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

Dan Darancou appointed Chief Designer at CH-Auto

Former GM design manager Dan Darancou has become Chief Designer at CH-Auto, a major Chinese car design studio that supports numerous domestic car manufacturers as well as international car companies looking to sell vehicles in the burgeoning automotive market. Darancou, who started his new role on November 1, will be overseeing all design activities as well as facilitating the liaison between the styling and engineering departments so the company can deliver complete ready-for-production vehicles and services. As well as tackling these initiatives, Darancou will also be promoting the organization, furthering the company's goal to become the premier car design studio in China.

Lexus Fashion Workshop designers make car parts fashionable

Lexus is moving from the road to the runway with a new ad campaign set to appear in Vogue magazine. As part of the Lexus Fashion Workshop, the carmaker challenged four fashion designers to create wearable pieces using materials from a dismantled Lexus CT hybrid. The challenge is "elevating the notion of recycling to an art form," according to Lexus, which says the CT hybrid is 90 percent recyclable.

Watch a Volvo find its own parking spot

Cars that can navigate into a preselected parking spot have been around for a few years now, and they've proven that under the right conditions they can pull it off successfully most of the time. But what about a car that finds its own parking spot just after you step out? Volvo is about to show a car that can do just that, and it manages this feat without an array of sensors on the roof that make the car look like a military aircraft.