2003 Saturn Vue Steering Column 989364 on 2040-parts.com

CAR interviews new Renault design chief Laurens van den Acker (2009)

By Guy Bird Motor Industry 15 October 2009 10:29 CAR: How did you get the top design job at Renault? LvdA: From what I’ve been told [outgoing design boss] Patrick le Quément was asked to come up with three candidates, two internal and one external, and somehow I bubbled to the top of the external candidates. I think the criteria included international experience, being relatively young and having a good record.

New Volvo V40 & Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid Goodwood Festival of Speed debut

The new Volvo V40 and the Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid will get their UK debut at the Moving Motor Show at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Volvo have been on something of a roll since the Chinese took the reins, and are starting to look like they’re capable of moving from the no man’s land between mainstream and premium in to proper premium car territory. The new Volvo that jumps out as capable of taking on BMW and Mercedes is the new Volvo V40, a very stylish and appealing package that looks like it will be able to hold its own against the new A Class and 1 Series.

Toyoda testimony: As automaker grew, safety suffered

Toyota Motor Corp. president Akio Toyoda plans to tell lawmakers on Wednesday that the company regrettably chased growth at the expense of safety in recent years, and he will announce steps to improve Toyota's handling of customer complaints. Toyoda's written testimony to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee says the automaker's priorities “became confused.” “We pursued growth over the speed at which we were able to develop our people and our organization,” Toyoda says.