The week that was: GR Yaris Rallye pricing revealed, the story behind Subaru’s new BRZ, and more

Toyota fans and self-appointed experts on car enthusiast forums were finally put out of their misery last week, when Toyota eventually revealed the price of the Yaris GR Rallye, an even more special version of the already-special hot hatch.

But the squeals started again as soon as the price was announced: $56,200 drive-away. For a Yaris. Suddenly the $39,950 drive-away introductory price looks almost reasonable. Catch up here.

Any minute now, a different group of Toyota fans will be able to join the whinging. The new-generation Toyota Tundra pick-up is due to be released in the US soon and images have started to leak ahead of its official unveiling.

Toyota HiLux fans want the Tundra to come here, but it’s left-hand-drive only for now. Quick question: if your wish did come true and the new Toyota Tundra did come here, would you buy one if it were a V6 hybrid rather than a V8? Hmmm. Here’s what the internet thinks the next Tundra looks like.

Before we move on from Toyota news, dealers have been told the LandCruiser 200 Series V8 diesel will end production next March, so get your order in if you want one of the last ones.

Still no news on what will power the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series, but speculation is rife that a V6 is involved, either as a petrol hybrid, or diesel or both. Here’s what we reported last week.

Speaking of final editions, the Subaru Liberty sedan is about to bow out. Now what are sensible people going to buy?

Another month, another Ford Ranger limited edition. This one is the Wildtrak X (yes, another one), where Ford fits a bunch of stuff so they make the profit on the accessories rather than the dealer.

It gets a nice new grille but those awful replacement alloy wheels are still around. Does Ford not know these were used on the Mazda BT-50 Boss ages ago? Does Ford not know these look like a set of cheap aftermarket rims from Kmart rather than something befitting a flagship model?

Why does the next Subaru BRZ not have a turbo? The company has spoken. Hint: had a turbo been fitted the engine would have been mounted higher and would have upset the balance of the car. Here’s the full rundown.

Let’s see The Fast & The Furious movie franchise try to fake two dozen gear changes in an electric car that has one gear. Actually, maybe that’s why the car chase movie series is about to run out of road. 

Anyway, to prove that electric cars don’t need to be boring, Porsche went around in circles to set a new drift record for electric cars: 42km. It could have kept going but the battery ran flat. And, presumably, the driver was giddy.

There’s a new cheap Chinese ute on the market, but this one moves the game on, loaded with tech. It went on sale last week (ahead of showroom arrivals shortly).

We have only two questions: does it drive ok (by ute standards) and does it have an infotainment system that is user-friendly? Chinese car companies are making great inroads. Pity none of them can make it easy to use a radio or connect your phone. Fingers crossed.

Canberra put the car industry on the hoist last week and gave countless Big Wigs a right going over. The man representing the car company lobby group seemed to find it difficult to tell the Senate Inquiry that he did, in fact, represent car companies, which prompted a decent serve from Senator Deborah O’Neill.

Representatives from Honda and Mercedes tried to sugar coat the concept of fixed pricing for new cars, but those hosting the Senate Inquiry didn’t appear to be convinced.

The car company executives shuffled on their feet and between their notes while answering sharp questions from Senator O’Neill who has clearly grasped the challenges – and the management speak – in the industry.

Here’s some background to what it all means.

MORE: Last week's ICYMI