Ford 429 Valve Cover Decals on 2040-parts.com

Video: Chris Bangle delivers “Empowerment: Design without Designers” talk at Creative Mornings/London

Chris Bangle – the undisputed front man of car design – needs little introduction, so the prospect of the former BMW Design Director and now founder of Chris Bangle Associates giving a talk in our home town of London was too good to pass up. His presentation (which you can watch in full in the video to the left) touched on his time at BMW, but was more focused on the idea of empowering others to create: "design without you in the middle", as Bangle says. From the story of the co-creation of the staircase in his Italian studio to the idea of encouraging people to think about their culture when designing, his philosophies transcend disciplines.

Festival of Speed: onboard with David Coulthard up the Goodwood hill

If you’re able to arrive early enough on Thursday for Goodwood’s Moving Motor Show you might just be able to book yourself a slot to drive up the famous hillclimb course with one of the many manufacturers displaying their cars. Few mere mortals get the opportunity to drive up the hallowed tarmac at Goodwood – it’s more often reserved for F1 aces and motorsport heroes, such as a certain David Coulthard. In this video from Mercedes-Benz, DC takes us on a guided tour up the hillclimb, corner by corner behind the wheel of a suitably glam Merc SLS Black Series.

Driving with criminals

At first it had all the appearances of a routine police checkpoint, a simple little affair in which some warnings might be issued, possibly some speeding tickets. But otherwise our group of 18 or so U.S. automotive journalists driving a fleet of high-priced Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG sedans would be allowed to continue on our merry way through the Spanish countryside.