Mercruiser Alpha 1 Gen 2 Lower Unit Gear Set on 2040-parts.com

Banks and Dallenbach ready for Pikes Peak with 1,400 hp

Not content to rest on his laurels after developing new diesel engines for military applications, Gale Banks and his company Banks Power will run a 1,400-hp, 1,301 lb-ft methanol-fueled vehicle up the now completely paved course at the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, which is scheduled to take place Aug. 8-12. Banks teamed up with Paul Dallenbach and Leonard Arnold of Dallenbach Racing for the occasion.

Henrik Fisker leaves his eponymous company

Henrik Fisker, co-founder of Fisker Automotive, has resigned from the company as Fisker seeks funding to move forward. But Henrik Fisker managed to convince the car world his Fisker Karma was credible, even if its gestation has been plagued by problems,  the latest of which has been the demise of its battery supplier – A123 Systems – and the wrecking of a dock full of seemingly uninsured Karmas by Hurricane Sandy. The current problems at Fisker has seen them seeking a new investor, with two Chinese companies – Geely and Dohnfeng – vying to take a majority stake in Fisker Automotive and help Fisker recover sales of the Karma and move on with Project Nina, the smaller Fisker Atlantic.

Chrysler readies new-product binge

Chrysler Group dealers, starving for new products, will get a banquet of nameplates in three years--a startling change for a company that narrowly missed going out of business. Up to 25 models will be vying for customers' attention in 2013, when new, Fiat-based models are scheduled to arrive. The automaker now has 17 nameplates.