Ranger Triton Skeeter Trailer Cable Hooks on 2040-parts.com

Aston Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez on the Mercedes tie-up, the rise of turbo cars and the end of the Lagonda SUV project

MSN Cars is in Palm Springs, California, to drive the new Aston Martin Vanquish Volante and V12 Vantage S. Aston Martin, voted the second coolest brand in the world behind Apple, is celebrating its 100th year. Over an informal dinner, MSN Cars was given an exclusive chance to talk shop with Aston Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez to see what the future holds for the Gaydon-based company.

Vauxhall ADAM with new 1.0 ECOTEC 3-Cylinder engine will debut at Geneva

The Vauxhall ADAM (pictured) gets the new 1.0 litre 3-pot ECOTEC engine At the Frankfurt Motor Show last year, Vauxhall announced they would be offering the Vauxhall Adam with their new 1.0 litre 3-cylinder ECOTEC engine in 2014, and we now know it will debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month before going on sale in the spring. The new 1.0 ECOTEC 3-Cylinder engine is Vauxhall’s answer to Ford’s 1.0 litre EcoBoost proliferating across Ford’s range, and if it’s half as good as Ford’s unit it should make the 3-pot Adam a fun and appealing option. Available in two states of tune – 89bhp or 113bhp – with both delivering 122lb/ft of torque and with a new 6-speed manual ‘box that’s 30 per cent lighter, the new engine delivers 30 per cent more torque than Vauxhall’s 1.6 litre petrol but can manage 62mpg and emissions of 99g/km for the 89bhp version.

One Lap of the Web: Russian dash-cam ghost machines

-- Brace yourselves, people: "Dynamic" is not the only marketing buzzword of the moment. Now there's "velocity," which makes sense if you think of cars designed to move forward in some form or another. It actually refers to how fast an auto dealer can get you a cup of coffee, a pat on the back and a signature on the dotted line, as Lindsay Chappelle of Automotive News explains.