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

GM expands brake-override safety feature

General Motors is significantly expanding the use of a brake-override safety feature in its cars through the end of 2012. GM announced on Monday that it will add the software, which it also calls “enhanced smart-pedal technology,” in all of its passenger cars with automatic transmissions and electronic throttle control. The change will reduce power to the engine when both the throttle and brakes are pressed at the same time.

2012 Scion xD to start at $16,075

Prices for the 2012 Scion xD will start at $16,075, Toyota said on Wednesday. For the standard five-speed manual, that’s a $235 increase from final price of the 2011 model. The sticker increases to $16,875 for the four-speed automatic version, which is also $235 more expensive than its 2011 counterpart.

Car insurance small print longer than Animal Farm

Aslan Alphan | Getty Images The small print on car insurance policies from a number of leading firms is longer than George Orwell’s novel Animal Farm, according to a consumer website. Fairer Finance waded through the small print of “every” car insurance policy, and found that the policy documents produced by Endsleigh, Sheila’s Wheels, Esure and M&S Bank run to more than 30,000 words. Less than a third read car insurance terms and conditions The highest word count found by researchers came from Endsleigh, with a grand total of 37,674 words in the small print.