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The Future Role of the Vehicle Designer

The vehicle design department at the Royal College of Art hosted the second in a series of five lectures looking at the future of the profession last week. Moving on from the previous week's topic of sustainability, this debate explored the future roles and responsibilities of the vehicle designer. Head of department Dale Harrow began by posing the question "Is it time to rethink – do we still need the car?" Although still relevant, Harrow's ultimate answer to this was that the profession was about to see marked change, with the end to an era where "designers are locked behind closed doors in studios".

Two new Aston Martin models to debut at New York auto show

Aston Martin has announced that it will debut new versions of its Vantage and DB9 sports cars at the New York auto show. At $99,900, the Vantage GT becomes the lowest-price option in the Aston Martin lineup. With a 430-hp V8, a 190-mph top speed and some seriously attractive bodywork, the budget model could prove tempting to Porsche 911 buyers.

AT&T launches campaign against texting and driving

AT&T has launched an 11-minute video designed to augment its anti-texting-and-driving campaign launched in March. The video is intended to reach consumers before New Year's Eve. Called "The Last Text," the video tells stories about people whose lives were adversely affected by texting while driving, including the parents of Mariah West, who died after texting "Where u at?" to a friend.