The world of cars has never been as complicated or confusing as it is right now.
As we drive in 2026 there are more than 65 individual brands and badges in showrooms, with an almost endless choice of styles and sizes, with more to come through the new year.
Chinese brands are rising fast, Toyota is defending its heartland following and number one place in the sales race, and everything from safety to technology is a hot-button topic.
Buyers have never been more taken with giant SUVs and hulking pick-up trucks, baby hatchbacks are nearly dead, and almost everyone is looking for a hybrid – even if they have no idea what they are or what they do.
On the electric front, even Jaguar – an old-school brand with a rich backstory – will be re-invented soon as a battery-powered luxury car brand. Or not, depending on the cash reserves as its headquarters in the UK, as it is shaken by a series of financial disasters.
It’s tough to unpack all the conflicting stories and situations, threats and opportunities, especially as a consumer.
What’s a good car these days?
Which brands can you trust?
What’s the real story on electric cars?
Is safety only about a 5-Star rating from the Australasian New-Car Assessment Program?
There are vastly more questions than answers, and the interwebs has not made things any easier. Just like ‘Dr Google’, which has turned everyone into an online private patient, the world of cars is scattered across the online world with few hints on who to believe and what you need.
And yet … Cars have never been better, technology can make life easier for many drivers, and there is some good buying. You just need to know where to look for your answers, by asking the right questions, and not get overwhelmed.
An old-school test drive, and not just a run around the block with a sales person babbling from the passenger seat, is still the best way to pick a car.
But it doesn’t help when the average age of a new-car buyer in Australia is 54 – a figure from Toyota – yet the technology is coming from brilliant young 20-somethings who live their whole life on a mobile device.
Do we really need ‘all the bells and whistles’, or safety systems that fight the driver if they don’t run perfectly parallel to a white line on the road, or the endless confusion about what to buy and what to pay? Why do cars now ‘bing’ and ‘bong’ endlessly as if they know what’s best for you?
And what about the endless discussion about the electrification of cars?
The best idea is always, yes always, to go back to the basics.
What do you drive now? What do you like or not like about it? What do you need a car for? And, most important of all, what is your budget?
The rush towards dual-cab, four-wheel drive, pick-up trucks is just about the most senseless development in Australian motoring over the past 40 years. Every single one of them is a camel – a horse designed by a committee – which cannot fulfill all the conflicting demands of a family car, a tool for trade, off-road adventuring and ‘The Big Trip’ towing a caravan around Australia.
But there is help, and we’ve here to provide it with stories about the cars that matter, the things you need to know, and how to cut through the fuzz and fizz to find the right answers. Each week you will find something on the car front to educate and enjoy, from road tests to technology, and beyond.
Come along for the ride, because it’s going to be fun.
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