West Coast Mirrors 10 1/2'' X 6 3/4'' on 2040-parts.com

Mercedes CLA starts to roll off production line in Hungary

The Mercedes CLA – the baby Mercedes CLS based on the new A Class – has started to roll off the production line at Kecskemét in Hungary. But that’s probably unfair; based as it is on the new A-Class, the CLA is a very good car under the skin, even if its big USP is the dramatic styling. Now, just over a week after the CLA got its first public reveal (if you don’t count the Mercedes Concept Style Coupe on which its based), the first production car has rolled off the line at the Mercedes plant in Kecskemét, Hungary.

GM's top battery executive for the Volt to join California startup

General Motors's top executive in charge of developing batteries for the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid is leaving to take a position with an unnamed startup battery company in California. Denise Gray, 46, global director of rechargeable energy storage systems, will step down March 5 after more than three years in the post. This was “an opportunity that I could just not resist,” Gray said in a phone interview.

2015 Audi A3 sedan configurator goes live

The 2015 Audi A3 sedan will be appearing in dealerships in a few months, and the trim and pricing details have been announced for the U.S. market. The engines on offer on this side of the pond are a 1.8-liter turbocharged four-cylinder making 170-hp and 200 lb-ft of torque, and a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder coupled with Quattro all-wheel drive, making 200-hp an 258 lb-ft of torque.