There’s a fundamental change in new-vehicle buying habits in Australia: People of all ages, incomes and demographics have abandoned traditional passenger cars for the high-riding wagons known as Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs).

Nearly 43 per cent of all new vehicles sold in Australia are now SUVs. Add in the work utes – mostly 4×4 dual-cabs – that account for another 20 per cent, and traditional passenger cars are very much in the sales minority.

The New Daily‘s motoring expert Bruce Newton compares two models from either end of the price bracket.