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

Howard Hughes’s Lincoln sells for $1 million at Tulsa auction

A 1936 Lincoln Boat Tail Speedster--customized to the personal tastes of Howard Hughes--sold for $1 million at the Leake Car Show & Auction on June 13 in Tulsa, Okla. The head-turning blue and polished aluminum classic was the headliner at a sale that raked in $12.2 million and attracted more than 10,000 people to the three-day event. The Boat Tail is a truly unique car.

Fuel-tank probe rekindles old issue

The placement of fuel tanks on passenger vehicles has changed over the past three decades, and for good reason. Automakers gradually have repositioned the tank to an area in front of the rear axle, generally below the rear passenger seat. Statistically speaking, the tank in that location is less vulnerable in a high-speed, rear-end crash than in the previous location--between the rear bumper and axle.

Smart For-Us concept unveiled at 2012 Detroit show

Smart made a splash with its world debut at the 2012 Detroit auto show: its For-Us concept car provides a vision of the Smart as an American icon, a pick-up. The diminutive truck - just 3547mm long - is longer than a Fortwo, and is supposed to be based on the running gear of the next-gen Smart Forfour, aka the new Renault Twingo. So if the For-Us doesn't look so much like a Smart any more, from the front at least, that's why.