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News - General News - Product NewsWhat’s new in the zoo for 2025Huge year of new vehicle launches lies ahead, magnified by continued Chinese influx20 Jan 2025 AUSTRALIA might be heading for softer new-vehicle sales in 2025 but one thing is certain: It will be a much more competitive market for all players, with up to 20 more Chinese car-makers (including their sub brands) vying for a slice of the pie.
We are likely to see new entrants in various segments from Chinese car-makers Denza, GAC Aion, Geely, Jaecoo, Jetour, Lynk & Co, Nio, Radar, Seres and Skywell joining recent entrants Deepal, Foton, JAC, Leapmotor, Xpeng and Zeekr, following a trail blazed by now-established players BYD, Chery, GWM, LDV and MG.
Consumers will be spoiled for choice and enjoy either discounts, minimal price rises or other incentives as a side effect of an increasingly crowded market, not to mention external factors such as tariff changes overseas that could encourage Chinese car-makers to reallocate production for this market.
Other market forces will come into play, including a federal election in the first half of the year, possible interest rate cuts, an end to the fringe benefits tax concession on plug-in hybrids (PHEV) and the introduction of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).
All told, new car buyers may be in the box seat in 2025 and be able to secure a good deal on a vehicle from a marketplace that offers an unprecedented level of choice.
This will undoubtedly change the dynamic of Australia’s new car space and could precipitate a shake out of who’s who in the zoo.
Although changing daily, the following segment-by-segment new car calendar is what we can expect coming through new car dealerships in 2025.
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Micro and light passenger carsThe tiddler class may be on the wane but still provides plenty of interest in the form of a revised Mazda 2 and the availability of an eight-speed auto transmission in Toyota’s GR Yaris hot rod along with a power upgrade.
Peugeot’s sole light car offering, the E-208 battery electric vehicle (BEV) arrives this year, to do battle with the similarly all-electric Volkswagen ID.2 that will reputedly be priced sub $40K.
What’s coming:
Small passenger carsIn what remains a popular segment among Australian new-car buyers there will be plenty of new metal – including more hybrids – with Kia’s new K4 sedan first cab off the rank to replace the Cerato.
The MG 5 becomes safer in 2025 following a revamp and a bunch of Minis lob in petrol and BEV configurations across hatch and convertible formats.
Audi’s popular A3 and S3 duo get facelifted early in the piece, with the five-cylinder RS3 to excite petrolheads around the mid-year mark.
The Toyota GR Corolla GR hot hatch scores a similar treatment as the equivalent Yaris with more grunt and eight-speed auto availability among a range of upgrades.
VW continues its BEV rollout with the ID.3 arriving this year along with an updated Golf including high-performance GTI Clubsport and R variants.
What’s coming:
Medium passenger carsThe Tesla Model 3’s dominance of this segment will likely continue to wane as BEV competition hots up with BYD’s facelifted Seal due early in the year, Nio launching its ET5 and the IM L6 1000km-capable sedan arriving to keep Elon’s chariot honest.
Audi has scheduled the new A5 and S5 for mid-year launch and Mercedes-Benz releases its C350e PHEV around the same time.
Also likely to enter the fray with the Toyota Camry in its crosshairs is the MG 7.
What’s coming:
Large and upper large passenger carsExpectation for BMW’s 535kW/1000Nm V8 sledgehammer M5 Touring PHEV is palpable and the same applies in the rarefied atmosphere of Bentley’s updated Continental GT update, not to mention the addition of a PHEV to the Flying Spur limo line-up.
Genesis keeps plugging away with an upgraded G80 sedan while Porsche gets out of the blocks early with Taycan 4 and GTS models together with a Panamera Turbo e Hybrid around the same time.
Audi’s low-slung and slinky 680kW/1027Nm E-tron GT facelift arrives mid-year to excite BEV aficionados.
What’s coming:
SportscarsTwo Aston Martins break cover this year, starting with the new Vanquish turbo V12 in the first quarter and the Vantage V8 Roadster arriving as autumn gives way to winter.
