Episode 69; Deep Dive: Record EV Sales, Charging Failures, New Affordable EVs and Electric Trucks

This week on Plugged In Australia, we’re back with a full deep dive after a rough week off with influenza A. There were no Quick Charge episodes this week and no deep dive last week, and with school holidays now here, there also won’t be Quick Charge episodes next week — but there will be a deep dive.

In Episode 69, we cover Australia’s record June vehicle market, Tesla and BYD’s massive sales surge, calls for mandatory EV charger standards after the Telstra outage, the updated Xpeng G6, MG S5 EV, Kia EV3 AWD, Lexus ES electric, Leapmotor B05, Cupra Raval, Jaecoo J8 PHEV, Farizon’s new electric cab chassis, electric trucks being built in Australia, Western Sydney Airport’s electric ground equipment, and more.

YouTube timestamps

00:00 — Intro and apology
01:30 — Telstra outage exposes EV charging weakness
04:23 — June 2026 record EV sales
07:39 — Tesla sets new Australian sales record
09:38   — BYD almost catches Toyota
12:13 — Kia EV3 AWD coming to Australia
15:04 — BMW iX3 earns first five-star 2026 ANCAP result
17:10 — MG S5 EV gets more range and power
19:24 — Xpeng G6 refreshed and cheaper
27:41 — MG U9 hybrid ute under consideration
35:05 — Toyota HiLux BEV mostly attracting fleets
45:07 — Farizon F3E electric cab chassis
52:32 — Jaecoo J8 PHEV seven-seater
1:02:08 — GWM targets top five
1:12:34 — Leapmotor B05 affordable EV hatch
1:22:09 — Lexus ES EV coming to Australia
1:23:33 — Polestar 4 rear-window version
1:24:56 — Cupra Raval confirmed
1:35:07 — Geely Emgrand EM-i context
1:43:57 — Zeekr LandCruiser fighter and ute interest
1:45:17 — Volvo builds Australian-made electric trucks
1:55:55 — Ausgrid electric prime mover trial
1:17:03 — 148-truck electric freight deal
2:08:45 — Western Sydney Airport electric ground equipment
2:09:54 — Tesla FSD light for older hardware
2:16:34 — BYD Atto 2 update
2:23:00 — Outro

Disclaimer:

All specifications, pricing, and information discussed in this episode were correct at the time of recording. The electric vehicle market moves quickly, so we recommend you always check the latest details directly with manufacturers, dealers, or official sources.

This podcast provides general news and information only, based on publicly available sources and Australian Consumer Law guidelines. It is not legal, financial, or professional advice. For advice specific to your situation, please contact the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) or seek independent professional guidance.

Plugged in Australia and its hosts are not responsible for any decisions, misunderstandings, or purchases made based on the content of this show.

Sourcing & Transparency

At Plugged in Australia, all our stories are sourced from publicly available news articles and reports. We do not receive any advance information or briefings from brands or manufacturers.

Any analysis or opinions we share are based solely on this public information.

Our main sources include (though we also use many others, and they vary by episode):

• https://www.carsales.com.au/
• https://www.carexpert.com.au/
• https://thedriven.io/
• https://www.carsguide.com.au
• https://autotalk.com.au
• https://www.carsguide.com.au
• https://evcentral.com.au
• https://www.drive.com.au

