METHODOLOGY
A decision system you can inspect.
DriveDecider combines independent reviews, vehicle facts and your priorities. It is designed to make trade offs visible, not to manufacture certainty.
1. Build a comparable evidence set
Each decision-ready profile needs usable Australian pricing, core specifications, safety evidence, ownership-cost assumptions and enough independent review evidence to support a fair comparison. Preview profiles remain searchable but are excluded from rankings until that minimum is met.
2. Normalise independent reviews
Published scores are converted to a common 100-point scale. Unscored verdicts stay unscored. DriveDecider summarises the reviewers’ reasoning and links back to original reviews so you can check the source and context.
3. Calculate your personal fit
Your budget, intended use, fuel preference and selected priorities adjust the ranking. Safety, practicality, comfort, performance, value and running costs are weighted from the structured profile. The result is a decision aid, not a guarantee that a car will suit every buyer.
4. Show the evidence contract
Every decision metric is being moved to a versioned evidence record. The public label shows its jurisdiction, source coverage, last verified date, confidence and calculation version. A missing or stale input is labelled instead of replaced with an invented value.
Claim
A manufacturer or government-published fact, shown with its source and applicable variant.
Evidence
An independent test, safety result or review observation retained with its original date and context.
Estimate
A DriveDecider calculation with visible assumptions, version and user-adjustable inputs.
Scores are transparent, not universal truths
The DriveDecider Score is a weighted summary of ten visible category assessments. Each category score is multiplied by its selected weight, the results are added, then divided by the total weight. Changing a weight changes the result immediately.
True Cost, Risk, Safety Currency, Fit, Liquidity and Future-Proof scores are published only when their minimum evidence thresholds are met. Until then, the site shows the evidence status and the missing inputs.
Why can cost numbers differ?
Baseline estimate
A consistent comparison using DriveDecider’s default distance, energy, insurance, servicing and depreciation assumptions.
Personalised estimate
The baseline recalculated using inputs such as annual kilometres and home-charging availability.
Selected-variant estimate
A profile calculation for a particular grade. Its purchase price, tyres, energy use or service schedule may differ from the model baseline.
If two pages show different totals, check the label and assumptions first. DriveDecider now labels homepage cost figures as baseline estimates and keeps variant-specific figures inside the relevant profile.
Limits, corrections and commercial influence
Prices, specifications and running costs can change. Estimates are indicative and should be checked with the manufacturer, insurer and dealer before purchase. Paid placements are not used in the current preview. Any future commercial relationship will be labelled and will not silently change a ranking.
Material corrections are reflected in the profile and its update date. To flag an error, use the contact page and include the vehicle, number and source.
What the preview does not do yet
Saved lists stay on this device. Reports are generated from the cars and settings in their link. There are no user accounts, collaborator comments, automatic evidence alerts, insurance quotes or personalised financial recommendations in the current preview.