OnStar and Verizon reveal camera-laden Buick

OnStar and Verizon are debuting a prototype Buick LaCrosse at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that offers a range of futuristic technologies. The spy-tech features include cameras that monitor activity around the car which can be viewed from a smartphone and a computer, and an impact-detection system that can replay a video clip of fender-benders. There also are enhanced voice commands to access Web sites, including YouTube, Twitter and Wikipedia, and an electronic owner's manual for the car that's streamed onto the dashboard.

Ferrari Special Projects develops latest custom

Ferrari's Special Projects team is developing its fifth car for Ferrari collector and petro-chemical magnate Cheerag Arya, dubbed the Arya SP. Arya, who has seven Ferrari's including a 599 GTO and 599 XX, signed off the design after being shown twelve design sketches and now a clay model has been approved and development is set to begin. "I told the designers what I wanted and they presented me with a total of 12 designs.

Mercedes-Benz courts Renault for new Smart model based on Twingo

Mercedes-Benz is set to join forces with Renault in a deal aimed at providing its underdeveloped Smart division with a contemporary-engineered front-engine/front-wheel-drive platform as the basis for a frugal new Forfour model. The new Smart, due out in 2013, is planned to sit on a lightly modified version of the Renault Twingo’s underpinnings, complete with a 93.3-inch wheelbase. Speaking about the new car over the weekend, a highly placed Mercedes-Benz official told AutoWeek: “It’s a key component in plans to grow the Smart brand.