Centric Parts Disc Brake Rotor 128.62099r on 2040-parts.com

Japan automakers extend shutdowns as quake impact widens

Japan's seven big automakers are extending nationwide production shutdowns amid growing concern about supply chain interruptions, power shortages and export difficulties following the massive earthquake and tsunami that hammered northern Japan, killing thousands. Toyota Motor Corp., one of the few automakers with a major manufacturing presence in the quake zone, suspended all manufacturing--at both assembly and parts plants--on Monday and extended the shutdown through at least Wednesday as an added precaution. The company will lose output of roughly 40,000 vehicles over the three-day period, spokesman Dion Corbett said.

Goodwood names the date for its 2014 events

ON your marks, get set, open your wallets – the dates for Goodwood’s 2014 headline motorsport meetings have been announced. The immensely popular Festival of Speed is scheduled to take place from Thursday 26 June to Sunday 29 June. With action focused on the famous hill and in the grounds of Lord March’s estate, this increasingly family-focused event promises more of what’s made it so popular: iconic historic cars, an action-packed rally stage and plenty of manufacturer supported displays.

Bentley Hunaudières: The Bentley that became a Bugatti

Bentley Hunaudieres Now seemingly forgotten, the Bentley Hunaudières Concept car from the 1999 Geneva Motor Show was the forerunner to the Bugatti Veyron. At the end of the 1990s Volkswagen embarked on a buying frenzy that would see them become makers of some of the world’s most desirable cars, acquiring Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini in the space of a few months in 1998. But even though VW had bought Bentley and Bugatti it seems they weren’t entirely sure at first where they would take their new marques, and at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show they revealed a W16 hypercar.