2012 Nissan Leaf 292c0-3na0b Battery Junction Dc/dc Box Assembly on 2040-parts.com

WRC Mini Concept (2010) first official pictures

While the Mini Countryman might be destined for suburban mumsville, BMW has confirmed the new model will also terrorise the countryside in the form of the WRC Mini from 2011, with IRC champ Kris Meeke at the wheel. Officially launched at the 2010 Paris motor show in concept guise, the WRC Mini will be engineered and run by motorsport doyen Dave Richards and his Prodrive outfit, although customer packages will be available too, allowing independents to compete in the car. Not so much – this is no time for misty-eyed Paddy Hopkirk odes.

U.S. seeks 5 percent annual fuel-economy gains through 2016

The Obama administration today proposed gasoline mileage and greenhouse-gas pollution standards for new vehicles for model years 2012 to 2015, filling in the blanks for manufacturers en route to a 35.5 mpg national target in 2016. The Transportation Department and EPA proposal calls for fuel economy to increase by about 5 percent each year, starting from an average of 27.3 mpg for the 2011 model year, the agencies said in a statement. The average car buyer would save more than $3,000 in fuel costs over the life of a vehicle, the statement said.

2013 Hyundai ix35 Facelift revealed

We have the first picture of the facelift for the 2013 Hyundai ix35 – which will debut at the Geneva Motor Show. Although it’s a small facelift. We’ve been expecting a facelift for the Hyundai ix35 to appear before Geneva, especially after we spotted an ix35 FCEV floating around in Korea last year with a new, more convincing nose.