Beachcomber will dazzle in Detroit
Evoking memories of the 1960s Mini Moke, BMW's small-car brand will be showing its Beachcomber concept at this year's Detroit auto show.
The Beachcomber is based on the not-very-mini Mini Crossover 2+2 concept, presented for the first time at the Paris auto show in the autumn of 2008.
Don't get too excited. It's essentially an auto show distraction until a production version of the Crossover – the first-ever five-door, all-wheel-drive Mini – is scheduled for its debut next fall.
Unlike the mid-1960s Mini Moke, the doorless Beachcomber retains a main structure. Reinforced A-pillars, a wide D-pillar bar and an integrated lateral support at the rear of the car have been added for safety's sake, as well.
The pair of rear seats adjust fore and aft and have backrests that fold down completely to stow sports equipment such as mountain bikes or wakeboards securely held in position by special fastening systems, says Mini.
In addition to a cloth top, the Beachcomber is available with plastic inserts on the roof, at the sides and at the rear.
Toyota launches Prius
Plug-in lease program
Toyota takes aim at upcoming electrified vehicles from General Motors and Nissan's Leaf, by officially launching its Prius Plug-in Hybrid lease program.
Between now and late spring, Toyota will be building 600 examples of the plug-in Prius for testing by government, commercial and university fleets in Japan, the U.S. and Europe.
As for the plug-in's availability here, Toyota Canada says our market is on the list of countries the automaker is "considering."
The first 100 Prius Plug-ins will go to Strasbourg, France, which has 300 electric vehicle recharging stations.
As Toyota's first plug-in model, the Prius Plug-In adds an external charging function and more batteries to the standard Prius.
The Japanese automaker says that, on a full charge and full tank of gas, it can go 23.4 km using only the electric motor, or 1,400 km total, with a combined EV and hybrid fuel economy of 1.76 L/100km (134 m.p.g.).
Nissan's Leaf electric car, due for sale in 2010, has a range of 160 km on a single charge.
The forthcoming Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid is designed to be driven for 64 km on a single battery charge, then a gas engine kicks in to create electricity to power the electric motor when the battery has been drained.
Toyota's plans call for the plug-in to be more than a niche vehicle. Its goal is to sell "several tens of thousands" of plug-in hybrid cars to consumers in an "affordable" price range.
Mercedes-Benz releases details
of 2011 E Class convertible
As per German automaker tradition, Mercedes-Benz is taking its time filling out the new generation of its mid-size E Class lineup.
Over the past year, we've seen the four-door sedan, two-door coupe and station wagon.
Now before its official debut at next month's Detroit auto show, Mercedes has released some details and images of the anticipated 2011 E Class Cabriolet (or convertible) that's set to go on sale in late spring 2010.
Like the E Class two-door, the Cabriolet will get a carryover 268 hp, 3.5-litre V6 and 382 hp, 5.5-litre V8 as an upgrade, both available in rear-wheel-drive guise only.
Unlike rivals from BMW, Lexus and Infiniti that utilize retractable hardtops, the E Class convertible remains a traditional cloth top. The bonus is a trunk that will hold more than a briefcase.
Mercedes says, with the top up, the trunk can hold almost 400 litres of space and drops to just over 85 litres when the top is lowered and stowed behind the rear passengers.
And like the Audi A5 convertible – that also sports a ragtop – there's a pass-through for longer objects that opens even with the top stowed.
Comfort is king. So in addition to Mercedes' Airscarf, which blows warm air around the neck of the front-seat passengers originally seen on the upscale SL two-seater, the 2011 E Class Cabriolet gets the new AirCap system, a system that hopes to remove that wind-in-your-hair feeling inherent with any open top car.
Essentially, AirCap is a wind deflector that extends from the top of the windshield, along with a draft-stop mounted behind the rear seats. Mercedes says this limits the amount of wind into the passenger compartment up to speeds of 160 km/h.
Rick Hendrick buys first Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Oshawa
Three questions help determine which pickup truck to buy
