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Demise of kei cars on the horizon?

The kei car has long been a staple of the Japanese automobile industry and its car culture. Too diminutive for Western markets, the tiny cars and trucks are a strong influencer of design in Japan. Now, as The New York Times reports, the Japanese government has hit kei cars with increases in sales tax, gasoline prices and has reduced the kei car tax break introduced to make the cars popular in the first place by 50 percent.

Lotus CEO Dany Bahar on the crisis at Lotus Cars

Lotus chief executive Dany Bahar has laid bare the business position at Lotus Cars since the takeover of parent company Proton by Malaysia's DRB-Hicom. Norfolk's sports car maker has been buffeted by rumours of financial crisis and looming collapse since development was frozen by the new owners (click here for our coverage of the crisis at Lotus. CAR scored an interview with Bahar at the Hethel headquarters yesterday afternoon. He was abroad at the time of last week's media maelstrom, when rumours and slurs flew around about the state of Lotus's finances.

Honda unveils Insight Hybrid

Honda has released the first official images of the Prius-fighting Honda Insight, which is due to launch in the New Year at the Detroit Motor Show, and be in UK Car showrooms in the Spring of 2009. Honda has been sceptical about the future of the Hybrid/Electric car, and has expressed the view that it believes the long term future lies in Hydrogen powered EVs, rather than EVs per se. But this is a sensible move by Honda to take away sales from the Toyota Prius.