Yamaha Replacement Black Seat Cover Moose 400 Kodiak 2000-2006 0821-1020 on 2040-parts.com

Museum benefactor Margie Petersen dies

Margie Petersen, wife of automotive publishing magnate Robert E. "Pete" Petersen and the driving force behind many of the couple's generous philanthropies, died Nov. 25 after a decades-long battle with breast cancer.

German Parts Pillagers Roam the American Southwest, Sending Treasures Home For Future Car Museum

Quite a few older European cars are purchased in rust-free parts of the United States and then shipped back to the home continent, and this process tends to intensify when the Euro gets stronger versus the dollar. While that's going on, crews of European gearheads also roam the wrecking yards of the Southwest, filling shipping containers with parts to ship back home; I know of a trio of Swedes who come to Colorado every year and ship home tons of parts, but they've got nothing on this pair of Germans. These gentlemen fly to the United States four times each year, spending two or three weeks each trip, and send home cars and shipping containers packed with parts, all as part of a scheme to open up a car collection showcasing "cars from the road." They were kind enough to send me a bunch of photos of their most recent trip, so let's see what their enviable lifestyle looks like.

Good news for British car factories

NEW FIGURES have revealed that UK-based car production raced ahead in April, resulting in the biggest monthly rise since July 2012. A total of 133,437 cars were made in the UK last month – a 21.3% increase on the April 2013 figure, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said. The excellent April figures took the year-so-far total to 538,240 – a 6.9% rise on the figure for January-April 2013.