Blog on 2040Parts

The ultimate Christmas present – life-size Lego car in pictures

Tell someone you want a life-size Lego car complete with a working engine made from the mini bricks at this time of year and they might laugh it off as a festive joke. But while little ones all over the world might be playing with Lego Santa brought them this Christmas, we’ve got our eyes on another, rather more impressive model. It’s called the ‘Super Awesome Micro Project’ and it’s awesome.

Volvo S60, V60 & XC60 Polestar Black R – but only in Sweden

Volvo S60, V60 & XC60 Polestar Black R – but only in Sweden Volvo and Polestar’s relationship has recently yielded the new Volvo V60 Polestar with a fulsome 345 bhp and remarkably decent performance. Now, to celebrate Volvo Polestar’s double title (drivers –  Thed Björk - and constructors) in the 2013  Scandinavian Touring Car Championship they’re producing a limited number of Polestar ‘Black R’ models of the S60, V60 and XC60, but only for Sweden. Just like the normal Polestar upgrades, the extra power is more limited than the new V60 Polestar, with the T6 petrol getting 329 horses and the D5 diesel 230, with cosmetic tweaks including Ixion wheels, sports chassis, sports seats, Sensus Connect and more.

Honda Vezel Compact SUV goes on sale in Japan

Honda Vezel Compact SUV (pictured) goes on sale in Japan The Honda Vezel – the production version of the Honda Urban Concept – arrived at the Tokyo Motor Show last month as Honda’s take on the Nissan Juke, and it’s now gone on sale in Japan. Honda are claiming to cover allk the bases with the Vezel, stating it offers “the dynamic qualities of an SUV, the elegance of a coupé and the functionality of an MPV”. A car for every man (and woman), no less.

Lamborghini’s Hexagon Project finally delivers the Lamborghini Huracan (video)

Lamborghini’s Hexagon Project finally delivers the Lamborghini Huracan We wonder how much time, effort and money Lamborghini spent on their silly Hexagon Project to tease the new Lamborghini Huracan? Whatever the amount, it was too much. The irritating sequence of teaser videos has seen a trio of hapless lads from the UK attempt to unveil the replacement for the Gallardo before the world’s media – or Lamborghini – could manage to.

Mazda reveals Mazda2 EV with range-extender Wankel rotary engine

Mazda reveals Mazda2 EV with range-extender Wankel rotary engine It’s long seemed logical that a compact Wankel rotary engine – running at a constant speed – would be a great way of fitting electric cars with a range-extender option. Audi flirted with the idea of fitting the A1 e-tron with a Wankel engine a couple of years ago, but that got shelved. And Mazda – keepers of the Wankel flame – came up with the idea of a Wankel engine bolted in to an EV and powered by hydrogen last year, but it seems to0 have gone nowhere.

Barrett-Jackson and Ford team up to combat juvenile diabetes

Ford will auction off its first retail 2015 Mustang GT at the Barrett Jackson event on Jan. 18 to raise money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. JDRF is the country's leading organization funding Type 1 diabetes research.

Lamborghini Huracan: first pictures revealed

There’s no disguising it. Lamborghini’s all-new Huracan is a very angry car. It looks angry, its stance is angry, every line is like a slash from Surgeons Gone Wild and it’s even named after a bull so angry that it couldn’t be killed.

Lamborghini Huracan (2014) first official pictures

By Damion Smy First Official Pictures 20 December 2013 08:00 Say hello to the Lamborghini Huracán LP 610-4 – the replacement for the best-selling Lambo in history, the Gallardo. The new supercar’s brooding looks pack a more potent 601bhp V10 and Lamborghini’s first dual-clutch transmission into a lighter package that’ll eat the old Gallardo for breakfast… Loads – starting with the name. While rumours that the Gallardo replacement was to be called the ‘Cabrera’ (Spanish for ‘goat herder’ apparently) proved false, the new sports car at least follows the tradition of being named after a bull.

Cuba removes new car purchase restrictions

Granma, the Communist Party’s newspaper of record in Cuba, said Wednesday that the Council of Ministers approved regulations that “eliminate existing mechanisms of approval for the purchase of motor vehicles from the state.” That means the sale of new and used cars will be allowed to the public. Up until now, Cubans could buy and sell vehicles to each other, but they had to request permission from the government to purchase a new vehicle -- the main reason for the island's unique automotive landscape. The new laws will be enacted gradually, according to Granma, with a set minimum price.

Mazda may revive the rotary as a hybrid car powerplant

Mazda Motor Corp. has given a new lease on life to its rotary engine in the form of a Mazda 2 hatchback reconfigured as an extended-range hybrid. The prototype runs as an electric vehicle, with an electric motor powering the wheels.

