Wesbar 401567 Waterproof Three Red Led Id Light Bar on 2040-parts.com

What the Future Holds, Nobody Knows

It's a testament to the talent, charisma and relative celebrity of Ian Callum, Derek Jenkins and Franz von Holzhausen - heads of Jaguar, Mazda and Tesla design, respectively - that they managed to captivate a crowd of industry insiders at the tail end of the Los Angeles Auto Show's second press-preview day. This despite being given a nebulous topic to discuss with a moderator who knew little about the subject. Dan Lyons, a technology columnist at Newsweek, oversaw the panel discussion that was to focus on "Tomorrow's Cars...Practical Transportation or Groundbreaking Design?" He asked only one question on that topic before digressing into a more general discourse on the design strategies of Jaguar, Mazda and Tesla.

Fiat Photo Bombs VW on Google Street View

Fiat Photo Bombs VW Fiat has managed to park a Fiat 500 right outside VW’s Swedish HQ just as Google Street View cameras pass by. Regular readers may remember Top Gear’s Stig turning up on Google Street View a few years ago as the PR team at the BBC managed to park his Stigness in front of various landmarks just as Google’s Street View cameras passed by. That little trick seems to have inspired Fiat in Sweden (although Fiat aren’t publicly admitting it) to do something similar and, to be honest, much more amusing.

Subaru XV

Subaru has revealed the new XV at the 2011 Frankfurt motor show, taking the company into the compact crossover segment for the first time. Like its concept precursor, the XV features a hexagonal grille and 'hawk eye' headlamps, designed to emphasize the vehicle's brand identity. Alloy wheels and cut-away cladding also aim to give the car a distinctive feel.