Vacuum Connector (dorman #493-021) on 2040-parts.com

New Nissan 'Golf rival' teaser shot revealed

AFTER a long absence from the compact family hatchback market, Nissan has released a teaser shot of the car that it hopes will 'putt' the Volkswagen Golf in its place. The new car will be called the Pulsar, and comes eight years after the final UK-bound Almera hatchback was sold. Nissan will be hoping that the dour reputation of that car will be left long behind, and on the basis of its latest models like the new Qashqai, things are looking good.

Autonomous emergency braking mandatory in Europe by 2014

Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) is set to become mandatory as a result of new European regulations. From 2014 Euro NCAP – the organization responsible for conducting independent assessment of vehicle safety performance – will amend its reports and no car will gain a five-star rating without AEB. It's hoped an increased use of the system will cut down on front-end impacts as well as pedestrian injuries.

Marchionne's dilemma: To sell or not to sell Alfa to Volkswagen?

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne's self-confidence has helped him tackle problems that lesser executives would duck, but he may have met his match. In a public test of Marchionne's faith in his own turnaround strategy, in September Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piech bluntly announced that he wants to buy Alfa Romeo. Piech was suggesting that VW--and only VW--could transform Fiat's perennial money-losing brand into a real moneymaker.