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Subaru VIZIV Concept & new Subaru Forester at Geneva 2013

Subaru are debuting a new crossover/SUV concept at the Geneva Motor Show as well as the new Subaru Forester and Outback diesel CVT. Subaru are heading to the 2013 Geneva Motor Show with a new crossover concept  - Subaru VIZIV Concept – but has failed to give us any real information. So we don’t know if the VIZIV (the name is supposed to mean ‘Vision for Innovation) is a replacement on the way for a current Subaru, or an all new car.

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".

Toyota Auris Hybrid – details

The Toyota Auris Hybrid, which will debut at Frankfurt The Auris Hybrid will be the first Toyota Hybrid to be built in Europe – at Toyota’s UK plant. Scheduled to go on sale in the second half of 2010, the Auris hybrid utilises the same powertrain as the third-gen Prius, namely a 1.8 litre, 97bhp petrol engine with a bank of nickel-metal hydride batteries and an electric motor. This will give the Auris Hybrid a 0-60 mph time of around 10 seconds and emissions below the critical 100g/km (not 99g/km, by any chance?).