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

2012 Ford Focus ST gets 297bhp

Those clever chaps at SuperChips have given the 2012 Ford Focus ST a bit of an ECU tweak to deliver 297bhp and an extra 85lb/ft of torque. When we reported last week that WTC outfit Arena had in roped Ford’s tuner of choice, Mountune, to give the new Ford Focus a makeover, we were a tad disappointed to discover that they were tweaking the rather journeyman Focus Zetec S. That meant the Zetec S got 200bhp – a handy jump – but we bemoaned the fact that they hadn’t fiddled with the Focus ST to give us a car to fill the void left by the absence of a Focus RS in the current iteration of the Focus.

Rockar Hyundai: Hyundai’s new digital sales channel

Rockar Hyundai will have a ‘Car Shop’ in Bluewater The death of the car showroom has long been predicted, and there’s no doubt that the car sales model we’re used to – visit showroom, see salesman, get upsold, leave with something you didn’t want – is going to die a death as the world and his dog get used to living, and buying, online. Now, Hyundai has decided there’s sufficient appetite for buying online to create a new digital platform for Hyundai buyers that removes the salesman from the equation and lets car purchases – and service followup – go properly digital. Enter Rockar Hyundai.

Toyota to roll out rear-seat airbag

Toyota Motor Corp. has developed a rear-seat airbag that deploys between passengers and will install it on a model to be launched in Japan. The airbag inflates from a fixed, rear-seat center console during side collisions.