Blog on 2040Parts

Lotus wants Carlton successor

By Phil McNamara Motor Industry 07 August 2006 04:33 Lotus should engineer a new halo car like the legendary 176mph Carlton supersaloon, says the Norfolk firm's new boss. The 377bhp Lotus-Carlton was produced on Mike Kimberley's last watch as CEO, from 1983 to 1991. He's now back in the hotseat, and on the lookout for a similar opportunity.

Mazda launches amazing MX-5 CC

By Chris Chilton Motor Industry 07 August 2006 07:08 Mazda is claiming the world's first no compromises coupe-convertible, with its MX-5 Roadster-coupe. Traditionally, folding tin-tops keep out thieves but steal luggage space. They boost refinement, but make handling less tidy.

BMW axes B-class rival

By Georg Kacher Motor Industry 07 August 2006 09:26 BMW has put on ice plans for a mini-MPV based on the 3-series, to rival the Mercedes B-class. Instead, it will focus on a bigger, Mercedes R-class challenger, due in 2009. 'Originally, we looked at two different space-functional concepts: one was based on the 3-series, the other one on the 5-series,' said a source.

College Exhibition: Strate College Degree Show 2006

Graduating Transportation Design students at France's Strate College displayed their Diploma projects in the school's annual degree show, held at the central Paris school June 23-24. A jury of design managers from major European and international manufacturers including Renault, Citroen, General Motors, Hyundai, DaimlerChrysler and Volkswagen assessed the graduating students' work. The exhibition included work from the schools programs in Transportation Design, Product Design, Luxury Design, Services Design, Graphic Design, Packaging Design and a new three-year program in Modeling.

Citroen C4 Picasso (2006): first official pictures

By Angus Fitton First Official Pictures 02 August 2006 07:23 The lowdown This is the sensible new Citroen C4 Picasso, light years away from today's egg-on-wheels original. It's sensible because it's been designed from the inside out, with huge emphasis on a spacious cabin, good visibility and huge practicality. Naturally it grows to accommodate seven seats to keep up with the Zafira et al.

Audi S3 (2006): first official pictures

By Phil McNamara First Official Pictures 01 August 2006 06:23 The lowdown Here's the new benchmark for hot hatch acceleration: the 261bhp Audi S3 quattro. Up there with the most powerful hot hatches – the 261bhp BMW 130i and Volkswagen's 250bhp Golf R32 – the S3 is due in the UK in January 2007. Audi claims it despatches the 0-62mph sprint in an impressive 5.7sec.

Michelin Challenge Design announces 2007 jury

The safety focus of this year's challenge requires designers to consider the vehicle's occupants as well as those who share the road traveling in other vehicles or as pedestrians. Entries will be evaluated for their accident-avoidance, occupant-protection and pedestrian-safety characteristics. Judges are also looking at the commercial viability and overall visual appeal of the work.

Whos Where: Peter Schreyer to head Kia Design

In what's regarded as a major boost for Korean car maker Kia, it has been confirmed that Peter Schreyer will be moving from Volkswagen AG to lead Kia's global design operation. Schreyer will oversee the design activities of the company's regional design centers in Frankfurt, Los Angeles and Tokyo as well as the Namyang Design Center in Korea. While Schreyer's move to Kia comes across as a big surprise for many within automotive design circles, his departure from Volkswagen doesn't.

Dodge to gatecrash Fiesta party

By Phil McNamara Motor Industry 30 July 2006 01:40 American brand Dodge is plotting a small hatch to take on Ford's Fiesta, with sales likely in 2008. Chrysler Group is in talks with three potential partners, to share a chassis for the baby Dodge. Chrysler boss Tom LaSorda told CAR Online that talks were ongoing with car makers from 'western Europea and Asia', and that he would make a decision on the project by the end of 2006.

Seat's super Cupra gets 237bhp

By Angus Fitton First Official Pictures 30 July 2006 02:56 The lowdown Seat has pulled the wraps off its ultimate Leon, the 237bhp Cupra, which hits the UK in January 2007. Just one snag – it looks almost identical to the 200bhp Leon FR. Here's our 60-second guide to playing spot the difference with an FR and a Cupra.

