Smp/standard Dla-193 Door Lock Motor-power Door Lock Actuator on 2040-parts.com

Art Center BMW/Exa project

There's a new sponsored project that is just getting under way at Art Center College of Design, the likes of which hasn't been seen in a very long time - if at all. The school's Transportation Design department has helped bring together BMW with Exa Corporation, a Boston-based virtual aerodynamic simulation company, and has tasked the students to re-design the current BMW X5 Sports Activity Vehicle with the hope of dramatically increasing its aerodynamic efficiency while still retaining the BMW flagship SAV design language. This brief is quite timely in the context of the industry's ongoing focus with sustainability and strikes at the core of the BMW Group's long term energy strategy known as the concept of Efficient Dynamics.

2013 Honda CR-Z hybrid gets power boost

The slow-selling Honda CR-Z hybrid hatchback gets a new lithium-ion battery pack and more-powerful electric for the 2013 model year. The change from a nickel metal hydride battery pack helps boost output from the hybrid powertrain's electric motor from 10 kilowatts to 15 kilowatts. The powertrain's combined output is now rated at 130 hp at 6,000 rpm, up 8 hp from the 2012 model.

2013 SEAT Toledo price from £12,495

The new SEAT Toledo – sister car to the new Skoda Rapid – will cost from £12,495 when it arrives in the UK in early 2013. When SEAT told us about the new Toledo in June they said it would arrive first in the Iberian peninsula (which makes sense) at the end of 2012 before rolling out in Mexico, Turkey and Germany. But no mention of the UK.