29 August 2003: Home refuelling' is the concept behind a new version of Honda's Civic which goes on sale in the US next year powered by natural gas.

29 August 2003: Gallic Distributors Ltd, the importers of Citroën cars and vans in Ireland, are the title sponsors of the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club annual Club Week held from 4th September to the 13th of September 2003.

29 August 2003: Bosch is to showcase its DI-Motronic technology at Frankfurt, which has been adopted by Ford to give a cleaner and more powerful performance for its Mondeo SCi.

29 August 2003: Luxury car sales in Ireland could be propping up Irish exchequer funds more than the performance of the overall car market would suggest, according to Fiat Auto Ireland MD Michael Howe.

Porsche to slow down Cayenne

29 August 2003: Porsche is to launch a low-powered version of its Cayenne SUV - and it will be one of the slowest models it has produced since the 924 of the 70s.

Z4 keeps BMW up

29 August 2003: The launch of the BMW Z4 roadster has strongly improved sales for the marque in the segment according to the figures for the first seven months of the year across Europe.

29 August 2003: Italian specialist coachbuilders are in a scramble for new business as current niche carbuilding contracts head towards runout and major carmakers consider building their own niche cars in-house.

29 August 2003: When a car is left in direct sunlight at an ambient temperature of 24degC, potentially lethal temperatures of more than 40degC can be reached inside the car in less than 20 minutes, according to research carried out by the Department of Geosciences at San Francisco State University.

Punto prices released

28 August 2003: Fiat Auto Ireland has released the range and prices of its latest version of the Punto, which goes on sale on September 15.

Cayenne costs Porsche real money

28 August 2003: Porche's Cayenne SUV has been responsible for a 20 per cent growth in unit sales for the company in the first seven months of the year, but at a cost that has caused the company to undertake a stringent cost-cutting exercise.

28 August 2003: The trend for 'hard-top' coupe/cabriolets has benefited specialist manufacturers of the folding-roof systems pioneered in relatively low-priced cars like the Peugeot 206cc (above).

Higher, longer cars

28 August 2003: The upcoming EU regulations for cars to provide better pedestrian-impact safety will mean a 50mm longer car and one that is about 40mm higher.

28 August 2003: A new Volkswagen small car which goes into production in Brazil this autumn could be exported as the replacement for the company's Lupo city car as early as 12 months' time.

Sporty image of SEAT taking on

27 August 2003: The new sporty emphasis of SEAT within the Volkswagen Group is reflected in the sales of the current Ibiza across Europe, of which a third are now with engines of 100hp or more.

Veyron could be a $1 million bust

27 August 2003: The world's first $1 million production car will be delivered next April, six years after Volkswagen bought the rights to the Bugatti brand name.

27 August 2003: Ryanair-style deals are now running in car rental in Germany, with the budget rental companies offering rates as low as 99 cents a day if you book three months in advance.

More details of Golf released

27 August 2003: Volkswagen has released more pictures of the next-generation Golf, the fifth version which gets its first public showing in two weeks' time at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

27 August 2003: A substantially revised Alfa 166 flagship will be shown at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show, and will include in its engine lineup the first 2.4-litre application of Fiat's new Multijet second generation common rail diesel technology.

27 August 2003: Renault will show a pair of hip concept cars as a variation on the compact MPV theme which the brand pioneered with Scenic.

27 August 2003: Kia Motors will unveil a brand new A-segment car at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. The five-door car will be available in a four and a five-seat version.

Speed enforement 'shakedown'

27 August 2003: Motorists in America are being subjected to a 'shakedown' racket by automated speed enforcement cameras, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA) which has called for a 'motorists Bill of Rights' against abuses of the systems.

Next Volvo compact revealed

26 August 2003: Volvo has released the first photographs of its all-new compact saloon, the Volvo S40 new model, ahead of its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September.

26 August 2003: Audi is to show two new versions of the A8 luxury car at Frankfurt, including one with a CVT automatic transmission, the first such transmission in a large luxury car.

Upgraded Punto to sell 5,000 in 2004

26 August 2003: Fiat Auto Ireland expect to sell 5,000 Puntos next year following the latest upgrading of the car a decade after the model was first introduced.

26 August 2003: Volkswagen expects to sell more than 600,000 of its new Golf models next year, and for 2003 is on track to sell some 5 million cars overall.

New Lion straining for unleash?

25 August 2003: Peugeot are currently teasing with the promise of a 'style' reveal on 1 September which might well be the new 407, slated for debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show the following week.

25 August 2003: Slow sales have forced Skoda to cut production of its upper-middle Superb model, reducing output from 80 to 75 cars a day, or an annual rate of about 18,000 units. At its best, the company was producing 150 a day, in April 2002.

25 August 2003: Ireland won't see the Chrysler Neon again, because the successor to the current model will be sold as a Dodge, according to reports from DaimlerChrysler. And it will also have a new model name.

25 August 2003: European car buyers put price, reliability and comfort as their top three reasons for purchase, but beyond that there's a big discrepancy between countries for priorities.

Special sea fare for back to school

25 August 2003: Parents whose children are relocating to schools and Universities in the UK after the Summer holidays are the target of a special E220 fare introduced by Irish Ferries.

Touran arrives in Ireland

22 August 2003: Volkswagen's mid-range MPV, based on the next-generation Golf, has arrived on the Irish market in a price range that begins at E26,455.

Cadillac to build 3-series competitor?

22 August 2003: Cadillac is considering building a mid-sized car in Europe to become a proper player in the luxury segment over here.

Accord fault to be rectified

22 August 2003: Honda has recalled 29,494 Accord sedans and wagons in Japan due to a faulty pipe that could cause leaks.

Volvo 'R' cars attract Irish buyers

21 August 2003: Response to the arrival of the S60R Volvo in Ireland has been 'right on target' according to Alan Cousins, MD of Volvo Ireland. But he said it is a specialist car and will only sell 10-12 units in a year.

21 August 2003: MG Rover's new Streetwise 'urban on-roader' has just gone on sale in Britain with a choice of 3- or 5-door hatchback body styles, three trim specifications, and a petrol engines range from 1.4- to 1.8-litre capacity along with a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel, with dual fuel also being available on the 1.4- and 1.6-litre petrol engines.

21 August 2003: A production version for cars of a camera-based 'lane wander' warning system is expected to be announced in a luxury Japanese brand car shortly.

20 August 2003: The next-generation Mercedes-Benz A-Class will be built on the platform currently used by the long-wheelbase version of the car, and it will be exported to the US.

20 August 2003: Glass manufacturer Pilkington had to make a number of significant design changes when given the contract to provide windscreens for the Citroen C3.

20 August 2003: New European laws to take effect in two years' time will change fundamentally the shape of cars, for pedestrian safety reasons.

New Ignis debuts in September

19 August 2003: Suzuki will have a duo of interesting items on its Frankfurt stand this year - a new coupe concept and the new-generation Ignis (above).

Saab Sport Hatch concept to debut

19 August 2003: Saab will unveil a new 'Sport-Hatch' concept car at next month's Frankfurt Motor Show that challenges the distinction between traditional hatchback and estate bodystyles.

Ford teases with Visos

19 August 2003: With the new Focus not being released until next spring, Ford's main interest at the Frankfurt Motor Show is a Design Study called Ford Visos. It is a full four-seat luxury sports car.

New SEAT to show at Frankfurt

19 August 2003: The prototype of a new SEAT sporty monospace vehicle that will go into production next year will be seen at the September Frankfurt Motor Show.