1941 Hudson Interior Dome Light on 2040-parts.com

Adaptive steering for big Fords arrives on new Edge

By Tim Pollard Motoring Issues 30 May 2014 17:43 Ford today announced all its future large cars will have adaptive steering as standard - letting reps flick their wrists on the way in to the Welcome Break on the M4, yet tip their fingers when changing lanes on the London orbital. It's a further sign that what was once the high-tech preserve of the German brands is now firmly in the mainstream. BMW was one of the brands which pioneered variable-ratio power steering; in essence, it changes the ratio between the driver's inputs at the wheel and the rate at which turns are made at the rack.

Michelin Challenge Design 2009 preview

The Michelin Challenge Design exhibit at the 2009 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) will feature 11 scale models and 24 two-dimensional drawings  selected by a jury of top automotive designers. In the weeks leading up to NAIAS, Michelin Challenge Design will be profiling some of the selected participants and their work. One such participant is Zsolt Tarnok, whose 'Concept SsS' represents a new icon for America, combining design cues and traditions from the past with ultra-modern technology.

Grab a ‘VAT Free’ Skoda Octavia

In yet another ‘Sign of the times’ Skoda has announced that they are now offering ‘VAT Free Octavias’ until the end of the year. No, this is not a tie-up between Alistair Darling and VW, it’s just Skoda’s way of offering a headline price decrease of a bit over 13% (less expensive to Skoda than last week for the same headline, to be fair, and there is a new model due in January!). Grab a VAT free Skoda Octavia I’m pretty sure that there will be a raft of these ‘VAT Free’ offers floating around on everything from cars to washing machines, capitalising on the fact the VAT is in the headlines.