01 Grand Am Rear View Mirror on 2040-parts.com

2013 Ford Kuga goes in to production

The new (2013) Ford Kuga crossover – which debuted at Geneva in the Spring – has now gone in to production in Spain ahead of first customer car deliveries. Ford has announced it’s finally started to churn out the new Kuga at its plant in Valencia, and that the Kuga will be heading to Ford’s UK showrooms to get customer cars out in the new year. Despite starting production of the new Kuga, Ford still hasn’t come up with prices for its compact crossover, but says they will be available before the end of the year. On offer in the new Kuga is a range of new technology including the kick-to-open tailgate, Active Park Assist, Blind Spot Monitoring Torque Vectoring Control, SYNC and the first use of Ford’s EcoBoost engines in the Kuga (although no sign yet that the 1.0 litre EcoBoost will be added to the Kuga).

BMW launches i sub-brand

BMW yesterday revealed one of the more significant mobility plans since the inception of the automobile: the BMW i sub-brand. The new brand seeks to integrate sustainable elements with a slew of powerful technology whilst simultaneously improving mobility across both private and public platforms. The first vehicles will be launched in 2013.

New dynamic 3D button touchscreen tech

A pioneering new technology allows touchscreens to ‘grow’ dynamic buttons from flat surfaces. The new technology, developed by US company Tactus Technology, uses minute channels within the screen to siphon liquid into button shaped cavities that then rise when pressed, alleviating some of the muscle-memory and distraction issues often leveled at touchscreens. Craig Ciesla, CEO of Tactus Technology, says that it was his desire to merge the elegance of the iPhone's user interface with the tactility of Blackberry buttons that led to the technology's development.