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

New Jaguar XJR will see the end of the XJ SuperSport

The launch of the new 2013 Jaguar XJR at the New York Auto Show this week heralds the end of the line for Jaguar’s other Supercharged V8 XJ – the SuperSport. With a much more fulsome 542bhp, some very ‘Jaguar’ go-faster bits, some proper fettling to make the steering, gearbox and suspension focus more on the drive without making a mess of the ride and altogether more dynamism in prospect than the SuperSport, we’d assumed Jaguar were making the XJR the performance pinnacle of the XJ range and leaving the SuperSport in place as the ‘luxury’ alternative. With that thought in mind we’d expected to see Jaguar push the price of the new XJR up towards the XJ Ultimate (which costs £121,000), so count us gobsmacked when Jaguar revealed the new XJR will cost from £92,335 – just £500 more than the SuperSport.

Honda cancels V8 program, S2000 and CR-Z convertible, report says

Fun appears to be on the chopping block at Honda. Plans for the successor to the S2000 sports car, a lineup of rear-drive Acuras, a proposed V8 engine and a drop-top built off the CR-Z hybrid are all dead, according to a report in a British magazine. The reason: Honda is rethinking its product plans as it grapples with the global downturn in sales and economic conditions, Autocar is reporting.

MOT test scrapped for Classic Cars

MOTs scrapped for Classic Cars The Department for Transport has announced it is scrapping MOT tests for cars registered before 1960. In a move that probably won’t make much difference to owners – but will at least cut down on red tape – the Department of Transport has announced that from 18th November 2012 owners of cars registered before 1960 will no longer require an annual MOT. The argument for the change is that owners of classic and historic cars have a much lower accident and MOT failure rate than other vehicles on the road.