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Missed Shift? American Top Gear struggles to find its own identity

"What happened to Top Gear?" my favorite bartender asked this past weekend. "Somebody took the BBC's scripts and wrote Tanner, Rutledge and Adam over cues which previously said Jeremy, Richard and James," I replied. It's an easy sideswipe I admit, but for me--and I'm guessing for the automotive enthusiasts who constitute AutoWeek's audience--it largely tells the tale.

Volvo C70 Inscription to debut at L.A. Motor Show

Volvo C70 Inscription We know that the Volvo C70 – Volvo’s four-seat, tin-top convertible – is not long for this world, so perhaps the news that there’s to be a limited edition C70 – the C70 Inscription – bowing in at the LA Motor Show is the C70′s swansong. Volvo are keen to point out that the C70 was the world’s first four seat convertible with a three piece folding metal roof as standard, which made the C70 a proper all year round convertible; open-topped motoring when the weather permits, and all the joys of a coupe when the skies darken. The C70 Inscription is to be limited to just 2,000 cars worldwide, and you can grab one of those coming to the UK from £33,855 for the D3 SE Inscription.

Infographic: How much clay do Ford’s design studios use each year?

Ford has offered an insight into its clay modeling processes with a series of videos and an infographic that charts the process involved in turning a designer's sketch into a full-size model. The infographic uses data taken from all of Ford's global design studios in 2012 to give an idea of how much clay is used in a year, plus how much paint and di-noc film is used to cover each model. Ford has also released a video that gives a behind-the-scenes look at the firm's clay modeling studio in Merkenich, Germany, including interviews with members of the modeling team.