Why Hilux & Ranger Sales Just Crashed…But Toyota’s $160K LandCruiser Feels Insane??

Car news doesn't stop.I've barely had time to fix my glasses, accidentally shave off my mow, and it is chaos out there.

So the RAV4 is back, and it's not just back, it's dominant.It was Australia's best -selling car.last month.This is massive because normally the Hilux takes this title and this hasn't happened in forever.Speaking of ute news the JAC Hunter PHEV is coming later in the year.It's a rival to the BYD Shark 6 and it's going to undercut it significantly on price by about 10 grand.

We drove a pre -production version and the bad news you can tell.The federal government has extended its EV tax break, but Australia still has one of the worst EV to public charging ratios in the world.

Not ideal when those EV numbers are going through the roof.And yet rooftop solar?We dominate on a global scale.It's a very strange dichotomy.

And then there's the politician accusing Labor of giving away a free EV to every millionaire out there.We'll get to that plus some tidbits at the end of this wrap, including the price of the upcoming LandCruiser 300 Series PHEV petrol.It's going to be 160k.What do we think of that?Big week.Buckle up.

Let's get into it.The RAV4 is back on top.In April 2026, the RAV4 was the top selling car in Australia, selling just under 3 ,700 units.That's a lot of new cars.

The Ford Ranger was second with just under 3 ,700 units.The Hilux was third, finding around 2 ,800 homes in April 2026.So top three is Toyota, Ford, Toyota.

And that gap between first and second is small, just 68 cars.The RAV4 snuck in like it had something to prove.Now, here's the context you need.

The new generation RAV4 has only just started deliveries in March.So this thing is still ramping up.This could go a lot higher, a lot faster.Popularity could still be rising.So this is a car that's barely just launched and it's still the top seller in Australia.If you want to know what I think of the RAV4, check the link in the description or search for RAV4 review Australia in YouTube.

I did the launch review, go watch it.There's plenty of pros and cons in there.But here's the biggest story in the April sales data.

Nearly one in two cars sold in this country was electrified.That is a big deal.So we're not talking EVs, it's EV and hybrid.

So PHEV, closed loop, plugless hybrid, all that sort of stuff.

So EV on its own, 16 .4%, not as big a number, but that is a new record for EVs and hybrids surged 27%.That's big.

The RAV4 being the top seller last month isn't just a Toyota story, it's a hybrid story.It helped drag those numbers up for sure.So it's clear buyers are voting with their wallets and they're voting for cars that don't need to go to the petrol station quite as often.

Now flip that coin over and diesels are getting smoked.Pun intended.The Hilux, once the king of Aussie sales, is down more than 30 % year on year.And that's a drop that will concern the penny pinchers over at Toyota HQ.The Ford Ranger is down 9 .2%.The Ford Everest, that's down 29 .1%.

Toyota Prado, that's down around 16 % as well.So there's a bit of a pattern forming here.The only diesel vehicle in the top 10 that went up was the Isuzu D -MAX, and that was only by 4 .2%.not a huge jump.We'll be watching this space very closely because the question you have to ask is, what's happening to the new car market?

Are fuel prices changing buyer behavior?I think almost certainly.And yes, fuel prices have come down because of the excise being cut.But that's going to come back on in a few months, in a couple of months.And when it does, prices are going to go back up.And who knows when this conflict, this war in Iran is going to end.

And even if it does end, say, tomorrow, hypothetically, which it won't, the infrastructure in the Middle East, the oil producing countries, it's been blown to pieces by Iran.I've been down a few rabbit holes with this Iran thing lately, and it's not looking good over there.But circling back to this diesel patent, I think we need a few more months of data to know if this is Just a spike or a trend?

But I reckon right now it's starting to look like a trend.Oh, and one more thing, BYD finished April as the second most popular brand in Australia, behind Toyota, ahead of Ford.So the Chinese brand outsold the Americans.That's a pretty big deal.And BY's bestseller, it was the C -Line 7.Just under 1800 people bought it in April alone.

So while the diesels were down, this C -Line 7 was up almost 140 % year on year.People seem to be loving it.

I've got my full video review of the C -Line 7 dropping on Saturday, I think.So subscribe and hit the bell so you don't miss that one.

The Toyota Land Cruiser 300PHEV has been priced and it's expensive.It will cost $156 ,060 plus on -road costs.Why $60?Why not just make it $156 ,000?Who's making these decisions?

I mean, I just think that's silly, but that's just me.You think it's silly?Leave a comment.Maybe it's me being silly, whatever.So you're looking at $160 ,000 minimum to get it on the road, probably a lot more because you've got to factor in dealer delivery, government charges, all that sort of stuff.However, it's the first petrol powered Land Cruiser in quite some time.

The last one was the LC200 with a 4 .6 litre petrol V8, and that was not the best engine in the world.in that vehicle the best engine was the uh the diesel for sure the v8 diesel that was cool so whether phevchanges that equation at 160k plus, that's something we'll have to visit when it arrives later in the year.And I'm actually quite keen to drive it.I'm sort of thinking this new hybrid system that they borrowed from the Tundra could be pretty good off -road and maybe for towing, but we'll find out.Stay tuned.

