WhichCar By Wheels

Subaru Australia has announced local pricing and specifications for the 2026 Subaru Outback, which is due to join the range soon. Now in its seventh generation, the Outback has grown slightly, including 50mm more height than before, while Subaru says it is more spacious and more practical than ever.

For the first time, Subaru’s Wilderness off-road sub-brand will also be joining the local range as part of the Outback line-up. Pricing for the new Outback starts at $48,990 plus on-road costs, or $4800 more than the previous model.

As we discovered when it was revealed in April 2025, the seventh-generation Subaru Outback is slightly larger than before and less wagon-like in appearance. The interior has gained a new dashboard layout with a new 12.1-inch touchscreen, with the former portrait-style screen shelved for the new model. The interior appears to have been elevated and modernised.

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The new Outback measures 4880mm long, 1880mm wide, 1715-1735mm tall and uses a 2745mm long wheelbase, making it 10mm longer, 5mm wider, minimum 50mm taller and the same distance between the wheels as the previous model. Its bootspace with the rear seats up is now 530 litres, an increase of eight litres, and its kerb weight is now 90kg heavier from 1705kg thanks to the larger sizing and new standard features.

For the first time in Australia, Subaru is also launching its Wilderness sub-brand, which adds more off-road chops to the Outback (and both Crosstrek and Forester in overseas markets, but they’re yet to be confirmed for Australia), including a raised ride height, new suspension tuning with electronic dampers, off-road themed exterior styling, more standard features and Wilderness badging.

Two familiar – but upgraded – drivetrains will be available in the Australian-spec Outback: a 137kW/254Nm 2.5-litre petrol or 194kW/382Nm 2.4-litre turbo-petrol engines for Wilderness models, with both using updated CVT automatic transmissions and Subaru’s symmetrical all-wheel drive system.

The 2.5-litre engine is rated at 8.2L/100km on the combined fuel consumption cycle (up from 7.3L/100km), and the 2.4-litre turbo is rated at 9.7L/100km (+ 0.7L/100km). The claimed CO2 emissions for the 2.5L are 183g/km (+ 15g/km) and 228g/km (+ 24g/km) for the 2.4T. Both engines can use 91RON regular unleaded fuel and all Outbacks use a 63-litre fuel tank.

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The 2.5-litre hybrid drivetrain in the new Forester doesn’t feature as part of the launch line-up, but is rumoured to join the Outback range at some stage.

The new Outback’s colour options include ‘Crystal White Pearl’, ‘Crystal Black Silica’, ‘Ice Silver Metallic’, ‘Magnetite Grey Metallic’, ‘Deep Emerald Pearl’, ‘River Rock Pearl’, ‘Crimson Red Pearl’, ‘Brilliant Bronze Metallic’, ‘Sapphire Blue Pearl’ and ‘Geyser Blue’. All but the white and black hues attract a $660 upcharge, which itself is also new to the Outback.

The Outback is covered by a five-year/unlimited km warranty with 12 months of roadside assistance. Five years/75,000km of capped price servicing costs $2251.21 ($450 per year) for the 2.5-litre engine and $2347.31 for the 2.4-litre turbo ($469 per year).

2026 Subaru Outback pricing (plus on-road costs):

Outback 2.5 AWD$48,990
Outback Premium 2.5 AWD$53,490
Outback Touring 2.5 AWD$56,990
Outback Wilderness 2.4T AWD$59,690
Outback Wilderness Apex 2.4T AWD$62,690

2026 Subaru Outback equipment:

2026 Subaru Outback safety features:

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Outback Premium model adds:

Outback Touring model adds:

Outback Wilderness adds (to Outback 2.5 AWD):

Outback Wilderness Apex adds (to Wilderness):

The 2026 Subaru Outback is available to order now ahead of the first local deliveries commencing soon.

ANCAP (the Australasian New Car Assessment Program has announced that it will refresh its vehicle safety rating criteria for 2026 in a move designed to strengthen how it evaluates the safety of new cars.

Instead of the current adult protection, child protection, vulnerable road user protection and safety assist ratings, ANCAP will now assess across its new ‘Stages of Safety’: safe driving, crash avoidance, crash protection and post-crash.

ANCAP re-examines the star rating criteria every three years with a “sole focus on reducing vehicle-related deaths and serious injuries.” The 2026-2028 protocols “further strengthen the rigour and relevance of the tests, rewarding vehicles that perform well across all stages of safety – before, during and after a crash.”

“You’ve spoken and we have listened. The ‘Stages of Safety’ approach will allow ANCAP to incorporate useful feedback, enhance existing tests and incorporate new areas of focus,” ANCAP Chief Executive, Carla Hoorweg said. “This new approach also provides a structure that can adapt to the technological developments that will shape the automated driving future.”

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Several changes have been made to ANCAP’s safety testing specifically in response to consumer feedback. Active driver assistance systems – often criticised for their abrupt or irritating interventions – will be rewarded for smooth, intuitive operation, as well as technical performance.

Part of its testing will focus on electrically-operated door handles that sit flush with bodywork when not in use should remain operable after any crash, electric cars that isolate their high-voltage battery after a serious crash and vehicles that can notify first responders of the crash.

As part of the new testing regime, ANCAP will place greater emphasis on the availability and performance of eCall systems. More than 40 per cent of all new vehicles sold in Australia in 2024 featured technology capable of automatically connecting with emergency services following a crash, known as ‘eCall’. But in neighbouring New Zealand – a market with broadly similar new car offerings – it’s less than 10 per cent.

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ANCAP will also perform more real-world road testing of vehicles to examine how well a vehicle’s technology reads and responds to road conditions, and will give ANCAP more detailed insights into a driver’s experience beyond the test track.

