Maserati GS Zagato

This is a the one-off Maserati GS Zagato commissioned by the entrepreneur Paolo Boffi and due for its public debut at the Concours d'Elegance at the Villa d'Este, Italy on the 20th April, a year after the debut of the Zagato-designed Ferrari 575GTZ. This Zagato design is based on the platform of the Maserati Spyder which itself is based on a shortened platform of the recently replaced Coupe. The GS consciously evokes the classic Maserati A6 G Zagato of 1954 in its form, and like that design also has an all aluminium body.

BMW ‘i' subbrand aims for 2013 launch

BMW has confirmed that the new subbrand through which it intends to market a range of advanced stand-alone hybrid, range-extended and plug-in electric models will be called BMW “i.” Created to develop, produce and market what BMW's head of marketing, Ian Robertson, describes as “innovative solutions to premium mobility,” the brand will be supported by a company established by BMW called i Ventures, through which the German carmaker plans to grow its range of mobility services. The i3 and the i8 will be the initial models and are planned for introduction in 2013. “These cars have been designed specifically for their respective alternative drive systems,” said Klaus Draeger, head of BMW's R&D operations.

Mercedes SLS AMG Electric Drive sets Nurburgring production EV record

The Mercedes SLS AMG ED (pictured) set a new EV lap record at the Nurburgring Just as Audi decides that the R8 e-Tron isn’t a production viable option, Mercedes decides to prove there is potential for electric cars at the very high end. The Mercedes SLS AMG Electric Drive has been to the Nurburgring and set a new lap record for a production electric car of just 7 minutes 55 seconds. The SLS AMG ED, which goes on sale very soon at more than £300k, may weigh a chunk more than a regular SLS (550kg more), but it gets plenty of help from its four electric motors – one at each corner – to overcome the weight of its batteries with 751bhp and 737lb/ft of torque on hand.