Vw Beetle Chrome Oil Filler Cap on 2040-parts.com

Toyota drags down new-vehicle quality average; Ford leads Detroit 3 gains

Dragged down by Toyota Motor Corp., the quality of new cars and trucks sold in the United States slipped slightly this year--the first time since 2007, according to a study released Thursday. But Detroit's automakers--helped by Ford Motor Co. and some of the smoothest new-model launches ever--have matched or surpassed Asian and European rivals in initial vehicle quality for the first time, based on the closely watched J.D.

Banks and Dallenbach ready for Pikes Peak with 1,400 hp

Not content to rest on his laurels after developing new diesel engines for military applications, Gale Banks and his company Banks Power will run a 1,400-hp, 1,301 lb-ft methanol-fueled vehicle up the now completely paved course at the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, which is scheduled to take place Aug. 8-12. Banks teamed up with Paul Dallenbach and Leonard Arnold of Dallenbach Racing for the occasion.

Lingenfelter Retrokit turns today's Camaro into classic RS

Ken Lingenfelter knows retro. When the fifth-generation Chevy Camaro came out in 2009, Lingenfelter Performance Engineering quickly designed and built a retro Trans-Am kit to transform the Camaro into a modern-day TA. Now, he's taking the WABAC machine even further to create Retrokits that make the new ponycar look like a 1969 Camaro RS.