Right, so we've established that Australians are absolutely ravenous for electrified vehicles at the moment, which makes what Honda has done a little bit baffling.The new fourth generation Honda Insight, which is a proper new generation EV with 500 plus kilometers of range, is not coming to Australia.

Honda Australia's managing director, Jay Joseph, put it plainly, and I quote, I don't think that model makes sense here.It doesn't make sense.for Australia in 2026, when hybrids and EVs are breaking records every month.

Now, to be fair to Jay, there is a pretty good reason why it's not coming.The Insight is manufactured by Honda's joint venture company and state -owned Chinese car maker Dongfeng in China.Apparently securing the business case through that arrangement is a lot more complicated than just importing a car from Japan.

And the very same issue has killed the PHEV CRV for Australia.And the CRV is one of its most popular models.So that's a big loss for them.As Honda Australia director and tour IC Robert Thorpe put it, and I quote, whether it's Insight or any other vehicle in the Honda portfolio, we're constantly looking to see what we can make work in this particular market.

What they can make work, apparently, is a super tiny compact SUV called the Honda Super One.It's cute.It looks like fun, but it's not going to scratch the SUV or possibly the EV each for a lot of Aussies.Not going to be a big seller.So the Insight, a famous nameplate that launched in Australia in 2001, helped kicked off the hybrid wars with the Toyota Prius, the two big hitters.not coming to Australia.

And it's a shame because the Insight has strong brand recognition among mature car buyers.But there's another vehicle with a strong electric heritage in Australia that also got boned.And it's a damn shame in my view.The new Prius also not coming here.I mean, we've known for a while, but I want to bring it up.It's genuinely painful because that Prius is not only super efficient, relatively well priced, but it looks Really good.

It's gorgeous.Nay, tremendous.I mean, this new Insight's a bit of a wonky shape that the Prius made.It works.So the Prius had a glow up.It's like super sleek.

It's genuinely stylish.And I reckon Australians would buy that car right now.But it's not coming.The bright spot, Honda has confirmed its Zero Alpha is on the radar for Australia from 2027.So we will see some new metal from Honda.That vehicle is built in India.

It's got a different supply chain.It's a very different conversation.And we'll dig into that one another time.But the next story, I'm a little bit pee -heaved off.Now, the BYD Shark 6 has been the darling of the ute world in Australia for quite some time now.It's been averaging over 1 ,200 sales per month.

It owns this PHEV ute space.

People like it.But there's a new competitor coming, the JAC PHEV Hunter.Or is it Hunter PHEV?I don't know.These names always confuse me.Anyway, this thing is genuinely compelling.

Here's the pitch.It's going to cost less than $50 ,000 before on -road costs.

It's got a 360 kilowatt output, a turbocharged petrol motor, and two electric motors.Sounds pretty cool, right?A claimed range of over 1 ,000 kilometers on one tank of fuel and one charge of the battery.It'll tow 3 .5 tons.It's got a five -star ANCAP safety rating.It's got locking diffs front and rear.

Tick tick tick.On paper, it looks like an excellent ute.Cheaper than the BYD Shark 6, and it outperforms it in terms of performance.Power.Power and performance.We drove a pre -production version in New South Wales last week and the good news is that it was pretty impressive off -road.

Strong traction, composed on rough terrain and on one steep muddy climb it made it up without having to flick on any of the diff locks.That suggests the latent all -wheel drive system is pretty good.The bad news?Overall first impressions are a bit rough.Close the door, rattle from the glass.

Check out the interior, it's a bit chintzy with lots of fake chrome and feels a bit dated.It's got woolly steering, The ride quality never seemed to settle properly on regular roads.Now.To JAC's credit, they knew most of this.They were upfront and they said, this is not the production vehicle.This is the pre -production vehicle.

But given it's done 50 ,000 kilometers with ex -Holden engineer, Michael Barber, leading the development push, we expected a little more.However, the brand says these issues are being addressed.They will be fixed.I certainly hope they are because if they do fix it, this vehicle will be a serious player.BYD will be watching very closely.

And if they don't, well, it'll end up like some of the lesser loved utes in Australia, and it'll sell less than a thousand a year.Simply put, the ute market does not reward mediocrity.So the Hunter PHEV goes on sale in the third quarter of this year.So what is that?That's, you know, August, September, October, no, July, whatever.It's third quarter.

And so, you know, this car has to be good.Moving on to some political news where the EV incentives are going to be wound down a little bit.Sort of.So here we have good news, bad news and slightly, actually, sort of more good news.

The federal government has extended the electric car discount.The full fringe benefits tax exemption stays until March 2027.After that, it scales it back.EVs under $75 ,000 will keep that exemption until April 2029.So then what happens every year?the luxury car tax threshold gets a 25 % discount rather than the full exemption, which means EV sales will probably be on fire until April 2029.

But let's backtrack a little bit.

