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Ferrari F450 – due at Frankfurt in September ’09

Rendering of the Ferrari F450 - due to show at Frankfurt in September and go on sale in 2010 But the new Ferrari F450 is getting closer, and spy shots of the F450 have enabled Auto Express to come up with a rendering that is, we reckon, near as dammit to the finished article due to be shown at Frankfurt in September. Sporting a pair of big side vents that have been enlarged to help the engine breathe and the brakes cool, the F450 is different enough to the F430 to set it apart as a new car – not just an evolution. The F450 is going to have to go upmarket to compete with the likes of the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4, and in an effort to compete Ferrari has upped the capacity of the F430, increased the rev limit and produced an engine that, in the F450, should deliver something around 500bhp.

MINI Countryman goes WRC

MINI Countryman WRC - MINI are going rallying again Back when Adam was a lad (as was I, coincidentally) Mini were big in rallying. In fact they wiped the floor with just about everyone else in the ’60s, winning the Monte Carlo Rally three times in the decade. And now BMW are planning a proper foray back in to WRC with a MINI Countryman WRC prepared in conjunction with Prodrive and featuring a 1.6 litre turbo from BMW Motorsport and AWD.

'Snake & Mongoose' movie review

There's another great motorsports rivalry being celebrated cinematically this month -- while "Rush" grabs all the global headlines, the drag racing biopic "Snake & Mongoose" has all the same elements that drove Lauda and Hunt -- minus the world stage. Hard to believe, but professional drag racing wasn't always a glamorous, high-budget affair with corporate hospitality suites and top drivers flying to races in private jets. "Snake & Mongoose" takes us back to an era when drivers needed that $500 win money to buy gas to get to the next race -- and held grudges against track owners who only paid $400.