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

Honda cutting production in Swindon again – 500 jobs at risk

Honda is cutting another 500 jobs in Swindon It’s only a year since Honda announced 800 job cuts at Swindon (which eventually was 550) and now they’re about to cut a further 500 as weak demand – particularly in Europe – sees the Swindon plant producing just half the cars it could. The plan is to cut shifts from 3 to 2 a day, which will result in the loss of 340 permanent jobs and 160 temporary ones, and production will be centred on just one production line to increase efficiency and flexibility. The Swindon Plant – which builds the Civic, Civic Tourer, CR-V and Jazz (and the Civic Type-R from next year) – has been hard hit by the slump in European sales in the last five years and, despite still strong UK sales, production levels of 120,000 cars a year – just half of the Swindon capacity – are not enough to sustain the current staffing levels.

Detroit Auto Show: Bentley Continental GTC Speed debuts

Bentley will complete its Speed portfolio when it introduces a freshened Continental GTC range at the Detroit auto show. Along with exterior and equipment changes, a new GTC Speed model is added with a more powerful version of the 6.0-liter twin-turbocharged W12 that churns out 600 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque for an improvement of 48 hp and 74 lb-ft over the regular GTC. The result is Bentley's most powerful convertible to date.

Ford trucks pulling it to the next level

With the heavy-duty truck segment heating up, Ford is breaking out some tough new vehicles and an upgraded 6.7-liter diesel engine. The second-generation 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 turbo diesel packs a manufacturer estimated 440 hp with 860 lb-ft of torque. This is a gain of 40 hp and 60 lb-ft over the first-gen 6.7 oil burner.