President Nicolas Sarkozy would dearly like to end France's rotating presidency of the European Union on a high note by brokering this week a deal on a grand European response to global warming and energy efficiency. The ultimate plan, as everybody knows, is to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent with member states at the same time drawing their future energy needs from clean renewable sources by the same percentage amount.

Under the circumstances, it is no surprise that the car industry has found itself at the heart of the climate change debate. In turn, all the manufacturers have been wrestling with the challenge of developing a new generation of cars that would significantly reduce petrol and diesel consumption as well as CO 2 emissions.