Watch New Vw Beetle Speedometer on 2040-parts.com

Better Place Electric Car visitor centre opens

Better Place have opened a visitor centre in Israel to demonstrate their battery swap technology for electric cars Last October we wrote about a start-up company in Israel – Better Place – that had a new way forward for electric cars by taking the purchase of battery packs out of the equation, and was developing a system for ‘Battery Swap’ stations where electric car owners could drive in and swap their battery pack for a fully-charged one in a few minutes. That story first brought to our attention our favourite quote of last year – by Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn – who said “A hybrid is like a mermaid: if you want a fish, you get a woman; if you want a woman, you get a fish.” Which probably explained why Nissan – and its partner Renault – got involved with Better Place. Better Place aims to address the main concerns of electric car drivers by making the battery packs in electric cars ‘swappable’.

Ford Kuga (2013) full details on the new soft-roader

Ford's second-gen Kuga SUV will cost an average of £1000 less than the outgoing model, but boast more standard equipment. The Blue Oval's soft-roader starts at £20,895 for a basic 1.6-litre Ecoboost petrol model with two-wheel drive. Ford Kuga range (2013): the engine lowdown The new Kuga range kicks off with Zetec models, which you can spec with a 1.6-litre petrol good for 148bhp or 178bhp.

Brabus 800 E V12 Cabriolet – it’s a bonkers Mercedes E-Class Cabriolet

Brabus 800 E V12 Cabriolet So you fancy a Mercedes E-Class Cabriolet, but you feel Mercedes has failed miserably to endow any E-Class Cab with enough power to whip the skin off a rice pudding. What do you do? You go out and grab yourself an E-Class Cab tweaked and fettled by Brabus – something like the new Brabus 800 E V12 Cabriolet with 800 continental horses at its disposal – more than enough speed on tap to whip the syrups off your back-seat passengers.