Suncor Stainless Steel 360 Degree Anchor Swivel on 2040-parts.com

VW Group planning 10-speed DSG, new powerful diesel engine & more plug-in hybrids

The end of the internal combustion engine is nigh, they say, as the world tries to clean up its environmental act and works towards a goal of electric motors to power our personal transport. But car makers are fighting that belief by extracting more power for less fuel from ICE engines, and there’s still a very long way to go before the ICE engine is consigned to the history books. Volkswagen has already reduced the fuel consumption of both their diesel and petrol engines by 30 per cent since 2000 and plan a further reduction of 15 per cent by 2020.

Infiniti Q30 concept (2013) at Frankfurt motor show

We’ve seen the design sketch of the new Infiniti Q30, and now here’s the first picture of the idea made real: it’s the Q30 concept car that’ll attend the Frankfurt motor show in September. Infiniti Q30 concept: what’s the story? Infiniti is busting three niches in one with the Q30: we’re told the car’s body is a fusion ‘merging the dynamic design and sportiness of a coupe, the roominess of a hatch and the higher stance of a crossover’.

VW CrossBlue concept (2013) first official pictures

This is Volkswagen's next SUV, just revealed at the 2013 Detroit motor show. Called the CrossBlue, it's a 'mid-sized' six-seat SUV aimed specifically at the American market. Yet judging by these images, and to these European eyes, there doesn’t seem to be much ‘mid-sized’ about it – it's a mammoth five metres long, coming in at 200mm longer than a VW Touareg.