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:00

G'day, welcome to Plugged in Australia, episode 69 for Saturday, the 11th of July, 2026. And first up, I need to put out an apology there for some of the missing episodes. We didn't have any quick charge episodes this week, and there was no deep dive episode last week. I was pretty crooked. I had influenza A and uh it really knocked me about. And uh we're into the school holidays now in New South Wales, so there won't be any quick charge episodes next week either, as I have uh dad duties, um, but we still will have a deep dive episode at the end of the week. Uh tell you what, in the meantime, the uh EV market's gone absolutely nuts. We've got a record month for new car sales and Tesla setting another Australian record, BYD coming within just 243 vehicles of Toyota. We had a Telstra outage that exposed some pretty serious weaknesses in public charging and a heap of new EVs, got plug-in hybrids and commercial electric vehicles either launching or being confirmed for Australia. So it's going to be a very in-depth and a very long episode today. So please, if you're uh listening on your favorite podcast platform there, check in the episode description. There will be timestamps, and if you're listening on YouTube, there will be chapters in the slide bar thingy below. So make sure you don't want to listen to the whole thing, just move into the uh topics that you're interested in and have a listen. So, alright, without further ado, let's get into it. Alright, first story for this week is one of those stories that sounds small until you actually sort of think about what it means in the real world. A Tesla data outage on Wednesday, the 8th of July, disrupted mobile data, phone calls, F POS payments, taxi operations, and some public transport systems, and even some emergency service calls. But for EV drivers, the big issue was public charging. ChargeFox, Australia's largest public EV charging network, was impacted because access to its smartphone app was disrupted. And that really matters because a lot of public charging in Australia still relies heavily on app-based activation, mobile data, cloud authentication, and sometimes F POS terminals that also need connectivity. The Australian Electric Vehicle Association is now calling for mandatory national standards around charge resilience. The key point is pretty simple. An EV charger should not become useless just because a mobile network has gone down. And I think that's a pretty completely fair point. Because when you're talking about public charging, especially regional charging, there may not be another station around the corner. If you're in a petrol car and one F-Boss terminal goes down, there's usually another servo, another payment option, or someone can manually process something with EV charging. If the charger needs an app, the app needs mobile data, and the charger itself can't authorise a session without phoning home, you're going to be stuck. The AVA is calling for fallback pathways if connectivity drops. Now that could include multiple carrier connections, better local charger logic, RFID backup, tap and go payment systems that can cue authorized payments until the network returns, or in some cases, charges default into a free session when connectivity fails, particularly where the charger was publicly funded or is located in a regional area with limited alternatives. And this lands at an important time because EV sales are no longer a rounding error. In June, EVs hit 23.3% of the Australian new vehicle market, which is a record. Petrol fell to 24.8%. So we are now at the point where charging infrastructure is mainstream transport infrastructure, not a niche add-on. And the hard truth here is that the charger network needs to grow up with the market. Drivers should not need three apps: a strong mobile signal, an active account, a working payment processor, and sheer dumb luck just to buy electricity. The solution is not complicated in principle. Public charges need proper card payment, roaming, backup authentication, better uptime reporting, and standards around what happens when internet connectivity fails. Because if governments are funding charges or if charges are being installed as a central transport infrastructure, I think there needs to be a minimum standard, not just on charging speed, but on reliability, payment access, and what happens when things go wrong. June 2026 was absolutely massive. Australia recorded 140,058 new vehicle deliveries in June, making it the highest monthly total sales since 2017. And EVs were the headline act, reaching a record 23.3% market share, beating the previous record of 19.9%. I said only one month earlier in May. Tesla had a huge month. BYD had an even more ridiculous month, and uh Chinese-made vehicles in general are now a serious force in Australia. Tesla finished fourth overall with 8,670 deliveries, up 88.9% year-on-year. And that was Tesla's highest ever Australian monthly result, beating the previous record of 6,433 deliveries set again, only in May. The Tesla Model Y alone accounted for 8,072 of those delivered and was Australia's best-selling vehicle outright for the month. BYD, as I said, was the other big story. It delivered 18,881 vehicles in June, just 243 fewer than Toyota's preliminary 19,124 tally. That gave BYD a 13.5% market share for the month compared with Toyota's 13.7%. Feels very surreal saying that to me. That's crazy. BYD's only been in the Australian market in its current form since 2022, and in June 2026 it came within a couple of hundred units of the market leader that has dominated this country for decades. Now there is some context. BYD itself has said June's result is unlikely to be repeated for some time because this was a major delivery push after a big order bank had uh extra production support and extra vehicles arriving on BYD's own ship. But even with that context, the trend is impossible to ignore. BYD sold 7,702 vehicles in April, 8,211 in May, and then 18,881 in June. So across three months, that's 34,794 vehicles. Year to date, BYD is at 52,335 vehicles, while Toyota still remains well ahead at about 95,000. The other key point is what BYD is selling. The C Lion 7 was its top seller in June with 4,730 deliveries. The Shark 6 plug-in hybrid Ute followed with 3,398 deliveries, then came with the Addo 2 at 2,482, and the C Lion 6 plug-in hybrid with 2,218. So it's not just a one cheap model carrying the entire brand. BYD is spreading volume across EV, SUVs, plug-in hybrids, and of course Utes. And that brings us to the bigger market shift. Hybrids and plug-in hybrids also surged in June, with hybrid sales up 35% year on year and plug-in hybrids up 158%. The Australian market is no longer just petrol versus diesel, it's now a three-way fight between EVs, hybrids and plug-in hybrids, with diesel still strong in Utes and large SUVs, and petrol shrinking in relevance every single month. Now Tesla's June result I think deserves its own little segment here because it shows just how quickly things have really turned around. The brand delivered 8,670 vehicles in June, its best ever month in Australia. And that was up nearly six uh sorry 89% compared with June of last year, and it pushed Tesla to fourth overall on the brand chart. And the Model Y, of course, was a star with 8,072 deliveries, and it was not just the best-selling EV, it was the best-selling vehicle in Australia, full stop, capital letter, no returns. As us millennials would say. The means, sorry, that means that the Model Y beat the Ford Ranger, the Toyota Hilux, the Toyota R4, the BYD C Line 7, and everything else that comes after it. And this comes after a period where there was lots of noise around Tesla sales earlier in the year. People were very quick to point to soft demands and suggest, oh Tesla, losing its grip. However, May and June tell a very different story. The refresh Model Y has clearly landed very well. Think about pricing, availability, brand awareness, charging network access, and don't forget FSD, as well as the general move towards EVs, have all contributed. And whether people like Tesla or not, the Model Y is doing something no EV has really done before in Australia. It's behaving like a mainstream default family car. Now that does not mean Tesla has the market to itself, and that's far from it. The BYD C Line 7 is now a very serious challenger. And June showed that buyers are absolutely willing to cross-shop Chinese EV SUVs against Tesla. And yes, I'm aware that the Tesla is made in China as well, but it's definitely seen more as an American vehicle than a Chinese one. But the fact that the Model Y can still top the entire market shows Tesla is not fading away in Australia. The more interesting question now is whether this level of demand continues after the initial refresh Model Y wave has settles down. Alright, last uh segment for the June results here. I just wanted to focus a little bit more on the BYD one. And I think BYD coming within 243 vehicles of Toyota is probably one of the biggest Australian automotive stories of the week, if not of the year thus far. And Toyota has led the Australian market for 24 years. It sold 239,863 vehicles in Australia last year. And BYD, meanwhile, is still a relatively new brand here. But in June, BYD delivered 18,881 vehicles, and Toyota delivered 19,124. That's not just an EV story, that's a whole of market story. BYD now has scale, supply, dealer reach, a growing model range, and most importantly, products in the right categories. It has affordable EVs, family EV SUVs, plug-in hybrid SUVs, and now a plug-in hybrid Ute. The C-Lion 7 was BYD's biggest seller in June, and it was also the fourth best-selling vehicle overall. That puts it behind the Tesla Model Y, Ford Ranger, and Toyota Hilux, but ahead of the Toyota RAV 4. That's a pretty big deal because the RAV 4 has been one of the most important family cars for electric SUV from BYD to outsell it in a record month tells you that the ground is moving. Now Toyota's will undoubtedly point to supply constraints and you know they've got an order bank for 14 months or 18 months or whatever the order bank is for the RAV 4. But you've got to see that that will BYD manages to pull their finger out, so to speak, and get ship cars here on their own ship, so there's really no excuse. Toyota should be doing the same sort of thing. The Shark 6 was another standout, it more than doubled from 1,244 units in May to 3,398 in June, making it Australia's best-selling plug-in hybrid, and the third most popular Ute, only behind the Ranger and Hollux. Now, we shouldn't be careful not to uh overstate it. Toyota is still miles ahead year to date. Toyota is at about 95,000 deliveries for the first half, compared with BYD at 52,335. So Toyota ain't going anywhere. But the old idea that Toyota is untouchable in Australia is starting to look less certain. BYD's own public target has softened from those early big claims about overtaking Toyota by 2030. The current language is more about finishing near the top three brands by the end of 2026. But after June, that no longer sounds crazy. Alright, moving on to vehicle news, and Kia is getting ready to expand the EV3 lineup in Australia with a dual motor all-wheel drive flagship. A leaked dealer bulletin suggests the 2027 Kia EV3 GT line all-wheel drive will be priced from 66,490 before on-road costs. That's only 2.5 grand more than the GT line front-wheel drive version. Outputs rise from 150 kW and 283 Nm to 195kW and 385Nm. The 0 to 100 time drops from 7.9 seconds to 6.6 seconds, while the WLTP range only slips slightly from 563 to 559km. That range figure is the key. Normally, when you add all wheel drive, you expect a bigger range penalty. Here Kia appears to have kept the efficiency hit very small. The all drive model also gets upsize brakes, bespoke suspension tuning, and a bespoke steering software map. The standard GT line equipment carries across, including 19-inch wheels, LED projector headlights, Harman Carton audio, heated and ventilated front seats, and the higher grade interior fit out. This also raises a question about the EV3 GT. Kia revealed the EV3 GT overseas with 215 kilowatt and a 5.7 0200 time, along with the GT specific features like virtual gear shifts, electronically controlled suspension, performance tires, and unique styling. But the leaked Australian bulletin only mentions the GT line wall drive, which could mean the full EV3 GT is not currently planned for Australia. For Australia, that probably makes the most sense. The EV3 is already doing well. It recorded 2658 sales from January to June, which is up 130.5%, and it sits pretty close behind the larger EV5. The all-wheel drive version gives Kia a higher performance flagship without turning the EV3 into a full hot SUV. And at 66,490 before on road cost, it still sits in a semi-realistic space for buyers who want compact size, long range, and all-wheel drive. Still definitely on the higher end of the pricing, and they probably are getting those efficiency figures similar to the EV5 GT line, which we have. When you put it into eco mode, it becomes a front-wheel drive only, or one drive only. Whether as when you put it into like normal or sports, it will then activate the oil drive. So those figures are obviously WLTP, so it's using a very big mixture. If it was running a wheel drive all the time, I would hazard a guess to say the efficiency would drop. That's just my thoughts on it. We'll see once it gets revealed. The new BMW iX3 has become the first vehicle to score five-star safety rating under ANCAP's Tough Art 2026 testing protocols. This is pretty important because ANCAP and Euro NCAP have updated their criteria for 2026, and the new system now places more focus on driver distraction, crash avoidance, post-crash safety, EV battery integrity, and whether the vehicles have proper mechanical door releases if they use electric door handles. The IX3 was tested by Euro NCAP in Germany, and that data has been used by NCAP for the Australian rating. The rating applies to the IX340, which is priced from 89,990 before on roads, and the IX350X drive, which is priced from 10900 before on roads. The new system is built around four stages safe driving, crash avoidance, crash protection, and post-crash. The IX3 scored 71% for safe driving. That section now looks at things like the control layout where the common functions are buried in touch screens. The BMW was marked down for phone call operation and climate controls, but scored well for adaptive cruise control, speed assistance and fatigue monitoring. It scored 83% for crash avoidance, including a strong result for lane departure collision avoidance. Crash protection came in at 86%, with several 100% results in individual crash tests. Post crash was especially strong at 95%, helped by its emergency call system, battery safety assessment, and mechanical door release provision. It's a pretty good result for BMW, but it's also a sign of where safety testing is going. NCAP is no longer just asking, does the car protect you in a crash? It's now asking, does the car help prevent the crash? Does the interface distract you? Can people get out after a crash? Does the EV battery remain safe? And can emergency services deal with the vehicle? This is exactly where safety testing needs to go as cars become more software driven. MG has updated the S5 EV for more year 2026. The big news is that the flagship Essence 62 gets more power and more range without any more dollars. The lineup has been simplified from four variants down to two. MG has dropped the Xite49 and Xite 62, leaving only the Essence 49 and Essence 62. MG says the Essence grades already account for about 80% of the S5 EV sales. The Essence 49 remains priced at 42,990 drive away, and it uses a 49kWh LFP battery, 125 and 250Nm rear motor, and has a claimed WLTP range of 335km. The Essence 62 remains priced, that's 4790 drive away, but now gets a stronger 150kW and 350 Nm rear motor. That's up 25 kW and 100 Nm. The 0 to 100 time drops from 8.6 seconds to 7 seconds flat, and WLTP range rises by 25km to 450km. Now both variants include 18 inch alloy wheels, LED daytime running lights, a 10.25 inch instrument display, 12.8 inch touchscreen, 360 degree camera, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless phone charging, panoramic sunroof, heated front seats and a power towel gate with a kick sensor. And MG is also offering a $1,000 discount until the 31st of July 2026, bringing the Essence 49 to 41990 drive away and the SN62 to 46990 driveway. It's exactly the type of update MG needed. The S5EV competes against the BYD ADO3, the Jilly EX5, and the Hyundai Kona Electric, and the market's become far more competitive than it was when the old S sorry ZS EV launched. The S62 now looks like the pick of the range, a 450km WLTP range claim, rear-wheel drive, 150 kilowatts, decent standard equipment and a sub-50,000 driveaway price is a pretty strong overall package. XPang has opened Australian orders for the updated G6, and it's one of the more important mid-size EV SUVs that are being launched at the moment. The updated G6 now starts at $51,800 before on-road costs, and that is $3,000 cheaper than before. And importantly, it's not a price cut with a big downgrade attached. The lineup has actually expanded from two variants to four, and XPang has decided to add faster charging, stronger performance in some grades, and more technology across the range. The entry point is now the G6 rear-wheel drive standard range at 51800 before on roads. It uses a 68.5 kilowatt hour lithium-ion phosphate battery, drives the rear wheels and produces 185 kilowatts and 440 Nm. Claimed WLTP range is 480km with an 0 to 100 time of 6.94 seconds. That puts the cheapest G6 in a very interesting position because it undercuts the entry versions of the Tesla Model Y, the BYDC Line 7, and the Zika 7X. So it's not just a small discount. X Bang is clearly trying to make the G6 look like the value option in the mid-size SUV market. Then there's the G6 rear-wheel drive long range. That one is priced from 56800 before on-road costs. This one gets a larger 80.8 kilowatt hour LFP battery, gets more power at 218 kilowatts, and the same 440 Nm of torque, and up to 525 kilometers of WLTP range. The 0 to 100 time drops slightly to 6.7 seconds. The long range model is probably the sweet spot for a lot of buyers. You get the bigger battery, the longest range in the lineup, you get rear-wheel drive efficiency, and you still stay comfortably under the price of a lot of premium branded EV SUVs. Above that are the two all-wheel drive models. You have the G6 all-wheel drive performance. That one is priced at 63800 before on road costs, and the all-wheel drive performance black edition sits above it at 66800 before on roads. Both use the larger 80.8 kilowatt hour LFP battery and of course dual motors, producing a combined 358 kilowatts, 660 newtonm. Claimed 0 to 100 acceleration is 4.15 seconds, and WLTP range is listed at up to 510 kilometers. So even the performance versions are not doing the old school EV thing where you get a big acceleration number, but range kind of falls off a cliff. They're still claiming over 500km. WLTP, which is pretty strong for a dual motor SUV. Now the Black Edition is not a separate powertrain, it's more of a styling flagship