Nissan 350z Manual Transmission on 2040-parts.com

Toyota Auris revised and Icon Plus trim added – price from £14,495

The 2014 Toyota Auris (pictured) gets a bit of a makeover Toyota has decided it’s time to make a few tweaks to the Auris – nearly 2 years on from its debut –  so both the Hatch and Estate are getting changes, the hybrid version gets more trim options and there’s a new trim level – Auris Icon Plus. The Auris Icon Plus comes with a new set of 16″ alloys, privacy glass, folding electric door mirrors and the option of a new Tungsten Blue Metallic. Inside, the Icon Plus gets heated front sports seats, the new Toyota Touch 2 with SatNav and cruise control (but only on the petrol and hybrid versions.

New options make Prius pricey

High-tech features and luxury options will push the redesigned Toyota Prius into new territory--namely, $30,000-plus. The 2010 Prius hybrid will offer options found on luxury cars: systems that automatically park the car in a parallel parking space and slow the vehicle when a crash is likely. But Toyota is aware of a new competitor--the 2010 Honda Insight, a hybrid that is a little smaller and expected to be less expensive than the Prius.

Ferrari P4/5 designer Castriota heads to Saab

Jason Castriota, the noted designer who created the Ferrari P4/5 and the Maserati GranTurismo, is taking his talents to Saab. He will be in charge of design for the Swedish automaker as it looks to develop a new image after being sold by former parent General Motors, Bloomberg News reports. Castriota will work on developing an upscale model of the 9-3 and will try to bolster Saab to better compete with BMW and Audi.