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

Nissan opens new design studio in Beijing

Delayed by the deadly earthquake that hit Japan earlier this year, Nissan Motor Co.'s new design center in Beijing finally received a proper opening this week, when global design chief Shiro Nakamura showed off the studio as a new source of ideas for Nissan and Infiniti. Nissan Design China, as the Beijing-based center is known, "is not a studio to just generate ideas for China," Nakamura said in an interview with Car Design News. It's equipped to handle designs of show cars and production cars for both Nissan and Infiniti brands, aimed at customers in China, as well as around the world.

Chevrolet WTCC Ultra concept

Chevrolet has released a sketch of their WTCC Ultra concept that will be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in three weeks. Styled by Ewan Kingsbury of GM Australia, who also worked on the Holden Torana, the concept was further developed in Europe to produce a fully working prototype, while the engine comes from Korea and the body from Japan. The international collaboration demonstrates the breadth of GM's resources, and has resulted in Chevrolet's vision of a new generation of World Touring Cars.

Follow Coventry University students' grad projects on their Tumblr

We always aim to highlight as many college exhibitions as possible, but with so many graduating students each year, it's not surprising some are taking the promotion of their work into their own hands. The transportation and automotive design students at Coventry University have done just that by setting up a Tumblr highlighting the development of the final projects we'll see towards the end of May. The quality and variety of work looks very promising, especially considering they're some way from finished.