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

BMW are rolling out their ‘BMW Genius’ programme across UK dealers

Even when you’re immersed in the latest car news day in and day out, it’s often quite tough to keep up with the new technologies car makers are offering, so many buyers must struggle to know exactly what their options are. That should be a job for the car salesman, but most car salesmen only worry about explaining how good the deal is and how it’s better than any other deal, so buyers often come away with a car that doesn’t fit their needs as well as it could. But with fewer new car buyers really wrapped up in performance and dynamics and more interested in the tech behind the wheels, BMW has been trying out an idea borrowed from Apple Stores by employing ’BMW Geniuses’ at 10 of their UK dealerships to explain the advantages of much of their technology to customers.

July 15: Bars and potholes

Last night I wound up leaving the office around midnight. With traffic finally cleared off the Santa Monica Freeway I flew down the road at between 105 and 115 km/hr. That's 65 to 71 mph.

Alfa Romeo SUV heading for Alfa showrooms – one day

We’ve heard it all before – and from some well placed people at Alfa Romeo – but an Alfa man has now stuck his neck out and confirmed publicly: There will be an Alfa Romeo SUV in the next two to three years. Damien Dally, who is Alfa’s Brand man in the UK, was speaking at the Telegraph Festival of Motoring this week and was quite happy to confirm the arrival of Alfa’s SUV although, just like all Alfa’s plans, it seems to be a few years behind what they were planning. Back in 2011 – two years after Alfa revealed it planned an assault on the US market, Alfa’s plan was to have an Alfa SUV ready by 2013 to spearhead their return to the US market.