Dorman C93042 Brake Cable-cable - Parking Brake on 2040-parts.com

AW Design Forum: Style remains key as transportation systems evolve

The entire way Americans view transportation is going to change, predicts industry expert David Muyres, and designers will be key in making new methods of mobility desirable. Speaking at the AW Design Forum on Thursday morning in Detroit, Muyres said transportation needs to be looked at as a complete system, where cars, cities and technologies--such as the electrical grid--all interact. But for this to work, the cars need to remain exciting, said Muyres.

Europe's Car of the Year 2011 shortlist announced

The 41 contenders for Europe's 2011 Car of the Year trophy have been whittled down to the final seven as the European CoTY shortlist is announced today. The winner will be voted for by 59 of Europe's most influential motoring journalists, including two CAR writers: editor Phil McNamara and European editor Georg Kacher. The 2010 winner - by just 10 points ahead of the Toyota iQ - was the Volkswagen Polo. Like the Eurovision Song Contest, Car of the Year has proved controversial in the past with accusations of block-voting and blind patriotism, yet the award remains one of the most prestigious in the motor industry.

BMW's new i concepts revealed

It was meant to be a modest, intimate affair for a select group of media. Yet as we flew to Frankfurt the day before the unveiling of BMW's i3 and i8 concept cars, it became quite clear that this was not to be the case. With hundreds of journalists flown in from all over, a live web broadcast to the rest of the globe, and, for the first time in history, the entire BMW board present in one room, project i is clearly vital to BMW's future product strategy.