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

Fitness-focused autonomous vehicle pedals to victory in Interior Motives Design Awards

Earlier tonight, on the eve of the first Paris Motor Show press day, the world's top designers and automotive journalists assembled at L'Espace Clacquesin in Paris to witness sponsors Ford and Volkswagen announce the 2014 Interior Motives Student Design of the Year: ‘Life Cycle' by Jason Chen and Dirk Wan of the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, USA. Launched in January of this year and themed ‘Beyond Styling: a Design for Life', the competition asked students to create projects around three diverse but specific briefs: ‘Beyond Autonomous', which posed the question of what would happen if we were to combine the latest developments in computing and robotics with automobile design; ‘An Interior for Life', in which students were asked to focus on one feature or element of a car's interior and adapt it for dual use in a user's ordinary life; and ‘Pickup Truck of 2030', which challenged the young designers to extrapolate what the future might hold for this popular and versatile mode of transport. This year's contest attracted more than 200 entries from students based at 57 schools in 24 different countries.

2014 Renault Megane Facelift: Price from £16,745 to £26,925

The facelifted Renault Megane (pictured) costs from £16,745 Renault has given the Megane a bit of a facelift for 2014, and the tweaked Megane debuted at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. Now the new Megane has gone on sale in the UK – as a Hatchback, Coupe and Sport Tourer – with prices starting at £16,745 for the Expression+ 1.6 VVT 110 Hatch, rising to £26,925 for the Renaultsport 265 Coupe. The changes wrought by Renault for the Megane are relatively minor, with a new family nose (a lot like the new Clio), new lights, tweaked bonnet, new Renault badge and some very minor interior changes including the addition of Renault’s R-Link Media system as an option.

GM repays Government loans – sort of

GM Loans repaid early - or are they? We can’t deny that GM are making a pretty good job of rising Phoenix-like from the ashes of their effective bankruptcy. A new focus on cars that are relevant for our times instead of a fixation with dated products and dated management has certainly helped.