Articles by Karla Pincott

Honey, they shrunk the Prius. And the price. Hybrid driving gets a cheaper entry level with the launch of the Toyota Prius C. The new arrival undercuts the current price champ – Honda’s Insight – by $6000. And it also hopes to cut back a slice of the Insight’s market too. Last year the Honda sold 715 Insights – about the same number of sales the existing Prius dropped.The new arrival will target Gen-Y buyers, who are expected by Toyota to push up hybrid sales. That expectation is made on the basis of the Prius C’s fuel economy and cheaper hybrid entry price. But we can’t help wondering if Gen-Y – happy to splash any amount of ransom demanded for the latest i-Thing (and then more again for the next one) – is swayed by such practical considerations.VALUEThe Prius C starts at $23,990 for the base model, with a standard list that includes all the expected electronic necessities of city life – including the almost-mandatory touchscreen and music/phone streaming. An extra $3000 puts you in the higher-spec Prius C i-Tech, which adds better quality upholstery, satnav with live traffic alerts, alloy wheels, self-levelling LED headlights, retractable side mirrors and – presumably for purely cosmetic purposes – a larger rear spoiler.Toyota cites the Insight as a target, but any practical buyer would measure the Prius C against other city cars – and there are many good ones that cost less. From a little to a lot less. Toyota’s own Yaris, and the Kia Rio, Mazda2, Suzuki Swift, Ford Fiesta and Volkswagen Polo ranges all offer variants with good combinations of engine, transmission and fit-out for the urban run.Yes, some people will be attracted to the planet-saving promise of the hybrid’s lower tailpipe emissions. But the main argument for most hybrid buyers is the vision of a future where fuel is not going to get any cheaper – and where a couple of extra thousand dollars now will save more in the long term.TECHNOLOGYThe Prius-derived drivetrain uses a 54kW/111Nm 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine in tandem with a 45kW/169Nm electric motor to produce a total of 74kW of power. An electronically controlled CVT auto transmission drives the front wheels, and a regenerative system captures brake energy to feed charge to the battery – still the older (and cheaper) nickel-metal hydride unit rather than lighter and more efficient lithium-ion. Toyota promises the newer battery technology will arrive in a future Prius. But not this one.Despite being a smaller engine in a smaller car, the system has to work harder, so the fuel figures are not hugely improved over the Prius. The official numbers are 0.2 litres better at 3.7 litres/100km on the city cycle but a Prius-matching 3.9 litres/100km on the combined cycle (and CO2 emissions slightly dirtier at 90 grams/km).You can get a couple of kilometres solely on the electric motor, but after that the car will switch back to the engine. An initially confusing – although blaringly colourful -- set of pages for the in-dash trip computer screen gives you the all expected information plus a plethora more related to the hybrid operation.This includes how much money you are spending based on the fuel price data you enter, and how greenly you’ve been driving, giving you a score out of 100. We appeared to be only tightly tinged with eco-colour, finishing with a mark off 22 after a long stretch of what we’d consider normal driving.SAFETYPrius C gets seven airbags, reversing camera, vehicle stability and traction control, anti-skid brakes with brake assist and electronic brakeforce distribution, and hill-start assist control. It hasn’t been ANCAP tested but Toyota says it should get a five-star safety rating.DESIGNThe mini-Prius look works to remarkably good effect. Yes, there’s a reasonable family resemblance, but the Prius C – based on the Yaris platform -- looks sharper and more modern than its hybrid signature ancestor. The looks are helped by it sitting lower, but it’s also shorter, narrower and 285kg lighter.Space has been well-packaged, which gives more rear legroom than the Yaris and Corolla, although it’s still difficult for longer legs in the back. The positioning of the battery and fuel tank under the rear seat means there’s less