BMW tuner Manhart creates 743-hp M6 Coupe

There are BMW M6 drivers out there for whom the stock output of 560-hp and 500 lb-ft of torque just aren't enough. At least that's what German tuner Manhart is betting on in unveiling their MH6 700 version of the M6 hardtop. Manhart has been tuning BMWs and only BMWs for 20 years, and they've worked on everything from the E30 3-series to the latest offerings from the Bavarian automaker.

Lexus RC-F Coupe teased again

Lexus RC-F Coupe teased again We had a tease from Lexus for a new F performance model to debut at the Detroit auto show next month, but Lexus declined to say what exactly it will be. Of course, it’s the new Lexus RC-F Coupe and even though Lexus don’t say as much, they do go as far as to say that the new F model will have ‘Half the doors, twice the roar’. So, we know what to expect.

Christmas Getaway Is Go

THINKING of making a break for it this Christmas? You’re in good company, as millions of people are expected to be on the move in the biggest day of the Christmas getaway, with festive travellers crowding on to trains, boats and planes. And if you’re planning to escape the lacklustre weather you’re not alone either, as a sizeable chunk of the four million heading abroad for the holiday period are flying from UK airports, with the Canary Islands one of the top destinations.

CAR Most Wanted of 2014: Alfa Romeo Giulia

By Georg Kacher First Official Pictures 20 December 2013 13:00 Strictly, the Alfa Romeo Giulia won’t go on sale in the UK until 2015, but given it was first slated for a 2012-dated (!) launch, we’ll allow it inclusion here. What’s the hold up? The first culprit was the all-important styling.

Driving safety proposal postponed

A PROMISED Green Paper on young driver safety has been postponed again - to the dismay of Labour and safety and motoring groups. The paper was to have been published at various stages this year but the Government has now pushed it back into 2014. Labour MP Richard Burden accused the Government of "kicking a decision into the long grass" while the RAC said the delay is "unfortunate".

Telematics box aids attempted murderer conviction

A ‘BLACK BOX’ telematics device fitted to a hire car has played a significant role in the conviction of an attempted murderer. The device had been previously installed into a car hired by Daniel Paita, 32; a car he was driving on the day he carried out an attack on a man in Glasgow. Paita had claimed he was nowhere near the area, but anti-motoring fraud experts at Asset Protection Unit Ltd (APU) were able to ascertain the car’s true whereabouts via a tracking device within the telematics unit.

Concept Car of the Week: Citroën Karin (1980)

With the 1980 Paris Motor show approaching and no new model to unveil, Citroën needed something to wow the crowds on its home turf. Trevor Fiore – who followed Robert Opron as the head of Citroën Design for a short time – gave the go-ahead for an innovative concept starting from a blank sheet of paper. The final concept was named Karin, and it was nothing short of breathtaking.

2014 Range Rover by OVERFINCH revealed

The 2014 Overfinch Range Rover (pictured) revealed The world is full of customisers who will take your Range Rover and make it more individual, but there is one such company that has the credibility of a history of making Range Rovers more appealing and, on the whole, doing it in a more subtle way than many of the newcomers – Overfinch. The 2014 Overfinch Range Rover has been revealed as ‘the world’s most luxurious SUV’ (according to Overfinch) with a huge range of options to make Overfinch’s Range Rover as individual as your tastes – and bank account – will allow. Overfinch has added their traditional three cooling apertures in the front bumper – complete with lacquered carbon fibre treatment – and the new back bumper, side skirts and roof spoiler are all made from carbon fibre too, perfectly in tune with the new Range Rover’s lighter ethos, and there’s a set of cast tailpipes by Overfinch at the back.

Mercedes digs at Jaguar for EATING its Chicken

Mercedes digs at Jaguar for EATING its Chicken Just a few days ago we had a great video from Jaguar poking fun at Mercedes advert for Magic Body Control that featured chickens demonstrating how MBC worked. Jaguar’s response was to mimic Mercedes opening to the video but following it up with Jaguar’s big cat eating Mercedes chickens. It was a great response and we hoped it would signal a nice bit of back and forth between the Germans and the British as they each tried to outdo the other.

Sir David Jason's Jaguar for sale

ONLY FOOLS and horses would normally buy an old Jaguar XJS, but it doesn’t take Inspector Morse to work out that owning this one would be just Granville. This is, of course, the luxurious old Jag that once belonged to much-loved actor Sir David Jason, who starred in some of Britain’s most successful and enduring TV series. It’s set to go under the hammer with Anglia Car Auctions at the King’s Lynn auction house in Norfolk on January 25.

