Daihatsu Mira 1998 Radio Cassette [0016120] on 2040-parts.com

Whos Where: Pierre Castinel is Head of Design at Tata

Indian automaker Tata has been front page news often in recent times, first because of the impressive one-lakh Nano, which changes the automotive industry playing field, and most recently because of its acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford's Premiere Automotive Group for the tidy sum of $2.3 billion - less than half what Ford paid for both companies in 1989.  At the helm of Tata's design efforts is Pierre Castinel, Head of Design. Though only officially announced in March this year, Castinel has been active at Tata since he left Renault in summer 2007, a company he worked at for 20 years. Castinel started as a modeler for Peugeot and worked there for three years.

Maserati and Poltrona Frau showcasing continuing collaboration

Maserati and Poltrona Frau are showcasing their continuing collaboration in automotive design in a weeklong exhibition at Design Centre at Chelsea Harbor, London. From 18 until 22 June the glass domes of Design Centre will play host to a Maserati GranCabrio Sport as well as one of Poltrona Frau's skilled artisan upholsterers working on a chair throughout the week in a demonstration of traditional Italian craftsmanship. Poltrona Frau, the international high-end furniture company, has realized the interiors of the entire Maserati range – including the Quattroporte saloon, GranTurismo coupe and GranCabrio convertible – through its 100-year history of leather working and handcraftsmanship.

Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda recall 3.4 million cars over Airbag fault

As recalls go, 3.4 million cars around the globe is a big number, but it’s that big because a parts supplier - Takata Corp – supplied the same airbag part to Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda, so the recall involves all four Japanese car makers. The part at fault could cause the airbag inflator to rupture and deploy the airbag abnormally, although there have been no reports of injuries due to the potentially faulty part and just five reports of the fault existing – three in the US and two in Japan. In the UK the number of cars affected – and do note the recall only affects cars sold between 2000 and 2004 – appears to be about 75,000 for Toyota, 60,000 for Nissan, 15,000 for Honda and 2.000 for Mazda, and all four car makers will be getting in touch with owners during the next month to book their cars in for free replacement of the part.