1937-64 Checker Cab Crankshaft F0600c600 on 2040-parts.com

Who's Where: John Puskar and Liz Wetzel appointed to new roles at GM Design

As part of an ongoing strategy at General Motors, this past month has seen a series of moves taking place within the company's design organization in Europe and the US. Two of the key changes have been the appointment of John Puskar to the role of Director of Cross-Brand Strategy, C&T and Components in North America, and that of Liz Wetzel, who has been named Director of GME Design Interior – effectively filling Puskar's role. Puskar, who until recently headed the Opel/Vauxhall Interior Design at the European Design Center in Russelsheim, Germany, majored in Industrial Design at the Cleveland Institute of Art and worked at Ford in both the USA and Germany before joining General Motors as a creative designer at the GMC Brand Center in 1999.

New Jaguar XE: More Ingenium engine details (video)

Jaguar XE 2.0 litre diesel Ingenium engine – from 99g/km Unlike the new Land Rover Discovery Sport – which makes do with the current outsourced 2.2 litre diesel engine – the new Jaguar XE is getting JLR’s all-new range of Ingenium engines from launch. Now, with the proper debut of the XE just a week away, Jaguar is happy to share a bit more detail on the XE’s new engines. Built at Jaguar’s new engine plant – in which JLR has invested £500 million – the new Ingenium engines are a clean-sheet design, as light and efficient as possible and capable of delivering an impressive blend of power and torque.

Suzuki showing signs of distress, scaling back U.S. operations

Struggling Suzuki is shrinking in many ways. Insiders say the company is slashing marketing while sales and the dealer roster dwindle. The many signs of trouble: -- In a market up 13 percent through March, Suzuki was down 2 percent to just 6,561 sales.