with black paint, black 20-inch wheels, black brake calipers, black exterior badging, and darker front light strip treatment. Charging is probably going to be the headline figure for these ones here because XPang says the updated G6 uses an 800 volt high voltage silicon carbide platform and 5C fast charging technology. And depending on the variant, peak DC charging can be up to 382 kilowatts or 550kW, with the long range capable of the 451 kilowatts. XPang claims a 10 to 80% charge can take as little as 12 minutes under ideal conditions. That really needs a real-world caveat. That number is pretty impressive and it is absolutely one of the strongest charging claims in this price range, but it will depend heavily on charger availability, things like battery temperature, state of charge, conditions, and whether you can actually find a charger capable of delivering that sort of power. A lot of Australian public fast chargers will not get near 451 kilowatts, so most owners should really think about the best case capability, not something that they will see every charging stop. But even with that caveat, the point stands. The updated G6 has one of the most advanced charging setups in the segment. And if you are road tripping, a car that can hold high charging currents, well, it's just as important as this headline range figure. The G6 also has six kilowatt vehicle to load capability as standard, which I think is pretty useful. It's enough to run tools, camping gear, small appliances, or emergency backup loads, depending on how you use it. In Australia, I still think VUL is pretty underrated, especially for people who camp or who work from home, run equipment, or just want backup power and a blackout. Standard equipment is also very strong. Across the range, the G6 gets a panoramic glass roof, Napa leather upholstery, power adjustable front seats with heating, ventilation and massage, a 15.6 inch central touchscreen, a 10.25 inch digital instrument cluster, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and an 18 speaker audio system. It also gets X pilot driver assistance with processing support from an NVIDIA or an X chip. Safety and assistance equipment includes 7 airbags, adaptive cruise control, lane centering, automatic lane change, rear cross traffic alert, automatic parking assist, and a surround view camera. There's also over-the-air update capability, which really matters because with cars like this, the software experience is a major part of the ownership experience, provided you actually get any software updates. Anyway, dimensionally the G6 is very much in that Model Y style family SUV zone. It's around 4,753mm long, 1,920mm wide, and 1,650mm tall with a 2,890mm wheelbase. Boot space is listed at 571 litres, expanding to 1,374 litres with the rear seats folded. So on PayPal, this is not uh your sort of tiny coupe SUV pretending to be a family car, it's a real-size, mid-size SUV with the sort of footprint buyers are already comfortable with in Australia. The warranty also helps the pinch. Private buyers get a seven-year unlimited kilometre vehicle warranty with an eight-year 160,000 kilometre warranty for key electric drive components. That includes things like the traction battery, the BMS or the battery management system, drive motor, and the intelligent power unit. I think but the product is only sort of one side of the story. The bigger question for XPang is Australia and its confidence in the brand, really. This update comes after X Peng moved to its own distribution model in Australia, following the brand previously being held here by TrueEV. Now that transition has not been completely clean, and there is still a legal dispute around the change. So for buyers, that does not automatically mean the car is bad. Far from it. But it does mean XPing needs to work really hard on customer support, things like parts, servicing, communication, and dealer consistency. And that's the part we've spoken about before. We've spoken about it with XPang and other brands. The spec sheet can be fantastic and brilliant. Price can be sharp, the range can be strong, but Australian buyers still want to know who fixes it, who answers the phone, who honors the warranty, and what happens in five years. And this is a real test for X Pang because purely as a product, the updated G6 looks extremely positive. Looks very competitive. It's cheaper than before, better equipped, faster charging, got a good range, and it's reasonably quick in the performance grades. The long range at 56800 before on roads looks especially strong if the real world efficiency and charging live up to the claims. And the standard range at 51800 gives XP a proper value hook against Tesla, BYD, and Zika. So I think I would put it this way. The G6 is no longer just another Chinese EV SUV trying to get attention on pricing and specs. It's now a very serious mid-size EV-SUV contender. But the job for XPang Australia is to make sure the ownership experience feels just as convincing as the spec sheet. MG is looking at a hybrid version of the U9 Ute for Australia, and this is exactly the sort of story that shows just where the Ute market is really heading. The MG U9 is already here as a diesel, a fully electric version is on its way. But the question now is whether MG fills the gap in the middle with a plug-in hybrid version. And that gap matters because right now the Ute market is not just moving from diesel straight to fully battery electric in Australia. The middle ground is where a lot of the action is sort of happening. The diesel U9 arrived in Australia last year with a 2.5 litre turbo diesel four-cylinder engine, producing 160 kilowatts and 520 newton meters. It's a pretty big Ute at around 5.5 meters long, which makes it longer than most of its key dual cab rivals. Even the BYD Shark is a little shorter at 5,457mm. The U9 range currently gives MG a conventional Ute option. It has full drive, diesel power, and the sort of towing and work credentials Ute buyers sort of expect. Current diesel versions are priced in the low to mid $50,000 drive away, depending on the grade, with the Explore, Explore X, Black Edition, and Explore Pro sitting across the lineup. And MG has already confirmed a fully electric U9EV is incoming. Approval filings point to a dual motor all-wheel drive setup producing 325 kilowatts. It's a pretty big number for a Ute, and the electric version should give MG something to put up against vehicles like the Toyota Holax BEV and other electric Utes starting to appear in Australia. But here's the issue diesel and full EV are almost sort of two ends of the market. A diesel Ute is very familiar, it can tow, it can tour, carry gear, fuel reasonably quickly, and do long distance regional work without much thought. A full electric ute can be brilliant for depot-based fleets, urban tradies, councils, site vehicles, and businesses with predictable routes. However, for private buyers who tow, go away on weekends, travel regional highways, or do a mix of family and work duties, a full EV Ute still asks a lot of questions around range, towing range and charging accessories. That's where a plug-in hybrid Ute sort of look a bit more attractive. The BYD Shark 6 has already shown there is a serious demand. In June, Shark 6 sales more than doubled from 1,244 in May to 3,398. And that made it Australia's best-selling plug-in hybrid, the sixth best-selling vehicle overall, and the third most popular Ute in the country, behind the infamous Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux. It's a pretty big deal, innit? Tells MG exactly what buyers are responding to. The Shark 6 uses a 1.5 litre turbo petrol engine and dual electric motors. The appeal is now that it is a perfect replacement for every diesel Ute. The appeal is that a lot of owners it gives them electric driving for the daily commute and petrol backup for longer trips. It's the middle ground, and MG seems very aware of it. The latest comments from MG Australia stop short of officially confirming a U9 hybrid, but the company is clearly watching the category. MG has previously talked about a plug-in hybrid version of the U9 as part of its Australian plan, with mid-2027 previously mentioned. The more recent language is a little bit more cautious, but the message is still obvious. Hybrid youths are becoming too important to ignore. The U9 shares its underpinnings with the LDV Terron9 and Eterron 9. MG and LDV are both part of SAIC, and the Terron9 has already shown, has already been shown rather, in plug-in hybrid form overseas, with production expected in 2027. Now that does not mean automatically there's going to be confirmation of a U9 plug-in for Australia, but it does make the idea a little bit more realistic. If the related LDV platform is already being developed with diesel, electric and plug-in hybrid powertrains, it would make sense for MG to look at the same sort of pathway. And this is bigger than MG. I think the plug-in hybrid Ute market in Australia is getting pretty crowded. We have the BYD Shark 6 already here, already on sale. We've got the GWM, they've got the Canon Alpha plugin hybrid. Ford has the Ranger plugin hybrid. JAC has the Hunter plugin coming in soon. Nissan has the Frontier Pro plugin hybrid on the way. Cherry's been working with its own electrified Ute, which is a diesel plugin hybrid. And LDV is expected to have its Fev options as well. So if MG only has diesel and EV, it risks missing the hottest part of the market. And the new vehicle efficiency standard gives brands another reason to sort of move a little bit quicker. Utes have traditionally been diesel heavy, high-emission vehicles, and as emissions limits tighten, brands need cleaner options in high volume segments. A plug-in hybrid Ute gives manufacturers a way to keep selling vehicles people want while also reducing fleet emissions on paper. But the warning here is that a plug-in hybrid Ute still has to be done properly. Can't just be a compliance exercise. A good plug-in hybrid ute needs a useful electric range, needs strong total power, proper towing ability, a decent payload, decent efficiency when the battery is flat, and software that makes sense and is useful. Also, if it's too expensive, too heavy, too thirsty when it's it's all discharged or compromised for towing, everyone's gonna notice. And this is why this segment is so interesting. A diesel U9 is a known quantity. The U9EV is the bold step into full electrification, but a U9FEV could be the one that actually gets the broadest attention from private buyers. Because for Australia, the plug-in hybrid Ute formula is easy to understand. Charge it at home, drive electric most weekdays, and still have petrol backup for your towing, your touring, and your longer regional trips. And whether people like it or not, that's probably a more realistic stepping stone for a lot of Ute buyers than going straight to full electric. Now, MG sold 122 diesel U9s in Australia in June, which is its best month so far. That's not a big number compared with Ranger, Higher Lux, or Shark 6, but it's a start. MG also had a strong month overall, finishing ninth among brands with just over 5,000 sales. The bigger opportunity is not the diesel U9 by itself. It is the U9 becoming a whole Ute family, diesel for traditional buyers, EV for fleets and early adopters, and a plug-in hybrid for the buyers who want lower running costs and electric daily driving without giving up total flexibility with your long distances and things like that. So for MG, the question should not be whether a U9 hybrid makes sense. The question should be about how quickly they can get one here and whether it would be good enough to stand beside the Shark 6, Ranger plug-in hybrid, Canon Alpha plugin hybrid, and the next wave of fully electrified Utes. Because right now the market is moving. And if MG wants the Unine to be more than a niche alternative, the hybrid version might be the most important one. Alright, and sticking with Utes, Toyota's first electric Ute is now on sale in Australia. However, private buyers are not exactly queuing up for it. Around 300 Hilux BEVs have been sold since the model went on sale in May, but fewer than 10 have gone to private buyers. In other words, almost all early demand has come from fleets. And honestly, sort of makes a complete sense to be honest, but uh the Hylux BEV is not really a lifestyle ute for the average private buyer, it's much more clearly a fleet, mining, energy infrastructure, and work site vehicle. That tells you the kind of customers this electric ute is really aimed at. These are buys with predictable work patterns, managed fleets, charging plans, depot or site infrastructure, emissions targets, and very specific use cases. For those customers, the Hylux BEV can make a lot of sense. If a vehicle spends its life on a mine site, an energy site or an infrastructure project, could even be a council route or an urban fleet run, it may not need 800 kilometres of touring range, may not need to tow 3.5 tons across the country, it may just need to be reliable, quiet, low emission, cheaper to run, and be able to be come back to base for charging. This is where this vehicle fits. However, for private buyers, the numbers are a little bit of a harder sell. The Hilux BEV uses a 59.2 kWh lithium-ion battery and a dual motor all-wheel drive system, producing 144 kilowatts and 468 Nm of torque. It's actually not far off the diesel Hilux on paper, which makes 150kW and between sort of 420 and 500 Nm, depending on the transmission. Charging is also decent for what it is. DC fast charging is up to 150 kW with a claimed 10 to 80% charge in as little as 30 minutes. AC charging is 10 kW three phase with a claimed 10 to 100% in about 6.5 hours. So as a work vehicle that returns to base, the charging setup is very usable. The problem is range and capability. Toyota Lis range at 245km for the Cab Chazzi variants on the NEDC cycle, and 350km for the pickup or the tub variants. And because that is NEDC, real world range, especially loaded on highways, in bad weather, or with accessories fitted, is going to be the thing buyers really care about. When we did the episode explaining the different test cycles, NEDC, WLTP, etc., one of the comments was that NEDC actually stands for not even damn close, which I think in this context is pretty apt description. Back to the Hilux there, but when you go to towing, the BEV is only rated to tow two tonne, and that's with a brake trailer, of course. Diesel Hilux can tow three and a half ton. Pallods also lower, with the BEV rated up to 855 kilograms, while some of the diesel dual cab models can carry more than a tonne. That's a trade-off. You get an electric Hilux, but you do not get diesel Hylax capability. That's probably why private buyers are a little bit cautious. For a tradie who mostly drives around town, carries lighter gear, and can charge at home or work, the Hylux BEV could make sense. Toyota has made that point as well. There are customers who do lower intensity work, carry lighter loads, and mostly drive in metro areas, which I think is probably the vast majority of Hilux owners. I drive past plenty of Hyluxes and a lot of them got nothing in the tray and just driving around doing whatever it is that they're doing. So anyway, the broader private ute market is a little bit different. A lot of buyers want one Ute to do everything work during the week, tow on weekends, go away during school holidays, carry tools, carry family, handle long distance trips and fuel quickly wherever they go. And the diesel Hilux does that with very few compromises, whether as the BEV one does not. Pricing makes the case even harder. The Hilux BEV starts at 74,990 before on-road costs for the SR Dual Cab chassis. The SR dual cab pickup is 76,490 before on-roads, and then the SR5 dual cab pickup is 82,990 before on roads. That makes the electric versions the most expensive Hollux variants in Australia. Diesel Rogue and Rugged X versions top out at 71.990 before on roads. So private buyers are being asked to pay more money for less range, less towing capability, and less payload. Now that doesn't mean the Holux BEV is a bad product, it means the business case is very specific. For fleets, there may be lower running costs, lower maintenance, emissions targets, reporting benefits, potential tax advantages, and corporate sustainability requirements. For private buyers, those benefits may not be enough to outweigh the compromises. And Toyota has previously indicated it expects to sell around 500 Hylux battery electric vehicles this year. To put that into perspective, Toyota sold 4,05 Hilux vehicles across all variants in May alone. So the BEV is still only a very small part of the overall Hylux story. I think that's how Toyota wants it for now, to be honest, that this is not Toyota trying to replace the diesel Hilux overnight, if at all. It's Toyota putting an electric option into the market for fleet customers who are ready for it and who want it. The more interesting point is what Toyota is not doing. Toyota is not rushing a plug-in hybrid Hilux. That is important because rival brands are moving quickly into the Fev Utes. BYD has the Shark 6, GWM has a Canon Alpha plugin, Ford has the Ranger plugin, JAC and Nissen have plug-in hybrid ute on the way, and as we just spoke about, MG is clearly watching the U9 hybrid opportunity as well. Toyota says the technology needs to be right for Hylux customers before it brings a plug-in hybrid version to market. The concern is added weight, towing capability, payload, and meeting the expectations people have of the Hilux badge. And it's very understandable, but also creates a gap. Because for many private buyers, a properly sorted plug-in hybrid Hilux would be much more appealing than the current battery electric version. A Fev Hilux could give people electric driving for your daily commutes, lower fuel use around town, and still give them the long-range flexibility for towing and touring. That's exactly why the BYD Shark 6 is getting so much attention. Toyota's approach is cautious as always, sticking with diesel, adding a fleet-focused BEV, and talking about hydrogen in the long term. But the Australian Ute market is changing quickly, and Toyota cannot assume buyers will wait forever. The Hylax BEV is useful, it's important, it gets Toyota into the electric ute conversation, but for now, it's not the electric ute that will convert the average private Hylux buyer. It's a fleet tool and judged that way, it makes sense. Judged as a private Ute for everyday Australians who tow, travel, and want one vehicle to do everything, it's a much harder sell. And uh just a little bit of a personal experience. We picked up our Sea Lion 8 uh a few weeks ago now, and uh attached to that dealership is a Toyota dealership. And so while I was waiting, I thought right, let's go and have a look at the Ute. We currently have a GWM cannon Ute, which is just a normal diesel cannon Ute. It's about three or four years old now, so it'll be due for replacement in the next few years. So I thought, oh let's go and have a bit of a sticky beak. I'd already heard about the BEV, I thought let's go and have a look. So I wandered over there and got a salesman and I said, I just wanted to see, did you have the pet electric one here? And he said, Oh no, definitely not. Our fleet guy uh