Google has patented a system that could see its driverless vehicles use object sensors, flashing exterior signage and robotic hands to help make them safer for pedestrians. More about Google's self-driving cars could use robotic hands and eyes to communicate with pedestrians
Self-driving cars could disrupt the airline and hotel industries within 20 years as people sleep in their vehicles on the road, according to a senior strategist at Audi. More about Driverless cars could spell the end for domestic flights, says Audi strategist
Swedish car manufacturer Volvo has unveiled an autonomous vehicle concept that allows drivers to relinquish the controls when their journey gets boring (+ movie). More about Bored drivers can snooze at the wheel in Volvo's Concept 26 self-driving car
German manufacturer Audi is adapting gesture-control technology used in the gaming industry to make its vehicle design processes more efficient. More about Audi uses gaming technology to test vehicle designs in the virtual world
German auto brand Mercedes-Benz has released images of its Vision Tokyo – a self-driving concept vehicle created for "young, urban trendsetters" that showcases how future car designs could be transformed into "hip living spaces". More about Mercedes-Benz unveils autonomous concept car designed for urban hipsters
French car manufacturer Renault has commemorated the 50th anniversary of the death of Le Corbusier by creating a concept car that references his Modernist architecture. More about Renault marks anniversary of Le Corbusier's death with Modernist-inspired concept car
Chinese-owned auto manufacturer The London Taxi Company has unveiled the glass-roofed hybrid TX5 prototype that is set to be used as the UK capital's latest black cab. More about The London Taxi Company reveals "new generation" battery-powered black cab
Car manufacturers, including Mercedes-Benz and Toyota, suggest the classic sci-fi film Back to the Future provided the inspiration for the vehicles of tomorrow. More about Car manufacturers show how Back to the Future is influencing vehicle design
Dutch Design Week 2015: design duo Niels van Eijk and Miriam van der Lubbe have created a concept car made from reflective cuboids, as part of a series exploring the future of vehicles for Swedish company Volvo. More about Van Eijk & Van der Lubbe's mirrored concept car provides "unobstructed views" from inside
Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of electric car brand Tesla, has belittled Apple's reported plan to create an electric car and described the tech giant as a "Tesla graveyard" of engineering talent. More about Tesla's Elon Musk slams Apple's electric car ambitions and watch design
Three sports cars appear to soar up into the sky outside auto brand Porsche's museum in Stuttgart as part of this sculpture by British artist and designer Gerry Judah. More about Porsche 911s fixed to steel frame to create streamlined sculpture by Gerry Judah
Japanese car brand Lexus used 1,700 individually shaped cardboard sheets to create a fully functional replica of its IS saloon model (+ slideshow). More about Lexus unveils fully drivable car made from cardboard
London Design Festival 2015: Royal College of Art graduate Yi-Wen Tseng has imagined a car powered by bio-printed organs, using synthetic biology to turn a cow's digestive process into a fuel system. More about Yi-Wen Tseng's methane-powered concept car is modelled on a cow's digestive system
Electric car brand Tesla has unveiled what it describes as the safest sports utility vehicle (SUV) ever made, which includes a "bio-weapon defence mode". More about Tesla's electric Model X is the "safest SUV ever" says Elon Musk
Apple hopes to launch an electric car to the public by 2019, according to reports that emerged this week. More about Apple could launch its first electric car in next four years
Porsche has unveiled its first all-electric sports car at the Frankfurt Motor Show, becoming the latest brand to incorporate rechargeable battery technology into its vehicles (+ slideshow). More about Porsche takes on Tesla with its Mission E concept car that can charge in 15 minutes
American car manufacturer Ford is developing lighting technology that can automatically detect pedestrians on dark roads and widen headlight beams at low-visibility junctions (+ movie). More about Ford's night-vision lighting system warns drivers of unseen pedestrians, cyclists and animals
Students behind "the world's first solar-powered family car" have redesigned the vehicle to run for more than 1,000 kilometres on a single charge and produce enough excess energy to power a TV or washing machine (+ slideshow). More about Solar-powered family car designed to travel over 1,000 kilometres on a single charge
Car brand MINI has relaunched its visual identity, unveiled a new version of the MINI Clubman estate and embraced the "sharing economy" by offering every customer the chance to rent their vehicle to others when they don't need it (+ slideshow). More about MINI relaunches its brand and offers Airbnb-style sharing to car owners
German automotive brand BMW has unveiled a concept car with an entirely carbon-fibre chassis and rear lights that look as if they have been drawn "like calligraphy" (+ slideshow). More about BMW reinterprets 1970s racing coupé as a carbon-fibre concept car