Lisle 46950 Relay Puller Pliers on 2040-parts.com

Mini to return to the WRC in 2011 with 4x4

Mini is back in rallying, more than 50 years after it ruled the roost at Monte Carlo and beyond, giving a huge shot in the arm to the World Rally Championship. In typically audacious style BMW has announced it will campaign the Countryman SUV rather than the standard Mini, starting with selected WRC rounds in 2011 followed by the entire 2012 season.It’s also a return to WRC for Banbury-based Prodrive, the outfit behind Subaru’s legendary WRC success, who will develop the car and run the team. Prodrive last campaigned in the 2008 season, and have been developing the Countryman since early 2009.

Retrospective: The Detroit auto show 2002, 1997 and 1987

While the North American International Auto Show is over for the media, it's just heating up for the public, and we want to keep the ball rolling with a special look back at Detroit auto shows past. Where better than through articles from Autoweek's coverage of the show through the years? They will be available to download in both .pdf and .jpg formats in their entirety, including the cover.

Volkswagen plans return of Microbus

An expanded lineup of Beetle-themed cars are in Volkswagen's future, including a Microbus model that we have seen in various concept forms over the past decade, according to Auto Express. When Volkswagen renews the Beetle in 2019, it will also debut a crossover, coupe and a mini-MPV, all based on the MQB architecture that underpins the new Golf. Even though plans of an MPV rebirth date back to the introduction of a number of concepts in the early 2000s, Volkswagen hadn't pulled the trigger on putting an homage to the Bus (known as the Kombi in most of the world, or Camper in the U.K.) intro production for a number of reasons.