Hatley Davidson Five Bolt Derby Cover on 2040-parts.com

VW to intro Passat BlueMotion Concept at Detroit auto show

While performance heads are anxiously awaiting the North American debut of the hot-heat Mk VII Golf R at the Detroit auto show, Volkswagen's Passat BlueMotion Concept offers never-before technology in the Yank/Canuck family sedan segment: a four-pot motor with cylinder deactivation. Based on the EA211 1.4L turbo motor we sampled last year in the Euro-market Audi A3 sedan, the Passat BlueMotion Concept's engine is capable of shutting down the middle two cylinders during cruise, and features the Jetta Hybrid's gearbox, a twin-clutch unit capable of decoupling from the engine during off-throttle coasting. In the Passat's application, the 1.4 puts out 150 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque; VW suggests its highway fuel economy will stand at 42 mpg.

Leno invites Ricardo HyBoost Ford Focus to the garage

Jay Leno invited Tom Apostolos to the garage this week. He’s the president of Ricardo Americas, a tech company partially responsible for the hybrid powerplant on the McLaren P1. Leno and Apostolos talk about hybrids, and how you have to drive them tens of years and hundreds of thousands of miles to get any added value out of them.

Watch craftsmen build the Alfa Romeo 4C

Hey, remember the Alfa Romeo 4C? Maybe the long lag between the two-seater's Geneva motor show debut and the launch scheduled for later this year (to say nothing of the car's maddeningly long gestation period) has left your memory a little rusty, but the workers at the Modena Maserati plant haven't forgotten about the 4C. Need proof?