Pacific Piston Rings 6231 + .020 on 2040-parts.com

Volvo V40 (2012) first official pictures

This is the all-new Volvo V40, the Swedish car company’s latest rival to the Ford Focus, VW Golf et al. It will be officially unveiled at the 2012 Geneva motor show next month. Volvo is being particularly bullish about the prospects of its new V40, with Volvo president and CEO Stefan Jacoby claiming the new model ‘will give our toughest competitors a headache’.

Ford announces new Silicon Valley research laboratory

Ford has announced plans to open a new R&D center in California's Silicon Valley with a view to creating a hub for collaborative technology projects. With neighbors including Google, Microsoft, facebook, Apple and Stanford University, it's certainly setting up shop in the right part of town. Its location also connects Ford's Advanced Design Studio in Irvine, CA and Ford employees working with connectivity platform partner Microsoft Corp.

BMW 2 Series Coupe revealed: stylish new looks for 1 Series successor

BMW has revealed the new 2 Series Coupe range – the stylish successor to the rather awkward-looking BMW 1 Series. If only that car had looked like this all along… Set to go on sale in March 2014 with prices starting from £25,040, the new 2 Series Coupe carries on the trend set by the recent new BMW 4 Series Coupe: it’s odd numbers for the mainstream range and even numbers for their sportier derivatives. As the name suggests, though, it’s more than just a 1 Series with a new set of clothes.