Mercury / Mariner 4hp 4stroke Carburettor on 2040-parts.com

Gurney cars lead record list of entries at Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

The acceptance letters went out this week for the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, the vintage racing weekend formerly known as the Monterey Historics, and it looks as if you'll get your money's worth out of this year's event. While previous years usually featured about 400 or so cars, the 2010 running of the renamed Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, managed now by SCRAMP, will feature 520 vintage entries. Leading the pack is what promises to be a once-in-a-lifetime collection of 35 cars either designed, built or raced by the great Dan Gurney, this year's honoree.

German Parts Pillagers Roam the American Southwest, Sending Treasures Home For Future Car Museum

Quite a few older European cars are purchased in rust-free parts of the United States and then shipped back to the home continent, and this process tends to intensify when the Euro gets stronger versus the dollar. While that's going on, crews of European gearheads also roam the wrecking yards of the Southwest, filling shipping containers with parts to ship back home; I know of a trio of Swedes who come to Colorado every year and ship home tons of parts, but they've got nothing on this pair of Germans. These gentlemen fly to the United States four times each year, spending two or three weeks each trip, and send home cars and shipping containers packed with parts, all as part of a scheme to open up a car collection showcasing "cars from the road." They were kind enough to send me a bunch of photos of their most recent trip, so let's see what their enviable lifestyle looks like.

Plans for Smart’s three-seat sports car uncovered in patent drawings

Mercedes-Benz is developing a three-seat sports car for Smart. Depicted here in a series of European patent-application sketches obtained by AutoWeek, the radical new sports car forms part of an extended range of new Smart models planned for introduction by the middle of the next decade, including a more conventional four-seater to be produced in cooperation with Renault. Mercedes-Benz is reacting to increased competition from Toyota in the form of the iQ and the impending arrival of similar urban-based offerings from premium-brand rivals Audi and BMW.