which switch does what, it’s surprisingly intuitive.

The back seats are best reserved as additional luggage space, unless you plan to make a habit of transporting people who have no heads or legs. There is, however, a surprisingly generous amount of stowage space around the fascia.

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Before you take a test drive in the Cerbera, it’ll boost your credibility enormously if you know the procedure for getting out of one. There’s no internal door handle.

Where the Griffith used a little lever on the transmission tunnel and the Chimaera had a rotating aluminium pastille next to the gear lever, the Cerbera has something different. On the door’s side pocket is a tiny button which you’ll need to press to make the door spring open.

To get in you must deactivate the alarm and press a button on the underside of the door mirror. To start the car, press a black button below the fuel gauge. Hold it in, wait for the electronic diagnostics to do their stuff and then listen to the engine spring into life. Pressing the red button under the steering wheel cuts the ignition. The engine stops instantly, like a racing car.

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Perhaps the more interesting engine that TVR developed was the Speed Six, which debuted in January 1999.

Until the Porsche 996 GT3 arrived, the 4.0-litre Speed Six was the most powerful normally-aspirated six-cylinder engine in the world, good for 261kW at 6800rpm and 447Nm at 5000rpm. Another Al Melling design, its genesis was troubled, with TVR’s engineers at times overriding Melling’s design work and altering his specifications, often with little to no consultation.

Melling had initially proposed a turbocharged V6 to Wheeler, a move that was rejected due to its two-valve head design. Wheeler wanted a straight-six reminiscent of the old XK Jaguars and Bentleys. A power figure of 298kW at 7000rpm was originally mooted.

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The best of the opposition was making 89kW per litre from a normally-aspirated six. In the end, Melling settled on a design that had been seen on his previous work on the Suzuki GSX motorbike engine: the same oil-cooling architecture, the same twin overhead cams with finger-type followers.

A quick calculation yielded a potential output of 97KW per litre. The size of the 24V cylinder head, with those followers and springs, was going to be the issue, so in order to keep weight down, it all had to be built from aluminium.

This was becoming a seriously exotic piece of engineering. Melling insisted that despite having certain racing design cues, that the AJP6 would only ever be a roadgoing powerplant. The basic design just wasn’t structurally tough enough to cope with the rigours of competition.

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Things weren’t helped when TVR’s engine development team altered the placement of the camshaft. And then insisted on water cooling rather than Melling’s clever oil-cooled design.

The engine was canted over in the engine bay to aid oil flow in the head. When siting the engine in the bay, a crossmember meant that there was no space for a traditional wet sump so, much to Melling’s delight, a dry-sump system was engineered, something he had wanted at the outset but had initially been told there was no capacity for.

TVR’s engineers – a team that Melling dismisses as “the undergrads” – then started further fiddling with the engine. The oil filter position was changed, with the effect that oil flow to the drilled pathways on the inlet side of the block casting was fine, but the drilled holes were removed on the exhaust side, strangling lubricant flow to the cams and finger followers.

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Construction materials, cam profiles, combustion patterns and the positions of the cams over the valves were all changed in-house, with the result that Melling eventually insisted that TVR take his company MCD’s imprimatur off the production engines and that the AJP6 be renamed.

In Melling’s view, the engine was ruined, and dealers were soon flooded with questions from owners that the putative engine designer was in no position to answer. The headlines wrote themselves in the automotive media: Wheeler’s hubris had come back to bite him. Thing is, that wasn’t anything like the whole story.

The good news is that there are those who can, in effect, retro-engineer the Speed Six to Melling’s original, or near original, specifications. No, they can’t have the six-speed sequential gearbox that was originally envisioned, but the problems with the Speed Six’s lubrication are solvable.

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Later versions of the Speed Six would develop up to 303kW in the Typhon, Sagaris and Tuscan S.

In 2000, TVR tweaked the Cerbera formula, replacing the classic round lights with an ungainly compound unit, in order to create a family resemblance to the Tuscan. The 4.5-litre cars were also offered with a lightweight option, comprising lighter body panels and a reworked interior. Then there was the outlandish but stillborn Speed Twelve, which is probably another story for another day.

