Automobili Pininfarina is the world’s newest luxury car brand and will make a series of fully-electric high-end cars including an ultra-exclusive EV hypercar.

The new company is based in Munich and is going to work closely with famed Italian automotive styling house Pininfarina SpA. Automobili Pininfarina has also formed a technical partnership with the Mahindra Racing Formula E team. 

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CEO of the new company, Michael Perschke, said: “Automobili Pininfarina is a pioneering new business created to service the most discerning clients in the world.”

The public launch of the firm is planned for an event in New York this week, where it will present its business and product plans to key stakeholders and the media. The first in the product plan is codenamed PF0: it’s described as an “ultra-low volume, ultra-luxurious fully-electric hypercar”.

The rendering above gives us an early insight into it – and Perschke promises us it will go on sale within two years.

He has an ample senior management team now onboard to help him do it, too: executives now moving to Munich have experience Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Ferrari, Jaguar Land Rover, Maserati, McLaren Automotive and Volvo.

“Now this team is completely focussed on delivering ground-breaking, highly desirable vehicles through a business strategy which will see Automobili Pininfarina become the most sustainable luxury automotive business in the world”, said Perschke.

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A 1965 Ford Mustang will undertake the very first autonomous hillclimb at the 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed thanks to a full self-driving makeover by tech supplier Siemens and Cranfield University.

The car will first run on Thursday 12 July and then repeat the feat every day of FoS 2018. In doing so, it will make history as the first self-driving car to run up the Goodwood hill.  

Helping mark 25 years of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Siemens reckons its partnership with Cranfield University will “bridge the gap between the legacy of the automotive industry while pointing to the future of autonomy in terms of both motoring and wider industrial applications”.

Equipping an achingly cool 1965 Mustang with autonomous tech is very ‘Goodwood’, although it’s not been the work of the moment for the Siemens engineers. A particular challenge, they say, has been honing the sensitivity of the handling control to navigate the course.

The teams thus developed a precise 3D scan of the hill using location-scanning technology from Bentley Systems, for ‘connected awareness of the car’s own position’.

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To ensure nobody misses it, Siemens has given it a smart silver wrap and is going to park it in the main Goodwood paddock when it’s not driving up the hill under its own steam.

Dr James Brighton from Cranfield said: “Goodwood offers us a chance to reflect on why we have an emotional connection with cars and acts as a reminder that humans like to be engaged and part of the action.

“The Siemens Autonomous Hillclimb challenge project connects the classic spirit of automotive adventure with advanced technology.” 

Tesla has reached the half-century for Supercharger locations in the UK, with the 50-strong network taking the number of individual Tesla electric car charging points up to 320.

The news follows the announcement of its 400^th European location: there are now more than 3,200 Tesla Superchargers operating in Europe, which it says facilitated 70,000 long-distance cross-border trips in 2017 alone.

>>Find a Tesla Supercharger location near you

It’s a pretty fast rate of growth for the Tesla Supercharger network, which was opened with the installation of the first European charge point in Norway five years ago. There are now 23 European countries operating Supercharger points; the most recent is the eight-bay UK site at Scotch Corner on the A1M.

Superchargers are located on major roads and the firm points out it’s actually expanded some sites to meet growing demand. Hopwood Park on the M42 in Birmingham has grown from six to 16 Superchargers, for example, and Tesla complemented the existing Bristol Cribbs Causeway site with an additional one nearby at Gordano Services on the M5.

Jeff Allan is a Model S owner who, says Tesla, recently demonstrated how extensive the UK network is – by driving from Lands End to John O’Groats. “We took turns at driving between Superchargers,” he explained.

“The long range of the Tesla meant that there was no need for additional stops: when we reached the next supercharger, we inevitably needed a break for food, drink and so on.” Range anxiety, in short, simply wasn’t a factor.

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Although Tesla still sees most owners recharging either at home or at work (Tesla Wall Chargers generally charge at the rate of 22 miles an hour, but can be upped to 34 miles or even 51 miles an hour), the Superchargers come into their own for long-distance travel, hence their location on major routes. A 30-minute charge adds 170 miles of range.

