1999 Ford Explorer Fan Blade 1063288 on 2040-parts.com

Project Car Hell, Air-Cooled Inferno Edition: oval-window Beetle or Type 34 Karmann Ghia?

Here we are in the Automotive Lake of Fire again, and we feel compelled to follow up a couple of marginal-classic Fiat projects with a pair of indisputable classic Volkswagens. After Ferdinand Porsche appropriated the basic design for the original Beetle from Tatra designer Hans Ledwinka (but before Tatra successfully sued Volkswagen), Volkswagen turned one innovative rear-engined vehicle platform into quite a lineup of cars and trucks. These days, while some types of air-cooled VW projects are cheap and plentiful, the rarer ones are much-sought-after and tough to find in semi-restorable condition.

Range Rover Evoque drives British exports boom (2013)

Range Rover’s smash-hit Evoque has driven UK car production to its highest level since 2008, and an all-time record export level. In 2012, UK car manufacturing was up 9% compared with 2011, with 1.46m cars produced. Almost 83% were exported.

What the Future Holds, Nobody Knows

It's a testament to the talent, charisma and relative celebrity of Ian Callum, Derek Jenkins and Franz von Holzhausen - heads of Jaguar, Mazda and Tesla design, respectively - that they managed to captivate a crowd of industry insiders at the tail end of the Los Angeles Auto Show's second press-preview day. This despite being given a nebulous topic to discuss with a moderator who knew little about the subject. Dan Lyons, a technology columnist at Newsweek, oversaw the panel discussion that was to focus on "Tomorrow's Cars...Practical Transportation or Groundbreaking Design?" He asked only one question on that topic before digressing into a more general discourse on the design strategies of Jaguar, Mazda and Tesla.