THE ultra-low emission family car of the future was revealed by Opel - sister company of Vauxhall - at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. Called the G90 the four-seat lower medium sector car is powered by a 1.0-litre 60bhp three-cylinder engine emitting 90g/km of carbon dioxide - the lowest polluting CO2 car on sale in the UK presently is the SEAT Arosa 1.7 SDI on 119 CO2 g/km.

The 90g/km figure undercuts by more than a third the limit of 140g/km planned by the European Union to become the manufacturers' average fleet value in 2008. G90 weighing in at 750 kilos also has a record drag coefficient of 0.22 and is capable of more than 70 mpg. It has a 0-62mph time of 14 seconds and a top speed of 112mph.

And Opel revealed Astra Eco 4. Powered by a turbocharged 1.7 litre direct injection diesel engine the 75bhp Astra is capable of around 60 mpg and will initially go on sale in Germany in the first half of next year costing Dm 28,185 - under £10,000 - the same price as the standard Astra 1.7 DTI. It is unlikely to come to the UK.

Opel/Vauxhall believes direct injection engine technology produces approximately 10% fuel savings of existing engine technology with the new generation of power units moving off the company's assembly lines in 2001. Initially 2.2-litre engines will be built and they will be the first petrol engines in the company's history to have indirect injection derivatives.