138 Cycle Fabrication Macabre Gas Tank on 2040-parts.com

Mini previews John Cooper Works concept before Detroit auto show

A new Mini John Cooper Works concept will bow at the Detroit auto show in January. It gets exclusive gray paintwork, red accents, new aerodynamics and new 18-inch JCW light alloy wheels. Mini says the concept has a longer wheelbase and wider track than the outgoing model, which is hardly surprising -- the Mini gets less Mini every year.

Jeremy Hicks is new Jaguar Land Rover UK MD

Jaguar Land Rover UK appoints Jeremy Hicks (pictured) as Managing Director Jaguar Land Rover have decided to tidy up their management structure at JLR UK, and have appointed a single Managing Director for Jaguar Land Rover UK, which brings JLR UK in to line with the practice in other JLR regions around the world. Historically, probably because Jaguar and Land Rover were originally separate entities in the UK, Jaguar UK and Land Rover UK have had their own Managing Directors – until this reshuffle they were Geoff Cousins at Jaguar and Colin Green at Land Rover – but with JLR growing strongly worldwide it was felt it was time to tidy things up. That means the arrival of former Audi UK boss Jeremy Hicks to the fold as the new MD of JLR UK.

Off the line: Fun cars and social responsibility Autoweek op-ed stands the test of time

It's been almost 21 years to the day that Autoweek printed Matt DeLorenzo's column “Off the Line: There's room for fast, fun cars in diet of social responsibility.” And in those two decades plus, not much has changed except the vehicles themselves. For example, sports cars like the Bugatti Veyron and Pagani Huayra have astronomically high performance and safety levels; similarly, sport-utility vehicles that haul entire families (and most of their earthly possessions) achieve fuel economy similar to that of 1970s midsize sedans. To read all of DeLorenzo's thoughts and his case for automobiles, click the links to download the article.