New Dorman Vacuum Switching Valve, 911603 on 2040-parts.com

2013 Toyota RAV4 leaks ahead of LA debut

The 2013 Toyota RAV4 is due to be unveiled at the 2012 Los Angeles Motor Show tomorrow, but thanks to a leak of photos we already know how it looks. The photos show a new RAV4 that is less boxy and sleeker, taking some styling cues from the new Auris, and looks fit to take the battle to cars like the new Ford Kuga and new Subaru Forester. It may not quite look a “…new generation rewriting the rules in style” as Toyota told us, but it does look more contemporary.

One Lap of the Web: Packards -- Ask the man who knows way too much about one

-- For some light Wednesday reading, here's more information than you ever wanted to know about Packard. It includes the horrible neoclassics that plagued the 1970s, and the 1995 revival of the Packard name that attempted to stick a shortened rendition of the famous Packard grille in front of a 440-hp V12, all wrapped in a shape that looked like a melted Twix, as shown above. Our august associate editor Graham Kozak owns a Packard, so he could have filled us in on the details.

2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 revealed

The 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Petrolheads on this side of the Pond know what a Mustang is, even if we don’t exactly covet it. But it’s one thing not really coveting a 2011 V6 Mustang – even if it is much improved on the last version – but it’s quite another to ignore the ‘Super’ Mustang know as the Boss. Ford has announced the Ford Mustang Boss 302 for 2012, and they’re claiming they’ve used the M3 as a benchmark for handling.