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Mini Vision concept: what does it say about the brand's future?

The sight of Mini design head Anders Warming presenting a holographic, 3D projection of the Mini Vision concept as if appearing in his own cartoon was certainly a new one on us, but it captured the quirky, slightly left-field image the subsidiary of BMW Group has cultivated since its relaunch 13 years ago. As the 'Vision' tag suggests, this is billed as a marker of intent for the brand's future design direction rather than a pre-production teaser of the new Mini hatchback (Cooper in most markets) we'll see later this year. However if the third-generation 'new' Mini doesn't look remarkably similar we'd be amazed, such is the level of productionized detailing on this purely digital model.

Lotus Hybrid – the Lotus Evora 414E – at Geneva

The only photo we have of the Lotus Evora 414E Hybrid Last year we reported on a range extender engine developed by Lotus for use in hybrid cars. The range extender engine was part of a joint project between Lotus, Jaguar, MIRA and Caparo in conjunction with the Technology Strategy Board and was designed to provide charge – rather than drive – for hybrid cars. A solution that seems far more elegant than the current Prius-type setups.

Audi announces 2015 A3 pricing

The last A3 we drove, an Irish-spec model with cloth seats and a 1.4 TSI engine paired with Audi's S-tronic twin-clutch gearbox, retailed for $54,495. Thankfully, American buyers won't face that sort of out-the-wazoo payment when the new sedan arrives early next year. Audi's announced a price that takes a direct shot across the bow of rival Mercedes-Benz' CLA: $29,900.