HOT TOPIC
// BAIC is the next Chinese brand coming to NZ
Armstrong’s Automotive Group is expanding its brand portfolio, confirming it will introduce BAIC, a Chinese SUV specialist, to New Zealand from early 2026.
- AutoTalk says Armstrong’s to introduce off-road focused BAIC brand to NZ
- DrivenCarGuide says BAIC SUVs join Kiwi market through Armstrong’s Group
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CCS NEWS
// Trade Me backs CCS overhaul
Listings platform says revamped scheme will improve affordability and choice for Kiwi buyers.
// CCS charges to be chopped
Fees will drop to a top rate of $15g/CO2 for new imports and to $7.50 for used, from the start of 2026.
// Car price hikes avoided
New-vehicle sector praises government’s reset of the clean car standard to restore market balance.
// ‘Sensible circuit-breaker’
VIA says slashing CCS penalties will “take the heat out of prices while the system is reviewed”.
// Changes make scheme ‘futile’
Green Party and Labour say government at fault for collapsing importation of EVs.
// Savings on new models
Beehive publishes what savings changes to the supply-side scheme may have on importers’ costs.
// Policy should be ‘ditched’
Coalition partner claims it’s the only political party to have consistently opposed the CCS.
// Trade Me Motors backs revised Clean Car Standard
Trade Me Motors says the Government’s proposed revisions to the Clean Car Standard (CCS) will ease pressure on used-vehicle prices and restore access to the types of cars most New Zealanders rely on.
// Clean Car Importer Standard fines slashed by 80%: scheme ‘out of whack’ says Transport Minister Chris Bishop
The Government has slashed Clean Car Importer Standard fines and frozen them for two years, in the face of growing deficits in the local car industry that it acknowledges were likely to push the price of new and used cars up significantly.
IN OTHER NEWS
// Subaru shifts investment from EVs to hybrids
Subaru is pulling back on its electric vehicle rollout and diverting a large portion of its planned ¥1.5 trillion (about NZ$17b) electrification budget into hybrid development, citing weakening global demand for EVs.
// Mercedes-AMG to cut some four-cylinder models because of noise regs?
A selection of four-cylinder Mercedes-AMG models is reportedly headed for the chopping block as the brand prepares for incoming European Union noise regulations.
// Volkswagen previews T-Roc R
Volkswagen has offered an early look at the next T-Roc R, the brand’s hot compact SUV, and its upgraded powertrain suggests the Golf R could soon follow the same electrified path.
INTERNATIONAL EV NEWS
// Toyota’s 1,850-acre EV battery plant is live, but the company says this is just the start
Toyota’s $14 billion US battery plant is now up and running. The mega site spans 1,850 acres, or about 121 football fields, but Toyota is saying it will be even bigger.
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