Sherwin Williams Afm0415 Ai1 Ruby Red Rr on 2040-parts.com

Ford and GM tie-in with Apple

Having established a relationship with Nike for recycling materials as demonstrated on the Ford Reflex concept, Ford has now joined GM in collaborating with Apple to ensure their cars are iPod compatible. Rather than the retrofitted wire many drivers have had to resort to, cars will offer a bespoke area in the glove compartment that also acts as a charging point, the iPod instead controlled through the car?s GUI. By the end of the year, 70% of all new models sold in America are expected to be iPod compatible, an arrangement that furthers Apple?s continuing domination of the MP3-player market and one that will introduce Apple to the car-computer market, anticipated to be worth $6billion by 2010.

Hyundai Elantra

Hyundai is set to add another vehicle to its list of successes: the new Elantra, which was revealed at the LA auto show this year. Created by principal designer Cedric d'Andre, the Elantra was the last car conceived under the direction of Hyundai's former design boss, Joel Piaskowski. The new car shares the 'fluidic sculpture' design theme of its larger sibling, the Sonata and has an impressively low 0.28Cd.

Volvo S60 Long Wheelbase (S60L) goes in to production

Volvo S60 Long Wheelbase (S60L) goes in to production Volvo certainly seems to be on the up at the moment, with new cars like the new V40 challenging established premium compacts and a complete new engine range in the offing. That is, to a great degree, down to the ownership of Volvo by China’s Geely after a period of stagnation under Ford, and now the Chinese ownership is starting to make strides in China. Chinese sales for Volvo are growing, and that’s going to be helped by a new long wheelbase version of the S60, built for the Chinese market in China and due to debut at the Guangzhou Motor Show later this month.