Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

This is the future of in-car electronics

The annual Consumer Electronics Show kicks off tomorrow in Las Vegas, in the same massive convention center that held the SEMA show only a few months ago. Almost as many carmakers will come to CES as made the trek to SEMA, with seven major carmakers expected to have show stands and two big suppliers – Visteon and Delphi – showing their latest techno-stuff, too. Here, in alphabetical order so as not to offend anyone, is a preview of what we expect to find in Las Vegas this week.

Volkswagen Golf GTE Plug-in Hybrid UK debut

The VW Golf GTE (pictured) gets its UK debut at the NEX next week The Volkswagen Golf GTE – which VW see as a plug-in hybrid Golf GTI – was revealed in February ahead of its debut at the Geneva Motor Show last month and is now heading for the Gadget Show Live at the NEC next week for its UK debut. With a 1.4 litre TSI petrol turbo producing 148bhp and a 101 bhp electric motor, the Golf GTE promises decent performance – 0-62mph in 7.6 seconds – daft official economy figures of 188 mpg and the ability to run on electric power only for up to 31 miles. It’s an appealing combination for a Golf that can offer city running benefits with a turn of decent performance when the mood takes, although at a price likely to be north of £30k it’s not exactly a budget buy.

New Jaguar XJC – the Coupe

Jaguar already has a new Jaguar XJC on the drawing board – a coupe version of the new Jaguar XJ The last Jaguar XJC was in the ’70s, and was built on the SWB version of the Series II Jaguar XJ.  In fact – by the time Jaguar got round to launching the XJC on to the market in 1975 – it was the only XJ that had the SWB, as all XJ saloons had moved over to the LWB as standard. A glorious-looking car – especially in ‘New Avengers’ guise as driven by Steed – it was plagued by the problems that beset British Leyland at the time.