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Carbon-fiber parts and a software fix help create a lighter, faster Fiat

Chrysler Group's Mopar parts brand and Italian supplier Magneti Marelli have teamed up on a design exercise based on the 2012 Fiat 500 Abarth that shaved weight and added horsepower. The vehicle, called the Venom, has a number of carbon fiber components -- hood and side mirrors, for example -- that makes it about 200 pounds lighter than the 2,512-pound Abarth. The Venom uses software updates and additional exhaust components to boost the Abarth's standard 160-hp 1.4-liter turbocharged engine's output by as much as 25 percent.

Audi's Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg talks future innovation and CES

Last week, Audi Board Member for technical development Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg was meandering down the California coast, sampling red wines. Vacation over and on his way to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show, he popped by Stanford University's Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Lab to speak to students who'd just returned from winter break themselves.

Lewis Hamilton on Pole for 2014 Italian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton on Pole for 2014 Italian Grand Prix F1 hasn’t been kind to Lewis Hamilton in 2014, especially with Nico Rosberg running in to him at Spa, but Hamilton is back on track with his first pole position since May and, better still, he did it by leaving Nico Rosberg in second place a comfortable 0.274s behind. That performance will no doubt help Hamilton’s state of mind as he battles Rosberg for the drivers championship, but he still has a mountain to climb as Mercedes’ sanctions on Rosberg don’t include a ‘resting’ race to level the playing field. And with just seven races to go, a 29 point deficit is a big deficit to make up.