07 Can-am Rally 175 200 2x4 Rear Grab Bar on 2040-parts.com

Carbon-fiber parts and a software fix help create a lighter, faster Fiat

Chrysler Group's Mopar parts brand and Italian supplier Magneti Marelli have teamed up on a design exercise based on the 2012 Fiat 500 Abarth that shaved weight and added horsepower. The vehicle, called the Venom, has a number of carbon fiber components -- hood and side mirrors, for example -- that makes it about 200 pounds lighter than the 2,512-pound Abarth. The Venom uses software updates and additional exhaust components to boost the Abarth's standard 160-hp 1.4-liter turbocharged engine's output by as much as 25 percent.

How Google's autonomous car navigates city streets

Google's self-driving car has been on the road for five years now, at various levels of autonomy. From the ease and relative serenity of California's arrow-straight highways, the car drove hundreds of thousands of miles with a greater level of concentration and mastery than the wandering attention spans of humans could accomplish. In 2012, Google shifted from the freeways to the cities, navigating a far more convoluted set of challenges: the slow-speed chaos that comes with any city, any suburb, any place with people and cars in it.

Peugeot 308

These are the first pictures of the forthcoming Peugeot 308 that replaces the 307.  The car will compete predominantly in the lower medium European C-sector along with the Opel Astra, Ford Focus, the class leading Volkswagen Golf, and its PSA sibling: the Citroen C4. The 308 is expected to make its public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September and be available at launch in 3 and 5 door hatchback body styles with other variants including an estate to follow. The design builds on the tall proportions established by its predecessor and some of the features that the 207 introduced as well as appearing to have been influenced by some Mercedes designs.