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

MIT develops self-transforming materials that behave 'like robots without robots'

A cross-disciplinary research lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed a suite of programmable materials, including carbon fiber, printed wood grain, textile composites, rubbers and plastics, that self-transform when exposed to an external stimulus. Director of the Self-Assembly Lab, Skylar Tibbits, presented a TED talk on 4D printing in 2013, where he demonstrated how a flat sheet of material could effectively build itself when exposed to water, like a robot without a robot. Following positive feedback from industries including aviation, automotive and manufacturing, his lab has been working on developing materials that change according to different activation sources, including heat, light, and air pressure, in addition to water – all of which have automotive relevance.

Seat Leon Cupra R (2009) first official pictures

By Gareth Evans First Official Pictures 20 August 2009 10:59 Seat has unveiled its most powerful production car ever, the new Leon Cupra R, with an S3- and Scirocco R-matching 261bhp.   Performance figures for the front-wheel drive hot hatch look good: 62mph is dispatched in 6.1 seconds, the top speed is 155mph, and yet the Cupra R returns 34.9mpg. Thank the high-tech 2.0 turbo engine from the Volkswagen group, which in this incarnation makes 261hp. Helping get all that power through the front wheels is XDS, the same system you'll find on the Golf GTI that effectively mimics a limited slip differential through the use of electronic wizardry.

LaFerrari joins Supercar exhibition at Ferrari Museum in Maranello

The new LaFerrari has joined an exhibition of supercars at Ferrari’s Maranello Museum joining cars like the 250 GTO, F40, F50 and Enzo Ferrari. Ferrari boss, Luca di Montezemolo, has opened the Supercar exhibition in Maranello to showcase Ferrari’s greatest models all in one place, an opportunity Ferraristi will find hard to resist. As well as LaFerrari, Ferrari has on show perhaps the greatest supercar in their history – the Ferrari 250 GTO – which was built in very limited numbers – just 33 Series 1 and 3 Series 2 cars – and now commands prices around the $40 million mark, the 288 GTO, the F40 – perhaps the ‘Driver’s’ choice – the F50 and, of course, the Enzo Ferrari.