Volkswagen Beetle R: Frankfurt debut planned?

2012 VW Beetle R - a Hot Beetle However hard they tried – and they did for a while – Volkswagen never managed to make the reborn VW Beetle anything more than a novelty; a girly car with a flower vase for girly drivers. That was enough to make the Beetle sell in almost respectable numbers in both North and South America, but it consigned VW’s retro effort to the novelty bin in Europe, where we tend to know a cynical marketing ploy from a real car. But Volkswagen seem intent on making the 212 VW Beetle rather more credible.

Exotic Cadillac XTS mule spotted

Autoweek reader and frequent spy-photo contributor Spencer Abbott brings us these photos that he took last weekend in Birmingham, Mich. The photos clearly show a heavily camouflaged Cadillac XTS. But given that production-ready examples of Cadillac's new full-sizer have been making frequent appearances on Michigan highways for months, the heavy camo on this XTS is a bit puzzling.

Toyota Prius C launches with TRD Sporty options.

The Toyota Aqua (aka Prius C) with TRD extras The Toyota Prius C has launched in Japan (as the Toyota Aqua) with a host of TRD sporty options on offer. We first had concrete news on the compact Prius – the Toyota Prius C – when a brochure leaked out ahead of a début at the Tokyo Motor Show. And if you take the ‘C’ as compact, that’s exactly what you get – a Prius on a boil wash.