2010 Audi A5 2.0l Petrol Heater Motor/assy Blower Fan Assembly on 2040-parts.com

Ford sales show move away from diesel

NEW CAR buyers are moving back towards petrol engines after years of diesel domination, if Ford’s latest sales figures are any guide. The company has revealed that its multi-award-winning 1.0-litre Ecoboost turbocharged petrol engine now powers one in every five cars sold in Europe, totalling 120,000 vehicles from January to the end of June. That figure is an increase from 104,000 1.0-litre Ecoboost-powered cars sold in the same period in 2013.

British EV prototype competes for $10m prize

A Silverstone-based company has emerged as the only British (and European) contender for the $10m Automotive X-Prize, a competition to find the most environmentally friendly car on the planet. Delta Motorsport’s E-4 Coupe concept has been accepted into the next stage of the X-Prize competition and the company now has to prepare a fully functioning prototype. Backed by an American insurance company, the X-Prize was set up to 'inspire a new generation of viable, super-efficient vehicles that help break our addiction to oil and stem the effects of climate change'.

2015 Volkswagen Touareg price and specs – costs from £43,000

The 2015 Volkswagen Touareg (pictured) costs from £35k Volkswagen revealed a facelift for its biggest SUV – the VW Touareg – at the Beijing Motor Show in April which got the usual tweaks of titivated front and back and a new set of alloys to make it look fresher. Also in the mix, sadly, was the end of the very grunty 4.2 litre V8 diesel (and the hybrid in the UK) with VW deciding to concentrate on two flavours of V6 diesel and adding in new technology like post-collision braking, coasting and low-resistance tyres with air suspension to the mix. Now, with the 2015 VW Touareg due to go on sale on 27 August, Volkswagen has revealed prices and specs for the new Touareg.