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

British driver breaks speed record for steam-powered car

One of the world's oldest speed records has gone up in smoke--or rather, steam. Charles Burnett III drove a steam car to an average speed of 139.843 mph over two runs in California to beat the 103-year-old record of Fred Marriott. Burnett peaked at 136.103 mph on the first run, then he accelerated to 151.085 mph on the second run less than an hour later.

Dacia 'to stay true to its budget roots'

The global marketing boss in charge of Dacia’s roll-out has promised that Renault’s budget brand won’t move upmarket. Many bargain car marques end up inching – or scrambling – upmarket, with slicker products, big price hikes and a desertion of their value promise. But Dacia promises it won't follow the likes of Skoda, Hyundai and Kia by starting cheap 'n' cheerful and then raising prices.

Google continues autonomous car tests [w/video]

Google is leading the charge towards the production of a fully autonomous car, releasing a video earlier this week of the car being tested on a programmed route. Steve Mahan, who is 95 per cent blind, successfully tested the car with Google engineers and a member of the local police close at hand should something go awry. Google kitted out a Toyota Prius with its software, taking the shape of a spinning cylinder on the car's roof, which senses traffic or activity close to the car and automatically adapts to its situation.