New Ritchie F-50w Explorer Compass (white) on 2040-parts.com

Design Contest: Terra Prix 2085

Local Motors is back once again with another design competition. Unlike previous contests that aim to produce cars through open source design, the Terra Prix 2085 contest is set firmly in the future. As the name would suggest, the concept is based around the idea of future motorsport: an around the world race taking in all continents and every variety of terrain.

Lotus news at 2009 Tokyo motor show

Lotus was one of only three foreign manufacturers to exhibit at the 2009 Tokyo show, and as well as shouting about the success of the Evora (including a mention of it scooping CAR's PCoTY title), the company unveiled a special-edition Exige. Called the Exige Stealth is Japan – and the ugly-sounding Scura throughout the rest of the world – it's black all over. There's matt black paint, lots of carbonfibre bits and pieces, and the supercharged Toyota engine pushing out 257bhp.

Self-driving Tesla could hit roads within three years

Electric car manufacturer Tesla has said that self-driving cars could be a reality within the next three years, with the firm targeting a computer-guided version of its Model S saloon. Tesla chief executive officer Elon Musk said in an interview with the Financial Times that the autonomous driving technology would act like “an autopilot” that could be switched on and off like an aeroplane’s guidance system. On Bing: see pictures of autonomous cars Find out how much a used Tesla costs on Auto Trader However, while Musk claimed that 90% of distances driven today would be able to be completed autonomously in three years’ time, he also admitted that fully self-driving vehicles may be a “bridge too far” in the near future.