Car news

The lowdown Seat has altered the Altea, with a redesigned rear end that boosts practicality. The Altea XL is similar in concept to Volkswagen's enlarged Golf, the Plus, but the Seat is an even better...

The 1500bhp JCB Dieselmax streamliner will undergo final shakedown tests today, ahead of tomorrow's diesel land speed record attempt. CAR Online will bring you the news as it happens. Our reporter,...

Here's yet another new 911 – the glass roof Targa version. A new development is that the 997 Targa is only available with four-wheel drive, unlike previous models. As a four-wheel drive model, the...

Chrysler's V8 Firepower concept is moving closer to production, thanks to a plan to push the Dodge Viper upmarket, creating a Firepower-shaped gap in Chrysler Group's portfolio. Sources suggest that...

The 1500bhp JCB Dieselmax has passed 300mph in a test run for its diesel land speed record attempt. The sleek racer – powered by twin diesel engines each producing 750bhp – touched 308.252mph...

A grunty, 170bhp diesel engine will join Skoda's high performance vRS range in September. The engine will be available in the Octavia hatch and estate, priced at £18,370 and £19,200 respectively. The...

Mitsubishi will introduce a double-clutch gearbox on the Lancer Evolution X, sources say. The supersaloon is set for launch in a year, which should make Mitsubishi the first manufacturer to respond to...

Europe's fastest growing car brand – Kia – is finally wading into Europe's biggest market with a serious contender. But with a joke of a name: the Cee'd. Kia claims the five-door hatchback will be the...

The lowdown The disguise is off. No more speculation, spy shots or sneak previews - this is the face of the all-new, faster, bigger, better Mini. No, we haven't jumbled up the pictures - the car...

Gerry McGovern – the designer credited with the MG F and original Freelander – will become Land Rover's new design director on 1 January 2007. McGovern currently leads Land Rover's advanced design...

The Chevrolet Camaro – GM's centrepiece at the 2006 Detroit auto show – has received the green light for production. The V8 coupe will be unveiled in late 2008, with sales confirmed for early 2009.

Here's a sneak preview of two new Suzukis – the Swift Sport and Splash supermini-MPV. Both get their world premieres at September's Paris show. The flagship Swift goes on sale in autumn 2006, for just...

Three new six-cylinder engines are joining the BMW 3-Series range. Top of the pile – until the V8 M3 arrives – is the 335d, which runs the twin-turbo 3.0-litre diesel engine offered in the 5-series.

Gordon Murray – the engineer behind the 240mph McLaren F1 – is now working on a racer that could dethrone the F1 as the ultimate lightweight supercar. Murray has joined forces with former colleagues...

The lowdown Jaw-dropping luxury car design and a high-tech racing chassis collide in the 908 RC, Peugeot's showpiece concept for the upcoming Paris motor show. Part-limousine, part-Le Mans racer, the...

General Motors' new Epsilon II chassis – to be employed around the world by Vauxhall/Opel, Saab, Chevrolet and other brands – has hit the road for testing. Pictured here beneath the next Chevrolet...

The lowdown This is the face of the all-new X5, a car that redefines the sports SUV claims BMW. More power and performance, a slippery shape, a new chassis honed for dynamic driving and gadgets galore...

BMW has put on ice plans for a mini-MPV based on the 3-series, to rival the Mercedes B-class. Instead, it will focus on a bigger, Mercedes R-class challenger, due in 2009. 'Originally, we looked at...

Mazda is claiming the world's first no compromises coupe-convertible, with its MX-5 Roadster-coupe. Traditionally, folding tin-tops keep out thieves but steal luggage space. They boost refinement, but...

Lotus should engineer a new halo car like the legendary 176mph Carlton supersaloon, says the Norfolk firm's new boss. The 377bhp Lotus-Carlton was produced on Mike Kimberley's last watch as CEO, from...

The lowdown This is the sensible new Citroen C4 Picasso, light years away from today's egg-on-wheels original. It's sensible because it's been designed from the inside out, with huge emphasis on a...

The lowdown Here's the new benchmark for hot hatch acceleration: the 261bhp Audi S3 quattro. Up there with the most powerful hot hatches – the 261bhp BMW 130i and Volkswagen's 250bhp Golf R32 – the S3...

The Corolla brand is going the same way as Oldsmobile, Jif and Marathon – to the knacker's yard. It may be the most venerable nameplate in motoring history, but Toyota is ditching the Corolla badge in...

Land Rover is slapping a green tax on sales of its 4x4s, which will build up millions to be invested in global ecological schemes like wind farms and Indian cooking stoves that use renewable...

Land Rover is slapping a green tax on sales of its 4x4s, which will build up millions to be invested in global ecological schemes like wind farms and Indian cooking stoves that use renewable...

The lowdown Seat has pulled the wraps off its ultimate Leon, the 237bhp Cupra, which hits the UK in January 2007. Just one snag – it looks almost identical to the 200bhp Leon FR. Here's our 60-second...

American brand Dodge is plotting a small hatch to take on Ford's Fiesta, with sales likely in 2008. Chrysler Group is in talks with three potential partners, to share a chassis for the baby Dodge.

The lowdown This is the Volvo C30, a rakish three-door set to take on the BMW 1-series and Audi A3. Unconventionally, this hatchback only has four seats; conventionally, it mounts its engines across...

An all-new version of Lancia's legendary Delta Integrale will relaunch the brand in the UK, CAR Online has learned. With its turbocharged four-cylinder engine sending power to all four wheels, the...

The MG TF will be reborn at Longbridge in 2007 - and the roadster has been overhauled by the ride and handling experts at Lotus. Nanjing Automotive Corporation, the Chinese company that bought the...

Our design critic Stephen Bayley drives a Range Rover

Almost a year after it was announced, Ian Fraser drives the Alfasud