WHAT’S NEW

PRICE The ES Luxury is down by almost $3900 to $59,888 plus on-roads despite extra gear. The Sports Luxury has risen by almost $3000 to $74,888.

TECHNOLOGY A head-up display, wireless phone charging, traffic sign recognition and lane-keep assist now are standard on all ES versions. Sports Luxury adds adaptive high beam headlamps, rear cross-traffic alert and powered rear seats.

PERFORMANCE Combined power from the hybrid layout is rated at 160kW, up by 9kW from the old model. Official fuel use is down from 5.5 litres/100km to 4.6 litres.

DRIVING A new MacPherson front and multilink rear plus rack-mounted power-steering gives the ES improved agility, though steering feel is still muted.

DESIGN This car is 60mm longer, 5mm lower and 45mm wider, sitting on the same modular chassis as the Toyota Camry. Rear head and legroom is up and a 12.3-inch infotainment screen replaces the eight-inch unit.