Subaru XV gets a price cut – down by £1300 on 1.6 litre versions

It wasn’t a bad starting point for an able mid-sized crossover – a high-riding Impreza, in all but name –  but it wasn’t the cheapest offering in the class. But now, with the Yen being a bit kinder to Japanese car makers, Subaru has decided to nudge the price a bit lower to start the XV range off below £20k for the first time. The price drop for the XV only applies to the 1.6 litre petrol versions, but you can now get the entry-level XV 1.6i S for a more affordable £19,995 rising to £23,415 for the XV 1.6i SE with the Lineartronic gearbox, reductions across the range of £1300.

Lincoln to replace waterfall grille

Love it or hate it, Lincoln's waterfall grille is on the way out, according to sources familiar with plans for the updated MKS sedan and MKT crossover coming next spring. One source said the MKS and MKT grille will be "completely different" from the current grille, which has been controversial. He said the new grille is "not as pronounced" as the waterfall and "more elegant." Ford might show the revised MKS and MKT at the Los Angeles auto show in November, says a Ford source.

Up in smoke: Smokey Yunick's garage burns

Legendary NASCAR mechanic Smokey Yunick closed the "Best Damn Garage In Town" long before he died in 2001. But the main concrete-block, tin-roofed building on Beach Street in Daytona Beach, Fla., remained a stop on the NASCAR history trail for visiting faithful until Monday night, when fire destroyed the building. The building housed Yunick's office and a medium-size garage and more recently served as office space for Carbon Press, the publishing company that Yunick's daughter, Trish, operates and which produces products that include Yunick's salty 1,100-page autobiography and biographies of other racing personalities.