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

Design Contest: LA Design Challenge 2008

The entrants for the fifth annual Design Challenge, part of the Design Los Angeles automobile designers' conference, have now been announced. Nine Southern California automotive design studios - including Audi, BMW, GM, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and Volkswagen - have been pitted against one another and asked to develop a concept which best answers a brief entitled 'Motorsports in 2025'. "Automotive designers have always been fascinated with motorsports and this year's Design Challenge has provided them with the opportunity to use their creative talent to look at these cars with new eyes, using innovative technologies and approaches," said Chuck Pelly, director of Design Los Angeles and partner in The Design Academy, Inc.

Toyota Yaris Hybrid, GT 86 & new Toyota FT-Bh Concept at Geneva

Toyota's offerings at Geneva 2012 The Toyota Yaris Hybrid, Toyota GT 86 and a new compact city car concept – the Toyota FT-Bh – will be at the Geneva Motor Show next month. Toyota has a stand full of cars to offer at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, with the European debut of the GT 86, the Yaris Hybrid, and the world debut of a new concept – the FT-Bh Concept. We already know the price of the Toyota GT 86 – a starting point of £25k – and we’ve seen the photos, so now all that’s left is to see the GT 86 in the flesh.

BMW X5 (F15)

This is the new, third generation BMW X5, the biggest-selling SUV in its segment with over 1.3 million sold since the first was launched in 1999. While the previous versions have sat more in the high-riding wagon space (BMW prefers to call them Sports Activity Vehicles), this latest F15 model appears to have shifted closer to a more traditional SUV, appearing taller and less ‘squat', certainly than the car it replaces. This is partly due to the DLO, which dips down behind the A-pillar, creating a deep window.