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

One Lap of the Web: Diesels, Deadmau5, Excalibur and Excelsior!

-- It's the 50th anniversary of Excalibur, the company with fine craftsmen who keep the neoclassical motoring dream alive, or in some vaguely zombielike semblance thereof. And while the Excalibur's retro vibes arose from the mausoleum of the Mercedes-Benz SSK, Hemmings has discovered Brooks Stevens's other neoclassic: the Excalibur 35X, meant to look like a Bugatti Type 35. Just 27 were built in Italy on the chassis of Opel Commodores, fitted with inline-sixes.

Porsche purchases Andial performance brand

Porsche announced on Thursday that it has purchased the legendary Andial name that has become a staple in the realm of Porsche racing and performance tuning. In 1975, the late Arnold Wagner (AN), Dieter Inzenhofer (DI), and former Porsche Motorsport North America president and current consultant Alwin Springer (AL) came together to build Andial (an anagram of the principals names), a successful and respected independent authority on Porsche-performance tuning. Since the last active owner, Inzenhofer, is retiring later this month, timing was ripe for Porsche to jump in and offer to carry the Andial torch.

Theory test fee to fall

LEARNER drivers will have to fork out less for their theory tests - saving would-be motorists around £100 million over the next decade. The cost of a theory test is being slashed by 25% in October, taking the cost down from £31 to £25, and with a further drop of £2 lined up for October next year. Theory test fees for motorbikes and other vehicles are also set to be cut, a spokesman said.