Kawasaki F7 175 Bushwacker Swingarm on 2040-parts.com

BMW vs Winter: how to beat the freeze

By Phil McNamara First Official Pictures 17 December 2013 09:00 Winter: the long nights, slippery roads and punishing weather can turn driving from a pleasure into a chore. But to ensure you get home safely this winter – or merely to entertain you with our antics – we’ve created some stories and videos of us tackling wintry conditions in cars. • WINTER TYRES: we took an M3 on summer tyres and a 435i coupe on ADD LINK winter tyres to Pirelli’s Milanese test track, to pit the two cars in a wintry drag race, brake test and timed laps of the circuit • xDRIVE: Ben Barry drove an all-wheel drive 330d Touring to Sölden in the Austrian Alps, home of the inaugural round of this winter’s Alpine Skiing giant slalom.

Bentley Blowers take on the 2013 Mille Miglia

The first is the No.2 Team Car raced by Tim Birkin – one of the Bentley Boys – at Le Mans and bought back by Bentley in 2000. Perhaps best known for its tussle with Mercedes’ awesome 7 litre Kompressor at Le Mans in 2013, the car has been regularly put to good use round the world since Bentley bought it back. The second Blower was originally a Bentley demonstrator, completed in 1930, and has a Vandan Plas Open Sports Four Seater body and after its life as a demonstrator was sold off but bought back in 1997 and it too has been carrying the historical banner for Bentley around the world ever since.

EVs rev up for Act 2

After years of preproduction buzz, the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf are generating interest among the people who count most: buyers. Most owners are charging their cars at home without any issues. They brag about cruising past the gas station.