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

Mercedes GLA goes subterranean

FOR SUV owners looking to test their cars’ off-road credentials, the obvious place to put them to the test probably isn’t nearly 200 metres underground. But that’s exactly where the new Mercedes GLA found itself as it descended into Winsford Rock Salt Mine, 620 feet beneath the Cheshire countryside. The working mine, which supplies much of the UK’s gritting salt for wintry roads, played host to four standard (apart from extra driving lights) GLA models, which were lowered down into the mine nose first before being let loose in the 130-mile network of tunnels.

Honda goes social with the Sounds of Civic songwriting contest

It seems all automakers are tapping the social-media networks these days. From the Ford Mustang Mayhem package to the Toyota Prius plural campaign, conventional wisdom is there's nothing a few thousand Facebook fans can't handle. The latest automaker to hop the train is Honda, which is sponsoring a creative songwriting competition called the Sounds of Civic to mark the debut of the 2012 Honda Civic.

XFR Jag the fastest ever

They took with them the usual holiday toys, but they remembered to pack a nice new Jaguar XFR, with a few mods necessary to run at Bonneville (roll cage, fire extinguishers, etc). They had a little fiddle with the ECU to derestrict it (and yield 600bhp) but, it is claimed, made no further mods apart from adding a spoiler at the back to stop the XFR taking off on the Salt Flats’ wide open spaces. Jaguar XFR breaks 225mph at Bonneville So what happened?