Suspension Strut Rod Bushing Kit Front Parts Master K7090 on 2040-parts.com

BMW's N20 engine--four cylinders, more power

More power, greater torque, reduced fuel consumption, lower tailpipe emissions and less weight--but better? Before driving the BMW X1 xDrive28i, the first model to feature the German carmaker's new turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine, we weren't so sure. The new engine, known as the N20 and set to lead a return of four-cylinder BMW models to North America for the first time since 1998, has been conceived to (indirectly) replace the company's long-running naturally aspirated 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder.

MIT researchers rethink electric-car batteries

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology say a new battery design for electric vehicles could be a lightweight and inexpensive alternative. The goal for the team's three-year project, launched in September 2010, is to have a functioning prototype ready to be engineered as a replacement for existing electric-car batteries. At this point in the project, the prototype uses a “semi-solid flow” to separate the two functions of a battery--storing energy and discharging it when needed--into separate physical structures.

Audi reveals new Quattro concept sketches before Frankfurt

Audi has released a series of official design sketches revealing its reborn Quattro supercar concept, which will underpin the German carmaker's presence at the Frankfurt motor show next month. The modern-day Quattro aims to revive the spirit of the rally-bred Sport Quattro launched in 1984. The aggressively styled coupe has been conceived as a limited-production model that is set to be priced above that of any existing Audi model as technological figurehead for the rest of the lineup with a new plug-in hybrid driveline that mates a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 gasoline engine and electric motor for an overall output close to 800 hp.