In 2024, Porsche unveiled its second all-electric model, the Macan EV, nearly 5 years after its first electric model, the Taycan sedan, which was unveiled at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show.

Now, the brand’s third and biggest EV, the Cayenne, with 3.5-tonne towing, has been spotted on the ROVER approval-for-sale register, offered in two variants. This was first spotted by Roland L from the Zapped Au YouTube channel on X.

The variants include:

• Cayenne Electric – $167,800 plus on-roads
• Cayenne Turbo Electric – $259,900 plus on-roads

The 4.9-metre-long SUV will be available with a height of 1.74 metres and a running clearance of 175 mm. 

All variants will weigh between 2.5 and 2.65 tonnes, depending on the powertrain configurations.

Braked towing is approved for up to 3,500 kg, while non-braked towing is limited to 750 kg across these variants.

Battery details for the Cayenne show that it comes equipped with a 113 kWh pack, based on the 800 V architecture, with DC charging and a peak charging rate of up to 400 kW.

This will help get the SUV from 10% to 80% in as little as 16 minutes and can deliver a total range of up to 642 km on the WLTP cycle.

On the power front, the base variant produces 325 kW while the top-spec Turbo model bumps that up massively to 850 kW, helping it sprint from 0-100 km/h in 2.5 seconds.

With Porsche sales in Australia needing a boost, this model could help the brand get the kickstart it needs amid growing competition from premium brands like BYD-owned Denza and Geely-backed Zeekr.

If power and towing are important to Australian luxury car buyers, this model could be worth keeping an eye on. We look forward to getting behind the wheel of it when it lands later this year.

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ISUZU Ute Australia (IUA) has launched a new customer incentive aimed at easing ownership costs, offering three years of free scheduled servicing across the entire MU-X range as Australian households continue to grapple with elevated living expenses and higher interest rates.

 

Available from 1 June to 31 July 2026, the promotion applies to all eligible new 25.5MY MU-X purchases, including both 2.2-litre and 3.0-litre variants as well as the recently introduced Tour Mate special edition.

 

The offer covers the vehicle’s first three scheduled services, up to 36 months or 45,000km, providing what IUA says is greater certainty around ownership costs during a period of ongoing economic pressure.

 

Isuzu Ute Australia managing director Junta Matsui said the initiative recognises the financial challenges facing many Australian families.

 

“While global issues continue to pressure everyday cost of living, IUA understands that it’s increasingly difficult for many Australians to manage the ongoing costs of their vehicle,” he said.

 

“Complementing IUA’s comprehensive six-year/150,000km warranty, this offer will give buyers more certainty when anticipating life with one of Australia’s most respected cars.”

 

The promotion follows another strong year for the MU-X, which remained one of Australia’s best-selling SUVs in 2025.

 

The seven-seat wagon finished inside the national top 20 sales charts and ranked third in the highly competitive Large SUV under $80,000 segment, continuing its reputation as a strong value alternative to rivals such as the Toyota Fortuner, Ford Everest, and (remaining stocks of the) Mitsubishi Pajero Sport.

 

IUA says buyers continue to be attracted by the MU-X’s combination of seven-seat practicality, proven diesel powertrains, towing capability, off-road credentials, strong resale values, and reputation for reliability.

 

The free servicing offer reflects a growing trend among manufacturers to focus on ownership costs rather than headline discounts.

 

With vehicle prices remaining elevated and interest rates still affecting household budgets, servicing packages, extended warranties, and capped-price maintenance programs have become increasingly important sales tools.

 

For MU-X buyers, the offer now combines with a six-year/150,000km warranty, up to seven years roadside assistance, a capped-price servicing program, and three years free scheduled servicing to create one of the more comprehensive ownership packages in the segment.

 

The promotion is available to private buyers, ABN holders, and business fleet customers.

 

It excludes demonstrator vehicles and applies only to eligible new 25.5MY MU-X purchases delivered during the campaign period.

AUSTRALIA will be the first international destination for Nissan’s enthusiast-facing Nismo Performance Centres, with the first to open in Melbourne later in 2026, with expansion to other capital cities in the planner.

 

Set up to handle the retail of Nismo’s extensive catalogue of performance parts as well as OEM parts from Nissan’s restoration parts programme for its classic sports car models, the Nismo Performance Centres will also be able to offer complete engine packages for Nissan’s legendary RB26, which powered the Skyline GT-R for its R32, R33 and R34 generations, as well as install parts for customers with Nismo-certified technicians handling the work.

