Proliance 399101 Heater Core-sensa-trac Shock Absorber on 2040-parts.com

VW Group planning 10-speed DSG, new powerful diesel engine & more plug-in hybrids

The end of the internal combustion engine is nigh, they say, as the world tries to clean up its environmental act and works towards a goal of electric motors to power our personal transport. But car makers are fighting that belief by extracting more power for less fuel from ICE engines, and there’s still a very long way to go before the ICE engine is consigned to the history books. Volkswagen has already reduced the fuel consumption of both their diesel and petrol engines by 30 per cent since 2000 and plan a further reduction of 15 per cent by 2020.

Who's Where: Frank Stephenson to move to Fiat

Frank Stephenson, Director of Ferrari-Maserati Concept Design and Development, is to move to Fiat to become Head of the Fiat, Lancia and Commercial Vehicle Styling Centre, based in Turin. Fiat Auto has seen a number of senior management changes within the last week, as part of an overall restructuring of the group. These include the appointment of Karl Heinz Kalbfell, Chief Operating Officer of Alfa Romeo, who is to become Chief Executive Officer of Maserati and replace Martin Leach who is now leaving the Company.

The Petersen Museum isn't going belly up

I hate writing columns like this, the kind where one media outlet calls out another's mistakes. There but for the grace of God go I and all that… But the shrieking and hysteria over the Petersen Museum in Los Angeles going to hell in a handbasket -- that's what the LA Times reported -- is over the top, and it's turned into a fiasco. Here's the background.