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

New Car Sales 2012: Big winners – and big losers

Car sales in the UK hit a four year high in 2012 with over 2 million registrations. But which were the big winners and losers? Despite the Eurozone being on the verge of imploding – and the economic outlook on the gloomy side just about everywhere – 2012 has turned in to the best year for new car registrations in the UK since 2008.

McLaren P1 back at the Nurburgring in attack mode

The McLaren P1 is back at the Nurburgring looking to set a new record It was brave of Ron Dennis to declare – before the McLaren P1 was anywhere close to finished – that the it would be able to lap the Nurburgring in under 7 minutes. He was obviously very confident his new baby was up to the task but, just like McLaren’s current Formula One car, the P1 seems to be just a bit off the pace. Last month we reported that it seemed the best the McLaren P1 could do at the Nurburgring was a 7:04s – a time McLaren didn’t make official – so we knew McLaren would be back with their laptops and engineers as soon as they’d figured a way to trim those last few seconds.

Audi R5, Porsche 550, VW Bluesport 'on hold'

Numerous indications are pointing to the exciting mid-engined VW, Porsche and Audi sports cars being on ice. The group had been collaborating to develop the VW Bluesport, Porsche 550 and Audi R5 - some observers had hailed the new roadsters as the Elise from Germany. Porsche doubts over the 550 But at the weekend Porsche CEO Matthias Muller told German business rag Wirtschaftswoche that he was worried a cheaper Porsche may dilute the brand's image.