Seadoo 800 Valves on 2040-parts.com

Honda replaces Jazz ES with ES Plus – puts price up

The Honda Jazz ES Plus (pictured) replaces the old ES trim Mid-summer (if, indeed, this is summer) is not the best of times for car sales, so we get used to car makers offering enhanced specs to get punters through the door. Which is why Honda has revealed the Jazz ES Plus. Replacing the current Jazz ES, the ES Plus gets extra toys such as a set of 16″ alloys, privacy glass, cruise control, armrest for the driver and leather on the steering wheel and gear knob.

General Motors salutes Bob Lutz

General Motors gave a fitting send-off to now-retired vice chairman Bob Lutz on Tuesday in Detroit. Lutz officially hung it up on April 30 after more than five decades in the auto business. He was most recently an adviser and served an extended stint as GM's product boss.

Ford Focus ECOnetic (2010) revealed at Frankfurt

Ford has revealed the 2010 Focus ECOnetic at Frankfurt For the first time Ford has made Start-Stop an option, which was something we thought should be added to the Fiesta ECOnetic when we had it. The Focus ECOnetic also benefits from Smart Regenerative Charging and something called Tension FEAD (no, we had no idea either, but apparently it reduces friction) which help make the new ECOnetic Focus more economical and less polluting. With Stop-Start fitted to the 1.6 litre Duratorq TDCi the Focus manages to hit the magic 99g/km mark.