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Porsche nearing 900 orders for its 918 Spyder hybrid concept

When Porsche AG showed the 918 Spyder at the Geneva show in March, we said it was a car to “make anyone a believer in hybrid supercar tech.” Well, maybe not anyone, but Porsche now says it has almost 900 potential buyers for the two-seater hybrid prototype as the German automaker gets closer to approving production. Porsche development chief Wolfgang Duerheimer said he is confident the company will soon reach the threshold of 1,000 orders, which is how many the company needs to “make a sound business case.” The 918 has 680 hp and, according to Porsche, will get 78 mpg and run from 0 to 60 mph in 3 seconds. Porsche said it wants to double its overall vehicle sales to 150,000 in the next five years or so.

CAR interviews Karl Schlicht, Toyota and Lexus product chief (2014)

By Damion Smy Motor Industry 07 July 2014 11:07 CAR magazine interviewed Karl Schlicht, the product chief at Toyota and Lexus, to find out how one of the world's biggest car makers is fighting to make its cars more engaging. Japan's biggest manufacturer seemingly has quality and engineering licked, but is keen to inject real desirability on its European range - and products like the GT86 sports car and recently facelifted Yaris suggest that Toyota is making strides in that direction. Read on for our full interview.

Tesla system will swap a Model S battery in 90 seconds

"This is the title fight," said Elon Musk, in typical brashness. "This is battery-powered versus gasoline." The Tesla CEO preached this to a crowd of Tesla owners and supporters while formally confirming the company's worst-kept secret: the fact that the Model S sedan's batteries were designed from the beginning to be swapped out. The system Tesla envisioned has plenty of ambitious, techno-wizardry automation, with a focus on as much convenience as possible: The Model S will drive over a pit containing machinery which automatically changes the battery from underneath in approximately 90 seconds -- and the driver doesn't even have to get out of the car.