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Concept Car of the Week: Alfa Romeo Navajo (1976)

In 1976, the space shuttle Enterprise was unveiled, Concorde made its first commercial flight and the Cray supercomputer went into service. These events represent a time when ideas transitioned from science fiction to reality. While significant progress was being demonstrated elsewhere, the motoring world gave us the first Ford Fiesta.

2015 Porsche Cayenne facelift revealed – new 410bhp plug-in S E-Hybrid & new V6 Turbo

The Porsche Cayenne gets a facelift for 2015 The Porsche Cayenne is the best on-road SUV by far, and it gets even better with the launch of the 2015 model year Cayenne which gets a subtle – but effective – cosmetic makeover and some big changes in powertrain options. New to the Cayenne – and replacing the S Hybrid – is the Cayenne S E-Hybrid. It keeps the same Audi-sourced 3.0 litre V6 petrol engine as the outgoing hybrid, which has 328bhp and 325lb/ft of torque, and mates it to a new electric motor delivering 94bhp for a total of 410bhp and 434lb/ft of torque.

Bentley planning big model expansion

It looks like the last Bentley Brooklands (pictured) will not be the last after all We already know that the Bentley SUV is on the way shortly to take on the might of the new Range Rover, and it seems certain there’s about to be Bentley Mulsanne Speed as Bentley rolls out its ‘Speed’ moniker to its most prestigious car. But there’s more to come. When we reported the Mulsanne Speed was on its way last week, we noted that if Bentley were adding a Speed version of the Mulsanne to their range to expand it then it surely made sense to launch a Mulsanne Coupe and Convertible too.

Car production up again in June

THE NUMBER OF CARS produced in the UK rose last month. A total of 136,419 vehicles were manufactured in June 2014 - a 3.7% rise on the figure for the same month last year, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said. The latest figures took the year-so-far total to 791,314 - a 3.5% increase on the January-June 2013 figure.

Beetle anniversary party is more crazy than ever

OVER 4,000 enthusiasts are making their way to the Baltic resort of Travemünde to celebrate Beetles of all generations in what has been called 'The Sunshine Tour'. As well as plenty of original cars there is also plenty of fancy dress for the owners and the cars themselves, while there competition for the overall prize of Most Beautiful Beach Beetle. Volkswagen has been an official partner since 2005 and will be present again over the weekend of 15-17 August with a number of special vehicles.

Truckers given the green light to drive faster

THERE'S good news for car drivers today as the government has officially increased the single-carriageway speed limit for heavy goods vehicles to 50mph. Previously, HGVs were limited to 40mph by law, leaving drivers' tempers to boil over in their cars while stuck in a long line of traffic. AA president Edmund King said: "This seems like a common sense move.

Speedy Riders

A GROUP of Commonwealth Games athletes took on a road race with a difference by going for a ride down one of Scotland's busiest stretches of motorway. The four members of the Sri Lankan team sparked a police response after they were spotted cycling down the M74. British triathlete Jonny Brownlee was among those amazed to see the intrepid cyclists riding alongside traffic this morning.

Porsche Cayenne facelift (2014) first official pictures

By Phil McNamara First Official Pictures 24 July 2014 09:21 Porsche is revamping its flagship Cayenne SUV, boosting performance and economy, improving comfort and specification, and introducing – it claims – a ground-breaking plug-in hybrid model. The five-model range will be in dealerships from 11 October, priced from £49,902 for the base diesel. For speed, the uprated Cayenne Turbo is the obvious flagship, but the Cayenne S E-Hybrid is a bit more three-dimensional.

Fiesta becomes UK's all-time best seller

THE FORD FIESTA has become Britain's all-time top selling car. Ford said Fiesta sales had now topped 4,115,000, taking the model past the previous record holder, the Ford Escort . First launched in 1976, and initially made at Dagenham in Essex, the Fiesta has led the small-car sector in the UK for 27 of the 37 years and has been Britain's annual best-selling car since 2009 when it overtook the Ford Focus.

Milestone in life matched by car change

MOST DRIVERS in the UK mark key milestone moments in their life with a change of car. Four out of five British drivers say they will change their car to give their first-born child a more comfortable drive home, while others say they would swap cars if they won the Lottery. A survey by the AA found that 26% of drivers will change to a new car if they start a new job, while 21% decide on a different car because of retirement.

UK drivers change cars as often as their mobile phone

DRIVERS in the UK change their cars as often as they swap to a new mobile phone. In the past 10 years, the average British motorist has owned four mobile phones and four cars. A study by Privilege shows that most drivers own an average of seven cars in their driving career, even though that figure includes four cars in the past decade.

