Spring 1997 Harley-davidson Enthusiast Magazine-sidecars-vietnam-buell Lightning on 2040-parts.com

Steve Mattin appointed Design Director at Volvo Cars

 Volvo Car Corporation has appointed British designer Steve Mattin as Vice President and Design Director, who joins the company on 1 May following a long career at DaimlerChrysler, where he is currently Senior Design Manager with several major design projects under his responsibility. Steve Mattin is well respected in the automotive design community, and has a real passion for premium cars, which he has proved during his 17 years at DaimlerChrysler. Steve will report to Volvo Cars President and CEO, Hans-Olov Olsson as well as J Mays, group vice president of Design and Chief Creative Officer of Ford Motor Company.

Kia Ray plug-in Hybrid revealed

Kia has revealed their plug-in hybrid concept - the Kia Ray - at the Chicago Motor Show A few weeks ago we reported on a tease from Kia of the Kia Ray Concept they were taking along to Detroit’s lower key motor show sibling – the Chicago Motor Show. And true to their word they revealed the Kia Ray at Chicago – and a convincing Prius rival it looks. Instead of the stodgy mainstream hybrids churned out to date by (mainly) the Japanese, the Kia looks like a breath of fresh air.

Audi A6, A6 Avant & A7 Black Edition launched

Audi has released Black Edition version of the A6 Saloon, A6 Avant and A7 with extra equipment and cosmetic tweaks. Audi has taken the S Line A6, A6 Avant and A7 and given them a ‘Black’ makeover for a special edition range that starts at £35k and carries on to almost £57k. Cosmetic and equipment additions over and above the regular S Line Spec include rotor-design alloys with a dark titanium finish (20″ on A6, 21″ on A7), black finish for the grill and window surrounds, privacy glass and black roof rails on the A6 Avant. Inside there’s Piano Black trim, black leather seats and black headlining.