Kia’s EV5 Earth electric all-wheel-drive SUV – different yet appealing mid-sized SUV
Behind the wheel of Kia’s electric mid-size SUV, the EV5. The first Kia to be builtin China with the battery interestingly supplied by electric car giant BYD. There’sthree trim grades Air, Earth and GT-line, I’m driving the mid-grade EV5 Earth at$68,990 drive-away, a 230kW dual electric motor all-wheel-drive with a long range88.1kWh battery and a quoted range of 500km. The drive experience provedrewarding, my consumption around town running at 18.6 kWh/100km providing arange of 473km – charge time on my 11kW home charger from 10 to 100 percentjust over 8 hours or overnight. I must admit the Kia EV5 Earth SUV grew on methe more I drove it – the styling subjective, but I personally got to like it over time,the interior a highpoint, great seats, the test cars Nougat Beige interior coloursappealing in a dashboard design that is intuitive and different. Biggest gripe, theoverly active and intrusive lane keep assist, speed limit recognition and driveattention warnings and I’m surprised Kia Australia has not addressed this annoyance. Overall, though, all things considered the EV5 Earth all-wheel drive isa very rewarding electric SUV.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Kia’s EV5 Earth electric all-wheel drive SUV – first Kia to be built in China
Driving Kia’s electric mid-sized EV5 SUV – similar in size to Kia’s petrolSportage, although boxier and the first Kia to be made in China for this market.Three trim grades Air, Earth, and GT- Line – I’m driving the mid-grade EV5 Earthat $68,990 drive-away, a dual motor all-wheel drive with a long-range 88.1kWhbattery providing a quoted 500km range. Features include synthetic leather seats,dual 12.3-inch interior screens,19-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, a powertailgate, dual zone climate control and a five-inch climate control display whichfrustratingly is partly hidden by the rim of the steering wheel. The interior roomy,very accommodating in both seat rows with excellent cargo space butdisappointingly there’s no wireless phone charging or 360-degree camera. For afamily vehicle it also lacks a front console storage box but for rear passengersprovides a pull-out storage draw under. I must admit my first visual impression ofthe Kia EV5 was not great, but it grew on me in time as did the drive experiencewith four drive modes while the charging process on my 11kW home charger waseffortless and relatively fast. Warranty seven years/unlimited km with batterywarranty seven years/150,000km, less than some rivals. Drive details next.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Ford’s Mustang makes a strong recovery – best sales in nearly 7 years
The car market this year has been somewhat unpredictable with a numberof factors affecting various segments. What surprised last month was aresurgence in sales of the trusty Ford Mustang – a significant delay in thearrival of the latest S650 model saw pent up demand take the two-doorMustang to its best sales month in almost seven years. Who said the trustyV8 was dead in the water. 720 Mustangs were sold in May taking the year’stally to 2489, more than it sold for the entire year in 2024. Interestingly, thevolume selling GT Fastback V8 automatic at $86,990 now far moreexpensive than it was seven years ago – in mid-1918 it was $21,000 moreaffordable at $65,990. The Ford Mustang was Australia’s top-selling sportscar from 2016 to 2022, with more than 33,000 deliveries over that time.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Renault’s long standing Koleos SUV gets a new price leader
Renault’s Koleos SUV has been around in much the same guise since 2016but holds the distinction of being the biggest selling Renault since thattime – a good all-rounder and selling well in recent times. A new entryEvolution grade has just been added at $34,990 plus on-road costsundercutting the previous entry Zen model which sold last year at $42,500.The new pricing pits the highly regarded Koleos against newer ChineseSUV rivals, also undercutting the likes of Honda’s CR-V, Mazda’s CX-5,Hyundai’s Tucson and Kia’s Sportage. The new Koleos Evolution ispowered by a 2.5-litre turbo petrol engine driving the front wheels througha CVT transmission. Features include leather trim, dual zone climatecontrol, LED headlights, heated front seats and a seven year/unlimitedkilometre warranty.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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BMW’s 118 hatchback – sharp driving dynamics but with too harsh a ride
BMW updated their entry model hatchback last December – now simplycalled the 118 this small five door hatch has a lot of presence in a faceliftedbody that’s slightly longer and taller. Now $56,500 plus on-road costs butwith more equipment and more tech savvy – slightly longer and taller, stillpowered by a 1.5-litre turbo three-cylinder driving through a seven-speeddual clutch automatic. This latest entry model BMW has a nice feel about,the interior especially well sorted with supportive seats, and a well-constructed dash layout with connected digital and infotainment screens.But with BMW’s latest iDrive 9 operating system which can become tediousto use but is very comprehensive. The drive rather sporty in the BMWtradition with good driving dynamics, beautiful steering, brakes and slickgear changes with the worst feature being ride quality. I’m not sureeverybody who would buy a BMW 118 would need such a sport skewedride but it is far too harsh and spoils an otherwise quality drive. Passiveand active safety systems most comprehensive, a 360-degree camera agreat driving aid while the adaptive cruise control is very polished inoperation. There’s a lot to like in the BMW 118 but ride quality adisappointment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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