2009 Honda Civic Speedometer Instrument Cluster on 2040-parts.com

VW Golf R 400 could get more than 400PS – which makes a bit of a nonsense of its name

The VW Golf R 400 (pictured) may not actually be an R 400 The Beijing Motor Show last month saw the debut of the VW Golf R 400, an extreme take on the VW Golf R with a full 400 PS (395bhp) at its disposal. When Volkswagen revealed the R 400 as a concept we did note that it looked more production-ready than concept, and it took VW less than a week to confirm that the Golf R 400 was indeed heading for production. Now, just to muddy the waters a bit (or raise expectations), VW’s R&D chief Heinz-Jakob Neusser has said that when the Golf R 400 does arrive it could well be with more than 400PS.

Alfa Brera & Alfa Spider get new engines and Italia Independent trim

The Alfa Brera & Alfa Spider get new engines and a new trim option Alfa Romeo introduced new engine options last year on the Alfa 159 – the 1750iTBi Petrol engine and the 2.0 litre JTDm diesel – which are now about to find their way in to the Alfa Brera and Alfa Spider. Which is a far from bad move. The 1750i Turbo manages to deliver 200bhp and a decent amount of torque – 236lb/ft from only 1400rpm – which makes it distinctly brisk – 7.7 & 7.8 seconds respectively to 62 mph for the Brera and Spider.

Mercedes-Benz hits 100,000 UK sales for first time

FOR THE first time in its history Mercedes-Benz UK has sold more than 100,000 cars in a year. The milestone car, an A 180 CDI Sport bought at Mercedes-Benz of Bristol, now belongs to Jamie Leigh Arndell, who works as Transport Manager at Bristol and Avon Group. “It was a lovely surprise to pick up my new car and be told I was the company’s 100,000th customer [this year],” she said at the handover of the car.