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Jaguar at the London motor show 2008

By James Foxall and CAR reader reporter Jacomoseven Motor Shows 23 July 2008 15:02 After the spate of new Jaguars of late, not to mention a takeover, it should come as no surprise that Jag didn't have much to shout about at the London motor show. What’s new on Jaguar’s London motor show stand?Don’t get too excited, but there’s the XK60 – a special anniversary version of the non-supercharged sports car, designed to celebrate six decades of the XK. It’s basically five grand’s worth of body kit and a chrome gearlever surround for the same money as a regular model.

Akio Toyoda waves family flag, heir makes crisis personal challenge

The reclusive Akio Toyoda is taking the rare step of waving the family flag, as the scion to Toyota Motor Corp.’s founding dynasty tries to steer the world’s largest car company out of a spiraling safety crisis. In testimony prepared for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, President Toyoda pursues a rare personal tack on the emergency, saying “my name is on every car.” “As you well know, I am the grandson of the founder, and all the Toyota vehicles bear my name,” Toyoda says in prepared comments circulated ahead of Wednesday’s committee hearing in Washington. “For me, when the cars are damaged, it is as though I am as well.” The intimate reflection is a departure for Toyoda, who has spent most of his career sidestepping public discussion of his lineage.

Kia preparing a range of sporting models

Kia is quietly readying a string of sportier models to pep up its humdrum image, CAR has learned. The burgeoning sports car plan is likely to sire everything from hot hatches to standalone sports cars. On our trip to Korea this week, sources at Kia HQ confirmed a range of performance models, designed to mix some excitement into a brand that now commands respect from mainstream buyers after its crawl upmarket to the volume market alongside Europe's mass-market brands.