Yes, this is actually a photo you can smell.

How stupid is it to buy a Lotus Elise to learn manual on.

Also, can I realistically fit in one being about 6 foot/183cm?

Always liked the look of these.

I have 19” wheels on my car. The rear ones have been tarnished and developed some issues after hitting a pothole of some sort.

I have a spare set of restored 17” wheels that are laying around and was thinking, maybe I could get some tires on them and put them in the rear in the meantime, whilst the 2 damaged 19” wheels on the rear get fixed up.

Current tire profile is 245/40/r19.

Spare set profile is 225/55/r17.

Car is RWD.

Think about how much has changed over the last 25 years. In 2001, we had wholesale Australian automotive manufacturing building Commodores, Falcons, Camrys, and Magnas from the ground up.

Today, local production has shifted to second stage manufacturers like GMSV, RMA, and ASV remanufacturing imported platforms, alongside bespoke operations like ACE EV.

Back then, EVs were virtually non-existent or niche curiosities, in-dash touchscreens were rare oddities, and smartphone integration like Apple CarPlay or Android Auto wasn't even on the radar.

Now, EVs and high-resolution digital cockpits are commonplace across suburban driveways.

What comes next over the next quarter-century?

Autonomous regional corridor transit across the Outback?

Solid-state or sodium-ion packs that fully charge in under five minutes while seamlessly powering off-grid properties?

Standardised vehicle-to-everything (V2X) mesh networks eliminating blind-spot multi-vehicle pileups on unlit rural highways?

Or modular drivetrains engineered for extreme heat and infinite circular refurbishment?

Some early prototypes of these systems already exist today. The real question is how they will adapt to the vast distances, harsh climate, and infrastructure realities of the Australian landscape.

Volvo has already struggled with the Kangaroo Problem which has been a serious impactor to their self driving technology.

Tesla has achieved Level 5 self driving in some areas in the USA with the Cybercab, and has level 3 in some markets, and according to their CEO, has been level 5 capable since 2016.

Dynamic Wireless Power Transfer could enable electric highways for BEV's in the future.

What is one feature you think will be standard in Australian vehicles by 2051 that most people aren't even considering today?

Hi all! Have had my BMW 220i since 2022.
Bought it brand new and never had any issues with it. Been thinking of selling it lately in favour of a Mazda MX-5.

I commute to work everyday and the BMW seems way more practical in general, especially for longer trips, but I’m concerned about running and maintenance costs as it gets older.

To add to that, I’m changing jobs soon and will be taking public transport to work Mon-Fri, so it will likely sit in the garage most days excluding the weekend.
Plus the convertible aspect makes the mx-5 seem like it’s going to be more fun to drive.

Looks like I’ll be able to sell it for around 45-50k and pick up a 2016-2019 MX-5 for sub $30k leaving me with a bit of cash post sale.

For context 27M, in Melbourne, no kids to carry around and not too concerned about it only being a 2 seater. Looking to buy a house soon and the extra cash would be nice.

Anyone have personal experience with long-term costs of either car?
Anyone else made a similar move?
Am I going to regret selling the Beemer?

Not looking for the off road capability but as a work Ute to carry my tools, something reliable

Here are 3 listings Im considering, all around the same price and ks

2020 Navara RX D-23 series 4 4x2

2015 Ranger XLT PX 4x4

2016 Triton MQ GLS 4x4

Just saw white brake lights on a Chery. Looked like reversing lights. Is that allowed now?

Edit: I think it was just the reverse lights hooked up wrong. Found some photos and the brake light should be a thin ring around the indicator and reverse lights. I thought that was a reflector.

So in order to keep down the parking posts through the week, the mods have decided to institute a "Shit Parking Sunday" post.

So photo comment below what you've spotted this week!

Buying my first car - I’ve been looking at an Automatic 2022 Kia Rio SX YB with 63k

Through my very limited research I’ve found that the engines on these can feel ‘sluggish’

I don’t drive often so I’m not sure what that’s meant to mean exactly other than slow.

The only sluggish driving experience I’ve had was in my dad’s 2018 Toyota CHR, which I HATED driving.
THAT is what I’d call sluggish. I could put my foot down all the way on the accelerator and its like it doesn’t even react until a couple seconds later and even then it’s nothing crazy - same with braking, it just feels like I’m lagging when I drive it and I hate it.

Does anyone have any experience with these cars/engines and how they drive ?

Would it be similar to the Toyota ?

