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

Hertz Lotus Hire in Italy

Hertz are now offering the Lotus Elise SC for hire in Italy Hertz and Lotus have the answer – drive a Lotus Elise to show the Italians they’re not the only ones to make a cracking two seater (and a lot cheaper). Hertz has teamed up with Lotus to offer a fleet of bright yellow Lotus Elise SC at select outlets throughout Italy from the middle of this month. True to say you could probably have hired yourself a Lotus before to trolly round Italy, but with a big car hire company like Hertz in on the plan you can be pretty sure there will be a lot of takers.

VW Golf R 400 could get more than 400PS – which makes a bit of a nonsense of its name

The VW Golf R 400 (pictured) may not actually be an R 400 The Beijing Motor Show last month saw the debut of the VW Golf R 400, an extreme take on the VW Golf R with a full 400 PS (395bhp) at its disposal. When Volkswagen revealed the R 400 as a concept we did note that it looked more production-ready than concept, and it took VW less than a week to confirm that the Golf R 400 was indeed heading for production. Now, just to muddy the waters a bit (or raise expectations), VW’s R&D chief Heinz-Jakob Neusser has said that when the Golf R 400 does arrive it could well be with more than 400PS.

Saab sold to Spyker

General Motors' Saab division won't end up on the postbankruptcy scrap heap with Pontiac and Saturn. Just as Saab's death appeared imminent, the Swedish automaker was scooped up on Tuesday by Dutch supercar-maker Spyker Cars in a $74 million deal that has been in works for months. The deal is expected to close on Feb.