has one coming in a week or two or something like that. He's like, Oh, but you don't want that, that's just you know, and just immediately started listing the negatives. So the salespeople are clearly not interested in the slightest, and obviously it's a hard sell, very, very hard sell, as you can see by all the figures there. So, you know, you would be fighting an uphill battle. But if somebody's come in asking for it, then price may not be driving factor, towing may not be a driving factor. All of those things they may not give a brass razu about. That's going to be another one of the big massive hurdles for Toyota is going to be the dealers and how their staff are going to approach things like this. For them, the diesel high lux is just an easy sell and they're just going to go with the easy sale. They're not going to work for it. So if Toyota does eventually want to push this more into that sort of sphere, they will need to make sure they re-educate and re-incentivize their staff. So just a little bit of a personal experience. I'm sure other people out there have had the same sort of experience that other brands that don't normally sell electric cars. We had the same thing while we were looking for the C Lion 8. We went to a Kia dealership to talk about the EV9 and basically was told, oh no, it's too expensive, it's to this, it's which it is too expensive, but that's beside the point. We were basically talked out of it. And we basically, oh have a look at this carnival. Oh no, we don't want a van. Ah well, yeah, since you don't have anything, see allowed a buy. So yeah, salespeople at the dealerships are a big factor for the legacy brands. So I know that I've kind of rattled on a little bit on the end of this segment here about that sort of thing, but it's definitely an important note for the major brands. Let's continue. Verizon has launched the F3E electric cab chazer in Australia. And this is one of those stories that'll probably not get the same attention as a new electric SUV or a little fast Tesla update for, but for businesses, councils, trades, and urban delivery fleets, it could be a genuinely useful vehicle. Now Verizon is Gili's commercial vehicle brand, and in Australia it is distributed by Jamil Motors. The F3E now becomes another part of Verizon's growing local commercial EV lineup, joining its electric vans and larger electric light truck. And the pitch here is very different from an electric Ute, like the Toyota BEV or the BYD Shark 6 or the MGU9. It's not trying to be a family Ute, a touring Ute, a lifestyle Ute, or something that does everything. It's a cab over electric light truck aimed at urban delivery, light freight trades, service fleets, and businesses that need payload and flexibility more than image. The F3E is available in three configurations. There is a bare cab chassis priced from 48.990 before on-road costs. There is a tray version, 50,990 before on-road costs, and there is a cargo box version, 53,490 before on-road costs. That's important because this gives operators a bit more of a choice. If you already have a preferred bodybuilder or need a custom setup, the cab chassis gives you the starting point. If you want something ready to work as a tray, there it is. And if you want an enclosed delivery vehicle, the cargo box version is obviously the one you want. Now all versions use a 72.8 kilowatt hour lithium-ion phosphate battery supplied by CATL. Claimed driving range is up to 314 kilometers. Although that will depend on the body style and the payload. The F3E uses a rear-wheel drive electric motor, producing around 110 kW and 260 newtonm with a top speed of 90 km per hour. That tells you exactly what kind of work it is built for. It's not about performance, it's about moving loads efficiently in city and suburban conditions. Charging is reasonably decent for this category. DC charging is 100 kW with 20 to 80% about 30 minutes. AC charging is 11 kilowatts with 20 to 30% about 6 hours. It also has a 3.3 kilowatt vehicle to load capability through a 240 volt outlet, which is a reasonably useful commercial feature for trades, site works, or mobile service operators as well. Being able to power tools or equipment directly from the truck makes a bit more sense. And unlike V2L in a passenger car, this is this is exactly the sort of vehicle people are likely to actually use it. You know, you got your tools there, you need to charge the batteries. I know they you can buy ones that plug into the cigarette lighter and things like that, but uh they take forever to charge. So if you can put a proper fast charging for your Makita, Milwaukee, whatever it is that you use, charges in the in the back there, love and life. Cab Chassis has a maximum payload of 1.7 tonne. The tray version is rated at around 1.4 tonne and the cargo box version at about 1190 kilograms. That's the sort of key difference between this and a lot of electric utes. Some electric guts struggle because their battery weight cuts into payload and towing capability. However, the F3E is built as a commercial cab chassis platform first, and its job is to carry goods around town. The wheel base is 3,700mm, and the cargo box version has rear barn doors to make loading a little bit easier. The box itself is quite substantial with overseas figures showing internal dimensions around 3,820mm long, 1,900mm wide, and 1800mm high. Though Australian body specifications may vary depending on final configuration. Inside, it's a two-seat commercial cabin, but it's not totally bare bones. You get a 7-inch digital instrument display, a 12.3 inch central touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a reversing camera, rear parking sensors, lane departure warning, and autonomous emergency braking. There's also practical touches like 15 storage areas around the cabin, including a 45 litre compartment under the passenger seat. This sounds minor, but in a work vehicle, storage matters. Drivers really live in these things during the day, and if you have invoices, tools, charges, you know, drinks, lunch, paperwork, any sort of personal gear, cabin storage is not a luxury. Warranty coverage is five years or 200,000 kilometres for the vehicle, eight years or two hundred thousand kilometres for the high voltage battery, plus five years of roadside assistance. And that warranty distance is worth noting. Commercial operators care about kilometres more than years because these vehicles can work hard. A 200,000 kilometre warranty limit is at least speaking the right language for fleets. The bigger picture here is that commercial EVs are starting to become more specific. A few years ago, a lot of commercial electric vehicles felt like experiments. Now we're seeing vehicles built for particular jobs: vans, cab chazis, light trucks, depot trucks, airport equipment, which we'll touch on a bit later, local delivery vehicles and service fleets. And that really matters because electrification will not work in commercial vehicles if every model tries to be everything. The F3E makes sense because it is much more targeted. It doesn't pretend to be a three and a half ton towing family ute, it doesn't pretend to be a long-haul truck, it's an electric work platform for business that know their routes, know their loads, and can control charging. You know, think like a landscaper, plumber, electrician, council crew, courier, facilities operator, uh urban logistic fleets. This sort of vehicle could be far more useful than trying to make a dual cab youth do a truck's job. The hard part is going to be confidence. Verizon is still a new name for a lot of Australian buyers. Business customers will want to know about dealer support, servicing, parts supply, downtime, body integration, finance options, and real-world range under load. Because for commercial vehicles, the question is not is it good on paper? The question is will it work every day? And if it breaks, how quickly can I get it back on the road? If Verizon and Jamil Motors can get that part right, the F3E could be a really interesting option for small businesses and fleets wanting to electrify without moving into a much larger truck. And it's it's not glamorous, but it is practical, and in commercial EVs, practical is exactly what matters. JQ has expanded the J8 lineup in Australia with a new plug-in hybrid flagship, and this is a much more important model than the regular petrol J8 for our purposes, of course. The new version is called the JQ J8 SHS Summit. The SHS stands for Super Super Hybrid System. And it brings two big changes to the J8 range, plug-in hybrid power and seven seats. Why is that important? Because up until now, the JQ J8 in Australia has been a five-seat petrol SUV. It launched as Omoda JQ's second local model, but it was always a little bit awkward because the petrol J8 was large, well equipped, and quite premium inside, but it did not have the third row many family buyers expect in a vehicle this size. The SHS version fixes that. The J8 SHS Summit is priced from $59.99 before on-road costs. It sits above the petrol track, which is priced at $499.90 drive away, and the petrol ridge all-wheel drive, which is $5490. So it's not a cheap SUV, but it is a very aggressively priced for what it offers. Seven seats, all-wheel drive, plug-in hybrid power, a larger battery, a lot of equipment, and a bigger warranty. The powertrain is shared with other Cherry Group models, including the Cherry Tigo 9 Super Hybrid and a Motor 9. It uses a 1.5 litre petrol four-cylinder engine, three electric motors, a 34kWh nickel manganese cobalt battery, and a three-speed dedicated hybrid transmission. The petrol engine alone produces 105 kW, 250 Nm. The electric motor outputs are listed at 75 kW, 170 Nm, 90kW to 20 Nm, and 175kW and 310 Nm. Combined system output is 315kW and 580 Nm. That's a fair bit of power for a family SUV, especially at this price. It is also all-wheel drive, which gives it another point of difference against some more basic plug-in hybrids. The system is not just a small electric helper motor tacked onto a petrol engine, it's a proper high output plug-in hybrid setup with a sizable battery and serious combined performance. Claimed fuel use is 1.2 litres per 100km, although as always with plug-in hybrids, that number depends heavily on how often you charge it. If you charge it every night and do mostly local driving, it could use very little fuel, even no fuel. If you never charge it and drive it like a normal petrol SUV, the real world number will be very different. That is plugin hybrid truth that needs to be said every time, and I'll probably say that every single time we talk about plugin hybrids. And you know, they can be brilliant if used properly, they can also be a waste of battery weight and complexity if people do not plug them in. Electric only driving range is listed at 169 kilometers on the NEDC cycle. And NEDC is a lot more generous than WLTP, so uh take that with a massive grain of salt. But uh, even with a decent discount applied, this should have enough electric range for a lot of daily driving. JQ also claims up to 1000 kilometres of combined driving range from a full battery and fuel tank and a full fuel tank, I should say. Again, that will depend on conditions and driving style. However, the basic idea is clear. It gives you EV style driving with petrol backup for longer trips. Charging is another strong point for a plug-in hybrid. AC charging is 6.6 kilowatts and DC fast charging is up to 70 kilowatts. So not every plugin hybrid offers DC charging, so that's pretty useful if you are traveling and you want to top up the battery. I will got a little bit of a thing going on here for plug-in hybrids in regards to DC charging. Obviously, once uh you know school holidays are over and everything's sort of back to normal, I will be doing a segment on that. Having now got a plug-in hybrid, I've run some pretty interesting numbers and use case scenarios on DC charging for plug-in hybrids. So if that's of interest to you, just uh we'll put a pin in that and we will definitely be coming back to that. Um back to the JQ. So the J8SHS has a 70 litre fuel tank and it does require 95 octane premium unleaded. Brake towing capacity is a 1.6 tonne, and that's not Ute level towing, but it's enough for a small box trailer or a family camper, some family gear in it. Size-wise, a proper large SUV. It measures 4,820mm long, 1930mm wide, and 1715 millimeters tall in SHS form, sitting on a 2,820mm wheelbase. Boot space is 200 litres with the third row in use, 738 litres with the third row folded, and up to 2,021 litres with the second and third rows folded. So, like most seven seat SUVs, the third row is useful, but if you're traveling with all seven seats occupied, luggage space is going to be a little bit tight. And it's not a JCU problem, it's just a seven seat SUV problem. It's just the way it is. The equipment list is very strong. The J8 SHS Summit gets 20-inch alloy wheels, projector LED headlights, a power towelgate, panoramic sunroof with a power sunshade, heads-up display, 12.3 inch digital instrument cluster, 12.3 inch infotainment screen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 50 watt wireless phone charger, a Sony sound system, cooled leather upholstery, heated, ventilated and massaging front seats, heated and ventilated outboard second row seats, second row window shades, ambient lighting, a fragrance system, continuous damping control, and an electronic locking rear differential. Pretty different with the rear lock and diff. It's a lot of gear, and this is where JQ is clearly trying to win buyers. It's loading the car with the sort of features that used to be associated with much more expensive and luxury SUVs. Safety equipment includes adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, driver monitoring, lane keep assist, emergency lane keep assist, lane sensor, rear cross traffic alert, safe exit warning, surround view camera, traffic jam assist, front and rear parking sensors, tyre monitoring, and a full suite of airbags. However, the J8 has not yet been assessed by ANCAP. It's worth mentioning because a lot of family buyers do care about independent crash test ratings, especially in a 7-seat SUV. Now the warranty coverage is strong. The J8 is backed by an 8-year unlimited kilometer vehicle warranty, and the SHS also gets an 8-year unlimited kilometre warranty for the battery. There is also 12 months of roadside assistance, which can be extended up to 8 years if the vehicle is serviced through the Emoto JQ network. There's also 8 years of capped price servicing. The warranty is one of the things Amoto JQ is using to build trust quickly in Australia. Question is, is it enough? Because on paper, the J8 SHS Summit looks like a huge amount of car for the money. 7 seats, 315 kilowatts, a big plug-in hybrid battery, all-wheel drive, luxury style equipment, and a long warranty for about 60 grand on road. It's a pretty strong pitch, but buyers are still going to be asking the usual sensible questions. How does it drive in the real world? How efficient it how efficient is it when the battery is flat? How usable is the third row? How polished is the software? How good is the dealer network? How does the resale hold up? And how does the brand handle support if something goes wrong? Those questions all matter because Amoto JQ is still building its reputation here. The J8 SHS also sits in a crowded part of the market. It lines up against the Cherry Tigo 9 Super Hybrid, which is very closely related. It also gives buyers another alternative to the Amoda 9, the BYD C Line 8, the Kio Sorrento plug-in hybrid, the Mazda CX80 Fev, and other three row electrified SUVs. The most interesting comparison is probably with the Cherry Tigo 9 Super Hybrid. Now those two vehicles are very closely related and use the basic same powertrain. The JQ gets slightly different styling and specification, including adaptive dampers and the built-in fragrance system, but the Cherry gets some different interior tech and equipment depending on the grade. In China, the relationship is even more confusing because the J8 is effectively part of the Tigo 9 family. Now for Australian buyers that could be confusing, but it also gives them choice. And for us, the big takeaway is simple. Large FEV family SUVs are become a serious battleground. Not long ago, if you wanted a seven-seat plug-in hybrid, your options were limited and often super expensive. Now Chinese brands are coming in with big batteries, long electric range claims, high outputs, and very aggressive pricing. The J8 SHS Summit is not a guaranteed winner, still needs to prove itself in the real world, but it's exactly the sort of model that will put pressure on the established brands, and that pressure is good for buyers. GWM is getting very serious about Australia. The brand has confirmed a major new model push over the next six months with nine new models or variants planned before the end of 2026. And this is not just one new car and a facelift. This is a proper product offensive across EVs, plug-in hybrids, regular hybrids, diesels, youths, SUVs, and even a new premium sub brand. GWM says Australia is now one of its top three strategic international markets. That's a pretty big statement, and it helps explain why we are suddenly seeing such an aggressive rollout. The goal is also clear. GWM wants to become a top five brand in Australia by the end of 2027. It's pretty ambitious, but not completely ridiculous, not anymore at least. GWM has been in Australia since 2009 and makes it one of the longest-running Chinese brands in our market. So it's not starting from nowhere, but to get to the top five, GWM will need to get closer to the big volume brands like Kia, Hyundai and Mazda. And that means it needs more products in more high volume segments. First part of that push is the Aura 5 Electric SUV. The Aura 5 SUV is already on sale here in Australia, priced from 3390 drive away for the Lux and 3690 driveaway for the Ultra. GWM is positioning it as one of Australia's most affordable electric SUVs, and it replaces the old Aura Hatch as the main Aura model locally. And that move makes sense. The original Aura Hatch was cute and at times quite affordable, but the Australian market has moved hard towards SUVs, so turning Aura into a small electric SUV line gives GWM a better choice of and a better chance rather of volume. The Aura 5 uses a 58.3 kilowatt hour LFP battery, a single front mounted electric motor producing 150 kW and 260 newton meters and has a claimed driving range of 435 kilometers on the WLTC cycle. Claimed energy use is 15.5 kWh per 100km and DC charging is up to 120 kW with a 10 to 80% charge taking around 30 minutes. It's 4,471 millimeters long, 1,833mm wide, 1,641mm tall with a 2,720mm wheelbase. It's got 362 litres of boot space as well. One small but very Australian friendly detail is that it comes with a space saver tire. It's pretty rare in EVs and it's the sort of thing local buyers do appreciate. You're gonna go on the local uh Facebook pages of these vehicles and you get the questions all the time, oh, what sort of spare tie can I put in this? Where's everybody gotten it from? So yeah, the Aura 5 has the local ride and handling tuning with ex-Holden handling expert Rob Trubiani uh involved in the Australian chassis make package. That's worth noting because uh