Vintage Hurst Airheart 150 Series Brake Caliper on 2040-parts.com

Silver remains the top car color, but black is closing the gap

Silver and black are in close competition for the world's most popular car color this year. DuPont's 58th global automotive-color report showed just two percentage points separating silver from black as the preferred color--with black being substantially popular outside of North America. After seven years running at the No.

2012 Mazda CX-5 at Frankfurt

2012 Mazda CX-5 - Frankfurt Debut Mazda has been touting its SKYACTIV Technologies for some time now, and the new 2012 Mazda CX-5 – which Mazda will debut at Frankfurt next month – is the first Mazda to come endowed with a complete raft of SKYACTIV stuff. The clever stuff includes Mazda’s new modular platform that can be used for everything from the Mazda3 upwards, and which is said to give the CX-5 not just car-like handling but proper sporty and stable driving dynamics too. The SKYACTIV technology comes in to play with the engines too on the CX-5, with the new 2.2 litre diesel delivering 173bhp and a remarkably low 120g/km in standard guise.

Creature comforts now top car-shoppers' 'must-haves'

New technologies come with a learning curve, but once we tackle the initial challenge it's amazing how quickly new features become “must-haves.” From cars that unlock as we approach to those that keep themselves between the lines and a safe distance from what's ahead, we have already become accustomed to high-tech driving. So which features would most drivers refuse to live without? Surprisingly, it's the simplest creature comforts most people hold dear—at least for now.