The U.S. car firm also points out that all directly-acquired energy for the European Supercharger network is generated from clean energy such as solar and wind power – saving 92 million litres of fuel and offsetting 200,000 tonnes of CO2.

Alfa Romeo has revealed a surprise five-year warranty package on all new cars sold from 1 July 2018. The five-year warranty matches similarly-long packages from Hyundai and Toyota – and betters the three-year deals offered by Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

The Alfa Romeo warranty is limited to 75,000 miles, but it also comes with five years’ roadside assistance included for free. The sporting Italian brand is even combining the new warranty package with three years’ free scheduled servicing.

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Alfa says it’s able to extend its warranty because of the quality improvements at its Cassino plant, where the Giulia, Stelvio and Giulietta are built. It was upgraded for the start of Giulia production and boasts “best practices from other FCA plants worldwide”.

The firm is branding the new deal as the 5-3-5 offer, and is offering it on all retail sales, excluding personal contract hire. Sorry, higher-mileage company car drivers. 

It’s also sorry to potential Mito and 4C customers: they’re not built in Cassino, so are not part of the five-year warranty offer. 

Motoring Research contacted Alfa Romeo to check if the five-year warranty is a time-limited summer special offer – and it seems it is not. There is currently no end date on it,” a spokesperson told us; “It’s running until further notice.”

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Selecting 10 or 20 of Pininfarina’s greatest hits is a tough ask, but plenty of magazines and websites have had a stab at it. Our advice would be to head to Wikipedia for a complete list of projects, before choosing 10 of your own. For this gallery, we’re going to select 10 famous, iconic or brilliant designs, followed by another 10 you might actually be able to afford.

Cisitalia 202

The Cisitalia 202 is so beautiful, it makes the Museo Guggenheim look about as aesthetically pleasing as the old Friarsgate car park in Winchester. To this day, Pininfarina cites the Cisitalia as the definitive point in the company’s history, with a design that would influence Italian cars for years to come.

Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso

Draw up a list of top 10 Pininfarina designs and it would be all too easy to fill it with Ferraris. Selecting the best would be a tough challenge, but few could argue with the Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso. From the clean side profile so free of decoration, to the short stubby tail, the 250 GTL is automotive perfection. Company founder Battista Pininfarina loved his creation so much, he used one as his daily-driver.

Berlina Aerodinamica

Looking at the Berlina Aerodinamica – or BMC Pininfarina – it’s hard to believe it was based on Morris 1800 ‘Landcrab’. Designed for the British Motor Company (BMC) in 1967, the Aerodinamica looked quite unlike the three-box saloons of the era and would influence car design for many years to come. The Citroen GS, Alfasud, Lancia Beta, Citroen CX and Rover SD1 are just five of the cars inspired by the Anglo-Italian masterpiece.

Chevrolet Rondine

Is this the most European Corvette ever built? That’s a somewhat rhetorical question, because although the Rondine of 1963 was based on the C2 Corvette, only one was built, with the Pininfarina design thought too effeminate for American tastes. Today, 55 years on, the Rondine has aged gracefully and is, perhaps, a case of what might have been.

Ferrari Daytona

In an age when mid-engined sporting GTs were in fashion, the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 retained a traditional front-engine/rear-wheel-drive layout. But if that sounds conservative, the styling was anything but. Dubbed the Daytona following Ferrari’s 1-2-3 finish at the 1967 24-hour race, the 365 GTB/4 could boast Hollywood glamour that was years ahead of its time. Pininfarina didn’t so much move the game on as thrust it into hyperspace.

Ferrari 512S Modulo

The space-age Modulo is perhaps one of the most famous concept cars of all time. It’s also one of the most outlandish, with its two overlapping body shells, rectilinear waistline, near-horizontal windscreen and… well, just look at it. Based on the Ferrari 512S, and for decades a static concept car, the Modulo was purchased by James Glickenhaus, who harboured a dream of turning it into a working prototype. It made its first journey in June 2018.

