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Tesla asks NHTSA to investigate fires

In response to concerns following a recent accident which appeared to result from road debris damaging the underside of a battery compartment of a Tesla Model S, causing a fire in the engine compartment, the company has announced that it has requested that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conduct a full investigation into the fire incidents. In a blog post, Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote the following about the investigation: "While we think it is highly unlikely, if something is discovered that would result in a material improvement in occupant fire safety, we will immediately apply that change to new cars and offer it as a free retrofit to all existing cars. Given that the incidence of fires in the Model S is far lower than combustion cars and that there have been no resulting injuries, this did not at first seem like a good use of NHTSA's time compared to the hundreds of gasoline fire deaths per year that warrant their attention." Tesla has also released a software update to the cars which will maintain their standard ride height at highway speeds, preventing the air suspension from lowering the car an extra inch at highway speeds for greater aerodynamic efficiency.

BMW M3 and M4 on track, on video ahead of Detroit debut

The new BMW M3 and M4 on track at the Nurburgring The next instalment for the new BMW 3 and 4 Series is the arrival of the new range-topping, benchmark-setting BMW m3 and M4 at Detroit in January. Ahead of that, BMW has already given us plenty of the specs for both the 2014 M3 and M4. They include the arrival of a new 3.0 litre turbo engine for the M3 and M4 offering 424bhp and 369lb/ft of torque – more than the old 4.0 litre petrol could muster – attached to a manual gearbox as standard with a tweaked seven-speed dual-clutch auto as an option.

Vauxhall Insignia CDTi 4×4 – the first diesel 4×4 in the Insignia range

The Vauxhall Insignia CDTi 4x4 gets launched in September The Insignia range is proving to be a big success for Vauxhall (and Opel, for that matter) with a strong range of models from the rep-special 1.8 petrol on up to the range-topping Insignia VXR Sports Tourer. And most models can be grabbed with a wide variety of trim and engine options to suit the buyer. Unless you want a diesel 4×4.