General Motors has reportedly commissioned outside attorneys to participate in the company’s internal investigation surrounding the recent ignition-switch recall.

Attempting to frame the probe as an independent inquiry, the company hired former federal prosecutor Anton Valukas, chairman of law firm Jenner & Block, to lead a group of internal and third-party attorneys.

Valukas was tasked with examining the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy in 2009, resulting in a 2200-page report that detailed how the company’s internal procedures led to its collapse during the financial crisis.

Documents show that GM was aware of the ignition-switch defect as early as 2004, however the company decided against a formal recall. Defective switches shifting to the off or accessory position during vehicle operation, shutting down the engine and disabling the airbags, were subsequently associated with at least 31 accidents and 13 fatalities over the next five years.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sent the company a list of over 100 questions related to the recall, demanding a deeper explanation of the problem, names of individuals involved in the decision-making process and other information.

GM currently faces at least one lawsuit from the family of a driver who was killed in an accident that was blamed on the defect. Recent reports suggest the automaker may be shielded from liability due to the terms of its 2009 bankruptcy.

“GM is focused on ensuring the safety and peace of mind of our customers involved in the recall,” the company said in a statement, as quoted by The Wall Street Journal. “It is true that new GM did not assume liability for claims arising from incidents or accidents occurring prior to July 2009.”

Automakers are also required to notify the NHTSA of any defects within five days of discovery. Fines for violating the regulations can reach up to $35 million, but in this case the company may only face a maximum penalty of $17.5 million due to the year of such violations.

Takeshi Uchiyamada, the Toyota executive known as the father of the Prius, predicts hybrid-powered vehicles will soon account for 20 percent of the worldwide market.

“I foresee hybrid models pretty soon reaching 20 percent of global sales from about 13 percent to 14 percent now,” Uchiyamada told Automotive News Europe.

Although now within reach, that kind of market share was almost unimaginable when Uchiyamada began developing the first-generation Prius in 1993. Gas-electric technology took years to refine, and even longer to catch on with the buying public. In fact, the Prius sold in relatively small global quantities until 2004.

Toyota has gone on to sell more than 6 million hybrids worldwide since, with the Prius accounting for most of those sales. The Prius remains popular in Japan and the United States, but has struggled to gain a foothold in Europe where diesels still reign supreme. However, that could soon change as Volkswagen plans to launch new plug-in hybrid models in Europe beginning this year.

Uchiyamada says Toyota is “closely watching what our competitors are doing,” but noted that high costs will likely limit the company’s plug-in hybrid offerings for the foreseeable future.

“Suppliers need higher volumes to slash costs of components specific to plug-in models, including batteries that should be bigger and more capable than the ones used in traditional hybrids,” he said.

Toyota currently offers 25 hybrids, but just one plug-in hybrid.

The 2014 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 is already billed as the fastest production Camaro the General has ever built. To squeeze every bit of performance out of the potent pony car, GM engineers have done the unthinkable — cut a hole in the Chevy bowtie emblem.

Since the Z/28 concept was shown at the New York Auto Show a year ago, engineers have been perfecting the track-honed capabilities of the reborn performance package moniker. During testing, an engineer noticed thatthe bowtie badge was hindering airflow to the engine. Out came the Dremel.

Once the emblem’s traditional gold portion was hollowed out, the motor received three additional cubic meters of air per minute. The result was a engine oil and coolant temperature drop of two degrees Fahrenheit during “extended track sessions.” And with that, the “Flowtie” was born.

The new grille, with just a chrome outline of the Chevrolet badge, will come standard on all 2014 Z/28s. According to GM, it is one of 190 Camaro parts unique to the Z/28.

Its other bespoke parts, whether extracting every last one of 500 horses out of its all-aluminum Corvette V8 or keeping weight down to 300 pounds below that of the Camaro ZL1, have been well documented and lend to the Z/28′s core mission of race-readiness. Watch the video below to see the Flowtie in action.

And now for your viewing pleasure, a miniature Subaru WRX STI racing a stick bomb. “What’s a stick bomb?” you may ask. Apparently, it’s a hundreds of popsicle sticks placed under tension. Once said tension is released, a wave of “exploding” sticks propagates down the pre-laid path like a row of falling dominoes.

Now, at first (or even second or third) glance it may not seem like there’s a lot of correlation between a stick bomb and Subaru’s turbocharged compact, and there probably isn’t aside from the fun factor. That, and the slight issue of scale, is why the car racing against the snake of tongue depressors is a radio control model of the 2015 WRX STI.

It’s not any old WRX STI, though. The flared fenders, large wing and livery are all indicative of the endurance version slated to run the 24 Hours of Nurburgring on June 19. The real life car on which it’s based has had its standard 2.0-liter boxer four tuned to about 350 hp on reinforced engine internals, up 45 hp from 2.5-liter mill in the street legal one you can buy.

According to stick bomb aficionados a wave can travel anywhere from 22 to 145 mph, depending on the type of stick used. The one in Subaru’s video doesn’t appear to reach quite those velocities, but it’s an amusing way to kill two minutes from a manufacturer known for life-sized cars that are just as entertaining. Watch the video and the “making of” below.

BMW-owned Rolls-Royce has confirmed it will launch its first-ever gasoline-electric plug-in hybrid model in two or three years.

