Mid Valley Engineering Shur Shift 4- Speed on 2040-parts.com

GM's Bob Lutz put off retirement and put life back into a sagging lineup

Originally published: Sept. 14, 2008 Editor's note: This story comes from 100 Years: How General Motors Changed the World, published by Automotive News to commemorate the 100th anniversary of GM. In 2001, with seven years left to go in General Motors' first century, CEO Rick Wagoner knew that his product lineup badly needed upgrading if the company was going to have a second hundred years.

A look at Volvo future products

Volvo wants to derive economies of scale from a new front-wheel-drive architecture called SPA, for Scalable Platform Architecture. The redesigned XC90 crossover due in 2014 will be the first to use the architecture. SPA was designed for a new family of four-cylinder gasoline and diesel engines that Volvo will begin using on existing models next fall.

Honda plans rapid-fire launch of 2012 Civics

Honda will take a hurry-up approach when launching its delayed Civic family in April. Unlike past Civic rollouts--which spread the debuts of model types and variations over months and even years--Honda will launch every variety of the 2012 Civic within weeks of each other, said John Mendel, executive vice president of sales for American Honda. The family includes a sedan and coupe, multiple engines, lithium ion hybrid and natural gas versions, and a Civic Si edition.