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McLaren 12C Can-Am & Historic McLaren Can-Ams at 2013 Goodwood FoS

It seems it was, because by November McLaren revealed the 12C Can Am was going in to limited production – just 30 units at £375,000 each – for deep-pocketed Americans to go track day racing with a 12C that weighs in at 1200kg, gets a few extra horses and 30 per cent more downforce compared to the road going 12C. So with a new track car and a 50th anniversary to celebrate in 2013, McLaren has decided it’s a good idea to take the 12C Can-Am off to play on the Goodwood hillcimb this summer at the 2013 Festival of Speed and, for added interest, take along a selection of models from their heritage collection – the ultimate McLaren racers of the 1960s and 70s – for our delight. McLaren has also given us a teaser video of the M8D Can-Am Racer (below) as a taster of what visitors to this year’s FoS can look forward too, yet another reason to get yourself down to Sussex in July.

Next-gen Passat to offer hybrid and twin-turbo power

VOLKSWAGEN is going even more upmarket with the all-new version of the Passat, which is due to hit showrooms later this year. Soon buyers will be able to include a plug-in hybrid and an all-new 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel among their forecourt options, as VW goes chasing after its sister company Audi. Weight-saving measures have chopped up to 85kg from the new kid on a like-for-like basis, which helps achieve VW's stated efficiency boosts of 20% versus equivalent outgoing Passats.

2014 Vauxhall Meriva facelift gets new diesel engine

2014 Vauxhall Meriva facelift (pictured) gets new diesel engine It’s more than three years since the Vauxhall Meriva arrived – at Geneva in 2010 – as Vauxhall’s compact people carrier, so it’s time for a bit of a titivate and a few updates. The cosmetic makeover for the 2014 MY Meriva isn’t huge, but Vauxhall has thrown in a new grill and new headlights to fulfil the ‘new nose’ requirements of a facelift, there’s new alloys and new alloy options and daytime running lights. But the biggest change comes under the skin, with the old 1.7 litre turbo diesel being supplanted by the new 1.6 litre from the Zafira which offers 134bhp and 236lb/ft of torque.