Harley Davidson Rear Fender Softail Springer 100th Anniversary Gunmetal Blue on 2040-parts.com

Volvo celebrates the seatbelt’s golden anniversary

By Freddie Fulton Motor Industry 12 August 2009 10:11 Today marks the 50th anniversary of the three-point seatbelt. It was patented by Volvo engineer Nils Bohlin in 1959, but the Swedes magnanimously opened up the tech to other car makers as they saw the real-world safety benefit of seatbelts in all cars. The design was so effective that in Germany the patent registrars listed it in the top eight inventions which have made an impact from 1885 to 1985.

Hyundai Suicide ‘Advert’ causes a rumpus

It’s not easy advertising your wares and finding the right balance between mainstream and innovative to capture attention, as Hyundai has found out to their cost with an ‘advert’ for the hydrogen powered ix35 FCEV which, rather distastefully, depicts a man trying to commit suicide by running a hose from the tailpipe to the cabin before realising he can’t achieve his aim as the FCEV’s only emissions are water. It’s a proper cock-up from Hyundai – usually so sure-footed with their PR – but, despite Hyundai US putting the blame at the door of Hyundai UK, there’s more to this suicide ‘advert’ than meets the eye. It seems the suicide video was put together by Innocean – a European Ad Agency owned by Hyundai’s Chairman Chung Mong-koo and his daughter, and responsible for much of Hyundai’s marketing output – and was a clumsy attempt to gauge reaction to the somewhat macabre take on the benefits of an FCEV.

Nissan Juke-R: First customer car ready for delivery

The first Nissan Juke-R #001 – Nissan’s Juke with the heart of a GT-R – is ready for delivery to its owner. It will have cost at least £400k. Now the very first Nissan Juk-R is ready to roll out to its owner – who will have paid at least £400,000 for the privilege of owning a Juke with the running gear from a GT-R – and built by Motorsports outfit RML, with advice from Nissan Technical Centre Europe.