Vehicle sales slowed significantly in August on continued high fuel prices, tough luxury car taxes and an increasingly weak dollar but despite the economic pressures on the industry, year-to-date sales are still ahead of last year’s record volume. The outlook for the rest of the year isn’t all roses, however, as the slowing trend is likely to continue due to local and global factors, but Toyota's strong sales continue to buoy the struggling industry.

Thanks to the success of the medium-sized Daewoo-built Captiva, Holden's share in the SUV market has been growing steadily since 2006. Now the company is hoping to catch up to its rival Toyota with the introduction of a new front-wheel-drive diesel Captiva that boasts class leading fuel efficiency figures and a cheaper base price.

General Motors has released the first details and images for its new Chevrolet Cruze, which is scheduled to make its world debut at this October’s Paris Motor Show. Joining the recently launched Insignia sedan, the new Cruze has been developed from the ground-up as a global model and will eventually be sold throughout Europe, North America and Asia, and could possibly make its way to Australia as a Holden.

The Holden Barina, based on the Korean-built Daewoo Kalos, was first released to almost universal criticism for its abysmal scores in crash tests, as well as its lack of even the most basic of safety features such as anti-lock brakes. Now, Holden has given its Barina subcompact a new look and feel, while also upgrading safety to quell concerns.

Holden's seven millionth vehicle rolled off the production line today, creating a record manufacturing achievement in Australia's automotive history. The milestone vehicle was built at Holden’s Elizabeth plant in South Australia – one of the most flexible plants in General Motors' worldwide operations with 43 models based on six variants of the Commodore manufactured at the site.

Suzuki has released the first image of its all-new Alto minicar, which the carmaker plans to debut at November’s Paris Motor Show before a global sales launch early next year. As expected, the production Alto shares much in common with last year’s A-Star concept.