Two companies developing technology for plug-in electric vehicles have won investment from Google.

Aptera Motors of Carlsbad, California and Austin-based ActaCell will receive an undisclosed amount of funding from the internet firm.

The investment is part of Google’s RechargeIT initiative, which was set up in June 2007 to accelerate the adoption of electronic transport.

Aptera Motors is currently building an ultra-high efficiency vehicle based on improved aerodynamics and composite materials.

The company’s first prototype achieved over 230 miles per gallon during testing, and it is using the design to developing an all-electric version and a plug-in hybrid vehicle.

Meanwhile, ActaCell is working to commercialise lithium-ion battery technology originally developed at the University of Texas at Austin.

The firm said that the technology offers the promise of improved battery life and lower costs, while maintaining a focus on battery safety.

“We are pleased to announce our first RechargeIT investments in two promising companies tackling the challenge of vehicle electrification,” said Karl Sun, an investments principal at Google.org.

“Both of these innovative companies and their capable teams are working to develop technology that is crucial to helping us realise the RechargeIT vision of millions of plug-in vehicles on the road.”

Magellan’s new range of satellite-navigation products is being sold on the line that they’re the slimmest such devices around. We can believe that – the 4200 looks great, with unspoiled lines and a slimline design – but looks aren’t everything.

The Maestro 4200 is otherwise relatively basic: it includes navigation, of course, with full postcode searching, and information on speed cameras. That’s pretty much it, though. There’s a ‘Marco Polo’ travel guide, but this only extends to major sights in capital cities – you need to pay to unlock the rest of it.

The unit can work in any region of Europe (but no more than one): at the beginning the user must select one (the UK and Ireland for us) and it’s then locked in permanently, so get that wrong and you’re in trouble.

Navigation was simple, and the touch-sensitive screen was responsive and fast. It was also pretty quick to calculate directions and to pick a new route when we had deviated.

Although there’s no Bluetooth connection for your phone, or traffic updates, there are speed camera warnings and the ability to set a route plan. The Magellan Maestro 4200 is certainly portable, and it does its job well, but some of its competitors include more features for a similar price.

Vista compatibility: Yes

THE ALL NEW CALIFORNIA

Medion isn’t nearly as well known for its satellite-navigation devices as it is for its cheap and capable PCs.

In the past it has produced some extremely impressive navigators, though.

The new P4425 has plenty of additional features alongside traditional satellite navigation.

It’s a slimline and compact device with external volume controls, a straightforward display for navigation and adjustment on the move and a range of customisable features.

The main mapping software is very clear, if a little bland, and allows you to choose between visual maps, turn-direction icons or a combination of both to help make sure you don’t miss vital turns.

There’s plenty of information available en route through the trip computer and a handy shortcut button on the main map display allows users to access any of six customisable features with a single button press, which is an excellent way to keep your favourite features close at hand.

Directions are clear enough, though new users might find it a bit fiddly to configure the exact layout and behaviour of the main mapping screen to work as you’d like, but once you get used to it it’s much better.

Where the P4425 really scores points is with the range of extra features it includes, such as the music player, video player, photo viewer, Bluetooth (for connecting to a mobile phone so you can use the P4425 for hands-free calls), an FM transmitter (to send directions or music to a car stereo), Berlitz travel guides and an alarm.

The only problem we can see with all this is that the supplied 2GB memory car d is almost full with maps so in order to play music or video you’ll need to buy a bigger card and reinstall the maps from the supplied discs.

Medion’s device isn’t quite as easy to use out of the box as those from rivals such as Tomtom, but the inclusion of full European maps, free traffic information and speed camera updates mean that the P4425 represents extremely good value. If you’re looking for these sorts of extras there are no competing devices that carry them all for as low a price.

Porsche has come up with its most powerful racing version of the ever-green 911: the GT3 RSR.

This RSR version of the 911 coupé packs a 465bhp non-turbo variation of the classic ‘boxer’ flat-six engine.

To cope with the power of this engine, Porsche has used the gearbox from its RS Spyder Le Mans racer.

That’s just as well as the GT3 RSR is set to become a feature of grids at the French endurance race as private teams will be able to buy this car.

The price is 349,800 Euros plus the VAT of whichever country the owner lives in.

Only 35 GT3 RSRs will be made and all have a unique package of aerodynamic aids to make them as fast and stable as possible.

There are ‘flicks’ on the front spoiler to push the car to the ground, while the rear wing is carried over from the previous GT3 model.

The suspension has been heavily uprated from the road-going 911’s and the brakes have also been increased in size to cope.

