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Toyota's global design chief Tokuo Fukuichi appointed president of Lexus

Toyota's global design chief Tokuo Fukuichi will be the first designer to sit on the company's board of directors when his appointment comes into effect on 1 April. Fukuichi will retain his position as global head of design for the Toyota, Lexus and Scion brands and will join the board after the general shareholders' meeting. His influence on Toyota's design direction over the last few years has been noticeable, particularly with Lexus, as the company strives to make its traditionally very conservative products a little more exciting.

Porsche 918 Spyder gets its own website

The Porsche 918 Spyder (pictured) now has its very own website It’s more than two years since the Porsche 918 Spider went on sale, but it’s now getting close to arriving in Porsche showrooms so Porsche has created a new microsite dedicated to all things 918. Since it went on sale, the 918 Spyder has been developed further and the production 918 will come with 4WD courtesy of its electric motors – one delivering 154hp (rear) and the other 127hp (front) – which, combined with 608hp from its 4.6 litre V8, promises 0-62mph in 2.8 seconds (and 7 seconds on just the electric motors) and on to 211mph. The new 91 microsite reveals Porsche’s self-imposed challenge was to beat the Carrera GT by at least 10 seconds on the Nurburgring, and there’s video of the 918 out playing at the Nurburgring, as well as plenty of photos and detail on exactly what the 918 offers.

When Toly takes a trip, it's a trip

Editor's note: This story was published in the March 27, 2000, issue of AutoWeek. Anyone looking to spend a car sort of summer in Europe should let Toly Arutunoff plan it for them. Though you'd need to spend more time than the typical vacation allows and a few more euros than the youth hostel requires, it would be one unforgettable time.