Triumph Motorcycles 10 Inch Metallic Silver Wing Patch on 2040-parts.com

Car companies, community & a cause

Last Saturday night (April 20) was one of those I-can't believe-I-get-paid-to-do-this kind of evenings. My wife Maria and I -- along with 550 of our closest friends -- were invited to attend the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute's 31st annual dinner. The name sort of says it all, and the dinner is a simple enough concept that even I get it: It's held to raise money.

New V12 engine set to power baby Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce said Monday that the upcoming production version of the 200EX concept car revealed at the Geneva motor show earlier this month will be powered by turbocharged 6.6-liter V12 engine. Part of a new family of gasoline engines developed by parent company BMW--among which is the turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 used in the 7-series--the new four-valve-per-cylinder engine receives the latest in direct-injection technology and is claimed to produce in excess of 500 hp. With the smaller V8 developing 442 lb-ft of torque in the range-topping BMW, the new V12 destined for the price-leading Rolls-Royce is expected to be in the vicinity of 553 lb-ft--something that should ensure what the British carmaker likes to refer to as traditional waftability--in other words, relaxed cruising.

'James Bond' Aston Martin to be auctioned

THE ASTON Martin most closely associated with James Bond is to go to auction next month. The DB5, an example of which featured in 1964’s movie Goldfinger, where it was driven by Sean Connery’s Bond, is perhaps the most recognisable ‘Bond car’. The car featured again more recently, this time with Daniel Craig’s Bond behind the wheel in the blockbuster Skyfall.