Alfa-romeo Berlina Rear Decklid on 2040-parts.com

Porsche Panamera plug-in hybrid set for 2014

Porsche AG will build a plug-in hybrid version of the Panamera sedan starting in 2014, sources familiar with the situation said last week. The plug-in hybrid likely will come to the United States, but the timing is unclear, a source said. Volkswagen AG, which owns 49.9 percent of Porsche's sports car business, will roll out plug-in hybrid versions of the Audi Q7 crossover and European-sold VW Passat starting in 2014 or 2015, a source said.

Michelin Challenge Design 2009 preview

Michelin is continuing to profile the work of some of the leading contenders for its annual Michelin Challenge Design competition, which asks the design community to come up with proposals for "America's Next Iconic Vehicle". All 11 of the scale models and 24 two-dimensional drawings in the running will be exhibited at the 2009 NAIAS in January. Earlier this month, we featured three of these scale models following their selection by a jury of top automotive designers.

Car insurance small print longer than Animal Farm

Aslan Alphan | Getty Images The small print on car insurance policies from a number of leading firms is longer than George Orwell’s novel Animal Farm, according to a consumer website. Fairer Finance waded through the small print of “every” car insurance policy, and found that the policy documents produced by Endsleigh, Sheila’s Wheels, Esure and M&S Bank run to more than 30,000 words. Less than a third read car insurance terms and conditions The highest word count found by researchers came from Endsleigh, with a grand total of 37,674 words in the small print.