Holley Performance 20-81 Accelerator Pump Cam on 2040-parts.com

Hamburg planning to ban cars from city by 2034

Hamburg, Germany is planning to ban all cars from its city center over the next 20 years, according to the Independent U.K. site. It’s a sad turn of affairs when the country that not only has the Autobahn, but also the Green Hell -- the most difficult racetrack in the world -- turns its back on motorized personal transportation.

BMW to offer four-cylinder diesels in North America to improve fuel efficiency

BMW will offer four-cylinder diesel engines in North America as it seeks to improve fuel efficiency and match the performance of its current six-cylinder gasoline engines. BMW is considering diesels in a range of models, including its 1 series, 3 series and 5 series sedans and possibly the X3 crossover and Z4 roadster, said Tom Baloga, vice president of engineering for BMW of North America. "You're going to see it in the 3 series, and the 5 series is a good possibility," Baloga said.

News watch March 2010: today's auto industry news

Tuesday 30 March 2010• Mercedes has dismissed claims that its Maybach brand is for sale, after reports in the Chinese media claimed Chinese car company BYD was considering a bid for the upmarket offshoot. BYD has also denied the claims (Reuters)• Toyota president Akio Toyoda has promised his company will listen more carefully to customers and react faster in a bid to regain credibility after the Japanese car manufacturer was forced to recall millions of vehilces over safety fears (BBC)• The Obama administration is expected to unveil its finalised fuel economy and tailpipe emissions through to 2016 this week, to coincide with the opening of the 2010 New York auto show (Detroit News)  Monday 29 March 2010• Toyota has agreed to licence the hybrid technology in the Prius to Mazda, which will combine the electric system with its next-gen Sky engines. It’s part of Mazda’s plans to increase the average fuel economy of its vehicles by 30% by 2015 (compared to 2008 levels) and it hopes to have its first hybrid vehicle on sale in Japan by 2013 (Mazda)• Ford and Chinese car company Geely have signed a stock purchase agreement that will allow the latter to acquire 100% of Volvo (along with related assets including intellectual property rights).