Horn Relay Switch Sy 266 on 2040-parts.com

This could be your first autonomous vehicle

While Google's autonomous fleet of robot cars prowls Silicon Valley and gets all the press, the first, or one of the first, truly autonomous vehicles you may ride in could be something like this: The humble, people-moving Navia. Developed by a French company called Induct, the Navia is ringed with laser beams (not frickin' laser beams. Ed.) that help it navigate through city streets or college campuses without the aid of a track in the ground, a rail or even GPS (GPS is not accurate enough, Induct says).

Smart to sell Nissan-built car in U.S. in 2011

The U.S. distributor of Smart cars says it has a tentative deal with Nissan to sell a small, five-door car built by the Japanese automaker under the Smart brand, beginning in late 2011. Smart USA Distributor LLC, which is owned by Roger Penske's Penske Automotive Group, said the car would be powered by a gasoline engine and fit the B-segment size class.

Mazda plots cleaner diesels, rotaries, stop-start

By Richard Aucock Motoring Issues 19 September 2008 07:00 Mazda has opened its R&D department up to CAR, in a demonstration of how it's tackling a changing world. It's spilled the beans on its future engine tech, how it's going to continue stripping weight out of its cars, when stop-start is coming – and more besides. Read on for the lowdown on Mazda's eco tech future.And it's not all boring.