02 Lexus Rx300 Windshield Wiper Combination Control Switch Oem 99 00 01 03 on 2040-parts.com

Jaguar tops J. D. Power Survey again in 2013

Even though the Jaguar XF actually slipped from 2nd to 3rd in the top cars section (although it was the ‘Best Executive Car’), behind the Skoda Superb and Skoda Yeti, it received five star ratings for performance, service and running costs and owners rated it as ‘Excellent’ across all categories. And it was more good news for Jaguar Land Rover as Land Rover was rated the most improved brand in 2013, jumping in to the top ten (in 6th place) for the first time, with Freelander owners noting an improved dealer experience and Discovery owners reporting 30 per cent fewer faults – and actually leading the SUV sector for reliability. That’ll help the still lingering perception that JLR’s cars can be ‘fragile’.

Fiat challenges RCA students to design the 500 or Panda of 2020

Fiat is challenging Vehicle Design students at London's Royal College of Art to explore how the Fiat 500 and the Panda might look in 2020 in a new contest called ‘Two of a Kind'. 14 teams of four students from across all design disciplines are asked to design innovative exterior and interior proposals taking interactivity, digital interface, sustainability and global appeal in account, using the Fiat design language as a starting point. The Master's students will be supported by six lectures at the RCA from some of the carmaker's top designers, such as head of design (Europe, Middle East and Asia regions) Roberto Giolito and head of global design Lorenzo Ramaciotti.

Worth a read: Wired's 'Why Getting It Wrong Is the Future of Design'

Wired has just published a series of short articles entitled 13 Lessons for Design's New Golden Age. While there are some interesting examples cited in the piece, the concluding article, ‘Why Getting It Wrong Is the Future of Design' by the former creative director of Wired magazine, Scott Dadich, feels like it has particular resonance for car design. Dadich's Wrong Theory uses disruptive examples from the world of art, plus his own experience of working at Wired, to explain how design goes through phases: establishing a direction, creating a set of rules that define that direction and finally someone who dares to break from that direction.