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

Tesla Model S goes up in price

The electric Tesla Model S – which won’t arrive in the UK until at least late in 2013 – is going up in price in the US and gets a spec change. The Tesla Model S is perhaps, just perhaps, the only really credible electric car so far; a luxury ‘Sports’ saloon car that offers range almost comparable to an ICE car and, it seems, prices that aren’t an awful lot different. That makes it a far more appealing prospect as a replacement for an ICE car than anything we’ve previously seen.

Porsche Panamera GTS arrives at LA Show

Porsche Panamera GTS Now that we’re a couple of years in from the launch of the Porsche Panamera, Porsche think it’s about time we got to know the hard-edge side of the Panamera, so the LA Auto Show has seen the arrival of the Porsche Panamera GTS. Just like other GTS Porsches – particularly the Cayenne GTS – it’s probably best to think of the GTS as a Turbo without a Turbo and a bit of attitude thrown in to the mix.# Despite its harder-edged stance and sporting pretensions the 2012 Panamera GTS is atill a bit of a lump, coming in at 1920kg thanks, in part, to the standard 4WD setup. But even with the lard and drive to all four wheels, the 425bhp V8 can still pick up its skirts and hustle to 62mph in a very respectable 4.5 secondsa and on to a top speed of 179mph.

MIT researchers rethink electric-car batteries

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology say a new battery design for electric vehicles could be a lightweight and inexpensive alternative. The goal for the team's three-year project, launched in September 2010, is to have a functioning prototype ready to be engineered as a replacement for existing electric-car batteries. At this point in the project, the prototype uses a “semi-solid flow” to separate the two functions of a battery--storing energy and discharging it when needed--into separate physical structures.