Land Rover's green blitz

By Phil McNamara Motoring Issues 30 July 2006 11:25 Land Rover is slapping a green tax on sales of its 4x4s, which will build up millions to be invested in global ecological schemes like wind farms and Indian cooking stoves that use renewable fuels. Customers will pay between £85 and £165 on top of their 4x4's list price. The tax is optional, but Land Rover vows most punters will happily pay up to become carbon neutral.

Toyota ditches Corolla badge

By Phil McNamara Motor Industry 30 July 2006 12:16 The Corolla brand is going the same way as Oldsmobile, Jif and Marathon – to the knacker's yard. It may be the most venerable nameplate in motoring history, but Toyota is ditching the Corolla badge in western Europe. The latest incarnation of the Japanese family car will be unveiled at the Paris motor show in September 2006, but it won't be wearing the Corolla logo.

Holden Commodore

This is the all-new Holden Commodore, a car that GM will hope continue its decade-long position at the top of the sales charts in Australia. First introduced there in 1978, 2.4 million units have since been built, and this latest VE Commodore also marks the first $1billion car program in the country. The more European design brings about a longer wheelbase for a stronger stance and a more defined body-side.

First Sight: Holden VE Commodore and Statesman

GM Holden last week launched its biggest program ever, the $1 billion all-new Holden VE Commodore range. Designed at Holden's Port Melbourne design center, the 4th generation Commodore is the first all-new model of the series to be fully designed and engineered in Australia. Previous generations of Commodore since 1978 have always been based on lengthened and widened Opel large car platforms of the day but since the demise of the European Omega in 2003, GM lacked a suitable rear-wheel-drive donor platform for a new Commodore, hence the clean sheet approach for the latest VE model.

Arash AF10

Arash Motors is the latest in a succession of recently established low-volume manufacturers, and has unveiled their first car, the AF10, at the British Motor Show in London. Since the company's conception in March this year, the team has been working continuously on the AF10, with styling done in-house by Arash Farboud Designs. The company is based in Cambridge, UK, with testing of the bespoke chassis done at the nearby Millbrooke circuit.

Volvo C30 (2006): first official pictures

By Phil McNamara First Official Pictures 25 July 2006 01:17 The lowdown This is the Volvo C30, a rakish three-door set to take on the BMW 1-series and Audi A3. Unconventionally, this hatchback only has four seats; conventionally, it mounts its engines across the nose and sends power to the front wheels. The C30 is scheduled to arrive in UK showrooms in December.

Lotus revamps 2007 MG TF

By Phil McNamara Motor Industry 24 July 2006 06:11 The MG TF will be reborn at Longbridge in 2007 - and the roadster has been overhauled by the ride and handling experts at Lotus. Nanjing Automotive Corporation, the Chinese company that bought the assets of the bankrupt MG Rover in 2005, has lifted the lid on its plans. Assembly of up to 15,000 TFs annually will begin in the first half of next year, at the mothballed West Midlands plant.

New Delta Integrale to spearhead Lancia's UK return

By Phil McNamara Motor Industry 24 July 2006 12:10 An all-new version of Lancia's legendary Delta Integrale will relaunch the brand in the UK, CAR Online has learned. With its turbocharged four-cylinder engine sending power to all four wheels, the Rally-bred Integrale established the formula so successfully exploited by the Mitsubishi Evo and Subaru Impreza STi. Lancia will fight back with a reborn Delta Integrale around 2008, paving the way for the marque's arrival back in the UK market.

British Motor Show 2006 Highlights

Opel/Vauxhall Corsa The new Opel/Vauxhall Corsa is the most significant new design to be launched yesterday at the press day of the newly reintroduced British Motor Show. The Vauxhall brand is used in the UK, while the Opel brand is used in the rest of Europe The three and the five door versions have similar DLOs to the Astra three and five door versions to give them distinctly different identities to each other, with A-pillars pushed far forward to move the Corsa into a more mono-volume architecture. Influences from the very successful Peugeot 206 are perhaps evident in the lamp graphics and overall 'sporty' image, but the biggest impression is how large this small car is - it's 3999mm long, 1707mm wide and 1488 tall - 150mm longer, and 50mm wider and taller than its predecessor.

College Exhibition: Pforzheim Design Forum 2006

The biennial Design Forum at Pforzheim Hochschule in Germany took place last week, with six international design schools joining together to present and discuss the latest work of their students. The Forum is held in conjunction with the annual summer degree show at Pforzheim where Diploma and Masters students presented their work. The Forum was chaired by Professor James Kelly who welcomed the tutors and their accompanying students to the event.