compromise on luggage space, and – yes – a full-size spare wheel. And folding the rear seat gives a another boost of functional space to the 260 litres.More importantly for city drivers, the turning circle is a tight 4.8 metres. And perhaps most importantly for the target market, it has 17 pockets, bins and holders for all the tech and detritus storage anybody could wish. The flat-bottomed steering wheel has hints of sport, but its only benefit is to lift the looks and offer marginally better access for sliding into the driver’s seat.DRIVINGThe initial impression of the Prius C is of a pleasant and undemanding city car. Exactly what it is, in fact. The cabin is fairly hushed except for tyre noise, and the ride is firm but comfortable  – it soaks up bumps and broken bitumen brilliantly, which holds promise for negotiating some of Australia’s appalling street surfaces.We didn’t expect the drivetrain to be a cracker, and that was spot on. It tootled around quite well, but complained noisily when asked to punt up hills. Performance was okay off the line, but the momentum tended to flatten out after that. We managed seven seconds to hit 60km/h, but then another nine to move from there to the 100km/h mark.Calibrated for city streets, the steering is light and feels artificial. Similarly, the continuously variable transmission is smooth and simply drones along quietly, but could be almost non-existent in terms of effort. We badly felt the need for a faux-manual mode, or anything that would prove the presence of a transmission, but the target market probably won’t care.What they will care about – if Toyota is right about Gen-Me being the Prius C’s main buyer pool – is that the interior experience doesn’t offer enough bling and dazzle. The design is fairly clean but in no way funky. And buyers looking for style sizzle while still wanting vegan sausage will be disappointed.The exterior has the looks, but the interior – where they’ll spend hours stuck in city traffic – feels old hat, despite the clever animations on the trip computer screen and the base model’s aqua plastic strip accents. If Gen-Y is truly the hybrid sales saviour, they’re likely to look more at what is in the cabin than what’s under the bonnet. And that could leave them looking for more.VERDICTIt’s a good little thing for the city, but there are plenty of other good city cars. For ordinary drivers, the main question of whether or not to buy it should measure the price against the fuel saving.TOYOTA PRIUS CPrice: from $23,990Warranty: 3 years/100,000km, 8 years/160,000 km on batteryResale: NAService intervals: 10,000km/six monthsThirst: 3.9 litres/100km (official), 91RON, 90g/km CO2Crash rating: Five-star (est)Safety equipment: seven airbags, (ABS, BA, EBD, stability and traction controlEngine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine + 45kW electric motor, 74kW/111Nm totalTransmission: electronic CVT auto, FWDBody: Five-door hatchDimensions: 3995mm (L), 1695mm (W), 1455mm (H), 2550mm (WB), 1465mm/1460mm tracks front/rearWeight: 1120kg-1140kgTyre size: 15 x 5.5Spare tyre:  full-size

An experimental design team hopes to usher in new advances in car design and environmentally friendly travel with new ideas.A team from California Polytechnic State University in the US has developed a prototype vehicle that weighs just 45kg.The tiny weight of the Lamina - latin for blade - has been achieved by making the aerodynamic shape able to structurally support the load of the drivetrain.The all-in-one approach to the platform and body extends to the mechanical set-up, with the Cal Poly Supermileage Vehicle Team developing an engine and drivetrain in a modular design that can be removed in a single block.The team will enter the Lamina in the Shell Eco-marathon Americas 2012, to be contested at the end of March in Houston, ironically the capital of oil-rich Texas.The Lamina will be aiming to beat an astonishing 1275km per litre fuel economy target.  Don’t bother reaching for your calculator - it’s equal to 78ml of fuel per 100km.That makes even the most frugal car we’ve driven lately look ridiculously thirsty, but unless Cal Poly can show us where the audio system and cupholders are going to fit, the Lamina will probably bomb out in the US.

