93 Continental Used Amplifier on 2040-parts.com

Costs put Mini Rocketman at risk

BMW is not ready to commit to building the Mini Rocketman, a minicar concept that debuted in March at the Geneva auto show. The reason? Executives say privately that they fear that the Smart competitor would not be profitable.

Watch the sad, final moments of a crusher-bound heap

Automotive wrecking yards are good places to reflect on the real-world values of heavily depreciated vehicles versus global current scrap-metal prices, and to see which cars have suddenly had the fix-it-versus-total-it line moved by insurance companies (the early-21st-century Subaru Legacy Outback, for example, appeared in large numbers in high-turnover wrecking yards just during the last year, as fairly minor collision damage on these cars is no longer worth fixing). You'll see the things that a car's last owner does in a desperate attempt to sell (or at least live with) an increasingly decrepit heap (as we learned in "Repo Man," you really will find a Little Tree in every car). During a recent trip to a San Jose, Calif., yard, I encountered this sad yet strangely compelling scene.

Mini Mk2 (2006): first official pictures

By Angus Fitton First Official Pictures 14 August 2006 15:01 The lowdown The disguise is off. No more speculation, spy shots or sneak previews - this is the face of the all-new, faster, bigger, better Mini. No, we haven't jumbled up the pictures - the car pictured really is the the new Mini, due to hit our streets in October.