Volkswagen puts a price on the VW Polo BlueGT

The Volkswagen Polo Blue GT – a warmed over Polo – will cost from £17,400 for the 1.4-litre 138bhp 6 spd manual. The Polo Blue GT gets the 1.4 TFSI engine with 138bhp so the little Polo can row along well enough, but it also get cylinder deactivation for when you’re not blatting from traffic light to traffic light to endow the Blue GT with official average economy of 60.1mpg (or 62.7mpg if you opt for the DSG ‘box). When you’re not worried about being parsimonious with your fuel the Polo GT skips along to 62mph in 7.9 seconds and handles well enough thanks to the Polo’s already decent setup and a 15mm lower suspension.

Who's Where: Gerry McGovern to head Land Rover design

Land Rover has announced that Gerry McGovern will take over as Design Director for all Land Rover design with immediate effect. Current Design Director, Geoff Upex, is to retire from the company at the end of 2006 after 23 years service and, to ensure a smooth handover, will continue to play a key role in the launch of new products including the all-new Freelander2/LR2 over the coming months. Gerry McGovern has been Director, Advanced Design, Land Rover, since 2004 and has spent the majority of his career with Land Rover and Rover Group in UK, apart from a short period with Lincoln-Mercury in the USA.

Jaguar SUV/Crossover (C-X17) gets Liquid Metal paint job for Dubai Motor Show

The Jaguar SUV/Crossover (C-X17) gets Liquid Metal paint job for Dubai Motor Show The Jaguar C-X17 Concept arrived at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September as Jaguar’s first nod towards a sports SUV – although Jaguar consider the C-X17 a Sport Crossover, not an SUV – and, although dubbed a concept, it’s a firm marker for a Jaguar Crossover arriving in the next couple of years. That perception is given more credence by the arrival of the C-X17 at the Dubai Motor Show all spruced up with a new paint job - a lustrous Liquid Aluminium liquid metal finish. It’s a similar route to garner column inches Jaguar took with the C-X16 Concept (which turned in to the Jaguar F-Type) with extra coverage garnered after the reveal at Frankfurt in 2011 with a new white paint job - Neutron White – for the Los Angeles Auto Show a couple of months later.