Mac Tools Radiator Drain Socket 1/4" Drive Pcs300 on 2040-parts.com

European Parliament: electric cars must make noise

The European Parliament has voted in favour of a European Commission proposal to decrease the maximum allowed noise for new cars, vans, trucks, buses and coaches, in an effort to reduce “vehicle noise nuisance” by 25%. At the same time, the EU has voted in favour of a proposal to force carmakers to fit electric and hybrid electric vehicles with a sound generating device, to improve low speed safety for pedestrians and the visually impaired. On Bing: see pictures of electric cars Find out how much a used electric car costs on Auto Trader The proposed changes, which are expected to become law, would see new car noise levels reduced by four decibels, commercial vehicle noise levels reduced by three decibels.

VW Taigun: It’s an Up! SUV

Volkswagen has revealed the VW Taigun at the Sao Paulo Motor Show in Brazil, a very compact SUV based on the VW Up! The Taigun is 3859mm long and 1728mm wide, making it a chunk smaller than the next VW SUV up (the Tiguan) and smaller even than Nissan’s Juke, but it gets an extra 50mm in the wheelbase compared to the Up so interior room looks decent. Vw say the Taigun is purposely designed to look just like a mini-me Tiguan or Touareg (and sound like one too) with its very similar styling, high ride height, skid plates and roof rails with an interior that offers room for four and enough spce for 280 litre of stuff in the boot (a plentiful 987 litres with the back seats folded).

One Lap of the Web: Green machines, light-up stars and an upside down Porsche

We spend a lot of time on the Internet -- pretty much whenever we're not driving, writing about or working on cars. Since there's more out there than we'd ever be able to cover, here's our daily digest of car stuff on the Web you may not otherwise have heard about. To participate in the 24 Hours of LeMons you not only need a sub-$500 car, but you also have to find a gimmick.