Kia Soul EV revealed at the Chicago Motor Show

The new Kia Soul EV (pictured) has been revealed in Chicago The Kia Soul EV is Kia’s first effort at a proper mass production EV, and if you’re looking for an electric car it does look promising. Due to go on sale later in 2014 in the US – initially in California, New York and Oregan because of their charging infrastructure – and, Kia promised, the UK and Europe later in 2014 or early 2015, the Soul EV offers a real world driving range of 80-100 miles from a recharge taking half an hour for 80 per cent on a rapid 50kW charger or up to 5 hours for a full recharge from a UK 240 volt supply. The range is helped by Kia’s third-generation regenerative braking system which manages to capture 12 per cent of the car’s kinetic energy, feeding it back in to the battery as electricity during braking and coasting, with four different regeneration modes.

Jaguar future products: Small sedan, 'spiritual successor' to the E-type on the way

Jaguar is expected to add a sports car based on the C-X16 concept shown in September at the Frankfurt auto show. Executives said the car is nearly ready for production. Work also is under way on a compact sedan but that car is a few years away from production, Jaguar officials said.

Starr Trust urges car donations

A CHARITY that helps young people in the Brighton area achieve their goals is asking the public to donate old cars as part of a fundraising drive. The Starr Trust has teamed up with Giveacar, a non-profit social enterprise which collects unwanted and unused cars for charity. Cars are collected free of charge nationwide by Giveacar then sold through an online auction or disposed of at an authorised treatment facility.