Ford B-Max (2012) goes into the great wide open

Ford hopes a less-is-more approach will lure punters to its new B-max MPV, unique in the supermini segment for having a big hole in the central cockpit instead of a structural pillar. The result is a flexible people mover that's a doddle to load with kids or cargo, Ford claims, thanks to its pillarless opening and sliding rear door. The novel doors landed the £12,500 people mover in the same must-see company as Bentley's grotesque SUV concept and Ferrari's beautiful F12.

Top Gear in Icelandic Volcano

Top Gear tackle a live Volcano in a Toyota in Iceland Top Gear is off air at the moment – if you don’t count the endless repeats on BBC2, BBC3 and Dave – and that usually means that the boys are off somewhere exotic. And so they are – this time to an active volcano in Iceland. It looks as if the boys have take the same Toyota they used in the trip to the North Pole – with May and Clarkson in the Toyota and Hamster on a sled – and done a modification or three to suit the heat instead of the cold.

New finance deals for Mercedes

MERCEDES has introduced new finance offers on parts of the A-Class, C-Class and E-Class ranges. The A-Class benefits from three years’ free servicing, as well as low interest PCP finance packages at a rate of 5.5%. The deal means that an A180 SE is available for £249 per month over three years with a deposit of £2,743.