New baby Jaguar to be called XE

Jaguar has revealed its new small saloon rival to the BMW 3 Series will be called XE. The new Jaguar XE, which will be revealed this year before going on sale in 2015, will be the first all-aluminium car ever launched in the premium small saloon sector – and prices are expected to start from £30,000. Jaguar is promising a range of cars that stretch from a sub-100g/km model (something the BMW 3 Series doesn’t yet achieve) to one that can reach a top speed of 186mph (a speed that’s also faster than every 3 Series).

SEAT lets the train take the strain

SEAT by Train from the Martorell Factory to the Port of Barcelona The building of this project started in 2005 -  a joint venture between SEAT and Autometro – as an innovative way to transport cars from the factory to the port, and has made a big difference to the traffic on Catalan roads in that time, taking more than 20,000 lorries off the roads and racking up a big saving in SEAT’s carbon footprint. Throughout 2008 the rail link transported cars on twice daily runs on double-decker carriages over 400 metres long, carrying more than 170 cars at a time. Try doing that on the roads!

BMW & Toyota to collaborate on next-generation lithium-ion battery cells

Toyota & BMW to work together on next-gen lithium-ion batteries BMW and Toyota are to work together to develop next-generation lithium-ion battery technology to try and make battery power more effective. Late last year we learnt that BMW and Toyota are to work more closely to share technology and expertise as the car industry enters a period of consolidation and partnership to try and keep R&D costs under control, and make their products more cost-effective. The result of the BMW Toyota tie-up sees BMW getting access to some of Toyota’s Hybrid nous and Toyota getting access to BMW’s excellent diesel engines.