Altrom Imports Atm D811dp - Brake Pads - Front, Organic on 2040-parts.com

Vauxhall Astra VXR Extreme gets 300bhp

The Vauxhall Astra VXR Extreme (pictured) gets 300bhp When the Vauxhall Astra Extreme popped its head above the parapet at the end of January as a potential range-topping Astra, we did wonder if it was going to get more power as well as suspension and cosmetic tweaks. It is. Vauxhall still aren’t saying just how powerful the Extreme is, but they do say it will have ‘more than 300 pS if (and probably, when) it goes in to production.

Autoweek Best of the Best/Truck - Chevrolet Silverado

When we first saw the new Chevy Silverado, we thought, “Hmmm, styling's conservative, interior quality looks a bit better … these things better drive well or Chevy's in a heap of trouble.” No doubt, the new Silverado is an outstanding full-size pickup, so much so we put one on our June 24 cover and said that it was “more refined than ever.”And that's really the story here. In our Best of the Best testing, we found the Silverado to be as quiet, refined and smooth as one could ask from a full-size pickup. Testers also were impressed with the body control (for a large truck) and outstanding ride.

Car buying, minus the dealership

“Test drives delivered” is the motto of Tred, a Seattle-based startup that's taking the car dealership out of the car-buying process -- at least from the shopper's perspective. Wired.com reported Thursday that by accessing Tred via the Web or an iPad app, shoppers will be able to select the cars they want to test-drive and have them delivered to the location of their choice. Each car is then delivered by a Tred staffer rather than a dealership salesperson.