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First Fiat 500s will have stick shifts

The 2012 Fiat 500 , heading to U.S. dealerships later than first expected, is enduring another hiccup: The first units arriving in dealerships in late February will have manual transmissions, the company said. Moreover, only about 20 percent of the 130 Fiat dealerships will be open when those first cars arrive, said Laura Soave, head of the Fiat brand in North America, at the Detroit auto show last week.

Tesla Roadster Sport announced

The Tesla Roadster Sport will be available from the summer, for around €112K, and claims a 0-60 time of 3.7 seconds, a 0.2 improvement on the existing Tesla Roadster. The extra power comes from fiddling with the stator in the motor and an increased winding density for less resistance (I’m sure that must make sense if you understand Electric Motors – I’m still stuck on the internal combustion engine – must keep up!). The Tesla Roadster Sport also gets Yokohama Ultra High Performance tyres and some suspension tweaks.

Driven: Vauxhall Astra GTC

Ford, Opel/Vauxhall and VW are in perpetual battle for the C-segment title, the toughest European segment to compete in. Visual differentiation is key, but so is practicality and performance – all attributes that the respective offering must possess. And so the fight continues, heating up with the arrival of the latest contender, the Vauxhall Astra GTC.