Concept Car of the Week: BMW Turbo (1972)

Built by Michelotti in Turin and unveiled at the 1972 Paris motor show, the BMW Turbo was built both as a symbol of the carmaker's strength after its troubles in the ‘60s and as a celebration of that summer's Olympic Games in Munich. This two-door coupe, based on a modified 2002 chassis with a mid-mounted engine, was born when BMW's design director Paul Bracq convinced the board to let him design a concept that would be part design exercise, part technology testbed. Safety had become an increasingly important consideration following a number of design summits in the early ‘70s, and Bracq used the Turbo to test out a number of safety solutions.

Contest: LA Design Challenge 2007

Audi Virtuea Quattro Designed at the Volkswagen/Audi Design Center California by Heather Shaw, Jae Min, Mattijs Van Tuijl, Karl Strahlendorf and Christian Schoen; the Virtuea Quattro is a single-seat autonomous driving machine. It functions as a solid unit at its core, while providing a myriad of possible holographic exteriors stored in a library and accessible through the vehicle's 'interactive holographic interface'.  Powered by hydrogen, the vehicle combines artificial intelligence with avenues of self-expression. The Virtuea's holographic exterior provides a variety of possibilities, allowing the driver to select from the most innovative designs from one minute to the next.

Bob Lutz reportedly to stay on at General Motors

Bob Lutz, General Motors vice chairman and internationally renowned product guru, has reversed his retirement plans and is expected to stay with the remade car company as it charts a new path out of bankruptcy. Multiple media outlets are reporting Lutz, 77, has changed course and will not retire from GM at the end of the year as he had planned. Automotive News, citing anonymous sources, says the veteran industry leader will stay on at the company, possibly in a marketing or communications role--and could have product input.