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

Exclusive: Laurens van den Acker to replace Patrick le Quément at Renault

The wheels of change are continuing to turn within the automotive design industry, with yet another new appointment being made at the director level. According to industry insiders, Laurens van den Acker is set become the new Design Director at Renault when Patrick le Quément retires later this year. One of the most pre-eminent car designers in the world, Patrick le Quément began his design career at Simca, worked at Ford for 17 years and did a brief stint at Volkswagen before taking the top design job at Renault.

2014 Kia Forte trims, slims, adds FlexSteer

The all-new 2014 Kia Forte debuted at the LA Auto Show in November, and it will hit dealerships in the first quarter of this year. Powertrains and trims are consolidated, the interior is updated and the small sedan will now feature something called FlexSteer, which adjusts the weight of the wheel from comfort to normal to sport. Equipment on the second-generation sedan will rival that of almost any of the luxury brands, even in base trim.

Citroen C1 ev’ie Electric Car launched

The Citroen C1 ev'ie - the UK's first proper all electric car - launched today Based (obviously) on Citroen’s baby C1, the C1 ev’ie aims to be as car-like as possible, but offering all the economies (and most of the drawbacks!) of an electric car. The donor cars are supplied by Citroen  UK and the company claims that 50% of the value of the car is generated in the UK with the conversion to all electric drive. Designed to have a range of 60-70 miles this is a city car, pure and simple.