Honda 300 Fourtrax Rear Diff on 2040-parts.com

Mercedes want more Tesla-powered EVs. A-Class & CLA EV?

The Mercedes B-Class EV (pictured) could be joined by more Tesla-powered compact Mercedes EVS When Tesla was still trying to be something more than just the Silicon Valley company that put an electric motor in a Lotus to create the Tesla Roadster, Mercedes took a stake with an eye to the future. That deal between Mercedes and Tesla has already reaped some rewards with the Smart EV and electric B-Class, but it seems Mercedes wants more EVs in its lineup and wants Tesla to provide the powertrains and batteries. Speaking to Reuters, Daimler’s CFO, Bodo Uebber, said they were looking at more ways to work with Tesla and that they were looking to fo more in the premium compact arena to appeal to a younger demographic.

Lotus not liquidating

When a storied car brand moves only 137 units in a year in the UK and 242 in the US, predictions of said marque's demise carry a certain amount of weight -- 137 is not exactly a number that makes an automaker too big to fail. When the manufacturer in question shows up on a government list of companies to be shut down, brand-enthusiast hearts get heavy; the early stages of mourning kick in. But when the company in question is Lotus, the enthusiast thinks to himself, “Eh, they've been in dire straits before.

How CATIA for Creative Designers helps to keep Recaro in the hot seat

Dassault Systèmes' latest release, CATIA for Creative Designers, is a software solution that bundles applications to help designers imagine, create, share and experience their product designs, virtually. Johnson Controls division Keiper, is using Dassault Systèmes' latest CATIA software in the design process of its new Recaro vehicle seating systems. Mathias Gischke, Head of the Style and Surfaces department at Johnson Controls' Technical Center in Kaiserslautern, says: "13 years ago we decided to use ICEM Surf, the Class-A leading software at the time.