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Volvos to get twin-clutch gearbox

By Ben Pulman Motor Industry 14 May 2008 13:33 Volvo’s C30, S40 and V50 are now available with a new six-speed twin-clutch ‘box – dubbed Powershift – mated to the company’s 134bhp 2.0-litre diesel. The new twin-clutch gearbox has been developed with Getrag (and Volvo's parent company Ford), and is basically the same unit recently announced in the Focus and C-Max. Volvo claims the new gearbox offers an 8 percent improvement in fuel consumption over a conventional six-speed automatic.

Chris Bangle to receive EyesOn Design Lifetime Design Achievement Award

Chris Bangle is to receive a Lifetime Design Achievement Award from EyesOn Design. The jugers, all past winners of the award, include Walter de'Silva, Tom Gale, Giorgetto Giugiaro, Chuck Jordan, Robert Lutz, Shiro Nakamura, Sergio Pininfarina and Jack Telnack. Bangle is best known for his pioneering work at BMW Group from 1992 until 2009, when he left his position of Chief of Design.

Call for stronger penalties for texting drivers

DRIVERS convicted of causing death by dangerous driving should be given stronger and more consistent penalties, according to road safety charity the Institute of Advanced Motorists has said. An IAM analysis of eleven recent prosecutions involving mobile and smartphone use revealed that the average sentence for causing death by dangerous driving is four-and-a-half years in prison and a disqualification from driving for seven years. In all of the cases analysed, the convicted drivers were found to have lost their concentration due to using their mobile phone.