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

Nissan Puts Self-Cleaning Car To The Test

NOT a fan of cleaning your car? If so, you might want to make friends with your local Nissan dealer, as the Japanese firm has begun tests on a "self-cleaning" vehicle which could wash away the worries of those weary of doing the job themselves. Boffins at Nissan's European technical centre in Switzerland are testing an innovative paint technology that repels mud, rain and everyday dirt.

MIT develops self-transforming materials that behave 'like robots without robots'

A cross-disciplinary research lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed a suite of programmable materials, including carbon fiber, printed wood grain, textile composites, rubbers and plastics, that self-transform when exposed to an external stimulus. Director of the Self-Assembly Lab, Skylar Tibbits, presented a TED talk on 4D printing in 2013, where he demonstrated how a flat sheet of material could effectively build itself when exposed to water, like a robot without a robot. Following positive feedback from industries including aviation, automotive and manufacturing, his lab has been working on developing materials that change according to different activation sources, including heat, light, and air pressure, in addition to water – all of which have automotive relevance.

Interior Motives Design Conference 2006

A warm and sunny London was the venue for the second Design Conference organised by the UK-based magazine Interior Motives. The conference took place June 7-8 at the Museum in Docklands near Canary Wharf in the heart of the revitalized docklands area to the east of London and was enjoyed by around one hundred delegates from the international automotive design community.The two-day summit was chaired by educators from two design schools, as a way of deliberately promoting neutral yet informed discussions from the panel. Matteo Conti, Programme Leader of Transportation Design at Northumbria University introduced the speakers on the first day, while on day two Dave Muyres and Geoff Wardle from Art Center College of Design jointly chaired the session.