1980 Honda Cr250 Ignition Coil Elsinore Cr 250 on 2040-parts.com

One Lap of the Web: the Bill Thomas Cheetah, Martini Racing and the 1976 Ferrari 208 GT4

We spend a lot of time on the Internet -- pretty much whenever we're not driving, writing about or working on cars. Since there's more out there than we'd ever be able to cover, here's our daily digest of car stuff on the Web you may not otherwise have heard about. --You've probably seen the Martini Racing livery on everything from Formula One cars to rally cars.

Ford's Sync takes on General Motors' OnStar with live operators

Ford Motor Co. is taking on General Motors' OnStar system by offering live operator assistance. Ford's new feature, called Operator Assist, offers live operators to help Sync Services subscribers find a business or get turn-by-turn directions.

Brazilian students develop soapbox racers for Volkswagen

Brazilian design students have competed for year-long internships at Volkswagen's Brazilian design studio by designing – and racing – soapbox cars. Established 15 years ago by Volkswagen South America design director Luiz Veiga, the Volkswagen Design Talent Contest refreshed its format for 2013 by challenging students to develop a prototype for a gravity-powered soapbox racer instead of asking for sketch and render-based proposals. According to Veiga, Volkswagen was looking for someone "capable of working away from the desk and able to create design solutions, assess and build them".