2010 Charger Dash Bezel 335884 on 2040-parts.com

Volkswagen Brands – enough for now

VW boss Martin Winterkorn says Volkswagen has enough brands Volkswagen seems to be on a world domination plan. Audi is expanding with every passing day and the VW Group (Auto Union to be) has an unrivalled list of brands under its umbrella, including Audi, SEAT, Skoda, Bentley, Lamborghini, Bugatti and of course VW itself. It also recently effectively took control of Porsche (after the failed efforts by Porsche to take control of VW) and has just announced a near 20% stake in Suzuki.

Lexus teases Frankfurt SUV concept (2013)

Lexus has released the first picture of what’s expected to be its new SUV concept car, bound for the Frankfurt motor show in September 2013. Clearly set to employ the sharp-creased design and huge ‘spindle grille’ cues from the current Lexus range – not to mention the LF-LC coupe concept – Lexus is nevertheless staying tight-lipped on details of its new model. We’ll see the car revealed completely in early September.

Audi A2 EV & A1 Range-Extender dropped

It seems Audi is getting cold feet on its electric car plans with the Audi A2 EV and the Audi A1 Range-Extender reported to be dropped. It’s starting to look as if car makers are waking up to the reality that electric cars are not something car buyers, on the whole, want to spend their hard earned cash on. We recently reported that the BMW range of EVs is being re-thought with the BMW i3 likely to be just a range extender and plans to extend the i-BMW beyond the i3 and i8 Supercar put on ice.