Your questions answered: Will I still get the FBT exemption if my BYD Shark 6 arrives after April 1?

The Federal Government’s fringe benefits tax exemption on plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) ends in April, something that has prospective BYD Shark 6 owners worried they won’t have taken delivery of their car in time.

Delays on the docks mean deliveries have been pushed back, something we’ve looked into as part of our varied reader feedback this week.

We’re also looking into the best hybrid SUVs, of which there are many.

Plus we tackle the issue of charging an EV when living in an apartment without charging options, and Porsche price rises.

Got a question but don’t know where to find the information you need? Email us at editor@carsales.com.au

Question: I’ve ordered a BYD Shark 6 and am hoping to take advantage of the FBT exemption, which ends for plug-in hybrids on April 1. There have been delays and I’m now not sure whether I’ll take delivery of my car by the deadline.

If it arrives later but if the leasing company pays for it prior, will I still be able to get the FBT exemption? – Andrew

Answer: You’re not alone in trying to leverage the fringe benefits tax exemption on PHEVs by the end of March. For someone planning to drive their car for personal use it’s a great way to save thousands.

But with issues currently getting the cars off boats when the boats arrive in Australia it also means there are many people anxious as to whether they’ll make the deadline.

Unfortunately it is a hard deadline from the Australian Tax Office. Novated Leasing Australia stipulates that “to take advantage of the current FBT exemption, your new PHEV lease must be fully settled and delivered before March 31, 2025”.

Obviously you can convey the importance of that to the dealer, although ultimately it may be out of their hands because of delays elsewhere in the system.

Question: I have a 2020 Kia Sportage with 42,000km on the clock. This year I want to upgrade to a hybrid. I love my Sportage so is the hybrid a good choice or is there a similar vehicle that offers better value? And should I trade in or try to sell privately? As a female this concerns me. – Dianne

Answer: The Sportage hybrid is one of a few great mid-sized hybrid SUVs on the market. It’s great value and has a good hybrid system that’s respectably economical. We also love the space and driving manners of the Sportage.

There’s a very similar vehicle to the Sportage hybrid in the Hyundai Tucson hybrid. Both brands are part of the Hyundai Group and the underpinnings and hybrid system are shared between the two.

Separating them mainly comes down to value and design, plus the Kia has a seven-year warranty versus five for the Hyundai.

Other options worth considering are the Honda CR-V hybrid, Nissan X-TRAIL e-POWER and Toyota RAV4 hybrid. All are very good, each with their own strengths.

As for selling privately or trading in, there are pros and cons to each.

Trading in is obviously the easy option and means you can drive in and swap over to the new car with no fuss.

You’ll generally get a better price when selling privately but it could take you a few weeks (or longer) and you’ll likely have to deal with lowball offers and occasionally unreliable buyers.

If you’re concerned about the buyer you can always ask a friend over when you’re showing them around the car. Check your insurance before allowing anyone else to drive the car and get a photo of their driver’s licence if anything goes wrong.

There’s also the challenge of exchanging money, although these days carsales has a pay-through-carsales feature that makes it a lot easier than bank cheques or direct deposit.

Question: I’m interested in purchasing the Volkswagen ID.Buzz but I live in a unit on the Northern Beaches of Sydney where there isn’t any overnight recharge option. So, do you think it’s too hard an option?

Also, I’ve owned a Volkswagen T3 Transporter for 20 years and was looking at getting a new one but wasn’t keen on buying diesel. – Andrew

Answer: The biggest benefit in owning an EV comes when you can charge it at home. You’ll almost always pay less for electricity at home compared with what you pay at public charging stations.

That said, there are still financial benefits with public charging compared with using petrol.
An ID.Buzz would use about 25kWh per 100km and you should be able to get electricity for 50-60c/kWh. So it would cost something like $15 to travel 100km.

If you can use the 7kWh of free electricity from Jolt chargers that will give you about 25km of electricity (it would take about 15 minutes to add that at a Jolt charger).

