2009Tokyo motor show : Caterham CSR 175

It would be tempting to call this year's Tokyo Motor Show an entirely domestic affair, but that's not entirely accurate, as a few smaller specialty automakers like Lotus and Alpina took advantage of a surplus of available square footage by nailing down prime floor space for themselves. As a belated addition to the festivities, Caterham, England's merry band of Colin Chapman acolytes marked the occasion with the world debut of its CSR 175.

The new model slots in as a new bottom rung to the CSR franchise, which is paradoxically the marque's premium range. The 175 joins the range's existing trio of variants, the 200 bhp CSR200, the 260bhp CSR260 and the full-house 260 bhp CSR Superlight. If you're paying attention, you can therefore deduce that the new addition possesses 175 bhp. That may not sound like a lot of power, but in a car that weighs as much as an anorexic gnat, we reckon the Ford-sourced 2.3-liter Duratec four-pot will still be plenty entertaining.

Either way, traditional minimalist roadsters like the Se7en have never been about terminal velocity, they've always been predicated on leech-like cornering and giant-kiling acceleration. And given that the 175 shares the CSR family's stiffer spaceframe chassis, updated suspension and refined aerodynamics, Caterham's latest should continue corner.

Renault Fluence ZE Concept

Frankfurt Motor Show Renault Fluence ZE Concept

Renault Fluence ZE Concept has various eye-catching styling details, as it's usually the case with these concepts. The Renault Fluence ZE Concept features a panoramic glass roof, LED tail lights and a futuristic dashboard.

Renault Fluence ZE Concept will be unveiled at this year's Frankfurt Auto Show and present a number of leaked images. This is a bit odd since the French carmaker has just unveiled the production version of the Renault Fluence which has a conventional powertrain. The Renault Fluence ZE Concept (Zero Emissions) will be powered by an electric motor, but at this time the exact power output figures are not known yet.





It remains to be seen if the Renault Fluence ZE Concept will be premiered in Frankfurt. More details on the Renault Fluence ZE Concept will be available in the following hours.