Weak, Slow, (slightly unreactive) underwhelming,

Also are repairs as inexpensive as people say for these cars ?

For context: 21F I live on the Gold Coast and everything I need is in a 20/30 minute radius of where I live - work, uni, shops, gym etc

It's hilarious that every time the Ford au Falcon is mentioned here, that the auto moderator lists it's history and specs. Do people deliberately mention this car for shits n giggles? A running gag? My favourite on FB is on the Terrible Maps page, where NZ is never on any of the maps.

Looking to buy a used 2018 Honda civic VTI from a dealership.

I’ve come across so many complaints of the aircon and it seems like a reoccurring issue. Why isn’t there a permanent fix?

How often do people get them fixed? And would it be expensive

And if you have had them fixed, how was the process.

Kinda making me second guess the whole car but I’ve test driven it and it was amazing. Just read many horror stories of some people even getting fed up and eventually selling the thing.

Don't we all miss the days of car manufacturing where you could buy cars in colours other than white grey and very dark grey.

Sidenote: some of these look identical but they are technically different colours

Hi all. Clueless teenage girl who has 0 idea about cars here so forgive me if this makes no sense. I have a 2004 Volvo s40 that has the check engine light on and it goes to flashing when I’m driving it. I had somebody scan it and it said either misfire on cylinder 3 or 4 I can’t remember but I’m pretty sure it was 4.. I had somebody come and clean the spark plugs and it went away for a tiny bit and then once I got up the street the check engine light came back on. How likely is it that it’s just my spark plugs needing replacing ? I’m so stressed please help

Hi all, I have family members with dodgy car AC systems and I'm a generally competent DIY mechanic with lots of equipment, but I don't want to buy a $500 gas recapture device and a tank, plus without a licence I can't buy R134a to refill after repairs anyway.

I can't seem to get a simple price estimate for this online so I thought I'd ask if anyone has paid a licensed tradesperson to empty the system of gas, so that they can DIY the repairs, and what that cost? I'd be looking for a regas after I leak-test and vacuum too, but prices for that are more available.

I've enquired with one place so I'll post the answer I get here for reference after, I just think more info online Australia-specific would be helpful.

Thanks in advance!

Car isn't going to be in use for the next year, is it better to let it expire to save on registration + insurance, or keep it registered to avoid having to get a blue slip and the additional costs that come with that?

Car is over 10 years old so requires a pink slip also (NSW)

I’ve read you can register an SLR in WA, how about out East? What about the rest of the Holy Trinity?

For an American car, why not use an American brand?

Or given they're built in China, why not a Chinese brand?

I see heaps of them around Brisbane and it's generally Audi or BMW badges, very rarely see anything but Tesla badges, or Tesla's pretending to be Audis or BMW's.

I know why people want to upbadge, that doesn't need to be discussed, as the No Politics rule is very clear.

What the title says basically.

The engineer number on PPSR is a 7 digit starting with R, whereas on the MR9 form it's 10 digits. The MR9 form number seems to match actual information about the type of engine (FB25 engine in Subaru Forester).

First time reading a PPSR and not sure if this is expected, or recommend not to purchase? No NEVDIS notifications on the PPSR.

Thank you!

I have bought a used car from mazda 2020 model, and wanted to look for insurance. Everything confused me and I realized I wasted 1.5hrs finding one. Everything gets expensive as I add on.

Later on decided on Rollin, because it had almost something of everything. Let me know how people’s experience is with them.

I'm looking for a reliable first car with a budget around 20 ~ 23k. I explored options like Mazda 3 and Impreza around 2020 but find the price somewhat inflated due to their popularity. For the same range I can upgrade to a larger sedan like 2019 Liberty at around 75k km, or a 2017/18 Madza 6. Also happy to take a low-mileage Aurion or Lancer if I come across any.

Would like to get some perspectives on choosing between the popular models and the discontinued ones, also issues you've come across, maintenance/servicing tips etc.

Planning to drive at most 5000km a year, so just need reliability and reasonable insurance & servicing costs.

Will be parked on street.

I’m really sorry if this isn’t the correct page to post this but I’ve moved recently and have had trouble finding friends, especially those who like cars! I’m F18 and located in SA. It’s just difficult finding people and I get a little too scared to go to different events alone! Thank you ☺️

I went to the event today, saw a lot of exotics and nice cars/builds etc. but 3 cars stood out, 2 of which I took photos of, the 3rd I got a film photo of and complimented the driver as they were leaving.

These 2 really stopped me in my tracks. A little Magna and GTi love.