This week, ImportCar Editor Mary DellaValle provides us with a report from WORLDPAC's second Supplier & Training Expo, which was held Jan. 12-15 in Anaheim, Calif. The four-day event, designed to help customers better succeed in the changing aftermarket environment, has grown to double the capacity of the initial event and offered exclusive technical and business training, along with product knowledge from suppliers. Click here to read Mary's coverage and see a slideshow of images from the event.

In other popular news this week, Tire Review magazine shares some exciting new advancements from Bridgestone, which has unveiled a new printing technology for tires that will help reduce overall tire weight while allowing designers to be more creative in their sidewall designs. Bridgestone's tire printing technology consists of a base layer, specially developed color inks and a final exterior layer to protect the lettering from damage. The technology could lead to the incorporation of original custom designs or photographs that could be printed on the sidewalls and later removed, if desired.

The increasing average vehicle age has been good news for the independent aftermarket the past few years, and according to Polk, it is at an all-time high. The average age of cars and light trucks currently in operation in the U.S. has increased to 10.8 years, according to Polk. Passenger cars showed a modest increase in age since 2010, from 11 years to just 11.1 years at the end of June 2011. Light trucks (including pickups and SUVs) show a more sizeable gain in the same timeframe, from 10.1 years to 10.4 years. Overall, average vehicle age has been increasing quickly over the past five years, Polk reports.

Also in our recap of this week's top news, Minnesota-based Automotive Parts Headquarters announced the presentation of its annual outstanding supplier awards. The auto parts distributor and store group recognized outstanding supplier achievements from 2011 with all of its store owners and managers present at the company's annual Winter Conference, held on Jan. 16 at Cragun’s Resort in Brainerd, Minn. To see the complete list of this year's winners, click here.

Last in our weekly roundup of news, we share the sad passing of Herb Goldstein, high-performance manufacturer' s rep, known to many simply as "Mr. Phone." Goldstein died Saturday, Jan. 14, after a long illness. He had a long and illustrious career as a high-performance manufacturer's rep and represented many major names in that sector on a national basis. He is credited with not only bringing those manufacturers to market, but also helping carry them into national prominence with his marketing skills. Goldstein earned his nickname for the nearly constant phone calls he would make to every high-performance customer in the country. In his time, Goldstein was perhaps the best-known performance rep in the entire country. To read more remembrances, click here.