Victor G31737 Throttle Body Base Gasket on 2040-parts.com

Smart: the best concepts and special editions

By James Clark Motoring Issues 18 July 2014 11:24 As Smart lifts the lid on the new ForTwo and ForFour this week, CAR magazine looks back on wonderful, wacky and downright woeful Smart special editions and concepts that have been created since the diminutive City Coupe first arrived on the scene in 1998. The Crossblade was a 2002 special edition based on the cabrio version of the city car. Its Brabus-tuned motor put out 70bhp and the car weighed just 740kg.

May Sale For Regal Bentley

IT’S time to shake the piggy bank as a 1970 Bentley T1 once owned by His Grace the Duke of Devonshire is being offered for sale without reserve at Silverstone Auctions’ May Sale on Saturday 24th May. The car is being offered for sale due to lack of use by its current owner Leslie Bricusse, the English composer famous for writing a string of hits including the theme to James Bond’s Goldfinger, Sammy Davis Jnr’s What kind of fool am I, and Nina Simone’s Feeling Good. During the Duke’s ownership, notable passengers included Her Majesty The Queen, former Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, poet and writer Sir John Betjeman, and both Princess Alexandra and Princess Margaret.

Keyless ignition trends toward standardization

A federal plan to require automakers to standardize keyless ignition systems in the wake of Toyota's unintended acceleration problems is likely to mirror industry guidelines issued in January, an automaker group said. Large automakers except Toyota said they already comply with the guidelines crafted by SAE International or plan to do so. These "recommended practices'' seek to counter the variation, driver confusion and safety problems that have ensued since automakers started installing push-button ignition in luxury models.