Tomorrow’s world: Fiat's MultiAir engine tech

By Jesse Crosse Motor Industry 14 October 2009 16:50 Fiat this year launches what it claims is a big step forward in variable valve timing: MultiAir. It's the first time that a manufacturer has made a properly variable valve system a production reality, and will slowly be rolled out across most of Fiat's and Alfa's car ranges.How does Fiat's MultiAir vary from existing variable valve timing (VVT) systems?Current VVT systems rely on mechanical systems to open and close the valves. Engineers have long understood the benefits of changing valve opening and closing times to tweak an engine's power and emissions performance, depending on the need for power or parsimony.Valves are an engine's nose and mouth – it inhales through inlet valves and exhales through exhaust valves.

Ford at CES: Charge your car with science and wash your dishes while you sleep

Ford's C-Max Solar Energy Concept is a "plugless plugin," said Donna Bell, which initially sounds silly -- as if the carefully structured chaos and noise of CES may have finally gotten to her. But as someone who has been managing Ford's electric vehicle infrastructure for the past 20 years, she isn't being facetious. Solar panels on the roof of a car aren't anything new -- the Fisker Karma used them to power the radio and other in-car accessories, to cite a soon-obscure example.

Jaguar XFR-S Sportbrake OFFICIALLY revealed. Price from £82,495

The Jaguar XFR-S Sportbrake (pictured) has now been officially revealed The new Jaguar XFR-S Sportbrake made an early appearance yesterday after the first photo leaked out, but this morning Jaguar has done the decent think and made it official. The XFR-S Sportbrake is a car we all hoped Jaguar would put at the top of their Sportbrake range, but it will have taken two full years since the debut of the XF Sportbrake to add a model with the supercharged V8. But rather than making a straightforward XFR Sportbrake, Jaguar has gone the whole hog – just as it did with the F-Type R Coupe - and skipped the 504bhp version of the Supercharged V8 and jumped straight to the full-fat XFR-S with 542bhp.