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Toyota Verso is the first Toyota to get a BMW engine

The Toyota Verso (pictured) gets the option of a 1.6 litre BMW diesel engine from 2014 Two years ago we reported that BMW would be supplying Toyota with diesel engines in Europe from 2014, And bang on time (as you’d expect from the Germans and Japanese) the first Toyota with a BMW engine has been revealed. The Toyota Verso 1.6 D-4D goes in to production in January at Toyota’s plant in Turkey complete with a 1.6 litre diesel engine from BMW that comes with 111bhp and 199lb/ft of torque. It’s not the sort of BMW diesel that’s going to see the Verso turn in to a hot MPV, but it does give the Verso emissions of 119g/km and allow Toyota to offer an engine that appeals to frugal minded, diesel-centric European buyers.

Frankfurt motor show revisited: a reader’s review

By Richard Webber Motor Shows 05 October 2009 17:26 Richard Webber won a competition held by CAR and Vauxhall to take a CAR Online reader to Frankfurt. Here's his earlier report from the 2009 IAA - and you can now watch his video preview of the new 2010 Astra below I was chuffed to bits to win CAR’s competition to go to the 2009 Frankfurt motor show. But would the IAA live up to the hype on a general access public day, rather than VIP only press day?

The Future Role of the Vehicle Designer

The vehicle design department at the Royal College of Art hosted the second in a series of five lectures looking at the future of the profession last week. Moving on from the previous week's topic of sustainability, this debate explored the future roles and responsibilities of the vehicle designer. Head of department Dale Harrow began by posing the question "Is it time to rethink – do we still need the car?" Although still relevant, Harrow's ultimate answer to this was that the profession was about to see marked change, with the end to an era where "designers are locked behind closed doors in studios".