Steve Davies

February 2011 will mark the launch of new luxury lifestyle brand, Lotus Originals. Inspired by the Lotus DNA of innovation and design excellence, the debut collection is a range of performance outerwear, refined, luxury knitwear and leather goods that reflect the craftsmanship, heritage and spirit of Lotus. Lotus Originals will be exclusively available from the Lotus website (www.lotusoriginals.com) from February.

2010 will come to be known as the turning point for environmentally responsible, alternative-energy motoring - it was the year when high-performance sporting brands made hybrid and electric powerplants cool. Porsche revealed the 911 GT3 R Hybrid, sent it out to compete with the big guns at the Nürburgring 24 hours and in ALMS and in doing so, showed that 'green' doesn't mean slow

I've undertaken my fair share of 'teaser' or pre-launch marketing campaigns and they can be a very effective means of grasping and then holding customer attention in the build up to a major launch. But they rely on the element of surprise, of the unknown - where the audience are intrigued and curious about what will happen next and where the foreplay becomes nearly as satisfying as the main event...

As widely predicted Ferrari revealed its first four wheel-drive model this morning, a revolutionary four-seater, four-wheel drive V12 Ferrari to replace the 612 Scaglietti. They have named it the FF - an acronym for Ferrari Four (four seats and four-wheel drive) - although we have to assume that Maranello had one eye on the 1970s Jenson Interceptor, which first brought the FF tag to the market (FF stands for Ferguson Formula, after Ferguson Research Ltd., who invented the car's four-wheel drive system) and coincidentally was also the first four-wheel drive car to reach production.

To celebrate the start of production, the new Aston Martin Cygnet will be available in two special launch edition models, each exemplifying the bespoke nature of this unique city car. The two Cygnet Launch Edition models; White and Black, are available with either standard manual or optional CVT automated transmission and each will be produced for a strictly limited time.

We're big fans of BMW USA's previous films - their groundbreaking The Hire film series ignored conventions and created the phenomenon known as online films. The Web has never been the same since.

Porsche are unlikely to be flattered by the nickname chosen by edo competition for it's new top-end Panamera tuning package. Moby Dick is inspired by the great American novel written by Herman Melville which tells the story of a ferocious, enigmatic white sperm whale which takes a personal dislike to Captain Ahab.

Keep an eye out tomorrow for the first official view of the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti replacement, which is due to be shown to a select group of owners via a live weblink at the Ferrari.com website. It's a private affair, but the internet being what it is these days, we can expect to see pictures and spec details distributed shortly thereafter.