2001 Chevy Cavalier Floor Center Console Gray 2516388 on 2040-parts.com

Exclusive: Laurens van den Acker to replace Patrick le Quément at Renault

The wheels of change are continuing to turn within the automotive design industry, with yet another new appointment being made at the director level. According to industry insiders, Laurens van den Acker is set become the new Design Director at Renault when Patrick le Quément retires later this year. One of the most pre-eminent car designers in the world, Patrick le Quément began his design career at Simca, worked at Ford for 17 years and did a brief stint at Volkswagen before taking the top design job at Renault.

New car sales up again in October (2013). Should hit 2.25 million by year end

The Ford Fiesta (pictured) tops the UK new car list in October It’s another growing month for car sales in the UK, with SMMT reporting that new car sales in the UK for October 2013 rose by 4 per cent to 157,314 and registrations for 2013 so far up 10.2 per cent to 1,952,238. This is the 20th month in a row that new car registrations have increased, forcing the SMMT to increase its forecast for total 2013 sales to 2.25 million. Topping the sales charts is once again the Ford Fiesta which sold 8,574 – 65 per cent more than the Vauxhall Corsa in second place.

Volvo to launch new F1-inspired engine range

Volvo has revealed an all-new super-efficient range of engines called DRIVE-E. When launched later this year, the new motors will become some of the most high-tech engines on sale. Uniquely, the new engine range is based around just two basic four-cylinder designs – one direct-injection petrol engine and one common rail turbodiesel.