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

Nissan and Fiat marketing heads trade insults over 'visual pollution'

A war of words has erupted between Fiat and Nissan's marketing departments over their electric vehicle designs, the Leaf and the 500e. Matt Davis, head of Fiat product marketing, told Bloomberg News before the launch of its all-electric 500e at the Los Angeles show last week that "ugliness is probably one of the worst forms of pollution," seen as an indirect attack on Nissan's electric offering. The then 500e came under attack with Nissan criticizing the fact that it was created only to meet Californian emissions requirements.

Concept Car of the Week: Hyundai HCD-1 (1992)

After a difficult start to the '80s, Hyundai thought of a new strategy to penetrate the American market and to compete with the industry leaders – Japanese manufacturers such as Toyota being the primary target. It came back in 1990 and set up the Hyundai California Design Center to develop cars just for 'Uncle Sam'. The center began with projects such as the Tiburon coupé and the Santa Fe off-roader, both being named after American cities.

Lotus chief exec Dany Bahar suspended: what's next?

Group Lotus chief Dany Bahar has been suspended while complaints about his conduct are carried out by parent company DRB Hicom. Weekend newspapers reported that the dispute was over expenses for building work carried out on one of Bahar's homes. Bahar was suspended on Friday and the new owners stressed that Lotus Cars continued to run in his absence.