Sway Bar Bushing Kit on 2040-parts.com

Hot seats: from design to delivery [sponsored]

As the user demands on car interiors are increasingly influenced by their growing design consciousness, so suppliers like Lear strive to bring better-engineered seating to satisfy. 2013 was another big year for Lear, as Jeanette Puig-Pey, its global fabric & leather design manager, enthuses: "At our ‘Design2Perform' event we celebrated the unveiling of our brand new collection, with special emphasis on color and texture and our TeXstyle Enhance product, perfect for customization. Laser etching is part of this offering, it is exclusive to Lear Corporation and can be used to add refined design elements to cloth and leather." A mix of fabric and leather in seating is not new but is often seen by the consumer as a cheaper alternative to full leather.

Car Design Awards China winners head to Coventry University

Two Car Design China Award 2012 winners won the fantastic opportunity to spend two weeks in Coventry's Automotive Design department. We headed to Coventry to find out how Cao Chengang, a Tongji University graduate, and Gao Zhigiang, currently studying at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, are finding their time in the UK. After shaking off their jet lag they rolled their sleeves up and began an intense project under the watchful eye of the Art and Design school's senior lecturers.

VW Passat Alltrack (2012) first official pictures

The poor man's Audi A6 Allroad? The new Volkswagen Passat Alltrack follows a well-trod path to create a more rugged estate car with some of the accoutrements of an SUV. Set to be unveiled at the 2011 Tokyo motor show at the end of November, the new Passat in wellies will arrive in UK dealers in July 2012.