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

Lexus IS 300h promises unrivalled ownership costs

The new Lexus IS - launched at Detroit in January and costing from £26,495 for the IS 250 in the UK – actually offers ownership costs that eclipse diesel offerings from the likes of Jaguar, BMW, Audi and Mercedes, say Lexus. Despite the logical assumption that the complex hybrid powerplant in the IS 300h would cost more to maintain, Lexus say the opposite is true. Because it has no clutch and the starter motor and alternator are integrated they require no servicing or replacement and Lexus has fitted a timing chain instead of a timing belt, so it won’t need regular replacement either.

Allan McNish: Le Mans 'toughest race of the year'

Allan McNish has won the Le Mans 24-hour enduro twice and lines up in the Audi R18 e-tron with nine-time winner Tom Kristensen and a new co-driver for 2013. He talks about the fight between Audi and Toyota and his accidents of 2011 and 2012. Hi Allan, what are you up to?

Mercedes-Benz CLA180 cheats the wind

Mercedes-Benz claims its new CLA180 BlueEfficiency Edition will be the world's most aerodynamically efficient production road car when the European deliveries begin in June. The swoopy four-door sedan forms part of an initial five-car lineup of CLA models set for a public debut at the Geneva motor show in March. With an official drag co-efficient of 0.22, the CLA180 Blue Efficiency Edition undercuts the existing aerodynamic champion, the Mercedes B180 BlueEfficiency with the optional eco technology package, which claims a 0.24 Cd.