Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

SEMA adds four to hall of fame

The Specialty Equipment Market Association is adding four names to its hall of fame: Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle. The SEMA Hall of Fame recognizes those who have especially helped foster the growth of the special-equipment automotive industry. -- Baskerville was senior editor of Hot Rod magazine for 30 years, though his writing is what really secured his ticket to the hall.

“Where is the sustainable vehicle design?”

The notion of a 'new paradigm in car design' was a theme running through talks by five panelists at London's Royal College of Art last week, who debated "Seriously now, where is the sustainable vehicle design?" Despite disparate backgrounds, there was broad agreement that a truly sustainable form of personal transportation is unlikely to come from an established automotive firm any time soon. Panelist Rob Holdway of Giraffe Innovation was most vocal in his approach to the subject, saying "Frankly, I think the car is unacceptable - we hear a lot about the sustainable car, but I don't think there is such a thing as a sustainable car". The audience - made up mainly of RCA students - also heard from Nico Sergent of Riversimple about how the company's seven-point business model, and its open source strategy, incentivized the company to build a truly sustainable car and mobility package that the current auto model simply doesn't allow.

Porsche Panamera S E-hybrid scores £5k government grant

By Ollie Kew First Official Pictures 27 November 2013 12:30 You’d have thought the last thing a buyer wealthy enough to afford an £89k Porsche Panamera needed was a £5000 discount on their mammoth new supersaloon. But, thanks the Panamera S E-hybrid cracking the eco numbers, that’s exactly what the UK government is offering. The Panamera S E-hybrid has joined a list of just 15 cars eligible for Britian’s ‘ULEV’ (ultra low-emission vehicle) status, approved by OLEV (the Office for low-emission vehicles.) Yes, in real life, it’s ridiculous, but on paper, the S E-hybrid is a wunderkid of low-emission motoring.