Dorman 604-120 Heater Blend Door Actuator on 2040-parts.com

LA Auto Show Design Challenge entries unveiled

The 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show Design Challenge entries have been revealed a few days before the show is set to open. As in previous years, several of the major players in the automotive design world are participating and automakers and design studios such as BMW DesignworksUSA, Subaru, Mazda, and China's SAIC and Changfeng will be exhibiting concept art. The theme of this year's design challenge is called "Biomimicry & Mobility 2025: Nature's Answer to Human Challenges.” With nature coming to be seen as one of the best R&D labs for design, and with biological knowledge doubling every five years, design studios were challenged to design vehicles that use biomimicry to increase the efficiency of mobility itself.

Jaguar XKR Speed Pack (2010) first pictures

Jaguar will launch two new styling and performance packs for the 2011 model year XKR coupe at the Geneva motor show. The new XKR Speed Pack and Black Pack lets customers spec up styling accoutrements and raise the top speed from a limited 155mph to 174mph. This Jag XKR does what it says on the tin, unleashing the potential of the 503bhp/461lb ft supercharged V8 for a £3500 supplement.

Toyota Corolla (2014)

The 2014 Toyota Corolla is the company's eleventh generation of the world's best-selling model, with almost 40 million sold since the first appeared in 1966. In line with the attempt to inject some interest into Toyota's model range (witness the new Avalon for example), this new Corolla is based around the mantra ‘Iconic Dynamism', whatever that might mean. The result is a car that certainly appears more interesting than its forebears on the evidence of these pictures.