Mobile phones set to be biggest roads killer

MOBILE PHONES are likely to be the number one cause of fatal collisions on the UK’s roads by 2015. The number of drivers making calls, texting and using social media while driving has risen dramatically, which has led Transport Minister Patrick McLoughlin to propose doubling the number of penalty points added to a driver’s licence if caught using a mobile phone while at the wheel. Figures from the Department for Transport show there were 378 accidents in 2012 that were directly attributed to mobile phone use, with 17 deaths recorded as a result.

New car sales soar in 2014

NEW CAR SALES in the UK and most of Europe are up for the first half of 2014 compared to the same period last year. The UK recorded a 10.6% rise in new cars sales against a European average increase of 5.8%. Out of all the countries in the European market, 24 out of 30 showed an upturn in new car sales between January and June 2014.

New BMW X4 price and specs for the UK – costs from £36,590

The new BMW X4 is now on sale in the UK The new BMW X4 – BMW’s baby X6 and a ‘coupe’ version of the very able X3 – arrived at the Geneva Motor SHow in March, and it’s now on sale in the UK priced from £36,590 for the BMW X4 xDrive20d SE, a chunky £3.5k more than the equivalent X3. But what you’re buying in the new X4 is a lifestyle statement rather than a family SAV like the X3, so the premium is so others know you’re prepared to pay more for a less practical urban SUV. Still, a similar scenario with the X5 and X6 hasn’t stopped buyers opting for the X6 instead and it seems likely the X4 will take an even bigger split of the X3/X4 sales than the X6 does from the X5.

Ford Fiesta is the UK’s best-selling car of all time

The Ford Fiesta – 1976-2014 – is now the UK’s best-selling car ever It’s fourteen years since the Ford Escort ended its 32 year run in Ford’s UK showrooms and, in the process, became the most popular car in the UK. But that ‘best-selling car of all time’ mantle has now passed to the Ford Fiesta. Ford has announced that total sales of the Ford Fiesta in the 37 years since it was revealed have now hit 4,115,000, with the Fiesta being the top-selling car in the supermini segment for 27 of those years and, as car buyers started downsizing (and the Fiesta got bigger), it has become the best selling car in the UK bar none since 2009.

Survey highlights increased consumer appetite for in-car technology

Spanish telecommunications firm Telefonica has issued its second annual report on connected car technologies. Its study looked at public expectations of in-car tech in the cars of today and tomorrow. Participants were queried about such technologies as social media, telematics, on-board diagnostics and early warning systems, revealing that connected car tech was already influencing purchasing decisions.

Audi dropping Multitronic CVT gearbox

The Audi Multitronic CVT gearbox is being retired Audi make some great cars, but a number of them are spoiled by the woeful CVT gearbox. The theory is that as the CVT ‘box, which varies transmission ratios infinitely and keeps the engine working in the right rev range, is more economical and more efficient. But CVT boxes are horrible.

Jaguar D-Type 60th Anniversary race at Goodwood Revival

Up to 30 Jaguar D-Types will race at the 2014 Goodwood Revival The Jaguar E-Type os perhaps the most loved classic Jaguar, but the D-Type is the most iconic. This year is the 60th anniversary of the D-Type, so the Goodwood Revival – that wonderful world of all things classic car – will be celebrating the D-Type’s anniversary this September with a race where up to 30 D-Types are expected to compete. D-Types from around the world will congregate in Sussex for the Lavant Cup on the Saturday of the Revival, with plenty of regular D-Types, the later long-nose variant and even the experimental E2A one-off prototype that acted as a bridge between the D-Type and E-Type taking part.

Seven things we learned about the Aston Martin DP-100 concept car

By Tim Pollard Motoring Issues 22 July 2014 08:59 The new August 2014 issue of CAR magazine has a stunning, eight-page photoshoot on the Aston Martin DP-100 concept car. We met its makers and spent a day with the amazing mid-engined supercar – where we learned the following nuggets. ‘One of the phrases that we like to use is “out of chaos, something arises,”’ said design director Marek Reichman.

Junction auto-brake for next Volvo XC90

THE NEXT Volvo XC90 will be able to brake itself if its driver attempts to pull out in front of an oncoming car, as one of two world-first safety innovations. This auto-brake technology detects whether an approaching car is technically on a collision course and will hit the stoppers to prevent a possible accident. However, there is no mention of an increased risk of rear-end collisions where drivers following the XC90 might also accelerate, not expecting the Volvo to stop suddenly.

Button: I over-reacted at Hamilton

JENSON BUTTON has conceded to an over-reaction in his criticism of Lewis Hamilton following Sunday's German Grand Prix. Button initially claimed Hamilton's performance at Hockenheim to be "strange" as his former McLaren team-mate was involved in a trio of minor collisions en route to finishing third from 20th on the grid. One of those involved Button at the hairpin as an attempt by Hamilton to pass culminated in the latter losing the front-wing endplate from his Mercedes.

