Dorman 85125 Alternator Connector on 2040-parts.com

GMC Granite concept (w/ Video)

The biggest surprise at the 2010 NAIAS was GMC's Granite concept - a design that expands (or rather contracts) the truck/crossover brand's 'professional grade' philosophy to a compact hatchback aimed at urban hipsters and early adopters. Conceived by Frank Saucedo's Advanced Design team in California and then built at GM's Design Center in Detroit, the Granite combines the basic proportions of the Nissan Cube and Scion xB with a military/industrial feel inspired by the current G-Star and Diesel fashion lines. Watch the videos to the left to see the young international design team present the rationale behind the new concept, and read our opinion of the Granite in our 2010 Detroit Auto Show Highlights.

Ready-to-race Ford Focus ST-R walk-around: Video

The folks at Ford released a video Christmas present this week featuring Ford Racing's Andy Vrenko hosting a complete walk-around of the company's latest turn-key race car, the Ford Focus ST-R. The latest spec racer is approved for competition in the Grand-Am ST, World Challenge TC and the Canadian Touring Car series (pending homologation approvals). The engine and transmission are production-based components from the street-legal Focus ST.

Car insurance market condemned by MPs

CAR INSURANCE is a "highly dysfunctional market" in which firms' pursuit of profit has led to higher prices for consumers, a report by MPs has said. In some cases, business practices have not been in the consumer interest and have "inadvertently encouraged criminal activity", the report from the House of Commons Transport Committee said. There was no clearer example of this than "insurance firms' willingness to pay compensation for whiplash claims which they suspect are fraudulent without requiring the claimant to undergo a medical examination".