The company explains its clients rarely demand more fuel-efficient cars but it needs to adopt cleaner powerplants in order to comply with looming emissions regulations on both sides of the Atlantic.

Rolls-Royce took its first step towards electric mobility in 2011 when it built an all-electric version of the Phantom sedan dubbed 102EX (pictured) and showed it to 100 potential customers around the world. The project was canned when Rolls’ target audience unanimously decided it was unwilling to accept the long charging time and the limited range associated with battery-powered cars.

Rolls execs believe a plug-in hybrid drivetrain is the best way to lower gas mileage while living up to its clients’ altitudinous expectations.

“A Rolls-Royce cannot come with any kind of compromise, and both the recharging times and the range were not acceptable for our buyers – but with hybrid technology that is no longer a problem,” explained CEO Torsten Müller-Otvos.

Rolls-Royce has not revealed any technical details about its upcoming plug-in hybrid system but it hints the bulk of the components will be sourced from the BMW parts bin in order to save money on research and development.

“We are now a completely self-sustaining business, but technology like [a plug-in hybrid drivetrain] is so expensive to develop that without BMW, Rolls-Royce would probably not have survived,” added the CEO.

Nissan has released a new video of its potent new GT-R NISMO in action at its Tochigi, Japan test facility.

The supercar slayer’s chief vehicle engineer, Noboru Kaneko, narrates, explaining some of the details that make the GT-R NISMO even more formidable than the “pedestrian” GT-R. Though there’s no new bombshells revealed, what is new is watching Andy Palmer, Nissan’s Chief Planning Officer and Executive Vice President, put the machine through its paces and throwing it into at least one tire-smoking drift.

As Nissan’s number two exec shreds rubber, Kaneko reiterates some of Mecha-Godzilla’s impressive specs — 600 hp and 481 lb-ft of torque from the 3.8-liter V6 fed by the massive turbochargers straight from the GT-R GT3 race car.

He also points out that the GT-R NISMO’s re-engineered rear spoiler provides, at just 62 mph, the equivalent downforce of the regular version’s at 186 mph. Overall, the new wing and NISMO-exclusive body kit generates 220 lbs of downforce as it climbs to its top speed of 195 mph. Nissan calls it a “shark tooth” design, borrowed from the GT500 race car that will compete in the Japanese-spec Super GT series later this year.

Although the GT-R NISMO set a new production car record at the Nurburgring last fall with a 7:08:69, there’s no word on whether Palmer set a similar pace at the Tochigi test circuit. The GT-R NISMO, recently priced at $151,585 including destination charges, will hit showrooms on July 31.

Finalists for the World Car of the Year Award were announced this week at the Geneva Motor Show. The votes of 69 automotive journalists from 22 countries were tallied to select the top three contenders for each of five categories.

Now in its tenth year, the prize can be bestowed upon any car that was sold on at least two different continents between January 1, 2013 and May 31, 2014. This year a new category for World Luxury Car was introduced, to recognize premium models selling in comparatively more limited quantities.

BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Mazda received the most tallies, with the BMW i3, Audi A3 and Mazda 3 each reaching the final three in multiple categories. Without further ado, the nominees are, in alphabetical order:

World Car of the Year

• Audi A3
• BMW 4 Series
• Mazda3

World Luxury Car

• Bentley Flying Spur
• Mercedes-Benz S-Class
• Range Rover Sport

World Performance Car

• Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
• Ferrari 458 Speciale
• Porsche 911 GT3

World Green Car

• Audi A3 Sportback g-tron (+ Audi e-gas)
• BMW i3
• Volkswagen XL1

World Car Design of the Year

• BMW i3
• Mazda3
• Mercedes-Benz C-Class

The winners will be announced at the New York International Auto Show in April.

Jeep is in the early stages of developing the next-gen Wrangler, and we now have a better idea of what to expect from it.

Contradicting an earlier report, the next Wrangler will retain the current model’s bulky solid axles in spite of the extra weight they add. Jeep engineers will find other ways to shed pounds such as replacing the full-size spare with a smaller, space-saver tire likely located under the vehicle.

The fold-down windshield that has characterized the Wrangler for decades will likely be scrapped in order to make the vehicle both safer and simpler to build. Rumors claim convenience-minded buyers will be able to order the Wrangler with a power-retractable soft top at an extra cost, and the upcoming model will boast a more comfortable ride thanks to a thoroughly revised frame.

A report coming out of Australia indicates Audi is considering launching an entry-level sports car designed to slot beneath the all-new third-generation TT. Small and light, the yet-unnamed sports car could be billed as a pure, back-to-the-basics driver’s car.

While the TT rides on Volkswagen’s modular MQB platform, the smaller sports car will use the MQB Zero platform that is currently being developed and set to be inaugurated by the next generation of the Polo subcompact hatchback.

“I can imagine a smaller car based on the [MQB Zero],” admitted Ulrich Hackenberg, Audi’s development chief, in an interview with CarAdvice.

If launched, expect the yet-unnamed sub-TT model to be offered with several Volkswagen-sourced three- and four-cylinder turbocharged engines. Both front- and all-wheel drive will be available, and a range-topping S-badged model will cater to buyers looking for more performance.