E-MOTION HYBRID

Small independent auto companies continue to blaze the trail for greener personal transport, and this racy little number from Swiss company Mindset has a certain quirky charm. The Mindset E-Motion features sporty design cues penned by former VW styling chief Murat Günak, including a fastback body with gullwing doors, ‘classic’ circular headlamps and 22ins semi-open wheels.

The plastic body panels are fixed to a light aluminium tubular chassis, and the resulting low kerb-weight of 800kgs has allowed the engineers to fit a much smaller powertrain than is the ‘norm’ for hybrid vehicles. There’s a 94hp electric motor that will whirr for 100km on a single charge of the lithium-ion batteries. If you want to keep driving, a 24hp petrol engine roars into life to provide extra juice for the battery.

The downside? You’ll have to pay €50,000 for one of the 10,000 examples that Mindset plans to churn out every year from 2009, and there’s no mention yet of the motorcycle-engined track day version...