Driving the Chevy Volt isn't special, and that's good

We've had our first taste of the drive system under development for General Motors' pioneering Chevrolet Volt, piloting a test mule based on the Chevrolet Cruze at the company's Warren (Mich.) Technical Center, and it left us hungering for more. Yes, it's an electric car, but mostly, it's a car--one you could imagine driving every day without feeling as if you were engaged in a lab experiment. Frank Weber, vehicle line executive for the Volt, gets his nose out of joint if you call the drive system a hybrid.

Jaguar Land Rover installs UK's largest solar roof

THE LARGEST EVER solar panel roof has been completed at the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) engine factory in South Staffordshire. More than 21,000 solar cells have been fitted to the roof over the Engine Manufacturing Centre and will provide enough electricity to power 30% of the factory’s needs. When the solar panels are working at full capacity, they will generate enough energy to power the equivalent of 1600 homes.

Porsche 911 Turbo (2010) unveiled

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 07 August 2009 10:14 This is Porsche’s new 911 Turbo, with an enlarged and twin-turbocharged engine producing more power, plus the option of a twin-clutch gearbox that features proper gearshift paddles. Unbelievably, it’s the first entirely new engine in the 35-year history of the Turbo. Essentially it’s the same direct-injection 3.8-litre flat-six that you’ll find in regular 911s, but now fitted with variable geometry twin turbos to give a healthy 493bhp, a 20bhp increase over the current car.