some Chinese EVs can arrive feeling like they were tuned for completely different roads and buyers. GWM at least seems to understand that Australian tuning really does matter. The Aura 5 range will not stop with the SUV. GWM is also planning an Aura 5 hatch. Despite the name, it appears to share much of the same body as the SUV, but with a lower ride height and without the roof rails. Battery and pricing details are not fully locked in for Australia, but the aim seems obvious create a cheaper or sportier looking version below the SUV. Then there is the Aura 5 touring version coming later, described as a stretched, more wagon like model positioned closer to the mid size SUV market. Details are limited on that one, but it is expected to use a larger battery. Maybe around 71 kilowatt hours. Now that could be more important one if GWM wants to challenge larger affordable EV SUVs because small SUVs are useful, but the mid-size family SUVs are where the volume is at. Then we move to the Haval side. GWM is preparing a new Haval Jolian Max, which will sit between the existing Jolian and the Haval H6. The interesting part is that it is expected to come with both plug-in hybrid and battery electric powertrains. It's a pretty smart move because it gives GWM two shots at the same buyer group. One for people ready to go full electric and one for people who want electric daily driving, but need that petrol backup for their own peace of mind. The current Jolian is already one of GWM's key nameplates, so a larger Jolian Max with electrified options could be important if the pricing is right. Then there is the new Haval H7. The current H7 only arrived recently, but GWM is already preparing a completely new version for Australia. The new H7 will be offered with hybrid and HI4 plugin hybrid power, and select variants are expected to get front and rear locking diffs. It's a pretty interesting detail. Most mid-size SUVs are soft road as you would call them. They might have all-wheel drive, but they are not really aimed at your sort of proper off-road use. So if GWM brings a plug-in hybrid H7 with a boxier design, a all-wheel drive system and front and rear diff locks, it could give it a sort of different angle against the usual family SUV crowd. But not everybody needs that, of course. But in Australia, the idea of a tougher looking family SUV sort of has its appeal. TWM is also bringing the HI4T plugin hybrid Ute powertrain further down the Canon range. The Canon HI4T plugin hybrid Ute is due in September 2026 and it will sit below the larger Canon Alpha HI4T. I think that matters because the electrified Ute segments heating up fast. The BYD Shark is already selling strongly. Ford has the Ranger plugin hybrid. MG is obviously looking at the U9 hybrid we mentioned earlier. Nissan has the Frontier Pro plugin hybrid on its way, and GWM already has the larger Canon Alpha plugin hybrid. The Canon HI4T gives GWM a chance to compete more directly in the mainstream Ute space. For a little bit of context, the larger Canon Alpha HI4T uses a 2-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine and a 37.1 kilowatt hour battery with a claimed electric only range of 115 kilometers on the wonderful NEDC cycle. I don't know what's with all the NEDC cycles with these cars lately. As yet we don't have full pricing and specifications for the smaller Canon HI4T, but the market it is aimed at is pretty obvious. Plug-in hybrid dutes are becoming one of the biggest battlegrounds in Australia. GWM is also expanding the Canon Alpha with an XSR grade, which should be the more sort of off-road focused flagship, and it's adding a new 3-litre turbo diesel to the Canon Alpha and the Tank 500. And that diesel part's not really our focus here, but it's still relevant to GWM's broader strategy. They are not betting on one powertrain, trying to uh offer petrol diesel, hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery electric options across different segments. But as we can see, the plug-in hybrids and the electrics are definitely gaining more ground. And finally, GWM is preparing to launch Whey in Australia. Whey will become GWM's fifth local sub-brand, joining Haval, Tank, Canon, and Aura. It's being positioned as the more premium arm focused on large SUVs and people movers. The GWM has not confirmed exactly which Whey models Australia will get, but the Chinese lineup includes plug-in hybrid and electric SUVs and MPVs, including models like the V9X large SUV and the G9 people mover. That could be very interesting for families. Australia is badly lacking proper electrified people movers and large family haulers at sensible pricing. Looking at you, Kia, looking at you, Hyundai. If Way comes in with a large plug-in hybrid or EV SUV or an MPV with some decent electric range, it could give GWM a completely different kind of buyer. This is where the bigger picture sort of comes into play. GWM, it's not just trying to be an EV brand like Tesla, it's not trying to be only value like the old Great Wall, even though GWM, Great Wall Motors, and it's not trying to copy BYD exactly. It's building on a broad portfolio, affordable EV SUVs, plug-in hybrid youths, hybrid and plug-in family SUVs, off-roaders, premium large SUVs, and people movers. That's the right strategy for Australia because Australian buyers are not all moving at the same speed. Some are ready for the full EV, some want a plug-in hybrid, some still want diesel for towing and touring, some want a family SUV, some want a U. Some want or need seven seats, some want just a cheap runabout commuter EV. GWM is trying to have something for all of them. Challenge is going to be the execution. Nine new models, all variants in six months. It's a fair shake of the sauce bottle that uh it's going to put pressure on dealers, servicing training, parts supply, marketing, and customer education. It also creates a risk of confusing buyers if the sub brands and model names are not explained clearly. Aura, Haval, Canon, Tank, and Way all need to make sense to regular buyers, not just to car nerds like myself and probably some of you out there. And that's where BYD still has an advantage. BYD's naming can be confusing as well, but the brand itself is very clear now in Australia. GWM has a stronger variety of sub-brands, but needs to make the whole family feel coherent. Still, the ambition is real and it's there. GWM hit a record sales month in June, it has a large production pipeline, it has access to more of its global catalogue, and it is clearly treating Australia as a priority market. So while BYD and Tesla are out getting most of the EV headlines right now, GWM is quietly building one of the broadest electrified lineups in the country. And if it gets pricing, support, and product quality right, top five might not be as far away as it sounds. And as we've reported before, Leap Motor is bringing the B05 Electric Hash to Australia. The B05 is due in Australian dealerships from late August of 2026, and it will launch here in two rear-wheel drive variants. The entry version is the B05 style, priced from 3590 drive away. Above that is the B05 Design LR with regular pricing around 3990 drive away. Although a 38990 driveway launch offer is being advertised for eligible vehicles in lightning yellow. So this is not a $60,000 EV trying to call itself affordable, so genuinely in the small car price conversation. Well that matters because if EVs are going to keep us growing in Australia, we cannot just rely on expensive family SUVs and luxury models, which still have their place. We need normal cars, hatchbacks, city cars, small SUVs, stuff that people can actually cross shop against things like a Corolla, a Mazda 3, an I30, Serrado replacement, BYD Dolphin, MG4, GWM Oura 5, or even a secondhand petrol or secondhand EV. The B-05 is interesting because it's not just cheap, it also has a layout that should appeal to people who actually enjoy driving. Both Australian variants are rear-wheel drive using rear-mounted electric motors producing 160 kW and 240 Nm. It's a pretty decent number for this sort of class. The entry style uses a 56.2 kWh lithium-ion phosphate battery and has a claimed WLTP range of up to 401km. The design LR steps up to 67.1 kWh LFP battery and increases claimed WLTP range to 482km. Leap motor claims a 0 to 100km an hour time of 6.7 seconds for the design LR. So the top spec B05 has more range than the Dolphin Premium and more than the current MG SN64. That gives it a very strong spec sheet argument, especially when you remember the design LR is sitting around 40 grand drive away. And charging is better than you might expect in this sort of price range. Both variants support an 11 kilowatt AC charging, which is good for home or destination charging if you have three phase available. DC charging is listed at up to 174 kilowatts with a claimed 30 to 80% taking around 16 minutes in the style and 18 minutes in the design LR. It's a useful figure. It's not XPing G6 level charging, but for small, affordable hatch, 174 kW DC capability is pretty strong. And if the real-world charging curve is decent, this could be a surprisingly practical road trip EV for people who do not want or need a large SUV. Dimensionally, the B05 is larger than a city runabout, but still compact enough to make sense in urban use. It measures 4,430mm long, 1,880mm wide with a 2,735mm wheelbase. So it's roughly in that sort of Volkswagen Golf, Cooper Born, MG4 sort of space rather than the tiny BYD dolphin territory. Cargo space is listed at up to 1,205 litres with the rear seats folded. Now that's not SUV space, but it is useful enough for hatchback, especially if you're using it as a daily driver, a commuter, runabout, or a second family car. The design is also more premium looking than the price might suggest. The B-05 has frameless doors, flush door handles, LED lighting, and a full-width rear light bar. Now those things are not essential, but they help the car feel a bit less basic and budget EV rather. And this is where Leap Motor seems to be positioning the B05. It's not trying to be cute like the old GWM or a hatch. It's not as aggressively styled as some performance EVs. It's more of a sleek coupe style electric hatch aimed at buyers who want something modern but not too ridiculous. Standard equipment list is also very strong. Even the style gets 19-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, automatic climate control, over-the-air updates, an 8.8 inch digital instrument display, a 14.6 inch central touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, satellite navigation, wireless phone charging, NFC and Bluetooth key access, connected devices, a 360-degree camera, and even an integrated dash cam recorder. Pretty decent list for the money, I think. The design LR adds the bigger battery and longer range, but it also adds a fixed panoramic glass roof with an electric sunshape, techno leather upholstery, heated and power adjustable front seats, a heated steering wheel, power folding mirrors, range sensing frameless wipers, rear center armrests and cup holders, a 12 speaker sound system, rear privacy glass, and multicolor ambient lighting. So the design LR is not just a long-range version, it's also the comfort and equipment pick. Safety equipment includes seven airbags, including a center airbag plus 21 advanced driver assistant features supported by 14 sensors and cameras. The driver assistance package includes level 2 assistance, automatic lane change, front vehicle departure warning, front cross traffic alert assistance, and front cross traffic braking. As always, the real world calibration matters. We have seen plenty of new cars with long safety features. They're let down by the annoying alerts, the poor lane keeping tuning, or over-sensitive driver alert monitoring. So the B-05 will need to be judged on how those systems behave on Australian roads, not just how many features are listed in the brochure. One of the more interesting points is chassis tuning. Leap Motor's been making a fair bit of noise about the B-05's Alpha Romeo influenced chassis development, and reports from early overseas drives suggest the car is not just a soft commuter appliance, the rear drive layout should also help it feel bit more balanced than front drive EV hatches, especially under hard acceleration and through corners. That can become a good selling point. The MG4 has built part of its reputation on being affordable and rear-wheel drive. The Cooper Born is more expensive but also appeals to people who want more enjoyable electric hatch. The B05 seems to be trying to sit somewhere between those two ideas. Affordable enough to compete with mainstream EVs, but with enough driving character to avoid feeling boring. Warranty coverage is six years or 150,000 kilometers for the vehicle and eight years or 160km for the high voltage battery. Leap Motor is also offering cap price servicing and roadside assistance coverage with service intervals listed at 12 months or 20,000 kilometres. Now that service interval is worth noting because EVs often have much simpler maintenance needs. However, newer brands still need to prove their after-sale support. That brings us to the bigger question brand trust. The Leap Motor is still new in Australia, it entered the market with the C10 SUV and has been building at its lineup with the B10 and now the B05. Globally, Leap Motor also has the backing of Stillantis through its international export and distribution arrangement, which should give some confidence around scale and support. However, local buyers still want to see how the brand performs here. That means things like dealer coverage, service cape capacity, parts supply, software support, warranty handling, and resale values because at the budget end of the EV market, price gets your attention. However, trust closes the sale. The B05 also has to land in a small EV market that is now much more competitive than it was even just two years ago. The BYD Dolphin is cheaper at the entry level. The GWM Aura 5 is now a small SUV and also comes in at a sharp price. You've got the MG4, which is already established and has rear-wheel drive. The Cooper Bourne is more expensive but sort of more into the premium end of the market. The BYD ADO2 gives buyers a small electric SUV instead of a hatch, and there are more small EVs coming. So the B05 does not have the segment all to itself. But what it does have is a very strong mix: rear-wheel drive, decent power, long-range option, fast DC charging for the class at least, lots of equipment, and driveway pricing that stays around the mid to high 30s. It's exactly the sort of pressure that the market needs. And if Leap Motor can deliver the B-05 with good real-world efficiency, decent software, proper local support, and a driving experience that matches the early claims, this could be one of the more important affordable EV launches of the year. Not because it will necessarily be the biggest seller overnight, but because it pushes the standard forward. A few years ago, an affordable EV meant short range, basic equipment, comprised, compromised performance, and a bit of uh just big raceful it exists kind of feeling. Now the B05 is coming in with up to 482km of WLTP range, rear-wheel drive, 160kW, 174kW DC charging, modern technology, and drive away pricing under 40 grand. That's real progress. And if MG, BYD, GWM and Leap Motor keep pushing each other like this, the next wave of affordable EVs in Australia should be much better for buyers. Lexus is bringing the new ES to Australia with both hybrid and fully electric drivetrains. It's a pretty big shift for the ES badge. Traditionally, the ES has been safe, refined, conservative Lexus sedan. Pretty comfortable, quiet, efficient, and just very Lexus in general. But now it is becoming part of the brand's electric transition. The first electric Lexus ES for Australia is expected to start from around $77,000 with a claimed driving range of around $510km. And that positions it as a premium electric sedan, but not really at the super high end of the market. It will sit in an interesting space because electric sedans are not the volume sellers anymore. SUVs very much dominate. But there is still a place for the long-range, quite efficient electric sedan, especially for private buyers, executives, and potentially higher car operators who want comfort and the lower running costs. Lexus has been strong in hybrid for years, then Toyota's hybrid heavy approach has shaped the whole Australian market. However, the ES becoming electric shows Lexus is moving more seriously into battery electric vehicles and not just hybrids and plug-in hybrids. For Australia, the ESEV will not be a mass market car, but it will give Lexus something important. It can be an electric sedan that feels more aligned with what Lexus already does well. Quietness, refinement, and comfort. Polestar is preparing a more practical version of the Polestar 4 for Australia by the end of 2026. The big change is a conventional rear window. That might sound pretty basic, but the original Polestar 4 famously launched without a rear window, using a camera-based rear view system instead. That was a pretty bold design choice, and to be fair, it gave the car a very distinctive look. However, it was also one of those features that was always going to split people. Some buyers are happy to trust the screen, others just want a normal rear window. This new version should make the Polestar 4 easier to recommend to more traditional buyers. The Polestar 4 itself is a mid-size electric SUV coupe sitting between the Polestar 2 and Polestar 3. It is definitely not a cheap EV, but it is one of the more stylish options in the premium electric SUV space. So for Australia, the timing is interesting. By the end of 2026, the Premium Electric SUV market will be even more crowded with strong competition from Tesla, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi Volvo, Zika, and some others as well. So adding a more practical rear window version really does give Polestar another way to broaden its uh new car appeal, and honestly, it's probably the right move. Camera mirrors and screen-based rear view mirrors can work very well, but they also should be a choice and not something every buyer is forced into. The Rival matters because it gives Cooper a chance to do something a little bit different in the affordable EV space. A small electric hatch with a proper hot hatch personality, and that's something Australia really doesn't have a lot of at the moment. The Rivale is Cooper's smallest model yet. It is a five-door electric hatch developed and built in Barcelona, and it uses the Volkswagen Group's new MEB entry platform. That's the same basic platform, will also sit under cars like the ID Polo, the Volkswagen ID Cross, and Skoda Epic. So think of this as the sporty Cooper version of Volkswagen Group's next generation of more affordable small EVs. It is compact but not super tiny. The Rivale is 4,046mm long, 1784mm wide, 1518mm tall, with a 2,600mm wheelbase. And that makes it close to a current Volkswagen Polo in footprint, and not only slightly larger than a BYD ADO1. So for context, the Ado 1 is 3,990mm long, 1720mm wide, 1590mm tall. So the Cooper is a touch longer and wider, but a little bit lower. And that gives it a much more hatchback-like stance compared with the Ado 1's sort