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Record expected for Auto Union sale

By James Mullan Motor Industry 07 February 2007 09:21 A rare 1939 Auto Union Type D grand prix car is tipped to tear up the record books this month when it goes under the hammer – for an estimated price of up to £7.8 million. Auto Union developed the Type D racing car with a mid-mounted 3.0-litre 12-cylinder engine; in 1939, it was modified with the addition of a twin supercharger, increasing power 420bhp to 460bhp – enough for a top speed of 205mph. This particular car won the French and Yugoslavian Grand Prix in 1939, but at the end of the Second World War it was transported from East Germany to the former Soviet Union by Russian occupation forces as spoils of war.

Next Mustang to feature global design input, Ford says

Ford Motor Co.'s design studios worldwide will provide styling ideas for an American icon: the next generation Mustang. "It is a common process we [now] use on every vehicle," Derrick Kuzak, Ford's group vice president for global product development, said Tuesday at the Geneva auto show. Ford's next-generation pony car will be the first Mustang with styling themes proposed by studios in Europe, Australia and other regions.

Where is Nissan and Infiniti design headed? Just look at the lamps

For a glimpse at future styling trends from Nissan Motor Co., look to the headlamps on the Nissan Leaf electric car and the sculpted rear of the Infiniti M. Front and rear lamps raised from the body surface and pronounced spoilers are two tricks Nissan will use more often to improve the aerodynamics and handling of vehicles--in addition to giving them a futuristic flair, global design chief Shiro Nakamura says. The goal: Win young drivers and bring sales of models such as the Nissan Altima in line with Japanese rivals "The important thing is the front end and the rear end," Nakamura said during an April 12 interview at the company's main design studio south of Tokyo.