Kawasaki Kz900a 1976 Push Throttle Cable 8510 Ag49 on 2040-parts.com

Dacia Duster is Scottish Car of the Year 2012

The Dacia Duster SUV has garnered its first award in the UK – before it even hits showrooms – winning the Scottish Car of the Year 2012. Top car awards should be for cars that are available for buyers to walk in and grab from their local dealer, and they must bring something that’s not just new, but better too. We’re not sure where that leaves the winner of the 2012 Scottish Car of the Year – the Dacia Duster – as it’s hardly a ground-breaking car and it’s not on sale yet.

Fiat 500 Abarth (2008): first official pictures

By Tim Pollard First Official Pictures 20 February 2008 10:00 Watch out Mini, the Fiat 500 – CAR’s car of the year 2007 – is getting the high-performance treatment. The Abarth version unveiled today is pitched as a new interpretation of the Sixties road racer, but can they make a bigger, heavier hatch as exciting as that?The 500 Abarth 2008-style uses the Fiat group’s 16-valve 1.4-litre Fire engine breathing with the assistance of an IHI variable-geometry turbocharger to deliver a warm 135bhp at 5500rpm. So this car won’t challenge the upper echelons of hot-hatchdom that now have to pump out closer to 200bhp to be in contention.

A tribute to Ermanno Cressoni

Last week the car design community suffered a great loss. Ermanno Cressoni or 'Arch' as many of his designers affectionately referred to him, passed away on Thursday 30th June in Milan after battling with cancer for 13 months.'Arch' was a reference in car design and his contribution to our profession was much more important than stated in the press. As Alfa Romeo Centro Stile Director he directed the Alfetta berlina, the famous chrome GTV grille from the early seventies is attributed to him, as is the Giuglietta sedan of the late seventies, the Alfa 33, the 75, and many of the racing Alfas we adore from the late 60s and early 70s.