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

Volkswagen XL1

This, remarkably, is the production version of the Volkswagen XL1, the most fuel-efficient production car in the world, a car we'll see in Geneva in a little over a week. Barely changed from the concept version shown at the Qatar motor show two years ago, the production XL1 is the first production result of VW's 1-liter project – to design a car that uses less than 1l/100km (282.5mpg imperial) – that started with the lozenge-shaped, tandem-seat 2003 1L and the later L1 of 2009. The XL1 actually beats that by sipping just 0.9 liters with CO2 emissions of 21g/km.

2015 Ford S-Max revealed – debuts at 2014 Paris Motor Show

The new Ford S-Max debuts at Paris and goes on sale next summer The Ford S-Max Concept arrived at the Frankfurt Motor Show last year as Ford worked hard to prove they really did have new cars on the way, despite the huge delay in delivering the new Ford Mondeo to Europe – with which the new S-Max shares its underpinnings – and now we get the real deal – the 2015 Ford S-Max. Looking very like the S-Max Concept, the new S-Max is the same size as the outgoing model but gets an evolutionary redesign complete with Ford’s ‘Aston Martin’ grill and some funky headlights, with the A-Pillars further back, higher beltline, bigger shoulders at the back and a set of slim tail lights at the back separated by a chrome strip. It all conspires to make the new S-Max sportier and more appealing.

Concept Car of the Week: Mercury El Gato (1970)

Of all the brands that marked American automobile history, Mercury had never been the most popular or the most loved, which ultimately led to its demise in 2011 when Ford chose to terminate the brand. To be fair only a handful of Mercury models are worth remembering: the 1950 Mercury Eight iconic base for custom cars, the 1955 Montclair, the Mustang-based Cougar, the Marauder X-100, the evil Cyclone Spoiler. However one of their coolest creations is fairly unknown mostly due its short concept car life: El Gato, in Spanish translating as "The Cat".