Ferrari 512 BB

The Ferrari 512 BB was added to Gran Turismo Sport in January 2018. It’s a beautiful car to ‘drive’, but it’s far nicer to race against one, because it gives you the opportunity to pull up behind to admire that glorious rear end. The 512 BB is visually similar to the 365 GT4 BB, but the two- instead of three-element rear lights are somehow cleaner and more appealing. Whatever your thoughts, the Berlinetta Boxer (BB) vehicles are another Pininfarina classic.

Ferrari GTO

The Ferrari GTO (or 288 GTO) is a proper ‘bite the back of your hand’ car. From the light groups within the front spoiler to the wide and sculpted rear haunches, the GTO is somehow as lean as a long-distance runner and as muscular as a sprinter. It was designed and built for homologation purposes, but when Group B racing was banned, the GTO seemed like a rebel without a cause. Not that this dampened enthusiasm for the project: Ferrari had little trouble finding homes for the GTO. A total of 272 were built – 72 more than the planned 200.

Ferrari Testarossa

It has had its detractors, but to some people, the Testarossa is the archetypal Ferrari of the 1980s. Launched in 1984, the same year as the GTO, the Testarossa held little regard for Ferrari’s past, introducing rear lights covered by a horizontal grille and a much ‘softer’ front end. The ‘Red Head’ graced tens of thousands of bedroom walls throughout the 1980s, but it wasn’t the ultimate Ferrari pin-up…

Ferrari F40

That accolade belongs to the Ferrari F40. Designed and built to commemorate Ferrari’s 40th anniversary, the F40 represented the peak of Maranello’s talent and expertise, wrapped in one of the most iconic bodies ever created. As ever, a small caption below an image isn’t enough to honour one of the great automotive landmarks of the 20th century. We’re also acutely aware that selecting 10 Pininfarina designs is a mere drop in the ocean. But what if you cannot stretch to a priceless concept or a Ferrari supercar? Here are 10 worthy alternatives.

Peugeot 406 Coupe

Whatever fee Pininfarina charged Peugeot to design the 406 Coupe, it wasn’t enough. Sure, the 406 saloon is a handsome thing, but in creating the Coupe, Turin pulled off a minor miracle. As an overall package, the 406 Coupe is simply elegant and elegantly simple, but small details include the rear buttresses, slightly widened haunches and creases in the bonnet.

Alfa Romeo 164

When it had finished designing the Ferrari Testarossa, Pininfarina paused for a while, before creating this: the Alfa Romeo 164. The Alfa was one of the Type Four project cars – the others being the Fiat Croma, Lancia Thema and Saab 9000 – and was by far the prettiest of the quadruplets.

Austin A40 Farina

The Austin A40: a design so good, the Italian styling house was happy for it to wear the company name. It was the first BMC car to benefit from Italian styling, and while it might seem a world away from Italian supercars and French coupes, the A40 was a revelation. The design gave it van-like load-carrying capabilities in a car the size of a small family saloon.

MGB GT

There had been custom-built hardtop versions of the MGB before Pininfarina was let loose on the GT, but Italy pulled off the ‘poor man’s Jaguar E-Type’ effect with aplomb. Both stylistically and aerodynamically, the MGB GT was a compelling alternative to the roadster, while having the benefit of some added practicality. Another Anglo-Italian classic.

Peugeot 204

Saloon, coupe, estate, van and convertible – there was a Peugeot 204 for just about every occasion. Beneath the typically simple and elegant styling you’ll find a highly advanced front-wheel-drive car that’s all but extinct in the UK. Which is a shame, because in coupe and convertible guise, it’s a pretty little thing. It was also Peugeot’s first small car since before the war and one of the best-selling cars in France in the late 60s and early 70s.

