Mitsubishi Delica D5 2010 Front Wiper Motor [0261600] on 2040-parts.com

Ford announces electric car plans at the Detroit auto show

Not to be left out of the electric car party, Ford announced Sunday at the Detroit Auto Show that it was developing a line of electric powered vehicles. In addition to its already announced hybrids and plug-in hybrids, Ford is working with Magna International to bring fully electric cars to market with lithium-ion battery packs. In the works is a Focus and Fusion-based vehicles that will be available in with all three powertrains.

Electric Fiat 500e costs the same as 500 Pop – in the US

Sergio Marchionne reckoned Fiat would lose £7k on every 500e they sell, but that may be a very conservative estimate judging by the deal Fiat has put together for the 500e in California, where it’s just launched. For a very modest down-payment of £650 and then £130 a month, you can drive off in a brand new Fiat 500e. That’s exactly the same deal Fiat offers on the 500 Pop – a car that cost under £10k in the UK – making the 500e the first EV we’ve come across where costs are sensible.

Golf Mk 6 bows out with new VW Golf R Cabriolet

Volkswagen is finally delivering the VW Golf R Cabriolet Mk 6, just as the Golf Mk 7 hits the road, but it does without 4WD. But it’s taken until now – 2013 and after the Mk 7 Golf arrived – for VW to fulfil the promise of more powerful open-top motoring in the Golf with the arrival – following a Golf R Cabrio tease video at the end of 2012 – to finally reveal it. Just as you’d expect, the Golf R Cabriolet is mechanically similar to the Golf R in that it gets the same 2.0 litre turbo four cylinder petrol engine that delivers its power through a six-speed dual-clutch auto box.