Toyota iQ concept

By Tim Pollard Motor Shows 11 September 2007 02:53 Toyota iQ: the lowdown The Japanese scored one of the very few surprises of the Frankfurt show this year, with the titchy iQ concept car that previews Toyota’s new sub-Aygo city car. It’s one of our favourite cars at the show, bristling with intelligent new thinking and design flourishes to make small cars interesting again. And the best news is that Toyota has committed to building a production version, probably due in European showrooms by 2009.

Next-gen Passat to offer hybrid and twin-turbo power

VOLKSWAGEN is going even more upmarket with the all-new version of the Passat, which is due to hit showrooms later this year. Soon buyers will be able to include a plug-in hybrid and an all-new 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel among their forecourt options, as VW goes chasing after its sister company Audi. Weight-saving measures have chopped up to 85kg from the new kid on a like-for-like basis, which helps achieve VW's stated efficiency boosts of 20% versus equivalent outgoing Passats.

Next Ford Mustang won't be retro

"No way," was the statement from Ford design chief J Mays when asked whether the redesigned 2014 Ford Mustang will be another retro job. He says the next iteration of the pony car will follow a different road. The design for the next Ford Mustang is currently being "locked down," according to Mays.