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Volkswagen Up!

By Ben Barry First Official Pictures 11 September 2007 09:54 Volkswagen Up!: the lowdown Volkswagen today unveiled what it hoped will be the modern-day successor to the Beetle: the Up! concept, a small city car targeted at the young, the cash-poor, and the environmentally aware. Available with either a rear-mounted two- or three-cylinder engine, a production, rear-wheel drive Up!

Saab 9-X Air concept

We saw the 9-X BioHybrid concept at Geneva, and at Paris we can expect to see this car as a cabriolet version called the Saab 9-X Air Concept. The core innovation in this design is the roof which in Saab's words is: "a powered, flat-folding roof developed from a Targa top principle". Relating to this, the rear C-pillar buttresses are also unique.

First Sight: Hyundai i30

Hyundai invited Car Design News for an exclusive sneak preview of the all-new i30 last week, ahead of its global debut at the Frankfurt motor show today. The event was held in Frankfurt's renowned Cocoon Club (the venue will also play host to this year's Interior Motives Awards, which takes place this coming Wednesday night), and was chosen because of its interior décor – something Hyundai's European Design Chief, Thomas Buerkle, likened to the Korean company's 'Fluidic Sculpture' design language. "We have been inspired by nature and beautiful shapes," Buerkle told the audience of journalists at the launch.