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

GM preps for new engines, 8-speed transmission

General Motors is spending $332 million to upgrade powertrain plants in three states to build a new eight-speed automatic transmission, a new V6 and a new family of small-displacement gasoline engines. The plants are in Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. GM is also adding $46 million to an earlier $600 million program to upgrade powertrain plants in Saginaw and Romulus, Mich.

KTM X-Bow – want a drive?

KTM X-Bow 'Drive Orange' track days at Brands Hatch and Silverstone KTM is an Austrian Motor Cycle manufacturer which has woken up to the possibilities of making a four-wheeled creation, and has been busy building and refining the X-Bow in collaboration with Dallara and Audi. Featuring a 237bhp, 2.0 litre Audi  TFSi unit – and coming in at a bit under £50,000 for the street version – its low weight (790kg) gives it supercar acceleration of around 3.7 second 0-60mph. There is even talk of a 380bhp version, which will put it up there with the Ariel Atom V8 we reported on recently.

CAR Magazine scoops Britain's top design prize

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 16 May 2007 09:33 CAR Magazine's design team has won the top accolade at the UK industry's oscars - the Periodical Publishers Association's Designer of the Year gong. Andy Thomas, who led last year's redesign of CAR with art editor Andy Franklin, collected the prize at the magazine industry's annual ceremony in the Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane, London. CAR is no stranger to the PPA's top design silverware - we won the same award two years ago.