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

A look at Volvo future products

Volvo wants to derive economies of scale from a new front-wheel-drive architecture called SPA, for Scalable Platform Architecture. The redesigned XC90 crossover due in 2014 will be the first to use the architecture. SPA was designed for a new family of four-cylinder gasoline and diesel engines that Volvo will begin using on existing models next fall.

BMW M3 engine shown

By Ben Barry Motor Industry 23 March 2007 01:18 BMW has revealed detailed specs on the all-new 4.0-litre V8 that’s soon to be slotted into the all-new M3. Power is confirmed at 420bhp with 295lb ft peak torque available from 3000 to 7000rpm. The engine – made at the same foundry as the BMW Sauber F1 team’s V8 and derived from the same architecture as the M5 and M6 V10 – looks set to dispel any fears M purists may have had that the M3 would be transformed into a nose heavy, slow revving behemoth.

Nissan LEAF: Fleet sales double

Nissan has revealed that fleet sales of its electric LEAF have doubled in the UK, with overall Nissan fleet sales up 9 per cent. Sales of electric cars are not exactly stellar, but there is a light at the end of a very long tunnel shining dimly on UK EV sales – the fleet sector. Nissan has reported that its fleet sales in the UK – with 89 per cent of all fleets sales of cars actually built in the UK – has risen by 9 per cent so far in 2012, but the Nissan LEAF EV has seen its fleets sales more than double.