1988-1989 Honda Accord Car Bra New on 2040-parts.com

Crash injuries force Franchitti to retire

SCOTTISH RACING STAR Dario Franchitti has been forced to retire after suffering a number of injuries in a high-speed crash during a race in the US last month. The four-time IndyCar series winner spent five days in hospital after suffering concussion, a fractured vertebrae and a broken ankle in the last-lap crash at the Grand Prix of Houston in Texas. Franchitti, originally from Bathgate, West Lothian, said he had taken the decision based on medical advice.

Volvo debuts S60L for the Chinese market

If you've tried the Volvo S60, did you get the feeling that it might benefit from a little more legroom in the back? The first-generation S60 and the second-generation S60 are fine automobiles, but if there's one gripe we've heard from owners about their cars, it's that rear-seat legroom could be a tad more generous (on that one day of the year when they have more than two people in the car). For the 2014 model year, Volvo is introducing a long-wheelbase version of the sedan, dubbed the S60L, but it will be available only in the Chinese market where long-wheelbase sedans are "a thing." The S60L will have a wheelbase that is 3.1 inches longer than the standard model, for a total of 112.4 inches, all benefiting rear-seat passengers.

2012 European Car of the Year shortlist announced

The shortlist for the 2012 European Car of the Year award has been announced today. There were 35 cars on the original list, but the first round of voting from the 59 jury members (including CAR Magazine’s editor Phil McNamara, and our European correspondent Georg Kacher) has whittled the list down to just seven. They are… • Citroen DS5• Fiat Panda• Focus Focus• Opel (Vauxhall) Ampera/Chevrolet Volt• Range Rover Evoque• Toyota Yaris• Volkswagen Up There will now be a second round of test drives, before the European Car of the Year jurors submit their scores and a winner is announced live at the Geneva motor show on 5 March 2012.