Mansory Panamera revealed

The Mansory take on the Porsche Panamera But Mansory has a big market in the Middle East and their tastes are less conservative than ours on the whole. Where we’d rather talk quietly but carry a big stick, the Middle East market wants the world to know just how big their stick is from the get-go. Horses for courses.

Lexus IS Coupe arriving in 2014 & IS F V8 on the way

Now it looks like Lexus is going to bring the LF-CC to production life in 2014 as the Lexus IS Coupe (although there are rumours it could be the RC, but that may be for a production version of the even more appealing LF-LC as a range-topping Lexus Coupe) and equip it with the same petrol engine and hybrid options as the IS saloon. What is also in prospect is a return of the IS F – complete with sizeable V8 power – which, if it does arrive, will see the IS Coupe coming with the F engine option and making a very promising foray in to the powerful V8 Coupe market. What doesn’t seem likely is that Lexus are going to bother with a diesel option for the IS or Coupe, despite conventional wisdom saying they need a diesel option to compete in Europe because - as they’ve already demonstrated with the IS 300h – they can deliver an appealing and competitive hybrid with decent performance and price, and bring it in with under 100g/km emissions – perfect for the business market.

Renault buys Caterham stake in Alpine as Anglo-French deal collapses

By Michael Karkafiris Motor Industry 10 June 2014 10:36 The collaboration between Renault and Caterham officially ended today, with the French company acquiring Caterham’s remaining stake in Alpine. It marks the end of the road for the Anglo-French collaboration, leaving Renault the sole owner in Société des Automobiles Alpine. Today’s announcement terminates the 50-50 partnership signed in November 2012 between the two companies, a partnership that started with the promise of building two sister sports cars, one from Alpine and one from Caterham.