Car News

Toyota Australia has finally rolled out its Apple CarPlay and Android Auto retrofit program, along with announcing the standard fitment of the smartphone mirroring systems across its new-generation model lines. From November 1, existing owners of the Camry, Corolla, Granvia, HiAce, Prius and RAV4 will be able to upgrade their vehicles' infotainment systems – costing $199 for Camry, Corolla and Prius, while Granvia, HiAce and RAV4 retrofits will be free of charge.

Motorists in NSW can now download a digital copy of their licence and it will be deemed a legal form of identification on the roadside and to get into pubs and clubs. However, there are some handy tips worth knowing so you don’t end up with a fine. For starters, the display on your phone can’t be obscured by a cracked screen – and if your phone battery is flat you still need to produce a physical licence.

It looks like Audi’s air taxi is no longer cleared for take-off. Automotive News reports Audi has stopped all work on its Pop.Up Next air taxi project and is setting a new flight plan for its urban air mobility development. The company had partnered with Airbus to develop the air taxi. The Pop.Up Next consisted of a flying passenger capsule atop a car chassis, idea being you would drive to a heliport and connect with a flight module.

Nissan is hoping to commercialise its dual-sided dieless forming technique in order to create replacement parts for vehicles long since out of production, and it could prove useful for components where the original dies have been discarded. For dual-sided dieless forming, the company uses two synchronised robots with diamond-coated tools on either side of a sheet of steel.

Your next Hyundai or Kia could feature a new type of side-impact protection, with the Hyundai Motor Group revealing a front armrest-mounted side impact airbag. The new airbag is designed to stop head injuries caused by front passengers colliding with each other, or hard objects in the cabin. Research quoted by Hyundai claims 'secondary' impacts in the cabin are responsible for 45 per cent of head injuries in side-impact collisions.