1989 Suzuki Rm125 Rm-125 Rear Shock Kyb on 2040-parts.com

Man-made Modern Luxury Materials in Cars

Luxury, within the context of a car interior, has been closely related to the use of wood and leather for over a century. These natural materials have a familiar organic, tactile quality that are intrinsically desirable attributes for most people and, in today's mass manufactured plastic world, they also assume a luxury or premium quality. Throughout the last century, metal, leather and wood have also been progressively supplanted by bakelite, vinyl and then polymer-based plastic materials in car interiors as well.

Who is the greatest car designer at work today?

6 August 2012 update: Click here for the full CAR design power list story - from CAR magazine August 2010 issue It's a classic pub banter for anyone with a drop of petrol in their veins: who is the greatest car designer? Stylists are the rock stars of the car industry, the ones who bring to life the metal boxes that transport you and I around our daily lives. The new August 2010 issue of CAR Magazine, out on Wednesday 21 July, reveals the CAR Top 30, as we count down the most influential, successful and downright talented designers in the auto industry.

Aston Martin Rapide S arrives with 550 horses

Aston Martin is replacing the four-door Rapide with the Rapide S, which gets minor styling tweaks and extra power. Just as they did with the new DB9, Aston Martin has made the new Rapide S a more aggressive car, with small styling tweaks like a new grill and a small spoiler at the back, some minor trim tweaks with the addition of Piano Black trim and a new duotone black and red leather trim, and an optional carbon fibre pack for exterior highlights. Under the skin, the Rapide S is still based on Aston’s VH platform, but it does get the latest Gen 4 tweaks including new adaptive dampers with Normal, Sport and Track modes, tweaked dynamic stability control (DSC) and the latest AM11 engine dropped by 19mm for a lower centre of gravity.