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

Audi planning their own version of the electric VW e-Up

Perhaps the most promising EVs from Audi so far have been the A2 EV (pictured above) and the A1 range extender with a small Wankel engine in the boot to charge the battery. But even they were dropped from Audi’s production plans last year. But now it seems Audi are back in the production EV game with plans to produce an Audi e-tron using the underpinnings of the electric VW e-Up, but with Audi styling and an upmarket Audi interior and high-end Infotainment.

McLaren P1: Middle East demand outstrips supply & new P1 photos

So the opening of McLaren Manama –  a joint venture between McLaren Automotive, Mumtalakat, and Al Ghassan Motors - at the Bahrain World Trade Centre is an opportunity to get the P1 front and centre as McLaren promotes both the new showroom and the upcoming 2013 Bahrain Grand Prix. But it won’t just be the P1 in McLaren’s new Bahrain showroom, it will also be the getting the Formula One gloss too with the MP4-25 – Jenson Button’s car in his 2010 season with McLaren – going on display to garner footfall in the new showroom. To give us a reason to report on the new showroom in Bahrain, McLaren has released more images from the photo shoot earlier this year at the Bahrain International Circuit when they were busy drumming up interest in the P1, and they’re such beautifully lit and shot images we couldn’t not publish them.

Toyota says quake-hit plants escape major structural damage

Toyota Motor Corp. has released the first damage report for its northern Japanese factories in the region hammered by Friday's massive earthquake, saying some equipment and fixtures will need repairs but that the plants sustained no major structural harm. For days after the quake, Toyota had trouble contacting it plants in the northern Japan quake zone, making it difficult to assess their status.