The medium-large Nissan Maxima sedan suffered two decades of being underdone and overlooked, but the current model has a bit more to offer. It's better priced, better-equipped and - yes - better on the road, too.Sadly, while the Maxima has been improving its road manners and appeal, the market has been moving away from it. The large car segment was down 21 per cent in 2011, and has dropped 44 per cent over the past four years.The medium car market is similarly in the doldrums at 8 per cent down last year. But the remaining buyers - anybody out there? - should be giving the Maxima another look.TECHNOLOGY Nissan has always done well in the V6 department, and the Maxima range has two - the Murano-shared 3.5-litre V6 in two spec levels and the single-spec 2.5-litre tested here. The engine develops134kw of power and 228Nm of torque driving the front wheels via a constantly variable auto with a six-gear manual-shifting mode.The official fuel economy is 9.5L/100km, which - even if we hadn't logged a litre more per 100km - starts to look thirsty these days against smarter rivals like the Ford Mondeo Zetec.DESIGNIt's come a long way from the previous dowdy models, but the Maxima's design is still very much on the conservative side. It stands out a bit more now with touches of chrome bling, while there's an upmarket impression from the stylish alloys and light clusters.The interior echoes the premium bid with leather everywhere and a good-looking dash. But the foot-operated park brake seemed an overlooked relic from the old Maxima - and the lack of reach-adjustment on the steering column was at odds with the reach for better quality.Some of the plastics still feel cheap -- and we were disappointed to see part of the centre console had sprung out of alignment. We were barely able to slide a thick magazine into the miserly door pockets, but had to applaud the decent boot capacity - which is just as well, because with the rear seat not folding, the 500-odd litres you see is all you get.SAFETYIt gets six airbags, stability and traction control, anti-skid brakes with brake assist for emergency stops and brakeforce distribution to compensate for uneven loading. The current model has not been crash-tested by ANCAP, but the previoous one scored four stars and this one should do as well.VALUEThe 250 ST-L is ridiculously well-priced from $33,990, with a good standard feature list that includes Bluetooth with sterring wheel controls, six-CD audio with iPod compatibility, dual-zone climate control airconditioning, leather upholstery, powered front seats, powered side mirrors, foglights, xenon headlights, LED tail-lights, foglights and 17-in alloy wheels. Maxima is slotted into the large car category, but is more truly a large-medium. Commodore will give you more shoulder room and bigger wheelbase, but at $37,990 for the Equipe you're shelling out $4000 for the extra steel - and not really gaining any extra kit.Likewise, the Falcon dwarfs it, and while the mid-sized Mondeo is slightly shorter it offers about the same amount of room. The decider is under the bonnet.LX's 2.3-litre four-cylinder is staid but if you want a driver's car, shell out the $37,740 for the Zetec and get the torquey 149kW/300Nm turbo 2.0-litre (with better fuel economy at 8L/100km - and 187g/km CO2). Plus it offers extra equipment, including a driver's knee bag, nine-speaker audio and voice recognition. The Toyota Aurion offers a touch more room, and a lot more power and torque from the 3.5-litre V6. But for $2000 more than the Maxima it looks 20 years blander inside and out.DRIVINGIt's not a sports car - let's get that straight for a start. But it doesn't drive like a bowl of rice pudding either. A slightly brisk push through some winding road will betray barely any wallowing and very little understeer, but show it's controlled and agile for something this size.The penalty for that is feeling the bumps more over bad sections, although the ride quality overall is pretty good.The speed-sensitive steering (borrowed from the 350Z) is responsive and accurate as you climb up the speedo, but feels strangely vague