New Hutchinson Engine Torque Rod, 31200242 on 2040-parts.com

Revolutionary seat design offers new possibilities

Lufthansa has introduced an innovative business class seat, the result of five years of development by design agency PearsonLloyd. PearsonLloyd has decided to move away from the conventional technique of placing seats in different directions to allow reclining and has opted to arrange the seats in a ‘V' formation. This does not mean there is any invasion of personal space – far from it, as when passengers lie down their seat's consoles hide their heads.

Ferrari 458 Speciale (2013) at Frankfurt motor show

More power and pace, less weight and extra helpings of oversteer – here comes the Ferrari 458 Speciale. Regular customers will be reaching for their bank cards and road testers will be jockeying for a test drive of the extreme 458, because Ferrari has taken the most thrilling mid-engined car on the planet and turned the volume up to 11. The 458 Speciale follows in the smokin’ tyre tracks of the 360 Challenge Stradale and 430 Scuderia, in being the maximum attack version of Ferrari’s current mid-engined V8 berlinetta.

Lotus Europa becomes Proton Lekir

The Lotus Europa-based Proton Lekir Concept Lotus tried to make the 2006 Lotus Europa fulfil the same role in its lineup the original Lotus Europa did in the sixties – a bigger version of the main range. In the ’60s it worked – to a degree – but the 21st century iteration of the Europa was not a huge success. The trouble with the Europa was that buyers seemed to perceive it as what it was – a stop-gap before the Lotus Evora arrived.