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Interior Motives China Conference 2010: Day 1

Despite Europe being grounded due to volcanic ash, the third Interior Motives China conference got underway in Beijing with a record number of delegates and speakers – proof, as if it were needed, that this event is now one of the most important in the global car design calendar. This year's theme was 'New brands and the search for a design identity', and among the audience were young Chinese designers keen to learn more about international car design techniques, as well as veteran western designers hoping to gain a deeper understanding of the market they are creating vehicles for.  Session 1: The Market for Design Edward Wong, Director of Transportation Design at China Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), set the mood for the conference in his long, flowing 'Chang San' robe (very traditional Chinese attire). He opened the conference and invited panellists to share their views on what China's needs are and explore what makes the market so unique.

Electric car range drops by nearly 60% in cold weather

Electric cars like the Nissan LEAF (pictured) can lose 60% of their range when it’s cold We already know that the range of electric cars reduces as the car ages, with Nissan conforming that the LEAF’s range will drop by up to 28 per cent over five years. And now we have confirmation that the ambient temperature can have a big impact on range too, thanks to the AAA, America’s equivalent of the AA. The AAA took three standard EVs on sale in the US - Nissan LEAF, Ford Focus EV and Mitsubishi i-MiEV – and subjected them to test in different ambient temperatures.

Ford to crank up EcoBoost engine production

Ford Motor Co. plans to offer EcoBoost engines in 11 vehicles in 2012, up from seven in 2011, and triple the production capacity of EcoBoost-equipped vehicles. Ford is betting big on its family of turbocharged EcoBoost engines to drive fuel economy gains without sacrificing performance.