Volvo S80 gets a nip & tuck for 2009

The Volvo S80 is now three years old, and Volvo has decided to spruce it up a bit for the current year. Volvo has played around with the nose and body on the S80, to give a lower, wider perspective. The new nose incorporates details similar to the XC60, declaring Volvo’s intention of a family theme.

CAR interviews Patrick le Quément on Renault design (2009)

By Richard Yarrow Motor Industry 29 April 2009 16:05 Patrick le Quément, 64, has steered Renault through one of its most interesting – some would say controversial – design phases in its history. Born in Marseilles but educated from the age of 12 in the UK, he speaks almost accentless English and agrees to talk to CAR on the eve of his retirement. Le Quément is one of those designers who’s achieved stellar recognition over the past two decades – matching the reputation of Chris Bangle and J Mays as a member of the design A-list, that exclusive club who’ve helped shape the modern motor car as we know it today.

Top Gear filming in China for new series

Clarkson & May filming for Top Gear in China Escaping from the furore over his One Show comments, Jeremy Clarkson is in China with James May filming for Top Gear. After all the grief over his One Show comments (which, although a bit OTT, were actually not his views but an attempt to humorously demonstrate the BBC’s obsession with ‘balance’), Jeremy Clarkson has decamped to China – together with James May – to film for an episode of the new series of Top Gear. It looks like the piece they’re filming revolves around Chinese car clones, with the Shuanghuan Noble (Smart), Shuanghuan CEO (X5) and the Chinese version of MINI – the Lifan 320.