ANCAP 2026 stages of safety:

The four assessment areas evaluated from 2026, known as the ‘Stages of Safety’, are:

  1. Safe driving: Considers the vehicle technologies and features that assist in providing a safer driving experience for the driver and vehicle occupants.
  2. Crash avoidance: Assesses the crash avoidance systems that help prevent or mitigate critical incidents through warnings or autonomous intervention.
  3. Crash protection: Evaluates the performance of traditional crash protection elements, including vehicle structure, seatbelts, airbags and head restraints to mitigate injuries to vehicle occupants, pedestrians and cyclists.
  4. Post crash: Addresses the ‘golden hour’ of emergency response through post-crash rescue information and assistance systems.

Each of the four stages will be scored out of 100 points and – as is currently the case – expressed as a percentage for consumers apparently seeking that next level of information beyond the simple star rating, according to ANCAP. Minimum thresholds will also continue to apply for each stage and that will determine the car’s overall star rating.

The first results from ANCAP’s new testing regime will be released sometime in 2026.

The dual-cab ute market around the world is looking more like a swinger’s club than an automotive segment right now. Sure, the concept of model-sharing is hardly new, but for a market sector to have embraced the concept of not just partner-sharing, but actual bed-hopping, seems pretty radical in the context of what are otherwise pretty conservative companies. Then again, globalisation can’t be ignored, nor can the corporate-survival instincts behind design, development and engineering cost-sharing be underestimated.

Of course, it’s not just the concept of keys-in-the-bowl that’s raising eyebrows, it’s also the potential for disaster that lurks around every model-sharing corner. Everybody can recall an example of where this process has led a car maker completely up the wrong path, in the process tearing up money at every step along the way. Mercedes-Benz X-Class, anyone?

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All of which suggests that Nissan – as the willing engineering provider of the doomed X-Class experiment – should understand better than most the perils of a free-love arrangement. And yet here we are, apparently full circle, but with the boot on the other foot as Nissan and Mitsubishi sneak off to the garden shed to return with flushed faces and a brand-new Navara dual-cab made from the genetic material of the current, but still very new, Mitsubishi Triton.

Okay, so sharing development costs makes great sense, but so does protecting your fan-base. In this case, the Navara has sold more than 500,000 units across four generations since the mid-80s in Oceania (Australia and New Zealand). Not to mention the buyers of dual-cab utes tend to be a bit rusted on in terms of their brand allegiances. The question being; exactly what will those half-million think of a Navara largely designed and engineered by Mitsubishi, built in a Mitsubishi factory (Thailand) and sharing every exterior sheet-metal panel with the Triton.

The big “Yeah. But” comes in the form of local engineering input into the Navara’s suspension. Carried out by Melbourne-based Premcar, which also has its fingerprints on a couple of the best off-road Nissans ever made (the Patrol an Navara Warrior franchise), the aim has been to retune the basics for a Navara-based flavour and continue to offer the faithful something on which to hang their flags of loyalty (even if the Navara’s purity ring is lost in the long grass behind that garden shed).

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Premcar’s engineering boss, Bernie Quinn, told us that the basic Triton chassis (Nissan calls it an `Alliance platform’) was actually pretty good to start with, so changes could be restricted to dampers. That included a switch to twin-tube units (single-tubes tend to get hammered to death in rocky country, says Bernie) and a damper tune that was the result of 18,000km of outback testing, 137 individual damper codes and 550 different internal shims. Springs, bump-stops and bushes remain as per the Triton original, and there’s three distinct tunes for those depending on model and tyre fitment.

What I can’t tell you with any authority is what specific forms the Navara will take when it lobs into local showrooms sometime in the first quarter of next year. Nissan was very tight-lipped about the nitty-gritty, but the smart money says there will be at least an entry-level model, an ST-X and Pro-4X specification and, of course, a Premcar-brewed Warrior version. Prices? Anybody’s guess. But what you won’t see is a two-wheel-drive, single-cab or cab-chassis variant. It’s four-wheel-drive, dual-cab, styleside or nothing at this stage, which is what 90 per cent of Navaras now are and is, therefore, simply a matter of Nissan following the money. As companies looking to stay in business will do.

Mechanically, it’s all Triton, really, so bank on a 2.4-litre bi-turbo-diesel producing 150kW and 470Nm which is not only identical to the Triton, but right about the middle of what the average dual-cab is serving up. A six-speed automatic transmission is standard, while a rear diff-lock will be optional. And, thankfully, you can count on Mitsubishi’s celebrated Super-Select 4WD system that incorporates a switchable centre diff-lock and the ability to run on bitumen in four-wheel-drive. Not all (many) dual-cabs offer this, and for towing a three- tonne excavator on a wet road, 4-Auto is worth its weight in Big-M.

The cabin is a big improvement, which is handy, because both the previous Triton and the Navara needed an interior upgrade. That goes for the tech with a nine-inch central info screen and a seven-inch dashboard unit, wireless charging, full wireless connectivity, a 360-degree camera system, digital radio and plenty of USB charge ports.

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But crucially, the cabin is wider than ever which, if you sit in the current Navara, you’ll know represents a big improvement. The front seats are actually very good and even the rear seat has a decent cushion, although a bit of adjustment for the rear backrest might have been a nice idea. Overall, of course, if you’ve spent much time in the current Triton, the Navara is going to be a familiar place, right down to the twin gloveboxes (nobody wants gloves strewn everywhere).

Overall, the Navara is a bigger vehicle in every direction apart from overall height, and it’s now a useful 46mm longer in the tray. It’ll legally haul the industry-standard 3500kg and depending on model and specification (whatever those turn out to be) the payload will be between 950 and 1047kg.