So what’s it like to run a TVR Cerbera in Australia? ‘Involving’ might be the best answer. Owner Andrew McCarthy has clearly put considerable effort into fettling this Speed Six.

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Since he acquired it, he’s brought the car back to near showroom spec by replacing worn shells, shot synchros and tired carpets, and then gone on to rectify many of the issues that TVR never seemed inclined to.

Key to that exercise was acquiring the original blueprints with parts numbers from a source in the UK. From there, McCarthy was able to rectify the rod ratio, change the halftime bearings and throttle-position sensors. He also realised that the finger followers fitted to his engine were 25 percent smaller than those shown on the blueprints and installed an additional flexible oil line.

He uprated both front and rear springs, finding that an extra 25lbs in spring rate worked a treat. The cable stretch on the handbrakes of the Cerbera is a recurring issue that will need some more thought.

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“I’ve done about 10,000km in it now,” he says. “The six is such a fantastic-sounding engine. Not even Lotus designed and built their own engines.”

He claims it’s a wonderful engine to work on although “getting to number six spark plug is a pain” due to the engine being set so far back in the bay. With a background in open-wheeler racing, it’s clear that he’s across the issues of this engine and takes great satisfaction in problem solving.

“I can understand Al Melling being a bit precious about his design,” he notes, pointing out that the lubrication issues don’t tend to be a problem if the engine gets some revs, but acknowledges that the original Indian-sourced cam lobes could have been more durable, hence his workaround oil line.

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“Parts are fairly readily available from the UK but the LEDs in the dash can be problematic,” he notes. “I recently had a low-speed bump in traffic and damaged the bonnet. Rob at South City Motors in Southbank was able to do wonders with the fibreglass repair, fixing all the cracks in the gel coat.”

Indeed, McCarthy is a typically well-informed owner. The Cerbera is not a car for the mechanically timid, and a close-knit network of capable enthusiasts has taken advantage of the price softness that has stemmed from its somewhat unnerving reputation.

Should the idea of a beautiful, charismatic and exotic 2+2 that always offers an opportunity to get hands on with the tools appeals to you, there’s a lot to be said for the Cerbera. Know what you’re getting into and you’ll be richly rewarded.

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Fast facts

The ‘White Elephant’ is a one-off 1988 TVR prototype powered by the same 5.0-litre V8 Holden engine from the VL ‘Walky’.

It was commissioned and driven for 18 months by Peter Wheeler, who came to the conclusion that the wedge-shaped styling was too similar to the outgoing Tasmin and that the logistics around sourcing the Aussie engines could also be an issue.

As a result, the the project was shelved and, 12 months later, the TVR Griffith was born, spawning a modern-classic design philosophy that would lead to Cerbera. The Elephant was rescued from a dumping ground at the rear of the factory two weeks before Peter Wheeler sold the company to Nikolai Smolensky in July 2004.

As a young writer (many years ago) I was given a sage piece of advice: “As a journalist, you don’t need to know the answer to everything, you just need to know where to find the answer.”

It’s a principle that applies well to many things and a rule that’s served me well over the ensuing years. But just occasionally, a question pops up that can’t be answered via the usual oracles and it happened again recently: “What is a supercar?”

You might initially think this is one of the easiest car problems to solve but as I stood there considering the response, it became clear that there is no universal definition, and even the term itself is a subjective concept coined by I’m not even sure who or what. What do you think?

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I’ve run the question past a few car people since and a variety of suggestions have been thrown into the mix, only to be spat back out again as inconclusive.

Power was one – perhaps a supercar needs to possess a mandatory minimum horsepower figure to qualify. But if this is true then what’s the milestone output, and surely it can’t apply to all vehicles can it? The Alpina XB7 has in excess of 600 horsepower but no one would label the seven-seat SUV a supercar would they?

What about acceleration then? Here, too, you might choose the Mercedes-AMG GT Four Door coupe that’ll get to 100km/h from standstill three tenths faster than a McLaren F1. But a supercar? I think not.

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Perhaps it comes down to outright track prowess and being able to demolish any mere high-performance cars in lap times.

