03 Suzuki Gsxr 600 Starter Motor Engine on 2040-parts.com

2012 Fiat Punto prices revealed – starts at £9,990

The 2012 Fiat Punto costs from £9,990 Prices for the 2012 Fiat Punto have been announced, with the entry level Punto Pop 1.2 starting at £9,990. Fiat has announced prices for the 2012 Punto, with the starting point being the 1.2 litre Pop at £9,990, rising to £15,600 for the range-topping 1.3 litre Multijet, which comes with plenty of equipment including Climate, Cruise and an electric sunroof. With the launch of the 2012 Punto models there are a couple of extra engine options to choose from.

Michelin launches 2012 Challenge Design competition

What began back in 2000 as a forum for people who share a passion for vehicle design and innovation has grown to inspire thousands of entries from 96 countries. Over the past decade, Michelin Challenge Design (MCD) participants have submitted vehicle design concepts for personal and public transport addressing a broad range of geographic themes and industry issues. And now, as the 2011 program draws to a close, MCD has announced the 2012 program, which opens for pre-registration from October 1, 2010 to March 4, 2011.

Electric cars must get noisier, ICE cars must get quieter

Electric cars will have to make a noise to protect pedestrians It’s four years since the Lotus solution for making electric cars noisy raised its head, since when the US has had a go at the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act in 2010 to do the same thing, the Japanese are playing too, and Toyota revealed the Prius Vehicle Notification System, and now the EU has decided its time to act to make EVs emit ‘noise’. Despite the most appealing part of an EV being that it makes our cities quieter, legislators worry about the blind, partially sighted and distracted pedestrian (think earphones and a Smartphone) being mowed down by a stalking electric car and feel the need to act. So the European Parliament has decided that by 2019 new models of electric vehicle will have to make a noise in cities, and that by 2021 all new hybrids and electrics must be noisy too.