Motorcraft Sw-5947 Cruise Control Component-speed Control Deactivator Switch on 2040-parts.com

VW to announce Italdesign takeover on Tuesday

Volkswagen will announce Tuesday that it will take a 90 percent stake in Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A, people familiar with the matter told Automotive News Europe. The Giugiaro family will retain 10 percent in the Italian design house that is famous for styling cars such as the first-generation VW Golf. VW plans to acquire control of Italdesign to help reach its goal of becoming the world's largest automaker by 2018 with sales of 10 million vehicles a year.

TMG Sports 605 concept to debut at Essen Motor Show

While most of us are focusing on the LA Auto Show happening later this week, Toyota Motorsport GmbH is quietly revealing the TMG Sports 650 concept at the Essen Motor Show in Germany. The TMG Sports 650 is a hopped-up, twin-turbocharged V8 version of the normally staid Lexus LS460 sedan. In the concept, power grows from 386 to an impressive 641 hp at 7,450 rpm, while torque jumps to 564 lb-ft.

Videos: Chris Bangle shares his views on design and the future of car design

Chris Bangle is a man that needs no introduction on these pages. Both revered and castigated, Bangle's work has undoubtedly been influential for a generation of designers. His unconventional practices – employed at a time when design was still largely segregated from other departments during the development process – yielded many avantgarde and contentious designs, but Bangle's fundamental understanding of the design process, creative vision and desire for change can never be cast in doubt. While Bangle shares his views on the future of the car in the video to the right, the video to the left provides an insight into the former BMW design chief's thought processes and gives us a glimpse into his home and studio in the Piedmont region of northern Italy.