81-85 Mazda Rx7 Nose Panel (between Hood & Bumper) on 2040-parts.com

Ford door protector takes the sting out of dings

Nothing ruins car joy like a door ding--whether it's the first blemish on your pride and joy or the latest door divot. Now, the engineers at Ford in Europe have developed a way to take the sting out of the parking lot--a retractable door-edge protector for the Ford Focus. It's no surprise that this comes from Europe, where roads are narrow and parking spaces are squeezed tight.

Car buying, minus the dealership

“Test drives delivered” is the motto of Tred, a Seattle-based startup that's taking the car dealership out of the car-buying process -- at least from the shopper's perspective. Wired.com reported Thursday that by accessing Tred via the Web or an iPad app, shoppers will be able to select the cars they want to test-drive and have them delivered to the location of their choice. Each car is then delivered by a Tred staffer rather than a dealership salesperson.

Lexus CT 200h by Fox Marketing gets 300bhp

Lexus CT 200h by Fox Marketing gets a Supercharger and 300bhp You may recall, at the end of last month, we reported on the Lexus CT 200h by Fox Marketing, a pimped and tarted Lexus CT 200h which was going to feature a supercharger bolted to its HSD. At the time we had precious little detail beyond a photo of a CT 200h being endowed with go-faster body and primed for a paint job. But now, with the reveal at the New York Motor Show, we have a little more.