But doesn’t it look just like a Triton? Actually, not as much as you’d imagine. Sure, the doors, bonnet, tailgate, tray sides and glasshouse pressings are carried straight over from Mitsubishi, but just to prove that it’s a car’s face that we remember, the Navara is distinguished by a very Nissan visage. That starts with the Nissan corporate V-shaped grille bars and continues with the Navara-signature three slots in the leading edge of the bonnet. Okay, okay, the slots are actually in the grille, not the metal hood, but you get the idea.

We’ll need a back-to-back drive to really pick the dynamic differences, and our test drive at the global unveiling consisted of about 15 minutes on dry, well-formed tracks with a few steep hills and drop-offs. To be honest, the most dangerous part of the drive was area itself which – apparently – is home to about 70 per cent of South Australia’s snakes. So the story goes, but the thought was enough to prevent anybody venturing off those tracks.

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Despite the low-speed nature of our drive, it was immediately obvious that the Navara is likely to boast a pretty good secondary (small bump) ride. It was never skittish or intrusive, and even amping up the pace to the maximum you’d ever use on such terrain, it stayed composed and refused to induce any nasty feedback, and not a single thump made it through to the cabin. Exactly what that means for towing, highway speeds or hand-to-hand urban work remains a complete mystery; one that won’t be solved until early next year.

We’ll know a lot more then, of course, including little details like model line-ups, specifications and prices. But even then, the one thing we won’t know is whether a Triton badged as a Nissan will delight or trigger the Navara faithful. Either way, that’s #swingerlife for you.

Specs

ModelNissan Navara
PriceYet to be released
Peak power150kW
Peak torque470Nm
TransmissionSix-speed automatic
Fuel tank75 litres
Fuel consumption (combined)7.7 litre per 00km
Dimensions (l/w/h/wb)5320mm/11865-930mm/1795mm/3130mm
Kerb weight2120-2140kg
Tub dimensions1555mm long X 1545mm wide
Warranty5 years/unlimited km
On saleQ1, 2026
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The global reveal of the Jaguar XJ220 was not proceeding to plan.

The sleek show car’s V12 engine had seized on Friday and the car had to be pushed onto the British motor show stand at 3am on Saturday, October 18, 1988 ahead of the event opening at 11am. Given that there were only five of the 48-valve 6.2-litre engines in existence, twenty per cent of the total supply of these motors had just been welded into an expensive paperweight.

Nevertheless, the car was a huge hit with show visitors. Ferrari’s new F40 was on display next to Jaguar’s stand, but few paid much attention to the Italian car. An attractive model appeared on the Ferrari stand, shedding clothes in the hope that the throngs of people would migrate from the Jaguar display.

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It seems strange to think now, but after the launch of the techno-fest Porsche 959, the F40 was viewed as a hastily cobbled-together and somewhat cynical cash-in on the company’s 40th birthday. What a gift hindsight is. It was thoroughly overshadowed by the behemoth Jaguar, despite the fact that the XJ220 never turned a wheel under V12 power, either before or after the event. Despite stories of blank cheques being handed to Jaguar staff, there were no plans to put the vehicle into production. It was a concept loosely based on how Jaguar might go racing within the framework of the FIA Group B rule set. Cynics might call it motor show fluff. And then it wasn’t.

But before we get into the whys and wherefores of that, a brief rewind on how the XJ220 had arrived under the spotlights at the NEC. The story is, for the most part, fairly well known. TWR had been handling Jaguar’s motorsport entries, winning the 1983 European Touring Car Championship in 1983 with the XJS and the 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans and World Sports Car Championship with the XJR-9. However, that car’s V12 engine was set to run afoul of new motorsport emissions rules and the company had earmarked its successor, the XJR-10, to use a version of the Austin Rover V64V engine, a V6 powerplant that had been developed for the MG Metro 6R4 rally car, itself left high and dry by a change in the rallying rule set. It was, it should be noted, a powerplant that TWR had acquired the rights to use, when it was clear that it would no longer be used in the 6R4.

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Enter Kim Randle, Jaguar’s Director of Engineering. In order to win on Sunday and sell on Monday, Randle reasoned that the cars representing Jaguar on track ought to look like the cars in showrooms. Over the Christmas break in 1987, Randle built what he describes as a CAD model – “cardboard assisted design” – in quarter scale of a potential Group B racer. This rough mock-up of the chassis and hard points was taken into the design studio where two designs were generated. The first, the work of Cliff Ruddell, looked more like a typical endurance sports car and was rejected. The other, by Keith Helfet, had far more Jaguar in its genes.

Using Helfet’s body design, Randle assembled a team of 12 volunteers, the so-called Saturday Club, to create a concept, guided by Group B regulations. It featured the mid-mounted 48v V12, four-wheel steering, all-wheel drive and a targeted top speed of 220mph (350kmh), and was thus named XJ220. Randle approached FF Developments to engineer a four-wheel drive system, something which Jaguar had no in-house expertise with. A clever system ran power from the rear transaxle through the V of the engine using a quill drive, whereupon it would join an inverted front differential. The chassis was built from bonded aluminium, with a wheelbase of 2845mm and the entire vehicle tipped the scales at 1560kg, some 200kg lighter than the lowest-spec XJS.

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Looking back now, it’s easy to see why the XJ220 show car monopolised the public’s attention. It was an incredible looking thing, long and low, with a glass roof and rear deck displaying the engine’s dozen trumpets. The Connolly leather-trimmed cabin looked production-ready and the sleek silver bodywork looked sculpted by air, testament to the hours of work the team had spent in the wind tunnel at MIRA.

Such was the reception to the car that Jaguar became intrigued as to whether the XJ220 could be offered as a production car. It didn’t take the company long to come to the conclusion that they didn’t have the in-house resources to build the XJ220. An existing alliance with TWR, called JaguarSport, would be the best solution, with JaguarSport then spinning off a separate company called Project XJ220 Ltd. In mid-1989, TWR appointed Mike Moreton to run the project. An ex-Ford Motorsport man, who had helped head up both the Sierra RS500 Cosworth and RS200 projects, Moreton’s first job was to establish what the project costs would be and from there Jaguar could assess whether there was a viable business case for XJ220 production.

