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

Nissan GT-R to be revised for Europe

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 01 May 2008 18:14 Nissan is fettling its GT-R before it goes on sale in the UK in April 2009. It might have just announced a new lap record at the Nurburgring – chief test driver Tochio Suzuki shaved nine seconds off the GT-R's previous record of 7min 38 – but Nissan's engineers are already working on upgrades to the everyman's supercar.Chief vehicle engineer Kazutoshi Mizuno told CAR Online that the GT-R models bound for the American market would benefit from a range of small tweaks, including three harder engine mounts and a stiffer transaxle mount to stop the mechancial parts from moving under extreme cornering. It's detail like this that enabled the new 7min 29sec...Nissan GT-R: detail changes'The new mounts make the car feel more together in extreme circumstances,' he said.

Concept Car of the Week: Renault Altica (2006)

Back in 2006 Renault was still well into its design-leadership stride, if perhaps not for much longer. The Altica concept, shown at that year's Geneva motor show, showcased all the French brand had to offer at that time – a brilliantly brave, architectural interior, a style that could only be associated with its country of origin and an interior that thoroughly questioned and readdressed layout, control and format. It also served to preview the renaissance of the Shooting Brake that the industry is still experiencing.

Alfa Romeo 4C spied in Michigan

During the Detroit auto show in January, Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne told us -- in his own irreverent way -- that arrival of the long-promised Alfa Romeo 4C would be delayed once again. But as these spy photos show, testing on the sporty coupe continues even as a debut date remains elusive. This isn't the first time we've caught the 4C testing in the States.