Ford F-150 Lightning unveiled, Isuzu MU-X detailed and Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA reignites the passion

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Isn’t it sad when interesting things happen but you’re not invited to the club? 

Living on a little island with a small right-hand-drive market I shouldn’t be surprised, but it still made me a little sad when Ford denied us the F-150 Lightning – which means tradies everywhere were likely in a state of abject panic.

Thankfully that wasn’t the case for all brands. We actually got access to quite a few niche limited edition cars from Jeep with their 80th Anniversary models and Lexus with the LC 500 and of course Alfa Romeo with the GTA that looks to live up to its nameplate.

In some electric news we saw Kia launch the Niro small SUV and Hyundai said it was giving serious thought to putting a hydrogen-electric drivetrain in….. a boat? Yup.

Ford F-150 Lightning unveiled

It might not impact us much in Australia but the fact remains the F-150 is North America’s best selling vehicle – and therefore making it one of the best selling vehicles in the world.

So the news that an electric version is coming was a big deal, especially when it would come with up to 483km of range (EPA), 150kW charging speeds, a 4.5-tonnes towing capacity and a starting price of around $50,000 in Australian dollars.

What’s more, the plus-sized ute looks really to launch into a market of its own in 2022 with no other fully electric full-size utes available on the market from major brands – and the Tesla Cyber truck continues to spin its wheels with delays. 

Isuzu MU-X sneak peek

One of Australia’s most loved seven-seat SUVs – that can actually handle itself off road – was partly unveiled for the Australian market this week and the news was good.

For starters, we found out that Australia would be getting an extensive safety suite which Isuzu says will go even further than the D-Max ute did, which should make it a lot safer than many of its aging rivals.

The MU-X has been given a solid redesign on the outside and looks a lot better for it (in our opinion) and will come standard with crisp LED headlights and snazzy features on the inside like a nine-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay.

Keen to snap one up? I’d get in now as Isuzu are giving away a Limited Edition Isuzu Ute-branded Casio G-Shock Watch to the first 1,500 registered buyers.

Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA renews the faith

Call us tragics but there was something about the new Giulia GTA that really lit a fire under us this week as it seems we’re not alone as all 18 units found buyers almost instantly. 

Alfa has cooked up two versions with the GTA cutting its weight and bumping power up by 22kW to 397kW with the weight cut down a fair bit, while the GTAm went the whole hog and ripped out the backseat, put in a roll cage and fire extinguisher. 

Both have a heap of panels replaced with carbon offerings while Alfa’s Sauber Formula One fitted a range of aerodynamic parts, with the GTAm scoring a huge rear wing and adjustable carbon from splitter.

Other car and SUV news we covered this week:

• What’s better than a silky S-Class that continues to take the luxury game forward? An S-Class with a huge twin-turbo V8 making 370kW of power and 700Nm of torque of course. Set to launch late this year.

• Stepping things up even further is the Maybach S680 which has a twin-turbo V12 and has a wheelbase that is 180mm longer than even the long-wheelbase S-Class. Also available later this year.

• We had a quick chat with Hyundai who told us it was looking at adapting its hydrogen bus drivetrains for potential trucks, trams and even boats in Australia.

• Kia launched the Niro small SUV this week in both a traditional hybrid and also a plug-in hybrid form. Sitting on the same platform as the Hyundai Kona the Niro is a little bit bigger inside and starts from $39,990 (before on-road costs).

• Alongside the hybrids, Kia launched the fully-electric Niro EV, which is also a sibling to the Kona Electric, it has a maximum range of 455km (WLTP) with prices starting from $62,590 (before on-road costs).

• The ACT announced it would give people buying a new or used EV free rego for two years to help some of the sting out of the infamous upfront costs. 

• South Australia said it would help fund some 530 EV chargers around the state that companies can apply to host with several also planned for popular tourism destinations.

• But what if you want to use a charger in the rain? We put this question to Chargefox who said we essentially don’t need to worry about electrocution due to the number of safety systems built into the chargers and the electric cars themselves. 

• BMW unveiled the M4 Competition Convertible which is coming to Australia towards the end of this year with all-wheel drive. This new generation brings 80 more litres of storage space and a lighter softtop roof.

• Lexus announced the LC 500 Inspiration Series was coming to Australia on a strict order-only basis, with less than five expected to arrive. Lexus has added a specially designed spoiler with wingtips that smooth out disruption and make the car more nimble. 

• The Genesis GV80 large SUV and G80 large sedan got almost full marks in ANCAPs latest round of testing that rated the newcomers to the luxury segment on far harsher standards than the ones that tested many of its key rivals.  

• Where can you find the most supercars in the world? Well the answer is Monaco – of course – with the Ford GT the most popular supercar on social media. For more facts follow the link.

• Jeep says 160 units of the Wrangler 80th Anniversary Edition are now on sale in Australia with a series of cosmetic upgrades including 18-inch wheels and black leather bucket seats.

• The Grand Cherokee is also getting an 80th Anniversary Edition with similar upgrades that gives it a cool noir look on the 160 units available.