It was clear that the writing was on the wall for the V12. The XJ220 needed to shed both weight and complexity, and its two key rivals, the Porsche 959 and the Ferrari F40, had both opted for downsized (sub-3.0-litre) turbocharged engines. Of course, this decision was in no way influenced by TWR owning the rights to the ex-Metro 6R4 powerplant which just so happened to fit the bill. Out went the proposed height-adjustable suspension, the scissor doors and the rear-steering along with the active aerodynamics. Because of the physically shorter engine, the wheelbase could be reduced by a hefty 205mm and the body shrunken somewhat, cutting weight and boosting agility.

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It’s suggested that there was a bit of empire building when it came to the decision to ditch the all-wheel drive system. With FF Developments out of the picture, TWR had control of the project. In truth, Moreton realised that developing this novel four-wheel drive system to a production specification would have pushed the project timeline way beyond what Jaguar would accept. FF Developments were contracted in any case to work on the gearbox and rear axle.

The V64V engine would need a bit of help in order to make the power required to propel the XJ220 to its target top speed. As it stood, it was a naturally-aspirated 90-degree V6 with four valves per cylinder, displacing 2991cc. The decision for the Metro 6R4 to do without the turbochargers adopted by its Group B rivals sacrificed top-end power for low-end tractability and response, but it wouldn’t suffice for the XJ220. The engine was bored and stroked to 3498cc and fitted with two Garrett T03 turbochargers. Given that it had changed quite so markedly, Jaguar gave the engine its own designation, the JRV-6 unit.

A rather persistent urban myth that seems to have developed around this engine was that it originated from a cut-down Rover V8 powerplant. This stemmed from the fact that a six-cylinder version of the Rover V8 was used in the very first 6R4 test mules merely to assess packaging requirements. Instead, the actual V64V engine was a custom build, with a block designed by ex-Cosworth engineer David Wood, while Cosworth was largely responsible for the top end build.

Early iterations of Jaguar’s version, the JRV-6 unit, were tested using an otherwise plain-bodied Ford Transit van, a vehicle that subsequently gained fame when it was wheeled out for the Goodwood Festival of Speed. It’s now owned by the Goodwood trust and still draws the crowds each year at the festival.

Next we have to kill another enduring XJ220 myth, and it’s probably the one that’s been most damaging to this car’s legacy. Buyers signed up for a car with a V12 engine and all-wheel drive and got something with a V6 and rear-wheel drive. As a result, there was a huge legal stoush as many attempted to cancel their orders. It’s a great story but it’s not even close to being true.

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When Jaguar greenlit production of the XJ220 in December 1989, buyer contracts stipulated very clearly that this would be a rear-drive car powered by a V6 engine. Jaguar asked for a deposit of £50,000 (A$102,312) + VAT, and nested within the contract was an important, but innocuous-looking clause. The price of the car would be index-linked, which would see the invoice raise from the mooted £290,000 (A$593,414) at the time of contract signing, to £361,000 (A$738 698) by February 1990 and then up to a massive £403,000 (A$824,640) when the first production-ready cars were available in June 1992.

Jaguar attempted to make good on the 220mph (354km/h) top speed claim. Chassis 004 had already achieved a top speed of 212.3mph (341.7km/h) at Fort Stockton, Texas in early 1991, driven by Andy Wallace, but Jaguar felt more was to come. Martin Brundle was enlisted to drive chassis 009 in June 1992 at the Nardo ring in Italy, and achieved exactly the same top speed, with Brundle noting that there was nothing left to give. The XJ220 was running into its 7400rpm rev limit.

The engineers reprogrammed the Zytek ECU to allow for a 7900rpm rev limit and gutted the catalytic converters, the exhaust modification alone liberating around 38kW. Brundle went foot to the boards again, recording a top speed of 217.1mph (386.4km/h), which made the XJ220 the world’s fastest production car, a record that stood for almost four years, finally beaten by the 240.1mph (386.4kmh) of the McLaren F1 in March 1998. Given that tyre scrub on the outside lane of the Nardo banking at 300km/h accounts for 10km/h of top speed, that particular XJ220 would have been a 220mph car on the straight. Whether that counts for anything versus a customer-spec car is open to question.

Jaguar also took the XJ220 to the Nürburgring Nordschleife for high-speed track testing. It’s worth noting that this was five years before the Nissan Skyline R33 GT-R set its ‘legendary’ 7m59.88s lap of the track with Dirk Schoysman at the wheel. Jaguar believed that the quickest mark at that point was an 8m14s lap set by a Honda NSX. In October 1991, Le Mans winner John Nielsen piloted an XJ220 to a 7m46.37s lap time, a record for a production car that would stand for eight years. In a not entirely uncommon incident of foot-shooting, Jaguar didn’t realise the promotional gold that this achievement represented. It took Nissan’s marketing department to create the idea that the Nürburgring lap time was the gold standard of sports car capability and that its Skyline was the record holder.

Then macroeconomics happened. The Soviet Union collapsed, oil prices soared, US credit was squeezed and the whole bubble that surrounded speculation on supercars burst, and burst far quicker than anyone expected. Between 1991 and 1993, the UK felt the bite of the early 1990s recession. The XJ220 deposit holders realised that they were about to realise a stack of negative equity; their new cars instantly worth about half what they were about to pay. Some customers tried to wriggle out of their contracts, prompting a legal challenge, which Jaguar easily won. It should be noted that Jaguar weren’t the only ones in this predicament.