Peugeot 306 Cabriolet

Peugeot certainly knew how to get the best out of Pininfarina. The 306 Cabriolet could mount a serious case for being the best looking real-world drop-tops in the world, particularly in pre-facelift guise. Prices start from as little as £500. Bargain.

Alfa Romeo Spider

Most famous for its role in The Graduate, the Alfa Romeo Spider is the quintessential Italian roadster. At its best in original ‘Duetto’ guise, the Spider enjoyed a sprawling production run, stretching from 1966 until 1993. When the Spider needed updating for the 90s, Alfa turned once again to Pininfarina.

Fiat 124 Spider

If you didn’t fancy the Alfa Romeo Spider – or indeed the MGB – this was your third choice. It was the work of Tom Tjaarda, who used his experience with the Chevrolet Rondine to create the Fiat 124 Spider. “Fiat never gave that much importance to that car,” Tjaarda told Wired. “General Motors liked it [the Rondine], but they said it didn’t look like a Corvette, so they couldn’t use it,” GM’s loss was Fiat’s gain, because the 124 Spider became the company’s best-selling car in the US.

Ford Focus CC

The Ford Focus CC is proof that not even Italian styling can save a coupe cabriolet from looking a tad awkward. For a while, these four-seat drop-tops with their folding hard-tops were in fashion, but the star shines less bright today, and the coupe cabriolet is spiralling into banger territory. Avoid early Focus CCs, unless you enjoy a leaky roof.

Honda Beat

The brilliant Honda Beat was designed by Pininfarina and built to comply with Japanese kei car regulations. Other Pininfarina cars you could consider include the Peugeot 505, Alfa Romeo GTV, Maserati GranTurismo, Peugeot 504, Bentley Azure and the delightful Fiat 130 Coupe.

Read more:

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The exceptional value of the new Ford Fiesta ST has been highlighted once again by a rival. Earlier, Suzuki baffled hot hatch fans by revealing the new Swift Sport costs from £17,999. Now, Vauxhall has just announced prices for the new Corsa GSi, which start from… £18,995.

That’s the same as the entry-level cost of a Fiesta ST. Which has 50hp more and is a bona finde hot hatch rather than the ageing warm hatch Vauxhall.

Vauxhall’s ambitious pricing for the weedy GSi is compounded when you compare performance figures. The 1.4-litre turbo Corsa GSi does 0-62mph in 8.9 seconds and will hot 129mph flat-out. The 1.5-litre turbo Fiesta ST does 0-62mph in 6.5 seconds and can hit 144mph.  

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The two cars are reasonably well spec-matched, too: both get 17-inch alloys, touchscreen infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto – and while Recaro seats are standard on the Fiesta, they’re £1,900 more on the Corsa, as part of the GSi Plus pack that also includes 18-inch alloys, leather and bi-xenon headlights.

A Fiesta ST-3, which includes 18-inch alloys and even more kit, costs from £21,495.

Vauxhall says ordering for the new Corsa GSi is open now, with first deliveries due from September 2018.

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The government’s long-awaited Road to Zero plan has been published, outlining how it will achieve the 2040 ban on petrol and diesel cars. 

The plan includes a suggestion that new homes and offices be equipped with electric car charge points, new street lights to be fitted with charging points, and more money allocated to improving the electric car charging infrastructure.

Recent surveys suggest the biggest barrier to motorists considering electric cars is Britain’s patchy recharging network. 

However, the biggest headline is clarification on exactly what the 2040 petrol and diesel car ban will mean. In short, the government is NOT banning hybrid cars post-2040 and is NOT insisting that all cars be pure-electric vehicles. 

The Road to Zero plan states that it will “end the sale of conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2040” – that’s cars with no electrified capabilities whatsoever. Although it expects the majority to be 100 percent zero emissions, “all new cars… will have significant zero emissions capability”. 

“By 2050 we want almost every car and van to be zero emission.”

Ministers also want at least 50 percent of new car sales by 2030 to be ultra low emissions – that’s cars with CO2 emissions of 75g/km or less – and it’s targeting as many as 70 percent of sales.

