Mercury Force 120 Engine on 2040-parts.com

BMW Brilliance New Energy Vehicle – it’s a plug-in BMW 5-Series Hybrid

The BMW Brilliance plug-in The Shanghai Motor Show is looming, and we’re starting to see pre-show reveals cropping up. But this is one reveal that has no real impact on anywhere but China, but is interesting nonetheless. BMW’s partner in China is Brilliance, and they build a China-only LWB 5-Series.

2013 Audi A3 Sportback revealed (+video)

Audi has revealed the 2013 A3 Sportback ahead of a Paris 2012 debut, the five door version of the new A3. The new A3 Sportback is bigger than both the new A3 – by 35mm – and the old A3 Sportback – by 58mm – and it get a bigger boot than both – 380 litres with the seats up and 1220 litre with the seats down. There’s not a lot to say about how it looks, because it looks just like the new A3 with an extra pair of doors and a set of roof rails, but that extra length does mean a small amount more legroom in the back.

Treasures from West Germany lurk at Sonoma Raceway

In my role of Chief Justice of the 24 Hours of LeMons Supreme Court, I travel to Sonoma Raceway, aka Sears Point, at least twice per year. Most of the time I'm there, I'm stuck disciplining miscreant racers with incomprehensible penalties, but every so often I slip away in my Race Organizer Review car to shoot some action photos of the competitors. A good area for shooting LeMons cars is from the access road that runs parallel to the track between turn 10 and turn 11, and getting there takes me past an area of shops and garages… and I always spot some interesting cars parked there.