Nissan X-trail N-tec Mk3 2014-2016 Interior Roof Courtesy Light on 2040-parts.com

Maybach Zeppelin comes over the horizon

The Maybach Zeppelin - an even bigger waste of money than the standard Maybach Maybach has not exactly been an unmitigated success for Mercedes. Conceived as a competitor for Rolls Royce, it does seem to have carved itself a niche, but probably not the one that Mercedes wanted. Perceived by most as a tarted-up S Class, and bought by the wealthy of the Playstation generation, rather than the Captains of Industry that Mercedes envisioned, the Maybach must be a loss-maker for Mercedes.

BMW tii models are go

By Georg Kacher Motor Industry 02 April 2008 17:06 BMW chief Norbert Reithofer has confirmed to CAR Online that a range of tii performance options will be launched soon on the company's smaller models. He has finally ruled out a rumoured M1 version of the 1-series and said the tii spec would be the most performance-oriented model, claiming the the twin-turbo 135i was quite fast enough (it does 0-62mph in 5.3sec, after all).The tii concept shown at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show points accurately to the approach BMW is developing: performance kits for the 1-series coupe and hatchback, an aero package, carbonfibre details, fatter wheels and tyres, sports seats and instruments. There's even talk of a new M-style steering wheel with integrated LED rev counter.A tii for the massesBMW is the past master at offering huge choice in spec and trim; subtle nuance of alloy wheel size here, and Sport spec there is the stuff of workplace car park folklore.

Vauxhall Meriva concept teaser (2008)

By Glen Waddington First Official Pictures 21 February 2008 16:22 It's suicide time for Vauxhall's mini-MPV. This sneak preview of the Meriva concept to be unveiled at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show reveals suicide-style rear doors that will be a production certainty for the next-gen Meriva. The mini-MPV will retain its B-pillar so that structural integrity is maintained and so the rear doors can be opened independently of the front ones.'The rear-hinged doors are both lighter and less expensive to engineer than sliding doors,' said Sara Nicholson, GM's European product manager for compact cars.