Antique Neptune Outboard Motor Decals on 2040-parts.com

Fashion link-up creates Mii by Mango

FASHIONISTAS everywhere will only be thinking about Mii this summer, after Seat and fashion retailer Mango announced a team effort to produce a special edition city car. The Mii by Mango is just the first step in a partnership between the two Spanish giants, tweaking the surprisingly spacious little car with unique styling details and a special colour option called Nude. Dark grey alloy wheels, different side skirts and Mii by Mango badges mark the model out from its more straight-laced siblings.

Vehicle dependability surged in 2009, J.D. Power survey finds

In the depths of the Great Recession that threatened their existence, automakers built better vehicles. A lot better. The improvement in dependability of three-year-old 2009 vehicles from the year before was one of the biggest ever measured in the J.D.

2013 Nissan LEAF updated

Nissan has updated the LEAF EV in Japan for 2013 with better range, less weight and a new LEAF S entry-level model. Revealed in Japan – but likely to come to the UK from 2013 when the LEAF starts rolling out of Nissan’s Sunderland factory – there are significant upgrades to the powertrain which result in both less weight and better range. Nissan has had a play with the electric powertrain and made it both smaller and lighter with a new motor that uses 40 per cent less dysprosium (a rare earth metal) than before, and comes in 30 per cent smaller and 10 per cent lighter, and a new streamline battery case and a few other tweaks drops the LEAF’s weight by 80kg.