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

GM reveals new, highly modular Ecotec engine family

GM introduced its new modular family of Ecotec engines on Wednesday at its powertrain headquarters in Pontiac, Mich. The new, reduced-in-size three- and four-cylinder mills will replace three of GM's current engine families, eventually making their way into five of the company's brands. The Ecotec family will eventually spawn 11 engines in total, ranging in displacement from 1.0 liter to 1.5 liters.

Electric cars can become electricity banks

Ever try to store electricity? It won't stay in a bottle, and you can't keep it in your sock drawer. So when you have a lot of it--say, when it's windy and your wind turbines are really spinning, or when it's sunny and your gallium arsenide photovoltaics are lighting up, or at night when the utility's generators can run unhindered--you have to store it somewhere.

One Lap of the Web: Mercedes-Benz SLC rendered, Google Glass for the Tesla S and a rusty Datsun 280ZX

We spend a lot of time on the Internet -- pretty much whenever we're not driving, writing about or working on cars. Since there's more out there than we'd ever be able to cover, here's our daily digest of car stuff on the Web you may not otherwise have heard about. -- Last month we brought you some intriguing spy photos of a Porsche 911-fighting Mercedes-Benz coupe -- possibly to be called the SLC, or even the next SLS AMG (it's all a bit unclear at this point) -- but layers of camouflage made it a bit tough to see what the car will look like.