The mooted production run of 350 cars was never realised, the company finding just 281 buyers for the XJ220. That’s still an 80 per cent fulfilment rate, which was far better than the 71 McLaren F1s that were sold against its intended production run of 300 (for a 24 per cent fulfilment rate). Again, hindsight.

It’s fair to say that the XJ220 had a traumatic birth, then. The production car was built at the Bloxham plant, meeting the body-in-white which was constructed at Abbey Panels in Coventry. The production-spec car was first displayed at the 1991 Tokyo Show and Tom Walkinshaw insisted on waiting until the first 10 cars were with owners before okaying press drives.

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We had to wait until September 1992 for the XJ220 to grace the cover of Wheels, with a cover line that would prove to be a favourite of Wheels subeditors down the years; ‘Off The Clock’. Mark Fogarty became the first Aussie journo to drive the XJ220, in this case both on road and at the Salzburgring circuit.

“The physical effort needed to steer and stop the XJ220 is the closest you’ll ever come to the exertion of racing a Group C sports car,” he said. It’s clear he was no great fan of the way the car sounded though. “Aurally, this engine is no masterpiece. It clatters and rattles into life, at idle sounding very coarse and primitive. Once under way, the note improves, taking on a low, guttural growl. But even at full noise in fifth, there’s no spine-tingling scream or yowl, nothing remotely sonorous. It’s a purposeful roar, much like the muted Le Mans turbo racer from which the motor is derived.”

If Fogarty was unimpressed by the soundtrack, there was very little cause for complaint about the potency of the V6 engine. “The figures suggest it would bend bitumen: 404kW at 7200rpm and 644Nm at 4500 revs. And when you press the pedal, you get instant, constant go,” he noted. “No discernible turbo lag, no sudden explosion of power. From first to fifth gear, the acceleration is relentless, gathering force and still surging at 225km/h, a maximum dictated by the road conditions,” he said, and it was clear from the figures that the XJ220 had the legs on both the Ferrari F40 and the new Lamborghini Diablo.

“The engine is blessed with a brilliant chassis,” he continued. “The combination of a taut body, compliant yet uncompromising equal length wishbone suspension, tenacious tyres and ground effects aerodynamics glues all that grunt to the ground. And it rides with a suppleness that is remarkable in itself, all the more so because it has been achieved in concert with race car-like handling and roadholding… It’s as close to a neutral handler as you can get, with some understeer setting in at the limit.”

That opinion contrasted quite markedly with the next XJ220 drive we featured in Wheels. Taking place on the cold, wet Castle Combe circuit in the UK, journalist Mark Gillies emerged wide eyed and chastened. “The thing feels bloody fast and its performance is memorable,” he said. “The handling is too, but for all the wrong reasons. If there’s a more evil device on our roads, I wouldn’t like to find it – the 220 suffers from immense initial understeer followed by violent, snappy, pendulous oversteer. There is a momentary point of neutrality…. but house-trained the Jag is not. You’re unlikely to find this out on the road because your bravery runs out before the gumball Bridgestones yield to the laws of physics, but there’s only so much that tyre technology can mask in the wet.” Sounds like a case of choosing your moments.

And timing was what scuppered the XJ220 from a commercial perspective. After building 282 cars, production wrapped up at Bloxham in April 1994, the facility being transferred to Aston Martin to handle assembly of the DB7. Some of the production run had yet to find owners, with the final handful of unsold XJ220s offered at £127,550 (A$260,999) plus VAT in 1997. In another developmental oversight, Jaguar had never homologated the car for sale in the US, potentially its biggest market, and the vehicle was only approved under the restrictive Show or Display exemption in 2001. It wasn’t because the car was exclusively right-hand drive. In fact, there are more left-hand drive cars than right-hookers, with just 69 cars having their steering wheel on the right. Jaguar just didn’t have the resource to allocate to US type approval during development.

Our final test in the XJ220 came in the March 1995 issue and it was a test that seemed tailor-made for the big Jag. It lined up on Kemble runway against the Porsche 911 Turbo, the Lotus Esprit S4S, the Ferrari F40, the Ferrari F512M, the Aston Martin Vantage and the Dodge Viper. Andrew Frankel was the man tasked with sinking the slipper and the results were eye-opening. Rather predictably, it came down to a shootout between the XJ220 and the F40. The Ferrari logged a terminal speed at the mile marker of 286.1km/h yet the Jaguar squeaked ahead at 290.1km/h, its superior aerodynamics meaning that it overcame a power-to-weight deficit against the Ferrari (276kW/tonne versus 324kW/tonne). One notable absentee was the McLaren F1, and Frankel claimed that from previous performance data he possessed, the F1’s terminal speed over the mile would have been a mighty 317km/h, but doubted whether there would have been enough runway left for it to stop safely thereafter.

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The 1994 McLaren F1 subsequently eclipsed the XJ220’s performance in almost every regard. The McLaren was worthy of the superlatives then, plaudits that have meant that these cars are now worth somewhere in the region of $50m. The Jaguar never scaled those lofty heights of acclaim and that reflects in prices today. Due to its rarity and troubled genesis, the XJ220 is a tricky car to value, but prices have been firming of late, with good US cars now starting to climb above USD$600,000. That said, auction prices will fluctuate significantly based on mileage, provenance and condition. Aussie cars are a far rarer proposition, and the one that features here, for sale by Young Timers Garage in Melbourne, ought to hover somewhere around seven figures. That’s still less than a quarter of the price of the Ferrari F40 which, as well as being slower, is also more than four times more commonplace, with 1311 units built. There’s probably a great MBA dissertation on the supply and demand affecting these two cars.