at lower speeds.However, the CVT is one of the few we've met that you could happily live with. There's less annoying drone than we've heard in others, and it matches well to the peppy engine for most of the rev range.Its only falter is when you try to quickly extract a bit more for higher speed overtaking - in this case for a couple of semis that decided to close their gap - and at that stage you \start thinking you need either a proper set of decisive gears or a bit more engine capacity.VERDICTThe Maxima is a comfortable, generously-equipped and roomy sedan that drives capably and offers fantastic value for money. It's got nearly everything right - except the market timing.NISSAN MAXIMA 250 ST-LPrice: $33,990Warranty: Three-years/100,000kmResale: 65 per centService intervals: 10,000km/six monthsThirst: 9.5 litres/100km 91 RON, 226g/km CO2Safety equipment: Six airbags, ABS with EBD and BAEngine: 2.5-litre V6 petrol, 134kW/228NmTransmission: 6-speed continuously variable automatic, FWDBody: four-door sedan, seats fiveDimensions: 4850mm (L), 1795mm (W), 1485mm (H), 2775mm (WB), 1550mm/1555mm tracks front/rearWeight: 1522kgTyre size: 17 x 7.0Spare tyre: full-size steel

Jaguar global brand director Adrian Hallmark told Indian media that the Tata-owned brand would look at assembling cars there in the next three to five years.  "We are looking at it … as we go forward, we will surely consider this," Hallmark told Indian journalists. "We have not planned anything right now, but in the next 3-5 years, we can imagine this happening in India." Jaguar Land Rover already assembles Freelander 2 at Tata’s Pune plant in India, but only for the local market. And Jaguar Australia general manager Kevin Goult says any Jaguars built in India will not come to our showrooms. “We would still have our vehicles coming from the UK,” Goult says. “Our plan is to have nothing but British-built vehicles in this market at this time.” Goult says that bringing vehicles from India rather than Britain would not offer any benefit to Australian buyers.  “It really makes no difference in pricing, as our costs are heavily dictated by the government,” he says. “From the minute we land a vehicle, they’re there with their hand out, and unless there was any way around that it wouldn’t impact on prices.” Combined Jaguar-Land Rover sales in India during the 2010-11 financial year totalled 891, an increase of 649 sales - or 269 per cent - over the previous period. “India is obviously a growth market - they do very well with Jaguar over there, and they are on the rise,” Goult says. “That market does like the Britishness - They love British products of any kind.” Jaguar cars are designed in the JLR engineering centres in the UK at Coventry and Warwickshire, and are manufactured in the Castle Bromwich assembly plant near Birmingham.  Goult says a Jaguar assembled in India would be just the same as one assembled in Birmingham. “Whether you build it in Castle Bromwich or in India, it will go together the wame way

Destroy everything in your path - that’s the main aim of Ridge Racer Unbounded, judging by the exhilarating video game trailer.Following on from the previous Ridge Racer games, Unbounded encourages players to crash their cars into opponents - or really, into everything.Crashing through the scenery opens up new shortcuts through the game, and … well, just looks like fun. Ridge Racer Unbounded was set to be released earlier this month, but publishers Namco Bandai announced it was delaying the release until later this year.The deadline extension is to allow the developers more time to add extra features that “will truly make the game sing”. The game will be launched for PS3, Xbox 360 and as the first game for the Microsoft Windows platform.The Entertainment Software Rating Board has given it a Teen rating, meaning it is recommended for ages 13 and over.Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humour, minimal blood, simulated gambling, and/or infrequent use of strong language, the ESRB says.You have been warned. Check out some of the game’s destructible environments in the video trailer.

