Beechcraft H-14 Autopilot Pilots Operating Manual-original on 2040-parts.com

Ford to offer 4 vehicles in 2011 with certified EPA ratings of 40 mpg

Ford Motor Co. expects the 2012 Focus compact to earn 40 mpg, giving the automaker four vehicles that produce 40 mpg or more in 2011. Three of the 2011s--the Fiesta subcompact SE with SFE package, Fusion Hybrid and Lincoln MKZ Hybrid sedans--have certified 2011 EPA ratings of 40 mpg highway/41 city.

Volkswagen working on new VR6 engine

Volkswagen is pushing ahead with development of a new narrow-angle V6 direct-injection gas engine, sources from the German carmaker's engineering headquarters based in Braunschweig reveal. Engineering for the new engine is being overseen by Volkswagen's new head of engine development, Fritz Eichler -- who in a previous position led the development of the current generation of Mercedes-Benz AMG powerplants -- continues with a swept volume of 3.0-liters and an unfashionable 15-degree cylinder bank angle. It has been conceived for transverse mounting.

Up in smoke: Smokey Yunick's garage burns

Legendary NASCAR mechanic Smokey Yunick closed the "Best Damn Garage In Town" long before he died in 2001. But the main concrete-block, tin-roofed building on Beach Street in Daytona Beach, Fla., remained a stop on the NASCAR history trail for visiting faithful until Monday night, when fire destroyed the building. The building housed Yunick's office and a medium-size garage and more recently served as office space for Carbon Press, the publishing company that Yunick's daughter, Trish, operates and which produces products that include Yunick's salty 1,100-page autobiography and biographies of other racing personalities.