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8th L'Argus Design Competition announced

From 1 June 2009, design students will be invited to take part in the eighth annual L'Argus European Design Competition, which this year takes as its theme 'Less is More: Traveling in the Era of Simplicity'. Questioning students on the concepts of mobility and the future of automobile design, this contest - organized by French magazine L'Argus de L'Automobile - will run until 11 December 2009 and culminate in an awards ceremony on 20 January 2010. The competition is open to students attending design colleges within the European Union and Switzerland, including non-automotive courses covering disciplines such as industrial design, fine arts and architecture.

Volvo XC60 R-Design revealed

Volvo has released details of an R-Design version of the XC60 Still, more power isn’t everyone’s cup of tea – particularly at the moment – but many buyers like a bit of ‘butchness’ in their cars. And to be completely fair to Volvo, although they haven’t messed with the oily bits for more oomph, they have played with the suspension for more feel. Volvo say the XC60 has improved steering (thanks to ‘Direct Steering Gear’), stiffer damping and a more robust chassis.

Daimler and BYD name new brand Denza

Mercedes-Benz sources in Germany have confirmed Chinese media reports suggesting that parent company Daimler and Chinese carmaker BYD's new joint venture brand will be called Denza. Created as a Chinese-market-only brand, Denza is planned to support a range of "affordable" electric-powered vehicles, the first of which is set to be unveiled at the Beijing motor show next month. Based on the underpinnings of the first-generation Mercedes-Benz B-class--a car originally designed to accept batteries within its flat floor structure--the first Denza model was developed in China by a team of engineers from both Daimler and BYD Auto.