MOTOR

Citroen http://www.citroen.com.au

TESTED PRICE ENGINE KW/RPM NM/RPM DRIVE

KERB

KG

KW/

TONNE

0-100

KM/H 0-400M

FUEL

CONSPROS & CONS

DS3 DSport

11133

May 12 $29,740 (6m) I4/1.6T 115/6000 240/1400 front 1165 99 7.71 15.71 8.7 Trendy styling; playful and pliant chassis

I n d i r e n e e d o f a p r o p e r e n g i n e t o m a k e t h e m o s t o f i t

DS3 DSport Cabriolet

11333

Apr 12 $32,990 (6m) I4/1.6T 115/6000 240/1400 front 1190 97 – – 6.7 Cute as a button; trendier than a hipster’s iPhone

Would you really want to be seen driving it?

Ferrari http://www.ferrari.com.au

California T

11112

Aug 14 $409,888 (7dc) V8/3.8TT 412/7500 755/4750 rear 1730 238 3.6 – 10.5 Massive turbocharged grunt; looks much better

Bit soft around the edges; inevitable poseur image

458 Italia

11111

Sep 11 $525,417 (7dc) V8/4.5 419/9000 540/6000 rear 1485 286 3.4 11.3 13.3 Verging on automotive perfection; a dream to drive

Lengthy waiting list; option prices are comical

458 Speciale

11111

Mar 15 $550,000 (7dc) V8/4.5 445/9000 540/6000 rear 1395 314 3.0 – 11.8 As a driving machine, simply faultless

Road noise; lack of creature comforts (like carpets)

458 Spider

11111

$588,451 (7dc) V8/4.5 419/9000 540/6000 rear 1535 273 3.4 11.3 13.3 If anything, Spider is even better than the hardtop

If you think of anything, let us know

FF

11112

Dec 13 $624,646 (7dc) V12/6.3 486/8000 683/6000 all 1880 258 3.7 – 15.4 A Ferrari with punishing performance and practicality

Not exactly pretty; scary fuel bills; heavy

F12 Berlinetta

11111

Apr 14 $690,745 (7dc) V12/6.3 545/8250 690/6000 rear 1525 357 3.1 – 15.0 Amazing engine, chassis and technology

Not for inexperienced hands

Ford http://www.ford.com.au

Fiesta ST

11112

Nov 14 $25,990 (6m) I4/1.6T 134(147)/

5700

240(290)/

1600

front 1197 112 7.4015.4 10.5 New Blue Oval hero; engine and handling top-notch

Firm ride; interior is a little low-rent

Focus ST

11123

Mar 14 $38,290 (6m) I4/2.0T 184/5500 360/2000 front 1362 135 7.2115.06 9.5 Cracking engine; superbly adjustable handling; price

Interior ergonomics; fake engine note; turning circle

Falcon XR6 ute

11233

$30,440 (6m)

$32,640 (6a)

I6/4.0 195/6000 391/3250 rear 1783* 109 – – 8.7* Leaf-sprung rear end proves its worth carrying loads...

...but handicaps it in the corners

Falcon XR6

11133

$35,590 (6m)

$37,790 (6a)

I6/4.0 195/6000 391/3250 rear 1748* 112 – – 12.4* Lovely handling balance and ride; great steering

Interior looking very dated; quality concerns

Falcon G6E Ecoboost

11123

$40,110 (6a) I4/2.0T 179/5500 353/2000 rear 1688* 106 – – 11.7* EcoBoost engine a revelation and helps handling, too

G6E is no sports car, put the engine in an XR6, stat!

