With an illuminated badge making it easily identifiable as a VW, the new car departs quite radically from existing models. Key elements include a largely unadorned front end, ultra-short front overhang, a steeply rising bonnet line, a heavily raked windscreen, large wheel houses housing 20in wheels, prominent sill elements, cantilever-style rear doors, an extended roofline,… Continue reading New Volkswagen ID: electric hatchback prototypes hit the road
Author: Autocar Magazine UK
Design legend Frank Stephenson on life before and after McLaren
“When I was 22, my father called me and told me this had to be my last year,” Stephenson recalls. “I was good at racing, he said – lots of thirds, fifths, sevenths, usually top 10 – but I wasn’t winning. By 30, I’d have plenty of broken bones and no future and I needed… Continue reading Design legend Frank Stephenson on life before and after McLaren
Insight: what fuels Volkswagen’s production line?
With so many staff to feed, and production line workers given precise 15- or 30-minute breaks, getting the food in the right place and the right time is a huge effort. “To make the plants as efficient as possible, we have to make sure every employee is close to food, beverages and things like newspapers,”… Continue reading Insight: what fuels Volkswagen’s production line?
Dacia set to drop Renault badge
Renault’s design boss, Laurens van den Acker, says the firm will phase out the use of Renault-badged Dacia models in certain markets – a move that he says will free up the Romanian brand’s cars to take on more individual designs. Dacia models such as the Duster, Logan, Sandero Stepway and Dokker are sold as… Continue reading Dacia set to drop Renault badge
Hyundai to invest £5.5bn in hydrogen fuel cell technology
The Hyundai Motor Group will invest £5.5 billion in developing hydrogen fuel cell technology, as part of plans to vastly increase the number of cars it sells that use the powertrain. The Korean firm, which presides over Hyundai, Genesis and Kia, is one of the major proponents of fuel cell powertrains, which combine hydrogen and oxygen to… Continue reading Hyundai to invest £5.5bn in hydrogen fuel cell technology
Volkswagen ID Lounge: luxury SUV will lead electric line-up
Volkswagen is preparing to unveil the fifth member of its new ID range of electric models. A seven-seat SUV, which goes under the internal working title ID Lounge, will be revealed at the Shanghai motor show in April. It is being developed as a luxurious range-topping model with exterior and interior dimensions similar to the… Continue reading Volkswagen ID Lounge: luxury SUV will lead electric line-up
Bettered by design: behind the scenes at Land Rover’s design studio
“My view was that if you wanted compelling, emotional, modern designs to last in production, design had to be an equal partner with engineering. So we changed it. Now we’re equal partners.” McGovern says he’s nowadays “joined at the hip” with Nick Rogers, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) chief engineer, “even though we sometimes make life… Continue reading Bettered by design: behind the scenes at Land Rover’s design studio
Pininfarina to launch electric super-SUV using Rivian tech
Automobili Pininfarina will follow its electric hypercar, the PF0, with three SUVs, of which the most powerful one – codenamed PF1 – will rival the Lamborghini Urus. As first reported by our sister site Autocar India, development work on the PF1 SUV has already begun back in the Mahindra-owned car maker’s headquarters in Munich. “Work… Continue reading Pininfarina to launch electric super-SUV using Rivian tech
Jaguar Land Rover UK boss: buyers don’t want digital-only car sales
Consumers don’t want to buy a car totally online, according to Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) UK managing director Rawdon Glover. “Less than 10% of customers want a completely digital experience,” he said. “Manufacturers that will win in this space will make the car-buying journey as easy as possible.” JLR is one of a number of car… Continue reading Jaguar Land Rover UK boss: buyers don’t want digital-only car sales
Lexus RC F Track Edition: spyshots and first official image
Lexus has released the first official image of its new RC F Track Edition, as well as confirming the model will debut at the 2019 Detroit motor show. The image, although not revealing much, shows the BMW M4 CS rival features a large fixed rear wing that appears to be made out of carbon fibre. Recent… Continue reading Lexus RC F Track Edition: spyshots and first official image