Car industry reveals a clutch of big new ideas for the future …

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has chosen its shortlist for the annual award for automotive innovation in Britain.

Only too aware of the perils of creating the wrong kind of new idea as the Volkswagen emissions crisis rumbles on, the five contenders for this year’s award, sponsored by GKN and supported by The Times, show Britain competing at the forefront of automotive trends and thinking.

Projects cover the electric and driverless vehicles of the future and deal with the central issue of carbon reduction. They translate to how companies can “manufacture smarter” and, at the other end of the spectrum, how they can “sell smarter”.

The ideas, and their research and development, also show the diversity of where the industry is generating its ideas — from big brains spinning out of Oxford University to gaming software geniuses, and from specialist consultancies to small manufacturers and in-house engineers all charged with solving difficult problems.

Recent winners of this award have shown how British companies have transformed bus transportation, using Formula One motor racing flywheel technology or converting buses to run wholly on electric. There also has been recognition of Ford’s global research centre in Essex creating its company’s greenest internal combustion engine yet and Jaguar Land Rover’s plans to move to plug-in hybrids.

Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT, said: “This year’s entries prove that innovation comes in all shapes and sizes.

“Whether it’s a new type of glue for bonding tricky materials or a 12-tonne truck, any concept that has the potential to radically improve the industry should be supported and celebrated. The 2015 judging panel has its work cut out. Choosing a winner will not be easy.”

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