02 Polaris Virage I 3-pass Exhaust Pipes Hoses on 2040-parts.com

Collector electrifies a 1955 LaSalle Roadster

Just months after Joe Bortz's unveiling of the restored 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne, the auto archeologist and collector is moving into the second phase of restoration with another General Motors Motorama concept car: the 1955 LaSalle Roadster. But here's the key difference--the LaSalle is going electric. As the LaSalle's motor was never completed, the roadster is considered a “push mobile.” To prepare the car so that it can be driven--rather than pushed--on the road, Bortz has teamed up with Pioneer Conversions, an Illinois business focusing in the electric conversion of various vehicles.

Ford Ranger T6, EcoSport crossover spied in Denver

Apparently Ford wanted to give a few of its offerings a mile-high workout. That would explain why Autoweek reader Brendan Bartolo was able to catch a fleet of four vehicles parked, hoods open, in a Denver hotel parking lot. Full-body camouflage can't disguise a pair of 2013 Ford Fusion sedans, but we have no way of knowing what new technologies may or may not lurk under their conventional sheet metal.

Concept Car of the Week: Renault Vel Satis (1998)

The approach to the design of top end models varies greatly depending on the manufacturer's heritage and the cultural differences of each country. It might be a conventional combination of wood and leather for some, power and technology for others, but it is generally packaged into a three-box four-door sedan or two-door fastback. Renault on the other hand had a much more cutting edge vision of what a luxury automobile could be.