Luckily, BYD got into the auto market just before the door slammed shut.

FORBES: Thanks, Now Move Over

Some interesting electric car developments went down in England recently -- Liberty Electric Cars announced plans to convert "tens of thousands" cars and SUVs to electric operation, starting with the Range Rover, and NICE previewed a scissor-door concept it'll be showing at the London Auto Show.

ENGADGET: NICE shows off prototype electric car; Liberty plans an electric Range Rover

This may eventually lead to a merger of Ifil with Fiat, opening the door to an outside investor being brought in to rescue the Fiat Auto division, which is labouring under a heavy dependence on the Italian market, a lack of scale and earlier diversification into difficult emerging markets such as Brazil.

ECONOMIST: Cars

First Impressions: I drove the four-door Honda Accord EX-L NAVI during my visit to the Los Angeles Auto Show in late November.

FORBES: Car of the Week: 2013 Honda Accord