Fast, flawed and undoubtedly fascinating, the Jaguar XJ220 achieved so much. It was the fastest production car in the world, the quickest car around the Nürburgring, and even to this day is possessed of the sort of road presence that has escaped many so-called hypercars. Love it or hate it, the XJ220 is never anything less than an event. It offered a blend of qualities that has never quite been replicated and, as the years pass, perhaps collectors will come to realise quite what a rare and beautiful thing it is. It celebrated a moment for Jaguar that we may never see again; one of giddy and limitless possibility. Its time will no doubt come.

The even rarer XJ220S

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Jaguar built six roadgoing XJ220S models, in effect a road-legal version of the XJ220-C racer which won the Grand Touring class at Le Mans in 1993 before having the win stripped due to not running catalytic converters. It features a composite body, fixed headlights and a stripped out cabin featuring Kevlar bucket seats. Power stepped up from 404kW to a hefty 507kW and weight dropped from 1470kg to 1151kg. Just as it looked as if Jaguar had a world-beating competition car on its hands, the McLaren F1 GTR happened.

Specs

ModelJaguar XJ220
Engine6222cc V12, DOHC, twin-turbo
Power405kW@7000rpm
Torque644Nm@4500rpm
TransmissionFive-speed manual
Power to weight276kW/tonne
L/W/H/WB4930/2009/1150/2640mm
Weight1470kg
0-100km/h3.6sec
Top speedc.352km/h
Price now$800k-$1.2m

The article originally appeared in the December 2025 issue of Wheels. Subscribe here and gain access to 12 issues for $109 plus online access to every Wheels issue since 1953.

While most of us our interested in the practicality, fuel economy and longevity of cars, the quest to produce cars that can push the boundaries of speed goes on apace. When the former world’s fastest car, the Ferrari F40 hit a top speed of 322km/h (200mph) in 1987, many thought that thanks to aerodynamics, cars couldn’t go much faster… but of course, they did.

The Bugatti Veyron hit a major new milestone when it hit 407km/h in 2005 but unbelievably, cars just continue to get faster at the top end. Here are the five current fastest cars in the world:

1. Yangwang U9 Xtreme: 496.2km/h

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BYD’s premium arm shocked us earlier this year, setting the record for the world’s fastest car at a massive 496.22km/h (or 308 mph) with the U9 Xtreme electric hypercar at the ATP test track in Germany. Four electric motors, each capable of spinning at 30,000rpm, produce an eye-watering 2176kW (2,959hp). 

In addition to its speed run, the U9 Xtreme also holds the record for the fastest fully electric production car to lap the Nürburgring race track in Germany, with a time of 6:59.157. It reportedly hits 100km/h in under 2.0 seconds, all while costing around A$400,000 in China – a bargain compared to some cars on this list.

2. Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+: 490.4km/h

Bugatti Chiron Super Sport
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Based on the regular Bugatti Chiron, the Super Sport 300+ was an even faster and more focused version of the Chiron, which was already one of the world’s fastest cars. It made 75kW more power than the ‘regular’ Chiron at and was launched by Le Mans winner and Bugatti test driver Andy Wallace with a casual 490.4km/h in Germany back in 2019.

Power comes from a quad-turbocharged 8.0-litre W16 engine making 1160kW of power, enabling it to sprint from 0-200km/h in just 5.8sec and 0-300km/h in a scarcely believable 12.1sec. Only 30 units of the Super Sport 300+ were produced and priced at around €3.5 million (A$6.3 million).

3. SSC Tuatara: 455.3km/h

2019 SSC Tuatara Pebble Beach
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In case you’ve not heard of it, the SSC Tuatara is an American hypercar made by SSC North American (formerly Shelby SuperCars). Power is sent to the rear wheels from a 5.9-litre twin-turbo V8 engine that makes a huge 1304kW of power, yet only weighs around 1250kg.

SSC claims that it hit a top speed of 331.15mph (532.9km/h) and was the world’s fastest car, but that was disputed. The Tuatara then made another attempt in 2021, hitting an average speed of 282.9mph (455.4km/h) over two runs. Pricing for the Tuatara starts at US$2 million, and only 100 units are planned to be built.

4. Bugatti W16 Mistral: 453.8km/h

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The Bugatti Mistral is officially the world’s fastest convertible, achieving a top speed world record of 453.8km/h in 2024. It marked the final use of the French brand’s famed W16 engine, which first went into production with the Veyron, and was replaced with the hybridised V16 in the Tourbillon. 

Just 99 units of the Mistral were made, and all were already sold out before it was revealed. Pricing for the Mistral started at a cool €5 million (almost A$9 million).

5. Hennessey Venom F5: 437.1km/h

Hennessey Venom F5 aerial
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Featuring a twin-turbocharged 6.6-litre V8 that makes a huge 1355kW of power and gearbox-shredding 1617Nm of torque, the Venom F5 sprints from 0-400km/h in just 15.5sec, which is half the time of the Bugatti Chiron.

Weighing less than 1360kg (tare), Hennessey also promises a top speed of 550km/h, although 437.1km/h is as fast as it has gone so far. Pricing starts at around US$2.1 million (A$3.3million ) for the base coupe and hits around $3 million for the roadster.

The beloved Suzuki Jimny three-door is back on sale in Australia after a sudden production pause was required to upgrade its active safety systems to comply with Australian standards.

Now fully compliant with current Australian design rules thanks to an upgraded autonomous emergency braking system, the updated Jimny matches its five-door Jimny XL sibling. Suzuki has also upgraded its feature list, with pricing starting from $31,990 plus on-road costs for the entry-level Lite.

Australian Jimny three-door production was paused for 2025 as its autonomous emergency braking system did not meet Australian design rules. AEB was fitted as standard but not to the level required for compliance. The Indian-made Jimny XL, however, is fitted with the more sophisticated AEB system and was not taken off sale.

The new ADR rule affected many products sold locally, including the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross and Pajero Sport, Mazda6 and even more of Suzuki’s products, including the Ignis and S-Cross SUVs.

