2006 Toyota Four Way Flasher on 2040-parts.com

Volvo develops new energy storage technology

Volvo is looking to make heavy batteries in electric vehicles a thing of the past, unveiling a new technology still under development that could use the body panels of the vehicle to store energy. Everyone knows that right now one of the biggest technological limiting factors of electric vehicles are the batteries. They can be damaged through depletion, they add weight, they use expensive and polluting technologies to manufacture, and they just don't hold as much energy as we'd like.

The Future Role of the Vehicle Designer

The vehicle design department at the Royal College of Art hosted the second in a series of five lectures looking at the future of the profession last week. Moving on from the previous week's topic of sustainability, this debate explored the future roles and responsibilities of the vehicle designer. Head of department Dale Harrow began by posing the question "Is it time to rethink – do we still need the car?" Although still relevant, Harrow's ultimate answer to this was that the profession was about to see marked change, with the end to an era where "designers are locked behind closed doors in studios".

Volkswagen XL1 concept car (2011) first photos

Volkswagen 'will build the XL1' - Piech Volkswagen today unveiled the XL1 - its latest concept car iteration of its 'one-litre' eco car, 2011-style. Originally the brainchild of Ferdinand Piech, the VW L1 was the 2002 vision for a green car that supped just one litre of fuel per 100 kilometres. Now the idea is back for 2011, and it's called the XL1.