Not all cars make it to every country; let’s bemoan the vehicles we don’t receive.
Despite vehicle sales booming in Australia, not all vehicles are sold Down Under in the Asia Pacific region. Forget SUVs, crossovers, and trucks! These are the cars I wish we had on the Aussie market.
1. Seat Ibiza
Being a part of the Volkswagen Group, the Seat Ibiza is a compact car based on the commonly known VW Polo. Harnessing the same MQB A0 platform from the latest sixth-generation Polo, the Ibiza is a stylish and more affordable European alternative. Highlights include wireless charging, adaptive cruise control, full LED lights all-around, and the top-spec trim, the ‘FR’, which will give the Polo GTi and Fiesta ST for its money. Why is it top of this list? The Ibiza would be another great city car choice, being European, without an extreme starting price all-the-while being aesthetically pleasing with a range of colours, including a copper tone with a matching interior dashboard panel, and fashionable alloys. Sadly, the Ibiza isn’t in Australia, let alone the entire Seat brand!
2. Volkswagen Golf GTE
Despite most petrol-heads always raving on the iconic Golf GTi, my environmentally-friendly side lustres over the plug-in-hybrid (PHEV) Golf GTE sold in Europe. It’s nippy with 150kW of power and 350Nm of torque on tap, it is 19kW less than the GTi, but compensates with a claimed 1.8L/100km average fuel consumption, and reduced carbon emissions. Furthermore, it also substitutes red accents for a more sensual blue – in which I have a predilection for. Other than that, it is your typical – arguably bland – VW Golf. In spite of this, Australia is still severely lacking electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure to even sustain the battery of a PHEV, and is unlikely to return half of its eco capabilities. Most likely, it wouldn’t be a stellar seller Down Under, and it’s definitely ruled out for us (the full-electric ‘I.D.’ family is slated for us instead). Yet, I still have a soft spot for the GTE – not the full-electric eGolf; it is impossible to use here with the barren number charging stations in our large expanse of land.
3. Kia ProCeed
Wagon’s. Where did they all go? Once the go-to family car, it is now jacked up with plastic cladding and large fenders in the form of the ‘SUV’. Kia on the other hand, persists with this dying breed with the ProCeed, a sporty wagon version to the Ceed, otherwise known as the Cerato. It’s a rarity; the Kia ProCeed is one of the best looking wagons in the industry with a sloping roofline, three-quarter angle, and prominent horizontal tail light. With 594 litres of boot space, its sporty character is accentuated by the quad ice-cube daytime running lights, low ground clearance, red accents on all sides and its gorgeous wheels, plus dual-exhaust tips at the back. It’s truly a stunning looker, and while it slightly mimics the Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake’s design, it definitely turns heads – not just the Kia Stinger.
4. Nissan Altima
While Nissan Australia has moved on from unpopular sedans to trendy SUV’s, the former is still strong over in the United States. Previously sold here in its old guise, the mid-size Altima brings a speck of style with an undeniably Japanese robotic exterior, V-shaped grille, sharp LED headlights, and a contemporary interior with wooden dashboard trim. Additionally, the 8-inch touchscreen is also in a floating tablet form (love it or hate it), comprising Apple Carplay and Android Auto, along with Nissan’s full suite of safety systems including ProPilot Assist. There are no plans for Australia, but the Altima is a modish sedan worth mentioning.
5. Kia K900
The terms ‘luxury’ and ‘Kia’ usually aren’t synonymous with each other. However, with Kia Australia making strides in revamping its brand perception with the introduction of sporty vehicles, such as the Kia Singer, introducing the brand to the luxury space would further change minds. Sold in both the States and South Korean home country, the K900 is a true luxury automobile with two widescreen 12.3-inch displays (one driver, one infotainment), a 9.7-inch head-up display (HUD), all the safety systems you want, and blind-spot cameras on both sides. More importantly, it has all the interior trimmings of full leather heated/ventilated seats, infotainment screens for rear passengers, along with electric adjustment for all opulent chairs. It simply has class-leading build quality, and while it is based on the Genesis G90, I’d argue that it’s a little better. The Korean manufacture is no longer akin to a cheap, budget brand. Rather, the K900 is the absolute epitome of the luxury sedan from a mainstream automaker, if you ignore the badge that is.
6. Lincoln Continental
In speaking of luxury chauffeur’s, Lincoln is the luxury subsidiary of Ford. Specifically, the hero flagship sedan, the Continental, is another great – and distinct – example of a contender to established luxury automakers such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Styling is simply elegant, notably including the door handles discreetly in the chrome window frame is quite clever – bettering the rather inconvenient sea of pop-out door handles. Moreover, Lincoln also offers ‘Black Label’ models, which are uniquely matched to a theme or ambience. ‘Chalet’ endows espresso and cashmere venetian leathers with silverwood to match a luxurious Alpine holiday; ‘Thoroughbred’ offers a jet black interior to bring a sense of elite horse racing and traditional American history; while ‘Rhapsody’ ties in with music by way of silver glass mesh materials and blue leather and alcantara. These ‘themes’ are quite special, something we don’t get from German manufactures. There’s even an 80th Anniversary Coach Door Edition, bringing suicide doors to the Continental! Lincoln ownership also includes pickup and delivery of the vehicle, including every service so there’s no need to move your entire agenda for the day just for a dealer visit. The Lincoln Continental is a breath of fresh air in the premium vehicle space with offerings not seen before from its rivals, and is applauded for doing so.
7. Chevrolet Bolt
While Tesla Motors is synonymous with EVs, it isn’t exactly affordable for most of us. Thankfully, the American Chevrolet Bolt from General Motors (GM) is a more realistically priced vehicle to enter the eco-friendly, zero emissions sphere. Designed as a hatchback crossover, the Bolt is a full EV with a claimed range of around 238 miles (380 kilometres) at a starting price of $52K when converted to Australian dollars. Yes, it still isn’t cheap (thank the lack of government subsidies), but is still the one of the most affordable EV’s in the country, alongside the Renault Zoe and Hyundai Kona Electric. It has a high roofline, similarly to the Honda Jazz, so it is also practical, featuring a wide 10.2-inch infotainment system and full digital driver screen to display all energy efficiency details. Unfortunately, it won’t be successful Down Under due to the lack of infrastructure to run an EV, and given Holden Australia’s woes, it is unlikely to be a good seller if rebadged as an expensive Holden.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Alas, not all vehicles make it to every market. Why? Most likely due to tariffs, import expenses, or the lack of demand – sedans and the manual transmission for instance in Australia.
The aforementioned are just a sample of a plethora of vehicles sold in the Asia Pacific, North and South America, and Europe that I wish we had. Of course, I’d be remiss to not mention the large mass market in China, including MG and BYD models.
The Connected by Henry Man 