G Vintage Gm Delco Car Radio / Stereo on 2040-parts.com

Eight hot rods compete for Ridler Award in Detroit

The 59th Annual Autorama has taken over Cobo Center in downtown Detroit with hundreds of hot rods, customs classics cars and motorcycles in what has been billed as America's greatest hot rod show. Judges have selected eight vehicles--dubbed the Great 8--as finalists for the coveted Ridler Award that will be presented Sunday evening at the show's conclusion. The Great 8 are: -- Jim Marciniak from Andover, Minn., with a 1963 Buick.

Mercedes E300 Bluetec Hybrid (2010) at Geneva motor show

Mercedes unveiled its first ever diesel hybrid at the 2010 Geneva motor, along with a Bluetec version of its ageing Geländewagen and an SLS AMG supercar decked out in full F1 safety car spec. They’re pretty good. The E300 Bluetec Hybrid features Merc’s 201bhp twin-turbo, 2.1-litre four-pot, with a 15kW electric motor positioned between it and the seven-speed auto ‘box.

Six questions for the creator of Gran Turismo

When you are granted an audience with Kazunori Yamauchi, godfather of Gran Turismo, you take it. We spoke with his excellency in a suite overlooking downtown Los Angeles, where traffic on the twisted freeways below looked nothing at all like the thrilling tracks of that iconic game. AW: When did you make the first Gran Turismo?