Old distractions as bad as new tech

DRIVERS are as much distracted by "old technology" as by new gadgets, according to a survey. Adult passengers, twiddling with the radio and children in the car were the main distractions causing either a near-miss or an accident, the poll of more than 18,000 motorists found. These three distractions came ahead of operating the sat-nav and talking on a mobile phone as the biggest reasons for lack of driver attention.

Volvo reveals safety kit on 2015 XC90 SUV

By John Mahoney Motor Industry 22 July 2014 10:34 Volvo claims the all-new XC90 that will be revealed in late August will be one of the safest cars money can buy thanks to pioneering new safety technology. So far the Swedish carmaker has teased us with designer sketches of how the seven-seat crossover will look, told us how it will be offered with a 395bhp plug-in hybrid that emits just 60g/km of CO2 and released official pictures of the production XC90’s interior. Now it’s time for the Volvo publicity machine to tell us about the novel new safety tech that will protect us from ourselves and this includes two claimed world firsts.

Daftest hard shoulder stops revealed

DRIVERS have illegally stopped on motorway hard shoulders for all sorts of barely believable reasons, according to a list from the Highways Agency Some of the dumb and dumber reasons include picking flowers, renewing insurance policies and even trying to sell their car. One motorist pulled over after seeing "Fire" on his dashboard display, but fortunately for his car it turned out to be the name of an Adele track he was listening to. On another occasion, traffic officers found two cars on the hard shoulder, with the owners halfway through the selling and buying process for one of the cars.

All-new 2015 Kia Sorento teased

kia-world.net Is this the face of the all-new Kia Sorento? According to the Kia blog kia-world.net it is, with the car set to make its debut in Korea later this year, ahead of a full European reveal at the 2014 Paris Motor Show. Expect the stylish, angular design to be toned down These initial artist’s impressions are based on the spy shots doing the rounds on the internet earlier this year, with the new Sorento seemingly destined to look every inch like the Kia Sportage’s big brother, a car which itself was treated to a mid-life refresh in March.

New 2015 Volvo XC90 impressive safety tech revealed

The Volvo XC90 gets Auto Brake Function at Intersection technology. Volvo are on a mission to prevent any deaths in their cars by 2020, and the new Volvo XC90 – due to be revealed shortly – looks set to push Volvo closer to that aim with an impressive array of new and sophisticated tech as standard. The technology on offer in the new XC90 includes two world first technologies, with the XC90 fitted with Run Off Road Protection Package and Auto Brake at Intersection Package.

The Designers, Pt 11 – Sooshin Choi, College for Creative Studies

Car Design News launched its first-ever Car Design Review yearbook at the Geneva Motor Show, featuring the award-winning Production Car and Concept Car Designs of 2013. If you're interested in buying a copy of the 160-page yearbook this interview appears in, alongside trend reports, bespoke car design infographics and a special feature on Marcello Gandini, our inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Car Design Review can be purchased here. Name Sooshin ChoiRole Professor of design, College for Creative StudiesAge, nationality 56, KoreanLocation Michigan, USAEducation Seoul National University, Hong-Ik University, RCA "There were some good production cars in 2013.

Most smokers want ban in cars

NINE OUT of 10 (89%) of smokers say lighting up a cigarette or any form of tobacco should be banned in cars. Following on from the Welsh government’s announcement that it would outlaw smoking in cars where there are children as passengers, a study shows evens smokers think puffing on a cigarette in a car is not acceptable. Research carried out by Flexed shows 89% of smokers support a complete ban and 96% of non-smokers believe smoking in cars should be outlawed.

Londoners 'most likely to fail' driving test

LEARNERS gearing up to take their first driving test are twice as likely to pass in Scotland as those in London, according to analysis of driving test results by a car insurance company. Its analysis reveals that London has the test centres with the four lowest pass rates in the country for first time test-takers. Only 31% of learner drivers in Belvedere passing the first time, while Wanstead (32%), Barking (32%) and Wood Green (33%) were the other lowest scoring centres in the capital, all with first time pass rates significantly below the national average (48%), the study by Privilege Car Insurance found.

Silverstone Classic 2014 preview

By James Clark Motor Shows 21 July 2014 07:00 Along with Goodwood’s Revival and the Donington Historic Festival, the Silverstone Classic is one of the largest and most popular historic racing events on the global calendar. The 2014 Silverstone Classic promises to be as spectacular as ever, so CAR has helpfully highlighted the races, cars and drivers you should keep an eye on. The Group C prototype race will be one of the most popular of the weekend, with the 80s icons making their only UK appearance of 2014.