Chevrolet and the National Corvette Museum have announced plans to restore three of the eight Corvette models that were damaged earlier this year when a sinkhole formed beneath the museum’s show floor.

The three Corvettes set for repair include the 2009 ZR1 prototype, the 1-millionth Corvette ever built and a 1962 model. Chevrolet will oversee the restoration of the ZR1, known as the Blue Devil, and the 1-millionth Corvette, a 1992 convertible. Chevrolet will fund the restoration of the 1962 Corvette, but the National Corvette Museum will oversee the project.

The other five Corvettes swallowed by the sinkhole will remain in their current states as they were deemed too damaged to repair.

“Our goal was to help the National Corvette Museum recover from a terrible natural disaster by restoring all eight cars,” said Mark Reuss, GM executive vice president, Global Product Development. “However, as the cars were recovered, it became clear that restoration would be impractical because so little was left to repair. And, frankly, there is some historical value in leaving those cars to be viewed as they are.”

The five cars to be left as-is include a 1993 ZR-1 Spyder, the 1984 PPG Pace Car, a 1993 40^th Anniversary Corvette, a 2001 Z06 knows as “Mallett Hammer,” and the 1.5-million Corvette built.

Despite the extensive damaged caused by the sinkhole, the natural disaster was somewhat of a blessing in disguise for the museum. In the four months following the formation of the sinkhole, museum traffic climbed by nearly 60 percent.

A new report finds that it will be another two years before the Dodge Dart receives its long-promised nine-speed automatic transmission.

Originally slated to be the first recipient of Chrysler’s ZF-supplied nine-speed automatic, the Dodge Dart lost that distinction when the latest Jeep Cherokee was selected to debut the gearbox instead. Now, Automotive News reports that the nona-cog transmission won’t arrive until the Dart receives a substantial refresh in mid-2016.

When it does finally find its way into the Dart, the nine-speed should provide a welcome fuel economy boost while also hastening acceleration. The Dart is currently offered with a six-speed automatic or, in the case of the efficiency-focused Dart Aero, a somewhat unrefined six-speed dual-clutch automatic. A six-speed manual is standard on most models.

In addition to the new gearbox, the Dart’s upcoming facelift will see a trim level reshuffling that will result in fewer standard features and fewer available configurations, resulting in a lower starting price and a streamlined lineup. Bolder exterior styling is also expected, as is a new SRT performance model that should arrive in late 2016.

Little is known about the Dart SRT, but rumors point to a turbocharged four-cylinder and all-wheel-drive.

Renault has announced it will introduce a highly-efficient concept car at the Paris Motor Show that will open its doors to the public in a little over a month.

The yet-unnamed concept is a response to a challenge set by the French government that asks the country’s automakers to build a full production car capable of returning at least 117 mpg by the year 2020. Renault will be the first automaker to meet the government’s challenge if it lives up to its promise.

Renault is keeping details under wraps until the show car is unveiled, but design chief Laurens van den Acker boldly promises the company has “come up with a really interesting concept.” The designer explains the concept rides on a purpose-designed chassis because all of Renault’s current platforms are too heavy to underpin such an efficient car.

Kia has published additional details about the all-new 2016 Sorento crossover.

Outside, the next Sorento features a sharp front end characterized by a bold rendition of Kia’s trademarked “tiger-nose” grille and elongated headlights. The rear end packs a roof-mounted spoiler and horizontal LED tail lamps, while a wide array of wheel designs that range up to 19 inches wrap up the more premium look.

Kia has bumped the Sorento’s overall length to approximately 188 inches and its width to 74 inches, making it slightly bigger than the outgoing model. The extra sheet metal allowed engineers to free up a more spacious third-row seat and a larger trunk.

Penned with input from Kia’s design center in Frankfurt, Germany, the Sorento’s cockpit boasts a wrap-around dashboard with a large touch screen that runs the infotainment system. Kia says the Sorento’s dashboard was designed to be as simple and ergonomic as possible by putting an emphasis on function rather than on form.

Buyers will be able to choose from a long list of options including a heated steering wheel, a remote-controlled multi-position tailgate, a 360-degree camera, power-adjustable second row seats, heated and cooled front seats, a push-button ignition and a panoramic sunroof. Additionally, the Sorento will offer lane change assist, adaptive cruise control, a lane departure warning system, a rear-view camera with cross traffic alert and a blind spot detection function.

Japan’s SuperGT racing series has reached an important turning point in its 21-year history. Organizers have mandated a new “mother frame” that will underpin all race cars, regardless of marque.

The SuperGT series, formerly known as JGTC, or the Japan Grand Touring Championships, has inspired a generation of enthusiasts and tuners by pitting the top-spec sports cars of Japanese manufacturers against each other on road courses across the world. In its heyday, Honda NSXes battled it out with Toyota Supra Turbos, Nissan Skyline GT-Rs and Mazda RX-7s.

However, due to escalating costs in recent years, SuperGT organizers have decided to transition to a common platform with specifications shared with the German DTM series for the higher displacement GT500 cars, and to develop its own shared frame for lower displacement GT300 cars.

The carbon-fiber tub and roll cage was developed and built by Japanese race car constructor Dome. After two years of development in secret, Dome chief Minoru Hayashi has just unveiled the first images of it on his own Twitter account.

To the central tub, manufacturers can still mount their engine and drivetrain of choice, along with a composite body. For the initial demo car, Dome has chosen to graft the body of a Toyota 86 (aka Scion FR-S) onto the frame. No specs of the chassis were given, but the end result is vastly different from production car-based racers like the Subaru BRZ GT300.