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

Ralph Gilles talks past, present and SRT future

Ralph Gilles -- SRT boss, Chrysler vice president of design, curator of something called the "Man Van," has become the public face of Chrysler performance, carrying the legacy of Firepower engines and 428 Coronets and the Dodge Viper RT/10 into the future with the Challenger, Charger and Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8s. Since "unofficially" helping form it in 2003, Gilles has seen SRT transformed into Chrysler's most coherent performance strategy since Plymouth Rapid Transit, a company-wide force so much greater than the flagship Dodge Viper. He was there from the beginning.

Future products: Leaf EV is just the start of Nissan lineup overhaul

The next 18 to 24 months will bring a major renewal of Nissan Division's lineup. In the coming weeks, the brand will see four new products released or revealed: the Juke crossover, electric Leaf sedan, redesigned Quest minivan and an ambitious but perhaps polarizing convertible Murano crossover. Late next year, Nissan will begin showing a string of restyled high-volume car lines, including the Altima and Versa.

Toyota recalls Toyota Avensis & Lexus IS 250

Toyota recall the Avensis & Lexus IS 250 Toyota must have a sinking feeling of deja vu today, as the spectre of last year came back to haunt. 2010 was the year of the Toyota Recall, with millions of cars worldwide recalled to address the ‘Throttlegate’ issue of sticky accelerator pedals. But today’s recall announcement is not in that league, affects less than 20,000 cars in the UK (although over 1 million worldwide) and there have been no reports of any accidents relating to the recall in the UK.