1970 71 72 Chevy Monte Carlo Rear Lower Quarter Trim Moulding on 2040-parts.com

Pace cadets: At AMG academy, students take their finals with their right feet

Mercedes-Benz USA launched the AMG Challenge in 2002, a program touted as "a chance to experience the thrill of driving the newest Mercedes AMGs on some of America's best racetracks." This year, MBUSA abandoned the Challenge in favor of the AMG Driving Academy, a multistage driver-development program pioneered by AMG in Europe. The difference? According to Greg Clark, AMG manager, "the Challenge was more about the cars, while the Academy is more about the driver." Having participated in both the Challenge and now the Academy, we'd say that difference is subtle, at least as it applies to the one-day program.

Lada X-Ray

Russian automaker AvtoVaz has unveiled the Lada XRAY concept at the Moscow motor show. It's the first concept to emerge from under the direction of AvtoVaz's new design chief, Steve Mattin. Previously Design Director of Volvo, Mattin has a strong history with the SUV breed – it was under his direction that the XC60 was developed while at Volvo, while in his role prior to that at Mercedes-Benz, he also worked on the ML-Class.

Meet the new BMW 2-series

Thanks to some leaky websites, we can bring you the all-new BMW 2-series Coupe a little earlier than we expected. The new car will be shown first at the Detroit auto show in January and will arrive in U.S. dealerships next spring as the 228i and M235i.