New Replacement Steering Idler Arm, Rp20310 on 2040-parts.com

AutoWeek office swag: Mazda rotary-engine keychain with realistic motion

When I got the keys to our long-term 2011 Mazda 5 last week, they came with a surprise--this aluminum-and-brass keychain in the shape of a rotary-engine housing, complete with moving rotor. The rotor doesn't just rattle around or spin in a circle. Thanks to a thumbwheel on the back of the housing, coupled with a timing gear and offset crank journal, the thing actually moves in an approximation of epitrochoidal motion just like a real Wankel.

Supercars targeted by vandals

OWNERS of luxury and supercars are reporting increased damage to their cars brought on by jealousy. Many don’t bother to report damage to their cars to the police now as they accept it as part of the risk of owning an expensive car. Called ‘car hate crimes’, the damage to cars such as Porsches.

Mercedes AMG had its best ever year in 2013 – sales up 40 per cent in the UK

Record sales in 2013 for Mercedes AMG AMG is becoming more and more important to Mercedes, not just in numbers sold but in the performance glow AMG versions of Mercedes cars cast across the whole range. And those numbers of AMG Mercedes sold reached new highs in 2013 with AMG reporting sales of 32,200, the biggest ever total from Mercedes performance division. AMG’s three key markets – the UK, US and Germany – all posted record sales, but it was the UK that saw the biggest growth with sales up by 40 per cent (up 20 per cent ion the US and 10 per cent in Germany).