93 94 95 96 97 Toyota Corolla L. Corner/park Light 15190 on 2040-parts.com

No sign of global auto meltdown at Tokyo Auto Salon

With more than 600 cars on display and a record number of exhibitors, nothing at the 2009 Tokyo Auto Salon tuner show hinted at the global economic downturn. As always, there was a great mix of styles, from hard-core, 1,000-hp, supertuned machinery to weird customized scooter tricycles. Auto manufacturers tried hard to capture the minds--if not the wallets--of the younger-than-30 crowd with customized versions of production cars, while tuners were busy persuading power junkies to choose them for their next engine modification.

McLaren P1 production starts in Woking

McLaren P1 production starts in Woking The Geneva Motor Show in March saw the arrival of the first production version of the new McLaren P1 (and its arch-rival, the LaFerrari). But it’s taken until now – seven months later – for McLaren to finish final testing of the P1 before pressing the button on their clinical assembly line to start customer P1s rolling out. In between the reveal at Geneva and production starting, McLaren have been having a bash at the Nurburgring (with mixed results) and doing some final hot weather testing on the P1, but now – apart from a few inevitable tweaks once the P1 gets out in to the real world – the P1 is ready for its customers.

New Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo introduced for race series

The Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo single-make race series wrapped up for the year in Los Arcos, Spain, on Oct. 14. The championship was won by Cedric Leimer, racing for Autovitesse Garage.