 

Does the Nismo Performance Centre rollout – which will eventually encompass the other major capitals of Sydney, Perth, Brisbane, and, if demand proves strong, Adelaide and Auckland in New Zealand – speak to any grander ambitions around bringing more Nismo road cars to Nissan Oceania’s showrooms?

 

Though options exist in the form of the just-revealed Nissan X-Trail Nismo, Patrol Nismo, and the all-electric Ariya Nismo, the Nismo Performance Centre (NPC) strategy centres around servicing the sizable car park of legacy Nissan sports car models – largely grey imports – and their owners.

 

According to Nissan, it’s a pool of potential customers that’s around 35,500-strong, with over 16,500 of them owning Japanese-market Skylines of various generations and grades.

 

“There is an extremely good opportunity in this market to have true Nismo expertise for our customers,” said Nissan Oceania’s aftersales director Michael Hill.

 

“When we look at the data, particularly on R32 (Skyline) and R33 (Skyline) registrations, Australians imported between seven percent of the total R32 production run, up to nearly 36 percent of all R34 (Skylines) that were ever built.”

 

Beyond Nissan’s iconic 90s-era Skylines, the NPCs will also cater to Zs, Silvias, and even more oddball Japanese Domestic Market imports like the Nissan Stagea wagon.

 

Essentially, if Nismo has parts available for a car over in Japan, the Australian NPCs will be able to sell and install those parts to local customers, removing the language, currency and shipping barriers that keen enthusiasts have had to deal with in the past.

 

The audience appears to be there, but will the Nissan Performance Centre concept be a big money-spinner?

 

Nissan says the focus is more about building a stronger brand and strengthening its link with buyers that have been loyal. Though each NPC will be co-located with an existing Nissan dealership (the first will open at Ferntree Gully Nissan in the latter half of 2026), the company isn’t treating it as an opportunity to upsell Skyline owners into a shiny new X-trail.

 

It is, however, a spearhead for Nissan’s greater ambition to establish a more global role for its Nissan Motorsports and Customisation (NMC) subsidiary, which encompasses Nismo.

 

The NPC store concept has existed for some time in Japan, where a network of 32 NPCs can be found, but following its first international foray in Australia, NPCs will open in locations in the USA, the GCC, and the United Kingdom.

 

In parallel with that, the range of road cars engineered and designed by NMC will double from five to ten, with more of them heading to international markets in the coming years.

 

In the past, only a handful of Nismo-badged models have escaped Japan’s borders, namely the Z Nismo, GT-R Nismo, Juke Nismo, Ariya Nismo, and Patrol Nismo.

 

Currently, only the Z Nismo is offered in Australia, with an imminent model update set to bring a manual transmission option and uprated brakes to sell alongside the existing auto-equipped Z Nismo.

 

While no official decision has been made, the Y63 Patrol Nismo, which is already offered in the Middle East, is understood to be too road-biased for Australian tastes, and an unlikely starter for our market.

 

“Nismo’s global expansion is about bringing the brand closer to customers in the right markets, with the right products, services and experiences,” said Yutaka Sanada, the global head of the Nismo brand and the president of NMC.

 

Ivan Espinosa, president and CEO of Nissan also singled out Australia as being a key part of Nissan’s grander global ambition.

 

“The expansion of the Nismo brand in markets such as Australia is an important step in bringing exciting experiences to customers who value performance and authenticity,” he said.

Australia’s new car market took another decisive step in April, and the message is now hard to miss: the centre of gravity is shifting away from internal combustion and towards electric cars.

And China is delivering that transition – more on that below.

The latest data shows battery electric vehicles jumping to nearly 17% of monthly new car sales in April, another sharp lift from the previous record set in March, while plug-in hybrids also surged.

On the numbers now visible in the market, the old petrol-and-diesel majority is shrinking fast. Pure ICE-only vehicles – petrol and diesel, excluding hybrids and plug-in hybrids – are now down to just 52.5% of new vehicle sales.

That is the real story in the April data. It is not simply that EVs had a strong month. It is that the combined rise of battery electrics, plug-in hybrids and conventional hybrids is steadily hollowing out the old market dominance of petrol and diesel.