But the real interesting new entrant is from China with the BYD sub-brand Denza and its Z9GT, a triple motor BEV (also available as a PHEV) built along similar styling lines to Porsche’s Panamera.
A cluster of Ferraris is scheduled for arrival in 2025 including the speccy 12 Cilindri (followed by a Spider drop-top version) and maybe the F80 late in the year.
Porsche will be busy launching six newcomers, numbered among them its new-generation 718 BEVs and a heap of facelifted 911 variants
The rumour mill has it that Nissan may introduce a 200SX/Silvia successor.
What’s coming:
People moversLarge families and airport shuttle operators can look forward to more choice in 2025, headed by Ford and its big new Tourneo early in the year with the rest of the segment’s new entrants dominated by new models from China.
Incoming brand GAC will arrive with four choices in this segment, Xpeng will bring two and Zeekr will debut its 09. All would seem to be pursuing the upper end of the market, giving Kia plenty of space to keep dominating the segment with its big-selling Carnival.
Also at the pricier end of this market will be Volkswagen’s new Caravelle and Multivan people movers.
What’s coming:
Light SUVsNot a lot of action in this space in 2025 apart from the expected appearance of Alfa’s handsome new Junior BEV before mid-year.
Renault has just announced a new Captur will be coming here before the end of the year and Suzuki plans to introduce the coupe-style Fronx, possibly with the same 1.5-litre engine as the Jimny.
Kia’s EV2 may make it here before the end of the year.
What’s coming:
Small SUVsBuyers will be spoiled for choice in this segment as at least 25 new models are scheduled to arrive in 2025 to join the numerous offerings already available from Europe, Japan, Korea and China.
Audi and BMW go head-to-head with new hybrid and electric models while Chery introduces a PHEV version of its Tiggo 4 Pro.
Hyundai threatens with the new Inster due imminently while Kia has the EV3 slated for launch around mid-year.
Mitsubishi has finally announced the end of the 15-year-old current ASX to be replaced this year with a new version sourced from within the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance (essentially a badge-engineered Renault Captur).
There will also be plenty of action from China in this segment from the Aion V BEV, Leapmotor B10 and Zeekr X.
What’s coming:
Medium SUVsThe largest market segment also has the most new entrants, again from all points of the compass and in particular from China with 18 newcomers from the People’s Republic that we were able to tag.
Highlights include the appearance of Audi’s new Q6 E-tron, Q5 and SQ5 models, a swag of new or revised Cupras including the Terramar and Tavascan, Deepal’s S07 (here now) and the IM LS6.
A freshened-up Tesla Model Y is due mid-year with sleeker styling and tech upgrades and Nissan’s Ariya finally makes it Down Under as do VW’s ID.4, ID.5 and new-generation Tiguan.
What’s coming:
Large and upper large SUVsBig news in this segment is the reappearance of Cadillac with its Lyriq BEV that comfortably out-powers its competition.
Ford is having another crack at the Mustang Mach-E while GMC is almost ready to launch the postcode-size Yukon Denali.
On top of that we have a bunch of Chinese models from Chery, GAC, GWM and Jetour (a Chery sub brand) with its blocky looking and imposing T2 due this year.
Volvo’s highly anticipated XC90 and EX90 are due to make an appearance this year and Toyota’s LandCruiser 300 Series scores more tech.
What’s coming:
UtesLots of action in the ute segment in 2025 focuses on PHEVs, BEVs and new Chinese entrants.
The BYD Shark 6 PHEV has the inside running, hitting the market in January but Chery has both hybrid and BEV utes in the offing for 2025.
Ford’s long-awaited Ranger PHEV arrives mid-year but there will be strong competition from Foton, GWM and LDV.
A six-pot Ram 1500 arrives this year as does the new Kia Tasman. Mitsubishi’s Triton cab-chassis is due, with strong rumours that flagship Ralliart and PHEV variants will arrive before the end of 2025.
What’s coming:
VansFord’s electric eTransit Custom is the big news in van-land as it has a PHEV stablemate.
The new VW Transporter arrives mid-year as does a more powerful GTX version of the Kombi-inspired ID.Buzz.
What’s coming:
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