New Febi Engine Rocker Arm, 33150 on 2040-parts.com

BARONS ENDS YEAR ON HIGH

AUCTION HOUSE Barons has celebrated a successful classic car auction with 44 successful sales and a 1959 Aston Martin DB MKIII DHC making £175,000. The classic Aston had belonged to the same family since it was three-months-old and was joined by another DB MKIII example, a rolling restoration project that fetched £70,000. Another notable sale was a "time-warp" 1970 Ford Escort Delux MkI, which had covered just 2,600 miles in 40 years.

Armor-plated SUV among extravagant debuts at Top Marques Monaco show

While AutoWeek editors were pounding the pavement at the New York auto show last week, the world's silly rich were nodding polite approval at the Top Marques Monaco show. Included in the debuts were Gemballa, Fisker, Keating, Tirrito and Conquest, the latter of which showed off a ridiculously large, armor-plated SUV called the Knight XV that reportedly took organizers three hours just to maneuver it through the hall doors. Lest we forget that we're all human, Top Marques Monaco also had its “Black Friday at Wal-Mart” moments: According to organizers, Gemballa's world premiere of the Tornado was cut short after it was purchased “within 16 seconds of the show doors opening by a sheikh eager to have a piece of the action.” Full wrap-up release from Top Marques Monaco below.

Hyundai i40 / Sonata spied

Spy shot of the front end of the new Hyundai i40 The fact is that Hyundais are rapidly becoming the match of their competitors from Europe and Japan. The build quality is great; the price point is great and they now have some real design flair to them. We reviewed the Hyundai i20 back in January and found it to be a terrific little car.