The drivetrain chart show this clearly. Petrol has been in long decline since the post-Covid rebound, diesel has flattened and then eased, while BEV share has climbed from almost nothing in 2020 to the high teens in April 2026.

Hybrids and plug-in hybrids have also continued to rise, meaning the share of the market with some level of electrification is now approaching half of all new vehicles sold.

That shift is also changing where Australia’s vehicles come from.

China is now firmly in the lead as the biggest source of new vehicles sold into Australia, with about 28% of the market on a year-to-date basis. Japan, which dominated the Australian market for decades, continues to lose share.

The April data reinforces China overtaking Japan on a monthly basis, and Japan’s share continuing to slide, and the longer trend now suggests that is no temporary blip but a clear structural change locked in the supply base.

The significance of that goes beyond a country-of-origin league table. Australia is not just electrifying; it is electrifying mainly with vehicles built in China.

And that reflects the reality of the global market. China moved early and fast on solar, but now is moving even faster on batteries and EV platforms and manufacturing scale.

Meanwhile, Japanese automakers leaned more heavily into hybrids and delayed full battery EV rollouts. The result is now visible in Australian showrooms and in VFACTS tables alike.

April also matters because it comes one month before the traditional run-up to the June end-of-financial-year sales spike.

Historically, June has often delivered a temporary rebound in ICE sales as dealers clear stock and businesses bring purchases forward before 30 June. That was visible in the June 2023 and June 2025 bumps, even though the broader petrol and diesel trend kept heading down afterwards.

But 2026 may look different.

This year’s EOFY push will land in a market shaped by three forces at once: strong EV momentum, the first full year of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard, and still-elevated fuel prices from the 4 week war on Iran.

That means June could still be a big month overall, but the composition of the spike may be very different from the old ICE-heavy EOFY pattern.

If fleets and business buyers move early to lock in deliveries, some of that demand is now likely to flow to hybrids, plug-in hybrids and BEVs (especially with full FBT exemption for EVs confirmed to stay for another year) rather than just diesel utes and petrol SUVs.

At the same time, carmakers will be increasingly aware that extra low-emissions volume helps under NVES, while pushing more high-emissions stock becomes harder to sustain – just like happened with Dieselgate.

So April may prove to be more than just another strong EV month. It may be the clearest sign yet that Australia’s market is crossing a threshold: China is now the lead supplier, one in six new vehicles is a battery EV, and ICE-only sales are falling towards half the market just as EOFY pressure begins to build.

See The Driven’s detailed EV sales data here: Australian electric vehicle sales by month in 2026; by model and by brand.

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Chery has been one of the fastest growing brands in Australia and over the last 18 months has launched Omoda Jaecoo as a sub-brand geared towards younger “adventure-focused” families.

Now, the automotive giant is in preparation to launch another sub-brand in Australia, which it calls Lepas, and has revealed two BEV models heading towards our market.

These will be the Lepas L4, a small SUV, similarly sized to a BYD Atto 2 or recently revealed Ora 5 EV , while the L6 is a bit bigger, more Geely EX5 length car.

The L4 will be available as a BEV, along with a hybrid powertrain, although details on the battery and motors are likely to be revealed in the coming months.

Both models were also showcased at the currently running Beijing Auto Show and have so far received quite a positive reception from international media that attended.

That’s because the Lepas brand is geared specifically for international markets, including right-hand-drive markets like Australia and New Zealand.

These models will ride on the LEX platform, which allows the brand to incorporate the latest BEV architecture into these cars. 

Although local technical specifications are yet to be confirmed, the L4 specs in other markets show a 67.1 kWh battery pack, powered by a 160 kW motor.

This will help the car accelerate from 0-100 km/h in just under 8 seconds, which is fairly respectable for a small city electric SUV.

The battery is expected to offer around 400 km of range, and charging it should take under 30 minutes at the right DC fast charger.

Inside, the car’s interior is similar to that of the Omoda Jaecoo J5 EV, particularly the screen behind the steering wheel and the main portrait infotainment screen found in the centre.

There’s also a wireless charger and two cup holders with the cabin layout aimed at being quite minimalist.

Detailed specifications for our market will be revealed along with the pricing of the car. We expect it to be priced above the current Omoda Jaecoo J5 EV, which has an introductory offer of $36,990 driveaway in Australia.

Given the success of the J5 EV, we’d be keeping an eye out for the L4 and the L6, as they could also see solid sales once they debut closer to the end of 2026.