of taller city car shape. The boot is also impressive for the size. Cooper quotes 441 litres, which is pretty big for a 4m hatchback. That's the kind of number that could make the Raval a little bit more usable than people expect, especially for buyers who want a small EV but don't want something that feels like a toy. Now in Europe, the Rivale lineup is broader than the version Australia is likely to focus on. There are four main outputs overseas. You've got the 85, 99, 155, and 166 kilowatt. There's also two battery capacities, 37 and 52 kilowatt hours. The cheaper 37 kilowatt hour versions are aimed at city buyers and more affordability, while the larger battery versions are the ones that matter more, I think, for Australia. And that's because Australian buyers tend to ask a lot of their small cars. Even a small EV here often has to handle suburban commuting, longer freeway runs, weekend trips, and the occasional regional drive. So when Cooper brings the Raval here, the larger battery ones are definitely going to make the most sense. The versions to watch, I think, are the 155kWatt long range model as well as the 166kWZ. Cooper's own information lists the Rival dynamic and dynamic plus launch editions with up to 446 kilometers of range and 155 kilowatts. The VZ Extreme steps that up to 166 kilowatt or 226 horsepower with up to around 440 kilometers of claimed range. The VZ is the enthusiast one. It uses a front mounted electric motor producing 166 kilowatt, 290 Newtonm and early international drive reports point to a 0 to 100km hour time of somewhere between 6.8 and 7.1 seconds. Now, in EV terms, that's nothing to write home about, and MG4X power will absolutely smoke that thing in a straight line. Even some family EV SUVs are now quicker than that. But it's not really the point of a hot hatch necessarily. A proper hot hatch is not just about straight line acceleration, it's about size, weight, steering, chassis feel, how it rotates, how it grips, how we're going to come out of that apex in the corner. You know, all of those things that actually makes you want to drive it. And that's where the Raval looks much more interesting. All Raval versions sit 15mm lower than the regular MEB entry platform setup. Cooper's also given it wider tracks, variable ratio steering, and a more focused suspension tune. The VZ goes further with adaptive dampers, an electronically controlled front, a limited slip diff, and more aggressive stability control settings. And that's the sort of stuff that makes it sound like a proper Cooper, not just a cheaper EV with a Cooper badge shoved on the front of it there. Early drive impressions suggest that Cooper has genuinely tried to make it feel like a proper front-wheel drive hot hatch, and it's not a point and shoot EV where the only trick is instant torque. The chassis apparently moves around, rewards commitment, and gives the driver something to work with. And that matters because small, fun cars are disappearing pretty quickly. Petrol hot hatches are getting harder to justify under emissions rules. Cars like the Ford Fiesta ST are gone, the Hyundai I-20N is gone in for some markets. Volkswagen's Petrol Polo GTI is unlikely to have a long future in the same form, and even when small performance cars exist, they're getting pretty expensive. So the Revale has a big job. Needs to prove that the electric future doesn't have to mean every fun car becomes a two-ton SUV with crazy acceleration and no character. The Revale's battery size also helps explain its character. The larger versions use a battery, as we said, around 52 kWh usable, which isn't huge by modern EV standards, but that helps keep the weight down. Early reports put the Rival VZ around 1,550 kilos, which is not light compared with old petrol hot hatches, but pretty light for an EV. That relative lightness is probably why Cooper can make it feel a little bit more alive. And the trade-off is obviously going to be range when it's driven hard. Cooper claims up to 440km of range in the right spec, and the long range versions can claim as high as 446km. But if you actually drive the VZ like a hot hatch, real world range is obviously going to drop pretty quickly. Early international testing suggests sprint-spirited rather driving could pull range closer to the 300km mark. It's not the end of the world, it's not a disaster, but it's worth just mentioning and being honest about. A small hot EV has a balancing act. The battery too big and the car gets heavy and dull. Keep the battery compact and the car is more fun, however, range becomes more sensitive to how you drive. Charging is okay, but definitely not class leading. Group lists up to 105 kilowatt DC charging with a claimed 10 to 80% charge in about 24 minutes. AC charging is expected to be 11 kilowatts on three phase with a full charge taking around 5.5 hours, obviously on the right home or destination charger. So it's not going to match something like the XPang G6 for charging speed, but for a small hatch with a compact battery, the total charging time should still be reasonably acceptable. Inside, the Rivale appears to be a little bit more premium than its entry-level positioning might suggest. There's a 12.9 inch infotainment screen, a 10.25 inch digital instrument cluster, updated software, available matrix LED headlights, ambient lighting, supportive bucket seats, recycled and suede materials depending on the grade, and on the higher versions, a premium features like a 12-speaker Sennheiser sound system. The VZ Extreme Launch Edition also gets cup style bucket seats, think like your old Ricaro style seats, 19-inch wheels, and the sportier chassis hardware. This is where Cooper needs to be careful, I think, in Australia. The Rivale will be Cooper's entry model, but Cooper's not a budget brand. It's it's in that slightly premium, slightly sporty sort of Volkswagen group space. So it needs to feel special enough to justify more expensive than something like a BYD at O1 or an MG4, but not so expensive that people just walk into a larger EV SUV instead. Pricing is going to make or break it. European pricing is expected to start around 26,000 euros for the base model, however, Australian pricing is not confirmed. And we know now that European entry pricing doesn't really translate into Australian driveway pricing. But if Cooper brings only the stronger 155 and 166 kilowatt versions, which would make sense I think for this market, the Rivale will likely sit above those cheaper Chinese EVs. And that's okay if it lands as a desirable, fun, well-beat European EV hatch. But if it gets too close to the Cupra Bourne or if it pushes too far above 50 grand, it becomes a much harder sell. The current Cupra Bourne has had a bit of a tricky run in Australia. It's a generally interesting EV, but it arrived at a relatively expensive small electric hatch in a market that keeps asking for SUVs. The Revival has a better chance because it should be smaller, cheaper, and more clearly positioned as the urban fun car. But the SUV issue definitely does not go away. Australian buyers love SUVs, and the Revival is a low hatch, and that means it will appeal to a narrower audience, people who actually want something smaller, something sportier and a little bit more interesting. That could include ex-hot hatch buyers, city drivers, younger buyers, people who do not want a large or need a large SUV, and those who like the Cooper brand but can't justify the Born or Tavaskan money. It could also appeal to people who miss cars like the Fiesta ST, the Polo GTI, Renault Clio RS, the Peugeot 208 GTI, not because the Raval is identical, but because it seems to be chasing that sort of same idea of that small car fun. And I think that's a key point. The Raval doesn't need to outsell the BYD at 01, doesn't need to dominate the small EV market, it needs to give Cooper a sharper entry point and prove there's still room in Australia for small, fun electric cars. And if Cooper can land it with the right variants, some decent range, proper chassis tune, and pricing that doesn't get a little bit too silly. It could be one of the more interesting, characterful small EVs coming to Australia, and I think that's a good thing. Because the EV market's getting bigger and better, but it's also getting a little predictable. Lots of SUVs, lots of big screens, lots of acceleration numbers. Well, obviously that's what's selling. The revale is a reminder that EVs can still be small, playful, and a little bit rebellious, and that is exactly what Cooper should be doing. Jilly has confirmed the M Grand EMI for Australia, and it's a little bit more interesting than at first sounds. When I first looked at this story, it would have been easy to treat it as a just another hybrid sedan and move on pretty quickly. But after looking a little bit deeper, that probably undersells what Geely is trying to do here. The M grand EMI is not just another regular hybrid sedan in the Toyota Camry style. It is expected to arrive in Australia as a plug-in hybrid first using Geely's EMI system, the same sort of general family of technology that we've already seen in the Geely Stari EMI SUV. It makes it more relevant for us here in Plugged in Australia because if Geerly gets this right, Mgram could become one of the first proper affordable plug-in hybrid sedan alternatives to the Toyota Camry in Australia. And that is a gap that's been sitting open for quite some time. The Australian sedan market is definitely not what it used to be. The SUVs have taken over, gone to the days of the Fairmont, the Fairlane and Commodore and that sort of ilk, and a lot of brands have simply given up on sedans here. The Toyota Camry has basically become the default choice for people who still want a sensible, efficient Ruby sedan, especially for business users, government fleets and you know taxis, rideshare drivers, that sort of thing as well. But that also means buyers have not exactly been spoiled for choice. Najeli seems to think the issue is not that Australians hate sedans, the issue might be that we've not had enough modern, high-tech, well-priced sedans to choose from. And obviously there's probably some truth in that. The M Grand EMI is due in Australia in early 2027. Overseas, it is also known as the Galaxy Starshine 6 or the Xingyao 6, depending on the market. It's expected to sit below the larger premium sedans and target mainstream buyers a little bit more directly. Now, size-wise, it's a proper mid-size sedan. It's 4,806mm long, which makes it bigger than something like an I-30 sedan or a Kia K4, but a little smaller than a Toyota Camry. So it should be large enough for family use, rideshare, work, and business buyers without being too much of a huge car. Powertrain is the key part. The M grand EMI uses a 1.5 litre petrol engine, an LFP battery, and an electric motor driving the front wheels for most of the time. The system works more like an electric first plug-in hybrid, so I wouldn't call it an EREV, but more of an E Rev ilk, where the petrol engine often acts as a generator, but can also help drive the wheels at higher speeds. That gives it a very EV-like feel in daily driving, especially around town. You are not just getting a tiny little 3kW hybrid battery that recovers energy when braking, you're getting a proper plug-in battery that can cover normal daily driving on electricity, obviously if you charge it regularly. The version tested overseas used a 17 kWh LFP battery. There's also talk of a larger 28 kWh pack being available in the broader lineup. Now, if Australia gets those options, the smaller battery would give you around 100km of electric driving in favourable conditions, while the larger pack could push that closer to 150km. Now those figures will need to be confirmed closer to launch and will need Australian specs and proper WLTP numbers before treating them as a locked-in figure. But even if the final real-world range is a little lower, the basic sort of idea is very strong. A plug-in hybrid sedan with enough electric range for most daily driving, then petrol backup for longer trips. Could be extremely appealing to people who don't want an SUV but also don't want to go fully electric. The electric motor in the MGRED is expected to be tuned lower than the starry SUV, with overseas test cars running around 120 kilowatt and 210 newton meters. It's not a sports sedan number, definitely not, but it should be more than enough for what this car is trained to be. Zero to 100km hour time is expected to sit around the eight second mark, and that's when the you're charging the battery. Again, it's not about performance, it's about efficiency, low running costs, and easy everyday driving. And that's where the M grand could really make sense. So if you can charge at home or work or and have a lot of weekday driving, uh it could be electric, the school runs, commuting, local errands, you've obviously got your ride share work, which is a lot of stopstart sort of driving, business use, reps, things like that. Could all happen with very little petrol use. Then when you need to do the long haul trips, Sydney to Canberra, Sydney to the up the coast, down the coast, or you know, you want to go inland or regional run out to Dubbo or Orange or something like that, you still have the petrol engine as a backup. That is the pitch. But a couple of caveats. First, plug-in hybrids only make sense if people actually plug them in. I know you're getting sick of hearing me saying that, but I'm sorry, every time we talk about a plug-in hybrid, you're gonna get the spiel. If someone buys an M grand EMI and drives it around forever with a flat battery, it becomes a heavier petrol hybrid with extra complexity. Second, local tuning will matter. Early overseas impressions suggest the M grand powertrain is ex is efficient rather and the cabin is appealing. However, the ride and handling are probably going to need some work. Reports from early drives describe very soft suspension, too much body movement, and tyres that are not ideal. And that matters because the Toyota camera is still the established benchmark for efficient mid-size sedans in Australia. However, the market has already started moving around it. BYD now has the Seal 6 plug-in hybrid sedan and touring wagon on sale here, giving buyers a plug-in hybrid option from the mid-30,000 range before on-road costs. And that means the Gili M Grand EMI will arrive into a market that is no longer empty. It will need to compete directly with Toyota's trusted hybrid sedan and BYD's sharper priced plug-in hybrid alternative. The BYD Seal 6 comparison where it gets a little bit more interesting and important, the SEAL 6 sedan uses a 1.5 litre plug-in hybrid system, front-wheel drive 130kW, and acclaimed 70km of electric range on the NEDC cycle. Touring wagon steps set up with 163kW and a claimed 125km NEDC electric range. So that means the M grand EMI will need to be very carefully positioned. If it arrives too expensive, buyers will ask why they should not just buy the Camry for proven reliability. If it arrives sharply priced with more electric range, better equipment, or a more polished drive than BYD, it becomes a little bit more interesting. But has to be genuinely competitive. I think pricing is going to be a very important, if not deciding, factor. A Gelee M grand EMI price in the mid to high 30s could make sense. If it lands closer to Camry money, the value argument becomes harder. And if it lands too close to more established or better-known alternatives, buyers will want a very clear reason to take the risk on a new brand. That's going to be a real challenge. Well, it's really going to need to prove it's not just cheap on paper as well. It's obviously, as we said, it needs proper local tuning. It's going to need good software, good warranty support, uh, dealers that know their product and needs to feel durable enough for families, business units, users rather, and rideshare drivers. And most importantly, it needs to explain why buyers should choose it over two very clear rivals. As I said, the tried and trusted and been here for forever, Camry Hybrid, and BYD's already available C line 6 plug-in hybrid. The wider Gili store is also worth watching because Geely is not just bringing one model. By the end of 2027, the brand plans to bring more than double its Australian lineup with several new plug-in hybrid SUVs, the EX2 Electric Hatch, which I've spoken about at length in previous episodes, and this obvious M Grand Sedan. So the M grand is part of a much bigger push to make Geely a mainstream player here, and that's why this story is worth including, even though sedans are not the obvious growth segment here anymore. Because I'm sure I'm gonna hear from people. Oh, nobody buys sedans anymore. Because uh if the M grand EMI lands at the right price, with the right electric range and decent Australian tuning, it it could give buyers another affordable plug-in hybrid sedan option. It won't have the segment to itself. BY got there first with the SEAL 6, but that might actually be a good thing. Because if BYD and Gili start fighting over affordable plug-in hybrid sedans and wagons, Toyota may finally have some serious pressure in a part of the market it has owned for a long time. And for buyers, it's a win. Zika is looking beyond premium electric SUVs and people movers. The brand has indicated it wants a large off-road SUV, something that could take on the Toyota Land Cruiser, and it may also look at a Ute. Now we should be careful here, it's not any confirmation of anything or any Australian launch confirmation for a Zika Land Cruiser rival or a Zika Ute, but the interest is pretty good. Zika is part of the Gelee group and it already has access to a lot of electric vehicle technology. The brand is positioned as a premium and electric, and in Australia it has launched into a market where large SUVs and Utes are king. So logic is pretty obvious. If you want to grow in Australia, you cannot just sell sleek city SUVs. You eventually need something that speaks to Australian buyers. Large SUVs, towing, touring, family hauling, rough road ability, and possibly a Ute. The tricky part is making a proper electric land cruise arrival work. A big off-road EV is going to need a large battery, proper cooling, strong underbody protection, good towing performance, long real-world range, and confidence away from major charging routes. That's not going to be easy, but if Zika or Geely more broadly can package that properly, it could be a major moment for premium electric off-roaders in Australia. Alright, anybody that's been listening to the podcast for any length of time knows I definitely have a passion for heavy vehicle electrification. And this one segment here is definitely one of the biggest commercial EV stories of the week, maybe even of the year. I said that earlier about another segment, but it really is very uh very interesting and important for heavy vehicles at least. The Volvo Group Australia has built the first Australian-made OEM electric truck at its Waycoal facility in Brisbane. And that sentence matters. We're not talking about an import electric truck landing here for a short trial. We're not talking about a conversion, we're talking about heavy-duty battery electric trucks being built here in Australia by an original equipment manufacturer, which is what OEM stands for