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Interior Motives China Conference 2010: Day 2

Session 5: Color and Trim On the second day of the conference, Andreas Wlasak, Vice President of Industrial Design at Faurecia, opened proceedings by announcing that the company plans to open a design studio in Shanghai this year. "A design centre in Shanghai – a new place in China for 2010 – this is a commitment," he declared. Wlasak then asked what OEMs should look for in terms of visualizing the concept of ‘green' design inside the vehicle interior: "OEMs might look for 'visual' green – how can you make it visible that the vehicle is efficient and reducing CO2?" He believed real wood is one likely way of achieving this, as people want to feel natural surfaces, and he also envisaged translucent surfaces playing a key role in years to come.

Lotus planning Electric Car

I suppose it was inevitable that Lotus would not settle for simply supplying Tesla with the chassis for their electric car, and would look to jump on the bandwagon of electric cars (EV). Lotus CEO, Michael Kimberly, has told the Financial Times that Lotus is planning an electric car “sooner rather than later”, and went on to say that it will be an extended range battery vehicle. Extended range EVs (like the Chevy Volt) are probably the best option for a mainstream car at the moment, at least until you can buy hydrogen at the pumps other than in California.

Highway Code braking distances questioned

THE ACCURACY of facts and figures in the Highway Code has been called into question after research by the RAC showed that many drivers underestimate official stopping distances. As part of the organisation's Report on Motoring 2014, drivers were asked to identify the Highway Code's stated stopping distances from different speeds, but the majority “seriously underestimated” the figures. However, a separate survey by Right Driver of 1,000 Advanced Driving Instructors (ADIs) revealed that the vast majority strongly believe that the official braking distances have become irrelevant and should be updated.