Falcon XR6 Turbo ute

1113 3

$37,610 (6m)

$39,810 (6a)

I6/4.0T 270/5250 533/2000 rear 1832* 147 – – 13.7* Brilliant turbo six; entertaining handling; tradie respect

Can be a real handful in the wet; not exactly sophisticated

Falcon XR6 Turbo

11123

Feb 15 $42,990 (6m)

$45,190 (6a)

I6/4.0T 270/5250 533/2000 rear 1793* 151 5.50 13.78 13.1 Huge performance; cheaper than ever before

Vague front-end; feeling quite old

XR8

11123

Feb 15 $52,490 (6m)

$54,690 (6a)

V8/5.0S 335/5750 570/2200 rear 1858* 180 5.09* 13.15* 17.0* Massive performance for your dollar; V8 soundtrack

Rides too firm; handling far from sophisticated

Falcon G6E Turbo

1113 3

$46,550 (6a) I6/4.0T 270/5250 533/2000 rear 1804* 149 – – 11.7** Monster performance in a refined package

Interior too similar to normal Falcon

Holden http://www.holden.com.au

Barina RS

11233

Jan 14$20,990 (6m)

$23,190 (6a)

I4/1.4T 103/4900 200/1850 front 1249 82 – – 6.5 Super cheap; reasonable levels of grip

Doesn’t deserve an ‘RS’ badge; barely a performance car

Holden Cruze SRi

($250) 1113 3

Jul 14 $23,140 (6m)

$25,340 (6a)

I4/1.6T 132/5500 230/2200 front 1450 91 8.81 16.23 10.6 Grippy, agile chassis; well-tuned for local roads

Performance way off the pace

SV6 ute

11123

Apr 14 $33,490 (6m)

$35,690 (6a)

V6/3.6 210/6400 350/2900 rear 1680 125 – – – VF updates give SV6 real performance; that price!

Doesn’t have the street cred of the V8

SV6

11133

$36,790 (6m)

$38,990 (6a)

V6/3.6 210/6400 350/2900 rear 1688 124 – – 9.0 V6 now much more refined; quality interior

Doesn’t have the grunt of eight cylinders, notchy ’box

SV6 Sportwagon

11133

$40,990 (6a) V6/3.6 210/6400 350/2900 rear 1776 118 – – 9.3 A great family bus; economical, roomy and a great drive

Not many people see it that way

SS ute

11123

Nov 14 $39,490 (6m)

$41,690 (6a)

V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1720 157 5.9014.0 – Cheaper than ever; strong engine; balanced handling

Six-speed gearbox still not the slickest unit around

SS

11123

Feb 15 $42,990 (6m)

$45,190 (6a)

V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1729 156 6.0* 14.2* 13.6* A world-class sports sedan; looks great in the right colour

Bogan tag will still be hard to shake

SS Sportwagon

11123

$47,190 (6a) V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1836 152 – – 11.7 Same as above with room for the dog

VE rear-end styling clashes with VF front

SS-V ute

11123

$42,990 (6m)

$45,190 (6m)

V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1736 155 – – – (^) Few better ways to carry your tools
Payload means it can’t actually carry that many tools
SS-V
11123
May 14 $46,490 (6m)
$48,690 (6a)
V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1745 155 6.12 14.24 11.5 Improved in every area, this is the best SS yet
Buy one while you can, you’ll miss it when it’s gone
SS-V Sportwagon
11123
$50,690 (6a) V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1849 146 – – 11.7 Family hauler makes even more sense than VF sedan
Getting up there in the kilo stakes; she’s 100kg heavier
SS-V Redline ute
111 23
Jun 14 $48,990 (6m)
$51,190 (6a)
V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1739 155 – – – A true track star for under $50K!
Does anyone actually take a ute on a track?
SS-V Redline
11113
Feb 15 $52,490 (6m)
$54,690 (6a)
V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1766 152 5.7 13.9 15.5* Brilliantly capable; great fun to drive
Just not that fast; needs more power
SS-V Redline Sportwagon
11123
$56,690 (6a) V8/6.0 270/5700 530/4400 rear 1851 146 – – 11.8 Who doesn’t love a performance wagon?
Now auto-only; possibly the most pointless Redline
Porsche
Panamera GTS
$320,100
Handling king, but pricey
BMW M3
$156,430
A worthy M-car
SEDANS
OVER
$150K
1 ST
2 ND
3 RD
Porsche
3 RD
2 ND
HOT
SOURCE
compiled byMOTOR STAFF
Fast guide to quick cars
TOP 3
M
M
M
M
M-B E63 AMG S
$250,930
Feels nuclear powered
1 ST
M-B E63 AMGS
d motorofficial f motor_mag^137
Worldmags.netWorldmags.net