Japanese car maker Mazda has released the key specs and pricing of the CX-6e SUV, its third EV in the Australian market.

Prices for the CX-6e will start at $53,990 before on-road costs for the entry GT variants, and the top-spec Azami variant comes in at $56,990 before on-roads.

As part of the launch, the first 1,000 customers who ordered the GT variant will automatically be upgraded to the Azami variant, valued at $3,000.

Managing Director of Mazda Australia, Vinesh Bhindi, said the new pre-order campaign follows the popularity of its similar Mazda 6e offer, which saw all 300 units sell out within only two weeks.

CX-6e features a rear-mounted 190 kW motor, powered by a 78 kWh Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) battery pack. According to the preliminary specifications, this pack can deliver up to 484 km of WLTP range on a single charge and charging it from 30-80% will take around 15 minutes.

Inside, there is a large centre screen, surrounded by 256-colour ambient lighting, that floats above the dashboard.

Last month, The Driven saw an early left-hand-drive version of the car in person at a preview in Melbourne, and one of the standout features was this screen that extends towards the passenger seat, along with the high-quality materials used throughout.

In the spec sheet, Mazda states that the CX-6e includes multiple safety features, including:

• Smart Brake Support for turning across traffic with pedestrian and cyclist detection
• Rear Cross Traffic Alert
• Blind Spot Monitoring
• Emergency Brake Assist
• Lane-Keep Assist
• Driver Monitoring System

Colour-wise, there is a nightfall violet mica as well as metallic paints including Red, Crystal, Machine Grey, Grey, Blue, White, Pearl and Black.

The latest model made its global debut at the Brussels Motor Show this year and, according to the brand, adopts Mazda’s “Future + Soul + Modern” Kodo design concept.

The Mazda CX-6e is manufactured in collaboration with Chongqing Changan Automobile Company, which has multiple brands in China, including the locally available Deepal brand, which is distributed through Inchcape in Australia.

The first Mazda CX-6e deliveries in Australia are expected to start from September.

2026 Mazda CX-6e specs

GT grade, features:

• 26.45-inch central touchscreen display
• 19-inch alloy wheels
• 50-inch active driving display
• 360-degree view monitor with See-Through View
• Advanced keyless entry
• Mazda Radar Cruise Control
• Tri-zone climate control with air purification system (PM2.5 filter)
• Wireless Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto
• Auto-dimming rear-view mirror
• Powered remote tailgate with hands-free function
• Front and rear parking sensors
• Heated and ventilated front seats
• Heated steering wheel
• LED headlamps with signature illumination
• Panoramic glass roof with electric sunshade
• Premium audio system with 23 speakers
• Satellite navigation
• Wireless smartphone charger
• Black Maztex trim

Mazda CX-6e Azami adds:

• Digital exterior mirrors
• Digital interior mirror
• 21-inch alloy wheels

2026 Mazda CX-6e price list

Mazda CX-6e Model Grade	Motor & Battery	Drivetrain	MLP
GT	190kW/78 kWh	RWD	$53,990
Azami	190kW/78 kWh	RWD	$56,990

  

Option Package	Price
Warm Beige Interior Trim (available on both GT and Azami grades)	$1,000

 

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As Red Bull Racing and VCARB cars wearing the Blue Oval hit the track for the start of the 2026 Formula 1 season, Ford CEO Jim Farley paid a visit to Australia and said he wants to revive the country’s most famous automotive export.

“I think this country gave the globe the ute,” Farley said in an interview with local publication CarExpert. “So, I’m pretty serious about it.”

Farley was referring to the 1934 Ford Model 40, which is generally credited with kicking off the ute trend. Car-based pickups were a thing going back to the days of the Model T, but this marked an inflection point where they became a well-defined niche as body styles became more rigidly defined and conventional cars and trucks grew further apart.

Australia also took to the concept like no other country. Car-based pickups like the Chevrolet El Camino, Ford Ranchero, and Subaru BRAT have appeared sporadically in the United States over the years, but they were a constant presence Down Under until the mid 2000s, when Ford and General Motors ended domestic car production and with it Australia-specific models.

So what exactly is Farley’s plan to revive the ute? The good news is that it would be a return to engineering a vehicle specifically for the Australian market. The bad news is that said vehicle will probably look more like a Maverick than a Falcon, the rear-wheel drive, V8-powered staple of Ford’s Australian lineup in the ute era.

