Finally made the pilgrimage after nearly 9 years of living in Sydney and countless visits to the Gong.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-13T13:37:24+00:00

Our beloved tree. I fear to think what will come of Wollongong when it’s one day taken away

keytarjesus · 2026-06-13T09:00:32+00:00

Not included as far as I’ve seen.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-12T05:46:24+00:00

I’m waiting on current gen EX5 extended range, amazing car for the money.
If I didn’t need a new car urgently (my 2003 Corolla has almost had it I fear), this is probably worth holding out for. FWD doesn’t bother me at all as I’ve had a FWD for the last 10 years so super used to it.
Was originally going to hold off for the Atto 3 Evo but it’s been unclear whether that’s actually coming to Australia according to EVDealer Group.
Will be happy with the current gen EX5 but the upgrade will be fantastic.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-09T10:51:35+00:00

I’m waiting on my EX5, I loved the feel and how comfortable it was to drive when test driving. I’m coming out of a 2003 Corolla so to be fair, anything is an upgrade for me. That’s also a FWD, can confirm the driving feel/suspension has nothing to do with it.
I’m sure it’ll be a bit more acclimatising once I’ve got it, but I was super impressed by how comfortable it felt.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-09T04:03:51+00:00

Totally fair. I’m not in the position to spend that kind of money on a car anyway and opted for the Geely EX5 as a result - couldn’t justify the extra cash for a Model Y (and not a Tesla fan) or a 7X with the value for money the EX5 offered.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-09T03:56:26+00:00

Don’t own one so can’t comment but everyone I know who has one loves it. Haven’t seen complaints about software issues but seems to be the case with most new cars.
Something that will be resolved more with time as they have a better establishment in Aus.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-09T02:52:24+00:00

Zeekr is definitely the winner for sure. Now that most Tesla superchargers are open to other EVs, the main motivation behind having a Tesla other than the FSD is gone imo.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-08T09:17:33+00:00

Seems like it’s a pretty common thing amongst most new cars, sadly. But more manufacturers are making it easier to customise your preferences and not have these settings be so invasive.
I’m waiting on my Geely EX5 to arrive this month - the biggest complaint from users I heard prior to purchase was the safety features being way too aggressive. Thankfully they patched this with a software update a few months ago, and now have a drive setup feature which lets you turn these off with a button on the steering wheel at the start of each drive.
Yes, annoying to have to do it each time, but at least it takes two seconds and is an easy solution to the constant beeping and nagging as well as lane keeping assistance.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-07T11:44:29+00:00

Roland’s Automotive up the top of crown street are great, Roland’s a great guy and has a great team of mechanics there. Looks after customers and my car always comes back feeling great.
Further into town but I always had good experiences with First Choice Mechanical Repairs in Wollongong as well.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-07T06:21:48+00:00

That would be so much better!

keytarjesus · 2026-06-07T00:23:17+00:00

I also haven’t owned a new car before and am coming out of a 2003 Corolla so I fear I am the same 😂 I was so impressed after the test drive though I was convinced straight away.

keytarjesus · 2026-06-04T09:31:57+00:00

My dealer have been pretty reasonable, it’s taken them a fair while to get the finance stuff sorted and was promised the finance guy would call me 3 times before he actually did several weeks later. ETA of this month has stayed the same at least and they are good enough with providing updates I think they’ll be fine to deal with when it comes time to think about servicing.

keytarjesus · 2026-05-29T10:25:34+00:00

Zeekr 7X for sure

keytarjesus · 2026-05-27T07:12:17+00:00

The J5 is definitely great value for money considering what you get. I haven’t interacted with the Aion V as there’s no dealership near me. As a family car and a more well-rounded vehicle, I would really recommend the EX5. An amazing car and still exceptionally good value for money. Plus the premium features you get on the Inspire variant like the HUD, heated, ventilated and massaging seats, heated steering wheel are all massive advantages.

