Capristo Ferrari 348 Sport Catalytic Converter on 2040-parts.com

Mercedes supercars

By Tim Pollard 29 July 2008 09:00 The SLR is the fruit of a strange motor industry marriage. Collaborating as they do in motorsport, Woking and Stuttgart decided to build a road car that showcased their full-bodied technical know-how. Perhaps the mixed messages from F1-centric McLaren and luxury brand Merc, or the untold pressure of the seminal F1, were too much, for the SLR has failed to worm its way into our affections.

Think, again: Norwegian electric-car maker looks for U.S. plant

Think, the Norwegian electric-car maker, says it plans to build an assembly plant and a technical center in the United States. After financing failed in the wake of the collapse of credit markets in late 2008, the company entered Norway's debt-settlement process (the equivalent of Chapter 11 bankruptcy), and production of its recently redesigned Think city car was halted. It continues operating under a $6 million interim funding measure while it pursues additional financing.

Driven: Kia Picanto

The first-generation Kia Picanto was one of the cars that helped promote Kia from the lower half of the second-division to somewhere near the playoff places. Its combination of great value, five-door practicality and vaguely cutesy - if thoroughly unremarkable - design found it many a home on the driveway of those looking for an A-segment hatchback. The second-generation model is playing a rather tougher ballgame.