in case you didn't know, on the same site where Volvo has been manufacturing trucks for Australian conditions for more than 50 years. The first ten locally built electric trucks have now rolled off the production line, and the event was significant enough that the Prime Minister even attended. Alongside Volvo's global and Australian leadership, Lynn Fox, the Australian Made campaign, and the Electric Vehicle Council. And that sort of gives you a sense of just how important of a milestone it is. Now, to be completely transparent on costs, this rollout is not happening without public support. Lynn Fox Heavy Duty Electrification Project is backed by a $19.63 million grant from Arena through the Federal Drive in the Nation project. The total project cost is listed at 50.18 million, so this is a co-funded deployment, not just a private purchase. The Arena backed project covers 26 Volvo electric prime movers, 25 charges, ranging from 60 to 360 kilowatt, and a labelling infrastructure across Linfox sites in Leverton, North in Victoria, Adelaide Railhead in South Australia, and Willowwong in Dub in Queensland, rather. So when we talk about these trucks being built and deployed, the full picture is that government funding is helping overcome the early cost and infrastructure barriers that still exist for heavy vehicle freight. The first Australian made electric trucks are part of a larger Lin Fox order. Linfox has ordered around 30 heavy-duty Volvo electric trucks made up of 29 FH electric and one FM electric. Ten of those trucks carry the Australian made label. Linfox has not come into this cold either. It's been trialling Volvo electric trucks for several years, starting with two vehicles in 2021 and expanding to four in 2023. So this is not just a look at us, we bought one EV truck for a press photo con a moment. It's a major logistics operator scaling from trial vehicles into real electric truck fleet. And that is a shift we've been waiting for in heavy transport. For passenger cars, the debate is already moving beyond can EVs work because the sales numbers are answering that. But with heavy vehicles, the conversation is still a lot more complicated. Trucks are tools, they have to carry serious weight, they have to work very long hours. Downtime costs money, it's expensive. You've got to plan your routes. Charging infrastructure is important. Payload is crucial. Obviously, you've got to consider the road rules. And fleet operators need confidence before they spend humongous amounts of money changing how their depots operate. And that is why local manufacturing is such a big deal. When electric trucks are built here, it gives Australian fleets more confidence that the product is not going to be adapted from somewhere else as an afterthought. It means local workers are being trained. It means the factory understands Australian conditions. It also means there's a pathway for local support, local production knowledge, and future scaling. Volvo's Waycall facility already builds Volvo and Mac trucks for Australia, adding electric trucks to that production capability shows the Australian manufacturing still has a role to play in the transition to cleaner transport. And for those of you that are listening that didn't already know, you know, Volvo, Max, Kenworth's, those big trucks are all built here. The smaller ones, your Mitsubishi Fusos, your ISUS, they are imported, yes, definitely. But the lot of these bigger trucks, they're all made here. You can't really bring those sorts of trucks from overseas, it doesn't make sense. So that's just a little insert here into this uh segment. The first locally built trucks are designed for heavy duty work, not just light urban delivery. Volvo says electric trucks already operating in Australia have collectively covered more than a million kilometres on local roads. Volvo's Australian electric lineup includes models like the FL, FE, FM, and FH electric, with the heavier models suited to applications like distribution, metro, freight, and And shorter regional routes depending on its configuration. For the FH electric, Volvo has previously talked about 300 kilometers per charge, depending on the use case, and up to 50 tons gross combination weight. The company has also said larger range electric models capable of around 700 kilometers per charge could be deployed in Australia if the regulatory settings line up. And that last part's important, because electric trucks are not just a technology problem, they are a regulation and an infrastructure problem as well. Battery electric trucks can be heavier than diesel equivalents because of the battery packs, and that means axle weight limits, road access rules, and state-by-state inconsistencies can make a big difference to whether fleets can actually use them efficiently. Volvo has been calling for harmonised road weight rules across Australia. The argument is simple. If electric trucks are going to carry freight across different jurisdictions, operators need consistent rules. You cannot have a truck that makes sense in one state but becomes awkward or restricted when it crosses a border. And charging is another major piece. For passenger EVs, we talk a lot about public fast charging. For heavy duty trucks, depot charging is the main game, at least in the early stages. Fleets need high power charges at distribution centres, freight hubs, warehouses and depots. They need grid connections, they need charging management software, they need to schedule charging around routes, driver hours, loading times, and electricity costs. And that's a very different challenge from putting a fast charger at a shopping centre. But it's also a challenge that can be solved, especially for fleets with predictable routes. Urban and regional freight is a good starting point because trucks often return to base. Supermarket distribution, parcel freight, warehouse to store runs, port shuttles, council work, and metro deliveries can all be planned around depot charging. And that is why Lynn Fox matters in this story. Lynn Fox is not a tight little operator experimenting on the edge. It is one of, if not the major logistics companies in Australia. If a company like that is prepared to deploy Australian-made electric prime movers into real operations, it gives the rest of the industry something to watch. The environmental impact is also significant. Transport is a major contributor to Australians' emissions, and heavy freight is one of the hardest parts to decarbonize. Passenger cars can get most of the attention because people see them every day, but trucks move the economy. Without trucks, Australia stops, as they say. They also burn a crap ton of diesel. A battery electric truck has zero tailpipe emissions. It can also reduce noise dramatically, which matters in cities, around distribution centres, and in early morning delivery work. That may sound like a small quality of life point, but I don't think it is. Anyone who lives near a busy road, loading dock or industrial area knows how much diesel truck noise and fumes affect the local environment. Electric trucks can change this. There's also an economic angle. Diesel prices are volatile. We've seen that over and over again. Freight operators are exposed when diesel spikes, and Australia imports pretty much all of its fuel. Electric trucks let fleets shift more of their energy use to electricity, which can be contracted, generated on site, and in some cases managed a lot more predictably through depot energy planning. Now that doesn't mean electric trucks are automatically cheap. The upfront cost is still a major barrier. Charging infrastructure is expensive. Depot upgrades can be complicated and not every route suits battery electric trucks yet. We're not going to be hallucinating. You're not going to be doing massive regional routes with it and things like that. But once a fleet can make the duty cycle work, the lower energy cost and lower maintenance burden can become very attractive. The other point here is jobs. This is not just about buying cleaner trucks, it's about building them here. Volvo has trained and upskilled Australian workers to produce electric trucks to a global standard. That creates manufacturing capability, technical skills and supply chain knowledge that Australia will need more of if we want to be more than just a customer in the clean transport transition. That is why this story is bigger than just 10 trucks. The first 10 trucks are symbolic. The real story is the production capability behind them. Now if demand grows, Waco can become part of a larger Australian heavy vehicle manufacturing base. That could be supporting more local jobs, more fleet adoption, and more confidence from business that we've been waiting for heavy EVs to become a reality. Of course, there are still barriers. Electric trucks need road rules that reflect their weight and use case. They need charging infrastructure. Oh boy, do we need charging infrastructure? They need fleet managers who understand the transition. They need government procurement to help create demand. They need energy planning, and they need enough real-world data to convince cautious operators that they can do the job. But this is exactly how a transition starts. Not with every truck in the country going electric overnight. You're not going to pull them all into somewhere like Janice and be like, radio, let's go. Transition all these trucks to electric. It's just not going to happen. It starts with depot-based fleets. It starts with major logistics operators. Starts with local delivery and metro freight. It starts with manufacturers proving they can build and support these vehicles here. And then it grows from there. So for me, this is one of the most positive stories in this episode because it shows that electrification in Australia is no longer just about passenger cars, SUVs, and charging stations. It's also about manufacturing, it's about freight, it's about jobs, it's about diesel replacement, it's about logistics companies changing how they operate. And now it's about electric trucks being built right here in Australia in Brisbane. In keeping with the heavy vehicles, Osgrid is putting an electric prior mover to work in a New South Wales freight trial. It's exactly the sort of trial Australia needs. More of heavy vehicle trucks aren't easy. They're not simple, as I've mentioned in the last segment there. Payload, route planning, charging speed, depot infrastructure, driver training, downtime, it all plays a part. But the only way to properly understand those issues is to run the trucks in real operations. For Osgrid, the value is clear. As an electricity network business, it has both a direct interest in electrification and a fleet profile where lower emission heavy vehicles can make a meaningful difference. For the broader market, trials like this help answer important questions for fleet operators, such as can the truck do the route? Can it charge reliably? Does it fit the depot? What happens to payload? How do drivers respond? What are the real running costs? And what infrastructure upgrades do we need? Now this is where we are heading in Australia. Now we're past the point of asking whether electric trucks exist. We know they do. The next question is where they work best and how quickly fleets can scale them. In keeping with our truck heavy vehicle, this one's probably not a very super heavy vehicle, but it's still a truck story. Woolworths is leasing 148 electric delivery trucks from Fleet Electrification Specialist Zenobi. And this is one of those stories that is easy to underplay if you just look at the number. Because 148 trucks doesn't sound like a huge number compared with the number of diesel delivery vehicles running around Australia every single day, but in the electric freight space, I think it's a pretty big deal. This is being described as Australia's largest electric truck fleet rollout to date. And the important part is not just the trucks that are electric, it is that this is not a tiny demonstration fleet. One or two electric trucks is a trial. As I said, ten trucks is a proper operational test, but 148 trucks is a fleet strategy. And this is the shift. Woolworths will lease the trucks from Zenobi for last mile grocery delivery. So we're talking about the little green Woolworths delivery trucks that run around suburbs delivering online groceries, not your sort of big long-haul interstate freight that I mentioned earlier. The distinction matters because last mile grocery delivery is one of the best early use cases for electric trucks. You've got very predictable routes, the vehicles have to return to base, need to get more groceries. The trucks operate in residential areas where noise and local air quality really matters, and your loads are all planned. And of course, charging can be built around depot operations, and it's very different to try to trying rather to electrify a B double or an A double running across an olibore. So this is exactly where electric trucks should be scaling first. The trucks are Photon T5 battery electric trucks, and they are going to be acquired by Zenobi and leased to Woolworths under an electric vehicle as a service model. In plain English, that means Woolies does not need to buy every truck outright and take on all the risk itself. Zenobi owns the trucks, handles the fleet electrification model, and the lease arrangement can also include things like vehicle maintenance, warranties, upgrades, and battery end-of-life management. Now that's important because the biggest barrier for many fleets is not just where the electric trucks work, it's the upfront cost, charging infrastructure, battery risk, maintenance planning, operational change, and the fear of being left with an expensive asset that may not hold its value. So a leasing model helps reduce that risk. And that's why we are starting to see companies like Zenobi become much more important in the EV transition. They're not just selling trucks, they're packaging the vehicle, the finance, the charging strategy, the battery knowledge, and the operational support together. That can make electrification easier for big fleets. The Photon T5 itself is a light battery electric truck suited to metro delivery work. The version being discussed for this rollout uses a CATL battery in the roughly 81 to 84 kilowatt hour range with a single electric motor, producing around 115 kilowatts and 300 newton meters of torque. Do an urban and suburban route. So I know we all want to get our milk and everything delivered, but you know, we can be a little bit more patient. Charging times are listed at around 7.2 hours on AC for an overnight charge or around 1.5 hours on DC fast charging. Again, suits the use case. The ideal setup is not necessarily to fast charge these all day, like passenger EVs. The ideal setup is to charge them at depots, hubs, or dedicated charging sites around delivery schedules. The rollout will cover Woolley's delivery operations across New South Wales and Victoria with vehicles in Queensland, WA and South Australia. And the first trucks have already started arriving with the wider rollout staged from there. And I am based in Western Sydney, work up in the Blue Mountains, and I have seen quite a few of them up and about. I actually had a chat. There was a truck charging at the Ampole. It's about to say Caltechs. Up at the Ampole at Hazelbrook. He was on the charger, but he was sitting in the truck having lunch, and uh I was in a diesel truck, unfortunately, and uh pulled in and said to him, Oh, I said, How are these things? And he's like, Oh, so much better. They just drive and yada yada yada. I said, Oh, isn't it annoying to have to charge? He said, Well, I've got to have a break. I have a half an hour break uh here. I need to have lunch, so I just pull in, plug the car, plug the car in, plug the truck in, and that's it, done. And I just have my lunch and because I would normally pull over and have my break on the side of the road anyway. So he said, It's honestly zero difference. Like he said, it takes me 10 seconds to plug it in. I scan the little card and I'm back in the truck, done and dusted. And the better, even better is that I've got a toilet there that I can use as well. So normally he pulls over to the side of the road and there's no bathroom, there's no amenities. If he wants to get a drink, a cup of coffee, which is I know that's a drink, or something like that, or a snack, he can't do that. So you know, after having a very, very brief chat with him, um, it makes very little difference, you know, very easy. And then obviously once it gets back to depot, um, it plugs in. And the other thing was that he mentioned is he doesn't have to keep the truck idling, because obviously they're refrigerated. He just said he plugs it in and the truck is left in an accessories mode, um, which is obviously still powering the uh the chiller in the back there, and uh otherwise they'd have to sit there idling, you know, just chewing away on the diesel and smoking up the place. So uh you know that's just a an experience there. I had a chat with him, it was probably about three or four weeks ago now, so um yeah, just a little bit of a personal experience. I have quite a few of them, mainly because I'm very interested in obviously in this sort of topic. You wouldn't be here recording a podcast if you weren't. So yeah, anyway, let's uh let's continue on. So there's a bit of uh timing nuance here. The company announcement points to the rollout being completed progressively through 2026, while the CEFC's own project details refer to the full fleet rollout being completed over the course of 2027. So the safest way to say is that this is now underway with the broader deployment to continue progressively across 2026 and 2027. And we should also be transparent about the Doray Me, the money. This is not happening without public finance support. The Clean Energy Finance Corporation has committed up to $22 million to support Zenobi's acquisition of up to $148 battery electric trucks for the Woolworths rollout. That's not a bad thing, but it is important context. Electric trucks are still more expensive. Upfront costs, there's a lot more upfront costs than diesel trucks. And the support is designed to help bring lease pricing closer to where fleets can make the numbers work. The idea is that if large deployments happen now, the market gets real-world data, operators build confidence, maintenance networks learn, secondhand values start to form, and the next round becomes a little bit easier. So when we talk about this being a commercial rollout, the full picture is that it is a commercially structured but backed by public green finance to help overcome the cost barrier. And that is probably exactly where government support should go. Not just to one-off novelty projects, but in deployments that can prove electric freight's work at scale. Woolworths is a strong candidate for this because it already has a public target to move its home delivery fleet fully electric by 2030. That fleet is around 3,000 vehicles, so 148 trucks is not going to do the whole job. But it's a serious step forward. It also builds on earlier work with Zenobi and CEFC backed electric truck deployments. Zenobi previously supported a 60-truck battery electric rollout for Woolworths. Last mole deliveries connected with charging