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Unlike those cars, however, Suzuki has engineered the system for the three-door Jimny, allowing it to be re-sold in Australia. Pricing starts at $31,990 +ORC for the entry-level Lite (+$1500 compared to the pre-updated model), $33,990 +ORC for the mid-spec Jimny manual (+$2000) and $36,490 +ORC for the top-spec Jimny automatic (+$2000).

In addition to the upgraded AEB system, Suzuki has also given the Jimny three-door more standard features. The entry-level Jimny Lite now features a 7.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, deleting its former basic radio with a CD player, and the Jimny manual and automatic now feature a larger 9.0-inch touchscreen that is already available on the Jimny XL.

Front and rear parking sensors are now available, as is adaptive cruise control (likely only for the automatic model) and lane departure prevention.

That’s on top of the standard features of the pre-updated Jimny manual and automatic, including AEB, lane departure warning, dusk-sensing automatic LED headlights, automatic climate control, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and electric-folding mirrors. The Jimny Lite is more basic in its equipment, but still includes power mirrors and windows and air-conditioning.

2026 Suzuki Jimny three-door pricing (plus on-road costs):

Jimny Lite manual$31,990
Jimny manual$33,990
Jimny auto$36,490

New features for the 2026 Suzuki Jimny:

The updated Suzuki Jimny three-door is now in production for Australia with the first examples due in Australia in early 2026.

Ford Australia has revealed pricing and specifications for the upgraded MY26.5 Ranger line-up, which includes changes such as shelving the former bi-turbo 2.0-litre diesel engine, new available models, more standard features across the range and new colour options.

Pricing starts at $37,130 plus on-road costs for the entry-level XL Cab Chassis, which is unchanged compared with the current model despite its new added standard equipment. The order books for the MY26.5 Ford Ranger are now open ahead of the first deliveries commencing in mid-2026.

Of most significance for the Ranger models is that Ford is simplifying the engine range with the 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel engine no longer available. As previously announced, the 125kW/405Nm 2.0-litre single-turbo diesel – now upgraded with a new timing chain and an updated fuel injection system – continues as the entry-level engine but the 184kW/600Nm 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel is now available across more of the line-up to cover the former bi-turbo variants.

The 2.3-litre turbo-petrol plug-in hybrid and 3.0-litre turbo V6 petrol engines are unchanged, while all models are now equipped with a 10-speed automatic transmission as standard.

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Elsewhere in the line-up there are minor changes: the Ranger Sport is no longer available, but the Black Edition is now a permanent model, available with the V6 diesel engine. The former Ranger Tremor has returned to the range with its off-road focus, while there’s a new Ranger Wolftrak model that sits above the XLT, featuring equipment such as black 17-inch wheels with all-terrain tyres, green exterior highlights, vinyl upholstery with Wolftrak logos and availability of a unique ‘Traction Green’ colour.

As part of the changes to the Ranger line-up, Ford has also added more standard equipment to various models. The XL, for example, adds the larger 12-inch touchscreen, dual-zone automatic climate control (with rear vents for double cab variants), while selecting the XL V6 also adds 17-inch steel wheels, rear disc brakes and an e-shifter with selectable driving modes.

The XLS adds side steps, carpet flooring with a driver’s floor mat and 17-inch alloy wheels with all-terrain tyres, while the Wildtrak now features new 18-inch alloy wheels, Matrix adaptive high beam and a 10-speaker B&O sound system.

Importantly, Ford has also upgraded the safety levels for cab chassis variants with blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, a digital reversing camera, lane change warning, rear parking sensors and reverse automatic braking now standard.

MY26.5 Ford Ranger pricing (plus on-road costs):

XL Single CC 2.0L 4×2$37,130 (unchanged)
XL Super CC 2.0L 4×2$39,630 (unchanged)
XL Double PU 2.0L 4×2$43,530 (unchanged)
XL Single CC 2.0L 4×4$45,600 (- $2630)
XL Super CC 2.0L 4×4$48,100 (- $1130)
XL Double CC 2.0L 4×4$50,000 (+ $770)
XL Double PU 2.0L 4×4$51,400 (+ $270)
XL Single CC 3.0L 4×4$52,100 (new, $600 cheaper than 2.0L bi-turbo predecessor)
XLT Double PU 2.0L 4×2$52,990 (- $3700 versus 2.0L bi-turbo predecessor)
Black Edition Double PU 2.0L 4×4$53,490 (now permanent)
XL Super CC 3.0L 4×4$54,500
XL Double CC 3.0L 4×4$56,500 (+ $3770 versus 2.0-litre bi-turbo predecessor)
XL Double PU 3.0L 4×4$57,900 (+ $3270 versus 2.0-litre bi-turbo predecessor)
XLS Double PU 3.0L 4×4$58,450 (+ $570 versus 2.0-litre bi-turbo predecessor)
Black Edition Double PU 3.0L 4WD$59,990 (new)
XLT Super PU 3.0L 4×4$63,790 (+ $1900 versus 2.0-litre bi-turbo predecessor)
XLT Double CC 3.0L 4×4$66,590 (new)
XLT Double PU 3.0L 4×4$67,990 (+ $800)
Wolftrak Double PU 3.0L 4WD$70,990 (new)
Tremor Double PU 3.0L 4WD$75,090 (new)
Wildtrak Double PU 3.0L 4WD$75,090 (+ $3500)
Platinum Double PU 3.0L 4WD$80,890 (unchanged)
Raptor Double PU 3.0L EcoBoost$90,690 (unchanged)
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MY26.5 Ranger options:

The MY26.5 Ford Ranger line-up is now available to order ahead of the first deliveries commencing from around July.

Ford Australia has revealed pricing and equipment for the updated MY26.5 Ford Everest large SUV, which is priced from $58,990 plus on-road costs.

