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Toyota, Honda, Nissan shut plants as big earthquake hits Japan

Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. suspended production at plants in Japan today and were assessing damage after an 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast, triggering a tsunami and shaking buildings as far away as Tokyo.

Porsche 918 Spyder hits the Nurburgring (video)

The Porsche 918 Spyder – Porsche’s hybrid replacement for the Carrera GT – has been caught on video at the Nurburgring. Incredibly, it’s more that two years since Porsche took the wraps of the 918 Spyder at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, yet we’re still more than a year away from actually seeing production cars. But Porsche are putting their time to good use. Porsche has made a few cosmetic tweaks already from the original 918 Concept, but they’ve also let it be known that the 918 Spyder will get a 550bhp 4.6 litre V8 to go with its electric motors on the front wheels  (one less motor than originally envisaged – there was going to be one one the back axle too), which will make the 918 Spyder a FWD Porsche when in EV mode.

Walking on the Edge: Ford blings out 2011 Sport crossover with 22s, blacked-out grille

“Dude, that is sick,” a rival designer gushed to Ford's Doyle Letson when the 2011 Edge Sport was revealed at the Chicago auto show last winter. “What does it look like with the real wheels on?” Letson replied, “Those are the real wheels.” The rollers in question are 22-inch forged aluminum wheels with tuxedo-black spoke accents wrapped in Pirelli tires. They look like they're stolen from a SEMA concept, and they're perhaps the single most distinguishing feature on the Sport model, which launches with the rest of the redone Edge lineup later this summer.