1st - Toyota Aurion Presara
With just four entrants in this class, something had to give, and it was the Holden Calais V6 that failed to place. Aurion’s class victory is an impressive statement about its underlying economics, but intending buyers need to bear in mind it’s not exactly up there dynamically with the rest of the field. Intrusive ESP is a perennial Aurion bugbear, but if you never drive it on the limit, who cares?

Lowest in-class fuel consumption and an ultra-low insurance premium take some beating when the field is assessed on value. Aurion’s resale is also right up there against its competitors. Ultimately it’s in front of Passat by 2.53 points.




2nd - Volkswagen Passat V6 FSi 4Motion
This variant is a lot of car at a considerably higher recommended retail price than the rest of the field, offering a tonne (actually 1.531 of them) of Euro cachet, and a killer hi-tech V6 petrol engine mated to a superb DSG and AWD driveline. What’s not to like?



3rd - Ford Falcon G6E
Bottom line: it’s the best driver on the podium. Maybe not the value-based equivalent of the Aurion, but certainly still representing good value among big, upmarket offerings. Safe and sophisticated, it’s a little conservative for some, but still edgier than Aurion.