Lada XRAY Concept – it’s the Lada Evoque

Lada has revealed an appealing looking compact SUV concept at the Moscow Motor Show – the Lada XRAY Concept For those of us who grew up on Lada skips – and even for younger readers who only really know Lada for the Niva 4×4 or the Granta – the appearance of a good-looking Lada Concept - the Lada XRAY – at the Moscow Motor Show is a bit of a surprise. But if we look at who’s behind the XRAY, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised. Steve Mattin, formerly with Mercedes and Volvo, penned the new Lada, and a very convincing job he’s done.

Ferraris galore (and more) at DK Engineering open day +video

DK Engineering open day 2012 DK Engineering – Ferrari restorers supreme – held an open day in March to showcase their facilities and their cars to super and classic car lovers. If you own – or covet – a classic car, especially a Ferrari, then DK Engineering in Chorleywood – just a short drive from Cars UK Towers – is as important an addition to your list of things never to forget as Kylie’s phone number and the location of the missing Bugatti Royale prototype. Founded by David Cottingham, DK Engineering has restored Ferraris for some of the most famous collectors of Maranello’s creations in the world from ‘celeb’ names like Ralph Lauren, Eric Clapton and Chris Evans to industrialists like Sir Anthony Bamford (JCB) and Sir Anthony Pilkington (Pilkington Glass).

Essay: Variable Degrees of Translucency

Car door panels and fenders are generally made of steel, sometimes of aluminum or plastic composites, and you can't see through them. Car windows, on the other hand, are made of a transparent sandwich of glass and plastic - and you can see through them. But in the future there will be variable degrees of transparency: translucent elements where once there were none, traditional window areas that will have opaque elements and graduated progressions from opaque to see-through.