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

Kubrick's Jaguar memories: XJ12s and more

Once upon a time there was a small boy, about seven years old, who had taken an interest in cars at a rather early stage, mainly thanks to his old man, who was (and, thankfully, still is) a car enthusiast and, back in those days, a staunch supporter of a certain Southern German marque. This naturally meant that the small boy would sometimes be a bit annoyed by his father's occasionally overbearing passion, but at the same time usually knit his eyebrows himself whenever he came across something sporting four wheels but no blue & white propeller (which, he believed, was the way things were supposed to be). So the foundations had been laid to turn this very young chap into a proper petrolhead one day, but his interest remained relatively casual and moderate until that one fateful evening.

Aston Martin Cygnet – more detail

New pictures of the Toyota iQ based Aston Martin Cygnet Back in June we reported that Aston Martin were producing an Eco City Car - the Aston Martin Cygnet -  which was a bit of a surprise, to say the least. We know that people are shying away from ultra expensive and powerful cars at the moment, but the idea of an Aston Martin that was cheap to run and very, very small seemed a step to far. But once we got our heads round it the idea made more sense.

Qoros GQ3 (2013) first official pictures

New Chinese manufacturer Qoros has shown its new Focus and Golf rival - the GQ3 - ahead of its planned debut at the 2013 Geneva motor show. The first in a string of models planned for launch in China and Europe, the Qoros GQ3 is at first glance a reasonably accomplished design which should be able to compete for showroom appeal with the likes of Skoda and the Korean budget brands. Of course, what has held back Chinese car brands in the past is quality: we can't tell from these first official photos whether Qoros has cracked that or not.