In the interview, Farley noted the success of the Maverick in the U.S. and said that Aussies might like a fuel efficient unibody pickup, but emphasized that he wasn’t talking about merely exporting the compact pickup.

“To do it right here, as a car person, I would want it not to just stamp a global solution and force the market to take it,” Farley said, adding that Australia’s needs would include the ability to stand up to “more extreme” usage, and with a greater emphasis on commercial sales than the U.S.-market Maverick.

Emissions rules would likely preclude a new V8 powertrain, Farley hinted, and CarExpert noted that any new ute would likely need to be shared with another market (or at least share components with a model sold elsewhere) to justify development costs. As with the Maverick, that points to a platform shared with Ford’s crossovers—perhaps the Ford Territory that’s sold in the righthand-drive South African market—and a small turbocharged engine.

This new Ford ute could face competition from a revived Subaru Baja, if it gets the green light. Farley said he would make a decision on the ute before leaving Australia. That trip ended Friday, but Farley’s comments on tailoring the ute to the Aussie market indicate it won’t come to the U.S. in any case. Instead, we’re slated to get small Ford pickups with both electric and gasoline powertrains.

EV sales in February have rebounded strongly from a slow January, taking an 11.8 per cent share of the total new car market, up from 8.4% a month earlier, and led by a resurgent Tesla, as well as Chinese EV makers BYD and Zeekr.

The main drive was the lift in sales from Tesla’s still limited EV lineup, which showed strong sales growth during the month, accounting for over 3,200 sales. BYD sales – which led in January – also remained strong with 2,969 during the month and it was notable that China, for the first time, was the biggest source of new cars in Australia for the first time.

The latest data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) shows that 7,715 battery electric vehicles were sold in Australia in February.

The total vehicles for the month came in just over 90,000 vehicles sold during the month, tallying up to 94,131 when EVC data was combined with the FCAI vFacts data.

Most major EV makers had multiple incentives during February, which contributed to these sales as well as the broader availability of some recently launched affordable EV models.

This is also a big jump over last year, when EVs only accounted for 5.9% in February 2025, compared to the 11.8% in February 2026.

EV Sales Breakdown – February 2026

FCAI vFacts	7,715
EVC (Polestar + Tesla)	3,419
EV Sales Total (FCAI + EVC)	11,134
Total Vehicle Sales (FCAI + EVC)	94,131

EV sales over the first 2 months of 2025 totalled 9,516, and 2026 shows 18,543 electric cars made it onto the road so far this year. 

In February, PHEV sales saw an increase from previous months, with 5,854 PHEVs sold during the month which was up from 4,871 sold last year during the same period.

Looking into the EV models that made up the top 5, the Tesla Model Y bounced back to the top with 2,971 sales and BYD’s Sealion 7 SUV came in the second spot with 1,327 sales. 

The third spot stood out with Zeekr’s 7X, raking in 628 sales in its second month of deliveries. Tesla Model 3 and Geely EX5 made up the rest of the top 5.

Other notable mentions are the BYD Atto 1, Australia’s cheapest EV, which saw 349 sales in its highest month of sales to date.

The best-selling EVs in February 2026 were:

• Tesla Model Y – 2,791 sales
• BYD Sealion 7 – 1,327 sales
• Zeekr 7X – 628 sales
• Tesla Model 3 – 483 sales
• Geely EX5 – 416 sales
• MG MG4 – 406 sales
• BYD Atto 3 – 384 sales
• Omoda Jaecoo J5 – 369 sales
• BYD Atto 1 – 349 sales
• BYD Atto 2 – 347 sales
• BYD Seal – 302 sales

The Driven is waiting to hear back from various manufacturers regarding sales of some EV models, and this will be updated once they are received. 

February also marked the first month when vehicles made in China overtook Japan. “After 28 years, Japan has been overtaken by China as the largest source of vehicles for the Australian market in a single month,” FCAI CEO Tony Weber said.

“The Australian market is one of the most open and competitive in the world. New brands can enter, establish dealer networks and compete on price, technology and design. Consumers are the beneficiaries of that competition.”

The uptick in sales shows solid growth compared to previous years, with a ramp-up in incentives for February, leading to YTD EV sales almost doubling in 2026, making it the strongest year for BEV uptake so far. 

See full details of EV sales for each month of the year in our database here.