Available to order next month ahead of the first deliveries landing in mid-2026, the updated Everest range has seen the deletion of the former 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel engine, as well as the Ambiente and Trend models, replaced by the 125kW/405Nm 2.0-litre single-turbo diesel from the Ranger and a new Active base model. The 184kW 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine continues as before, though now available in base Active form. All models are equipped with a 10-speed automatic transmission as standard and rear-drive models are no longer available.

Priced from $58,990 plus on-road costs, the Everest Active includes equipment such as leather upholstery, a 12-inch touchscreen, 18-inch alloy wheels, privacy glass, tyre pressure monitoring and automatic LED headlights.

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The Everest Active’s pricing is $500 less expensive than the more powerful bi-turbo Ambiente it replaces, but includes more standard features.

Elsewhere in the Everest’s line-up, a 360-degree camera is now standard on the Sport and Tremor models, with tyre pressure monitoring also added to the Sport. The former Tremor Premium Seat Package with heated and vented front seats with electric adjustment is now standard equipment, and buyers can remove the third row of seating for the first time.

On the colour front, ‘Alabaster White’ and ‘Acacia Green’ colour options are now available on the Everest, with the former ‘Equinox Bronze’ shelved.

MY26.5 Ford Everest pricing (plus on-road costs):

Active 2.0L 4×4$58,990 (new, $500 cheaper compared to former bi-turbo Ambiente)
Active 3.0L 4×4$66,990 (new)
Sport 2.0L 4×4$68,990 ($2200 cheaper compared to former bi-turbo Sport)
Sport 3.0L 4×4$76,990 (+ $1000)
Tremor 3.0L 4×4$79,990 (+ $1550)
Platinum 3.0L 4×4$83,490 (+ $500)

Ford Everest options:

The MY26.5 Ford Everest line-up will available to order in December ahead of the first deliveries arriving in mid-2026.

KGM Australia has launched its first electric SUV in Australia: the KGM Torres EVX. Competing against cars such as the Tesla Model Y and Kia EV5, the Torres EVX is an electric mid-size SUV with up to 462km of range (WLTP).

Priced from $58,000 drive away, it’s available in a single specification in Australia and is priced $10,000 above the Torres hybrid, which the brand also recently launched. Torres EVX sales will commence on December 1, 2025.

Powered by a front-mounted 150kW/339Nm electric motor drawing power from a BYD-sourced 80.6kWh LFP battery, the Torres EVX is rated at 462km of range (WLTP). The battery can be charged at up to 150kW for a claimed 10-80 per cent charge in as little as 37 minutes, while peak 10.5kW AC charging gives a full charge in a claimed nine hours.

Unlike the also-recently launched Musso EV electric ute, the Torres EVX is only available in single motor front-wheel drive form for now. Vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality is standard, allowing the Torres’ battery to power external devices.

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Like the Torres hybrid, the EVX benefits from updated frequency select dampers and additional sound deadening materials from key noise transmission areas such as the engine compartment, engine cover, and wheel arches.

Just one specification will be on offer from launch, which is loaded with standard features including synthetic leather upholstery, heated and ventilated electrically adjustable front seats, heated outboard rear seats, dual 12.3-inch screens and a sunroof.

Safety features include eight airbags, autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assistance, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, parking sensors and a 360-degree camera.

2026 KGM Torres pricing (drive away):

Torres ELX petrol 2WD$38,000
Torres Adventure petrol 2WD$43,000
Torres Ultimate petrol AWD$47,000
Torres Hybrid K30 2WD$45,000
Torres Hybrid K40 2WD$48,000
EVX 2WD$58,000
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Torres EVX standard features:

Torres EVX safety features:

The KGM Torres EVX will go on sale in Australia on December 1, 2025, with deliveries due to commence soon afterwards.

BYD will further expand its offering in Australia when the BYD Sealion 5 goes on sale next month ahead of the first deliveries in early 2026.

Sized slightly larger than the Toyota RAV4, the Sealion 5 will be offered exclusively with plug-in hybrid powertrains in Australia for up to 100km of range (NEDC). Pricing is yet to be revealed, but it’s expected that the Sealion 5 will be the cheapest plug-in hybrid on the market, undercutting the $39,990 drive away Chery Tiggo 7 SHS.

The BYD Sealion 5 range will use a 1.5-litre petrol engine combined with a single electric motor for a peak 156kW peak power output. The Essential features a 12.9kWh battery for a claimed 71km range (NEDC), while the Premium upgrades to a larger 18.3kWh batter for 100km of range.

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Measuring 4738mm long, 1860mm wide, 1710mm tall, and with a 2712mm long wheelbase, the Sealion 5 is bigger in all dimensions than the new RAV4 that’s due in early 2026. The boot measures 463 litres with all five seats in place, expanding to 1410 litres with the second row folded.

BYD is yet to announce full local specifications for the Sealion 5, but has confirmed that entry-level Essential and upper-spec Premium models will be available, with the Essential featuring equipment such as a 10.1-inch touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and an 8.8-inch digital instrument cluster. BYD’s Digital Key functionality also allows drivers to unlock and start the car using a smartphone or NFC card, in addition to a full suite of active safety features.

The upper-spec Sealion 5 will be further equipped with a larger 12.8-inch touchscreen and a 360-degree camera.

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“The Sealion 5 is designed to help Australian businesses transition their fleets toward lower emissions,” said Stephen Collins, BYD Australia COO. “By combining advanced technology with affordability in Australia’s most popular segment, it helps reduce emissions, support sustainable trade, and creates more opportunities for new energy vehicles, while also giving families a practical, versatile SUV for their everyday needs.”

The BYD Sealion 5 will go on sale next month ahead of the first deliveries landing in early 2026.