The need to have car insurance is not a matter of question. However, there are a lot of different forms of car insurance available from the major firms such as Endsleigh, making it useful for car owners to know what cover each one provides, before they start looking for the most competitive deals.

Third party insurance

Much as with bikes, Third Party Insurance offers the most basic level of protection, covering you financially if you are liable in an accident causing damage to another car and/or injury to a passenger in your own vehicle. In the case of passenger injury, the policy will probably cover the costs of emergency medical treatment, but not longer term care. In addition, the name ‘third party’ insurance clearly indicates what it does not protect you against: injury to yourself or damage to your own vehicle. This is often, though not always, the least expensive type of car insurance policy, making it best suited to those on low incomes such as students.

Third Party Fire and Theft insurance

As the name suggests, this is Third Party Insurance with extra coverage. This type of policy will also cover the theft of your vehicle, or damage to it, caused by fire. It may include protection against other forms of damage, but these terms will vary depending on the company.

Fully Comprehensive Insurance

Again, the name fairly clearly indicates what this covers. Although these policies often carry higher premiums, the total coverage they provide, usually including optional extras, means that they often prove to be cost effective in the long term.

Short Term Insurance

This type of car insurance is more specialist oriented, suiting those who will only be using a vehicle for a limited time but need to remain within the law. If you are buying a car, Short Term Insurance will cover you while you have the vehicle for a trial, test-driving period. Equally, if you are unable to use your own car, Short Term Car Insurance will allow you to use a temporary courtesy vehicle or a rented one, for a short period.

Pay As You Drive Insurance

This is a comparatively new option, where premiums are based on when, where and how often you drive. For example, if the vehicle is utilised on motorways during peak traffic hours, the premium will be more expensive compared to that of someone driving in a remote area in the early hours. It is considered a cost effective option for people who drive either infrequently, or during non-peak traffic periods.

The Nissan Qashqai has a silly name. Though not as silly as the Qashqai+2, the seven-seat version of the British built small CUV. But silly name not withstanding, the slightly smaller than a Nissan Rogue compact crossover has been something of a sales phenom for Nissan, selling more than 500,000 copies around the world since 2007 despite not being offered in the North American market.

For the 2010 model year, some things are changing, and some aren’t. The biggest and most obvious difference is the front end, which is all-new and quite handsome looking. We especially like the sculpted lower fascia and intake. And while it is slightly smaller than the Rogue we do have in America, the Qashqai (named after a nomadic Iranian tribe) looks tougher. In the rear, the song remains largely the same, though the taillights have been slightly revised. The colors you see here are both new — Magnetic Red and Mineral Gray.

Inside, functionality is up with a new dash computer, gauges, lighting and “oddments” storage. Refinement is also up, with more baffling in place to reduce NVH, along with a revised windscreen and A-pillars to cut wind noise. The suspension has also been redesigned to improve both ride comfort and handling. All in all, the Qashqai looks to be a pretty tasty package. But you can almost set your watch to the fact that Nissan will not be bringing it to our red, white and blue shores, and while we like the Rogue just fine, we’d just assume that Nissan give us this one instead. What do you think? Check out the ress release after the jump and the high-res gallery below, and then let us know which one you’d prefer to see on sale in America.

Daihatsu has a way with words: the company calls its Deca Deca concept a “super box,” and we’ll call it a super super box. A funky little piece of chunk, the Deca Deca has a flat floor – and a flat everything else — along with pillarless doors that render the interior absolutely cavernous. The abyss inside has been tastefully appointed with slim, movable fold-up seats, a table, and an LCD television in case you want to “work inside the vehicle or stow large items.”

Interestingly, the car was so popular that we couldn’t get close to it until the second day — there were camera crews around it constantly. But for all that, and with Japanese rents what they are, it might make a fine place to live – after all, it was “designed with leisure use in mind,” and how could anyone complain about living in a super box?