Smart ForTwo (2006): first official pictures

By Phil McNamara First Official Pictures 10 November 2006 08:31 New Smart ForTwo: the lowdown These are the first pictures of the new Smart ForTwo, which goes on sale in the UK in September 2007. The Mk2 city car looks much the same, but it's had a thorough overhaul. In comes a 1.0-litre engine with more power, mated to an automated manual transmission that's claimed to eliminate today's slow and jerky changes.

Nissan Juke Nismo to debut at Le Mans

It's no Juke-R, but the more reasonable Nissan Juke Nismo will make its world debut at Le Mans this weekend. It seems only fitting, considering Nissan is providing power for a quarter of the field at the famous race. The Juke will get an enhanced version of the 1.6-liter turbocharged engine as well as some body and suspension work.

Mercedes Ener-G-Force: The shape of SUVs to come

The Mercedes Energ-G-Force, which will debut at the Los Angeles auto show, could be the shape of Mercedes SUVs to come--if you like it. “If people really like it and reaction is good then yeah, we might have to think of making it happen in reality,” said designer Huey Lee, who was part of the team that penned the Energ-G-Force at Mercedes' Advanced Design Studio in Carlsbad, Calif. Metalcrafters built the carbon fiber composite roller you see here.