Ford 5l8z-7804810-aaa Mustang Console Ashtray 2005-2009 on 2040-parts.com

German new car sales drop 11 per cent – pre-reg accounts for 33.5 per cent

New car sales in Germany dropped by 11 per cent in September with pre-reg cars accounting for over a third of all sales. That drop of 11 per cent in Germany is despite deep discount offers – an average of 12.2 per cent in September – with even the previously invincible Mercedes and VW having to offer discounts of up to €3k, despite which VW’s sales fell by 20 per cent in Germany and Mercedes by 12 per cent. What’s perhaps most interesting about the decline in car sales in Germany is the number of pre-reg cars sold (pre reg cars are cars registered by dealers to hit sales targets and then sold at a discount of up to 25 per cent).

Happy 80th Birthday, Syd Mead!

Take a poll among car designers to name their greatest influence, and one name is sure to appear at the top of the list: Syd Mead. The car designer, illustrator and futurist has inspired generations of the men and women who shape the cars we drive or admire. Syd has created the designs for the movies Blade Runner and Tron, while the illustrations published in his books such as Oblagon and Sentury (sought-after collector items today) depict the vision of a future dominated by superior technology and aesthetics.

2012 BMW M5 UK Price £73,040 & new UK M5 photos & Video

2012 BMW M5 UK photos, video & price BMW spilled the beans on the 2012 M5 back in June, so we already knew it would cost £73,040 when it went on sale in November in the UK. But now November is here, BMW UK has decided – quite sensibly – that now’s as good a time as any to remind us of the fact and to send over a bunch of new photos of the M5 and a new M5 video. Apart from a set of UK-specific photos and video of the new M5, we also get reminded just how appealing a prospect the new M5 is.