Car news, 16 August ’24: BMW M5 Touring unveiled and coming to Australia, Chery Tiggo 4 confirmed and priced for local debut, and more

Thanks for joining us this Friday 16 August 2024. Notably in car news today: BMW unveils its new-generation M5 Touring and confirms it for Australia, and Chery confirms its new Tiggo 4 small SUV for Australia too.

Browse this issue:

• BMW M5 Touring unveiled, confirmed and priced for Australia
• Chery Tiggo 4 confirmed for Australia
• Mazda CX-30 range updated with more features, new grade
• Nissan Pathfinder range expanded with return of ST-L grade
• Reviewed: Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium 2024 Long-Term Review Introduction

BMW M5 Touring unveiled, confirmed and priced for Australia

• BMW’s M5 Touring – the first M5 wagon in 15 years and third-ever Touring M5 – has been unveiled globally and confirmed to arrive in Australia early in 2025.

• The wagon version of the seventh-generation BMW M5 is the third current M model after the M5 sedan and XM large SUV to feature BMW’s M plug-in hybrid 4.4-litre V8 powertrain which makes for total outputs of 535kW and 1000Nm.

• Mated to BMW’s M xDrive all-wheel-drive system and an eight-speed automatic transmission, the M5 Touring also features an 18.6kWh battery enabling a claimed pure electric range of up to 61km WLTP, and a 0-100km/h sprint of 3.6 seconds.

• Priced at $263,900 before on-road costs, the M5 Touring will be the second Touring variant of the current BMW 5 Series to make it to Australia, following the launch of the all-electric i5 M60 xDrive.

Chery Tiggo 4 confirmed for Australia

• Chery has announced the Tiggo 4 Pro small SUV will arrive in Australia in October this year to become the fourth vehicle launched locally by the budding Chinese brand

• Set to be available in two grades known as the Urban and Ultimate, the Tiggo 4 Pro will be priced from under $24,000 according to Chery, though final pricing is yet to be confirmed.

• This pricing will make the Tiggo 4 Pro significantly cheaper than the Mazda CX-3 which has dominated the compact or light small SUV segment for many years.

• All grades will be powered by a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine with other features including a set of 10.25-inch dashboard screens, heated front seats and seven airbags

Mazda CX-30 range updated with more features, new grade

• Mazda has announced a host of updates for its CX-30 small SUV including the addition of a Touring LE model grade available exclusively in 2.0-litre front-wheel-drive form.

• The Touring LE builds on the standard Touring specification and adds a terracotta faux leather and suede interior, paired with black alloy wheels, a black grille, and black mirror caps on the exterior.

• As well as this, the Touring LE also gains Mazda’s ‘Vision Pack’ as standard, which includes features such as a 360-degree camera, a larger 10.25-inch multimedia display, front cross-traffic alert, and more.

• Mazda Connected Services – which allows drivers to remotely access vehicle data and certain vehicle functions, as well as including a user-activated SOS button – is now included across the entire CX-30 range, with other minor updates including the replacement of USB-A with USB-C ports in the front row of the entry-level Pure, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto added to the range from the Evolve up.

• The CX-30 Touring LE with Vision Pack starts at $41,940 before on-road costs, with pricing for other variants increased by up to $1000. The updated range CX-30 goes on sale in September.

Nissan Pathfinder range expanded with return of ST-L grade

• Nissan has reintroduced the ST-L grade to the Pathfinder line-up, with prices starting at $59,670 for the FWD and $64,170 for the AWD model.

• The starting price is more than $12,000 cheaper than the previous entry point, after the Pathfinder was criticised by Chasing Cars and other outlets for having questionable value when compared to its rivals due to its high entry price.

• Standard features of the ST-L include 18-inch alloy wheels, 9.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay, a head-up display, heated front seats and three-zone climate control.

• Pathfinder Ti FWD ($67,990), Ti AWD ($72,490) and Ti-L AWD ($82,490) models sit above the ST-L in the new range.

Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium 2024: long-term review introduction

• The Ford Mustang Mach-E finally landed in Australia in late 2023, some three years behind when it first launched in America, and it quickly made waves with its huge price tag that dampened its appeal, despite its merits as an EV.

• But two major price cuts later, the Mach-E is suddenly looking a whole lot more enticing and it has made the Chasing Cars team curious to see if this EV is now worth consideration by Aussie buyers.

• We’ve selected the mid-spec Premium for our three-month long-term test and plan to travel around 5000km during that time to really get a feel for what Ford’s statement EV is like to own and use every day.

• In this video, production manager and custodian of the Mach-E long termer, Tom Place, outlines his plans for the car and details his initial impressions and concerns.
  
  

The next issue of Car News Today will be published on Monday 19 August at 4.30pm Sydney time.