Vintage 1930s Bakelite Mercury Shift Knob on 2040-parts.com

Ford recalls minivans, SUV

Ford is recalling nearly half a million vehicles to fix defects that can cause fires or loss of power. About 205,800 copies of the Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivan from the 2004 and 2005 model years are being recalled, because torque-converter output shafts in the transaxle might fail and cause power loss. Ford is also recalling 244,530 Escape SUVs from the 2001 and 2002 model years, which might have brake-fluid leaks that can cause corrosion and fire.

Infiniti G37 to sell alongside its Q50 replacement until 2015 model year

Infiniti has announced that the G37 sedan, which has been with us for a while, will continue alongside the all-new Q50 sedan until the 2015 model year. The 2014 Q50, ostensibly the G37's replacement, will go on sale later this week, though to keep things rolling along, Infiniti will be slashing prices on the two versions of the G37 which will continue on: the G37 Journey and the G37 Sedan AWD. The rear-wheel drive Infiniti G37 will now start at $33,455, down from $38,225, and the all-wheel drive G37 will now start at $35,055.

Cleveland Institute of Art - Nissan project

Nissan sponsored a semester-long project for the Cleveland Institute of Art at the end of last year. The project guidelines were to create a 'truck', which was defined as a vehicle that has some form of utility, for the year 2020. While some students decided to create more traditional truck designs, others chose to redefine what utility meant while others created projects that would appeal to very specific niche markets.