08 Suzuki Ltr450 Foot Pegs Left & Right on 2040-parts.com

Japan's concept cars - the craziest of the noughties

By Alex Michaelides Motor Shows 19 August 2009 10:00 Here we are, celebrating the best cars that Japan has produced, but what about the ones it hasn’t? At many motor shows – and particularly ones in its back yard – the Japanese industry serves up some wild concept cars which boggle the brain and tickle the ribs. It’s hardly surprising that few of them hit the mainstream.

Peugeot 3008 HYbrid4 Revealed

The Peugeot 3008 HYbrid4 -launches Spring 2011 We got a glimpse of the Peugeot 3008 HYbrid4 at the Frankfurt Motor Show last year, and at the time we commented that it looked almost ready to go. And so it seems – even though almost a year has passed – with the reveal today by Peugeot of what will be the world’s first diesel hybrid when the 3008 HYbrid4 starts to hit the road in 2011. You couldn’t get a much better starting point for a hybrid than the 3008 Crossover (read our review of the Peugeot 3008 if you have any doubts).

Lotus's glimmer of hope: Proton stands by Hethel

After another painful year of sales for Lotus in the UK – down 58% on 2011 - Norfolk's beleagured sports car brand has kicked off the New Year with the grand unveiling of its new flagship Malaysian showroom, and the thumbs-up from senior Proton company suits that Lotus isn't on its last legs. The announcement comes in the same week Lotus’s sales figures were released for 2012. Showing a substantial 58% decrease in sales and selling just 137 vehicles, Lotus Cars was the worst performer in the UK with a woeful 0.01% share of the market.  Are Lotus's Malaysian owners sticking by the company?