Here, too, it’s a little tenuous as there are plenty of so-called supercars that wouldn’t necessarily be your first pick if you had to set a benchmark lap and, more importantly, there’s a chance they’d get licked by a serious hot-hatch in the technical stuff. Put a Honda Civic Type R against a Lamborghini Aventador SVJ on Lake Mountain and I’d put money on the Japanese hatchback doing victory (reverse) doughnuts in the summit carpark before the $950,000 Lambo.

Which brings me to price and perhaps the easiest variable to debunk. In the world of cars, a high asking price guarantees only one thing – a lighter wallet.

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High-end models can be expensive for a variety of reasons and, more often than not, the thing you’re paying for is not super-ness.

Certainly, performance has something to do with it as supercars are never slow and always powerful, but I think the key to the essence of a supercar is that it rolls in an equal part of hyperbolic style and won’t compromise on either in the name of practicality.

Yes, a McLaren GT has a combined luggage space bigger than a Toyota Camry’s boot, but if you try shoving a fully assembled Ikea chest of drawers in above its mid-mounted V8, you’ll be disappointed.

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And yes, a Ferrari F8 has a button to lift the front suspension but any undulation in the road bigger than a speed bump will scupper it like it’s hit a tank stop.

The true core of a supercar lies not just in what it can do, but what it can’t. Supercars are compromised – that’s the point, but it still leaves us without a clear genotype. And that’s before we’ve even thrown the ‘what is a hypercar?’ curve ball.

If what you have moored in Monte Carlo measures 100 feet or more, it’s a superyacht. And if you can unleash a fiery hell on an unsuspecting city at the push of a button, you’re a superpower. Defining a supercar, however, is not quite as clear cut…

Mercedes-Benz is adding to its GLE range by introducing a limited number of Night Edition versions, all based on the diesel GLE 300d 4MATIC.

Aligning with the Night moniker, the car wears a premium black gloss trim on the mirror housings and around the window lines. Black 22-inch wheels complete the theme. Mercedes’ adjustable damping AIRMATIC suspension has been implemented to cater for those massive wheels.

Aluminium running boards derived from AMG also are added to the car’s exterior, to heighten its presence and provide a more aggressive stance.

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For the interior, the car will feature a panoramic sunroof, head-up display, Mercedes’ MBUX infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, privacy glass, and heated front seats.

An added Mirror Package includes an auto-dipping rear-view mirror, and exterior mirrors that project the Mercedes-Benz logo on the ground as puddle lights.

The Night Edition also features LED headlights with adaptive high-beam assist, a 360-degree camera, and a ‘transparent bonnet’ feature that provides an aerial view of the environment in front of the vehicle, helping overcome obstacles when off-road or negotiating urban carparks.

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As with the GLE 300d, the Night Edition uses the same 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engine delivering 198kW and 550Nm via Mercedes-Benz’s 9G-TRONIC nine-speed automatic. This engine is claimed to deliver a 0-100km/h time of 6.9 seconds, while sipping the tank at 6.6L/100km.

While the exact number of cars produced has not been revealed, the Mercedes-Benz GLE 300d Night Edition is priced at $139,900 before on-road costs.

Hyundai has revealed the 2025 updates for its boldly styled Hyundai IONIQ 5 electric SUV. Changes include design revisions, safety upgrades and increased range.

A new front and rear bumper, rear spoiler and an additional windscreen wiper are now added to the variants, along with revised 19- and 20-inch alloys wheels. Also available for the Dynamiq and Epiq variants are an N Line option which adds exclusive bumpers, glass black mirror housings, and N Line specific 20-inch wheels.

Fans of physical buttons will enjoy knowing the revised centre console now includes controls for the seat heating and ventilation systems, while touchscreen aficionados will be satisfied with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

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“With greater range and an array of safety and technology upgrades, the refreshed 2025 iteration of our award-winning IONIQ 5 gives EV buyers an even more persuasive SUV package,” Hyundai Motor Company Australia Chief Executive Officer, Ted Lee said.

Known for its extensive testing on local roads, Hyundai claims the 2025 IONIQ 5 will have improved ride and handling through a comprehensive revision to chassis rigidity and suspension tunes. This seeks to improve NVH, stability and the all-important criteria of steering response and handling.

