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

BMW 3 Series GT revealed

The BMW 3 Series Grand Turismo – the third model in the BMW 3 Series range – has been revealed ahead of a public debut at the Chicago and Geneva Motor Shows. Now, BMW has revealed a little brother for the not exactly super successful 5 Series Grand Turismo, in the guise of the new BMW 3 Series GT, a slightly ungainly looking 3 Series that’s almost as big as a 5 Series and will cost around £3,000 more than the 3 Series saloon. Stretched by 110mm in the wheelbase from the 3 Series Touring – and a full 200mm longer – the 3 Series GT will, say BMW, offer the dynamics of the saloon with the practicality of the Touring.

Range Rover Evoque production starts

The First Production Range Rover Evoque rolls out at Halewood You could be forgiven for thinking that the Range Rover Evoque was already in production. But you’d be wrong. The apparent plethora of Evoques which have turned up at every car event of 2011 – and a fair few non-car events too – are all pre-production models, built by Land Rover to promote their forthcoming baby Range Rover.

Better Place Electric Car visitor centre opens

Better Place have opened a visitor centre in Israel to demonstrate their battery swap technology for electric cars Last October we wrote about a start-up company in Israel – Better Place – that had a new way forward for electric cars by taking the purchase of battery packs out of the equation, and was developing a system for ‘Battery Swap’ stations where electric car owners could drive in and swap their battery pack for a fully-charged one in a few minutes. That story first brought to our attention our favourite quote of last year – by Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn – who said “A hybrid is like a mermaid: if you want a fish, you get a woman; if you want a woman, you get a fish.” Which probably explained why Nissan – and its partner Renault – got involved with Better Place. Better Place aims to address the main concerns of electric car drivers by making the battery packs in electric cars ‘swappable’.