Wagons are getting more interesting. Better styling and clever packaging have squashed the stereotype of basic family haulers. They’re not about to replace the lust-have status of the exotic supercars, but these days they can at least turn heads.So we shouldn’t have been startled when a city cafe owner asked if our test car was the latest BMW -- or surprised when his interest didn’t wane on learning it was a Hyundai i40. The mid-sized wagon is handsomely styled, and the Korean brand has worked hard on building a reputation for mainstream quality.  The i40 Tourer in Elite spec mates the petrol engine with a faux-manual auto transmission for is $39,490, with the kit list including shift paddles on a premium steering wheel, daytime running lights, ‘bending’ headlights, Bluetooth, cruise control, 17-in alloys wheels, alloy pedals, foglights, front and rear park assist, powered driver’s seat and rain-sensing wipers.Ford’s rival is the 2.3-litre petrol Mondeo, which has a reasonable equipment list for about $6000 less than the i40, but misses out on those extras that add to the Hyundai’s appeal.The cabin looks and feels more Spartan, too - but some buyers will see that as a good thing.The petrol Mazda6 is also a prospect at about $4500 less, and matches a bit more equipment than the Mondeo (plus a bit more leather than the i40) but again misses out on those couple of the higher-end touches. You can’t ignore the Skoda Octavia wagons, with the 118TSI coming in $3500 under the i40 and giving you turbocharged zip and decent equipment - including a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission - but only four-star safety. And it looks staid.You can step up to the prettier-faced $42,290 Octavia RS and get quite a bit of dressed-up fit-out. Plus more performance from a 147kW turbo 2.0-litre. But while you might be overtaking everybody with ease, they’re still going to notice you’ve got an unshapely bum.Perhaps LEDS are the new chrome. We’ve tried really hard to let the curvilinear running lights grow on us. But our design compass keeps turning away from them. They let you recognise the car from a postcode away, but the new body styling would have been enough by itself. And better by itself.Apart from those lights, the front of the car looks great. But to keep it that way you’ll have to keep it away from savage driveway crossings, where the front fascia is at serious risk of harm.The interior has strong hints of premium German brands – not surprising, since it was designed in the brand’s Frankfurt studio  - and is well-stacked with equipment. But it was also overdone by a host of vodka-bar blue lights twinkling across the dash and steering wheel. The petrol engine is an all-new direct-injection 2.0-litre developing 130kW of power and 213Nm of torque, with the official fuel figure for our auto claimed at 7.7 l/100km. We did just under 9L, but that included several hard runs back and forth over hills. Hyundai had its in-house engineers work on the calibration for the electrically-driven power steering and MacPherson strut front/ multi-link rear suspension - aiming to get both right for Aussie conditions. The i40 has earned a five-star ANCAP crash rating, and has a solid safety kit list that includes nine airbags, stability and traction control, and anti-skid brakes with brakeforce distribution to compensate for uneven loading and brake assist to add extra effort for panic stops.The work done on the suspension has managed to chart a decent mid-course between ride comfort and controlled handling. There’s not quite a military tautness on corners, but it’s drilling in a scout’s uniform. The downside is that on extended runs over seamed or patchy surfaces it felt like it needed to relax a little more.While the steering is reasonably-weighted and accurate, there’s less feeling of connection than most simulators. But that’s unlikely to worry the city driver crawling through the treacle of peak hour.Nor is the petrol engine’s target market looking for spirited performance – for that extra effort, they’ll need to shell out for the diesel’s extra torque. If you want a bit of sparkle from the petrol engine, you can over-ride the economy focus of the transmission with the steering wheel’s shift paddles. That will up the fuel bill a bit, but it can also up the noise more than a bit if you’ve loaded the cabin. \It’s a looker, but in petrol form not a dynamo driver. If you want a mid-sized family wagon that isn’t styled for the bowling club, the fit-out and packaging make it worth a test drive. But if you want more dash for your cash, your time is better spent testing the diesel.

The catch - and you knew there would be one, didn’t you? - is that the car is about at big as four human hairs. It’s the latest innovation in 3D printing, and proves that even almost microscopic objects can be created by the technology. And fast.We’d rather set up a printer that could run us off a full size car, of course. Imagine a Mercedes-Benz Gullwing or Porsche GT 3 emerging from the office printer-fax. Now that’s what we call a true multi-function device. But in the meantime, this is a fascinating video to watch. And points to the future potential of 3D printing for fabrication. At the very least, we could see this making car parts cheaper. Imagine being able to replace your carpark-scuffed front bumper with something you can whip up yourself - one day probably even more cheaply than the current plastics factories that depend on economies of scale from large-scale production lines.To produce the tiny race car in the video - about the size of a large grain of sand - a team of scientists at Austria’s Vienna University of Technology in Austria overcame the usual slow speed of the technique to set a new world record for 3D printing, finishing the car in about 4 minutes. Their printer uses a special kind of liquid resin containing light-sensitive particles harden it into a polymer when it’s exposed to light from lasers. The precision of the process comes from the resin only hardening when it simultaneously absorbs two photons from the light. That’s only possible at the tiny centre of the beam - giving almost microscopic control over where it can be applied. The really good news? The team is already working on ways to apply the process to larger objects. We’ll start clearing a Gullwing-sized space in the garage this weekend.

