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

Vauxhall Adam: Prices & on sale at Paris 2012

The new Vauxhall Adam (and its European sibling, the Opel Adam) have their debut at the Paris Motor Show when the order book opens. We’re still not entirely convinced that the Vauxhall Adam has enough individuality to be a star in the marketplace, but it looks a decent offering nonetheless. Its styling is distinctly generic – it looks like a mish-mash of ideas from successful competitors – but Vauxhall is promising much for the Adam with extreme levels of customisation and lots of high-end toys, even if many will be cost options.

Novitec Alfa Romeo 8C Spider adds boost for a sensuous 600 hp

Novitec has laid hands on the near-perfect Alfa Romeo 8C to create the 8C Spider Kompressor, a car the tuner claims is the “most powerful street-legal Alfa Romeo of all time.” Heady words, but they're nicely backed up by a supercharged version of the 4.7-liter Alfa V8 cranking out 600 hp and 434 lb-ft of torque. That's up from approximately 450 hp and 346 lb-ft on a stock Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione. Tweaks supporting the force-fed mill include a water-to-air intercooler, custom injectors and revised fuel and ignition mapping, plus a variable stainless-steel exhaust system.

Toyota Prius slashes price to match Honda Insight

Toyota Motor Corp. is going for the jugular with its redesigned Prius, setting a 2.05 million yen starting price ($20,750) in Japan that is on par with the newly released Honda Insight. Toyota notified Japanese dealers of the cutthroat pricing policy for its redesigned 1.8-liter gasoline-electric hybrid on March 25, dealers in Japan say.