National Cycle Switchblade 2-up Windshield - Clear N21113 on 2040-parts.com

EV maker Coda trims staff

Not much more could go wrong for electric-car maker Coda, which has struggled to sell its four-door EV in the United States since officially launching it here in March. But Web reports, first seen at www.plugincars.com, say the company laid off 50 employees, or 15 percent of its workforce, last week, mostly in the sales and marketing departments. Efforts by Autoweek to contact Coda have not been successful.

Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Exclusive Edition – just for the UK (video)

Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Exclusive Edition – just for the UK Just like all the ‘premium’ car makers, Porsche has a division that deals with special requests; extras and plans that fall outside the normal options list – Porsche Exclusive. Porsche Exclusive offers a level of personalisation that goes way beyond what the regular options list offers and, in Porsche’s own words, the “…possibilities for personalisation are almost endless”. With that in mind, Porsche Hatfield has commissioned Porshe Exclusive to build just five 911 Carrera 4S cars for the UK, with carefully understated customisations to paintwork and interior, and a smattering of Union Jacks – just to make sure these are ‘British’ 911s.

One-off Ferrari 458 pays tribute to Niki Lauda

One-off Ferrari 458 pays tribute to Niki Lauda Younger readers might not see the connection between Ferrari and Niki Lauda; after all, Niki Lauda is Chairman of the Mercedes F1 team, not Ferrari. But back in the 1970s, Niki Lauda was the Prince of the Ferrari F1 team, notching up driver titles in 1975 and 1977 in a Ferrari (and suffering horrific burns at the Nurburgring in 1975). Although Lauda left Ferrari  in 1977 on less than good terms, the Ron Howard tribute film to the ’70s battle between Lauda and James Hunt – Rush – has obviously had an impact on one of Ferrari’s wealthier clients, who has commissioned Ferrari’s Tailor Made Programme to create a Ferrari 458 dedicated to Niki Lauda.