Philips Rubber Led Torch Sfl5200 4.6x3.0x15.4cm on 2040-parts.com

Ford follows Hyundai with payment protection plan

Ford Motor Co., taking a cue from Asian rival Hyundai Motor, is offering to make car payments for buyers who lose their jobs. The program, called the Ford Advantage Plan, will cover payments for up to 12 months. The move is aimed at boosting sales, which have fallen 45.9 percent this year through February at Ford Motor and 39.4 percent industrywide as the U.S.

Volvo S60 L plug-in petrol hybrid heading for Beijing Motor Show

The Volvo S60L Plug-in (pictured) heading for Beijing The Volvo V60 Plug-in is already doing good business for Volvo – despite a price tag of £50k – but the V60 plug-in is a diesel hybrid which doesn’t suit all markets. So Volvo are ploughing ahead with a petrol engine based plug-in hybrid with the debut at the Beijing Motor Show next week of the Volvo S60 L Plug-in, a petrol hybrid version of the long wheelbase S60. At first glance the S60 Plug-in looks just like its regular ICE sibling, but under the skin sits a 2.0 litre Drive-E petrol engine with 238bhp and 258lb/ft of torque – which drives the front wheels – and a 68bhp electric motor with 147lb/ft of torque that can drive the rear wheels, which can be recharged in 4.5 hours.

Honda tears up its old product plan

Honda Motor Co. is reviewing its entire lineup with the aim of building less expensive and more fuel-efficient vehicles, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito says. In the case of some next-generation products--including the crucial Civic platform used on a variety of vehicles worldwide--that means making major changes to vehicles already well along in the development process.