1965-1968 Ford Mustang Clutch Pedal Pad on 2040-parts.com

Porsche chief Wendelin Wiedeking resigns

Porsche chairman Wendelin Wiedeking has bowed to mounting pressure in announcing that he will step down immediately. The resignation came Thursday, following a surprise meeting of the company's supervisory board at its Weissach R&D headquarters outside of Stuttgart, Germany, on Wednesday night. Wiedeking's announcement comes after months of tense and public infighting following Porsche's failed attempt to wrest control of Volkswagen, which left it with $12.7 billion in debt, and slowing sales in key markets such as North America.

Interior Motives China Conference 2010: Day 2

Session 5: Color and Trim On the second day of the conference, Andreas Wlasak, Vice President of Industrial Design at Faurecia, opened proceedings by announcing that the company plans to open a design studio in Shanghai this year. "A design centre in Shanghai – a new place in China for 2010 – this is a commitment," he declared. Wlasak then asked what OEMs should look for in terms of visualizing the concept of ‘green' design inside the vehicle interior: "OEMs might look for 'visual' green – how can you make it visible that the vehicle is efficient and reducing CO2?" He believed real wood is one likely way of achieving this, as people want to feel natural surfaces, and he also envisaged translucent surfaces playing a key role in years to come.

For new CAFE rules, automakers place high-stakes tech bets

Game-changing 2015 fuel economy rules are forcing vehicle development teams to make high-stakes bets on expensive technologies--bets that will separate the winners from the also-rans. Not only do federal rules target a 2015 fleet average of 35.5 mpg, up from the current 27.5 mpg for cars and 23.1 mpg for light trucks; they force automakers to bet on different technology packages for each vehicle segment. Companies that do best at mixing technologies while keeping down costs will have an advantage when buyers wince at higher stickers.