2004 Pontiac Grand Am Owners Manual on 2040-parts.com

Pace cadets: At AMG academy, students take their finals with their right feet

Mercedes-Benz USA launched the AMG Challenge in 2002, a program touted as "a chance to experience the thrill of driving the newest Mercedes AMGs on some of America's best racetracks." This year, MBUSA abandoned the Challenge in favor of the AMG Driving Academy, a multistage driver-development program pioneered by AMG in Europe. The difference? According to Greg Clark, AMG manager, "the Challenge was more about the cars, while the Academy is more about the driver." Having participated in both the Challenge and now the Academy, we'd say that difference is subtle, at least as it applies to the one-day program.

Porsche Panamera diesel owners can boost the fun with TechArt power upgrade

The German Porsche tuning haus TechArt revealed a power-upgrade kit for the Porsche Panamera diesel. While the 30-hp bump from the stock 250 horses to 280 won't light the world on fire, the 37-lb-ft jump in torque, from 405 lb-ft to 442 lb-ft, is sure to be a kick in the pants. The 0-to-60-mph time drops by 0.1 second from stock to 6.6 seconds, but the top end is up 3 mph to 153 mph.

Honda Civic Type-R (2006): first official pictures

By Dimitri Pesin First Official Pictures 14 September 2006 07:12 The lowdown Honda's ultimate Civic – the Type-R – is unveiled today (Thursday 14). Set to go on UK sale in March 2007 for around £18,000, this Type-R attempts to mate the outgoing hot hatch's high-revving, wild child drivetrain with a more mellow driving experience – when the mood takes you. Indeed, Honda is billing the new car as a 'refined superhatch', a concept Ford and VW have nailed successfully with the Focus ST and Golf GTi.