Jr Dragster Rods on 2040-parts.com

Central Academy of Fine Arts degree show 2009, China

China's home grown car makers are increasingly ambitious, as illustrated by plans to grow rapidly at home and, in some cases, expand abroad and compete with foreign rivals in cutting-edge technologies. One big impediment they face in taking on their foreign rivals is design. Top dogs in the global auto industry invest heavily in engineers and designers.

McLaren 650S revealed early

The McLaren 650S (pictured) arrives a little earlier than McLaren planned Just a few days age we had the first tease for the new McLaren 650S, a car McLaren said was aimed between the existing 12C and the hypercar McLaren P1. We speculated the 650S would be a tweaked 12C with more power and styling tweaks, and that’s exactly what it is. Driving has managed to publish the first official photos this morning (albeit in fairly low res) and it’s clear the 650S is the 12C with a healthy does of P1 mixed in for extra appeal.

Record-setting Ferrari hydroplane heads for RM's Monaco auction

A record-setting Ferrari-powered 1953 hydroplane, ARNO XI, will cross the block in May at the RM Auctions event in Monaco. The hydroplane set the speed record for a boat of its size on Lake Iseo in northern Italy, running up to 150.19 mph. Designed and built by Achille Castoldi—a friend of Ferrari Grand Prix drivers Alberto Ascari and Luigi Villoresi—convinced Enzo Ferrari to provide knowledge and technical assistance to help develop the world-record-holding boat.