Holden and Ford Australia invented the car based on the car, so why can't we buy the Hyundai Santa Cruz, Ford Maverick, Honda Ridgeline and Fiat Strada, which are their spiritual successors?

Australians have long been receptive to cars and therefore welcome newcomers such as the Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Maverick.

It should be taught in elementary schools as the foundation of Australian cultural history.

In the early 1930s, a Victorian farmer wrote to Ford asking for a new type of pickup truck that could take his wife to church on Sundays and hogs to market on Mondays.

It was a tight race between Ford and GM-H (who had a similar idea at the time), with the former simply putting the latter into production, followed by the "wagon coupe" - the world's first model to be adopted worldwide. while literally helping to build a nation at home.

As a vehicle for young people, it's also become something more - and with a slew of badge models like the Zephyr, Falcon, Kingswood and Commodore.

Now, of course, with local production in the past, they've been replaced by the likes of the Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux, Isuzu D-Max and Nissan Navara, but we're talking about workhorse trucks with ladder frame chassis here. that (with the exception of the Ranger) neither the farmers nor their animals would find it as comfortable or refined as the VF Commodore.

With such a storied history, heritage and love for the breed, you'd think the remaining multinational car manufacturers building cars like this would go out of their way to cater to the hungry Australians. Instead, we are greeted with a stone face and a cold-blooded “No!” to the question of why the market, which has grown on the cliffs, will be denied access to them.

Yes, we understand the economic reason for not importing these vehicles from factories around the world, especially when they are not currently available in right hand drive (RHD) configuration.

We've heard the argument dozens of times: RHD forecasts are too low to justify the required investment in design and manufacturing; it's not quite what Aussies expect from old rear wheel drive sedans; they don't have the drivetrain choice that consumers demand; they don't have the towing capacity or carrying capacity needed to be successful.

Our counter-argument is that a company that rolls the dice and takes the risk of providing Australians with one of the new wave of tall, double-cab monocoque SUVs with the comfort, safety, agility, performance and efficiency of cars. who gave birth to them, has a chance to occupy a unique niche in our market.

Never mind that both Holden and Ford have been selling cars to Australians in one form or another for over 80 years. Subaru proved that buyers were willing to support such a car with the legendary Brumby from the late 1970s to the early 90s; and Proton (remember them) had some success with the Mitsubishi CC Lancer-derived Jumbuck a decade later.

In addition, in the case of Ford, Hyundai and Honda, these platforms are equipped with components that have already been developed for right-hand drive vehicles of the respective passenger car and/or SUV models.

So, without further ado, here are four new car-based cars you'll probably never be able to buy.

Hyundai Santa Cruz 2022

Bound to the popular Tucson midsize SUV, the Santa Cruz has experienced one of the longest public gestations of any vehicle in living memory, first touted as a concept back in 2015.

Aimed at happy US buyers, the production version is very similar to the Tucson on the inside, from the multimedia and dashboard design to automotive comfort and ambiance, with a supercharged or turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine delivering the power you need.

Hyundai's variable HTRAC all-wheel-drive system and MacPherson strut front/multi-link independent rear, plus a plethora of safety aids, will make Hyundai a must-have addition to every OH&S employee's wish list. Traction effort, by the way, varies from 1588 kg to 2268 kg - so Santa Cruz is not completely useless as a workhorse.

As expected, Hyundai says no production of right-hand drive vehicles outside of its Alabama, US plant is planned as it is primarily an offering for the North American market.

2022 Ford Maverick

"It's not available in RHD...end of story."

It's Ford's tired old answer to the car, based on the same C2 architectural components as the two models available in Australian dealerships - the subcompact Focus and the midsize Escape - and a model that, oddly enough, isn't: the rugged Bronco sport. .

The Mexican-made Maverick has yet to be unveiled, but spy shots have revealed the F-Series' son, the Sub-Ranger, a boxy double cab that will resonate with the heart of Australia just as it did 56 years ago. Falcons did.

Gasoline powertrain options will also be familiar to Australian Ford buyers - a 1.5-liter turbo-petrol triple or a bold 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbo - with front or all-wheel drive, torsion beam or multi-link rear, and various trim levels. , including the base grade with steel wheels said to be over $4000 cheaper than the cheapest Ranger in the US.

Speaking of the latter, perhaps Ford Australia values ​​the domestic competition too much for the Ranger, as it has been the global development class for the best-selling mid-size pickup truck since the current 6 T2011 arrived.

If you like what you see, we suggest you contact your Ford dealer right now.

2021 Honda Ridgeline

Honda has been hard at work in America for a surprisingly long time. saw the light in 2005.

Fun fact, it won the 2017 North American Car of the Year award.

Like Hyundai and Ford, Honda mainly relies on a mid-size sedan/SUV architecture to support its monocoque aspirations, but the Japanese brand is at odds with a large 210kW 3.5-litre V6 engine driving either the front or all four wheels. through a nine-speed gearbox. auto torque converter.

The success of the Ridgeline in North America may have prompted Hyundai to follow suit with the Santa Cruz. It's probably a coincidence that both are built in Alabama.

While Honda's age probably doesn't allow it to ever make a trip across the Pacific, the new Hyundai won't face such hurdles.

2021 Fiat Strada

Okay, we don't expect the Fiat Strada ute to wash up on our shores at all. Not even the Jeep logo or any of the other Stellantis nameplates it belongs to.

However, this is an example of how automakers have capitalized in a certain niche, to the point where the Strada has become the best-selling model in Brazil this year. It is also the country where Fiat's elegant supermini size Toyota Yaris is also produced.

At just under 4.5 meters long, the Fiat is almost a meter shorter than the HiLux, so in the unlikely event it ever shows up in Australia, it will be considered some sort of modern replacement for the Proton Jumbuck, rather than a significant contender. Ford, Honda or Hyundai.

To that end, it comes in single or double cab configurations, and under the hood is a choice of sub-1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engines driving the front wheels through a five-speed manual transmission.

Laugh if you like, but even with these modest specs, the Strada would probably be Australia's best-selling Fiat if it even had a chance...