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

Hot Hatch Special

By the CAR road test team 27 February 2009 09:00 An astonishing 24,524 CAR Online readers voted in our poll to find the greatest hot hatch of all time – and the results are now in. Below we count down the top 46 pocket rockets, hot hatches and GTIs, as voted for by you. Read our verdicts – and yours – below, download the wallpapers of the most affordable sporting models on the planet.

New (2014) Mercedes S-Class highlights on video

The new Mercedes S Class (pictured) boasts a wealth of technology The new Mercedes S Class was launched last month as a styling evolution of the current S Class, but with a wealth of new safety and technology systems lurking under its, still familiar, skin. The S Class may be portrayed as a bit of a ‘Merchant Bankers’ car, but anyone who’s lived with one for any period of time will know there’s really nothing quite like it (well, if you ignore the mistake that was the W220 S Class), and now Mercedes has got its quality Mojo back, the W221 is once again a very special S Class, and the new W222 promises to be even more special. We know that the 2014 S Class will get a range of engines from frugal 4-cylinder to potent V12 – with engines to suit all in between – but whatever engine you choose there will be a raft of technology at your fingertips (some at extra cost depending on the model you buy), so Mercedes has been busy producing a ‘Story’ video highlighting much of the new S-Class’s tech.

Banks and Ryan ready for Pikes Peak

Gale Banks, part-time stunt driver Mike Ryan and the diesel wizards from Gale Banks Engineering will return to Pikes Peak this year with the Freightliner Cascadia that finished ninth in 2012. Competing in the Pikes Peak Open class, the team has been furiously working on the truck at the Banks Performance home base in Azusa, Calif. To get the semi tractor up the 12.4 mile road, Banks is installing its Super-Turbo setup on the 14.7-liter, Detroit Diesel-equipped truck.