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NHTSA unveils new safety ratings; BMW and Hyundai first to get five stars

The 2011 BMW 5-series and the Hyundai Sonata were the first two cars to achieve five-star ratings under NHTSA's revised safety ratings announced on Tuesday. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will rate a total of 24 cars, 20 SUVs, nine pickups and two vans for the 2011 model year. The federal agency has significantly modified its rating process and will now grade side-pole testing and crash-prevention technologies such as lane-departure warning and electronic stability control.

Nissan's senior manager color and design strategy Francois Farion on the importance of objects in keeping focus [w/Video]

Nissan's Francois Farion, senior manager, color and design strategy, features in a new video giving an insight into how important objects are to designers when communicating, defining and maintaining their design intentions. A lot of time and energy goes into designing a car and so, Farion says, it's vital that designers keep their focus throughout the process. He believes objects are the key to creating coherent designs.

Ford Ranger T6, EcoSport crossover spied in Denver

Apparently Ford wanted to give a few of its offerings a mile-high workout. That would explain why Autoweek reader Brendan Bartolo was able to catch a fleet of four vehicles parked, hoods open, in a Denver hotel parking lot. Full-body camouflage can't disguise a pair of 2013 Ford Fusion sedans, but we have no way of knowing what new technologies may or may not lurk under their conventional sheet metal.