Pertronix D41-20a Distributor on 2040-parts.com

Tesla Model S performance version to rival BMW M5

Tesla Model S with M5 Performance Our inherent scepticism about Elon Musk’s claims for the Tesla Model S refuses to go away, but Tesla are convinced they can deliver the Model S with a 300-mile range, great looks, great performance and top-end tecchy goodness at a sub-$70k price tag. And now, it seems, there is going to be a Tesla Model S with performance to rival the BMW M5. At an event yesterday in California, Elon Musk revealed that at launch – the Model S is expected to be hit the road in 2012 with UK cars arriving in 2013 – the Model S will in fact have four variants on offer.

Hartmut Warkuss to receive 2014 EyesOn Design Catalyst Award

Hartmut Warkuss, former head of Volkswagen Design, will be awarded the 2014 Catalyst Award by EyesOn Design at next week's North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). Warkuss, who is credited with overseeing the design of the Bugatti Veyron, the VW Concept (new Beetle) and the Audi TT Concept, will be presented with the award by Peter Schreyer, Hyundai's president and chief design officer and the 2014 recipient of the EyesOn Design Lifetime Design Achievement Award. Schreyer, who met Warkuss when he was an intern at Audi in 1978, says, "He was chief designer at that time...

Petrolhead spiders cause Mazda recall

Mazda has had to recall 42,000 vehicles in the US after it emerged that a species of spider had been weaving webs in fuel vent hoses, increasing the risk of fuel leaks and fires. The yellow sac spider’s curious domestic activities cause a build-up of pressure in the evaporative fuel vent that – in theory at least – could result in a cracked fuel tank and therefore an increased risk of fire. This isn’t the first time that the Mazda 6 has received the unwanted advances of a gas-guzzling arachnid, either – three years ago Mazda had to recall over 50,000 cars for precisely the same reason.