2020 Mini JCW GP spied

Mini's upcoming performance flagship has been outed during testing at the Nurburgring Nordschleife, wearing essentially no camouflage over its wild new aerodynamics package. The new JCW GP will be built in very limited numbers – just 3000 will be offered – and is designed to represent the pinnacle of performance for the current-generation Mini three-door hatch.

2020 Hyundai Venue sketched

Hyundai has offered an early look at the final design of its upcoming Venue compact crossover, ahead of its full reveal at the New York motor show on April 17. Following the leaked images of a pre-production car last week, the sketches show a fairly muscular take on the new model, which clearly draws design inspiration from the larger Santa Fe and Palisade.

2020 Volkswagen Transporter debuts

Volkswagen has followed the reveal of its new Multivan with details about its new T6.1 Transporter panel van and dual-cab pickup, set to arrive locally in the first quarter of 2020. As with the already-revealed Multivan facelift, the freshened-up Transporter features an updated exterior with squarer headlights, a new grille design, and sportier-looking bumpers. Also carried over is the heavily revised interior, including the new car-like dashboard.

Performax Tickford F-150 revealed

Performax has revealed a special version of its Ford F-150 co-developed with tuning firm Tickford. Headlining the upgrades are suspension, torque, and performance tweaks, including a new ECU tune that takes the 3.5-litre 'EcoBoost' turbocharged V6 to a beefy 354kW and 780Nm, up from the 'standard' 279kW/637Nm tune.

2016 Mercedes-Benz E-Class recalled

Mercedes-Benz Australia has issued a recall for the 2016 model-year E-Class, over concerns the airbag could be damaged. The German marque reports the air conditioner housing may have "collided with the airbag control unit during assembly", which could have damaged the latter.

2020 Mercedes-AMG CLA35 revealed

Mercedes-AMG has taken the wraps off the new CLA35, joining the related A35 hatchback and sedan in the company's compact performance line-up. Based on the new Mercedes-Benz CLA, the AMG 35 variant gets the beefed up powertrain and go-fast cosmetic bits in line with the A35 twins, and should arrive Down Under early in the fourth quarter of this year.

Carlos Ghosn removed as Nissan director

Both Carlos Ghosn, the company's former chairman and CEO, and Greg Kelly have been removed from Nissan's board of directors after a shareholder vote. Ghosn and Kelly were arrested in mid-November 2018 not long after they touched down in Japan for business meetings. Ghosn has been charged for under-reporting his pay, and misusing company funds and expense accounts.