College Exhibition: Royal College of Art Show 2006

Fifteen final year students at London's Royal College of Art postgraduate Vehicle Design course have displayed their work in the second part of the internationally renowned annual graduation show. The show featured the work of students in Vehicle Design, Design Products, Industrial Design Engineering, Architecture and Interiors, Computer Related Design, Textiles, Animation, Communication Art and Design, Conservation and History of Design. For the 19th year Pilkington Automotive sponsored the RCA's Vehicle Design Awards.

Audi TT (2006): first official pictures

By Phil McNamara First Official Pictures 13 July 2006 03:14 In a nutshell Here are the first pictures of the all-new TT coupe - and the fashionista's favourite has become a serious sports car, claims Audi. The design update is edgier and more muscular, and there's a similar overhaul going on beneath the skin. The front end is now made of lightweight aluminium, to sharpen the handling.

Nissan Livina Geniss

Nissan has announced it will release a new family of global cars over the next two years with sales of the first variant to start in China in 2006. The Livina Geniss, the name of the Chinese variant, will be the first Nissan car to be released in China ahead of other global markets, and will make its world premier at the Guangzhou International Motor Show later this month. Based on the concept of a luxurious, yet practical vehicle, the model seats up to seven people and accommodates a wide variety of customer needs.

College Exhibition: Coventry Degree Show 2006

Transportation and product design students at Coventry University in England recently displayed their work in the school's summer degree show, one of the two graduation shows per year. A total of 74 students graduated in various fields including Automotive Design, Transport and Product Design, Vehicle Design, Boat Design and Consumer Product Design. With such a large body of graduating students, Coventry have wisely chosen to introduce a separate 'Selected Works' show this year for industry guests, which also opened to the public for one week at the end of June.

College Exhibition: Umea Degree Show 2006

Students at Sweden's Umea University Institute of Design presented their work in the annual Degree Show in June, which included work from the Masters programmes in Transportation Design, Advanced Product Design, and Interaction Design along with projects from the Bachelor level graduates. The degree exhibition returned this year to the school following a major renovation that has greatly extended the school's facilities. 10 students graduated from the Transportation Design MA programme.

Chrysler Sebring

Chrysler has shown pictures of the 2007 Sebring, a mid-sized sedan that will enter production in America later this year. New from the ground up, the dynamic exterior borrows cues from the Crossfire in the front three-quarter, while a part-masked C-pillar helps accentuate the Sebring's arched cab, eschewing the 'chopped' look of the larger 300C. The urbane interior features an IP with a broad panel theme, reminding slightly of the Mercedes-Benz CLS/> It will be available from launch with the option of two V6 engines and, unusually, a new four-cylinder motor that produces 172PS from 2.4 liters.

Land Rover Freelander

Land Rover has released pictures of the new Freelander (LR2), due to be launched at the British Motor Show in July. Harder edged than its predecessor, the chiselled exterior has simpler surfaces that update the same overall styling theme. The profile of the new car is more dynamic, borrowing cues from Range Rover Sport, though the stepped roofline has been diluted.

New Car Design News website

But nothing has been changed for change's sake. The feedback we received from the reader survey conducted late last year told us that the original site was highly regarded for its clarity and appearance so we've preserved much of its core character. And the nature and style of our news and feature stories will also remained much unchanged for the same reason.

Interior Motives Design Conference 2006

A warm and sunny London was the venue for the second Design Conference organised by the UK-based magazine Interior Motives. The conference took place June 7-8 at the Museum in Docklands near Canary Wharf in the heart of the revitalized docklands area to the east of London and was enjoyed by around one hundred delegates from the international automotive design community.The two-day summit was chaired by educators from two design schools, as a way of deliberately promoting neutral yet informed discussions from the panel. Matteo Conti, Programme Leader of Transportation Design at Northumbria University introduced the speakers on the first day, while on day two Dave Muyres and Geoff Wardle from Art Center College of Design jointly chaired the session.

Daihatsu Sonica

Daihatsu launched the Sonica yesterday, a small hatchback for Japan. Designed in Osaka, the Daihatsu Sonica furthers the goal of parent company Toyota Motor Corporation to make the brand synonymous with small affordable cars. Distinguished by a long wheelbase and short overhangs, the one-box Sonica should live up to its description of having a 'spacious and comfortable' interior.