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

BMW i3 LWB and i8 Roadster planned; BMW i4 & i5 mooted

BMW are already planning more of the BMW-i Range You didn’t really think that BMW would stop with just the BMW i3 City car and the BMW i8 supercar, did you? Surely not, especially after we told you last year that BMW had trademarked all the i-numbers – i1 through to i9. Those BMW i trademarks would suggest that BMW are planning on having at least a pair of cars that sit below the compact i3 – a bit hard to really figure out what they will be – and perhaps a halo grand saloon at the top in the i9.

GM to double size of battery lab

General Motors says it will spend $8 million to double the size of its Global Battery Systems Lab, which the company claims is the largest and most technologically advanced automotive battery lab in the United States. GM says the expansion will speed up the development of hybrid and electric vehicles, such as the upcoming Chevrolet Volt, by improving on-site testing of battery cells and systems. When finished, the lab will be 30,000 square feet bigger than it is now, for a 63,000-square-foot total.

Renault to unveil Alpine-branded concept car at Monaco GP

Renault is set to unveil an Alpine-branded concept car at this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix. The A110-50 – so named to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the oh-so-pretty A110 rally car – is clearly a development of the 2010 DeZir concept car although with only one leaked image to analyze, it's difficult to know by what amount it has changed. Clearly it has been subjected to the addition of a myriad of additional details, surfaces, inlets, outlets and various pieces of racing addenda however that, on the little evidence we have, appear to have added drama to the detriment of the refreshingly non-aggressive nature of the DeZir.