Our old friends at Newport Convertible Engineering are at it again, with yet another one-off drop-top that has people remarking, “It was only a matter of time.

Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra announced that it would be offering a diesel-electric hybrid version of its Scorpio SUV for Indian and Asian markets in 2009.

General Motors is ready to embark on the next stage of Chevrolet Volt development, with road testing for lithium-ion battery packs set to begin at the beginning of July.

The world’s largest oil refiner, Exxon Mobil, is helping to develop a revolutionary new battery technology, that could help light the way forward for all-electric vehicles. The oil company believes that it’s getting in on the ground floor of what could be the dominant transportation mode for the near future.

While today the Prius is merely one vehicle in the Toyota lineup, the company seems to be toying with the idea of expanding on the ever more powerful “green

Technology du jour indeed. Lithium-ion batteries haven’t even hit the mass market yet and Toyota’s already looking beyond – post-li-ion technology. Remember that phrase. It’ll become tomorrow’s coin-phrase, like, say, today’s eco-friendly.