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Study finds customer satisfaction up slightly

U.S. customer satisfaction with vehicles industrywide has increased slightly, fueled by gains among Asian and European automakers, according to an annual report released by the American Customer Satisfaction Index on Tuesday. Overall satisfaction with the auto industry climbed 1.2 percent from 2010 to 83.

Bentley uses 3D printing to prototype new designs [w/Video]

3D printing is changing the way the world makes things by helping people of all disciplines to enhance and refine their ideas cheaply, quickly and effectively.  Bentley is the latest carmaker to utilize the technology to fabricate and prototype different parts to see how they'll look and work on the finished design. Using 3D printers, designers can produce parts from the exterior and interior such as the grille, tires, headlamps and door handles as well as combine different types of contrasting materials, ranging from hard plastics to rubbers of different tensile strengths.  The technology allows the user to create a solid 3D object straight from a digital model by printing layers of material on top of each other. This process rapidly decreases the delivery time, as parts can be printed overnight, and allows designers to be more creative in their ideas because of the reduced cost. Bentley isn't the first carmaker to use 3D printing technology. Audi announced last year it was beginning to prototype vehicle parts using 3D printers.

Rolls Royce redesigns sought in new competition

Hip Shing Hong Group, Stefano Tordiglione Design and online design platform It's Liquid have launched a competition to redesign a Rolls Royce for a factory-turned-office project in Hong Kong. The contest, focused around the themes ‘Innovation', ‘Energy' and ‘Creativity', is giving the winners the chance to see their design displayed in the lobby of the new building. They will also receive a cash prize of HKD 20,000/EUR 2,000, while the second- and third-placed designers will earn themselves HKD 10,000/EUR 1,000 and HKD 5,000/EUR 500 respectively.