Hurst 4 Speed Shifter Knob Vintage on 2040-parts.com

Yet another Kia Compact Crossover Concept heading for Frankfurt 2013

Yet another Kia Compact Crossover Concept (pictured) heading for Frankfurt We do seem to have had something of a run of concepts from Kia lately – particularly Compact SUV/Crossover Concepts – but none seem to be heading for production. Already in 2013 we’ve had the Kia Provo Concept, which looked like a suitably funky urban warrior to take on the market the Nissan Juke made its own, even if the ‘Provo’ name caused publicity-seeking politicians to spit and stomp. Following close on the heels of the Provo came the Kia CUB for the Seoul Motor Show (note the cuddly name – Kia didn’t want to shoot themselves in the foot again) which, although entirely convincing, just looked like yet another urban warrior compact crossover/SUV.

One Lap of the Web: Packards -- Ask the man who knows way too much about one

-- For some light Wednesday reading, here's more information than you ever wanted to know about Packard. It includes the horrible neoclassics that plagued the 1970s, and the 1995 revival of the Packard name that attempted to stick a shortened rendition of the famous Packard grille in front of a 440-hp V12, all wrapped in a shape that looked like a melted Twix, as shown above. Our august associate editor Graham Kozak owns a Packard, so he could have filled us in on the details.

Toyota's quake-hit Yaris plant offline for at least another month

Toyota's quake-hammered Miyagi assembly plant, which makes the Yaris small car for export to the United States, is expected to be offline for at least another month. Workers have completed repairs at the factory and restored electricity, but the facility cannot get supplies of natural gas, a person familiar with the situation said. The assessment underscores the long road facing Toyota and other Japanese automakers in bringing plants back into full operation following the deadly quake, which killed more than 11,000 people, ruptured gas lines, shutdown electric grids and snarled logistics across half the country.