Murano glass has earned a thousand years of fame for its leading design and clarity. And while the Nissan Murano - yes, named after the Venetian artware - is nowhere near as bright and sparkling, it can claim to have led others into the modern car-based crossover field a decade ago.DESIGNMurano was among the first to think outside the box shape of SUVs, so the design is an almost uninterrupted wedge from grille to rear window. Based on the same platform as the Maxima, the Murano looks more compact than its 4.8m length - but has a surprising amount of space between those sharply inclined front and rear screens.While tall torsos will feel the roof is close to their heads, there’s plenty of leg room front and rear. Cargo area allows a decent amount of luggage, and with the back row folded down there’s enough capacity for small furniture items from the weekend garage sale mystery tour.The leather-clad seats are comfortable and the fit-out clean and reasonably classy if you forgive the ungainly block of centre-stack and console for invading more personal cabin space than is really polite. TECHNOLOGYUnder the curved bonnet is a 3.5-litre V6 that puts out 191kw of power and 336Nm of torque, with a continuously-variable transmission delivering to all four wheels with constant all-wheel drive – generally front-biased but feeding more to the rear as needed.In general town and highway running it claims 10.9L/100km – and wants it to be premium 95RON fuel –although we ran just under 12L/100km in a mixed round. There’s also a 4WD lock mode for those few who will decide to go offroad, but with just 185mm of ground clearance you’ll come to grief at the first serious washout. But for fire trails and beach treks, it will be fine.It’s rated to tow 1500kg braked, so small boats, jetskis and the like will be fine. Trailering is a possibility, but if you’re planning to join the big caravan set, you really need to be looking at something with about a tonne more capacity to do it comfortably.SAFETYMurano has front, side and full-length curtain airbags, stability and traction controls, anti-brakes with brakeforce distribution to counter the weight of uneven loading and brake assist to give extra force for panic stops.It hasn't been crash rated by ANCAP but you could easily expect a four-star rating. It’s had a varied history in US tests, with the first generation getting five stars in all categories except rollover (four) and then the current generation faring worse and losing a star on the frontal crash test.VALUE The base ST Murano tested here is priced at $47,990 and well kitted with leather-clad heated and powered front seats, privacy glass, reversing camera, Bluetooth, audio system with hard disk drive and accessory integration, and enough touches of chrome to make you feel dressed-up without being vulgarly overblinged.But  that kind of money will get you into quite a few all-wheel drive rivals. There’s Korean-built Holden Captiva 7 at $42,490 with a 3.0-litre V6 and a reasonable equipment list. The red lion logo means it sells well, but it’s outstripped by others when it comes to performance, dynamics and refinement. Toyota’s trusty Kluger will give you dependability, comfort and solid quality at $44,490, but the 3.5 litre V6, 201kW/337Nm is undermined by the tired five-speed auto in pushing the hefty SUV, and the looks are on the bland side. If you want style and substance, there’s the Mazda CX-7 Luxury Sports at $45,990 with a great 2.3-litre turbo four-cylinder. It loses to the Murano in space, but it makes up for it with sparkling performance - and looks just as good.DRIVINGMurano is a comfortable cruiser and city runner, and is reasonably easy to park once you get the hang of where that curved bonnet ends - the reversing camera helps, but a forwarding camera would be just as useful. The CVT is not bad for city running in full automatic mode, but unless you’re blessed with the patience of the Dalai Lama, hills or highway lane changes will have you slipping over to the manual mode pretty quickly.You’ll get smarter performance from the V6, but when you start pushing it you’ll also smart more at the bowser - it doesn’t take long for manual changes in a loaded Murano to bump the fuel consumption up into the high teens. Ride quality is decent over most surfaces and the handling is good for an SUV, sitting fairly flat through corners and approaching the behaviour standards you could expect from a normal car. But where the