Carbon Fiber Front Splitter, Mini Cooper S 02-11; Slight Damage on 2040-parts.com

Official: Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series

The new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series has been revealed ahead of going on sale in the Summer of 2013. The SLS Black Series gets the usual mix for a Mercedes Black Series model – more power and less weight – and uses the same 6.2 litre V8 as the regular SLS but with the wick turned up to 622 horses from the regular, but hardly wanting, 583 thanks to a new air intake, cams, boost tweaks and better cooling. The oily tweaks for more power – and some weight shedding (70kg) – means the SLS Black can get to 62mph in 3.6 seconds – 0.2 seconds quicker than the regular SLS – and top out at 196mph (due to the extra downforce).

Volvo S80 Executive & V70 R-Design launched

The Volvo V70 gets a bit of added butch with the launch of the V70 R-Design The last news we had from Volvo was that the S60 & XC60 R-Design were going to get more get up and go. Sadly, the extra oomph was reserved for the US. Today’s news, however, applies to Volvos on both sides of the Pond, with a new top-end S80 being revealed – the Volvo S80 Executive – and a butch take on the V70 – the Volvo V70 R-Design.

Richard Petty Driving Experience says you can skip the clutch pedal

With manual transmissions being phased out of everything from Fords to Ferraris, it's no surprise that beginning on Thursday, the Richard Petty Driving Experience will no longer require the use of a clutch pedal to learn how to drive a stock car. With the company's "Can't Drive a Manual? No Problem" campaign, the driving school will allow students to get behind the wheel of a stocker and be push-started so no shifting will be required.