LDV

LDV has given its seven-seat D90 SUV a price cut, dropping the entry-level model's price by $1000 and the range-topper's sticker by $3000. Powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, the D90 outputs 165kW and 350Nm. It's mated with a six-speed automatic transmission, and sends power to the rear wheels in the base model, but four-wheel drive is an option on the range-topping D90 Executive.

The Shanghai Automotive Industry Corportation, better known as SAIC – parent of the LDV and MG brands – has opened a new design studio in London, UK. Dubbed 'SAIC Design Advanced London', the new creative hub is the company's second European-based design centre, after MG's Birmingham facility which opened in 2011.

Independent crash-testing authority ANCAP has released its latest safety ratings this week, with the Haval H2, Honda CR-V and LDV T60 all receiving five-star scores. The H2 and T60 join the MG GS as the only Chinese cars to wear a five-star safety rating, scoring 35.46 and 34.88 out of 37 points respectively.

The 2018 LDV T60 may have only just launched in Australia, but it's clear the company has high hopes for its first-ever ute. Among the objectives is an ambitious goal to achieve "10 per cent" market share in the ute segment, according to the head of LDV, SAIC Motor vice president Lan Qingsong, who spoke with Australian media at the local debut of the 2018 LDV T60 in Sydney.