Beck Arnley 186-1215 Alternator/generator-alternator on 2040-parts.com

Jaguar slashes prices – in Australia

Jaguar has slashed prices across its range in Australia – by as much as £40,000 – as it fights for a bigger market share. But there’s also a feeling that all those years of protectionist import tariffs have inured Australians to the high price of luxury cars, and that car makers take advantage of that by keeping prices high, regardless of the level of taxes imposed on their products. That means something like a Rolls Royce Phantom costs £650k and a Porsche 911 starts at £150k.

2013 Honda CR-Z Facelift

The Honda CR-Z – Honda’s ‘Sporty’ hybrid – is getting a bit of a facelift for 2013 and will debut at the 2012 Paris Motor Show. It’s more than two years since the Honda CR-Z Hybrid arrived in the UK as the ‘sporty’ face of the Honda Insight, so Honda has decided it’s time for a bit of a facelift. But actually, the styling tweaks play second fiddle to the changes Honda are making under the bonnet, where they’ve upped the output of the 1.5 litre i-VTEC engine and electric motor from a combined 122bhp in the current model to…more.

VW Touareg BlueMotion hits the UK

Volkswagen has announced the VW Touareg BlueMotion for the UK Offering improved economy and lower emissions, the Touareg BlueMotion manages to drop in to a lower Co2 band by emitting 219g/km (a reduction from 244g/km on the V6 TDi) and it delivers 34mpg as opposed to 30.4mpg on the V7 TDi. These improvements have been achieved by the usual ECU tweaking, low rolling resistance tyres, some aerodynamic tweaks and a lower ride height (exactly the same sort of stuff that Ford has done on the EConetic range). And the penalty for the lower emissions and better economy is very slight, with the Touareg BlueMotion still managing the 0-60mph in 8.5 seconds and a top speed of  126mph.