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

Funding row erupts over road repairs

COUNCILS hit by the recent extreme weather are calling for extra funding from central Government to help meet the multi-million pound roads repair bill. The Local Government Association (LGA) wants the Department for Transport to create a highways maintenance emergency fund following the recent spate of heavy rain and flooding. But the Government said councils have been allocated their funding and should have created contingency funds themselves.

Driven: Chevrolet Orlando

Chevrolet recently launched the new Orlando crossover in the UK market. The seven passenger vehicle – which eschews a conventional monovolume MPV package in favor of a more bulky, upright one that aims to fill the same need – will be sold in the North American market as well as in Europe. Cloaked in crossover skin, the Orlando is not to be taken lightly.

Redesigned Opel Astra revealed ahead of Frankfurt rollout

Opel, General Motors' financially embattled European subsidiary, has ripped the covers from its sixth-generation Astra ahead of the car's planned debut at the Frankfurt motor show in September. The five-door hatchback traditionally is one of Europe's best-selling models and originally was expected to play an important role in the Saturn lineup in the United States. Under GM's pared-down lineup, the Astra's Delta 2 chassis is likely provide the underpinnings for a small Buick, initially in China, and then in the United States, depending on market conditions.