Sunpro Mechanical Gauge Pod on 2040-parts.com

It looks like Aston Martin could be getting AMG/Mercedes platforms too

Mercedes/AMG platforms would make the Lagonda SUV a reality We’d been expecting Aston Martin to get access to Mercedes platforms ever since the Lagonda SUV – based on the underpinnings of the Mercedes GL - arrived in all its ‘beauty’ in 2009. The Lagonda SUV was met with wails of anguish from lovers of Aston Martin’s timeless beauty but, despite the horror at the looks of the SUV, the prospect that Aston Martin could be heading down a collaboration route with Mercedes was welcome. It was welcome because without the support of a major car maker – and access to its technology – Aston Martin would have little chance of a bright future; there is no way a minnow like Aston Martin could afford the development cost of new engines and platforms.

Land Rover OKs LRX-based small SUV for Range Rover

Land Rover will put its striking LRX concept car, first displayed at the 2008 Detroit auto show, into production with the help of a $37.1 million grant from the British government. But in a move suggesting it will be pitched further upmarket than originally intended--against four-wheel-drive rivals such as the Audi Q5, the BMW X5 and the Mercedes-Benz GLK--the LRX will reach showrooms wearing Range Rover badges. "Internal studies have shown that if we deliver the LRX to market, it would be best suited to the Range Rover brand," Land Rover boss Phil Popham said.

'Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish': A tribute to Steve Jobs (1955-2011)

The recent passing of Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple, has found us mourning the loss of a visionary who brought not only technology and functionality to the product design industry, but also transcended the boundary into automotive design. Jobs succeeded in making what was at the time a foreign invention – the personal computer, a device impeded by its lack of usability – attractive to the masses by making it simpler, intuitive and essentially more functional for those who didn't hold a PhD in physics. From his previous experience with the artistic qualities of calligraphy, Jobs took a sector that was so inward looking that it risked alienating the consumer – regardless of its capability – and wrapped it up in a warm, aesthetically appealing package that could be more easily understood.