42818a 1 Mercury Exhaust Extension Plate Assembly Outboard 35hp on 2040-parts.com

New Ford Focus ST (2011) at Paris

The 250bhp 2011 Focus ST Ford did threaten that a performance version of the 2011 Ford Focus would be a world car. We all jumped to the conclusion that would be an all new 2012 Focus RS – and it still probably will be – but if Ford need a get out of jail free card on the performance promise the 2011 Focus ST could be it. It appears that Ford are taking the first performance version of the new Focus to the Paris Motor Show in October.

Michelin Challenge Design competition celebrates 10 years

Michelin has released a short video documenting the last ten years of the Challenge Design competition. With excepts from jury members Freeman Thomas, Director of Advanced Design at Ford; Victor Nacif, VP of Design at Nissan Design Europe; Geza Loczi, Director of Design at Volvo Monitoring Concept Center; Dave Marek, Advanced Design Director for Honda North America; Steward Reed, Chair of Transportation Design at ACCD; Frank Saucedo, Design Director of GM's Advanced Design Studio in California and Chris Chapman of BMW Designworks USA, the video outlines some of the 2700 entries Michelin has received since the competition's inception in 2002. That year, the MCD display at the NAIAS in Detroit featured cars from European design houses.

Christopher Reitz joins Riversimple

Former Alfa Romeo Director of Design, Christopher Reitz, has joined the UK-based open-source car company, Riversimple. In a statement on Riversimple's website, Reitz said: "This really is a step into something different, to design cars that really are the future. Increasingly I have felt that it does not make much sense to move tons of steel around, using a lot of fuel and resources.