Two larger battery sizes are now being offered to deliver more range, with Standard Range variants coming with a 63kWh battery and the Extended Range receiving the same 85kWh unit from the bonkers IONIQ 5 N.

This will provide the Standard Range model with a WLTP range of 440km, and the Extended Range up to an expected 570km. Power figures for the Standard Range have the car delivering 125kW and 350Nm, while the Extended Range providing 168kW and 350Nm.

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2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 battery and powertrain

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Pricing

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Options

Safety inclusions for the revised IONIQ 5 include forward collision avoidance, smart cruise control, and intelligent front lighting (IFS).

Orders are now open for the 2025 IONIQ 5, starting at $69,800 before on-road costs.

Mercedes-Benz has detailed pricing for its new GLA 200 variant, the City Edition.

Updates to the compact premium SUV include revisions to the exterior, such as chrome trim around the grille, bumpers and tailpipe surrounds, and aluminium roof rails. The City Edition also features an elevated ride height and five twin-spoke 18-inch wheels.

Other features include a glass sunroof, electric-adjust front seats with memory and heating, and a 360-degree camera. These are in addition to the standard GLA 200 features that include Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless charging, MBUX infotainment, dual-zone climate control, and adjustable ambient lighting.

The GLA 200 City Edition remains powered by a four-cylinder engine, delivering 120kW and 270Nm through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.

The car includes nine airbags, Mercedes’ DISTRONIC auto cruise control, lane keep assist, traffic sign assist, dimming mirrors, and blind spot assist. For extra help with night driving, the car also includes LED headlights with adaptive high beam assistance.

Pricing for the GLA 200 City Edition start at $63,900 before on-road costs and delivery; although, drivers looking to add Mercedes’ compact SUV to their garage should contact dealers for local driveaway pricing.

Order books open on July 23.

The 2025 BMW X3 will arrive in Australia for customer deliveries early next year, bringing new looks and new tech inside-and-out, along with updated powertrains.

At least initially, the new BMW X3 will launch with just two power options, both of them petrol: the entry-level 20 xDrive and the powerful M50 xDrive.

There won’t be an electric iX3 with this generation, as that badge will be worn by the upcoming, all-electric ‘Neue Klasse’ SUV – expected to launch sometime in 2025.

Design and Dimensions

The new BMW X3 adopts an all-new look inside and out, featuring a high-quality interior with sustainable materials.

The vehicle’s length has increased by 34mm to 4,755mm, and its width has grown by 29mm to 1,920mm, while its height has been reduced by 25mm, enhancing its sporty profile.

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Powertrains and Performance

BMW Australia will launch the X3 with two variants: the X3 20 xDrive and the X3 M50 xDrive.

Both models come standard with BMW’s xDrive all-wheel-drive system and feature 48-volt mild hybrid technology for increased efficiency.

X3 20 xDrive: Powered by a TwinPower Turbo inline four-cylinder petrol engine, the X3 20 xDrive delivers 140kW and 310Nm of torque, claiming a 0-100km/h time of 8.5 seconds.

X3 M50 xDrive: The hero model (pending a proper X3 M) is driven by a 3.0-litre M-tuned turbo petrol six-cylinder engine, producing 293kW and 580Nm. For this model, BMW claims a 0-100km/h 4.6 seconds – 0.2 seconds faster than X3 M40i it replaces.

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Interior and Technology

Inside, the 2025 BMW X3 features the BMW Curved Display, BMW Interaction Bar, a flat-bottomed steering wheel, and a new gear selector lever.

For this new generation, BMW is talking up the X3’s sustainable interior materials, such as Veganza upholstery (a leather alternative made from recycled plant material), which requires 85% fewer CO2 emissions to produce than traditional leather, and a new instrument panel made from recycled polyester.

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Advanced driver assistance systems are standard, with features including front collision warning, Steering and Lane Control Assistant, Lane Departure Warning, Driving Assistant Professional, and Parking Assistant Plus with a surround view camera.

On the infotainment front, the new X3 includes the latest BMW iDrive system with Operating System 9 and QuickSelect, allowing for direct function activation without submenus. Adaptive suspension is also standard – usually an option overseas.