Lamborghini Huracan: OFFICIAL

Lamborghini Huracan: OFFICIAL It’s always an event to see the arrival of a real new model from Lamborghini – rather than a tititavtion of an existing model – and the reveal of the Lamborghini Gallardo’s replacement is even more joyous as it brings to an end the daft attempt at a viral tease Lamborghini embarked on with the Hexagon Project. So here we have it – the Lamborghini Huracan LP-6104 – with styling that evolves to be more flowing – and more like the Aventador – all-wheel-drive and 602bhp from its 5.2 litre V10. Underpinning the Huracan is a new platform – that will also underpin the next Audi R8 – mixing aluminium and carbon fibre but, unlike the McLaren 12C, doesn’t make use of a carbon fibre monocoque.

New Honda Vezel crossover on sale in U.S. mid-2014; new turbo engines coming

Honda is ready to take a run at one of the U.S. auto industry's fastest-growing segments: compact, sporty crossovers. The Honda Vezel -- a small crossover based on Honda's redesigned Fit subcompact -- goes on sale in Japan on Dec.

Porsche And Jaguar Rise To Digital Prominence

THE LATEST automotive search data from leading independent digital marketing agency, Greenlight, reveals Porsche and Jaguar have replaced Toyota and Citroen to become two of the ten most popular car brands that UK consumers have been eyeing up online. Greenlight’s quarterly report identified the most popular search terms and phrases consumers used when they searched on Google UK for cars in November, and ascertained which car manufacturer and dealer sites were most visible to their searches. According to the firm’s research, over 11 million searches were made by consumers looking for cars online, up almost 5% on the previous quarter.

Fuel prices 'rising again'

THE AUTUMN dip in petrol prices failed to stimulate sales and the cost of filling up is rising again, according to the AA. Drivers in small market and coastal towns are particularly suffering from high prices, with the dearest petrol found in East Anglia and Wales, the AA said. It added that between mid November and mid December, the average UK price of petrol rose from 130.44p a litre to 131.17p, while diesel increased from 137.78p to 138.61p.

Audi lights up for the shortest day

AUDI UK has created a stunning series of low-light photos to celebrate its success this year, just in time for the shortest day of the year. The seven photos use a technique called ‘light painting’, where a stationary object in the dark is lit up by a small hand-held light to selectively brighten areas over a long exposure period to eventually create an unusual-looking end result. To the trained eye it looks like Audi has supplemented the photographer’s torch with static lighting to increase the beauty of the end result, but there’s no doubting their success.

Don't get caught on car hire 'slippery slope'

'DO IT YOURSELF' holidays are generally seen as a cheaper version of what can be steeply priced and inflexible package deals, particularly in the notoriously expensive ski market. But experts are warning that skiers who make their own way to the slopes this winter, instead of buying a package with transfers included, could be hit by hefty charges for car hire at the airport. According to iCarhireinsurance.com, a specialist insurer, some skiers hiring cars for New Year breaks could pay for their hire car twice over because of added 'extras'.

Lexus, Honda and Kia reveal teasers for 2014 Detroit auto show

By Ollie Kew First Official Pictures 19 December 2013 17:00 Ahead of the Detroit motor show in January 2014, Lexus, Honda and Kia have all received teaser shots of their new offerings. We’ve rounded the up into one bite-size story to cut to the heart of what we’re really looking at. After previously flashing us a shot of wheel and vent, Lexus has now unveiled a shot on what’s all-but-confirmed to be the new RC-F coupe’s vented bonnet.

CAR Most Wanted of 2014: Land Rover Freelander

By Ollie Kew First Official Pictures 19 December 2013 12:50 Settle down, Range Rover, and your Sport and Evoque cousins. It’s now Land Rover’s turn for a high-tech new 4x4 family, and it kicks off with the new Land Rover Freelander. Except, as CAR reported earlier in 2013, the Freelander replacement will bin that name – and, hopes Land Rover, the moniker’s poor reliability connotations.

Kia To Finally Show Its Sporty Side

KOREAN car maker Kia has released a teaser image ahead of a big reveal at next month’s Detroit motor show. Keen to take a slice of the global sports car market, the firm is to unveil a racy-looking concept car. To date Kia has resisted producing anything overtly performance orientated, although earlier this year it dipped its toe in the water with the launch of the Pro Cee’d GT ‘warm hatch’.

VW Jump Starts City Car's Appeal

VOLKSWAGEN has become the latest firm to launch a pure electric car in the UK. The firm is kicking off its campaign with an electric version of its already popular up! city car.