Genuine Volvo Exhaust Manifold Heat Riser "yoke" Pn#463284-0. Fits 1978-83 240. on 2040-parts.com

Interior Motives China Conference to explore new design directions

Chinese consumers are driving new design directions, and CDN's Interior Motives China Conference in Beijing next week is set to explore how. Titled ‘New brands and the search for a design identity', the conference features an impressive speaker line-up that blends the international (Chris Bangle and VW's Wolfgang Muller Pietralla) with the regional (GM PATAC's Friedhelm Engler, Ford China's Chelsia Lau and PSA-Peugeot/Citroën China's Robert Walker), with the domestic (Shan Wei of the Beijing Automotive Technical Center (BATC), and Ken Ma of SAIC). The annual conference is the third in China to be hosted by CDN's magazine Interior Motives, and will be held on Wednesday 21 April, and Thursday 22 April, just in advance of the opening of Auto China 2010 in Beijing on Friday (23 April).

BMW i8: Mission Impossible

BMW i8 in Mission Impossible 4 Marketing new cars doesn’t have to mean an ‘in your face advertising’,  berating you with benefits and a call to action. It can be more subtle; simply raising awareness or putting the cars in a high-profile role in a popular film or TV show. Just like Aston Martin with James Bond (and Jaguar Land Rover in the new Bond, too) and Volvo with the Twilight franchise, BMW has placed its product in the new Tom Cruise outing – Mission Impossible 4 | Ghost Protocol.

Telematics discounts tempting young drivers

INCREASING numbers of young drivers are opting-in to telematics-based car insurance in attempt to reduce their premiums. Specialist young driver insurer Carrot has reported a 62% rise in the number of its policyholders choosing to have a telematics device, consisting of accelerometers and a GPS tracker, fitted to their car. The company says that they could save up to 20% on their annual insurance premium, which for the youngest drivers almost always amounts to a discount of hundreds of pounds.