Range Rover Pimped-up

This upscale Range Rover has been customised by the car's luxury refitters Overfinch, together with shotgun-makers Holland & Holland.

The 4x4 is crammed full of high-end kit, including a drinks cabinet featuring bottles of posh booze. Owners can even have the steering wheel spokes engraved to match their guns.

This luxury costs £139,650. Only 100 will be made and most will no doubt be bought by footballers who've never set foot on a country estate.

Toyota recall of rusty Tundra pickups

Toyota is going to expand its recall of the 2000 to 2003 Tundra pickup to include the entire country -- not just 20 cold-weather states.

Owners of Tundras originally sold or currently registered in the remaining 30 states will be notified by Toyota in the coming weeks. In the original recall, corrosion could lead to spare tires falling from the vehicle's underside, as well as excessive corrosion affecting brake lines and fuel tank straps.

The original recall covered 110,000 Tundras. Not sure how many more the expanded recall will pick up.

Commercial electric vehicle

It may be the latest electric sports cars and sedans that dominate the headlines, but over the next five years it is the humble delivery van that is likely to determine the success of the burgeoning electric vehicle market.
That is the conclusion of new research from analyst firm Frost & Sullivan to be released later this week, which predicts that electric buses, vans and trucks will account for 70 per cent of the electric vehicle market in the EU and North America by 2015.

"On an optimistic note, Frost & Sullivan analysis shows that close to four per cent of the total commercial vehicle sold by 2015 will be electric," said Vishnu Muralidharan, senior research analyst at Frost & Sullivan's Automotive Practice. "Vans and light trucks offer the maximum electrification potential in both US and Europe."

The company said depot-based delivery vehicles were likely to prove a particularly fertile market for electric vehicle manufacturers as they tend to operate on a limited range and undertake predictable journeys.
It also predicted that while most electric commercial vehicles available today are light weight vans, expected improvements in battery technologies mean that medium and even large sized trucks are likely to be available on the market in the next few years.

The sector has also been further bolstered by generous government incentives, such as the British government's recent pledge to provide tax breaks for electric vans.

Commercial vehicle

Plans to make commercial vehicle hire fleets greener will save firms £300m in fuel costs over five years, transport minister Paul Clark has said.

The proposed changes, which include retraining fleet drivers to drive in a more fuel-efficient way, should also help save more than three million tonnes of carbon dioxide in the same period.

If the plan is adopted, those driving commercial vehicle hire trucks and lorries will have to take eco training before being awarded the European Union's Driver Certificate of Professional Competence.

Mr Clark stated: "With initiatives like this I am confident we will succeed in creating a greener and cleaner industry fit to meet the environmental challenges we face."

He added that with 20% of road emissions coming from commercial vehicles, fleet operators can play a key role in reducing the impact motoring has on the environment.