With the environment a hot topic in the motor industry all manufacturers are looking at means to reduce CO₂ emissions. One proven way is to use bio-ethanol, a fuel that’s developed from crops rather than coming from an oil well. E85 is still relatively rare in the UK, this 85% bio-ethanol 15% petrol mix a possible solution to reducing CO₂. If only you could find a pump…

What is it?

It’s a Ford C-Max Flexifuel, which means if you can find one of the handful of E85 bio-ethanol pumps in the UK you’ll be doing your bit for the environment. It looks - stickers on this demonstration example aside - exactly like a conventional petrol or diesel powered C-Max, though it runs on E85 bio-ethanol. Ford, and the many other advocates of the fuel, claims that by using bio-ethanol, CO₂ emissions can be reduced by between 30 and 80% depending on how the bio-ethanol is created. The thinking is that the plants that are grown to produce the fuel actually absorb CO₂ when growing. For Ford’s 1.8-litre engine, independent research by the Imperial College London suggests that the 169g/km of CO₂ at the tailpipe actually equates to 99.6g/km when the absorption by crops grown to produce the fuel is factored in.

How does it drive?

Exactly like its petrol relative. Seriously, there’s no discernable difference behind the wheel at all. It’s fuelled - assuming you can find an E85 pump - in exactly the same way as you’d fuel a petrol car too. Thankfully, should you not be within range of an E85 pump the Flexifuel Ford is just as happy to run on conventional petrol. When running on the greener fuel you’ll find that a tank doesn’t last as long, bio-ethanol not having the same calorific content as conventional petrol. However, cheaper pump prices should offset the higher fuel consumption when running on E85. We’re big fans of the C-Max here, it driving with verve that’s unusual in the practical compact MPV class. Making it a bit greener only adds to its appeal.

Planet hugger or planet mugger?

It’s definitely a step in the right direction in reducing CO₂ emissions and our dependence on oil, but there are issues with bio-ethanol. Fuel crops are potentially very lucrative for farmers and there’s some genuine fear out there that food production will be dropped in favour of fuel production. Some of the farming techniques used to create fuel crops - and the processes to convert those crops into fuel - are often CO₂ intensive too. It’s a partial solution to a big problem, though if managed in a sustainable manner then it could be a good means to reduce CO₂ output and the need to drill for oil. However, for it to really work in the UK we need far more E85 pumps; there are currently only a handful, and E85 enabled cars running on petrol are no more green than their petrol alternatives.

Verdict

There’s a lot to like about the E85 C-Max, as it’s just a regular C-Max that happens to be able to stop at a different pump on the fuel forecourt. CO₂ reductions are to be welcomed, but if you’re not lucky enough to live near an E85 pump then you’d be better spending the extra money a Ford Flexifuel vehicle costs over a conventional one on solar panels for the roof of your house or setting up a car sharing scheme to reduce your CO₂. Like a lot of green technologies it’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation; the fuel infrastructure needing to be in place for the cars to use it, and the cars to use it need to be running around for the fuel companies to put the pumps of their forecourts.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupé will become the world’s most expensive four-seat coupé when the wraps come off at the Geneva show next month,

The Phantom Coupé will cost from £298,000, dwarfing the new Bentley Brooklands’ £230,000 price tag.

Sales of the two-door, four-seat Phantom begin in the summer and the car will be built at Rolls-Royce’s Goodwood factory.

Rolls says the Coupé is more driver-focused than the Phantom saloon or Drophead Coupé thanks to a body that is more rigid than either of its two sister models.

The Coupé’s rear-hinged doors help with the body’s stiffness and match the Drophead’s for style.

Also shared with the Drophead are the brushed aluminium finishes for the bonnet and windscreen pillars.

At the rear, the Coupé has what Rolls calls a ‘picnic boot’ where the boot lid splits in two to create a seating platform for two adults.

The boot has 395-litres of space, so there’s lots of room for cucumber sandwiches.

Power for the Coupé is the same 6.75-litre V12 engine as the other cars in the Rolls range and it has 453bhp on tap.

That’s enough to get the 2.5-tonne Phantom Coupé from 0-60mph in 5.6 seconds and on to a 155mph top speed.

The Coupé’s fuel tank is 25% larger than the Drophead’s and it manages 18.0mpg combined economy.

Those lucky enough o be able to afford the £298,000 asking price can order the Phantom Coupé now and deliveries begin this summer.

As well as producing conventional satellite-navigation devices for use in cars, Route 66 also makes a range of software products that can be used to add navigation to mobile phones or Pocket PCs.

