HOT TOPIC
// Renault revives 8 Gordini as electric sports coupé
Renault has revived the 8 Gordini as a one-off electric coupé concept with 200kW, a carbon fibre body and the original’s blue paint and white stripes, ahead of the Paris Motor Show.
HOT TOPIC
// New Chevrolet Silverado HD unveiled with 8.3-litre V8
The 2027 Chevrolet Silverado HD has been unveiled, and among the changes includes an all-new Duramax engine.
- Driven Car Guide says GM’s 8.3-litre Duramax V8 brings 414kW to Silverado and Sierra HD
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BEST OF THE REST
// Wellington dealership ordered to pay $170,000 over migrant exploitation
Upper Hutt vehicle dealer Autopride Cars Limited has been fined $100,000 and ordered to pay $70,654 in reparations for exploiting two migrant workers.
// New Zealand’s new car brands: every new maker in the market for the last two years
Rounding up new automotive brands in New Zealand has become a regular thing for us. We normally do it in something of a piecemeal fashion, but when we decided to think big and collate everything over the past two years a while back, it was because we’d counted 15 to include.
IN OTHER NEWS
// AVATR likely for New Zealand but no timeline set
Changan says its premium AVATR brand will most likely follow to New Zealand after its early 2027 Australian launch with the 07L electric SUV, but has set no timing and has not decided how it will be distributed here.
// Whanganui dealer Ken Williams calls time at 73 as his site goes industrial, Kia passes to David Jones Motors
Kia’s move to David Jones Motors in Whanganui is the end of the road for Ignition Motor Group, which closes at the end of November, and for Ken Williams, who is retiring at 73 after more than five decades in the motor trade because the St Hill Street site he leases has been sold for industrial development with no right of renewal.
// Atina leaves Ford NZ to run Ford Vietnam from 1 December, successor not yet named
Ford New Zealand managing director Annaliese Atina will leave to run Ford Vietnam from 1 December, with her successor still to be named and the local business a month into the biggest reshaping of its network and product line-up in years.
// Sena closes in on 2 Cheap Cars takeover
Sena & Co is nearing the 90% shareholder acceptance threshold required to complete its full takeover and proposed delisting of NZX-listed automotive retailer 2 Cheap Cars Group.
// Archibalds adds 388sqm in multi-million-dollar Range Rover and Defender showroom rebuild
Archibalds has reopened its Range Rover and Defender showroom at 38 Tuam Street in Christchurch after an 11-month build that adds 388 square metres and room for seven display vehicles, the third site announcement from a Miles Group dealership in as many weeks.
// Xpeng P7 electric sedan ‘under serious consideration’ for NZ
The Xpeng P7 could join the Chinese electric vehicle brand’s New Zealand lineup, with the striking sedan now described as being ‘under serious consideration’ for the local market.
// Xpeng confirm testing of driver-assistance tech on NZ roads
Xpeng has confirmed the company is undertaking local testing and calibration of its driver-assistance technology and vehicle dynamics in New Zealand and Australia .
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INTERNATIONAL EV NEWS
// These Battery Cells Were Tested After 14 Years Of Hard Work. They’re Good For Another Decade
CATL supplied the cells for the world’s first large-scale battery energy storage project. Fourteen years later, not one has been replaced.
ONE LINERS
- Rare Lancia Delta Futurista up for grabs
- BYD’s Shark 6 ute to go on sale in China under Fang Cheng Bao brand
- BYD’s luxury arm builds its own Phantom, and it may carry the first solid-state battery
- US police officer after trying a Tesla patrol car: ‘I’m sold’
- Tesla Semi enters high-volume production, nine years after its reveal
- Volkswagen’s secret W10-powered BMW M5 heads to auction
- Brabus turns G-Class into a 662kW convertible
- Italian coachbuilder gives BMW M2 a ‘Batmobile’ makeover
- This brand is axing ‘terrible’ piano-black trim from its cars
- Ford recalls selected 2026 Transit vans over transmission issue
- 2027 Mitsubishi ASX VR-e EV priced from $57,990, range-topping GSR packs 342kW
- Lexus LY 680 yacht sets sail for overseas markets
- Geely’s 2250kW charger takes cars from 10-70% in 4 minutes 30 seconds
- Audi A6 e-tron travels 1338km on one charge in record run
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