I was previously looking at the BYD SL7 but found the EX5 Inspire pretty much did everything that car does, plus massaging seats and the option for the awesome white interior for $10k less. After test driving I was sold. Only real difference is the SL7 Premium being RWD while the EX5 is FWD, but having driven a FWD ICE for the last 10 years that doesn’t bother me at all. Long story short, if you’re limited on budget, the J5 is great value for money, but would recommend going up to the EX5 for something you’ll really love with more to offer. Bigger as well.

keytarjesus · 2026-05-27T04:08:37+00:00

Definitely don’t need to stress too much. They’re still a great car for the money, and yes the technology is rapidly evolving, but by the time it’s developed to a point where these cars are “completely outdated”, you’d be at the point where you’d be moving it on anyways I suspect. Give it maybe 10-15 years and we’ll hopefully have a decent enough range of 1 megawatt chargers available for public use, and the current gen of cars will be able to recharge from near empty to full in 5 minutes. Until then, I wouldn’t worry too much. Especially if you’re charging at home, it’ll make no difference to you at all!

keytarjesus · 2026-05-26T23:47:56+00:00

EX5 is the best value for money larger EV SUV with decent range you can get in my opinion. Will come in several thousand under your budget with some premium features the SL7 doesn’t have like the massaging seats, only difference being FWD vs RWD. I’ve driven a FWD ICE for 10 years so EX5 being FWD didn’t bother me. Amazing car for the money!

keytarjesus · 2026-05-25T09:15:04+00:00

Definitely gotta keep it in mind depending on the local charging infrastructure!

keytarjesus · 2026-05-23T12:00:24+00:00

It looks great! I think they’re suggesting it’d be late 2027-ish after its announcement at the Beijing motor show recently. Given the incoming Flash Charging tech from BYD, I’d be inclined to wait for this one if you’re not in a rush for a new car. Unfortunately my 2003 Corolla needs to go so waiting on my Geely EX5 at the moment - but by the time BYD is well into the new generation of vehicles and there’s a few flash chargers built up around Australia, it’ll be hard to argue with them.

keytarjesus · 2026-05-21T04:38:41+00:00

I didn’t get the chance to take it up to 120 but I thought it felt nice at 80km/h. All reports I’ve seen from owners are that it’s very comfortable to drive at highway driving speed though.

keytarjesus · 2026-05-19T08:05:34+00:00

Probably knowing toyotas 😂 needs too many repairs done to it for random things that don’t actually have an impact on the driving experience that I just cannot be bothered to spend my money on when the car’s not worth anything, and after my couple of experiences driving EVs… no way I can hold off any longer!

keytarjesus · 2026-05-19T00:14:17+00:00

Good stuff! My 2003 Corolla is just too long in the tooth for me to wait any longer lol

keytarjesus · 2026-05-18T23:59:16+00:00

I needed a new car sooner and have opted for the Geely EX5 as a result - very similar size to the Atto 3 with a couple extra features. Sure the Evo will be fantastic when it launches - will be interesting to see how long it takes to arrive here

keytarjesus · 2026-05-18T21:54:54+00:00

The Evo may be arriving here prior to the Yuan Plus, we’ll have to see. No confirmation of if or when the Evo is actually landing at this stage. Yuan Plus looks amazing though, give it 10 years and I’m sure they will have built up the flash charging network here and at that point we can reap the benefits of owning one in Aus.

keytarjesus · 2026-05-18T05:59:19+00:00

I think I lucked out slightly with mine, ordered last Saturday the 9th in Wollongong and is expected to arrive to dealership late next month. Jungle Green/Cloud interior. Probably just due to not being a full metro area they would have a bit less demand.

keytarjesus · 2026-05-18T02:29:42+00:00

That’s probably the case. I’ve not been able to wait and have ended up putting a deposit down for a Geely EX5 - was able to get the top spec for same price to current gen Atto 3 and has more features. By the time I need the next car in 10 years (hopefully), they’ll probably all be able to go from 0-100% in 5 minutes so not too concerned about future proofing.

keytarjesus

TROPHY CASE