Car news, 6 November ’24: Toyota RAV4 tops monthly sales charts again, Kia designers discuss Tasman design, and more

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Thanks for joining us this Wednesday 6 November 2024. Notably in car news today: the Toyota RAV4 once again tops Aussie sales charts but the market is down overall, and Chasing Cars sits down with Kia’s designers to talk about the Tasman ute. 

Browse this issue:

• RAV4 tops October sales charts but market down overall
• Kia designers speak with Chasing Cars about Tasman design
• Genesis GV70: price and specs confirmed for facelifted SUV
• Toyota Celica and MR2 poised to make a comeback?
• Reviewed: 2024 Mitsubishi Outlander GSR

RAV4 tops October sales charts but market down overall

• The Toyota RAV4 was Australia’s most popular vehicle for the fourth month in a row this October, with 4841 new examples rolling into customer driveaways, ahead of the Ford Ranger (4757) and Toyota Hilux (4523) utes.

• A total of 98,375 new vehicles were delivered in October, taking the total sales tally to over a million for the year-to-date.

• However, signs of a slowing market are evident – the month just gone was down 7.9 per cent on the same month last year, with the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries also noting that the private buyers segment was down 14.2 per cent in October, on top of a reduction of 17.2 per cent in September.

• Of the slowing market, Tony Weber, CEO of the FCAI said: “this does indicate that economic pressures are a concern for families across the country”.

• Toyota was once again Australia’s most popular brand in October with 18,471 new vehicles delivered, ahead of Ford (8581), Mazda (7656), Hyundai (7086), and Kia (6602).

Kia designers speak with Chasing Cars about Tasman design

• The Kia Tasman’s design has been a focal point of discussion since the ute was unveiled last week – Chasing Cars sat down with senior Kia executives and two of its lead designers to find out more about the strategy behind it. 

• John Buckingham, Head of Kia Next Design Exterior globally, told Chasing Cars that breaking into an entrenched and well-established ute market couldn’t be done “with a cookie cutter approach”.

@chasingcarsaustralia

The interior of the new Kia Tasman has some cool features – what do you think? #kia #tasman #ute #pickup #interior

♬ original sound – Chasing Cars | Car Reviews

• “It had to be something new,” Buckingham said, adding that a “striking” initial impression “was the intention”.

• Roland Rivero, Kia Australia’s general manager for product planning said: “we could have easily taken that approach of: let’s just be like everybody else. But [rivals such as Hilux have] 40 or 50 years of heritage and history in this category, so we needed to do something a little bit different and be a little bit more bold in our approach”.

READ MORE: Kia Tasman: the inside story behind its polarising design

Genesis GV70: price and specs confirmed for facelifted SUV

• Genesis has confirmed pricing for its freshly facelifted GV70 midsize SUV which debuts an updated three-grade lineup in Australia featuring two powertrains options.

• The range opens at $78,500 before on-road costs for the entry-grade Advanced which is available with a 2.5-litre turbo-charged four-cylinder engine.

• A mid-spec Signature grade can be had with the same four-cylinder powertrain for $87,500 or a larger 3.5-litre turbo V6 for $98,000.

• Finally, the top-spec Signature Sport can be had with the four-cylinder ($89,500) or the V6 ($100,000); all prices before on-road costs. 

• The updated SUV brings with it tweaked styling, new wheel designs, upgraded safety and driver assistance tech, new features like a 27-inch OLED display, as well as some refinements under the skin to the chassis and suspension amongst other changes. 

Toyota Celica and MR2 poised to make a comeback?

• Toyota has fuelled speculation of a potential return of some of its most iconic sports car nameplates, namely the MR2 and Celica.

• An anime series created by Toyota called ‘GRIP’ and published to its YouTube accounts features a very subtle blink-and-you’ll-miss-it reference to a ‘Celica Mk 8’, ‘MR2 Mk 4’, ‘GR86 Mk 3’, ‘Supra Mk 6’ and ‘GR GT3’ in the background frame of a recent episode. 

• The GR GT3 references a high-performance concept revealed by Toyota in 2022, however all other references are to potential next-generation models, with the GR86 and Supra currently in their second and fifth generations, and the MR2 and Celica last having ended production with their third and seventh generations in the early 2000s.

• On the weekend Toyota also posted several photos of iconic older models including the MR2 and Celica to its Instagram account with the caption “what rides would you like to see us bring back?”

• While no reborn models have been officially confirmed, rumours have swirled in recent times, intensified by several concept designs including a ‘FT-Se’ sports car concept that debuted at the Japan Mobility Show last year, which was widely understood to preview a potential new-generation MR2. 

Mitsubishi Outlander GSR PHEV 2024 reviewed

• Chasing Cars journalist Olek Novak’s review of the 2024 Mitsubishi Outlander GSR PHEV was published, taking a look at what is the most expensive Mitsubishi you can buy right now in Australia.

• As the second-most popular contented in the red-hot midsize SUV segment, the new GSR variant lays on all the fruit but comes with a hefty price tag that nudges $80K driveaway.

• With seven seats, plug-in hybrid electric power and all-wheel drive, the Outlander presents a compelling proposition in a highly competitive market, but is it worth the dough in top-spec form?
  
• In this detailed review Novak outlines the good, the bad, and tests out Mitsubishi’s 84km all-electric range claim.

The next issue of Car News Today will be published on Thursday 7 November 2024 at 4.30pm Sydney time.