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

Vauxhall Insignia (2008): first pictures

By Tim Pollard First Official Pictures 17 April 2008 23:43 You’ve seen the leaked images and the scoops, but now the wait is finally over. These are the first officially sanctioned photographs of the new Vauxhall Insignia – marking the end of two decade of the Vectra, which replaced the Cavalier back in 1988.It’s immediately apparent that the Insignia is way more stylish than today’s dowdy Vectra. Where that car is achingly sober and sensible, the Insignia actually lets its hair down and has a bit of fun.

McLaren London: Open for business

McLaren London - open for business Almost exactly a year on from McLaren’s announcement that the UK will have three McLaren dealers – London, Birmingham and Manchester – the first of those dealers, McLaren London, opened for business yesterday. Operated by Jardine Motors (who may be more familiar as Lancaster), Mclaren London is the ground floor face of One Hyde Park, the mega-bucks apartment block you may best know as the building where £1 billion of apartments have been sold – but no one has moved in. Ron Dennis is probably banking on some of the owners of those apartments – including a Ukrainian Oligarch said to have paid £136 million for his apartment – popping downstairs to take a look at what McLaren has on offer – and bringing along a friend or three.

The Future Role of the Vehicle Designer

The vehicle design department at the Royal College of Art hosted the second in a series of five lectures looking at the future of the profession last week. Moving on from the previous week's topic of sustainability, this debate explored the future roles and responsibilities of the vehicle designer. Head of department Dale Harrow began by posing the question "Is it time to rethink – do we still need the car?" Although still relevant, Harrow's ultimate answer to this was that the profession was about to see marked change, with the end to an era where "designers are locked behind closed doors in studios".