1972 1973 1974 Ford Gran Torino Ranchero Disk Brake Proportioning Valve Bracket on 2040-parts.com

Volkswagen Touareg spied: Redesigned 2011 model put on a diet

Volkswagen engineers have put the Touareg on a diet as they prepare the next generation of the SUV for a 2010 launch as a 2011 model. The new Touareg will shed pounds via a greater use of aluminum. The goal: Shave 500 pounds to 600 pounds from the current Touareg's curb weight of nearly 5,100 pounds.

One Lap of the Web: A rally car drinks beer

-- Thierry Neuville was somewhere on his way back to the pits after finishing the final stage of the WRC Mexico when his Hyundai i20 rally car sprung a leak: The hole in the radiator was bleeding coolant at a frightening rate. If Neuville didn't make the 33 kilometers back, he would lose his second place standing behind Volkswagen and all would be lost. (Alas, them's the breaks in the sometimes-quixotic rulebook of the World Rally Championship.) Well, lucky for Neuville, his sponsors at Corona had presented him with a massive bottle of beer, which he then proceeded to pour into the radiator.

Nissan NV3500 passenger van promises quiet and safety

Early this year Nissan introduced a full-sized commercial panel van that's offered in two flavors -- standard and tall; as in, you can walk around the interior. So it was just a matter of time until Nissan targeted the hotel shuttle and church bus crowd with a windowed passenger model using that platform. First impression is that Nissan's windowed van is a very credible competitor for a segment that has been dominated by the Ford E-series and the Chevrolet Express, and to a lesser degree by the GMC Savana and Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner Sprinter.