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2025 BMW X3: Pricing and equipment

Pricing for the new X3 starts at $84,500 for the X3 20 xDrive. Below are the highlights of the standard equipment for each variant.

X3 20 xDrive

• 48V mild-hybrid engine technology
• 19” M light alloy wheels (w/run flat tyres)
• BMW xDrive intelligent all-wheel-drive system
• 3-zone automatic climate control
• 6-speaker 100-watt Hi-Fi system
• Acoustic glazing
• Adaptive LED headlights
• Adaptive Suspension
• Automatic tailgate
• BMW Digital Premium (90-day trial)
• BMW Iconic Glow illuminated kidney grille
• BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant
• BMW Live Cockpit Professional with 14.9” + 12.3” BMW Curved Display, featuring Operating System 9
• Comfort Access and Digital Key Plus
• Driving Assistant Professional inc. Steering and Lane Control System, Active Cruise Control inc. Stop&Go and Blind Spot Monitor
• DAB+ Digital Radio
• Electric Seat function, front row
• BMW Head-Up Display
• M headliner in anthracite
• M Sport Package
• M Sport leather steering wheel
• Mirror package, inc. anti-dazzle function
• Parking Assistant Plus, inc. Surround View camera, Reversing Assistant and Drive Recorder
• Remote Software Updates
• Seat heating, front row
• Tyre pressure monitoring system
• Upholstery, Veganza
• Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Wireless smartphone charging

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X3 M50 xDrive

• Metallic paint
• 48V mild-hybrid engine technology
• 21” M light alloy wheels (w/standard tyres)
• 15-speaker, 750-watt harmon/kardon surround system
• Quad exhaust outlets
• Panorama glass roof (fixed)
• M specific kidney, mirror caps and aerodynamic elements
• Privacy glass
• Roller blinds for rear side windows
• M Sport Pro package – M braking system, featuring red callipers – M seat belts – M Shadowline headlight and extended contents
• Steering wheel heating
• Seat ventilation for driver and front passenger
• Seat heating for rear (outer) seats

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Customisation Options

Exterior finishes

Non-metallic

• Alpine White (no cost option)

Metallic – $2,000 for 20 xDrive, no-cost option for M50 xDrive

• Black Sapphire
• Arctic Race Blue
• Sophisto Grey
• Dune Grey
• M Brooklyn Grey
• Fire Red

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BMW Individual

• Tanzanite Blue – $4,000 for 20 xDrive; $2,000 with Enhancement pack and $2,000 for M50 xDrive
• Frozen Deep Grey or Frozen Pure Grey metallic – $6,000 for 20 xDrive; $4,000 with Enhancement pack and for M50 xDrive

Alloy wheels

• 19” M light alloy wheels Y-spoke style 1035 M Bicolour – Standard on 20 xDrive with runflat tyres; snow chains can be fitted
• 20” M light alloy wheels Double-spoke style 1036 M Bicolour – $2,000 for 20 xDrive; not available with runflat tyres and snow chains cannot be fitted
• 21” M light alloy wheels Star-spoke style 1037 M Bicolour – Standard for M50 xDrive
• 21” M light alloy wheels Star-spoke style 1037 Jet Black – No cost option for M50 xDrive

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Seat upholstery: ‘Veganza’ (plant-based leather)

All no cost options for both variants

• Black
• Calm Beige
• Espresso Brown
• M Alcantara/Veganza combination

Seat upholstery, BMW Individual Leather ‘Merino’

$4,000 for both variants

• Black/Atlas Grey
• Amber/Atlas Grey

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Interior trims

No cost options for both variants

• M interior décor Fine-Brushed Aluminium
• BMW Individual Magnolia fine-wood trim with fine print

Interior trim upgrade

$1,200 for both variants

• Knitted textile instrument panel with material extending into upper door panels

Customisation packs

X3 20 xDrive Enhancement – $6,000

• Metallic paint
• Alarm System
• Panorama glass sunroof
• harmon/kardon surround sound

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X3 20 xDrive Comfort – $4,000

• Seat heating for 2nd row passengers
• Roller sunblind for rear side windows
• Active seat ventilation
• Heated steering wheel
• Privacy glass with sun protection glazing
• Luggage compartment separating net

X3 20 xDrive M Sport Pro – $3,000

• High-gloss Shadow Line with extended contents, inc:
• Radiator grille frame and struts
• Trim detailing in tail light
• Tailpipe trims
• M Lights Shadow Line
• M Sport brakes, Red high-gloss (also available in blue)
• M Seat Belts

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2025 BMW X3 PRICING

• BMW X3 20 xDrive – $84,500
• BMW X3 M50 xDrive – $126,900

The MG 3 petrol model range consists of the base Excite and flagship Essence, with prices for the new non-hybrid models taking a big step up for the new-generation range.

