Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

Renault Twin’Run gets 316bhp & pays homage to the Renault 5 Turbo

The Twin’Run is an extreme version of the next Twingo and manages to pay homage to the old Renault 5, with a thumping great V6 bolted in the middle and pumping out 316bhp and 280lb/ft of torque, enough to get to 62mph in 4.5 seconds and on to 155mph. The Nissan-sourced V6 gets mated to a SADEV six-speed sequential gearbox and comes with a limited slip diff to stop the tyres burning off when the going gets brisk. As well as endowing the Twin’Run with lots of power, Renault has also kept weight down to 950kg by using a tubular chassis, glass-polyester composite for the bodywork, lumps of carbon fibre and not a hugely laden interior.

MINI Coopers recalled in US over fires

The MINI Cooper is being recalled over fires Following an investigation started in October, BMW in the US has issued a recall for 88,911 MINI Coopers built between 2007 and 2011. Back in October we reported that the MINI Cooper S was under investigation in the US after a spate of fires. ‘Spate’ may be a bit strong as, at that time, there had been a total of just 12 fires reported.

Toyota updates the Verso MPV

Toyota will show the all new Verso at Geneva '09 The Verso is an all new version of the MPV, offering Toyota’s Easy Flat-7 seating configuration, which basically allows owners to lower all the back five seats individually to accommodate whatever configuration they need for load/passenger requirements. The Verso is stretched over the old Verso, with a longer wheelbase and wider track, offering a more spacious interior. There’s a pretty much all-round increase in power of 20%, but Toyota has managed to pull off a 12% reduction in emissions and fuel use.