Vintage Hilborn 4 Port Gasser Cackle on 2040-parts.com

Chevy Cruze Diesel: As torquey as a classic Camaro?

From the Department Of Silly Press Releases comes this missive from deep within the bowels of the Renaissance Center, Junior Wool-Pulling Division, located next to the Quizno's. "Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel Delivers Classic Muscle Car Torque," it reads, and while torque is the Great Equalizer of the continued championing of the diesel engine, comparing it to the sturm und drang of launching a 1972 Camaro Z28 from the parking lot of the Hendersonville, Tenn., Shoney's is tantamount to the sort of blasphemy that gets people excommunicated. For the record, the Chevrolet Cruze Diesel's 2.0-liter turbodiesel engine produces 264 lb-ft of torque, more than the Volkswagen Jetta TDI's at 236 lb-ft.

Cadillac may get future rear-drive hybrids

General Motors' two mode hybrid powertrain, used only in trucks, will migrate to rear-drive cars in the next generation, said Tom Stephens, GM's vice chairman of global product operations. Two likely candidates: Cadillacs, says consultant Jim Hall of 2953 Analytics in suburban Detroit. Last month, GM said it is developing an electric motor that is 25 percent smaller and 20 percent more powerful than the motor used in today's two mode hybrid full-sized trucks.

Bertone Pandion (2010) at Geneva motor show

You can see the Bertone Pandion from almost anywhere within the giant halls at the 2010 Geneva motor show. It might be low and sleek, but the rear-hinged scissor doors run almost the entire length of the car and stand over 3.6 metres high when open. It’s quite a sight.