Porsche Panamera revealed at Shanghai Motor Show

Porsche has finally officially revealed the Porsche Panamera at the Shanghai Motor Show As we’ve said before, the Panamera is not the most stunning looking of cars, and is left in the wake of the Aston Martin Rapide in the style department. But it would seem to us that Porsche is going to have another Cayenne-like success on its hands with the Panamera. As with the Cayenne, its looks are criticised, but it does everything else so remarkably well, and has the kudos of the Porsche badge, and it’s hard to see how it will fail.

Interior Motives China Conference 2010: Day 1

Despite Europe being grounded due to volcanic ash, the third Interior Motives China conference got underway in Beijing with a record number of delegates and speakers – proof, as if it were needed, that this event is now one of the most important in the global car design calendar. This year's theme was 'New brands and the search for a design identity', and among the audience were young Chinese designers keen to learn more about international car design techniques, as well as veteran western designers hoping to gain a deeper understanding of the market they are creating vehicles for.  Session 1: The Market for Design Edward Wong, Director of Transportation Design at China Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), set the mood for the conference in his long, flowing 'Chang San' robe (very traditional Chinese attire). He opened the conference and invited panellists to share their views on what China's needs are and explore what makes the market so unique.

NYC carriages about to go extinct?

If you love taking horse-drawn carriage rides in New York City, you best hurry -- they might be replaced with new horseless carriages by next year. At the New York auto show Florida-based car restoration firm The Creative Workshop introduced an eight-passenger electric horseless carriage designed to replace today's horse-drawn carriages. The company says its car blends “early 20th-century style, nostalgia and romance with 21st century eco-technology, comfort and safety,” calling the Horseless eCarriage the first brass-era-type car in more than 100 years.