Steve Davies

31 years after Formula 1 World Champion Nigel Mansell made his F1 debut in a Lotus courtesy of Colin Chapman, his sons Leo (26) and Greg (23) will get behind the wheel of the new Lotus Evora GT4 Endurance at next weekend's Dubai 24 hour race.

We’ve been a little cynical in the past about Hyundai's promotional campaign for the Sonata Turbo, the Sonata is not exactly the kind of car any of us would associate with 'speed' - in fact stick a Taxi sign on its roof and it would look right at home waiting in the taxi-rank at Slough station. But over in the USA, where there's always been a greater affinity for Japanese and Korean marques, Hyundai have been mounting a campaign to transform the Sonata's dowdy image and re-position it as a car to be desired rather than just used.

Back in 2002 the creative team at Crispin Porter + Bogusky felt people were ready to move away from SUVs, so they pitched the idea to MINI and won the campaign to relaunch the iconic brand in the USA using a series of print promotions, outdoor events and marketing stunts.

Audi is currently testing a development installation of its quattro drivetrain in the sub-compact A1, bringing all-wheel-drive to this segment for the first time. As it gets to grip with the freezing Canadian conditions, Audi choose the opportunity to reveal its plans for its newest model in the range.

This Thursday (13th January 2011) at 2pm, Group Lotus will take-over the NEC in Birmingham as it unveils the Lotus’ motorsport line up including F1, GP2/GP3, IndyCar, GT2/GT4 and much more besides.

I can only assume that I am way outside the target audience for these ads, since at first (and for quite a while) I really didn't get them. Zubi Advertising - a leading US Hispanic agency were tasked with the brief to convey the power and acceleration of Ford's new Mustang GT 500 in a series of print ads.

As expected Porsche have revealed their new 918 RSR mid-engine coupé, based on the 918 Spyder Concept and to be used as a technology test bed for future hybrid vehicles. Porsche are saying that the 918 RSR is purely a 'test bed' and they have no plans at this stage for a a motorsport programme.

In just a few hours we'll know exactly what Porsche has been concocting back at Weissach to become its first new model of 2011. In a sense we already know that it will be a fully-manufactured product based on the gorgeous 918 Spyder Concept, the mid-engine hybrid concept sports car first revealed by Porsche at Geneva last March.