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

One Lap of the Web: Janky Jettaminos, scary supercars and a two-wheeled tour of the Packard plant

-- Our friend Corbin is back! And he's got an even more terrifying car this time: the Jettamino, a Volkswagen Jetta diesel with the structural stability of a pool noodle and the hipster styling of an LCD Soundsystem reunion tour on wheels. (Fabric wheelarches have never been done before, for good reason.) Somehow, Corbin suckered his friend David into chopping off the roof.

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.

May sales slide 4 percent on rising fuel prices, tight vehicle supplies

U.S. light vehicle sales dropped 4 percent in May--the first decline since August--as rising gas prices, inventory shortages, higher stickers and economic jitters curbed demand. The pace of sales last month--11.78 million units on an annualized basis--was the year's lowest and marked the first seasonally adjusted total below 12 million units in seven months.