There are also benefits with servicing an EV over an ICE vehicle.

As for whether you can make an EV work, it depends how you plan to use it.

If you’re driving less than 350 to 400km a week then you’d only have to charge once a week.

And there are plenty of ultra rapid chargers springing up on the Northern Beaches; check the PlugShare app for their location.

If you’re covering shorter distances obviously the equation gets better, although it’s the opposite if you’re driving further.

Answer: There really isn’t a direct replacement for the once-loved Commodore.

Large rear-wheel drive sedans are these days confined to the luxury market (although there are plenty of rear-drive EVs of all shapes and sizes).

The Kia Stinger is the closest something got to replicating that grunty/large/comfortable/sporty DNA that the locally made large cars did so well.

It’s not available these days but a lot of its mechanicals – including the 3.3-litre twin turbo V6 – live on in the Genesis G70.

Something closer on the value front would be a Toyota Camry.

Sure, it’s not as engaging to drive as the last of the Commodores – especially the V8 ones – but it’s surprisingly good and very comfy. Plus it delivers on space and with a hybrid drivetrain it sips a fraction of the fuel that Commodores did.

Looking outside that you could check out an SUV if you want space, either mid-sized (for five seats) or large (for seven or eight seats).

And for something sporty and exciting to drive you could look at Hyundai i30N (which is obviously smaller than a Commodore).

On the EV side of the equation, the Tesla Model 3 and BYD Seal are good to drive and have variants that are faster to 100km/h than any Commodore ever was.

Question: I would like to offer a comment or two regarding the new Porsche Macan EV.

Could it be that the massive price rise of the new model has anything to do with the drop-off in sales?

It is by all accounts a great car, but the prices are eye-watering, and everything is a very expensive option, even a head-up display. According to one British media outlet, even the rear seat side-impact airbags are an option over there. That is simply unacceptable if it’s true.

I would suggest to you that a blend of greed and arrogance has been a hallmark of the Porsche brand for too long, and it’s got worse in recent years.

I have bought three new Porsches during my time, but never again.

The world of cars is changing rapidly, with, dare I say it, some very interesting vehicles being made in China, and this gives customers pause for thought.

I’m sure they could rescue their sales figures, but they need to take a long hard look at themselves and make some adjustments. Going back to ICE now would seem like a complete folly – they can’t be serious. – Peter

Answer: Porsche has always charged a premium but you could argue a decent chunk of that goes into the performance and dynamic ability, the latter generally a standout with the brand (the new Macan is seriously impressive on the road). In short, Porsche offers a unique product that a select few are happy to pay the premium for.

Remember, too, that with many Porsches – predominantly the sports cars – they have very solid residual values, which means you don’t lose much when you go to sell it.

But, yes, the all-electric Macan takes price rises to a new level with price tags that will naturally have some people looking for alternatives. And, of course, there are others who won’t yet be ready to make the EV leap.

We don’t know how much of the Macan price rises is the brand trying to pump up margins and how much is covering the manufacturing costs, which for many EVs is typically higher.

The good news is there are plenty of alternatives from myriad brands.

You’re right in that the market is changing rapidly and there are obviously some prepared to look at newcomer brands, most coming out of China.

Others will be rightly wary about newcomers, concerned about everything from longevity and resale values to after-sales support.

Every brand has its pros and cons and for the big-name sports car brands that often means a high price tag. But those brands also come with a history and depth of engineering that can’t just be switched on.

Porsche is (smartly) leveraging its heritage, much of which leverages the engineering nous of the brand.

As for the rear airbags, the Macan does get them fitted as standard for Australia. That’s more than most cars, which don’t have rear side thorax airbags. Yes, pretty much everything gets side curtain airbags that protect the heads of back seat occupants in a side impact.

Over the years various brands – many European – haven’t always offered those rear side thorax airbags or they’ve had them as an option. One reason they’ve previously not been fitted standard is because of concerns of children sleeping against the door, something potentially dangerous in the event of an airbag deployment.

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