97-03 Honda Valkyrie 1500 Oem Tachometer on 2040-parts.com

BMW and Zagato tease next collaboration

BMW has teased the first image of its BMW Zagato roadster, the second collaboration between the automaker and the Italian design studio, which is set to be unveiled this weekend at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Earlier this year at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este in Italy, BMW unveiled its Zagato-designed coupe, which featured the carrozeria's signature double-bubble roof, the high, fastback Kamm tail and full, blown surfaces. The BMW Zagato Coupé was the first collaboration between Zagato and BMW, and was the first Italian-designed car to wear the blue and white propeller since the 2003 Bertone Birusa.

Audi S1 at Paris

The Audi S1 will have a Paris Launch (A1 Wörthersee Concept pictured) It’s getting on for a year since we reported that – despite some saying it wouldn’t happen – Audi were planning at least a warm version of the A1 and had on the drawing board the Audi S1 to take on the MINI Cooper. So it’s not a shock that we hear Audi are planning on bring the S1 along to Paris for a reveal before getting the S1 on the roads by the second quarter of 2011. Expect the usual Audi S bits in the mix  - bigger wheels, fettled suspension, beefed-up brakes, body kit – and power in the S1 to come from the S/C turbo 1.4 TSI found in the VW Polo GTI, although the S1 may just get a tweaked version of the engine as befits its higher standing in the VW hierarchy with a bit more than the 178 horses the Polo GTI manages.

Video: Fiat creates café racer 500 for SEMA

Fiat is preparing a café racer-style 500 for this week's SEMA show by stripping down an Abarth version to take it "down to the essence of what you need to drive a car." The café racer philosophy of ‘more speed, less comfort' was born around the 1960s British 'biker scene and while initially focussed on increasing performance, quickly developed into a culture as concered with 'the show' as 'the go'. "It takes something like this to really get noticed at SEMA," says Craig Buoncompago, Project Manager at Fiat Product Design. "The Café Racer is really going to be one special car that you guys should really come and see." The 500's roof has been chopped, while also shorn of its door handles and being fitted with hot rod billet rims.