Insurance group lists its Top Safety Picks

After increasing its standards for 2011 models, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says that 66 vehicles--more than double the 2010 total--rate as best in the industry at protecting passengers from front, side, rollover and rear crashes. Only 27 vehicles qualified last year after the group, funded by the insurance industry, required that vehicles pass a roof-strength test to earn a good rating, claiming that stronger roofs would reduce the risk of serious or fatal injury by 50 percent in a rollover accident. The most mentioned carmakers on the 2011 list are Hyundai/Kia and Volkswagen/Audi, both with nine vehicles to get the Top Safety Pick designation.

Italian Grand Prix (2010) RESULT

The Italian Grand Prix Monza 2010 It does make you wonder when you see one team – McLaren – using two completely different strategies whether they know what will work. Or maybe McLaren feels the needs to differentiate the strategies so the driver will be less of a focus than the strategy. Whichever it was we’ll never really know which of McLaren’s setups for the Monza Grand Prix was the best.

Revised Dacia Sandero (2012) first official pictures

It’s been five years in the making but Dacia has uncovered the latest version of the Sandero ahead of its official launch at the Paris motor show. There's been a styling overhaul inside and out, but it's the Dacia's low price that'll get consumers excited... The 2012 Dacia Sandero's exterior changes You may struggle to identify any major aesthetic changes from the old Sandero, but Dacia claim its new model incorporates ‘more assertive, status-enhancing design cues.’ One thing's for sure, Dacia has made an effort to bring the Sandero in line with its other models, such as the Duster, with a more angular front end and sculpted flanks.