Fall 2006 Harley-davidson Enthusiast Magazine -50th Anv Sportster & History on 2040-parts.com

Mazda outlines weight-loss program

Mazda Motor Corp. will reduce its vehicle weights by at least 220 pounds beginning in 2011, with a combination of lighter-weight materials, smaller vehicle footprints and new engineering processes, a top executive says. The typical Mazda vehicle has gained 80 pounds with each successive redesign, “mostly in larger tires and wheels, and safety equipment,” said Robert Davis, senior vice president of product development and quality for Mazda North American Operations.

Video: Fiat creates café racer 500 for SEMA

Fiat is preparing a café racer-style 500 for this week's SEMA show by stripping down an Abarth version to take it "down to the essence of what you need to drive a car." The café racer philosophy of ‘more speed, less comfort' was born around the 1960s British 'biker scene and while initially focussed on increasing performance, quickly developed into a culture as concered with 'the show' as 'the go'. "It takes something like this to really get noticed at SEMA," says Craig Buoncompago, Project Manager at Fiat Product Design. "The Café Racer is really going to be one special car that you guys should really come and see." The 500's roof has been chopped, while also shorn of its door handles and being fitted with hot rod billet rims.

University of Cincinnati 2008

Students in the Transportation Design track at the University of Cincinnati recently presented their visions for the future of transport. Most of the students were asked to envision a vehicle for use in the year 2030 in a studio course sponsored by General Motors; a brief which asked students to push the design potential of the Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra pickup truck or the Chevy Tahoe/GMC Yukon SUVs. Two graduating students also presented their visions for the automotive future, using the Volkswagen and Saturn brands as their launching pad.