This scheme was forecast to cost $605 million over seven years.

It's now costing $1 .35 billion per year.It's a little bit of a blowout.But that's because people actually used it, which, depending on your politics, is either a scandal or a success.Industry consultant Matt Hobbs described it well.He said, and I want to quote this accurately, the FBT exemption was a foundational piece of the deal that delivered the new vehicle efficiency standard.You can't separate the FBT exemption from NVES, that's the emissions regulations framework.

Locking in a permanent 25 % discount beyond 2029 is a meaningful signal the government understands EV affordability is still a challenge to crack.

So it's staying in reduced form and most industry players are happy with this outcome, but not all like the opposition.We'll get to that.So here's now the bad news.

EV sales are going to keep heading north.Incentives from the government and war in the Middle East, that is pushing things up.a lot.But according to the International Energy Agency, Australia has around 45 vehicles for every public charger.South Korea, 1 .8 vehicles for every charger.We are not in the same league as South Korea on this.

And here's the tricky bit.Charging times are now the number one concern for Australians considering an EV.

Not range, not cost, charging time.And that tells you something.So the New South Wales government has committed to new fast chargers across the state and they're doing some really cool things with these these street side power pole chargers in the suburb.I think that's a pretty cool idea.I think other states will follow but we've got a lot of ground to make up.However here's the actually quite good news.

Australia has 4 .7million rooftop solar systems.That's nearly one in three households and we have the highest rooftop solar penetration per capita on the planet.Holland is second, Germany is third.Yes, I prefer Holland.Can we call them Holland?

Netherlands?I don't know.Let's go with that one.Which means a huge chunk of EV charging done in Australia is done at home.It's off the grid.It's using sunshine, photons.

bombarding us from a giant ball of fire in that.

I should move on.So this does change the calculus a bit.

The public charging problem is real and it needs to be fixed, but it's not like we're starting at zero.We're actually really well set up for home charging on this side of the equation.And now let's talk about how the coalition's EV strategy is going.

Nationals leader Matt Canavan has opinions about EV incentives.A completely failed scheme, he says.

He also said, and I quote, providing an electric vehicle subsidy through the tax system has meant that the only people who benefit are those that are on the top tax bracket.This is not just middle class warfare.This is upper class warfare.Now, that is a very quotable line and in some ways it's true, but there are a few problems with the argument as well.First, the scheme exists through novated leases, which are available to a wide range of employees.It's not just executives on the top brackets.

If you've got a job and you can get salary sacrifice vehicle, you're in.

That's how novated leasing has always worked.Second, the whole point of the scheme was to get EVs into the secondhand market.And it's starting to do that.

Yes, it's taken a while, but we're starting to see Tesla Model 3s priced between $30 ,000 and $40 ,000 now.It's not bad.Priced between 30 and 40 for s*** ones, but still not bad.

And how's this?Secondhand EVs leapt by 138 % between February and March this year.

So the policy is kind of doing what it was supposed to do, eventually.Third, what is the alternative?Well, Canavan has been vocal about what he doesn't like.But what does he like?What does he want to see?What is he going to do?

So the question now is, what is the coalition's alternative proposal?And quite frankly, it doesn't seem like they have much on the table.So it's all good and well to argue about the negatives of one thing.But if you're not going to provide an alternate plan, then You're going to look like a goose.At the moment, the Middle East conflict is pushing petrol prices up and is making the case for EVs stronger by the week.And the optics of killing an EV incentive plan while fuel prices are spiking and there's a war, it's not great.

And the government knows it.And that's partly why this this EV discount is going to stay for a while.

Okay, homestretch people, I've got a few quickfire stories worth your time.Let's start with the new Hyundai IONIQ 6N.It's a weapon.Our news editor Callum Hunter got behind the wheel on the road in the racetrack and he loved it.

And look, the footage we've got, it's ridiculous.The skids, I mean it is off the scale, it's off chops.Perpendicular, full noise, all four tires completely cooked.I could watch that again and again.Which is why I'd say there's no better reason to watch that video now.

Go check it out.JAC with their new Hunter PHEV is also working on an SUV version of its ute and it's not confirmed as a PHEV yet, probably will be diesel only, but I think it's got to be PHEV.

They need a point of difference.The Prado, the Everest, they're too strong.They have so much brand value and you know, they're pretty good cars too.So to get in there needs to be something different anyway.

Okay, over to Gigli who's making a bit of noise about the new plugless hybrid system, the IHEV hybrid technology.They say it beats Toyota's plugless hybrid tech that has been around for

which is tried and tested.So I drove their Camry rival with this new system this plugless hybrid system in China and yeah I drove it that's about it.No, the car was genuinely impressive but figuring out whether it's efficient or not was difficult because, you know, it was on an insipid test track.It was basically just a car park, you know, so it's hard to draw firm conclusions from that and really keen to test this car and this technology on Aussie roads and see if it is better than Toyota's.Will that give them an edge in the sales wars going forward?That's your week in cars.

All the sources to the stories in the description below.Don't forget to like and subscribe and I'll see you next time.