Lisle 12800 Pneumatic Master Bearing Race on 2040-parts.com

BMW, Daimler experiment with upscale rent-by-the-ride

Two European luxury brands are tiptoeing into car sharing, a radical move for carmakers whose business for the past 100 years has been selling to individuals. German archrivals Daimler AG and BMW AG have launched sharing programs. The automakers say the move was prompted by changing attitudes about car ownership, especially among young buyers, and increased urban congestion.

Mercedes SLC (or Mercedes GT): It’s Official Spy photo time – again

Mercedes turn spy photographers for the baby SLS – the Mercedes SLC/GT It’s almost 4 years since we first revealed there were plans afoot at Mercedes-Benz to build a small, nimbler SLS to take on the Porsche 911 – a car subsequently dubbed the Mercedes SLC – but not until 2014. Well, 2014 is less than half a year away, Mercedes confirmed the SLC was in the mix and now we get a set of ‘spy’ photos of the SLC (or Mercedes GT, perhaps) – straight from Mercedes. It’s not the first time Mercedes has tried to put spy photographers out of business, as both the SLS had ‘official’ spy photos and video, as did the new Mercedes SLK.

Audi Urban: Design Miami

Audi’s Urban Future program continues with the ‘Design Miami: Streets without limits’ piece. Designed by architect Bjarke Ingels, the digital street has been created for the forthcoming Design Miami 2011 exhibition. Originally penned back in 2010 for the Audi Urban Future Award architecture competition, Bjarke Ingels Group have now tweaked their original submission into a three-dimensional LED installation. Depicting a street without limits, the installation shows a scenario of the future where functionality can change to prioritize pedestrians or traffic.