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

Opel design boss dismissed

Newly appointed Opel design boss Dave Lyon has been dismissed by parent company General Motors, less than a week before he was set to take over the position at the company's troubled European subsidiary in Russelsheim, Germany. Lyon, who was set to receive Opel's design operations from current boss Mark Adams on Aug. 1, was reportedly escorted from GM design headquarters in Michigan late last week under mysterious circumstances.

Mercedes touts future safety with research vehicle

In 1980, when several automakers began to use airbags, there were people who thought that cars couldn't possibly get any safer. Karl-Heinz Baumann, a safety researcher at Mercedes-Benz AG in Stuttgart, was not one of them. "We said, 'No, it cannot be all,' and we kept doing more research." The results of that research are presented on the company's most recent Experimental Safety Vehicle (ESV), on display now in the Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart.

Local Motors Announces Alaska Motors Competition Winners

Startup American independent car company Local Motors has announced the winner of its Alaska Motors competition, which called for entrants to design a concept vehicle for the Wrangell Mountain Extreme, a made-up race that takes place in the grueling Alaskan frontier.   Challenged to design a conceptual vehicle for the most difficult environmental conditions, designers competed for Wacom prizes and the finalists were then chosen by the community, as they have been for the last 17 competitions. Coming in first place was recent Strate College graduate Anthony Colard for his 'B-Polar' concept, a vehicle that features a unique moving chassis with a rotating axis around its fuel tank allowing it to easily maneuver through rough terrain.