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

2009 Jaguar XKR is unveiled

The 2009 Jaguar XKR - Quicker, more economical and better equipped We brought you the first undisguised pictures of Jaguar’s updated XK a few days ago, and Jaguar has now officially unveiled the XKR at the Detroit Motor Show. As we reported, the styling updates, although modest, do freshen the car up nicely and make it feel more current. A new front end with chrome-rimmed air vents, tweaks to the mirrors and LEDs at the back, although small changes, do make a difference.

MINI Yours: MINI customisation kicks off with MINI Avenue

MINI Avenue - an off-the-peg MINI Yours We already know that MINI seems to launch more limited editions every year than the whole of the rest of the car industry. But now they’re going a step further with a customisation programme called ‘MINI Yours’, and an off-the-peg version called the MINI Avenue. MINI Yours is all about offering the sort of customisation offered for the original Mini in the 1960s by companies like Radford - and about making good margins on the add-ons – with a huge range of customisation stuff above and beyond what appears in the MINI Limited Editions.

Land Rover Range-e plug-in diesel hybrid grabs SMMT Award

Land Rover Range-e wins SMMT Award Just like every other car maker in the world, Jaguar Land Rover are flirting with and developing hybrid powerplants to keep the government-targeted economy and CO2 levels in check, even though neither Jaguar or Land Rover are close to actually launching a hybrid. In fact, Jaguar recently said that 4WD was the next ambition for their cars – not hybrids – and we won’t see a hybrid from Land Rover until the next wave of Land Rover models start to hit the road in 2013. And even then, any hybrid powerplant is likely to be well after initial launch.