C5 Corvette 1997 - 2004 Nose Mask on 2040-parts.com

Councils to cut roadworks red tape

COUNCILS in England could soon have the power to cut red tape and make road works much quicker and more accountable. The plan is to introduce permits for any company that wants to dig up a road, which means they will have to co-ordinate their work with other companies and local authorities to reduce the impact of delays on the public. The permit scheme could come into force as early as April 2015 and means anyone applying for a permit to carry out road works will need to present a convincing case for the work.

2012 BMW X1 Facelift at New York Show

2012 BMW X1 Facelift The still quite new BMW X1 is getting a minor facelift for 2012 and will debut at the New York Auto Show. It’s really only a couple of years since the debut of the BMW X1, but BMW are already giving it a tweak and a titivate in a 2012 facelift designed, it would seem, to make the compact SUV seem a bit more upmarket; more in line with the rest of the BMW range. Revealed ahead of a debut at the New York Auto Show this month – after which it goes on sale in the US from $31.5k – the latest version of the X1 gets a new front bumper and grill with silver bars, deeper recessed fogs and silver detailing in the lower bumper to give the nose of the X1 more identity and make it a but more urban-warrior trendy.

Audi A6 (2011) first official pictures

Essentially an A7 fastback in its work clothes, the new Audi A6 saloon is lighter, greener and more tech-heavy than ever.  The mini-A8 styling is more evolutionary than revolutionary, but underneath the skin are some key key changes, including the addition of a hybrid drivetrain. Initially the A6 comes with a choice of five engines: a pair of petrols and three TDI units. And because all new A6 engines are linked to efficiency-enhancing systems like start-stop and energy recovery the average consumption across the range has been dropped by 19%.