The new Mini attempts to combine both elements, combining a GPS satellite navigation unit with software that allows the user to download extras such as maps and travel guides from the Route 66 website, which can be installed on the device. It’s a nice idea, but the software side of things has a few problems.

The device itself works perfectly well. Before using it for the first time it needs to be charged for a few hours, but it comes with an in-car charger as well as a USB cable for PC connection, so it can be charged in the car or indoors.

Once that’s done you just turn it on and let it locate your position (preferably using it outdoors or in your car, as like most similar devices it can’t pick up locations very well if it is indoors).

Using the device is easy, as the 3.5in touch-sensitive screen can be used to select features with a tap of a finger, and it is a quick process to type the destination address into the unit by using the on-screen keyboard. The standard navigation features (postcode search, generation of directions) are all quite straightforward to use and work very well - it even had the Computeractive office listed in its database of places of interest.

Unfortunately we struggled a bit with the software side of things. We couldn’t install the Route 66 Sync software - required to download the extra features - on our notebook PC at all. We were able to install it on a separate desktop PC, but the software couldn’t properly connect to the Mini when we plugged it in. Only on the third attempt were we able to get the software to install and run properly.

To be fair, the Mini works perfectly well as an in-car GPS navigation system, but it’s a shame that the additional software proved so temperamental. For £30 a version is available with European maps.

Land Rover is the talking point of the North American International Auto Show, but not because of its impending sale. Instead, it was the LRX concept that was making everyone’s tongue wag as it shows that Land Rover has a very bright future no matter who Ford sells it to.

The LRX has bold styling that is not so far removed from the company’s current cars and proves that Land Rover is serious about adding a sixth model to its existing line-up of SUVs. Any production car derived from the LRX is likely to be smaller than a Freelander 2 and even more biased towards on-road driving.

Land Rover has not confirmed if a new model would be based on the existing Freelander platform as the company is keen to move in a cleaner, greener direction. Managing director Phil Popham says: “The LRX is purely a concept designed to help us develop our thinking as well as gauge customer reaction, but this feels like a hugely exciting direction to take.”

The LRX uses an American-spec version of the Td4 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine that has been converted so it can also run on bio-diesel. The revised engine produces just 120g/km of carbon dioxide emissions, while lightweight materials for the body also help keep down harmful emissions.

As you would expect of a Land Rover, the LRX has full-time four-wheel drive, but the LRX shows off some new technology. There is the Electric Rear Axle Drive (ERAD) that allows the LRX to move under electric power at very low speeds in rough conditions. However, the LRX is not a hybrid-powered car and the ERAD retains mechanical drive to all four wheels, only supplying extra power to the rear wheels when required.

Land Rover says ERAD can work at up to 20mph without the petrol engine cutting in, when the Integrated Starter-Generator (ISG) fires up the engine. The ISG also recoups energy to charge the LRX’s battery when the car is slowing or braking.

As well as this new technology, the LRX also has Land Rover’s Hill Descent Control and Terrain Response systems so that it lives up to the company’s reputation for making superb off-road vehicles. However, the Terrain Response now also comes with two new modes, which are Eco and Sports for optimised fuel economy or for keener on-road reactions respectively.

Land Rover won’t be drawn on when an LRX-derived production model is likely to make it to showrooms, saying that a decision can only be taken when the sale of the company has been finalised.

Mazda says there are more of its cars taking part in motorsport on any given weekend in the USA than any other make. This has been the inspiration for the Japanese firm to come up with its Furai road-racer supercar, which Mazda says bridges the gap between supercars and proper racing cars.

The basis of the Furai is a Courage chassis, which is used in Mazda-powered racers in the American Le Mans Series endurance events. Mounted in the middle of the car is a 450bhp rotary engine related to the one used in the RX-8. This engine is powerful enough to see the Furai hit 180mph and Mazda says it is the ideal test bed for its new ideas, such as the engine only using ethanol fuel.

Mazda has also spent a lot of time on the aerodynamics of the Furai, incorporating headlights to act as guide frames to reduce front end lift at high speeds. There’s also an under-car diffuser that helps draw cool air into the radiators and back out again.

The Furai has a proper two-seat  cabin - unlike the race car it’s based on - and Mazda says it has worked hard to make the interior as comfortable as possible. Access to the interior is through race-style gullwing doors that hinge at the top.

Mazda has no plans to ever turn the Furai into a production car. Instead, the Furai is a test bed for new ideas and fuel development with the firm’s partner BP.