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

Umea Olme Spyder project

While Swedish automaker Saab was going through tumultuous times and Geely was in the process of buying Volvo from Ford, first year MA students in Transportation Design at Sweden's Umea Institute of Design were busy creating a one-off roadster for an independent car maker: the Olme Spyder. Created in collaboration with Ove Bengtsson, an engineer with a personal passion for building his own vehicles, the students were asked to design their own interpretation of a progressive and innovative roadster, developing the concept from a sketch into a full-scale model. Based on an Opel Agila donor car, the concept's 650kg steel monocoque chassis was created by Bengtsson himself to accommodate a mid-mounted engine.

What Americans want, according to Fiat design boss Ramaciotti

American cars are big; European cars are small. And it's always been that way. But that old distinction may be diminishing, says Fiat Group design boss Lorenzo Ramaciotti.

New Alfa Romeo MiTo & Giulietta Quadrifoglio Verde price & spec – costs from £20,210 & £28,120

The new Alfa Romeo Giulietta Quadrifoglio Verde (pictured) costs from £28,120 Alfa Romeo doesn’t have a huge amount to play with at the moment with its range in flux and plans to boost sales with new models. But although range-topping cars are not big sellers, they are good to shine a performance glow on the brand, which is why the Alfa Giulietta Quadrifoglio Verde and MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde (that’s the MiTo and Giulietta Cloverleaf to you an me) arrived at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Now both are about to go on sale in the UK, so we get prices and specs.