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JUMP AHEAD

• Pricing and features
• Safety
• Interior
• On the road
• Key rivals
• Should I put it on my shortlist?
• Specifications

Pricing and features

The new-gen MG 3 petrol models start from $23,990 (MSRP) or $24,990 drive-away for the Excite, while the high-grade Essence adds $2000 to the asking price.

The base model gets auto halogen lights (really?!) and LED daytime running lights, 16-inch alloy wheels with a space-saver spare, a rear fog light, push-button start, manual front seat adjustment, a 10.25-inch multimedia touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (both wired), a 7.0-inch driver info screen, a reversing camera and rear parking sensors, plus heaps of new safety tech – see below.

The Essence adds LED headlights, a sunroof, rain-sensing wipers, keyless entry, sat nav, DAB digital radio, fake leather and cloth trim, leather steering wheel, sunglass compartment, rear map pockets, a front centre armrest and a 360-degree surround-view camera – $2000 well spent, I reckon.

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Safety

There’s no ANCAP or Euro NCAP rating yet, but it comes way better equipped with safety gear than the first MG 3.

Standard is autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warning with lane keep assist (and emergency lane keep), adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, and a system called ‘intelligent speed assist’, which will beep to tell you when it thinks the speed zone has changed. It’s pretty annoying, that one.

There’s also a reversing camera and rear parking sensors in the Excite, and the Essence adds a surround view camera.

The MG 3 has six airbags – dual front, front side and full-length curtains.

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Interior

It looks the part, with a pair of digital screens: a 10.25-inch multimedia unit and a 7.0-inch driver info display.

While the infotainment screen includes buttons for volume, A/Cand demisters, you still have to make fan and temperature adjustments through the screen. The system features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto – however, it’s wired rather than wireless, which is a miss for younger buyers, and there’s no wireless phone charger, either.

The oversized steering wheel has gloss black plastic controls that attract fingerprints and the controls are somewhat tricky, with the steering wheel icon being your cruise control trigger, and a ‘pages’ icon for the driver info screen, which can also adjust A/C fan speed and temperature.

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However, these controls can malfunction when smartphone mirroring is active.

The petrol model includes a traditional gear selector, cupholders, a sliding storage tray, a comfy centre armrest, and bottle holders, but the hard, shiny plastics may cause items to rattle. The seats are comfortable but have a hard plastic edge that might be uncomfortable on your backside when you’re getting in or out.

The steering wheel features tilt adjust, but doesn’t do reach. And while the black-on-black design offered for some colour choices might suit you, it is a dark environment. At least the crosshatch design on the dash – referencing the last model – is a nice touch.

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Notably, there is no auto-dimming rearview mirror, but a USB-A port in the mirror housing allows for a dash cam to be fitted in a tidy manner. Additional USB ports are below the infotainment screen.

Rear seat space is impressive, accommodating a 182cm/6’0” adult with ease behind someone of a similar size. Three small adults can fit in the back, though three child seats might be tight – or impossible. There are, however, ISOFIX points in the window seats and top-tethers for all rear seats.

The boot, with 293 litres of cargo capacity, includes a lamp and shopping bag hook. Petrol models have a space-saver spare, too.

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On the road

The new MG 3 shows significant improvements to the drive experience, with the petrol model being a decent option, although not as impressive as the hybrid.

The 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine isn’t particularly powerful, and some may dislike the shift to a CVT automatic from a traditional torque-converter. However, this CVT is relatively quiet, addressing the common issue of CVTs being droney.