infrastructure, including the Mascot multi-user electric truck charging hub in Sydney. That earlier project helped prove the model, and this new 148-truck rollout scales it up. That's exactly how fleet electrification tends to work. There's first a pilot, then a bigger trial, then a larger funded deployment. Then, if the economics rather and operations work, it becomes part of a normal fleet replacement. The important part is that Woolworths is not just buying a truck and putting a press release out, it's building a pathway. And for customers, the most visible change will be simple. Quieter, cleaner grocery deliveries in suburban areas. Now that may not sound very dramatic, but if you have delivery trucks running through residential areas early in the morning or late in the evening, the noise is going to matter. Diesel trucks are loud, they idle, they rattle, they smell, the electric trucks are much quieter, and have no tow pipe emissions at the point of use. And yes, I can see the comments already. Oh, but how's it being charged? It's coal, it's gas. Understand that. We're not talking about that. We are talking about at the point where the combustion is happening, who's there, who's on the side of the road, mother and baby breathing in the toxic fumes. That is the argument and the conversation. We're not talking about the coal plants, which are obviously being phased out anyway, but that's a story for another day. So it's a real quality of life improvement. For drivers, electric trucks can also be nicer to operate in urban work. Smoother talk, no diesel vibrations, quieter cabins, and less stop-start fatigue can all make a difference. For woolies, the business case is a little bit broader. Electric trucks can reduce diesel exposure, they can help emissions targets, they can improve the brand's public sustainability story, and if the fleet is managed properly, energy costs can become more predictable than diesel. But still, there are challenges. Charging infrastructure has to be ready. Routes need to match vehicle range. Depot power has to be managed. Trucks need to be scheduled so they are charged when they need to go out. Drivers and maintenance teams need training, and if one truck goes down, the fleet still needs backup capacity. And that's why last mile delivery is a good starting point, but it's not automatic. You still need proper planning. The broader freight context is important too. Battery electric truck uptake in Australia is still very, very tiny compared with passenger EVs. CEFC figures show that electric trucks and heavy vans were less than 1% of Australian truck and heavy van sales in 2026 sales to date. And that shows how early on in the piece we really are. Passenger EVs are now mainstream. Electric trucks, not quite there yet. However, projects like this help move the market from theory to reality. Fleets get data, charging providers get experience. Finance providers learn how to value the vehicles, maintenance networks learn what actually fails and what does not. And other companies get to watch someone else go first. That blast part matters more than people think. A lot of fleet operators are conservative for good reason. If a passenger EV has a problem, it's annoying. If a delivery truck fleet has a problem, it can disrupt customers, cost money, and damage operations. So major companies tend to watch others. Once Woolys, Lynn Fox, Team Global Express, which is uh toll, Osgrid, Councils, and other big operators start putting out electric trucks into work, it becomes easier for the next business to justify the move. And that's why this Woolworthson Zenobi rollout is important. Now, it's not the final answer for freight, it's not the it's not long haul electrification done and dusted and solved. It's not every truck in the country going electric tomorrow when the grid's not going to melt. But it's a major sign that electric trucks are moving beyond one-off pilots and into serious commercial deployment. And that's the story here. Electric freight in Australia is starting where it makes the most sense. Depot-based, urban, last mile, and high utilization routes. Yeah, if it works there, it builds confidence for the next step. And 148 Woolworths delivery trucks running around Australian suburbs, it's a very visible step. Western Sydney International Airport will operate with almost entirely electric ground support equipment. That includes belt loaders, cargo loaders, baggage, tractors, and pushback equipments used to tow and reposition aircraft. It's a great example of electrification where it makes immediate sense. Airport ground equipment has predictable duty cycles. It operates in a controlled environment. It returns to base. It spends a lot of time moving short distances, stopping, starting, and idling. That's the perfect use case for electric drivetrains. It also improves the local air quality around workers and passengers and reduces noise on the apron. You know, those airplanes are loud enough as it is. For Western Sydney, I think it's a smart move. The airport is a brand spanking new. I don't think it's quite started operations just yet. So it can build electric operations into the system from the start rather than trying to retrofit everything later. And for anybody who's listening in Western Sydney, this is one of those stories where electrification is not just something happening in car showrooms. It's happening in infrastructure, freight, airports, and industrial operations around us. Tesla has started rolling out FSD version 14 light to older vehicles with AI3 hardware, also known as Hardware 3. And it's a pretty important update for a lot of Tesla owners. But the first thing to make clear is timing. This is not yet a confirmed Australian rollout for AI-13 cars. The first rollout is to early access customers overseas, with Australia and New Zealand still waiting for Tesla to bring the light version here. That distinction matters because Tesla has already rolled out FSD Supervised version 14 to newer AI-4 equipped cars in Australia and New Zealand. That started last month, and it was a big deal because Australia and New Zealand have been among the very first right-hand drive markets to receive Tesla's FSD Supervised system. However, if you own an older Model 3 or Model Y with AI 3 hardware, you've been in a different position. The newer AI4 cars got the latest version first. The older AI 3 cars have effectively been waiting for a separate version that can run on the older computers. Tesla's AI boss, Alshok El Swami, said FSD version 14 Lite is now rolling out to AI3 early access customers with a broader rollout to follow based on feedback. The idea is that Tesla has taken the new version 14 driving stack and distilled it so the older AI3 hardware cars can run the lighter version of it. That's important because AI 3 cars make up a huge part of Tesla's existing global fleet. Depending on the estimate used, there are around 4 million AI3 equipped Tesla vehicles globally. So it's not just a small edge case, this is a massive group of owners who bought cars before the latest hardware arrived. And many of those owners have been waiting a very long time. The AI3 cars were previously stuck on older FSD software branch, while AI4 developed and moved ahead. So for owners who paid for full self driving or subscribed to FSD Supervise, this has been a bit of a sore point. And understandably so. Tesla has made big claims about FSD for years, and a lot of buyers were told the hardware in their car would be enough for full self-driving capability. Then the industry moved, Tesla's own hardware moved, and the gap between older and newer cars started to become a little bit more obvious. So FSD version 14 light is good news, but it does not erase that history. It is better software for older cars. It's not the same thing as those older cars suddenly becoming fully autonomous. And bit of a hard truth. The light version reportedly brings a lot of the version 14 features set to the AI3 cars. That includes speed profiles, start self-parking, sorry, start self-driving from park arrival and parking positions, and other features from the main version 14 branch. Early feedback from overseas testers has been positive, comparing, especially comparing with the older version 12.6 software that many AI 3 cars were running. Some owners are reporting smoother driving, better highway behaviour, better decision making, and improved parking behavior. And that's promising. But a couple of caveats on that one. First, this remains supervised software. The driver is still responsible. The driver must still pay attention. The driver must be ready to intervene and take over. It's not a robo taxi system, it's not unsupervised autonomy, it's still a level two driver assistance system, regardless of how advanced it feels. And second, Australia and New Zealand AI 3 owners do not have it yet. The hope is that because Australia and New Zealand already have FSD version 14 on the AI-4 cars, the light version for AI3 cars may follow. However, Tesla has not given a firm local rollout date. And that matters for Australian owners because there are a lot of earlier Model 3s and Model Wires on our roads. Many of those vehicles have AI3 hardware, and many owners will be watching this pretty closely. It's also a subscription angle here. FSD supervised in Australia has been offered as a one-time purchase on new vehicles, and the monthly subscription now starts at $149 per month. Now, if Tesla brings version 14 light to AI3 cars here, and it's meaningfully better than the older version, it could encourage a lot more owners to try the subscription. And that is probably part of the business case for Tesla. Software improves, more owners try it, Tesla gets recurring subscription revenue, and the cars become more attractive used, at least for people who value those driver assistance features. However, Tesla needs to be very careful with their messaging. The name full self-driving is still controversial because the system is supervised, and yes, they do put supervised in the title. Now, Tesla is of course using that FSD supervised, which is better, but the name still carries a lot of baggage. For a podcast like this, I think the fairest way to explain it is this. Tesla Driver Assistance Software is more advanced than most systems available in Australia, and it is improving rapidly, but it is not a replacement for the driver. That's the bottom line. And it's especially important with older hardware. AI3 owners should be happy that Tesla has not simply abandoned older cars. This update shows Tesla is still trying to bring a lot of the latest capability across to the existing fleet, but they should also be realistic. The older computer has limits, and that is why the light version exists. And future major updates may not always come across in the same way or at the same time as the latest AI-4 and what will soon to be the AI5 hardware. For Australian buyers looking at used Tesla, this is now part of the equation. A used Model 3 or Model Y with AI3 hardware may still be a fantastic EV, may still get very good, very strong software support, but if FSD supervised matters to you, the hardware generation will have to matter as well. So, practical advice is simple. Know what hardware the car has before you buy it. For current owners, it's more of a wait and see moment. The US early access rollout is encouraging, the early feedback sounds very positive, and Australia and New Zealand should be the logical candidates because FSD Supervised is already active here on newer cars. However, until Tesla confirms local availability, AI3 owners here are still waiting. However, it gives existing owners hope that their vehicles are still in the software roadmap. But as I said before, it remains supervised and it's not yet confirmed and it does not turn older Teslas into fully autonomous cars. The balance is important because with Tesla, the technology is genuinely impressive, but the hype can still run ahead of the reality. The current ADO2 has only been on sale here for a short time, but it has already become a very strong seller. It opened for pre-orders in Australia late last year with pricing from $31.99 before on road costs, and it has clearly struck a chord with buyers. In the first six months of this year, it recorded more than 5,000 Australian sales. That's a serious result for a small electric SUV, and it tells you something important about the Australian market. Buyers will respond when the price is right. For years, the criticism of EVs was that they were too expensive, too niche, or too premium. The Addo 2 is one of the cars pushing back against that. It's not a luxury EV, it's not trying to be a supercar performance car, it's a small, affordable electric SUV designed to make EV ownership feel normal. The current Australian Ado 2 uses a single front-mounted electric motor producing 130 kW and 290 newton meters. It is front-wheel drive and uses a 51.13 kilowatt hour blade battery and has a claimed range of 345 kilometers with an 0 to 100km hour time in 7.9 seconds. So the current car is already quick enough for its role. It's not meant to be anything too exciting, but it is quick enough around town, pretty easy to drive, and affordable enough to pull people out of petrol SUVs, the small ones at least. Charging is one of the car's current weak points. DC fast charging is limited to 82 kilowatts, with a claimed 10 to 80% charge in just under 40 minutes. AC charging is 7 kilowatts only, with a full charge taking a little over 8 hours. It's uh fine if you mostly charge at home, but if you rely on public charging a lot or if you want to use it regularly for long trips, it's not very class leading. And then there is the chassis. The current ADO2 uses a front-wheel drive layout and torsion beam resuspension. It's pretty common on cheaper small cars and it helps keep the cost down, but it also means the ADO2 is not exactly built as a driver's car. That is why the reported overseas upgrade is interesting. In China, where the ADO2 is known as the Yuan Up, spy shots suggest BYD is working on a revised version with a rear-wheel drive layout and upgraded rear suspension. The biggest change would be moving from a front-mounted motor to a rear-mounted motor, and that would fundamentally change the character of the car. Rear-wheel drive is not automatically better in every situation, especially for a small urban SUV, but in an EV it can bring several advantages. It can improve the traction under acceleration because the weight shifts to the rear wheels, it can reduce torque steer, and it can give the steering a bit of a cleaner feel because the front wheels no longer have to steer and drive the car. That could make the Edo 2 feel more like a proper EV platform rather than a budget small SUV with an electric powertrain. The other big change is the rear suspension. The upgraded URN up is reportedly moving from torsion beam rear suspension to an inter independent multi-link rear suspension. Pretty big deal for ride and handling. A torsion beam is much cheaper, simpler and takes up less space. It can work well in small cars, especially when tuned properly. However, an independent multi-link rear suspension generally gives engineers more control over the wheel movement, ride comfort, cornering behaviour, and stability over rough roads. And on us Australian roads that are just really well maintained, it could matter a lot. We got plenty of broken suburban roads, speed humps, patchy rural roads, and coarse chip services, and a better rear suspension setup could make the Ado 2 feel a little bit more mature, a bit more comfortable, and more composed. Cars like the MG4, Leap Motor B05, the BYD Dolphin 2, GWM Aura 5, and the Ado 2 are all fighting for buyers who may be new to EVs. And if the car feels cheap, bouncy, or unfinished, that's gonna hurt the whole EV experience. So if BYD can give the ADO2 rear-wheel drive and multi-link resuspension without pushing the price too high, could be a pretty meaningful upgrade. Interestingly, the reported Chinese market power outputs may actually be lower than the current Australian front drive Ado 2. Reports suggest the revised rear drive version could be offered with a 100kW or 120kW rear mounted motors compared with the current Australian car's 130kW front motor. That may sound like a downgrade, but it depends on how the car is tuned and which version Australia gets. A rear drive Ado 2 with slightly less peak power but better traction, better steering feel, better ride control, and improved efficiency could still be the better car. There's also talk that export markets could get slightly more powerful versions, so we should uh treat the Chinese figures with a little bit of grain of salt there. Battery options are also reportedly changing. The upgraded model is expected to continue with the 400 volt electrical architecture and first generation blade battery cells rather than BYD's newer flash charging setup. Reported battery sizes are around 42 kWh and 52 kWh with CLTC range claims of 410 and 505km respectively. As we know, CLTC is a little bit generous and WLTP numbers would likely be less than this, but the larger battery could translate to maybe around 400km of WLTP range if the efficiency is good. That'd be a useful step up from the current 345km claim. There are also signs that BYD may offer lighter equipped versions of the upgraded model in China for more advanced driver assistance features. That part is much more uncertain for Australia. BYD has been adding more advanced assistance technology in China at a pretty rapid pace, but what comes to Australia depends a lot on cost, local regulations, right-hand drive packaging, and whether BYD wants to keep the ADO2 as a very priced focused model. Of course, the more things you add, the price goes up. Personally, I would not assume we're getting the LiDAR version here unless BYD specifically confirms it. The bigger and more realistic point is the mechanical overhaul. Rear-wheel drive and independent rear suspension would be the upgrades that matter the most for Australian buyers. The timing is also worth watching. If this updated ADO2 comes to Australia for 2027, it could follow a similar pattern to the larger ADO3, which is also moving toward a more rear drive focus mechanical layout overseas. The current ADO2 has done its job very well. It's made small electric SUVs much more affordable and it's strong, sold strongly because of that. But the next version could be more than just a cheap, could be generally better, and that's a pretty exciting part of it. The affordable EV fight is moving quickly, and BYD clearly does not plan to stand still. Alright, and that is episode 69 off Plugged in Australia. This has definitely gone a much longer episode than I had initially anticipated, at just under two and a half hours. So I think it's probably too long. I'm sure I'll hear from some of you, some of you out there that I definitely should have just uh shortened a little bit and uh not done such big dips, but it is the deep dive, and I guess this is two weeks worth. So yeah, apologies again for missing the quick charges this week. And obviously I missed that deep dive last week, and we won't have any of the quick charges next week. So as always, thank you so much for listening. And until the next time, stay plugged in and stay charged. Chevy the ammo