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

Design Services: Artware Concept and Dassault Systèmes

Concept cars are the creative work and the car manufacturers' future vision as expressed by their in-house design studios, but the physical sculpture, the one we see under the spotlight at motor shows, is often the work of design consultancies. It is at these independent studios that the conceptual study, sometimes even a simple sketch, is visualized into a life-size, running prototype. Artware Concept is not a novice in the field.

Volkswagen designer gets 2011 lifetime achievement award

Volkswagen Group designer Walter de'Silva was chosen for this year's Lifetime Design Achievement Award at EyesOn Design, which ran over Father's Day weekend in the Detroit area. About 260 invitation-only vehicles were in attendance at Sunday's car show on the grounds of the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House in Grosse Pointe Shores. They were chosen based on this year's theme of "Designing for the Future." Only car designers who have previously won the Lifetime Design Achievement Award were allowed to vote on a winner for 2011.

From Cape Town to London -- in a Fiat Panda

If we wanted to break the speed record for the run from Cape Town, South Africa to London -- a quick 10,000-mile jaunt -- we'd start out by scouring the classifieds for something big and rugged. A Land Rover would be a classic choice, but a tricked-out Toyota or Jeep could do nicely as well. A team consisting of British rally drivers Philip Young and Paul Brace are taking a somewhat different approach.