Porsche 99610702601 Engine Crankcase Vent Valve/crankshaft/crankcase Misc on 2040-parts.com

McLaren 650s Configurator goes live

The McLaren 650S Configurator The new McLaren 650S arrived at the Geneva Motor Show last week – and as the 650S Spider too – and looks, and performs, far better than the 12C. That seems to point to the McLaren 12C being allowed to whither on the vine as McLaren’s customers opt for the new 650S instead of the 12C – even with a price difference heading towards £20k – although officially you can still buy a 12C (although we hear 12C production has been halted). We hear McLaren have already built a number of 650S models and now they’ve even got the 650S Configurator up on their website so customers – and dreamers – can spec up their new 650S.

Video: Rendering a Le Mans racer using layer masks and pixel locking in Photoshop

Local Motors' designer and community manager Aurel Francois has made this short video explaining how he created his 'Alpine A444' render for the Le Mans Themed Sketchwall Challenge. His side view may be simple in terms of perspective but by using layer masks and pixel locking in Photoshop, the blue race car soon comes to life. Worth a watch of you're looking to get to grips with computer rendering techniques.

Audi A3 Saloon teased – or could it be the Audi Q6?

Audi are teasing a new reveal for the 2013 New York Auto Show which we think in the new A3 saloon. But could it actually be the Q6 instead? We had a preview of the Audi A3 saloon as long ago as the Geneva Motor Show in 2011 and it now looks like Audi are teasing a reveal of the A3 with a boot for the 2013 New York Auto Show next week.