Kia at the Paris motor show 2008

By James Foxall Motor Shows 02 October 2008 16:41 Kia is desperate to prove to the world that it has Soul. And it did so in the most obvious way in Paris with – you guessed it – some soul singers. Seven versions of the new urban crossover Soul were then revealed in production guise and a hybrid version made its debut too.

Volkswagen Beetle (2011) first official pictures

After 11 long years on sale the New Beetle is dead – its successor is this, The Beetle. We'll just call it the new 2011 VW Beetle. 2011 VW Beetle: trading flower-power for outlaw rodder Wider, lower and longer, the 2011 Beetle abandons its predecessors three semi-circle styling for the flat-roof look of 2005’s hot rod-inspired Ragster concept. At the front, the Beetle adopts the corporate horizontal intake styling and a more angular front bumper melded with a less curvaceous evolution of the 1998 New Beetle styling template.

Daihatsu hits Indonesian show with eight new concept cars

Daihatsu has launched a product offensive on the Indonesian International Motor Show in Jakarta, with eight concept cars all based around the theme ‘Compact ECO Mobility Best Friend'. As their endearingly Jenglish theme suggests, each of the cars is as compact as possible – Daihatsu is best known for producing Kei cars for its domestic Japanese market. (Incidentally the company's Tanto remains the most adorable of the Kei breed.) The UFC 2 (the blue car) is an evolution of the UFC that was show in 2012 and manages to squeeze seven seats into is handsomely contemporary body.