It has vowed to review things in 2025 and “consider what interventions are required if not enough progress is being made”. 

The clarification comes after months of speculation about what the 2040 ‘ban’ actually means. “The Road to Zero strategy is technologically neutral and does not speculate on which technologies might help to deliver the government’s 2040 mission,” it says. 

Just in case there was any doubt, it adds: “The government has no plan to ban any particular technology – like hybrids – as part of this strategy”. This will be music to the ears of hybrid pioneers Toyota, which has recently taken to describing its cars as ‘self-charging hybrids’. 

“The Road to Zero strategy sets out a clear path for Britain to be a world leader in the zero emission – ensuring that the UK has cleaner air, a better environment and a stronger economy,” said Transport Secretary Chris Grayling.

Road to Zero strategy: more money, street light charging

Launched as part of Road to Zero is a £400 million ‘Charging Infrastructure Investment Fund’. This provides funding to companies that make and install charge points. It’s intended to “accelerate the roll-out of charging infrastructure” and the process to appoint a fund manager will begin soon.

There’s also a £40 million programme to trial “innovative, low cost wireless and on-street charging technology” and confirmation the Plug-in Car Grant (and Plug-in Van Grant) will continue to at least October 2018 at current rates “and in some form until at least 2020”. 

An Electric Vehicle Energy Taskforce will be set up; this will bring together automotive and energy companies, so they can work out how to tackle the rise in demand on energy infrastructure that more electric vehicles will bring.

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Electric charging company Chargemaster, which was recently bought by BP, welcomed the Road to Zero plan’s continued commitment to home charging, and an increase in the Workplace Charging Scheme. Chief executive David Martell also praised the plan’s encouragement of installing charging in new developments, “which will cost less than retrofitting it in the future”.

The Road to Zero plan follows a roadmap published by the Department for Transport-backed Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC). The ‘Towards 2040‘ publication sought input from almost 140 organisations to draw up a technical roadmap for reducing automotive emissions. 

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Driving in a hot car isn’t just uncomfortable, it could be dangerous, says new research published by Seat. A car with an interior hotter than 35 degrees C resulted in drivers reacting similarly to those with 0.05 percent blood alcohol: that’s the legal limit for driving in Scotland.

The firm is thus advising people to be ‘air-con savvy’ – but, contrary to what many believe, this does not involve jumping in, turning the fans on full blast and cooling the interior as quickly as possible.

Instead, open the windows first, and the doors too if you’re able. This lets the scorching hot air inside the car escape first, so the air conditioning system will work more effectively from the off, and the cabin will cool down more quickly.

Many have got out of the habit of opening the windows of cars with air-con in the summer – and Seat believes this means we’re not getting the full benefit of our air-con systems.

It’s particularly important if you’re already hot. It’s easy to get dehydrated in hot weather, and suffering in a hot car interior for five or 10 minutes while you wait for it to cool down can exacerbate the effects of dehydration, which include tiredness, dizziness, headaches and, again, reduced reaction times.

Seat is an expert at dealing with the effect of the sun, as it’s based in Barcelona. It has analysis that shows cars parked in the sun can reach 60 degrees C or more, a staggering temperature that even the best air-con system won’t cool down quickly.

That’s why it’s keen for us to be more air con savvy as the UK heatwave continues. Here, then, are some top tips on how best to use your air conditioning or climate control systems in hot cars:

• Getting into a hot car? Open the windows first (and keep the doors wide open if you’re able), to let hot air escape before blasting the air con
• Don’t activate the air recirculation function – this circulates stale air rather than clean, fresh air
• Do use the air con in the morning. It may be cool, but this can actually cause windows to mist up as temperatures rise – something that can happen surprisingly quickly…
• Point the jets to the ceiling instead of to your face: this lets cool air spread around the car more effectively (and help those in the rear stay cool!)
• If the system isn’t very effective, think when you last changed your air filter. They need replacing every 10,000 to 15,000 miles, or they get clogged…

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