Aston Martin still aiming for a Lagonda SUV

Aston Martin still aiming for a Lagonda SUV (pictured) Aston Martin has never had the easiest of financial journeys, and that’s no different today than it ever was in the David Brown days. Only last week we reported that Aston Martin made a thumping big loss in 2012, despite its cars having iconic status and generally considered to be the most beautiful cars made. But there is light at the end of the very long tunnel of AML’s financial woes, and that revolves round the recent investment by Investindustrial in Aston Martin and its subsequent tie-in with AMG.

UK electric car sales hit record high

While electric cars may not have taken off as quickly as the likes of Renault and Nissan had hoped, the latest figures from the government’s £5,000 electric car grant scheme show that sales have leapt 25% in the last quarter. A total of 1,149 electric cars were registered in Q3, not only a 25% improvement over Q2, but the most successful quarter since the government scheme began back in January 2011, indicating that consumers are starting to understand the technology and its limitations rather better. On Bing: see pictures of electric cars in the UK Find out how much an electric car costs on Auto Trader This news comes as the Renault-Nissan alliance has been forced to admit it is not going to reach its self-imposed target of 1.5 million electric car sales by 2016.

Mercedes E300 Bluetec Hybrid (2010) at Geneva motor show

Mercedes unveiled its first ever diesel hybrid at the 2010 Geneva motor, along with a Bluetec version of its ageing Geländewagen and an SLS AMG supercar decked out in full F1 safety car spec. They’re pretty good. The E300 Bluetec Hybrid features Merc’s 201bhp twin-turbo, 2.1-litre four-pot, with a 15kW electric motor positioned between it and the seven-speed auto ‘box.