While not as zippy as the hybrid, it accelerates decently at speed, though it shows some lag in slow situations. The CVT has eight ‘shift’ points, maintaining a smooth drive, though parking can reveal a minor hesitation in shifting gears.

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Braking is more responsive and confident compared to the hybrid, which has regen brakes that interfere with the feel to the driver’s foot.

The new MG 3’s longer wheelbase and wider track improve its stability and comfort over the previous model. The suspension handles urban driving and bumps better, though it’s not the most supple for a small car.

The steering wheel feels oversized for the car, diminishing its nimbleness but remains predictable and easy to park.

Safety systems are mixed; the emergency lane keep system is too intrusive, and the speed-sign recognition system can be inaccurate. Road noise at highway speeds could be an issue for commuters.

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Key rivals

The best alternative if you want a cheap, fun little car is the Kia Picanto (from $17,890 MSRP), and it has a manual or auto, and a cool GT-Line model, too.

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Should I put it on my shortlist?

It’s better than the last one by a margin, but whether it’s worth this much money? You tell us what you think in the comments.

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“We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. I remember saying something like ‘I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive….’

“And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the car, which was going about a hundred miles an hour with the top down to Las Vegas.”

I now feel I have an inkling of how Hunter S. Thompson must have felt. The other day, I drove a Mini off the edge of a platform into space. There I was, blithely assessing the ride quality of the new Mini Cooper SE, when the road just sort of ran out and I sailed out into nothingness.

Fortunately, for me at least, I lived to be able to tell the tale. That’s testament to the fact that all four of my tyres were still firmly adhered to a gravel car park somewhere on the outskirts of Sitges, in Spain.

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My view was what Mini called ‘mixed reality’ and it was, to be frank, one of the most bizarre driving experiences I’ve ever had.

Here’s how it works. You’re presented with a grey camo Mini called Jim. In the boot is a massive computer with all manner of wiring spooling out of it. In the passenger seat is a Mini engineer who, thankfully, is also equipped with a brake pedal.

You can’t see a lot out of the car, because running across the windscreen is what looks like a home hi-fi soundbar. It’s a head-tracking system that figures out where your noggin is pointed.

You don a wholly opaque VR headset which as a couple of cameras mounted on the front of it. This is key, because it renders a live image of what’s going on in the car to the VR headset. Initially everything seems fairly normal. You’re looking at a slightly lower-res version of normality as you bump the car around some cones.

Then the whole world goes wacky.

The car park is gone. The Mercadona supermarket across the way has vanished. The dull overcast skies disappear. Instead you’re in a technicolour virtual world. Whales swim by in the sky. Giant condors sail overhead. The track ahead of you is festooned with giant playing cards, floating coins and chrome balls that you can nerf out of the way as you drive.

Look down and you can still see the car’s interior, your hands and feet, the infotainment system and to your right you won’t find your lawyer, Raoul Duke, but rather the Mini engineer, still poring intently over his laptop.

Look out of the windscreen, windows, through the sunroof and into the mirrors and it’s a very different story. What’s more, to get to the next ‘level’, you have to drive off a gantry into space.

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Even though you know it’s just a virtual render, every fibre of your being is telling you not to drive off the ledge, with this yawning abyss below.

All of your proprioceptive instincts are expecting the nose of the car to lurch downwards. And no matter how many times I do it, I couldn’t shake that expectation.

Not everyone reacts the same way. I aim to keep the car on the sometimes vertigo-inducing track. I even apologise for kerbing a virtual alloy as I nudge up against the side of the track once.

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The initial reaction of the lady in the car before me was to try to drive clean off the virtual world, almost driving the Mini into the coffee truck parked nearby, because motoring journalists cannot survive for 15 minutes without caffeine and savoury finger food.

Mini claims this is a demonstration of what can be done with the car’s inputs and outputs, linking to a virtual world. I guess that, in time, you could make a shlep up the Monash freeway look like a drive across the Masai Mara.

Or, if you’re more cynically minded, it could be a lucrative way to sell space on virtual billboards, with ads tailored to you. I’m not sure. I expected quite a lot of the new Mini Cooper SE and it didn’t disappoint. I just didn’t expect to be overtaken by a flying whale while driving one.