driving fun falters is in the steering, which feels over-helped and disconnected. That won’t be a deal-breaker for most buyers, and for cruising the café strip or clocking-up some long-distance highway stretches, the Murano will be a comfortable but thirsty choice.VERDICTThink of this as a high-set car with some soft-road skills and a bigger thirst, and you’re on the right track. As long as the track doesn’t lead into offroad territory.NISSAN MURANO STPrice: $47,990Warranty: Three-years/100,000kmResale: 65 per centService intervals: 10,000km/six monthsThirst: 10.9 litres/100km 95 RON, 259g/km CO2Crash rating: NASafety equipment: Six airbags, ABS with EBD and BAEngine: 3.5-litre V6 petrol, 191kW/336NmTransmission: continuously variable automatic, AWDBody: Five-door wagon, seats fiveDimensions: 4835mm (L), 1835mm (W), 1700mm (H), 2825mm (WB), 1610mm/1610mm tracks front/rearWeight: 1795kgTyre size: 18 x 7.5Spare tyre: full-size alloy

Tata has unveiled the tiny Megapixel technology concept at Geneva motor show.Based on the Pixel concept that starred for the Indian carmaker at Geneva last year, the Megapixel is a pointer to the brand’s future styling and a speculator of future technology features.The 3.5-metre microcar is powered by four independent electric motors – one in each wheel – which combine to give a very muscular 369 Nm of torque, but doesn’t get it much past 100km/h.The quad motor set allows the wheels to steer and turn separately when parking, so you can spin the car in its own footprint. Tata calls the function the Zero Turn, saying the Megapixel can execute a 2.8-metre radius.The motors are powered by a 13kWh lithium-ion phosphate battery pack, which recharges through a wireless induction system - you park the car over the charging mat and walk away.A full charge gives you 85km of driving, but a petrol-fuelled generator onboard recharge on the move to extend the range to 900km – with a claimed fuel economy of 1.0-litre per 100km and an astonishing emissions count of just 22g/km (about a quarter of the Toyota Prius).The dashboard features a smartphone dock linked to a touchscreen interface that also controls airconditioning, audio and other features. The four doors swing and slide out of the way along the car body to wipe out parking lot pressure instead of the next-door car’s paintwork, and with no central pillar there’s easy access for even a man-sized body into the Megapixel’s micro body.Will it go into production? Unlikely. But what’s on the cards is seeing some of those features developed on future cars as congestion and emissions pressure increases.

Smartphones and other electronic assistants have moved beyond being merely ubiquitous and are now firmly into the 'necessity of life' category.In fact, a scientifically-conducted poll of people aged under 30 in the Carsguide office revealed that 68.7 per cent of them would rather lose a kidney than their mobile device, 37.4 per cent would happily rather lose a lung, and 22.3 per cent would rather lose both lungs.We may have made those figures up, but you get the picture about how attached we are to our mobile connections. Mercedes-Benz gets the picture too, so they're introducing technology to ensure that the devices can be fully linked into the car's infotainment system.The first mobile to get the treatment is the Apple iPhone, which Mercedes-Benz has now "integrated comprehensively into the user experience concept of the new A-Class" - or in non-market speak, has linked the iPhone to the car's systems.A "Digital DriveStyle App' and Drive Kit Plus hardware are the key, and mean drivers can access all their iPhones through the in-vehicle display, 'mousing' through with controller on the centre armrest.Operating through cloud-based software, the features include advanced navigation functions, personalised internet radio, the ability to post and share updates and music with text-to-speech.The star technology is Siri 'intelligent' voice recognition - which presumably can hold its own in conversations about the fourth state of matter, the possible existence of god and the location of the nearest Starbucks.There is also a Car Finder that stores the car's location. Which sounds useful for those caffeine-withdrawal days when you wander dazed in the carpark with an outstretched keyfob... clicking... clicking... clicking.But what we really wanted in the car was a Phone Finder that will store the mobile's location. Now that's what we call a feature!